https://www.nvrislam.net/index.php?j=eng&post=5767
et (peace be upon him); they may be under Divine protection, here and hereafter. Only hard-headed people cannot take that benefit. Therefore, you must try to have meetings often, for any occasion.”

A murid commented, “But not public!”

Mawlana objected, “Why not public? You may do anywhere. If anyone comes to listen to you, he is not prohibited!”

“I remember, once, you recited the silsila in the London airport,” said a disciple. “One fellow in the crowd heard it and came right over – whoosh!”

Shaykh Nazim smiled, “Yes! You may sit anywhere. If you are in a public place, and anyone is interested in coming, don’t keep them away! ‘Welcome, Welcome!’ Understand? This is important, because, in meeting, our egos are coming into friendship. Originally, our egos are wild; they never like to be with others. But meeting tames the wild animals; wildness goes and becomes tame. There is mercy coming. It will be an attraction; they will come; even one may come. Three then becomes more powerful than two, yes!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh is teaching us another important manner:

“Our Prophet (peace be upon him) ordered his nation always to be between hope and fear; to hope for His mercy, and to fear His punishment.

“Hope means that, if it is said that only one person will enter Paradise, you must hope that ‘Perhaps I will be that one.’ Understand?

“And, if it is said that only one person will enter Hell, you must be afraid to be that person. Clear? This is to be between fear and hope!

“Allah says that millions and billions will enter Paradise – we must hope to be among them. And, He also says that millions and billions will enter Hell – we must be afraid to be one of them. He Almighty says, ‘Don’t despair of My mercy,’ because He may forgive all sins. This character makes people come into the right way. It is for every believer, not just for Muslims.

“Fear makes our wrong actions right, it gives rightness to people. So does hope. For if there were no hope, no one would come to correct himself. This means that there are never-ending chances for every person, every moment. if you hope for your Lord’s mercy, you may quickly turn to Him. Allah says, ‘O My servant! When you return to Me, I am ready for you; even at the last moment of your life! When you say ‘O my Lord!’ I say, ‘O My servant!’ to you.’”

Shaykh Nazim then added, “Some people, most people, most ‘Alims say that Allah Almighty is angry with us now. Our Grandshaykh says that Allah is not angry with us. He is not stopping his mercy for us. Mercy is coming down; all around is mercy. We are swimming in mercy oceans.”

Someone asked, “But wasn’t Allah angry with the people of Israel, for instance, when they worshipped the golden calf? Wasn’t Moses (peace be upon him) angry?”

“Is Moses (peace be upon him) Allah?” said the Shaykh.

“Allah is angry by mouth, not by heart!” one of the brothers joked.
There was general laughter.

Then, Mawlana said, “Allah’s anger is not like our anger. If we are angry with a person, we are cutting all things from him. But, Allah Almighty is sending mercy. How can He be angry? If He were angry, He would withhold His Rahmah, His mercy; but He is giving so much! Allah Almighty is angry toward those people who are judging His servants, yet He still sends His mercy.”
“What about all those He destroyed in the time of Noah?” Mawlana answered, “He destroyed their bodies, not their spirits.
His Divine anger destroyed those bodies which were committing sins.
When the body is destroyed, then the spirit is free and pure – going into mercy oceans and swimming.”

“But, Shaykh Nazim, won’t they still have their bodies on the Judgement Day?”

“These will be new bodies,” answered the Shaykh, “not bodies that made sins in this world.”

A murid said, “But which bodies will go to Hell to be cleaned?” “He Almighty knows well which are going to Hell!” Mawlana said. “Do they suffer in the graves?”
“Yes,” replied the Shaykh, “it is like a man who falls from a second story window and breaks his head, his legs, and his neck; he may stay in the hospital one year, or six months, till he has recovered; then he comes out. He who makes himself wounded in this life with the spear of Satan will stay, for recovery, in graves and in Hell. When he is all right, he will go on to Paradise. What do you think about all those people in hospitals? Are they in mercy, or in punishment?”

