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    The true bay’a

    The true bay'a

    بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
    و الصلاة و السلام على أشرف المرسلين
    و على اله و اصحابه أجمعين

    The true bay’a

    We heard Shaykh Muhammad Fawzi al-Karkari (قدس الله سره) saying during a Mudhakara on Saturday 07/10/2017:

    Whoever comes and asks for the Light, we give it to Him, without giving any importance to his past, whether good or bad. Then, know that the Murid can never remain permanently in the vision of the Light because this vision is a presence (Udhur), yet we make sure that these moments of presence are more numerous than moments of carelessness. Know, O Mourid, that the Bay’a under the shadow of the tree is the most important thing for the Muslims. When the companions contracted their commitment (bay’a) under the tree, the Prophet ﷺ asked them if they knew the different conditions of the bay’a? he said unto them, Worshiping Allah, the One, with no associate, the destruction of the idols, the struggle and the striving in the way of Allah, even if it were concerning their own parents.

    When the Murid comes to me and asks me to give him bay’a, I do not consider him as asking for the bay’a but rather, it is as if he said to me: “show me the Light, please”. Only the one who has spent a long time in my company and who applies to the letter what is required of the Sunnah, that one, then may be considered as having taken the Bay’a. Know that the Bay’a is an immense reality, the bay’a is not to stay with your legs lying on your couch, all you loose that you are, and to come to the shaykh that when you have a few days of leave! The bay’a is for those who provide the efforts, who get tired and who suffer for the Way! And how to recognize those who really took the bay’a? When they encounter the greatest trials, the greatest troubles, you find them right in the Path. Those I only count on the fingers of one hand although thousands have, in the day of today, seen the Light of Allah. If tomorrow the shaykh would show his anger on the mouridine … who could bear it? Maybe one … or two … no more. The reality of the bay’a is that you stay firm in the Way and this in the very heart of hell! Not that you follow a Way leading to hell, but that you hold it there, even if it was the price to pay.

    At first, when the Murid comes to us, we give him the Light as a gift! This is a gift! O death, do not forget it! You did not make any effort, and we did not ask you for part of it but if you want the real bay’a, that of the pleasure then know that I will take everything that you hold the most… we will ask you what you have most dear… if you love your children … give me your children … if you love pecuniary goods, I will take them… if you love your nafs, I will take it too! I will make you taste a series of trials until your nafs is entirely withdrawn from you. And when you have given us what is most dear to you, then we will say to you: “Welcome among the people of the bay’a (ahl al Bay’a).”

    That’s why when someone comes to us and says, “Give me the bay’a!” We answer: “The difficulty is not to take the bay’a, but to know if we will keep our commitment”. The bay’a is for those who travel, who forsake this world and know that the bay’a is not to make any way appear, but to make appear in this world the traces of the Prophet ﷺ. This is where the disciple makes a huge mistake when he imagines that the Way belongs to the Shaykh … know that the Shaykh has no right in “creating” or founding any Way … This is the path of Allah!

    By the disciple Jamil Zaghdoudi

    About the reality of the Prophet

    About the reality of the Prophet

    بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
    و الصلاة و السلام على أشرف المرسلين
    و على اله و اصحابه أجمعين

    About the reality of the Prophet

    A man asked Bara ‘ibn’ Azib: “was the face of the prophet like a sword? “No, rather, it was like the moon” Abu ‘Isa reported it in his jami’ and said “hassan sahih”. He also mentions it in ash shama’il al-muhammadiyyah. The authenticity of the hadith is therefore not the subject of discussion. A man among the tabi’in asked the noble companion, Bara ‘ibn Azib, to describe the prophet ﷺ, postulating that his face was as resplendent as the sword drawn from the scabbard. But sayyiduna Bara’, impregnated with the prophetic light answered him in the negative. On the contrary, the face of the prophet ﷺ was as resplendent as the moon. This marks the difference between sahaba and other men as to the reality of the prophet ﷺ. Indeed, the veiled man from the prophet will see him as an ordinary man, as the people of Quraish claimed: “what is this messenger who eats and walks in the markets? If an angel were sent to us, there would be with him a warner” [s25.v7].
    These people remain on the bodily appearance of man and do not see behind this nafs trap the deep reality of man.

    Unlike the sahaba … those ones, from their meeting with the prophet ﷺ, apprehended him according to his profound reality, that of a light sent by Allah to guide men towards the real and exclusive adoration of the Unique. That is why sayyiduna Bara ‘described him as a moon, that is to say, a luminous star, full of light and which dispenses light. He therefore apprehended this profound reality because he himself received in his heart the light of the prophet and can appreciate its value. Indeed, the difference between the sahaba and the disbelievers of Quraish is that the firsts recognized the source of light which is the prophet and have accepted to receive it in their heart. They have a luminous heart, shining with light from the Messenger of Allah.

    Al-Hattab al-Maghribi said:
    “The difference between those who meet the Prophet and the others is that the encounter with al-Mustafa makes it possible to have the heart illuminated in an instant whereas it is not the case with others people, even if we meet them for a long time.”
    [Mawwahibb al jalil, sharh mukhtasar Khalil].

    Keep away from your mind the idea that this is a metaphor! Oh no, it is indeed a light that the prophet ‘alayhis salatu was salam throws into the heart of his sahaba and gives them access to the sources of divine knowledge. As a result, the companions never ceased to compare the prophet with the bright moon from which flows the light that illuminates their hearts.

    Sayyiduna ‘Umar ibn al Khattab versified:
    “If you was something else than a human you will be the luminaire in a full moon night”
    [Mentioned by al Qastallani in mawwahibb al laduniyyah]

    and the Madina’s children intoned when he arrived in the city:
    “The full moon appeared to us from thaniyah al wada”
    [Dalail an nubuwwa de al Bayhaqi]

    Know then that the veiled person from the prophetic reality will see in him only a body that is born, grew, drunk and eaten and died. This is the vision of a fool because it is the vision of Abu Jahl who compared himself to the prophet ﷺ in the lineage and denied him any special character. As for the intelligent, he will take advantage of the hadith mentioned above, showing that in the ruh state, the prophet was already a bright light. And that light is his primary nature. Better, his appearance in the world was accompanied by his light. It is reported in shu’b al-imam that the prophet ﷺ said: “My mother had visions like those of the mothers of the prophets. The mother of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, at the time of childbearing, a light that illuminated up to the palaces of the Sham.”
    [Narrated by Ahmed in his Musnad, by Tabarani in al-awsat, Ibn Hibban in his sahih and others].

    It is clear from this that the prophet ﷺ is a light by which Allah illuminated the existence and through which He brought it out of darkness into light. Its nature of brilliant light does not escape the one who studies the sunna because there are many indications on this reality. O reader, look at how Hassan Ibn Thabit recognized the prophecy in the personality of Sayyidina Muhammad! The qurayshites paid him to denigrate the noble son of the noble. He stood at a hill to have a defect from which to make his satire. But dazzled by the lights of the Chosen One, he turned back, gave the Meccans their money and converted to Islam. In front of the astonished quraychis, he intoned:

    When i saw his resplendents lights,by fear i put my hands in front of my eyes
    fearing that his splendor would sweep my sight away, because i can’t watch him beyond of my capacity
    a spirit of Light in a moon body,such as a precious garment embroidered with stars

    Such is the discriminant between the blind and he who see. The sahaba recognized in the prophet the light sent as mercy. The Meccans denied it and fell into disbelief. But also knows that there is even among those who accept the message of Muhammad those who do not appreciate it to its true value. How many are content to see him as a mere man? How many people say that they apply his sunna and limit themselves to wearing the qamis and the beard? In reality, to know the prophet is to recognize that he is the primordial light from which existence came. To follow his sunna is to enter the luminous path which he has traced and which will not cease to be so long as the sun does not rise to the west. Sayyiduna Ibn ‘Ajibah al-Hassani establishes the hierarchy between those who claim to know the prophet after his physical death: “Anyone who has seen the Prophet sallAllahu’ alaihi wa sallam in dreams is part of the elite,anyone who has seen him in state of awakening in its carnal appearance is part of the elite of the elite. And anyone who has seen him awakened in his luminous spiritual form is part of the elite of the elite of the elite“.

    So let’s get people of the elite! If you are not, look for the one who will get you there. Because the elite and the masses see the same thing and draw a different meaning from it.

    What is a Waliy? What is the proof of the authenticity of his sanad?

    What is a Waliy? What is the proof of the authenticity of his sanad?

    بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
    و الصلاة و السلام على أشرف المرسلين
    و على اله و اصحابه أجمعين

    What is a Waliy? What is the proof of the authenticity of his sanad?

    In a first step it would be better to define precisely What is a waliy … Allah ﷻ says: “Allah is the waliy of those who have faith: He makes them come out of darkness into the light.” [Surat al-Baqara, verse 257].

    And in another verse, Allah speaks of a group of His servants whom He calls awliya (plural of waliy): “Verily Allah’s Awliya will be safe from fear, Shall not be afflicted”
    [Surah Yunus, verse 62].

    Through these two verses, therefore, it appears that the divine Name “al-Waliy” is a Name shared between Allah and His servant. The fact that a servant becomes a waliy does not mean that he becomes al-Waliy (Allah), but rather that he has the characteristic of His Name “al-Waliy”. Just as one does not say of a generous person that he is al-Karim, who is a Name among the Names of Allah, but rather that he is karim, in the sense that he takes part of Characteristics that are fully fulfilled only in Allah alone, under His Name al-Karim. It remains to be determined, then, how Allah manifests Himself in His creation under His Name al-Waliy, for if the thing seems obvious from a linguistic point of view concerning Names such as al-Rahim, al -Karim, al-Ghafur, al-Mu’izz … it can be a little less related to His Name al-Waliy.

    The answer, as we read very clearly in the aforementioned verse, is: “Allah is the waliy of those who have faith: He brings them out of darkness into the light.”. Therefore, just as someone of hakim is by definition someone known for his wisdom, the waliy is, based on the aforementioned verse, someone who brings people out of darkness into the Light. Allâh ﷻ said, “Say: “Are they equal, the blind and the one who sees (basîr)? Or are they equal, darkness and light?””
    [Surat ar-Ra’d, verse 16].

    Darkness is indeed known, just as the Light is, and the fact that the example of the blind and of the one who is endowed with a spiritual vision (basîr) is cited before the evocation of darkness and The Enlightenment refers to the fact that the latter, both of them, are perceptible by the eyes. To support this, we may quote the Imam ibn Qayyim el-Jawziy in his work “ar-Roûh”: “When The heart is submerged by the Light, then it overflows at the four corners and runs from the heart to the eyes and is then unveiled at the sight of the eyes, in proportion to the intensity of this Light.”

