MERCY OCEANS, Book 01 (Shaykh Nazim, 208 pages, 9/12)
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ens open and you will see all things in sajdah to their Lord. If a man is ready at that time, he may reach everything he may ask. People who know the value of that moment may wait every night throughout the year; not just during Ramadan.
“Our Grandshaykh says that, in a similar manner, there is a special mercy for each kind of worship; for each fard, and for each sunnah of Rasulullah (peace be upon him) that a servant may observe continuously, not leaving it. There are five hundred kinds of worship and you do not know from which worship that mercy may open. Therefore, we do not leave one and skip to another! Allah’s reward to us is according to our intent.”
A brother asked, “Which worship is the most valuable?”
“Only Allah knows,” was the Shaykh’s reply. “You cannot know with which worship, or with which goodness He may be pleased with us. Laylatul Qadr is only one of five hundred kinds; four-hundred and ninety-nine other mercies come for other goodness’s! No one knows when a Divine mercy is coming, or for which practice there may be a reward. It may come anytime, day or night, winter or summer, before, during, or after Ramadan. He who asks for the Night of Power uses every night. Maybe the night he sleeps is that Night!
“Therefore, we must keep to a practice and not leave it. ‘This is the biggest miracle,’ says our Grandshaykh. For if a man may keep to a certain goodness, a certain worship, throughout his life; he will be ready when Allah opens the door of mercy for that particular worship.’
“Every day, at the beginning, we must intend: ‘O my Lord! I intend to stand up for five hundred acts of worships, as best I can! This I intend, O my Lord!’ If we make an intention, then all our actions will be according to our intent. It is written that: ‘That person who intends to do every act of worship as sincerely as he can, that person will take that mercy from all five hundred acts of worship!’
A brother wanted to know: “Why not make the intention at the beginning of each month?”
Mawlana Shaykh Nazim answered, “Because, if you put such a heavy load, a whole month, on your nafs, it will never accept it. But, if you make the intention each morning, until that night, he will do it with pleasure. Remember, we intend to worship endlessly, eternally, without ceasing. But, in order to catch our nafs; to be able to use it for worship, we use tricks. We are saying, ‘I am only loading this load on you until night! Tomorrow; nothing, finished!’”
The Shaykh continued, “It is like a shopkeeper who posts a sign: ‘Today cash – Tomorrow credit.’ When a man comes to his shop to buy something on credit, the shopkeeper points to the sign, and says, ‘Pay me today, and tomorrow I will allow you to buy something on credit.’ When the customer returns the next day, and asks for the credit he was promised, the shopkeeper again points to the sign: ‘Today cash – Tomorrow credit!’ Understand? Like this we trick our nafs.”
* * * * * * *
These are the words of our Grandshaykh. Awliya are addressing both our spirits and our bodies, at the same time. Their words may be written on our hearts, and in books. If a man hasn’t the power to address your heart, you will not be able to take enough benefit from his words. When words are written on your heart, anytime you may need them you will remember. But if they are not written on your heart, you cannot remember. You cannot benefit from them.
* * * * * * *
“There is an unchanging method in Islam,” says our Grandshaykh. “Whoever tries hard, and carries difficulties in the way of Allah Almighty and His Prophet (peace be upon him), must be given his reward. While he is carrying his heavy load of worship and does not leave his practice, there may come, at any time, a private mercy for that servant; taking him from here and putting him in his station in the Divine Presence.
“A man once intended to go to Hijaz. He loaded his supplies on his back, and set out on foot. He walked as far as he could until his strength
was used up and he could go no further. And yet his intent remained alive. Do you think your Lord would leave his servant in the desert like that? That man remained patient, though with no hope for himself and no power to help himself. At that time, Allah looked out for him; a private mercy opened for that servant. A camel appeared coming along that way. His Lord sent that servant to Hijaz.
“This is our example. If a man carries difficulties for the sake of Allah, his Lord does not leave him. His Lord will pick up those difficulties and give that servant absolute rest and happiness. If a man asks for mercy without carrying difficulties, he is a man seeking wheat in the fall without planting or ploughing in the spring. We must carry difficulties for our Lord, and then He will give us everything: endless enjoyment and happiness, eternally.”
* * * * * * * From the teachings of our Grandshaykh:
“If a person makes a sunnah, it means that the action belongs to our Prophet (peace be upon him). It is from our Prophet’s treasures. It is impossible for it to be stolen by Iblis. It cannot vanish; it is protected among the treasures of Muhammad (peace be upon him). Sins and bad actions erase our good actions and worship. When, on the Judgment Day, a servant is in need of good actions, the Prophet (peace be upon him) will give to him from among his treasures which he has kept for that servant.
“It is required that we must worship Allah without asking reward in this life or the next. This action by a servant is kept among Allah Almighty’s treasures. Why do so many hadiths mention a reward for the servant who does this or that sunnah? This is because our Prophet (peace be upon him) was ordered to address men according to their various levels and capacities for understanding. In general, most people’s nafs wouldn’t do anything without the promise of a reward, like children who must be promised sweets in order to do their chores promptly. So, as some men are interested in women, gardens, and palaces, Allah Almighty has promised them these things as a reward for good actions.
“Some, however, are not interested in palaces. They are interested in the King! It is required for us, therefore, to be our Lord’s sincere servants; without asking any reward. This is the highest degree of worshipping. Nafs’ demands are too limited. If a man can save himself from his ego, he will not be satisfied with the few drops that his nafs crave. All beauties of Paradise are but a few drops from the endless beauty oceans of Allah Almighty! If a man is dying of thirst, will a few drops of water be sufficient for him? Therefore, we are asking only to enter into the Divine Presence, to disappear forever into His endless beauty oceans, endless power oceans, endless mercy oceans. Never returning – finished!”
A murid asked, “Isn’t this, also, our egos asking for rewards?”
“No,” Mawlana told him. “This desire is not of the nafs. Nafs are satisfied with the beauties of Paradise. They cannot understand more than that level. Don’t say that your nafs demands the oceans of Allah’s beauty! In those oceans there are no ladies, no gardens, no palaces. What is there for your nafs? Nothing! If you say that your nafs wants those endless oceans, you are a liar!”
Mawlana continued, “There is a hadith saying that there is a Paradise where there is no garden, no palaces; only Allah’s face smiling on the inhabitants. He who asks not for Paradise but only to look on Allah’s Divine Face, will be always in that endless beauty, in the Divine Presence. He who looks upon the face of his Lord will forget all else. Clear?”
“Mawlana,” asked a disciple, “how can we come to this level?”
The Shaykh answered, “We may follow the example of Abu Yazid al-Bistami (may Allah grant him more honours), who said, ‘O my Lord! How can I approach you?’ His Lord replied, ‘Leave your nafs and come! That is the way!’