Quickly, one murid said, “Mercy!”

While another said, “Punishment!” Again, we all laughed.

“Yes!” agreed Shaykh Nazim. “From one side they are in punishment, and from the other side they are in mercy. Their

imprisonment is not as if they were in jail. It is mercy for them, as if they were in hospitals. You understand? Clear? This is from all religions, and all Holy books.”

A brother made this observation: “When you make a point, it seems clear until we ask questions. Then, as the answer unfolds, I realize that the point I thought I understood is so subtle that I don’t get it.”

Mawlana answered him, “Yes, these are all like grains, like seeds. With faith in your heart, they will grow up. Then, you will see their flowers, and, after that, you will see their fruits, and then, at last, you will eat! Now, those are all seeds. Don’t be afraid.”

* * * * * * *

This lesson is the ‘wasiyyah,’ or legacy of all Grandshaykhs, not one, but all of them, for their followers, their murids:

Don’t say, “I know!” Say instead, “I try to know.” Clear?

They said this as their inheritance to us. Be a student always. Ask for learning. Don’t be a learned man, thinking that you do not need to learn anything. You must always be a learner.

From where do our masters take this knowledge? From the hadiths of the Prophet (peace be upon him). He said, “You must ask for knowledge, from the cradle to the grave.” Be a learner!

Which kind of knowledge must we ask for? For this world? This life? No, we must ask instead for Divine knowledge. This is knowledge that makes us approach the Divine Presence. Don’t ask for the knowledge of this world, because if you are learning from Divine knowledge, the knowledge from this life is only one drop in an ocean. He who knows Divine knowledge may control natural powers; they will be under his will. He who doesn’t know Divine knowledge, on the other hand, will be controlled by natural powers! If you have Divine knowledge, it gives you power to control all natural powers; they will be under your command. Otherwise, natural powers will control you. You will be under the command of the forces of nature.

“Is that for the whole universe?” came the question.

Shaykh Nazim responded, “Yes, the whole universe. People may be kings, and people may be servants. Clear? The authority for this, in Holy Quran, is the verse, ‘O people! We made all powers in Heaven and earth subject to your command!’ That verse gives that authority for Muhammad (peace be upon him) and his nation, for all. All things in the earth, and in the Heavens, were put under our command. Clear? It is a big verse, powerful. It means that we are controllers, not natural forces!”

A murid points to the tape recorder and asks, “Are things like this manifestations of this power?”

Shaykh Nazim replied, “Planes, cars, technological things; these are a little part. They are only on earth, these powers. But we have, also, such a power over Heavens, over the skies, and it is not with our bodies. We can control Heavenly subjects with our spiritual powers.”

“The majority of people in the Western world would say that spiritual power doesn’t exist, or if it does exist, that it is inferior to technological power,” said a brother.

The Shaykh responded, “It is because they made technological power an idol for worshipping. Nowadays, mankind is not bowing to anything but technology. They are making sajdah, like this (he gestures as if he were bowing to the tape recorder), yet they have invented that technological idol with their own hands. Technology – it is from man’s hands, man’s doing! They are foolish, those who are making, then fearing what they made! They are stupid, it they think like this!

“They must know that man is higher than any technology. Even the most wonderful electronic mechanism now being made cannot work without man. The excellent electronic mind, is it? If a man does not operate it, it cannot go on. Man is highest. Every new invention is man- made. How can they be afraid, making idols?”

“But they think they are all-powerful,” commented one murid.

“Yes,” added another, “that’s the Renaissance ideal, that man is the most important.”

“Man is greatest, above all technology,” said Mawlana. “Any objection? We have such a power: technology hasn’t such a power, because technology comes from our powers.”

“But what if they worship themselves? What if they make themselves the idols, saying, ‘Look at what we have done! We are all- Knowing!’ They don’t believe in Allah,” said the first brother.

Shaykh Nazim said, “Even if they do not believe in anything, they are stupid if they make technology an idol. How can they do that? How can they be right?”