    Sayidanâ Ahmad ibn ‘Ajiba, in his book Iqadh ul-himam: “When love and service grow, the light of your eye of the heart becomes stronger than that of sight, and Light of sight disappears in the Light of the eye of the heart to see only the subtle meanings and the timeless lights perceived by the eye of the heart”. Therefore, the Waliy is someone who draws people out of darkness into the Light, that is to say, someone through whom Allah illuminates with His Light the heart of Him whom He desires to be, Between His servants. And “Whom Allah deprives of light has no light.”
    [Sura an-Nour, verse 40].

    This Light is projected into the heart of the murid Karkariy at the time of the bay’ah with Sayidinâ Muhammad Fawzi al-Karkariy (radiAllahu anhu), as testified by the numerous testimonies. The mourid of the tariqa Karkariya have thus personally tasted the vision of this Light and thus possess undeniable proof, with the Quranic verse in support, that their Sheykh (radiAllahu ‘anhu) is a Waliy bringing people out of darkness to The Light.What is now to know if the sanad of a Sheykh is genuine, we must rely on the people of reference in its field. A person with a sanad in the science of Hadith, for example, will have to bring back a written proof from the hand of the Sheykh with whom he has acquired this science, this Sheykh himself having written authorizations from the Shouyoûkh to whom he has collected Science, which themselves have an authorization from their own Shouyoûkh, and so on until the Prophet. This applies to the sciences contained in books … as to the science of Tassawwuf, which is the essence and the mother of all the sciences, whether religious or secular… this science is the science of hearts, ink of hearts, is not that of books. “Say: “If the sea were an ink to write the words of my Lord, surely the sea would be exhausted before the words of my Lord were exhausted, even if We would bring him his equivalent as reinforcement””.
    [Surah al-Kahf, verse 105].

    Now the words of Allah, which we are speaking of, are not made up of letters which are inscribed on a support with the help of known ink … for His Word is not made up of a letter, It is not of words. His Word is not something written on paper, for Allah ﷻ says: “No! I swear by the positions of the stars (in the firmament). And it’s really a solemn oath, if you knew. And it is certainly a noble Quran, in a well-kept Book that only the purified ones touch.”[Surat al-Waqi’a, verses 75-79].
    Now a non-Muslim may very well fall on a copy of the Qur’an one day, take it in his hands and leaf through it … Therefore, this verse speaks to us of something quite different.

    The science of Tassawwuf is in fact the science which enables the human being to purify himself until he reaches that “Well-kept Book that only the purified ones touch”, for which reason no book can contain it. The science of Tassawwuf Is not a science that is inscribed on paper with the aid of a pen and black ink but rather the science that the Sheykh performed grave in the heart of the murid with the help of the Alif of pure Tawhid . As for his ink, it is “al-qabdatu n-noûrniya”, the Muhammadian Light: a Light from which flowed the whole of creation, as evidenced by Hadîth qudsî: “When I wanted to create creation, I took a handful of My Light and said, “Be Muhammad! “And I then created everything from His Light”.

    Who holds in his heart even an atom of this Light, the universes are bent in him, and with them all the known and unknown sciences. To the extent of the efforts and sincerity of the mourid in the Way of Allah, the Sheykh reveals little by little these known and unknown sciences contained in the universes and which he, at the bay’ah, placed in the Heart of his disciple. These sciences are sciences which study without paper or pencil, without mouth or ear, simply with the eyes: those of the head and that of the heart, through the mouchahada. So to go back to the article, which is how to determine whether a Sheykh of Tassawwuf has an authentic sanad directly related to the Messenger of Allah, it is sufficient to know whether or not it exempts Disciples of this azaliy ink (uncreated, outside the infinite), that Light of which Sayidunâ Muhammad ﷺ was created, that Light from which all the sciences spring. For it is by this Light that the path will accomplish the reading of Ism al-Moufrad Allah, which is, it must be said, the only thing dealt with in the Tassawwuf, and in which one finds all things. Let us understand, then, that it is by this Light, and only by it, that the secrets of divine knowledge are revealed. This Light, which, when an ounce is projected into the believer’s heart, is projected into him; And when it escapes him, it is all that escapes him. And this is the meaning of the words of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ: “I have left you on a clear path by night and by day, and misleads only one who is doomed to perdition.”
    [Ahmad, ibn Mâjah].

    The first thing that the mourid must undertake in his search for divine knowledge will be to seek a Sheykh with an authentic sanad which directly links him to the Messenger of Allah, whose proof is neither a written diploma nor Special ties, or the recognition of a large number of people, among them maybe influential people… but simply the vision by the murid of this Light. Then and only then will the murid be certain that he has put his soul into the hands of a Sheikh with an idhn (permission to lead a mourid to Allah) from Allah and His Prophet. Then, and only then will the verse be realized for him: “Those who swear allegiance to you will only swear to Allah: the hand of Allah is above their hands. Anyone who violates the oath only violates it to his own detriment; And whoever fulfills his pledge to Allah, He will soon bring him a great reward.”
    [Surat al-Fath, verse 10].

     

    Proof of the passage from death to life

    Proof of the passage from death to life

    بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
    و الصلاة و السلام على أشرف المرسلين
    و على اله و اصحابه أجمعين

    This passage from death to the life of the traveller on the Way of Allah is clearly described in the Qur’an, and Allah says in this sense: “Did the one who was dead, whom We brought back to life and to whom We have assigned a Light with which he walks among people, is like the one who is in the darkness without being able to get out of it? Thus they have embellished the disbelievers with what they do.” [Surat al-An’am, verse 122].

    This renaissance, or indeed this true birth to be more just, is systematically accompanied, as the aforementioned verse states precisely, by the granting by Allah ﷻ of a Light to His servant. This Light is the Light visible through the eye of the heart, a Light that corresponds to the maqâm of Imân, which is the spiritual degree higher than the maqâm of Islâm and lower than that of the Ihsân. It is also related according to sayidinâ ibn ‘Abbâs (radiAllâhu’ anhumâ) that the Prophet ﷺ said: “The Imân is a Light that Allâh places in the heart of His believing servant, Increases and decreases according to the performance of pious works “. And this Divine Light is obviously visible and apprehensible by the eye of the heart, as Sayidunâ Ahmad ibn ‘Ajiba explains in his commentary on the Hikam: “When love and service grow, the light of your heart’s eye becomes stronger than that of sight, and the light of sight disappears in the light of the eye of the heart to see only the subtle meanings and the timeless lights perceived by the eye of the heart.” [Iqadh ul-himam]

    Finally, it will be for the Mourid to go in search of the Sheykh who will transmit to him that idhn by which his heart will be elevated and by which he will be able to evoke the Name of Allah as living, that is to say by benefiting from the fruits of his dhikr in this world before the other. And these fruits are manifested through the realization of the vision of the Divine Light in the manner mentioned in the following verse: “Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. His light is similar to a niche where there is a lamp. The lamp is in a (container of) crystal and it looks like a star of great brightness …” [Sura an-Noûr, verse 35]. Then only the heart of the murid will be one of the “houses” mentioned in the following verse: “In houses (of hearts) of which Allah has permitted the elevation and His Name is invoked there; They glorify in them morning and afternoon, men (rijâl) whom neither trade nor barter distracts from the invocation of Allah” [Sura an-Noûr, verset 36 and 37].

    Let us note in passing that the word “rijâl” actually refers in the Qur’an to the accomplished human being in what it was created, that is to say according to the known tafsir of sayidinâ ibn ‘Abbas (radiallahu ‘Anhumâ): the knowledge of Allâh. In the Quran, the use of the word “dhakar” is used in the case of man as the opposite or complement of woman, as in the following verse: “This is what Allah enjoins you concerning your children: to the son (dhakar), a share equivalent to that of two daughters.” [Sura an-Nissa, verse 11]. While for the people accomplished in the knowledge of Allah, they are concerned by this verse: “And in between the two there will be a wall, and on al-Araf will be people (rijâl) who will recognize everyone by their characteristic features. And they will cry to the people of Paradise: “Peace be upon you! They did not come in, although they wished.”” [Surat al-A’raf, verse 46]. The real “rajoul” (singular of rijâl), or Man with a big “M” is not the human being who will distinguish himself from woman as woman, but rather the one who will make her heart one of the “houses of Allah” and will take over the “woman” that is in him, that is, his own nafs, just as our mother Hawa represents the nafs of our father Adam (‘alayhima s- salam).

    And on this subject our Sheykh sidi Muhammad Fawzi al-Karkariy (radiAllahu ‘anhu) often says that in the world in which we live, many women are to be regarded as men (rajoul), and conversely, Men are to be regarded as women (nafs).

    Pass the camel of your nafs in the eye of the alif

    Pass the camel of your nafs in the eye of the alif

    بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
    و الصلاة و السلام على أشرف المرسلين
    و على اله و اصحابه أجمعين

    By walking along the White Way (al-mahajjat al-bayda’), the path is moving towards the realization of the Faith, the ultimate fulfillment of which is found in the Word “la ilâha illa Allah” but this is of course accessible That after having cleared the way of all that was there of cumbersome … that is to say after having cleared its nafs of all the defects preventing its elevation to the state of mind.

    In this sense, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ says:
    “Faith is made up of sixty, or seventy and some branches. The best of these is the Word “la ilâha illa Allah”, and the lowest is to rid the path of what obstructs it. And modesty is a branch of faith.”
    [Sahih Muslim]

    So that the door of the heaven of the Spirit may be opened to them, the believers will have to put their souls into the hands of a Shaykh educator … a Shaykh who will transmit a Light indicating the way to follow: “and by stars [the people] are guided” [s16.v16]. The Shaykh is the one who will educate the disciple and allow him to remove the defects of his nafs encumbering his way to Truth.

    Allâh ﷻ says:
    “Those who deny Our signs and depart from pride, the gates of heaven will not be opened to them, and they will enter Paradise only when the camel (jamal) penetrates into the eye of the needle.”
    [S7.v40]

    The word jamal (جمل) / camel is written in Arabic with three letters:
    Jîm (ج), whose numerical value is 3
    Mîm (م), whose numerological value is 40
    Lâm (ل), whose numerological value is 30.
    We obtain a total value of 73 for the word jamal, which refers us to the above-mentioned Hadith informing us that the Faith consists of seventy and some branches.