“Therefore,” Mawlana went on, “if a man performs a worship expecting rewards, he may get that reward. But if he performs a worship only for the sake of Allah’s love, Allah will give him countless rewards. This, my Grandshaykh told me: ‘On the Judgment Day he who worshipped for reward will be sent to Paradise. He who worshipped for
the Love of Allah will be taken to the Divine Presence.’ Which do you prefer?”
* * * * * * *
Our Grandshaykh tells us about our Prophet (peace be upon him):
“Our Prophet (peace be upon him) has about two hundred and fifty names. The most lovely is ‘Abdullah, because it shows that he was a servant of his Lord, and the highest honour for a man is to be the obedient slave of his Lord.
“When a man would call to the Prophet, ‘O ‘Abdullah!’ the Prophet (peace be upon him) replied, three times, ‘Labbayk! Labbayk! Labbayk!’ It means, ‘I obey, O my Lord! I am at your service!’, This attribute of our Prophet (peace be upon him) is the sign of his most excellent humbleness, and thus he guides his nation to humbleness, also.
“He who knows that he is a slave of his Lord cannot be proud. He will be humble, and humbleness is a most effective medicine for his bad character. Among all creatures, our Prophet (peace be upon him) has reached the highest point in humbleness, and Allah says on the tongue of Muhammad (peace be upon him), ‘If a servant will be humble, then, as much as he is humble will Allah raise that servant’s degree.’ Therefore, the more humble we are, the nearer we are to the Divine Presence. And conversely, as much as we are proud, that much are we farther from our goal. The most proud creature is Iblis, and therefore he is farthest from the Divine Presence.
“One of the great Awliya was Rifa’i (may Allah be pleased with him). He said, ‘I tried all doors going to the Divine Presence, and I found all of them full-up. I then tried the door of humbleness, and I found it empty. I entered the Divine Presence through that door!’
“All Prophets and Awliya have come to teach people humbleness because our nafs, our ego, is proud. If a man does not educate his nafs according to the directions of Prophets and Awliya, he will be more and more proud – proud of his business, proud of his money, proud of his rank. He will ask, by any means, to be proud.
“Everything we have is from our Lord. All is from His favour. Therefore, we must try our nafs in every situation so that we may be more humble. Everything we are proud of in ourselves is from and belongs to our Lord, Allah Almighty. Yet, so many people think that some quality they possess, such as fame, or knowledge, or beauty, or even old age, belongs to them, and they are asking others to respect them for it. This is wrong. This is our nafs’ pride. All favours are from our Lord. He gives and withholds as He likes. How can we claim the respect that is due only to Him? We cannot ask others to respect us. Leave it for Allah to make others respect you. Real respect is to respect all others. They are your Lord’s servants, just as you are. Only when you give this respect to others will you properly respect yourself. Only then may others respect you.
“The Sultan ul Arifin, the King of the Knowers, is Abu Yazid al- Bistami (may Allah Almighty give him more glory and honour). He said, ‘I took it as an obligation to respect all people and all creatures. I didn’t wait for anyone to respect me. This was my way throughout my life.’ As a consequence, Abu Yazid (may Allah Almighty grant him more glory and honour) has been respected by Muslims for one-thousand years. When we hear his name we may say, ‘Qaddas Allahu Sirrahu-l ‘Aliyy,’ may Allah Almighty grant him more glory and honour.”
* * * * * * *
Our Grandshaykh says, about the hadith, ‘Quwwa til himma min quwwa til Iman’ (strength of himmah is from strength of faith):
“We have physical bodies, and we have spiritual bodies. There is a pleasure belonging to each. But only the spiritual is permanent, and, therefore, it is up to us to be patient; to forego the pleasures of this life, in order that we may reach our permanent pleasures in the Divine Presence.
“This life is a test for us. We must choose to work toward ‘akhira,’ the life hereafter, rather than the temporary, physical pleasures of this life. The power necessary to sustain our working toward the permanent, the spiritual, the power by which the Saints can move mountains, is called ‘himmah.’ Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says that himmah
comes from the power of our belief, our Iman. As much as you have faith, you will have himmah. This is the meaning of the hadith.
“In the light of this, we may see that the pursuit of physical pleasures will weaken both Iman (faith) and himmah (power). Thus, a person given over to his worldly appetites will not only deny, but actually lose sight of the existence of a higher life. He will become increasingly powerless (that is, without sufficient himmah to extricate himself from his position). It is a vicious circle; no Iman (belief), no power (himmah – no himmah, no belief, and as a consequence no akhira, no permanent, spiritual pleasure for that servant. So, we must be careful. We must be patient and forego our desires for this world (dunya). This patience builds Iman, which gives us the power (himmah) to reach our spiritual goal: akhira.
“There must be a balance in our activities each day, according to Shariah. Eight hours must be devoted to providing for one’s needs in this world. Eight hours must also be given to providing for the next life. Lastly, eight hours must be for resting. If a man has enough himmah, he may take from the time set aside for this world’s workings, and give it over to doings for the eternal life.
“This working for the eternal life is not just prayers and worshipping. It is anything that you do for the sake of Allah Almighty, to make Him pleased with you. Reading Quran, hadith, religious books; doing dhikr, helping people – all goodness’s. Also, sitting and listening to Allah’s words in a meeting, writing, sitting with your wife for Allah’s sake, teaching, learning, everyone knows his actions. Everyone knows whether an action is for Allah’s sake, or for his ego’s sake.
“If you are asking for your nafs’ pleasure, that pleasure will be only for a few moments. Then, a thick cloud of sorrow will cover your heart. But, if you are doing for your Lord, He will send pleasure oceans to you. There will be unlimited pleasure for you. He says, ‘O son of Adam! You must keep your Lord’s pleasure!’”
* * * * * * *
Our Grandshaykh was saying, “Whenever a man is wrong in himself, all things appear wrong to him. When he is all right within
himself, the world appears all right to him. The world is created completely. Everything is created perfectly by our Creator.”
When he heard those words of our Grandshaykh, a disciple asked Shaykh Nazim, “How can this be? Our nafs are imperfect. We are working to perfect ourselves, are we not?”
Shaykh Nazim answered him this way: “Jalaluddin Rumi (may Allah be pleased with him) told the story of the carpenter’s apprentice, who was very clumsy, though no one could figure out why. One day, his master hit upon an idea: He pointed to a shelf in his workshop and told the apprentice, ‘O my son! Bring me the bottle that you see on that shelf over there.’
“‘But, there are two bottles, master,’ the boy protested. Which one shall I bring?’