“But aren’t they really making themselves the idol?” asked someone.

“Themselves?” said Mawlana. “That is another thing. We were speaking about technology being an idol.”

“Well, that was the next point I was going to make,” said the first questioner.

“They are very proud,” said the second.

“They may even be proud,” replied the Shaykh, “but, man is still higher than all technology.”

“And,” commented a brother, “they didn’t create man, did they?” “No,” said Mawlana. “Who created man?”
Then, someone said, “I was reading a story about a shaykh: think he was a Naqshbandi shaykh, from the Sudan.”

“Yes?”

“And, for twenty years, he fought the British. They finally defeated the dervishes after World War I, when they brought in airplanes and bombed them. So, the story I was reading made the point that the technological power of the British was superior to the ‘primitive beliefs’

and spiritual powers of the dervishes. They called it superstition, because that man was said to…”

“I know, l know,” interrupted the Shaykh. “What do you mean to say with this?”

The murid went on, “That their spiritual power didn’t mean anything, because the British had these guns and bombs.”

Then Mawlana said, “That shaykh hadn’t any spiritual power. He hadn’t! If he had, would those planes and bombs have come? Who said that shaykh had spiritual power?”

“He said that he had those powers. People followed him. When he was defeated, people said, ‘See? There’s no such thing as spiritual power.’ Do you see what I’m saying?”

“Not right,” said Mawlana. “Not correct. If he had spiritual power, .
. . they wouldn’t see spiritual power. Quran tells, for example, and it is written in all Holy books as well, the story of King Solomon (peace be upon him) and the throne of Sheba. The power that brought that throne flying through the air in the blink of an eye; that is spiritual power! It is written in all Holy books, and in Quran, also. That person who brought the throne of the Queen of Sheba, he had Divine knowledge. With the power of that Divine knowledge, he brought that throne in the blink of an eye.”

“Most people would say that story is untrue.”

“They may say,” replied the Shaykh, “but how can they prove that technology is higher than a man? To create a man is greater, or to make a computer? They must answer. People are free to believe or not, but they must bring authority for what they say. Whether they believe or not, who can say that a computer is more complete than mankind?”

Someone said, “What about test-tube babies?”

“They are liars,” said the Shaykh. “They have no minds, these people! Who can accept that a computer is more complete than man? This is foolish. Man is the most excellent creature; no one may be more

so. And, we are asking, from where does man come? We must ask that person who says technology is superior. He would say, ‘From my father and mother.’ Yes, then we must stop this ‘From my father, from my mother, from my grandmother, etc.,’ and we must ask him, ‘This world, from what was it?’ ‘From the sun,’ they say, ‘and moon is a part of the earth,’ they say also. Then we must ask, ‘lf earth and moon are the same, if they come from the same source, why is there nothing on the moon, and so many creatures on the earth?”

“Because there is no atmosphere on the moon,” offered somebody.

“Why?” said the Shaykh, “Why is atmosphere here and not there?” “There’s no shortage of theories for that!”
“Then they say that when earth was thrown from the sun, it was fiery, burning. We know that even one-hundred degrees centigrade will kill everything. When this cooled off, who planted the seed of life? From sun? Or, from Heavens?”

“People say that it was a natural chemical reaction,” said a listener.

“They must say, ‘A power planted!’” said Mawlana. The murid went on, “…, oxygen, hydrogen,…”
The Shaykh laughed, “A most powerful force made this, they must say. Because, even if you wait one-thousand years, if there is no seed planted, nothing will come. It is impossible. They must accept that an extraordinary power planted so many things on earth, as He liked. Do they accept this or not?”

“No,” replied the questioner, “They would say ‘Billions of years.’” The Shaykh said, “Even billions and trillions…”
“There does seem to be a rather large gap in their theories,” the murid agreed.