    And in his tafseer, sayidi Najm ad-Din Kubra (radiallahu ‘anhu) explains this verse by saying:
    ““Those who treat lies Our Signs”: these are the good Sunnahs descended and established by the Prophets, as well as what Allah ﷻ made appear through His Saints as prodigies and as Sciences … wonders And of the sciences which these denigrate. “And who depart from pride”: who have prided themselves to the point of not accepting and believing in these signs. “The gates of heaven shall not be opened unto them”: the gates of the heavens of the heart, which lead to the divine Presence. “And they will not enter paradise” the Paradise of Proximity “only when the camel (jamal)”: the camel of the ego swollen with pride “will penetrate into the eye of the needle” From the entrance into the Way leading to the education and purification of the nafs that enjoins evil until it becomes peaceful and deserves to be addressed in these terms: “Return to thy Lord” [s89.v28].
    This means that the nafs is so impressive that it is compared to the camel, so that it can not enter Paradise, or in other words can not immerse itself in the Haqiqa, except after having been purified by The rules of the Shari’a and the propriety of the Way … until, through the education received, it loses its bad characteristics and is cut off from all attachment to other than Allah … and becomes A thousand times finer than a hair. Then she will enter the eye of the needle of the fana (annihilation in Allah) and will be introduced into the Paradise of the baqa (persistence by Allah).”
    [At-ta’wilate an-Najmiya fi tafsir al-Ichâriy as-Sufiy]

    Concerning the verse: “They will not enter Paradise until the camel (jamal) enters the eye of the needle”. Ibn Abbas, Ikrima and ibn Jubayr (radiAllahu anhum) read: “… that when the big rope (jummal) penetrates into the eye of the needle.”

    In the Arabic language, al-jummal refers to the assembly of several strings to form a larger and stronger one, used on boats, or to climb the date-trees.
    [See tafsir al-hidaya ila boulough an- Nihaya – Makkiy ibn Abi Tâlib]

    We had seen in the preceding quotation that, in order to plunge into the ocean spiritual and esoteric realities, the soul of the individual was to become, a thousand times finer than a hair. Then she will penetrate into the eye of the needle of the fana and be introduced into the Paradise of the baqa.

    It will be a matter for the pathant to ensure that his soul melts and disappears completely, until his being is no more than a subtle flow, manifested in a thread finer than a hair. This is only accessible through the gate of the Samadiya, that is to say the exclusive and absolute surrender in Allah -ta’ala-. And the man knocks at this door through the fasting, which consists according to the Haqiqa in the fact of abstaining from the vision of any other than Him.
    Allah ﷻ said: “On the night of fasting you were permitted to have intercourse with your wives, they were a garment for you and you were a garment for them. And so on, and so on and so forth” [S2.v187]. Now therefore, cohabit with them, and seek what. “I do not cohabit with them while you are in ritual retreat in the mosques.”

    In his tafsir, sayiduna ibn ‘Arabi (quddisa sirruh)
    ““On the night of fasting you were permitted”: in the time of recklessness that earns you, while you are immersed in the divine Presence “to have relations with your wives”: to lower yourself to the attendance of Your nafs and your pleasures, for you would not be able to wait and get rid of it completely. They are for you a garment, and you a garment for them, by virtue of an inescapable bond. “Allah knows that you have clandestinely interacted with your wives” by taking away some of the realities of your nafs during your periods devoted to the journey, the spiritual efforts and the divine Presence. He forgave you and pardoned you. Now, then, that is, in the time of full realization of righteousness (istiqma) and in the state of baqa (persistence by Allah) following that of the fana (annihilation in Allah): “cohabit them” During periods of recklessness. “And seek what Allah has commanded in your favor” in terms of reverential fear (taqwa) and domination of these characteristics of the nafs, so that you can fully discharge all the duties of righteousness (istiqāma) As well as divine injunctions relating to servitude and the call to Him. “Eat and drink”: be in their company “until you distinguish, for you, the white thread of the dawn of the black thread of the night”: until the beginning of the The state of Presence and the accompanying brilliances, and that its effects and its Enlightenment cover the obscurity of carelessness and its darkness. Then be determined all the time in the presence of truth, until the time of carelessness comes. Without this (alternation), it would not have been possible to accomplish his daily occupations. And do not approach them (your nafs) during your states of full consecration and divine presence, in the mosques of your hearts, in which case your time would be troubled.”
    [Tafsir al-Qur’an – ibn ‘Arabi]

    The goal of the path in the way is the realization of Unity, symbolized in the representation of the Alif, which in Arabic is a letter written in the same way as the number One. And in order to reach the Alif of Tawhid, The entity of the path which at the beginning is a big rope (jummal) will have to diminish until it is no more than a breath, fluent in the air of its nonexistence, in the image of the thread of dawn: A subtle sweetness, an isthmus between day and night, between light and darkness.

    And according to the teaching of our Shaykh sidi Mohamed Faouzi al-Karkari (quddisa sirruh), so that the soul of man, that is to say the camel (jamal – جمل) plunges and extinguishes in the Alif of the Tawhid, he must see only the manifestations of the Divine Beauty (jamal – جمال = jamal with an Alif) around him. Either, in other words, he tastes the Beauty of the Creator, absolute and unlimited, manifested in all things … but this from his body, his mind and his means of perception, knowing that these are created and therefore limited. And it is only when the aspirant manages to contemplate the infinitely great in the infinitely small that the string of his soul can penetrate into the eye of the Alif at-Tawhid.

    And whatever happens, man will sooner or later be compelled to realize this vision of the infinitely great in the infinitely small … For once dead, the one who had achieved this realization in this world will see his grave And he shall be opened to him a gate leading to Paradise, according to the different Hadith treating the question. From his grave, that is to say, from a very narrow and confined space, man will contemplate the vast expanses of Paradise, which is infinitely great.

    As for the one who in this world had refused to do this and had not attained to the realization of contempt for himself and the esteem of others, to the point that the big string of his nafs (jummal ) Becomes such a subtle sweetness of the thread of the dawn and can penetrate into the eye of Alif at-Tawhid … then he will be obliged to accomplish the impossible: to see the infinitely great in the infinitely small. His senses, his reason, his soul and all his being being incapable of such a thing, the grave of this individual will close on him to the point that his ribs intersect. And in the Hadith, describing the state of these people, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ showed his fingers and intertwined them, before adding, “Allah put seventy snakes under his charge, One of them blowing on the earth, it would not grow anything until the end of the world. They will bite and scratch it until it happens on the day of judgement.”
    [Reported by at-Tirmidhiy]

    In the Sufi symbolism, the serpent designates the nafs of the individual, as an obstacle to the Truth. Therefore the people who have not completed their faith by “la ilâha illa Allâh”, by ridding all that obstructs the path leading to this realization, will be punished by seventy serpents, among the seventy branches of the faith (Cf Hadith quoted at the beginning of the article) that they had not realized in this world.

    In the Reading of the Name “Allah” the Alif at-Tawhîd is only accessible after crossing the Split between Alif and lâm al-ma’rifa. Now, according to the teaching of our Shaykh (quddisa sirruh), when one considers the numerical values of Alif (ا) and of lâm (ل), one obtains:
    Lâm (لم) = lam + mîm
    = 30 + 40
    = 70
    As for the Alif (ا), it is written in the same way as the word alf (ألف), which in Arabic means 1000.

    By multiplying these two results we get 70,000, and this is how we understand the word of the beloved ﷺ: “Allah ﷻ is” hidden “by 70,000 Light and darkness, and there is no nafs that approaches any of these sails without perishing.”
    [At-Tabarâniy in his Mu’jam al-kabîr]

    In other words, it is not a fiber of the big rope of the human soul (jummal) which does not pass through these veils without being completely destroyed. And when the thread of the soul becomes 1000 times finer than a hair, it will penetrate the eye of the Alif mouqaddar … Then the murid can gather and mend the scattered pieces of his consideration of the tanzih of the Spirit, changing his consideration Of the divine inaccessible into a mouraqqa’a of tachbîh, a concrete and palpable nafs. This mouraqqa’a will no longer consist of squares assembled together, according to the quadrilateral Basmala, physically manifested in the present form of the Ka’ba … but rather, the new coat will be made of triangles, in accordance with To the triangular consideration of Basmala, as explained in the introduction.

    The follow-up of the Light is the support of the Messenger of Allah

    The follow-up of the Light is the support of the Messenger of Allah

    بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
    و الصلاة و السلام على أشرف المرسلين
    و على اله و اصحابه أجمعين

    “Those who follow the Messenger, the Prophet Oummi whom they find mentioned in their home in the Torah and the Gospel. He commands them to the right, defends the blameworthy, makes them lawful of good things, forbids the evil ones, and robs them of the burden and the yokes that were upon them. Those who believe in him will magnify him, support him, help him, and follow the Light that has come down with him: these will be the winners.” [1].

    Al-Bukhâriy reports in his Sahîh:
    “I once met ‘Abdullah ibn’ Amr ibn al-‘As (radiAllahu ‘anhu) and said to him: “Inform me about the characteristics of the Messenger of Allâh ﷺ which is mentioned in the Torah. He said, “Of course. By Allah, it is described in the Torah with some of the characteristics that describe it in the Qur’an. O Prophet, We have sent you as a witness, a preacher of the good news and warning, as a refuge for the illiterate (oummi): you are My servant and My Messenger, and I called you al-Mutawakkil. He is neither rude nor rude, nor of those who scream and quarrel in the markets. He does not respond to evil by evil, but rather he forgives and is indulgent. Allaah will not recall Him to Him until religion has been made right by the fact that people say “lahdha illa Allah,” and that by this word he opened our blind eyes, Our deaf ears and our veiled hearts.” [2].

    And one can read in al-bahr al-madid:
    “In the account of the conversion of Ka’b al-Ahbar, who was a Yemenite, he related that his father was one of the Torah people who believed in the Messenger of Allah ﷺ even before he was aroused. He says:
    My father was one of the greatest scholars of the Torah and the Books of the Prophets. He hid nothing from what he knew, and when death was near he called me to him and said, “My son, you know that I never concealed from you what I knew, though There are two leaves I have deprived you of and which evoke the next provocation of a Prophet. His appearance is imminent, and I did not wish to tell you, and fearing for you that you will follow one of those liars who will not fail to manifest, I have ripped off these two pages of my book , And I placed them in this slot that you see there, and that I refill with clay. Do not open it until this Prophet appears! When it is revealed, follow it and read the two leaves. By them Allah will add to His benefits. “
    When my father died, nothing was more dear to me than the fact that his funeral ended so that I could see these two leaves, and I could read this:
    “Muhammad is the Messenger of Allâh ﷺ and the seal of the Prophets, no Prophet after him. He is born in Mecca and the place of his exile is good. He is neither rude, nor of those who scream and quarrel in the markets. He does not respond to evil by evil, but rather by good. He forgives and indulges. His community are Hammadūn, people who praise Allah for all grace and in all circumstances. Their tongues move by the takbir, and Allah will support their Prophet against any person taking him as an enemy. They wash their sex with water, help each other and help each other. Their gospels are in their breasts, they eat of what they sacrifice and trade. Their mercy to one another is such as that of a mother and a father to their son. On the Day of Judgment, they are the first of the communities to enter Paradise, they are the predecessors and the close ones, they are the intercessors and beneficiaries of intercession.” [3].