“The master handed the boy a hammer and told him, ‘Here, take this hammer and break one of them. Then, bring the other one to me.’
“‘As you like, O my master,’ replied the apprentice, and he took the hammer in his hand. When he struck one of the bottles, however, he was amazed to find that both of the bottles shattered into pieces! The boy had double vision.
“Our nafs are like this,” explained Shaykh Nazim. “He who is yet the slave of his ego sees things incorrectly. That which he imagines to be imperfect or wrong is, in reality, complete and perfect. Where we may see two there is only one. Thus Jalaluddin Rumi (may Allah be pleased with him) was warning people to search themselves when they see something that appears wrong to them. We must ask ourselves, ‘What is wrong in me that I see this wrong thing?’ This is the highest degree of faith, and the highest degree of believing in the goodness of the Creator. When you see something wrong you must say, ‘O my nafs! You are wrong!’
“The Creator is not creating wrong things or imperfect things. At the top, at the essence, if we could but see it: perfection! When you hear the braying of a donkey don’t be disturbed, that donkey is showing us his perfection. Without his braying, that donkey is not perfect! Some people
are asking me, ‘O, Shaykh! Pray for my little son to be silent!’ I tell them, ‘His perfection is in those actions about which you are complaining. He is not a big man, to sit quietly! If l pray for him to be silent, you will then come back to me and say, ‘O Shaykh! Our baby is too quiet. You must do something!’
“Here is another story: Once, a great Khalif was sitting in his palace. His rest was soon interrupted by the intrusion of a fly. No matter how hard he tried, he could not catch that fly, nor could he make it leave him alone.
“His anger and frustration mounting, he summoned his advisor. ‘O Shaykh!’ he cried, ‘for what purpose has this fly been created?’
“The sage answered him, ‘Allah Almighty has made this tiny creature for one purpose. It is to render great kings powerless! They are vanquished by this little fly!’
“There is yet a third story about this point,” Shaykh Nazim continued. “One of the Ottoman emperors went to Constantinople to visit a certain Grandshaykh. With great care and good manners, he entered the Grandshaykh’s room and sat before him. As he sat, he was set upon by many flies, causing him great discomfort. Seeing the emperor’s predicament, the Grandshaykh said to him, “O my king! Why do you not order these flies to leave?’
“The emperor replied, ‘O my Shaykh! They are not listening to my command!’
“‘How are you a king?’ returned the master, ‘if your subjects will not obey you?’ Then, turning to the flies, the Shaykh commanded, ‘Out!’ The flies quickly left through a small hole in the wall.
“‘O my shaykh!’ lamented the emperor. ‘You are the real king!’ “This is the meaning of ‘Manna tAllah ata ahu kulli shay.’ If a man
will obey Allah exactly all things will obey him. When you see all things as
correct, you will have reached perfection. You cannot expect hens to crow like roosters, or lions to be like cows.
“Once, King Solomon (peace be upon him) was sitting upon his magnificent flying throne. As he passed over his army standing in review, he felt, in his heart, a surge of pride. At once the throne descended. Angrily, Solomon (peace be upon him) took his staff and began to beat the throne. ‘Be correct!’ he ordered.
“‘Not until you are correct,’ replied the throne. Solomon (peace be upon him) immediately understood and threw himself into sajdah, saying, ‘O my Lord! Pardon me!’
“It is, therefore, impossible for our actions to be correct; for our families, our neighbours, and others to be correct with us until we are correct with our Lord. SubhanAllah!
“As a final note on this point,” continued Shaykh Nazim, “we may take a lesson from Imam Ghazali (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: ‘It is impossible to find a better situation than that which exists today, for those who are ready. You cannot yearn for things to be as they used to be, nor for the way that they might be. The conditions that we are in now are perfect, most suitable for us. Allah Almighty is giving His mercy as much as we need; as much as we are able to carry.’”
* * * * * * *
Our Grandshaykh was saying, “What is the spirit of faith? What is the base upon which faith is built (Ruh ul Iman)? The spirit of faith, without which man cannot live, without which faith cannot live, is to carry everything that you do not like, and be patient with those you don’t like.
“In this life, we are carrying responsibility and we are all living together. As many as there are people on this earth, such is the number of different characters and abilities, and you must carry them all – in your home, your neighbourhood, and in your community. This is the base of faith. You must carry them. You can’t say, ‘I can’t carry them!’ However, whenever you are carrying, you get more power for your faith. It is like the foundations of a building which are the strongest part and carry all of the other parts. So too when you are carrying everything that gives your nafs no satisfaction, then your faith will increase and become
stronger. Allah is carrying all. Prophets are carrying all. Are you better than Allah? Better than Prophets?”
* * * * * * *
If a man is doing an action that is not pleasing to Allah, His Prophet (peace be upon him) or Awliya, it means that he is considered a ‘secret kafir,’ a secret unbeliever. Therefore, we must be careful, even more careful than we are about our openly visible acts, not to be a secret unbeliever. It is a terrible thing – very dangerous.
Our evident and public acts may be easily corrected, but our secret acts are another matter! We have, therefore, been ordered to clean ourselves of both evident and secret kufr (unbelief). Our Grandshaykh is advising us that everyone must keep a balance with him with which to weigh his actions. We must look at each action that we do, or are about to do, and make sure that it will be pleasing to Allah, His Prophet (peace be upon him), or Awliya. When you know that that action will bring pleasure to your Lord, to our Prophet (peace be upon him), and to Awliya, you may do it. If not, you must leave it! This is a measure for acting in religion.
“Secondly,” our Grandshaykh says, “if a man balances his actions in this life, there will be no balancing for him on the Judgment Day. On that day, there will be only a ‘check-up’ for him, because Allah doesn’t balance a man’s actions twice. Therefore, our Prophet (peace be upon him) says, ‘It is more lovely for Allah that a man sits for an hour thinking and weighing his actions, than if he prays for seventy years!’ This is because you may erase your seventy years of worship with an act that Allah is not pleased with, but if you weigh that action first, with your mind, you may be able to leave it, and escape its harm.”
So, it is important for a believer to weigh his actions. If it is good, you must do it. If it is no good, leave it. He who knows an action is unlovely to his Lord and does it anyway, he is a secret kafir!
* * * * * * *
Now we are coming to an important point. Our Grandshaykh asks, “What is the spirit of all acts of worship? If you cannot keep that spirit, all your worshipping will be for nothing.
“There are three points: The first is to keep your tongue from all prohibited speaking – speak only good words, not bad. Nothing else. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) said, ‘To keep one’s tongue, that is the way of safety for men.’
“The second is to keep your eyes from looking at prohibited things and places. Don’t look at dirty places and actions. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) said, ‘Your eyes are making zina (fornication).’ To keep your eyes from haram is very difficult, but you must keep it. Keeping this gives you more power.