Shaykh Nazim continued, “Man has been given extraordinary powers by his Creator. Technology is only a part of those powers, that authority to command the forces of nature. But man also has undiscovered powers – the powers of Prophets and saints. You are asking for this power for your own use. It is not in our hands now. We are not ready to hold that power in our hands. It is like a boy wanting to fly a jet plane. He can’t. You also have a plane, but you must learn how you can fly it. Man is a most strange creature, most wonderful creature. Therefore, we need to direct ourselves, to learn to use those powers, but we are not yet at this point. We have methods, coming to us from all Prophets, to teach people to direct, to control, to command those powers. But still, we are under the command of the forces of nature. When we are able to command our own nature’s force, then we will be able to command spiritual powers.”

“Our natural forces command us?”

“Yes, individually, if a man is able to command, in himself, natural forces, then he may command, generally, all natural forces. The control of the universe is tied to control of ourselves. lf a man cannot control himself, he never controls the universe!”

“Shaykh Nazim,” asked a murid, “are there many men on earth who have such ability?”

“No. Very few. Very few people who control themselves. Very few. And the way of controlling ourselves was made clear by the Prophets. We have that clear method with us also. If anyone is asking for that method, we have it.”

“We’re all asking!”

“Yes, you are asking,” Mawlana smiled. “You are like little boys. Step by step, you will reach to be…‘doctors,’ to be ‘engineers,’ to be ‘professors’; you are on the way.”

“Do we have the time?” someone asked. “Is there still time for us?”

“Yes,” replied Shaykh Nazim, “Sometimes it may be given in a short time. It may be given to some people in a few minutes, it may be given in a few hours, it may be given in a few days, months, years; it may not be given in his life. Yes, some plants give in a few days, others take so many years to bear fruit.”

* * * * * * *

More questions: “Shaykh Nazim, how should I handle my children?”

“With children, you must deal with them like children.” “But I have no experience in that matter. I don’t know…”
“With a big man, like a big man. With little boys, like little boys. With a learned man, like a learned man. With a common man, like himself. With each man on his level.”

“How do I know when I’m on their level?”

“You must put yourself in their position. You must think, ‘If I were that man, how would I act?’ Even a judge, when he is going to judge a case, must put himself in the position of the defendant before he makes his decision, or he will be wrong. Understand?

“Allah Almighty is the Judge of Judges,” the Shaykh continued. “On the Day of Resurrection, He will show everyone all his actions, from the course of his life, and will leave judgment to that servant, to judge for himself. ‘What is your judgment for that person whose life passed as you see it now?’ He will say. Then, that servant will judge for himself. It is the spirit, the essence of judgment. If a man can judge for himself, it is exact justice. Therefore, when you’re judging for someone in your life, you must put yourself in his position, in his conditions. Then, you will speak for him, for her, for children, for older man, for everyone. Clear?”

“Yes. The thing that I get anxious about is whether I’m being too hard, or not hard enough.”

“For Whom?” asked the Shaykh.

“For the children,” replied the murid.

Shaykh Nazim said, “The best thing for them is to be between fear and hope. Sometimes you must make them fear you, and sometimes they must have hope from you. Not always hard, and not always soft. You must use this side and that side, understand? Prophets, and our Prophet (peace be upon him), have been ordered by their Lord to sometimes give good tidings, and to sometimes give warnings.”

To this, the murid said, “I don’t know, yet, how I would do such a
thing.”

Shaykh Nazim said, “When you are back home, your inspirations will guide you. Don’t be worried about that point.”

Another disciple said, “About the dhikr that we do: fifteen- hundred ‘Allah’ at night, ‘La ilaha illAllah,’ and the wird; is there anything else we should say?”

The Shaykh answered, “Enough. You may also say Salawat.”

A murid asked Shaykh Nazim a question about his family difficulties, and the Shaykh responded, “You have been guided. Wherever you may be there is guidance directing you. Don’t be worried.”

“When we are eating meat, how can we know if it is Halal?” a murid asked.