    The quintessence of the verse:
    Follow his Enlightenment, springing from his noble Crystal, which is so subtle that what appears is none other than the very thing that remains hidden from it. Praising him, True attributed to him the degree of the Supreme Meeting and said in these words: “Those who swear allegiance to you will swear allegiance to Allah: the hand of Allah is above their hands .” [4].

    That is to say:
    follow his Enlightenment and access the flavors of vision (mouchâhada), revel in Proximity and the Union. Then you will be rid of the embrace of the veils covering your hearts, after having multiplied efforts without access to the vision, or after you are dedicated to acts of worship without profiting from it. It is in this world that he will make you taste the fruit of the accomplished works. He will reveal to you the veils that constitute the considerations other than Him, or of duality, and this simply through the easiest and tiniest of adorations.

    I swear by my life that these are the signs of the heir Shaykh, the one who will win the Union in less than a nod, the one who will lift the sails of your heart by the simple fact that you Swear allegiance to him, without the least pain or fatigue, all thanks to the strength of his enlightenment and the eminence of his Secret. He will give you a Light from the Torch of Prophecy, revealed through Holiness. You will taste the contemplative vision (mouchahada), drink at the river of Love, gain the key of the vault of the Divine Attributes, abounding with subtle visions and elevations in spiritual degrees … and You will be saved from the illusions of the world around you.

    As for the so-called Shouyoûkh of this time, they command you to practice such dhikr a thousand times, and another thousand thousand … without any result happening concretely in the heart. Then he asks: “Did you feel anything?” Have you made a pious dream?

    We do not deny that the people of effort by the acts of worship will receive a reward for their works, and we do not question the spiritual value of the dream, for as Hadith tells us it is On the one hand, among the forty-six parts of the Prophecy. This only calls into question one of the Shari’a’s deniers … but what have we done with another forty-five?
    I simply reply that these forty-five other degrees are the different degrees of the mouchahada, the contemplative vision in the state of awakening.

    This verse brings together for the journey the degrees of Proximity, effort and propriety:

    • First: follow-up. One does not follow the one who contravenes the Law of Beloved. How could one pretend to Proximity the one who is filled with illicit? It is, on the contrary, the fire of divine remoteness which belongs to him in priority.
      He said ﷺ: “O people, Allah is Good and He only accepts what is good. And Allah hath indeed commanded the believers that which He hath commanded the Messengers. He said, “O Messengers, eat what is good for you and practice pious works: I am perfectly knowledgeable of what you do. And He said, “O you who have faith, eat of the good things that We have given you.”
      Then he evoked the case of the traveler whose journey was prolonged, disheveled and dusty, he stretched out his hands to heaven: “O Lord! O Lord!”… while his food is illicit, his drink is illicit, his clothes are illicit and his provisions are illegal: how would he be answered?” [5].
    • Second, faith in the intermediate (Wasita), a deep and unshakeable faith, so that no more doubts remain in his heart.
    • Thirdly: to revere (ta’zir), to sublimate (tawqir) and to magnify (ta’dhim) the intermediary.
    • Fourth: Support and support through one’s possessions, oneself, one’s family and one’s children. On this subject we find in an authentic Hadith admitted: “We were with the Prophet ﷺ, and he held by the hand ‘Omar ibn al-Khattab, who addressed him: “O Messenger of Allah, More expensive than anything in the world, except myself. The Prophet then answered him, “No, by Him who holds my soul in His hand, until I am more dear to you than yourself!”. ‘Umar then said to him: “Now by Allah you are dearer to me than I am.”” The Prophet ﷺ said, “Now O Omar …” [6].
    • Fifth: the follow-up of the Tawhid Moon Light. In fact, the Prophet ﷺ says: “You will certainly see your Lord, in the same way that you see this moon, without it being difficult for you …” [7].

    And this is the sign indicating the Heir, so that he who follows his Light, which is none other than the torch of Prophecy, will become a support of Truth through Truth. He will then rid himself of the coercion of distance and the chains of the finite world, which are only the artifacts of the nafs and the shaytan … and he will accede to the contemplation of the Merciful through the Light of the Beloved.

    [1] Surat al-An’am, verses 122-125.
    [2] Sahih al-Bukhâriy, No. 1991.
    [3] Al-bahr al-madid fi tafsir al-Qor’an al-majid – Ibn ‘Ajiba – Volume 2, page 402.
    [4] Surat al-Fath, verse 10.
    [5] Sahih Muslim.
    [6] Sahih al-Bukhâriy.
    [7] Sahih al-Bukhâriy, Hadîth No. 523.

    The good behavior of the disciple – Chap. 1-7

    The good behavior of the disciple – Chap. 1-7

    بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
    و الصلاة و السلام على أشرف المرسلين
    و على اله و اصحابه أجمعين

    Lesson from Shaykh Muhammad Faouzi Al-Karkari (may Allah sanctifies his secret) on the book “al adab al mardiyyah li salik at Tariqa al sufiyyah” from the eminent Shaykh knowing in Allah, sidi Muhammad ibn Ahmed al Buzidiy al Hassaniy ad Darqawiy (May Allah agree him).

    The adab is an obligation and a basis in our Tariqa. It is trough adab that we build and establish spiritual states and that we shorten the path and that fear goes away. Every Sufi and shuyukh are known for their adab and their due respect of the Muhamadian Sharia. It is trough adab that appeared secret and that the Light has been revealed in a Universe where spiritual reality is the only reality.

    “So whoever does an atom’s weight of good will see it” “If you do good, you do good for yourselves”. Do good, and Allah will give you good. Many verses encourage to show propriety, not only an inner one, but outer as well, reflecting the inner one. Know that adab is from ta’dhim (to give importance, greatness) and the lack of adab is the result of a lack of Love. When Love grows, the ta’dhim and the adab grow as well. Which lead to the Tahqiq (secrets and spiritual reality). To the opposite, when Love diminishes, the heart goes astray and turns away from proprieties.

    Chapter 1: do no visit the Shaykh without a gift

    It is mandatory for the faqir to bring a gift, would it be a small one when visiting the Shaykh. Even if he was away for a short period (three days, for example). It is an obligation with deep hidden meaning that the disciple must taste. If he is poor and does not own anything, he will make the effort to find something to offer (even if the gift’s value does not exceed a piece of coal) on his way to the zawiyia, or he will help for domestic tasks within the zawiyia. As stated in the Qur’an: “Indeed, Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and their properties [in exchange] for that they will have Paradise” or “Let a man of wealth spend from his wealth, and he whose provision is restricted – let him spend from what Allah has given him. Allah does not charge a soul except [according to] what He has given it. Allah will bring about, after hardship, ease ».

    The Shaykh’s madad (support) does not reach the faqir who visits his master without a gift, as the one who goes to a well with no rope or wineskin. Water lies down, but he will not be able to benefit from it. It is still mandatory for the one who does not own anything and is impeach to bring something – despites all his efforts to do so- to visit his Shaykh. That breach will not be taken into account against him. Know, O faqir, that this is with that proprieties that you will quit greediness. Because the generous remains generous, whether he gives a lot or a little. In fact, the Shaykh has no consideration for gifts, it is only in order to educate the disciples and teach them purity in the presence of Allah azawajal. Know that sadaqa is more valuable than zakat, because the former is given with Love; it ennobles and raises those who can do the charity of a single date. The Prophet ﷺ said: “Protect yourself from the Fire.” He then turned his face aside (as if he were looking at it) and said again, “Protect yourself from the Fire,” and then turned his face aside (as if he were looking at it), and he said so for the third time till we thought he was looking at it. He then said, “Protect yourselves from the Fire, even if with half of a date, and he who hasn’t got even this, should do so by (saying) a good, pleasant word.”

    The most pious is the one who gives all is wealth in the Path, as Sayiduna Abu Bakr as Siddiq (May Allah agree him). Never will the greedy enter in the divine presence. If you are planning to make a sadaqa for a question, you valued that very question and surely, Baraka will be found in the response. This way, useless queries will be avoided. It is also a proof of the presence of your heart and body, and you will leave as you come: with the heart.

    Our Shaykh, sidi Muhammad Faouzi Al-Karkari (May Allah sanctify his secret) burned all his clothes, keeping only the one he was wearing. Walking barefoot all the way to see his Shaykh, sidi mawlay Hassan (May Allah sanctify his secret), in a total state of destitution. He had only a hundred dirham in his pocket that he gave as a gift to his Shaykh.
    How do you want the Shaykh to guide you from mulk to malakut if you remain keen on worldly things? If you offer one Euro in this world, you will collect one billion in the hereafter. See this world as a market for al akhira.

    When you want to make a sadaqa, it is better to give it to the Shaykh. With the knowledge that suits him, he is the one able to do what will benefit the real needy. As to you, murid, doing a random sadaqa can lead to destruction, done without clear-sightedness and wisdom.

    Do not make yourself belong in this world. Because for many people, the noble Qur’an and the hadith have no more effect on them, they are simply dead. “And is one who was dead and We gave him life and made for him light by which to walk among the people like one who is in darkness, never to emerge therefrom? Thus it has been made pleasing to the disbelievers that which they were doing.” [s6.v122]

    Chapter 2: do not stay too much with the Shaykh

    One must avoid staying too much with the Shaykh so that the ta’dhim will not diminish. The presence without ta’dhim is harmful and in no way profitable. It is recommended to come close to the Shaykh for questions, teachings, prayer and dhikr.

    Those who enter in the presence of kings must first conform to a strict proprieties protocol and must have a good reason to visit. If everyone could enter nearby kings, with no ta’dhim, the sacredness of this one would disappear. No good can result of this, neither for the king, nor for his people. What about the kings of the hereafter? Too long courses with the Shaykh with no ta’dhim can only drive the murid away. He will focus on the physical image of the Shaykh, and will be veiled from his reality. This can only lead to a diminution of the ta’dhim.