“Third, you must keep all your organs from prohibited actions; listening, going, catching, thinking bad things. You must not sit down and think with bad intentions.”
Someone asked, “This is very hard for me. Sometimes, bad thoughts just run through my head.”
Shaykh Nazim answered, “If it is without your will there is no responsibility, though we have been ordered to fight those bad thoughts. But don’t sit and think bad thoughts with your will, with bad intentions. This is prohibited.
“These three points that our Grandshaykh has taught us, keep and sustain our good actions. Without keeping our eyes, our tongues, and our organs from prohibited things, we cannot take any benefit from our good actions. It is as if a man planted a tree, tended it carefully for years and then, just as it was about to bear fruit, took an axe and chopped it down! All his efforts have vanished, gone for nothing! When you are planting, you must keep it and protect it from harm by keeping these three points.
“If a man doesn’t know what he is doing he cannot take any benefit. We must know what we are doing. Are we building or destroying? Every prohibited action is destroying our building. It is,
therefore, more important for a believer to keep himself far from prohibited actions than it is for him to do good things.
“Our Grandshaykh said, for example, that if a man speaks against another person, seven years’ worth of his good actions will be carried from him to the one he speaks against. A moment of backbiting, therefore, will destroy seven years’ worth of good actions. So, you see how important it is to keep from prohibited things.
“Also among those prohibited things is envy. It is like a burning fire. Everything you throw on a burning fire will burn. Thus will envy destroy all your good actions.
“Keep far away from prohibited things. They are destroying both your physical and your spiritual bodies. Kufr (unbelief) is the most terrible of prohibited things, and if we are not keeping our tongues, for instance, we may speak a word denying Allah and His Prophet (peace be upon him); thus all our goodness will be destroyed. Keep to your Lord’s boundaries. This is a description of a true servant of Allah.”
* * * * * * *
Our Grandshaykh said an important thing for everyone: “To be able to put one’s organs under one’s will is the mark of a real servant of Allah. If a man can’t do this, he is the servant of his nafs.
“Are your organs listening to you? You must be able to advise yourself, before you may advise others. First, you must put your body under your control. If you do this, you may put others under your command; your family, your children, your ikhwan, etc.
“Therefore, you must not complain that your children, your family, and your friends are not listening to you. You must turn to yourself. If your self accepts to be under your command, then other people may accept to be under your command. This is the way of all Prophets and Awliya; first they are fighting themselves, then they are coming to other people. It is impossible for a Prophet or a Wali to be the slave of his nafs.
“When these men speak, their words have an effect upon those who listen. Yet, there are people who, when they hear those Prophets and Awliya speaking, are putting their fingers in their ears trying to escape those words. They know that speaking will have an effect!
“Allah says, ‘O My Prophet! How can you make a person hear your invitation? He is deaf, and he is turning his face and escaping. If he is only deaf, and he is sitting and looking at you, he may understand something; but he is deaf and he is turning and running away from you! It is impossible to make him listen!’
“Yet, if a person will listen, it is impossible for that person not to take a benefit from the words of a Prophet or a Wali, or from any association with them. From their speech, a man may take a power to control his nafs and go on the right way.”
Our Grandshaykh said about Luqman (who spoke with Divine Wisdom): “What is the reason that he was given Divine Wisdom? It is because he left the pleasures of his nafs. It is the most difficult thing for a man to be against his nafs’ pleasure and to be against devils.
“This is ‘Jihad al-Akbar’: the greatest war, against the greatest enemy. It is the most difficult position for a believer. This is because if he gives in to his nafs’ pleasures, his belief vanishes! It is impossible to be a real believer if you are doing as your nafs asks. This is a balance by which we can judge ourselves. Are we real believers or not? We must be careful. We must weigh every action. Does it give pleasure to our Lord, or to our nafs? Which are we serving? If an action is for your nafs’ pleasure, don’t do it! Your nafs will guide you to Hell, and to no other place!
“Luqman left all haram. Then, he left as well the permitted pleasures, for Allah has promised His servants that if they leave all pleasures of their nafs, He will give them the greatest pleasure from Himself, so that a servant will not miss those pleasures that he left.
“Now, all this is training for the greatest war. We are sitting, training. Then will come an order for the greatest war; and you will leave all things, like a dead person, and enter into a little hole for fighting. There, for forty days, you will sit down with your greatest enemy, fighting. This will come!”
* * * * * * *
Our Grandshaykh was saying, “What is real obedience to Allah in worship? What do the Awliya say about real worship of Allah Almighty?
“It is to stand in the Divine Presence and say, ‘O my Lord! I am standing in Your Divine Presence without anything. I am coming with empty hands to Your Divine Presence; I brought nothing With me.’
“In front of Allah, His servant has nothing. All of our prayers and worship are His favours to us. He is giving, not us. So that if a servant comes to his Lord’s Presence and says, ‘O my Lord! I brought to you so many prayers, so many fasts, so much dhikr, so much goodness’; Allah says, ‘O My servant! From whom are you bringing those things?’
“A real servant to his Lord knows that all the goodness that he has is a mercy from his Lord, guiding him to his Lord’s way. He knows that but for his Lord’s mercy, he wouldn’t be a praying servant, fasting servant, making-dhikr servant, and so forth. So, when he comes to his Lord’s presence, he says, ‘My hands are empty, O my Lord. I am in need of Your mercy, always. Give me more mercy, O my Lord!’
“Whoever tries to go to the Divine Presence with his ego – he is thrown out – unaccepted, turned away at the door! Rejected! Therefore, our Grandshaykh is teaching us how the spirit of a real worshipper must be: Suppose you knew a very good, very generous man. Many times, he has helped you, given to you, been a good friend to you. If such a man was in need of something from you, say some work to be done, what will you say when he asks you? How much money will you ask from him? What do you say? You will say, ‘It is my pleasure to serve you. No payment.’ So, how can we ask our Lord, ‘Pay me, and I will pray for you. Pay me, and I will do your pleasure’? No! What kind of manners are these?
“A real servant asks his Lord only, ‘O my Lord! What is Your pleasure?’ Nothing else. If your Lord is pleased with you, it is all things for you. We are nothing; He is all things. We ask only for His mercy, His pleasure. Also, it is our duty to ask from our Lord mercy for everyone.
“After the death of Abu Yazid (may Allah give him more glory and honour), some people saw him in a dream. ‘How is it for you in that world?’ they asked him.