“When I first met our Grandshaykh,” Shaykh Nazim replied, “l was also very strict, very particular, about my food. But he told me, ‘It is not good manners to be like that. When you are a guest, you must not ask, ‘Is this food clean?’ No! You must give your host the benefit of the doubt. When you know that the food is pork, don’t eat it, but say instead, ‘I am a vegetarian,’ or something like this. You must have good manners toward everybody. If you are in doubt as to whether meat (assuming that it is not pork) is halal or not, you may say, three times, ‘Shahada,’ and, seventy times, ‘Astaghfirullah.’ Then, as you eat, and you say, ‘Bismillah,’ Allah Almighty will make that food clean for you, in the time it takes for you to raise it from your plate and put it in your mouth!

“When you are buying meat and you think that it has come in contact with pork, or utensils that have been used to handle and prepare pork, you may wash it, and repeat the formula we just said. If you can obtain Halal meat, of course it is best. But, when you are somebody’s guest, don’t ask! Even if it is known to you that they usually cook with lard, you must assume that, this time, for you, they cleaned their pots and pans and didn’t use it. Only if you are certain that pork or pork products were used may you refrain from eating.”

“Shaykh Nazim?” asked another brother. “My parents are very upset with my becoming Muslim. ‘If you are looking for spiritual teachings,’ they say, ‘Why can’t you find them within your own religion?’ My question is, are there teachers like you within other religions?”

“Once,” said Mawlana, “l was walking in the marketplace with our Grandshaykh, when a Christian priest came up to him, and kissed Grandshaykh’s hand. Then, he gave salaams and went on his way quickly.

“Seeing my surprise, our Grandshaykh turned to me and said, ‘There are others like him, Nazim Effendi, who wait secretly for Mahdi (peace be upon him) to come. They are hidden. The time is not yet come for them to be known!’

“Therefore, we are saying that for a teacher to give authentic spiritual teachings, he must know the reality of Muhammad (peace be upon him).

“Among the shaykhs and teachers, there are so many levels. They are like helicopters, jets, and rockets. Each flies at his level. It is not important for us to worry about so many levels. It is most important for us to conquer our nafs. That is the critical thing.”

The Shaykh continued, “We must respect all men in their religion, for no one can know what is the relationship between a man and his Lord.

“Once, a great Wali was traveling on his way when he came across a shepherd who was bowed down in prayer. The Wali looked at the man’s clothing, in which he had been working all day, and became annoyed.

“’How can you pray like that?’ he said to the shepherd. ‘Your clothes are dirty, and you smell like your sheep! Don’t you know that you must pray in clean clothes?’

“The shepherd remained quiet for a minute, and then looked up, startled. ‘O, Shaykh, forgive me!’ he said. ‘I did not hear what you said. I was tending my sheep when my Lord ordered me into sajdah, and just now He was speaking to me. Is there something I may help you with?’

“When that Wali heard this, he became ashamed. ‘O my Lord, forgive me for judging Your servant!’ he cried, and threw himself immediately into sajdah.”

* * * * * * *

“Our Grandshaykh says, ‘The honour of a man is according to his Divine knowledge. As much as he has this Divine knowledge, he has high degrees and high ranks.’ Understand? Therefore, all Prophets and saints have ranks, according to their Divine knowledge. Also, according to their Divine knowledge, they approach the Divine Presence.”

Shaykh Nazim continued, “All Prophets’ and saints’ ranks are given from our Prophet, Muhammad (peace be upon him). All knowledge, Divine knowledge, also comes from Muhammad (peace be upon him).

“He has been given the knowledge of past times and future times. You asked about the Prophets before Muhammad (peace be upon him), do they know him? Yes, because Quran says that before Prophets were sent to mankind from the spiritual world, they knew the last of Prophets, Muhammad (peace be upon him). Allah Almighty said to them, ‘He is the last, and the greatest Prophet. If he comes during your time, then you are not Prophets, you will be his followers! Do you accept this?’ And they said, ‘Yes!’