    The Shaykh sidi Muhammad Faouzi Al-Karkari (may Allah sanctify his secret) is saying us: “Have a look to those who left the Tariqa, they used to stay too often with me, with no proprieties, while they could see the Light. However, they denied it because of their lack of adab. Arrived at Lam al qabd, ta’dhim become primary as it is the center of the circle. Know, o faqir, if you lack of adab would it be a short moment, the spiritual stream could cease. Those who give great ta’dhim to the Shaykh will be able to taste a tiny piece of his reality, to see him in mouchahada (vision while awaken) among the Prophets and angels, etc. The reality of the Shaykh can be understood only with the heart, with the inner vision (basira).

    Chapter 3: Do not laugh too much with the Shaykh

    It may happen that the Shaykh will laugh to test the disciple. When the Shaykh laughs with the disciple, this one should refrain laughing too much, and diminish his smile by modesty. It is important not to exaggerate laughing and be constantly in the adab, reminding oneself that every single occasion is a test from the Shaykh to the faqir. The presence of the disciple’s ego leads his heart to death and the lack of proprieties must be followed by repentance. The disciple must fight his ego until he feels shy in front of his Shaykh, as well as ashamed. “The believer is the mirror of the believer”, if you like laughing, know that you will be in the circle with the same name. If you want to know your position by Allah and the Prophet ﷺ, check the Shaykh’s place in your heart.

    Chapter 4: Do not talk too much in the Shaykh’s presence

    Being to talkative, loud or soft is an obvious lack of adab. The tongue has two aspects: or it talks, or it is quiet. The best talk is the dhikr “Allah”. To raise one voice above the Shaykh’s voice demonstrates a lack of proprieties as Allah ﷻ states in the Qur’an: “O you who have believed, do not raise your voices above the voice of the Prophet or be loud to him in speech like the loudness of some of you to others, lest your deeds become worthless while you perceive not.”[s49.v2]

    The Shaykh is not a Prophet, but he calls people to Allah, which gives him a part of prophecy. Ibn Arabi indicates that Waly take part of the prophecy due to their reminders (As Prophets were sent to remind what has been forgotten). Sayiduna Sulayman (aleyhi salam) was a great Prophet, and the hoot-hoot did an immense reminder. Therefore, the highest Waly’s state is the lowest Prophet’s state, and the highest Prophet’s state is the lowest Messenger’s state. To be known: the Prophecy and Rissala are always effective and never stops.

    “Indeed, those who lower their voices before the Messenger of Allah – they are the ones whose hearts Allah has tested for righteousness. For them is forgiveness and great reward» [s49.v3]. The faqir must lower his voice, remain shy in presence of the Shaykh, and stay away from him. Following this, and he will be able to attire the virtue of those who fear and remind Allah ﷻ. “And be moderate in your pace and lower your voice; indeed, the most disagreeable of sounds is the voice of donkeys” [s31.v19]. The Arabic word “moderate” indicates to give a precise direction: so is the Muslim planning to go out of his home to go to the mosque, may he be firm attached to his goal, without wasting his time or going astray from his path ( with useless detours).

    This verse also invites us to lower the voice, which may be compared with the donkey’s shouting. To be noted the donkey sees in infrared, and so it is able to see demons. And it is when it sees a demon going down or up that it is shouting. Its meat is forbidden and going through this interdiction (eating its meat) can lead the sight of demons. You relate to shayatin when you become angry, because they enjoy your anger and raise their voice.

    There is a call to improve one’s words and reach the maqam where one barely talks. Those maqam’s secrets are not eating your fill, fasting, isolation, doing dhikr as much as one can to be with Allah ﷻ with the tongue and the hear. You must keep doing this until you enter the webs of the Divine Presence. The nets are as the spider’s web. It is weaving its web beginning with a central point where a pentagon or other sacred geometrical form can be found. If you can grab would it be a single line of this Hà (circle) that formed the web, you will enter the Presence. And if you can remain in the center, you will gain many benefits.

    The one who does not want to go through this Path and undertake the big Jihad (Jihad al-Akbar), know that his vile and low (soufly) soul will command him (not the noble and high part).

    To resume this chapter, it is recommended to diminish the number of words we say per day. Compel one to talk in a soft and noble way in order to attain complete silence. Only reclusion and fast can lead to that. Books that Shaykh sidi Muhammad Faouzi Al-Karkari advice to his disciples are the following:

    • Commentaries of the Hikam by ibn Ajiba
    • Qawa’id al sufiyyah by imam Asha’rani
    • Kitab adal al mardiya by Shaykh al Buzidiy
    • Hikam by ibn ata Allah As-Sakandari

    Through studies of those books, fuqara and other will gain access to real adab with the Shaykh. And Allah ﷻ will reveal some things, and that adab is only a way to dive into the Light. Study of these books of proprieties is not meant to lead the Shaykh to the position of a king of the fuqara as servants. When the Shaykh makes comments about proprieties that should occur with him, disciples came to think that it pleases the master, that he needs servants or pulls down the disciples: it is indeed a huge lack of adab. Know that the Shaykh is like a toy through which the faqir will learn proprieties. And when the Shaykh will judge that the faqir fulfill them, he will make him enter in the presence of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ. Understand that adab with the Shaykh is essential to be able to enter the presence of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ with proprieties. What should it be with Allah’s presence?

    This way, the Shaykh is preparing you to enter the divine presence and saying you: “Here you are with your Lord”. This moment, you will be allowed to get away from the Shaykh, and he will be happy about that. In this sense, our Shaykh sidi Muhammad Faouzi Al-Karkari (may Allah sanctify his secret) is telling us: “Being a king and having servants are not my purposes; my purpose is to lead you to Allah ﷻ. My biggest jihad an-Nafs is to stay with fuqara, talking with them and answering their questions. If I did not have this command of Allah ﷻ to be here, pass on the Light, answering questions, I would leave now with my clothes on the road for more than 10 years. You have not experienced this sensation, this happiness to walk in the mountains, empty roads, plains; talking to stones while they’re actually answering you, talking to trees while they’re actually answering you”.

    Do not think the Shaykh is talking about proprieties to obtain kingdom with servants and subjects. Those who have that kind of thoughts about the Shaykh, they can give up the tassawuf and find another path as salafism or ikhwanisme… How do you want to be educated by someone you have doubt about it? Proprieties are meant to give access to the Light. Do not mistake yourself thinking that the Shaykh, sidi Muhammad Faouzi Al-Karkari want to obtain power or earn money. The zawiyia has been funded by the Shaykh himself, and the solicitor wrote “For Allah”. The money is from the rouqya, which he nurtured fuqara with. Were it not a command of Allah, he would not have taken any fuqara. Will come a time, when he will leave, tears will not diminish remorse.

    Chapter 5: Do not sit at the left or at the right of the Shaykh

    One must absolutely avoid sitting the same line (level) as the Shaykh, even if asked to do so. The faqir will show property finding a way to avoid it. When the faqir presents himself in front of the Shaykh, he must find a way to face him so that his heart, eyes and body are facing the master’s heart, eyes and body. During the gatherings (majma), the faqir shall place himself at the back (always in front of the Shaykh) to be facing toward the central point, behind which lays a great spiritual meaning.

    Going to the zawiyia is equal as going to the mosque. The person places himself facing the qibla in a state of dhikr and nothing else is allowed. The zawiyia, as the mosque is meant to do pious deeds and so shall the faqir check his intentions. The disciple shall not go the Allah’s house pointlessly, but with his wealth to nurture the fuqara morning and evening, his brothers in the Path: he came to work for Allah. Examine your intentions before visiting the Shaykh!

    The Shaykh is the murid’s qibla and as in prayer, he shall head his body and heart toward his spiritual qibla. Indeed, the prayer is not valid if facing next to the qibla (right or left): be careful always to head yourself toward the Shaykh, as the sacredness of your inner qibla is greater than the visible one (Mecca) highlighted by a saying of the Prophet ﷺ when talking to the Ka’ba: “How great are you and how great is your sanctity, however, the believer is more sacred than you are!” If the believer has more value than the qibla, what about the Waly? Abu Abbas al Mursiy, May Allah be pleased with him said:

    “They hypocrites are apprehensive lest a Surat be revealed about them, informing them of what is in their hearts. Say, “Mock [as you wish]; indeed, Allah will expose that which you fear.”” [9:65]

    And so is the faqir sitting for hours doing dhikr, focusing on the Light; hoping will be revealed secrets and mysteries to him… permitting himself to sit on the right or the left of his Shaykh. It is but foolishness. Know that the Shaykh asks you to sit with properties to show respect to this Light he gave you by a handshake (during the bay’s), being its source, the sun by which the Light reaches you. Sit in front of him, hoping his sun will reflect in your heart to form a star, as mentioned by our Prophet ﷺ: “My companions are like stars, whichever of them you use as a guide, you will be rightly guided,”

    Abu Harayrah narrates that the Prophet ﷺ said: “Allah Almighty said: “Whoever shows hostility to a friend of mine, then I have declared war upon him. My servant does not grow closer to me with anything more beloved to me than the duties I have imposed upon him. My servant continues to draw near me with extra works until I love him. When I love him, I am his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hands with which he strikes, and his foot with which he walks. Were he to ask something from me, I would surely give it to him. If he were to ask me for refuge, I would surely grant it to him. I do not hesitate to do anything as I hesitate to take the soul of the believer, for he hates death and I hate to disappoint him.”” [Sahîh Bokhari 6137]

    Those who look to their Light-giver Shaykh shall now understand what’s in front of them is loved by Allah ﷻ, his hearing is Allah’s hearing, his sight is Allah’s sight, his hand is Allah’s hand, his foot with which he walks is Allah’s foot. When the Shaykh is speaking with you, who is speaking? If he is watching you, who is watching? …

    In this perspective, the faqir can reach a very high ta’dhim! But if he remains carefree, he will turn off from the qibla by sitting next to the Shaykh, facing other disciples, running away from the sun to look at the stars. Shall they remember the bay’a, when this verse was recited:

    “Indeed, those who pledge allegiance to you, [O Muhammad] – they are actually pledging allegiance to Allah. The hand of Allah is over their hands. So he who breaks his word only breaks it to the detriment of himself. And he who fulfills that which he has promised Allah – He will give him a great reward.” [S48-10]

    Sayiduna Shaykh (qaddas Allahu sirrahu) repeated this verse until the Light appeared in front of your eyes. Ô faqir, it came first trough hearing (as stated in the hadith of the Waly), then the sight and the touch which is no other but the Shaykh’s hand. After all, the Shaykh asked you to do the istighfar (asking forgiveness). Then, he is working on your senses. Senses he realized in the basmala.