“When I got to the Divine Presence,” answered Abu Yazid, “they asked me, ‘What have you brought us?’ I replied, ‘O my Lord! O my Sultan! As we know in our worldly life, when a poor man comes to the palace of the king, he is not going
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ens open and you will see all things in sajdah to their Lord. If a man is ready at that time, he may reach everything he may ask. People who know the value of that moment may wait every night throughout the year; not just during Ramadan.
“Our Grandshaykh says that, in a similar manner, there is a special mercy for each kind of worship; for each fard, and for each sunnah of Rasulullah (peace be upon him) that a servant may observe continuously, not leaving it. There are five hundred kinds of worship and you do not know from which worship that mercy may open. Therefore, we do not leave one and skip to another! Allah’s reward to us is according to our intent.”
A brother asked, “Which worship is the most valuable?”
“Only Allah knows,” was the Shaykh’s reply. “You cannot know with which worship, or with which goodness He may be pleased with us. Laylatul Qadr is only one of five hundred kinds; four-hundred and ninety-nine other mercies come for other goodness’s! No one knows when a Divine mercy is coming, or for which practice there may be a reward. It may come anytime, day or night, winter or summer, before, during, or after Ramadan. He who asks for the Night of Power uses every night. Maybe the night he sleeps is that Night!
“Therefore, we must keep to a practice and not leave it. ‘This is the biggest miracle,’ says our Grandshaykh. For if a man may keep to a certain goodness, a certain worship, throughout his life; he will be ready when Allah opens the door of mercy for that particular worship.’
“Every day, at the beginning, we must intend: ‘O my Lord! I intend to stand up for five hundred acts of worships, as best I can! This I intend, O my Lord!’ If we make an intention, then all our actions will be according to our intent. It is written that: ‘That person who intends to do every act of worship as sincerely as he can, that person will take that mercy from all five hundred acts of worship!’
A brother wanted to know: “Why not make the intention at the beginning of each month?”
Mawlana Shaykh Nazim answered, “Because, if you put such a heavy load, a whole month, on your nafs, it will never accept it. But, if you make the intention each morning, until that night, he will do it with pleasure. Remember, we intend to worship endlessly, eternally, without ceasing. But, in order to catch our nafs; to be able to use it for worship, we use tricks. We are saying, ‘I am only loading this load on you until night! Tomorrow; nothing, finished!’”
The Shaykh continued, “It is like a shopkeeper who posts a sign: ‘Today cash – Tomorrow credit.’ When a man comes to his shop to buy something on credit, the shopkeeper points to the sign, and says, ‘Pay me today, and tomorrow I will allow you to buy something on credit.’ When the customer returns the next day, and asks for the credit he was promised, the shopkeeper again points to the sign: ‘Today cash – Tomorrow credit!’ Understand? Like this we trick our nafs.”
* * * * * * *
These are the words of our Grandshaykh. Awliya are addressing both our spirits and our bodies, at the same time. Their words may be written on our hearts, and in books. If a man hasn’t the power to address your heart, you will not be able to take enough benefit from his words. When words are written on your heart, anytime you may need them you will remember. But if they are not written on your heart, you cannot remember. You cannot benefit from them.
* * * * * * *
“There is an unchanging method in Islam,” says our Grandshaykh. “Whoever tries hard, and carries difficulties in the way of Allah Almighty and His Prophet (peace be upon him), must be given his reward. While he is carrying his heavy load of worship and does not leave his practice, there may come, at any time, a private mercy for that servant; taking him from here and putting him in his station in the Divine Presence.
“A man once intended to go to Hijaz. He loaded his supplies on his back, and set out on foot. He walked as far as he could until his strength
was used up and he could go no further. And yet his intent remained alive. Do you think your Lord would leave his servant in the desert like that? That man remained patient, though with no hope for himself and no power to help himself. At that time, Allah looked out for him; a private mercy opened for that servant. A camel appeared coming along that way. His Lord sent that servant to Hijaz.
“This is our example. If a man carries difficulties for the sake of Allah, his Lord does not leave him. His Lord will pick up those difficulties and give that servant absolute rest and happiness. If a man asks for mercy without carrying difficulties, he is a man seeking wheat in the fall without planting or ploughing in the spring. We must carry difficulties for our Lord, and then He will give us everything: endless enjoyment and happiness, eternally.”
* * * * * * * From the teachings of our Grandshaykh:
“If a person makes a sunnah, it means that the action belongs to our Prophet (peace be upon him). It is from our Prophet’s treasures. It is impossible for it to be stolen by Iblis. It cannot vanish; it is protected among the treasures of Muhammad (peace be upon him). Sins and bad actions erase our good actions and worship. When, on the Judgment Day, a servant is in need of good actions, the Prophet (peace be upon him) will give to him from among his treasures which he has kept for that servant.
“It is required that we must worship Allah without asking reward in this life or the next. This action by a servant is kept among Allah Almighty’s treasures. Why do so many hadiths mention a reward for the servant who does this or that sunnah? This is because our Prophet (peace be upon him) was ordered to address men according to their various levels and capacities for understanding. In general, most people’s nafs wouldn’t do anything without the promise of a reward, like children who must be promised sweets in order to do their chores promptly. So, as some men are interested in women, gardens, and palaces, Allah Almighty has promised them these things as a reward for good actions.
“Some, however, are not interested in palaces. They are interested in the King! It is required for us, therefore, to be our Lord’s sincere servants; without asking any reward. This is the highest degree of worshipping. Nafs’ demands are too limited. If a man can save himself from his ego, he will not be satisfied with the few drops that his nafs crave. All beauties of Paradise are but a few drops from the endless beauty oceans of Allah Almighty! If a man is dying of thirst, will a few drops of water be sufficient for him? Therefore, we are asking only to enter into the Divine Presence, to disappear forever into His endless beauty oceans, endless power oceans, endless mercy oceans. Never returning – finished!”
A murid asked, “Isn’t this, also, our egos asking for rewards?”
“No,” Mawlana told him. “This desire is not of the nafs. Nafs are satisfied with the beauties of Paradise. They cannot understand more than that level. Don’t say that your nafs demands the oceans of Allah’s beauty! In those oceans there are no ladies, no gardens, no palaces. What is there for your nafs? Nothing! If you say that your nafs wants those endless oceans, you are a liar!”
Mawlana continued, “There is a hadith saying that there is a Paradise where there is no garden, no palaces; only Allah’s face smiling on the inhabitants. He who asks not for Paradise but only to look on Allah’s Divine Face, will be always in that endless beauty, in the Divine Presence. He who looks upon the face of his Lord will forget all else. Clear?”
“Mawlana,” asked a disciple, “how can we come to this level?”
The Shaykh answered, “We may follow the example of Abu Yazid al-Bistami (may Allah grant him more honours), who said, ‘O my Lord! How can I approach you?’ His Lord replied, ‘Leave your nafs and come! That is the way!’