“Therefore, all Prophets know our Prophet (peace be upon him). They believe in him, and order their nations to believe in him also, in order that they may complete their faith as Prophets. They have ordered their nations to believe in all Prophets, past and future.”

“And they got their knowledge from him also?” asked a murid.

“Yes,” answered the Shaykh. “He is the first Prophet. He is the first creature that Allah Almighty created, the first one that He spoke to, and Divine knowledge is, therefore, coming to all Prophets from the way of Muhammad (peace be upon him).”

“In other words,” said a murid, “Muhammad (peace be upon him) was a mediator between Allah and the other Prophets?”

The Shaykh answered, “Yes.”

Another said, “There are many places in the Bible that speak of Muhammad (peace be upon him).”

“Yes,” replied Mawlana, “The station of Muhammad is nearest to his Lord. No one, not even Gabriel can approach as Muhammad (peace be upon him) approached his Lord. Therefore, Gabriel took from Muhammad (peace be upon him), and gave to all the other Prophets.”

“When Muhammad (peace be upon him) was born,” asked a brother, “did he know that he would be a Prophet?”

“When he was born,” replied the Shaykh, “he signed, with his hand, ‘La ilaha illAllah Muhammad ur-Rasulullah.’ At that moment, he was in sajdah! How could he not know?!”

“He knew it, consciously, throughout his life,” asked another, “As opposed to subconsciously? The stories we’ve read say that he didn’t know until Quran started coming.”

Mawlana gestured toward a child, who was playing in the mosque. “That boy,” he said, “knows that he is male, but the reality of that has not appeared to him yet. He knows that he is a boy, not a girl, but until he is fifteen years old, he will not know what the personality of a man is. In this way, the Prophet (peace be upon him) knew himself, but the appearance of his reality didn’t come to him exactly until he was forty years old.”

Someone repeated, “He knew he would be a Prophet, but he didn’t know what it would be like?”

“Yes,” replied the Shaykh, “Muhammad (peace be upon him) said,
‘I was Prophet when Adam (peace be upon him) was yet a piece of clay!’

“These things belong to belief. You cannot force people to believe in anything. They are free; they may believe or not. We believe according to verses and hadiths, yes! All Prophets’ and saints’ knowledge, beside our Prophet’s knowledge, is as one drop to an ocean. All Grandshaykhs say this. All Prophets say this. If anyone objects to this point they may ask any Prophet or any saint, if they say it is not true, we may change this. They may ask their Prophets, they may ask their saints; they will get an answer. I am asking, and getting my answer.

“Allah gave to Muhammad (peace be upon him) an ocean. And Muhammad (peace be upon him) gave to all Prophets and saints from that ocean! How much have they been given? If taken all together, it is like one drop beside Muhammad’s ocean!”

“Does Muhammad (peace be upon him) have complete knowledge of Allah?” someone asked.

“Muhammad’s knowledge is like an ocean for Prophets and Awliya,” replied the Shaykh. “But, beside Allah’s knowledge ocean, the ocean of Muhammad (peace be upon him) is only a drop, a very small drop! Because Muhammad’s ocean is limited, and Allah’s ocean is unlimited.

“Our Grandshaykh said often, ‘If you put a needle in an ocean, that needle is the knowledge of Muhammad (peace be upon him). When you take that needle out of the water, there will be a tiny drop of water at the tip. That tiny drop is like an ocean in front of all Prophets and Awliya!’

“Therefore, we say that the Divine knowledge is an endless ocean. You cannot reach complete knowledge of Allah Almighty. Never! Shaykh Muhammad Salli asked me if the knowledge of Prophets and saints stopped, or keeps on improving – it improves! It always improves! As

much as our Prophet (peace be upon him) is improving, all Prophets are also taking more and more.”

“Where, in the afterlife?” “Yes.”
“Where are the Prophets now? In Barzakh?” “In Barzakh.”
“In Barzakh, do they receive more knowledge from Muhammad (peace be upon him)?”