    When the Light the faqir contemplates moves right and left, shall he knows that is a proof his properties and the Shaykh’s importance is not high enough.

    How can he hope the Light will stay in the center if he did not place the Shaykh in the center of his sight? But the Shaykh is ashamed to inform the faqir of such a lack.

    Allah ta ala made the Shaykh’s heart the location of His Sight; his heart is the point of the down of Allah’s sight. Such as, you realize how important it is to be in front of the Shaykh. The master does not value how you look like, but only for the heart and the amount of love for the Shaykh in it. If there is a lot, it is only due to the love the Shaykh had previously for you. Reach the love for the Shaykh the one who goes through the inner and outer door of properties, with the soul, the heart and the body. The master loves the disciple when he finds many good which make apparent the in the Shaykh’s heart the reality of the murid. Therefore, will Allah ta ala look and love him too. Know that Allah loves a disciple only because the Shaykh loved him.

    The disciple must remain firm toward his ego, and the Shaykh knows how difficult this Path is, the Jihad al Akbar. Easy is the little Jihad where you can be killed with a sword. Whereas the Jihad al Akbar is a continuous, restless journey.

    It is asked from the faqir the show adab to all the believers. Indeed diverse degrees exist within the adab, such as show love to elders, the Prophet’s family, the children, etc. But the faqir must love every believer without any distinction. What about the Waly’s love, when he put out the disciple from the darkness of passion to the Light of certainty; from hell to paradise; from jail to freedom. Obviously, the utter most importance should be given the Shaykh.

    The Adab should be reflected in every part of the disciple: his mouth, his eyes, his hearing, his sex, his stomach… As an example, he should not exaggerate in his food. The faqir who is doing zina or masturbation and show up at the zawiyia to know Allah ﷻ has been separated from this benefit. Shall he ask the Shaykh’s authorization to get married if he cannot refrain. Become like a robot, beyond reproach in your property, shaped by the divine Mercy, on the footstep of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ contemplating the Light and Secrets. Those will be manifested through trivial pious movements and actions. Another manifestation that will help the faqir is the property linked with the ma’rifa (Divine knowledge) which is acquired during his progression.

    To summarize this chapter, know that between the Shaykh and the disciple is an Alif al Muqaddar. This Alif is straight (not curved or bended), so be straight in front of the Shaykh. He is the central point and his purpose is to lead the faqir to the Alif. Its knowledge – for whoever reaches it- is a complete and true science. But before, stay upon this straight line and do not bend at its left or its right. Remain in the presence and the love of the Shaykh. Do not go away from the Shaykh like those who had taken science and left, thinking they could understand byt hemselves.

    Chapter 6: Do not look too much at the Shaykh

    May the faqir lower his head with timidity and humility without gazing too much at the Shaykh. The faqir doing dhikr, infatuated with passion and love (few will even see the ism “Allah” in light going out from the Shaykh) is allowed to contemplate. Because he would have went beyond the material image of the Shaykh. Only the faqir staying in the luminous manifestation of the Prophet ﷺ will be able to fix his gaze at the Shaykh, because at this very moment, the Shaykh would have disappear within the Light, and it will appear intensely on the Shaykh. When the Light increase in his heart, he will see it more on the Shaykh than any other pious people among believers; and if it keeps growing, he will contemplate the Light in the all creation, but this is only a high, pure and noble station. Sayiduna Shaykh Mohamed Faouzi Al-Karkari (qaddas Allahu sir ahu) says: “Aren’t you ashamed, as a murid, that this is the first thing I give you?” During the bay’s, the murid sees the Light everywhere whereas the Shaykh al Buzidiy ( the author of the book we’re going through) took more than 16 years to reach it! This degree is given to us after few day spent in the zawiyia; and despite of it, the disciple keeps doubt, criticism the Shaykh pretending he wants to become a king with servants. This misconception will mislead the murid to the Shaykh disapproval.

    The monk Bahira, recognized the Prophet ﷺ through a cloud. And you, Ô faqir, you can see directly the cloud and the Light of Sayiduna Muhammad ﷺ, and you come by the Shaykh telling vision when in fact, those are only proof against you for the Judgment Day. And so because you did not give enough ta’dhim to the Prophet’s reality and his Light ﷺ.

    Those who begins in the Path and don’t have reached the status where the Light do not come during their vision shouldn’t look at the Shaykh but briefly, such as the person lowering the gaze after looking at the sun because of its intensity. Sidi Shaykh Muhammad Faouzi al Karkari (adds Aleyhi sir ahu) says: “You, ô faqir, who reach this level right after the bay’a, you don’t even know how to sit next to the Sun, few years would be required just to know how to sit in front of the Shaykh!”.

    This Tariqa is the Tariqa, which begins with the end, where everything is given in the beginning without being asked anything. The Light has been given even before undertaking the path. Those who do not show respect to it will have a lack of adab. Sayiduna Shaykh says: “Shame on you, if after seeing the Light, you have a lack of adab. And if you do not show enough adab to the Shaykh, watch out not to consider him as anyone! If the Shaykh consider himself as part of “normal people”, or even less, the faqir must be firm with the conviction that the Shaykh is the highest, noble and close from Allah in this world.”

    The faqir must remain in the presence of Allah ﷻ, the Prophet ﷺ, the Shaykh. Being in the presence of Allah ﷻ and the Prophet ﷺ permanently will increase the ta’dhim in the murid’s heart. His proximity will lead to truthfulness and excellence. Those who received and committed in Allah’s path, have for sure, fear Him. And those who fear Allah ﷻ will be loved. Those who love Him have forgotten themselves and reached the fana; being among those who return to their Lord.

    Chapter 7: Do not mention scientific question in front of the Shaykh

    Within the zawiyia, the Shaykh give orders, information; and often, the faqir will comment the Shaykh’s decisions. When the Shaykh decided the build a zawiyia in a certain place, the faqir retort and will highlight his opinion. But the Shaykh decide something, he only do because of a divine inspiration of a vision from Allah ﷻ. Would he ask to build a zawiyia on a river, the faqir executes!

    So when the Shaykh ask to a disciple to translate a precise subject and to share with on social media for instance… No other faqir should come along, even if he meant to help! It is a great lack of adab to go against the Shaykh’s instruction. Would it happen, the action would lose its sense and the outcome would not be the same. The Light of this faqir would vanish and his representation of the Shaykh will change without him to realize. Stay your place, ô faqir, in total submission and trust to the accomplished Shaykh. Because those who will go against the Shaykh’s will would have prevent a great wisdom from the Shaykh. Shall he not imagine reaching vision of the unseen by doing so.

    This kind of behavior from a foolish disciple can be linked with this verse: “Man was created of haste. I will show you My signs, so do not impatiently urge Me.” [s.21, v.37]. This means that he is always ahead with his tongue, wanting things quickly and easily. This man is likely to commit zina, drink alcohol, etc. but when he is facing the Shaykh, he wants a quick fath. He wants to see the Light, angels, even though he was the biggest sinner. “We will show them Our signs” Allah ﷻ promise signs, the disciple do not hurry and is patient, or will prevent those signs (if acting against the Shaykh).

    The disciple must leave behind every kind of science he has. Even an illiterate does have sciences (his past, wisdom, science). Nonetheless, what can be found from the Shaykh will not be found elsewhere. This is the example of one faqir thinking about the third secret for almost 2 years in vain. Because this secret cannot be reach on one’s own.

    The most knowledgeable should without a doubt give up all his science for the Shaykh’s one, because his is only dust compared to. He could discuss physics, medicine, astronomy, biology, archeology, fiqh, or anything else with the Shaykh because he knows very well all those profane sciences. And those who are reluctant being guided by a Shaykh are sharia scholars because it is one of the biggest veil. As mentioned by sidi Ahmad ibn Ajiba (May Allah agree him): Their science veiled them to their Teacher. Outer science (Sharia) is a veil for the Tariqa. Those who will enter the journey in Allah’s path are common people craving for Allah ta ala or scholars who are driven by their work to seek what is behind the Shaykh’s teachings.

    When sharia scholars are observed, redundancy can directly be found in them, even for the easiest thing in the Tariqa: wearing the muraqa’a. Where the scientist would meditate on its colors, the sharia scholar would not see anything behind it. Would a scholar enter the Tariqa, shall he stay quiet until Allah ta ala gives him the fath. We can take the example of imam Mali (May Allah agree him) who was a true lawyer, scholar of outer sciences. He used to walk barefoot in Medina streets and if he was not asked why, people would treat him as a fool. When someone asked him, he answered that he was simply ashamed to walk with his sandals a place where Allah’s Messenger ﷺ had placed his foot. In this example, we acknowledge subtle senses in him, behind his visible actions. So is it for the muraqa’a.

    Past scholars tasted what today’s scholars lost. If a famous maliki scholar was asked to take off his sandals when entering Medina, he would treat people as crazy, but if the Shaykh sidi Mohamed Faouzi Al-Karkari would ask the very same thing, how easy would it be.

    The Lights are the adornment of the Secrets

    The Lights are the adornment of the Secrets

    بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
    و الصلاة و السلام على أشرف المرسلين
    و على اله و اصحابه أجمعين

    Ibn’Ata Allah al-Iskandariy says:

    The Lights are the mount of hearts and Secrets

    The Light is a divine effluvium which the True projects into the heart of the one whom He Loves from among His servants, by the hand of one of His Awliya, which thus takes him out from the darkness of carelessness and free him from the yoke of the Tawghut of the nafs, which defeat him from the chains of his illusions and freed him from the prison of his passions. He then makes him ride the mount of gnosis, by which the disciple will fly to the worlds of Malakoûte and Jabaroûte. He will raise him to the heavens of the Spirit and make him taste the flavor of the fana. The dove of his spirit will then fly towards the Throne of the Merciful, he will enjoy at his ease the Paradise of Proximity and the gardens of gnosis and love. The one whose state is such, he is the true contemplator (chahid, which is generally translated as “martyr”): the one whose contemplation takes place on the path of the Name “Allah” The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ says:

    “When your brothers from Uhud were touched (by death), Allah placed their spirits in a green bird that drinks from the rivers of Paradise, eats its fruit, and rests near golden candles hanging in the shadow of the Throne. When they saw that their food, drink and resting places were good, they said, “Who will let our brothers know that we are alive in Paradise, and that we receive our subsistence, that they may not skimp in the struggle, and that they do not abdicate in the war? Allâh ﷻ said, “I will let them know.” And it was then that Allah brought down: “And do not consider that those who died in the way of Allah are dead.”” [1]

    Ibn ‘Ajibah – may Allah be pleased with him – said: “The mount (matiya) designates the camel equipped so that it can be mounted, the heart (qalb) refers to the reality of perception of the deep senses, Secret (sirr) refers to the reality of perception of theophanies. The Secret is more refined and purer than the heart, although both are names given to the spirit (roûh). If the spirit is made dark by acts of disobedience, sins, carnal passions and defects, then it is called ego (nafs).If he withdraws firmly and in a determined way from these things, he is called intellect (‘aql). If it oscillates between carelessness and the divine Presence, it is called the heart (qalb). If it is calm and tranquil with respect to the characteristics of human nature, it is called spirit (roûh). And finally, if it is purified from all superficial physical consideration, it is called Secret (sirr), because in returning to its origin it became a Secret of the Secrets of Allah: the Secret of the Jabaroûte. When Allah ﷻ wants to bring His servant to His Sanctified Presence and carry him to the state of intimacy, He provides him in Lights flows which are in the image of a mount that He loads of His Support. The servant is then appeased by the breeze of the guidance, surrounded by the attention of divine auspices, and his soul flies from the worlds of the human condition to the world of spirits, becoming a Secret of the Secrets of Allah ” [2].