“Therefore,” Mawlana went on, “if a man performs a worship expecting rewards, he may get that reward. But if he performs a worship only for the sake of Allah’s love, Allah will give him countless rewards. This, my Grandshaykh told me: ‘On the Judgment Day he who worshipped for reward will be sent to Paradise. He who worshipped for
the Love of Allah will be taken to the Divine Presence.’ Which do you prefer?”
* * * * * * *
Our Grandshaykh tells us about our Prophet (peace be upon him):
“Our Prophet (peace be upon him) has about two hundred and fifty names. The most lovely is ‘Abdullah, because it shows that he was a servant of his Lord, and the highest honour for a man is to be the obedient slave of his Lord.
“When a man would call to the Prophet, ‘O ‘Abdullah!’ the Prophet (peace be upon him) replied, three times, ‘Labbayk! Labbayk! Labbayk!’ It means, ‘I obey, O my Lord! I am at your service!’, This attribute of our Prophet (peace be upon him) is the sign of his most excellent humbleness, and thus he guides his nation to humbleness, also.
“He who knows that he is a slave of his Lord cannot be proud. He will be humble, and humbleness is a most effective medicine for his bad character. Among all creatures, our Prophet (peace be upon him) has reached the highest point in humbleness, and Allah says on the tongue of Muhammad (peace be upon him), ‘If a servant will be humble, then, as much as he is humble will Allah raise that servant’s degree.’ Therefore, the more humble we are, the nearer we are to the Divine Presence. And conversely, as much as we are proud, that much are we farther from our goal. The most proud creature is Iblis, and therefore he is farthest from the Divine Presence.
“One of the great Awliya was Rifa’i (may Allah be pleased with him). He said, ‘I tried all doors going to the Divine Presence, and I found all of them full-up. I then tried the door of humbleness, and I found it empty. I entered the Divine Presence through that door!’
“All Prophets and Awliya have come to teach people humbleness because our nafs, our ego, is proud. If a man does not educate his nafs according to the directions of Prophets and Awliya, he will be more and more proud – proud of his business, proud of his money, proud of his rank. He will ask, by any means, to be proud.
“Everything we have is from our Lord. All is from His favour. Therefore, we must try our nafs in every situation so that we may be more humble. Everything we are proud of in ourselves is from and belongs to our Lord, Allah Almighty. Yet, so many people think that some quality they possess, such as fame, or knowledge, or beauty, or even old age, belongs to them, and they are asking others to respect them for it. This is wrong. This is our nafs’ pride. All favours are from our Lord. He gives and withholds as He likes. How can we claim the respect that is due only to Him? We cannot ask others to respect us. Leave it for Allah to make others respect you. Real respect is to respect all others. They are your Lord’s servants, just as you are. Only when you give this respect to others will you properly respect yourself. Only then may others respect you.
“The Sultan ul Arifin, the King of the Knowers, is Abu Yazid al- Bistami (may Allah Almighty give him more glory and honour). He said, ‘I took it as an obligation to respect all people and all creatures. I didn’t wait for anyone to respect me. This was my way throughout my life.’ As a consequence, Abu Yazid (may Allah Almighty grant him more glory and honour) has been respected by Muslims for one-thousand years. When we hear his name we may say, ‘Qaddas Allahu Sirrahu-l ‘Aliyy,’ may Allah Almighty grant him more glory and honour.”
* * * * * * *
Our Grandshaykh says, about the hadith, ‘Quwwa til himma min quwwa til Iman’ (strength of himmah is from strength of faith):
“We have physical bodies, and we have spiritual bodies. There is a pleasure belonging to each. But only the spiritual is permanent, and, therefore, it is up to us to be patient; to forego the pleasures of this life, in order that we may reach our permanent pleasures in the Divine Presence.
“This life is a test for us. We must choose to work toward ‘akhira,’ the life hereafter, rather than the temporary, physical pleasures of this life. The power necessary to sustain our working toward the permanent, the spiritual, the power by which the Saints can move mountains, is called ‘himmah.’ Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says that himmah
comes from the power of our belief, our Iman. As much as you have faith, you will have himmah. This is the meaning of the hadith.
“In the light of this, we may see that the pursuit of physical pleasures will weaken both Iman (faith) and himmah (power). Thus, a person given over to his worldly appetites will not only deny, but actually lose sight of the existence of a higher life. He will become increasingly powerless (that is, without sufficient himmah to extricate himself from his position). It is a vicious circle; no Iman (belief), no power (himmah – no himmah, no belief, and as a consequence no akhira, no permanent, spiritual pleasure for that servant. So, we must be careful. We must be patient and forego our desires for this world (dunya). This patience builds Iman, which gives us the power (himmah) to reach our spiritual goal: akhira.
“There must be a balance in our activities each day, according to Shariah. Eight hours must be devoted to providing for one’s needs in this world. Eight hours must also be given to providing for the next life. Lastly, eight hours must be for resting. If a man has enough himmah, he may take from the time set aside for this world’s workings, and give it over to doings for the eternal life.
“This working for the eternal life is not just prayers and worshipping. It is anything that you do for the sake of Allah Almighty, to make Him pleased with you. Reading Quran, hadith, religious books; doing dhikr, helping people – all goodness’s. Also, sitting and listening to Allah’s words in a meeting, writing, sitting with your wife for Allah’s sake, teaching, learning, everyone knows his actions. Everyone knows whether an action is for Allah’s sake, or for his ego’s sake.
“If you are asking for your nafs’ pleasure, that pleasure will be only for a few moments. Then, a thick cloud of sorrow will cover your heart. But, if you are doing for your Lord, He will send pleasure oceans to you. There will be unlimited pleasure for you. He says, ‘O son of Adam! You must keep your Lord’s pleasure!’”
* * * * * * *
Our Grandshaykh was saying, “Whenever a man is wrong in himself, all things appear wrong to him. When he is all right within
himself, the world appears all right to him. The world is created completely. Everything is created perfectly by our Creator.”
When he heard those words of our Grandshaykh, a disciple asked Shaykh Nazim, “How can this be? Our nafs are imperfect. We are working to perfect ourselves, are we not?”
Shaykh Nazim answered him this way: “Jalaluddin Rumi (may Allah be pleased with him) told the story of the carpenter’s apprentice, who was very clumsy, though no one could figure out why. One day, his master hit upon an idea: He pointed to a shelf in his workshop and told the apprentice, ‘O my son! Bring me the bottle that you see on that shelf over there.’
“‘But, there are two bottles, master,’ the boy protested. Which one shall I bring?’
“The master handed the boy a hammer and told him, ‘Here, take this hammer and break one of them. Then, bring the other one to me.’