“No, Muhammad (peace be upon him) also takes more, and gives
more.”

“Muhammad (peace be upon him) takes more knowledge, too?” “Yes, always.”
“Still?”

“Still!”

“And the other Prophets receive more knowledge, too?” “Yes, also!”
“In Barzakh?” “All of them!”
“Do you receive more knowledge?” “Yes,” replied Shaykh Nazim.
“Then acquiring knowledge is not finished in Barzakh?”

“No,” said Mawlana, “Allah’s giving has no end. Allah is not like man, finished. If He is finished with His treasures, it means that He is like us. How could He be Allah, if He were like us? Everything with Him is endless. Knowledge is endless. He is giving, more and more. And we, here, do not know anything. When we go from this life, when we leave this body and enter in a new life, our spirits go into a knowledge ocean, following the Prophet (peace be upon him), to take more and more. No one leaves this life without taking knowledge. All of them are taking Divine knowledge after their death.”

A murid asked, “But, then, why all the anxiousness?”

“To complete them,” answered Shaykh Nazim. “To complete. Some people are going on donkeys, and some are riding in cars. Both of them are increasing their knowledge.

“Some people know,” he went on, “and some people have been veiled; they cannot know to where they are approaching; where they are going. When veils are lifted, at the last moment when you are leaving this life, at that time you can know where you are!”

“How is it to be a shaykh?” asked a brother. “We don’t know what a shaykh is, what your station is like. You are as you are, while we are as we are, and Grandshaykh is as he is.”

“For everyone, there is a station,” said Mawlana, “and, in that station, some are ready to fly up, some are getting ready, and some are not ready. For rockets there is a base, a platform upon which they sit until take-off. For each person also there is a base, a station, and his rocket is being put on it. Some people complete their work during their lives. Then, they are sent!”

“While still alive?”

“Yes,” replied the Shaykh. “Those who die before they die.” “For them, it is increasing now?” someone asked.

Shaykh Nazim answered, “Yes, but so many people are sleeping. Their rockets are still on their bases; until the end of their life comes. Then they will be thrown by Divine force!”

“Mawlana, did the Grandshaykh, throughout his long life, get more knowledge, new knowledge, every day and every night?”

“That knowledge belongs to our spirits,” said Mawlana.

“Yes,” the murid went on, “but did he get more knowledge every day and every night?”

“Every hour, every moment.” “More and more?”
“More and more,” said the Shaykh, “but that knowledge, what is its benefit? It makes man approach the Divine Presence, and you cannot know which person is approaching.

“Our Prophet (peace be upon him) was in the Divine Presence day and night,” continued the Shaykh, “but, he was sitting with his Sahaba. Who could know that he was in the Divine Presence? Only a few Sahaba; even one of his wives who was sleeping with him but where was the Prophet (peace be Upon him)? Was he with her, or was he with his Lord?”

Shaykh Nazim paused for a moment, and then went on, “Yes, it is an unknown thing. Perhaps you are in the Divine Presence, but there are no signs. He Almighty knows, and if He is giving some signs, you may know. This knowledge is yet for our bodies.”

“That which we are getting now?” a brother asked.

“Yes,” replied the Shaykh. “Now, we are learning letters. We have not yet reached the point where we can put those letters side by side for reading. No, this that we are doing now is as a practice which must be done first. Then, you will know. When your old ways will go away, a new world will appear to you; one you never saw before! You will approach the ‘lawh al-mahfuz’ (the Preserved Tablet where all things are recorded) Finished!

“Isn’t there danger in that?” asked a murid. (Everyone laughed). “Someone once told me that when you see all those beautiful things, you should be careful not to get caught up in them; that they’ll catch you along the way, that you can get caught in the garden!”

“Who said that?” the Shaykh asked. A certain fellow was named. “Yes, yes!” the Shaykh smiled, and then continued, “It is only a description! It will be more different from this life, from this world. It will be very beautiful, very enjoyable for your spirit: not like this dirty worl
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