    [1] Sunan Abou Dâwoûd, Kitâb al-Jihâd, bâb fi fadl al-chahâda.
    [2] Iqâdh al-himam, page 129.

    The authenticity of the allegiance Pact (bay’a)

    The authenticity of the allegiance Pact (bay'a)

    بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
    و الصلاة و السلام على أشرف المرسلين
    و على اله و اصحابه أجمعين

    We will attempt in this modest article to address the question of the bay’a, pact or also called “Pledge of allegiance”. This subject is little known to the whole of the oummah and its importance is,wrongly, underestimated.

    In order to place the importance of bay’a for the Muslim, we can quote the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ more than explicit: “Everyone who dies without having contracted a Pact (bay’a) dies from a pre-Islamic (jâhiliya) death” [Muslim].

    These words are enough to demonstrate the importance of bay’a in the life of the Muslim. It is also surprising to see how much this duty is neglected by a majority of the oummah and on the contrary, constitutes a foundation among the taçawwuf people.

    It is at first legitimate to ask why such importance is placed in the bay’a. And then, ask what are the characteristics that make up the genuine pact. Indeed, it goes without saying that if the Prophet ﷺ warns us of such importance of this pact, ﷺ also warns us of how to recognize the authentic pact.

    First of all, why is bay’a so important?

    To answer this question, we need to refer to the Quran in which Allah ﷻ says: “Those who pledge allegiance to you are pledging allegiance to Allah: Allah’s hand is above their hands. Whoever violates the oath, violates it only to his own detriment; And whoever fulfills his pledge to Allah, He will soon bring him a great reward.” [S48.v10].

    Let us stop for a moment on this verse … First of all, the verse does not mention the Prophet ﷺ in order to emphasize his complete timelessness. Then, this verse shows the weight of this pact in the balance, whoever takes the pact, will take it directly with Allah.

    But how does the pact contracted with a person can be a pact contracted with Allah?

    To understand this, we must refer to the hadith of the Waliy. This Hadîth of extreme importance was chosen by the Imam an-Nawawiy (rahimahuLah) in his collection of the 40 Hadîths, which regrouped the essential foundations of religion, just as the Imam ach-Shawkâniy (rahimahuLah) devoted a book to it that he called “qatru l-waliy bicharhi hadîthi l-waliy”, as well as Imam as-Suyoûtiy (rahimahuLah) in his book “al-qawlu l-jaliy fī hadîthi l-waliy”.

    The part of the hadith that interests us in order to understand the verse is this: “(…). And My servant will not cease to draw near to Me by the supererogatory acts until I love Him; And when I love him, I will be his hearing with which he hears, his sight with which he sees, his hand with which he seizes and his foot with which he walks. (…)” [Saheeh al-Bukhâriy].

    After reading this, it becomes more clear about how it is possible to take a pact with man and, at the same time, take a pact with Allah ﷻ. The waliy being the one that has been brought closer to the point that Allah has become his hearing with which he hears, his sight with which he sees, his hand with which he seizes and his foot with which he walks.

    It is obvious that our Beloved Prophet ﷺ had reached this degree because every Prophets is necessarily a Saint (Waliy), the reverse is not always true … This degree of our Prophet Muhammad ﷺ is described in the Qur’an, in particular, when Allah ﷻ says: “…And when you launched, it was not you who launched: but Allah launched…” [S8 V17].

    In other words, the bay’a, the pact will be passed with Allah only if this man is a Waliy completely realized according to the aforementioned hadith. If the shaykh in question is not a waliy, it will be only a pact with a man like any other and in no case can it be considered as a pact with Allah.

    What we have just stated is also confirmed in the Qur’an word for word when Allah ﷻ says: “Allah is the waliy of those who have faith: He brings them out of the darkness to the Light.” [Surat al-Baqara, verse 257].

    And the verse in Arabic says “الله ولي” or “Allāhu Walīy”. There is no word (veil) between the Ism “Allah” and the word “Waliy” which is an indication of the rapprochement between the Waliy and Allah as it is also mentioned in the hadith. After these few explanations, it is easier for us to understand the importance of the bay’a and the conditions of the taking of the pact with Allah ta’ala. In this same reading, we can more easily understand this warning of Allah in this verse and this, of course, without houloûl or ittihâd (without reunion or unification or mixture of the Creator with His creation!): “Say:Who is the Lord of heavens and earth? Answer: “Allah! Say again:”Will you take apart from Him awliya which can not by themselves be useful or harmful? “. Adds: “Is the blind one is like the one who sees? Or is the darkness equal the Light? Or may it be that they give to God associates capable of create like Him, so that for them their creation is confused with His? Say: “God is the Creator of all things; He is the One, the supreme Dominator! “[S13 V 16].

    In these two verses, the characteristics of the Waliy are clearly described: “He brings them out of darkness to the Light.”

    It’s following this that we can now adress the second question; what are the characteristics that make up the genuine pact?

    For this we must, as always, refer to the Qur’an, in which Allah ﷻ says: “Allah certainly accepted the believers when they took the oath of allegiance under the tree. He knew what was in their hearts, and sent down peace on them, and rewarded them with a near Fath. “[Surat al-Fath, verse 18].

    We see in this verse that the approval of the pact of the believers by Allah under the Tree of the silsila is conjoined to the descent of as sakina in the heart and a “near (fast) Fath”. The Fath is described by our Beloved Prophet ﷺ in this hadith: “The Prophet ﷺ was asked” how does the breast open to Islam? He said, “When the Light enter the heart, the breast widens and opens (infataha!)” They asked, “Is there a sign to recognize this?” He said, “This sign is the languor of the abode of eternity, the diversion of the abode of illusion and the preparation to meet death before death.” [Reported by al-Hakim in his mustadrak, by al Bayhaqiy in Al asma ‘was sifat with a mursal chain].

    Again, here we see the link between Allah, Waliy, Light and the pact. This may seem surprising at first and one may wonder why this Light is recurrent when it comes to the Waliy and the pact. The answer to this is simply that this Light is the Iman itself, in accordance with the words of the Prophet ﷺ: “The Iman is a Light which Allah places in the heart of His believing servant;increases and diminishes according to the performance of good works” [reported by ibn ‘Abbas].

    The confirmation that this pact was indeed taken with a Waliy under the Tree of the Silsila and thus taken with Allah is the Vision of that Light of the Iman whose description is made in the Qur’an:“His light is like a niche in which a lamp is placed, the lamp is in a crystal vessel, and this one is like a star of great brightness, and its fuel comes from a blessed tree.” It should be noted that this verse of the Tree is also mentioned as if to well signify the link between the two verses, for those who reason …

    The importance of this pact is now even better understood. It is through this pact that the muslim will receive the Iman, the deposit. Receiving the iman in a handshake with a Waliy, here is the authentic pact! This is clearly explained by the Prophet (sws) that the deposit, al-iman is transmitted following the bay’a (to the pact): “(…) Man sleeps deep, and then The deposit is removed from his heart, leaving in it a trace like a cloud. Then he falls asleep again, and this trace is withdrawn, leaving only a mark that an embers would have made by falling on your leg, a kind of blister that you believe prominent although in truth it is empty … People will then take bay’a (commitments) towards each other, but praticaly none of them will transmit the deposit. It will be said then: there is undoubtedly in the tribe such a man amin (word sharing the root of amana … that is to say a man capable of transmitting the deposit). It will be said about this man: How sensible and knowing what he does! Who is more perfectly honest than he is! Who has endured and waited for so many trials! … while there is not in his heart even a single atom of faith …”[al-Bukhariy and Muslim].

    In conclusion, we can say that the pact with a Waliy is essential for the Muslim because this one will allow him to reach the degree of the Iman. As a sincere Muslim he should refer to the Quran and the Sunnah to determine the terms of the authentic pact which are explained in detail as we have just shown in this modest article. Without these modalities fulfilled, he will have to consider this pact as invalid and in any case he can consider it as an oath of allegiance with Allah.

    Al-Wartajabiy (radiAllahu ‘anhu) says of the verse: “They want to extinguish with their mouths the Allah’s Light, whereas Allah only wants to complete His Light, whatever repulsion the disbelievers may have.” “It was said of this verse that it was dealing with those who relied on beings who were like them, and who would have asked for knowledge of the True by other means than those established. The Allah’s Paths are however clear, for those whose eyes have been made up by the Light of the tawfiq, and who have thus been able to perceive the paths leading to the spiritual realization (tahqîq).

    As for the one who has been blinded from it, he will be rejected from the Way of the Haqq and will follow the perdition ways of the creatures. These people are reprimanded and sermonized for their ignorance of the people of the Haqiqa. They rely on the people of the blind follow-up (taqlîd) and have fallen far from the ranks of the Tawhîd. Such is the status of those who follow and imitate the adepts of the make-up among  the people of as-salous, those people who dress themselves up with machaykh and spiritually realized Knowers (arifin moutahaqqiqin) appearances.

    Such is the status of those who place themselves behind people that this world reunite, those who say, “We are sons of Machaykh and we are the leaders of the Tariqa! ”

    In reality, Allah make laughing the time for their ignorance, they who imagine that Holiness is inherited by kinship.Unpleasant to Allah that he who has never tasted the flavor of the Arrival in His Presence (wisal), given that his heart remains hanging on other than Him, be considered of the number of saints! ”

    Al-Juneyd (radiAllahu ‘anhu) also says in this connection: “If Allah wants good for the murid, He guides him to the companionship of the Sufis and shelters him from the companionship of the people who study the books.