“‘As you like, O my master,’ replied the apprentice, and he took the hammer in his hand. When he struck one of the bottles, however, he was amazed to find that both of the bottles shattered into pieces! The boy had double vision.
“Our nafs are like this,” explained Shaykh Nazim. “He who is yet the slave of his ego sees things incorrectly. That which he imagines to be imperfect or wrong is, in reality, complete and perfect. Where we may see two there is only one. Thus Jalaluddin Rumi (may Allah be pleased with him) was warning people to search themselves when they see something that appears wrong to them. We must ask ourselves, ‘What is wrong in me that I see this wrong thing?’ This is the highest degree of faith, and the highest degree of believing in the goodness of the Creator. When you see something wrong you must say, ‘O my nafs! You are wrong!’
“The Creator is not creating wrong things or imperfect things. At the top, at the essence, if we could but see it: perfection! When you hear the braying of a donkey don’t be disturbed, that donkey is showing us his perfection. Without his braying, that donkey is not perfect! Some people
are asking me, ‘O, Shaykh! Pray for my little son to be silent!’ I tell them, ‘His perfection is in those actions about which you are complaining. He is not a big man, to sit quietly! If l pray for him to be silent, you will then come back to me and say, ‘O Shaykh! Our baby is too quiet. You must do something!’
“Here is another story: Once, a great Khalif was sitting in his palace. His rest was soon interrupted by the intrusion of a fly. No matter how hard he tried, he could not catch that fly, nor could he make it leave him alone.
“His anger and frustration mounting, he summoned his advisor. ‘O Shaykh!’ he cried, ‘for what purpose has this fly been created?’
“The sage answered him, ‘Allah Almighty has made this tiny creature for one purpose. It is to render great kings powerless! They are vanquished by this little fly!’
“There is yet a third story about this point,” Shaykh Nazim continued. “One of the Ottoman emperors went to Constantinople to visit a certain Grandshaykh. With great care and good manners, he entered the Grandshaykh’s room and sat before him. As he sat, he was set upon by many flies, causing him great discomfort. Seeing the emperor’s predicament, the Grandshaykh said to him, “O my king! Why do you not order these flies to leave?’
“The emperor replied, ‘O my Shaykh! They are not listening to my command!’
“‘How are you a king?’ returned the master, ‘if your subjects will not obey you?’ Then, turning to the flies, the Shaykh commanded, ‘Out!’ The flies quickly left through a small hole in the wall.
“‘O my shaykh!’ lamented the emperor. ‘You are the real king!’ “This is the meaning of ‘Manna tAllah ata ahu kulli shay.’ If a man
will obey Allah exactly all things will obey him. When you see all things as
correct, you will have reached perfection. You cannot expect hens to crow like roosters, or lions to be like cows.
“Once, King Solomon (peace be upon him) was sitting upon his magnificent flying throne. As he passed over his army standing in review, he felt, in his heart, a surge of pride. At once the throne descended. Angrily, Solomon (peace be upon him) took his staff and began to beat the throne. ‘Be correct!’ he ordered.
“‘Not until you are correct,’ replied the throne. Solomon (peace be upon him) immediately understood and threw himself into sajdah, saying, ‘O my Lord! Pardon me!’
“It is, therefore, impossible for our actions to be correct; for our families, our neighbours, and others to be correct with us until we are correct with our Lord. SubhanAllah!
“As a final note on this point,” continued Shaykh Nazim, “we may take a lesson from Imam Ghazali (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: ‘It is impossible to find a better situation than that which exists today, for those who are ready. You cannot yearn for things to be as they used to be, nor for the way that they might be. The conditions that we are in now are perfect, most suitable for us. Allah Almighty is giving His mercy as much as we need; as much as we are able to carry.’”
* * * * * * *
Our Grandshaykh was saying, “What is the spirit of faith? What is the base upon which faith is built (Ruh ul Iman)? The spirit of faith, without which man cannot live, without which faith cannot live, is to carry everything that you do not like, and be patient with those you don’t like.
“In this life, we are carrying responsibility and we are all living together. As many as there are people on this earth, such is the number of different characters and abilities, and you must carry them all – in your home, your neighbourhood, and in your community. This is the base of faith. You must carry them. You can’t say, ‘I can’t carry them!’ However, whenever you are carrying, you get more power for your faith. It is like the foundations of a building which are the strongest part and carry all of the other parts. So too when you are carrying everything that gives your nafs no satisfaction, then your faith will increase and become
stronger. Allah is carrying all. Prophets are carrying all. Are you better than Allah? Better than Prophets?”
* * * * * * *
If a man is doing an action that is not pleasing to Allah, His Prophet (peace be upon him) or Awliya, it means that he is considered a ‘secret kafir,’ a secret unbeliever. Therefore, we must be careful, even more careful than we are about our openly visible acts, not to be a secret unbeliever. It is a terrible thing – very dangerous.
Our evident and public acts may be easily corrected, but our secret acts are another matter! We have, therefore, been ordered to clean ourselves of both evident and secret kufr (unbelief). Our Grandshaykh is advising us that everyone must keep a balance with him with which to weigh his actions. We must look at each action that we do, or are about to do, and make sure that it will be pleasing to Allah, His Prophet (peace be upon him), or Awliya. When you know that that action will bring pleasure to your Lord, to our Prophet (peace be upon him), and to Awliya, you may do it. If not, you must leave it! This is a measure for acting in religion.
“Secondly,” our Grandshaykh says, “if a man balances his actions in this life, there will be no balancing for him on the Judgment Day. On that day, there will be only a ‘check-up’ for him, because Allah doesn’t balance a man’s actions twice. Therefore, our Prophet (peace be upon him) says, ‘It is more lovely for Allah that a man sits for an hour thinking and weighing his actions, than if he prays for seventy years!’ This is because you may erase your seventy years of worship with an act that Allah is not pleased with, but if you weigh that action first, with your mind, you may be able to leave it, and escape its harm.”
So, it is important for a believer to weigh his actions. If it is good, you must do it. If it is no good, leave it. He who knows an action is unlovely to his Lord and does it anyway, he is a secret kafir!
* * * * * * *
Now we are coming to an important point. Our Grandshaykh asks, “What is the spirit of all acts of worship? If you cannot keep that spirit, all your worshipping will be for nothing.
“There are three points: The first is to keep your tongue from all prohibited speaking – speak only good words, not bad. Nothing else. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) said, ‘To keep one’s tongue, that is the way of safety for men.’
“The second is to keep your eyes from looking at prohibited things and places. Don’t look at dirty places and actions. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) said, ‘Your eyes are making zina (fornication).’ To keep your eyes from haram is very difficult, but you must keep it. Keeping this gives you more power.
“Third, you must keep all your organs from prohibited actions; listening, going, catching, thinking bad things. You must not sit down and think with bad intentions.”
Someone asked, “This is very hard for me. Sometimes, bad thoughts just run through my head.”
Shaykh Nazim answered, “If it is without your will there is no responsibility, though we have been ordered to fight those bad thoughts. But don’t sit and think bad thoughts with your will, with bad intentions. This is prohibited.
“These three points that our Grandshaykh has taught us, keep and sustain our good actions. Without keeping our eyes, our tongues, and our organs from prohibited things, we cannot take any benefit from our good actions. It is as if a man planted a tree, tended it carefully for years and then, just as it was about to bear fruit, took an axe and chopped it down! All his efforts have vanished, gone for nothing! When you are planting, you must keep it and protect it from harm by keeping these three points.
“If a man doesn’t know what he is doing he cannot take any benefit. We must know what we are doing. Are we building or destroying? Every prohibited action is destroying our building. It is,
therefore, more important for a believer to keep himself far from prohibited actions than it is for him to do good things.
“Our Grandshaykh said, for example, that if a man speaks against another person, seven years’ worth of his good actions will be carried from him to the one he speaks against. A moment of backbiting, therefore, will destroy seven years’ worth of good actions. So, you see how important it is to keep from prohibited things.
“Also among those prohibited things is envy. It is like a burning fire. Everything you throw on a burning fire will burn. Thus will envy destroy all your good actions.
“Keep far away from prohibited things. They are destroying both your physical and your spiritual bodies. Kufr (unbelief) is the most terrible of prohibited things, and if we are not keeping our tongues, for instance, we may speak a word denying Allah and His Prophet (peace be upon him); thus all our goodness will be destroyed. Keep to your Lord’s boundaries. This is a description of a true servant of Allah.”
* * * * * * *
Our Grandshaykh said an important thing for everyone: “To be able to put one’s organs under one’s will is the mark of a real servant of Allah. If a man can’t do this, he is the servant of his nafs.
“Are your organs listening to you? You must be able to advise yourself, before you may advise others. First, you must put your body under your control. If you do this, you may put others under your command; your family, your children, your ikhwan, etc.
“Therefore, you must not complain that your children, your family, and your friends are not listening to you. You must turn to yourself. If your self accepts to be under your command, then other people may accept to be under your command. This is the way of all Prophets and Awliya; first they are fighting themselves, then they are coming to other people. It is impossible for a Prophet or a Wali to be the slave of his nafs.
“When these men speak, their words have an effect upon those who listen. Yet, there are people who, when they hear those Prophets and Awliya speaking, are putting their fingers in their ears trying to escape those words. They know that speaking will have an effect!
“Allah says, ‘O My Prophet! How can you make a person hear your invitation? He is deaf, and he is turning his face and escaping. If he is only deaf, and he is sitting and looking at you, he may understand something; but he is deaf and he is turning and running away from you! It is impossible to make him listen!’
“Yet, if a person will listen, it is impossible for that person not to take a benefit from the words of a Prophet or a Wali, or from any association with them. From their speech, a man may take a power to control his nafs and go on the right way.”
Our Grandshaykh said about Luqman (who spoke with Divine Wisdom): “What is the reason that he was given Divine Wisdom? It is because he left the pleasures of his nafs. It is the most difficult thing for a man to be against his nafs’ pleasure and to be against devils.
“This is ‘Jihad al-Akbar’: the greatest war, against the greatest enemy. It is the most difficult position for a believer. This is because if he gives in to his nafs’ pleasures, his belief vanishes! It is impossible to be a real believer if you are doing as your nafs asks. This is a balance by which we can judge ourselves. Are we real believers or not? We must be careful. We must weigh every action. Does it give pleasure to our Lord, or to our nafs? Which are we serving? If an action is for your nafs’ pleasure, don’t do it! Your nafs will guide you to Hell, and to no other place!
“Luqman left all haram. Then, he left as well the permitted pleasures, for Allah has promised His servants that if they leave all pleasures of their nafs, He will give them the greatest pleasure from Himself, so that a servant will not miss those pleasures that he left.
“Now, all this is training for the greatest war. We are sitting, training. Then will come an order for the greatest war; and you will leave all things, like a dead person, and enter into a little hole for fighting. There, for forty days, you will sit down with your greatest enemy, fighting. This will come!”
* * * * * * *
Our Grandshaykh was saying, “What is real obedience to Allah in worship? What do the Awliya say about real worship of Allah Almighty?
“It is to stand in the Divine Presence and say, ‘O my Lord! I am standing in Your Divine Presence without anything. I am coming with empty hands to Your Divine Presence; I brought nothing With me.’
“In front of Allah, His servant has nothing. All of our prayers and worship are His favours to us. He is giving, not us. So that if a servant comes to his Lord’s Presence and says, ‘O my Lord! I brought to you so many prayers, so many fasts, so much dhikr, so much goodness’; Allah says, ‘O My servant! From whom are you bringing those things?’
“A real servant to his Lord knows that all the goodness that he has is a mercy from his Lord, guiding him to his Lord’s way. He knows that but for his Lord’s mercy, he wouldn’t be a praying servant, fasting servant, making-dhikr servant, and so forth. So, when he comes to his Lord’s presence, he says, ‘My hands are empty, O my Lord. I am in need of Your mercy, always. Give me more mercy, O my Lord!’
“Whoever tries to go to the Divine Presence with his ego – he is thrown out – unaccepted, turned away at the door! Rejected! Therefore, our Grandshaykh is teaching us how the spirit of a real worshipper must be: Suppose you knew a very good, very generous man. Many times, he has helped you, given to you, been a good friend to you. If such a man was in need of something from you, say some work to be done, what will you say when he asks you? How much money will you ask from him? What do you say? You will say, ‘It is my pleasure to serve you. No payment.’ So, how can we ask our Lord, ‘Pay me, and I will pray for you. Pay me, and I will do your pleasure’? No! What kind of manners are these?
“A real servant asks his Lord only, ‘O my Lord! What is Your pleasure?’ Nothing else. If your Lord is pleased with you, it is all things for you. We are nothing; He is all things. We ask only for His mercy, His pleasure. Also, it is our duty to ask from our Lord mercy for everyone.
“After the death of Abu Yazid (may Allah give him more glory and honour), some people saw him in a dream. ‘How is it for you in that world?’ they asked him.
“When I got to the Divine Presence,” answered Abu Yazid, “they asked me, ‘What have you brought us?’ I replied, ‘O my Lord! O my Sultan! As we know in our worldly life, when a poor man comes to the palace of the king, he is not going
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