    With regard to the latter, if they content themselves with highlighting their status (of scientist) and devote their time to gathering the things of this world, without relying entirely on the Saints nor trying to make collapse their reputation and fame … this would be enough for them as misfortune (in the afterlife).

    But if, on top of that, they allow themselves to denigrate the sincere Knowers (arifin), know that Allah said to them: “They want to extinguish with their mouths the Light of Allah, while Allah Only wishes to complete His light, whatever repulsion the unbelievers may have.”

    How could the dust of their presumptions extinguish the Lights of the Sun of the Divine Attributes? Lights emanating from the front of their faces and their radiant cheeks. Their foundation is firmly anchored in the cosmos of the Uniqueness and in the heavens of the persistence by Him.

    Their Light is added to the Light, because Allah ﷻ is unlimited, and His Attributes are also unlimited.”

    [Al-bahr al-madid fi tafsir al-Qur’an al-majid – ibn ‘Ajiba]

    It is therefore after having contracted the authentic pact with a Waliy of Allah that the person can claim to have realized the injunction of Allah “And follow the way of those who return to Me” [Surah Luqman, v15]. This return referred to here refers to the return to Allah and to the Shouyoukhs of tarbiya Muhammadiya having reached the noblest degrees of this return to Allah by the exiting of the darkness of the ego and of that which is nothing but nothingness for return to the original Light.

    May Allah keep us in the Love of His Awliya, forgive us our failures and save us from ourselves.

    Introduction to the Secret of the Basmala

    Introduction to the Secret of the Basmala

    بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
    و الصلاة و السلام على أشرف المرسلين
    و على اله و اصحابه أجمعين

    It is necessary to bear in mind that the following article is the fruit of a lesson given by the Shaykh Sidi Muhammad Fawzi Al Karkari (qadas Allahu sirrah) to his murid, from heart to heart, without talking, and without resorting to the physical world (moulk). In other words, this is a lesson provided in the malakoute : therefore, the teachings and symbols it contains are the fruit of a dhikr made in the last third of the night, and not thoughts from a careless brain. This lesson occurs to the murid by the mention of the name Allah, after having received the idhn from a Shaykh mourabbi authentically linked to the beloved Prophet ﷺ

    The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Every important matter that does not begin with « bismillâhi r-rahmani-r-rahim » is maimed.”

    Among the people of Allah, the basmala holds a particular importance, as in it is the Secret and the key to all sciences, in accordance with the word of Sayidina Ali (karam Allahu wajhou): “All of which is in the Qur’ān is in al-Fātiḥah, and all of which is in al-Fātiḥah is in the basmala, and all of which is in the basmala is in the letter bā’, the secret of the letter ba’ is the dot, and I am the dot.”

    We must be aware that there are many ways to approach the Holy Quran, and thus many ways to approach the basmala:

    • The first way is to consider it as “kitab mastour”, meaning a Book written with letters, on pages held together in a precise order… This is the form we all know, whether we are muslim or not.
    • The second way is to consider it as “kitab marqoum”, and Allah ﷻ mentions it as follows: “a sealed book (kitabun marqoum) which the brought near can see” [chapter 83 verse 21-22].
    • The third way is to consider it as “kitab maknoun”, that Allah mentions in the verse: “Indeed, it is a noble Quran in a Book well-protected (kitabun maknoun) that only the purified touch.” [chapter 56 verse 77-79].

    In this verse, Allah tells us that only the purified “al-moutaharoun” can touch this kitab maknoun, and in this saying we understand that this Book is very different from the one written with ink on paper pages that we put on a shelf, with anyone being able to take it and flip through its pages, whether being purified with wudhu or not, whether muslim or buddhist or christian or else. It clearly appears that the purity about which we are now speaking is not the one described in Islamic jurisprudence relating to ritual purification for example… likewise the Book which only the “purified” have access to is not the book we call Quran that we take and put on shelves as we choose. In addition, Allâh ﷻ mentions those we call in English “the purified” many times in the Quran, but there is a notable distinction which is not found in the translation, mentioning on the one hand « al-moutahharoûn » and on the other hand “al-moutatahhiroûn” :

    Allâh ﷻ says: “Indeed, Allah loves those who are constantly repentant and loves those who purify themselves (al-moutatahhiroûn).” [chapter 2 verse 222]. He also says: “A mosque founded on righteousness from the first day is worthier for you to stand in. Within it are men who love to purify themselves; and Allah loves those who purify themselves (al-mouttahhiroûn).” [chapter 9 verse 108].

    The difference between al-moutahharoûn and al-moutatahhiroûn lies in the fact that the first ones are those who reached complete purity of the heart, meaning that their heart is filled with divine Light and even the slightest atom of darkness does not remain in it. This is a very high spiritual level that only some of the chosen ones of Allah enjoy, those who received the grace of being able to enter the Jabaroute and stay in it. As for al-moutatahhiroûn, they are those who aspire to this maqâm, namely those who perceive the divine Light, those who journey towards it and enter it, but do not manage to stay in a complete Light net of any kind of darkness, they descend from this maqâm almost as soon as they reach it, and try again harder to enter it once more: those are al-moutatahhiroûn, meaning “those who seek purification (from all kind of darkness)”.

    Said in a different way, the “kitâb mastoûr” is the book we have access to in the Moulk, the “kitâb marqoûm” is the one we have access to in the Malakoute, and the “kitâb maknoûn” is the Book we have access to in the Jabaroute. We are therefore going to present this lesson in the following way:

    Jabaroute = Kitâb maknoûn
    Malakoute = Kitâb marqoûm
    Moulk = Kitâb mastoûr

    To come back to the Basmala, which is the topic of this article, we all know how it is written in the Moulk, meaning in consideration of the “kitâb al-mastour”:

    Here, some dots have been willingly enlarged as they are in direct relation to the writing of the Basmala, according to the “kitâb marqoûm”:

    This results in the fact that the basmala in the malakoûte is a triangle consisting of three dots:

    • The dot of the bâ’ located below the baseline, referring to its hidden nature: It is the dot of the Shaykh.
    • The dot of the noun, the one of the murid, elevated above the baseline, apparent and providing its teachings to the aspirant.
    • The two dots of the yâ’, concealed under the baseline, representing the Science of the first ones and the Science of the last ones (‘ilm ul-awwalin wa ‘ilmu l-akhirin). One of these two dots must inevitably return to is origin (which is the dot of the Shaykh), because the Baraka of this Science lies in the fact that it is taken from a lineage of Shuyukhs who are Muhammadan heirs. Should the murid omit or neglect the fact that without them he could not have accessed to anything, taking any credit, his Knowledge shall be withdrawn from him the same way it has been given to him. This is what we call as-salb, may Allah preserve us from it.

    By attributing all the credit to the Shaykh, the murid forces this second dot of the yâ’ ar-Rahîm to return to its origin, and while he has not completely managed to do it, his situation can be considered the following way:

    This is so we understand that when the murid seals the bay’a with an educator Shaykh authentically linked to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ, he sees the appearance of a Light in his heart… in other words, the Shaykh places in the heart of his murid an energy of divine origin, a Light thanks to which he progresses through the sirât al-moustaqîm, the path of rectitude. The Prophet ﷺ tells us: “I am leaving you upon the White Path, the night and day of which are the same.”

    The White Path here is the Path of the Light, as the divine Lights the eye of the believer heart witnesses are not concerned by the night nor by the day. Sayiduna Ahmad ar-Rifa’i (radiAllâhu ‘anhu) said: “The sun of the one who loves You raised at night… it brightened and never set. The sun of the day lights the evening… but the suns of the hearts do not set.”

    Once this Muhammadan seal is placed on the heart, the murid receives the spiritual fluxes and theophanies he intercepts with that same heart, and apprehends them thanks to his reason. The latter is first narrow and restricted, but thanks to the Dhikr and the intensification of his Light, the aspirant strengthens the ability of his heart to influence all his senses, thus his reason gets more and more able to conceive the divine Realities. When the Shaykh considers his murid’s progress high enough and that his Light has burnt enough of the veils covering his heart, he transmits the Secret of the Tawhid to him, by which the murid is introduced in the divine Presence. Needless to say that without Light, there is of course no Secret, considering the Secret is secret, it is precisely because the heart of the average creature does not have the ability to bear its Reality. Allâh –subhânahu wa ta’ala- says:

    “Indeed, we offered the Responsibility to the heavens, the earth and the mountains. They declined to bear it and feared it; but man [undertook to] bear it. Indeed, he is unjust [to himself] and ignorant.” [chapter 33 verse 22]

    By continuing the study of the last diagram, we come to the following:

    The pathway of the murid is a quest to rectitude (istiqâma), and this rectitude consists of the murid becoming an Alif… et an Alif is necessarily constituted of at least three dots, which can be associated according to different considerations depending on the point of view. In this example, the point of view taken is to consider the top dot of the Alif of the murid as his heart, after having been sealed with the Muhammadan seal, meaning after his internal eye has tasted the vision of the theophanic Lights. Then, a Path of Light is drawn and links the dot of the heart (the dot of the noun ar-Rahmân) and the dot of the reason (the first dot of the yâ’ ar-Rahîm). As for the second dot of the ‘Ism ar-Rahîm, it is associated with the nafs of the murid, which gravitates and forms a disc of darkness around the center of the Alif of Light, in a plane perpendicular to the latter. Thus, the dot of the nafs has the tendency to draw the straight path heart/reason to itself, preventing the istiqâma of the Alif of the aspirant… The more the nafs is imposing, the more its attraction is strong, and the less straight is the path of the murid. Therefore, the task of the aspirant will consist in oppressing his nafs and force it to close in on itself, until it only occupies the center of what will become for him an Alif.

    As we have explained earlier, this return of the Nafs to the center of the Alif corresponds to the desired return of one of the two dots of the yâ’ ar-Rahim to its origin (the dot of the bâ’ of the basmala)… in other words, the murid’s nafs (the dot of the yâ’) returns to its origin, materialized in the person of the Shaykh, meaning that when the disciple reaches this level and becomes an Alif, he is completely annihilated in his Shaykh : he does not think, does not see, does not feel but by him, by him and for him. The aspirant then see realization of the following verse in him:
    “O reassured soul, return to your Lord, well-pleased and pleasing [to Him].” [chapter 89 verse 27].

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