Part 8

“when he had leveled [them] between the two moun-

then he commanded the soldiers of intellect and reasoning to Fase

upon which the anxious devotee invoked his lord for help as his concerns had piled up.

The devotee shall find no comfort in this life; if he feels he is

veiled [from his Lord] he weeps for being distanced from his Lord, and if the gate of acceptance is opened for him, he fears being

' He is Dbul Qarnayn whose story is mentioned in Surah al-Kabf. See verses (8399).

Fearing Allah, the Most High

expelled. The state of such a person is like the poet said:

If his beloved goes far he cries longing to them, and if his beloved are near he cries fearing being set apart.

Indeed, he who has never tasted it shall never realise its meaning; as one poet said:

He whose heatt never been in love shall never understand how the hearts ache [for the ones they yearn for].

Departure is darker than night, and the anxiety of the heart is hotter than a burning ember.

One time, the fear of Ibrahim ibn Adham’ reached its peak, causing him to shout out: O Allah, if you have granted any of those who love you that which would ease their hearts before meeting You, then I beg you to grant me that, for distress has harmed me. Later, he saw in his dream fas if it were] Allah, the Exalted, Saying to him: O Ibrahim are you not ashamed of yourself? You ask Me to give you what would put your heart at ease, even though you know well that the longing heart cannot be at ease until it meets the one it loves.

2 "The exemplary Imam, the knower and the master of ascetics, Abi Ishaq al- ‘Ajli al-Khurasani al-Bakhli, the resident of Syria. He used to speak very little and spend his time in worshipping, Abu Nu‘aym said: ‘I heard Sufyan say: ‘Ibrahim ibn Adham resembled Ibrahim al-Khalil. Had he been a Sahabi he would have surely been a virtuous man.” His biography can be found in [ifyatn'- Aliya’ (1/367-8/58), Tabagat al-Auliya’ (5/15), Siyar al-A lam al-Nubula’ (7/381), Ibn Athir’s al-Kamil (6/56), al-Bidayah wa'l-Nibayah (10/135-145) and Shatharat

ALLAH, ILLUMINATE THE DARKNESS of out life

with the light of Your Guidance, and make us spend

our days seeking You, for those whom You accept are saved whereas those whom you turn away from are ruined.

O my brothets, if divine decree destines happiness for a person he will be guided and directed to its indicators prior to even seek-

ing it, “And We certainly chose them by knowledge over [all]

the worlds” [al-Dukhan 44: 32]

' Abdullah ibn ‘Abd Nahm; he died during the lifetime of the Prophet (3) and was buried at night at the time of the battle of Tabak. He was known as Dhu/ Bijadayn because when he embraced Islim, disbelievers removed all his clothes and took away all his wealth so his mother managed to get him a rough garment made of two pieces which is known as Bijadayn so he used them to cover his body.

Dhul Bijadayn was orphaned early in his childhood, seeing how he was being overcome by waves of poverty from every direction, his uncle committed himself to supporting him. After a while, his heart inclined towards following the Messenger of Allah (8), therefore he prepared himself to advance to meet the Messenger of Allah (gg), but the vestiges of an illness he had suffered from, stood as a barrier and so he could not pursue his goal at that time. And that moment, the tongue of procrastination addressed his soul saying, hold back until you become bit older. When he recovered, the ink of his longing heart had very nearly run out [i.e. he could not bear the separation any longer], so he said: ‘O Uncle, I was waiting for you to embrace Islam so that I would be sure your safety, but I highly doubt that you will ever do so. Therewith, his uncle responded, “I shall deprive you of all that which I granted youl!” But the tongue of his strong will shouted: “To look at Muhammad (8) for once is dearer to me than this worldly life and everything therein.” This path is indeed the path of the ardent devotees as is agreed upon by everyone. This high degree of passion is exemplified by what a poet once said:

If Qais (the lover of Layla) was offeted this life and what is therein, he would have said, To have dust from her land is more beloved to me, for my heart is cured upon seeing her

His uncle cartied out his threat, and so he deprived him from everything, even the clothes on his back, so his mother gave him a piece of one of her garments, so he split it into two parts; one part he wrapped his waist to cover his lower half, and with the remaining part he covered his upper body, then he proceeded onwards in his journey, epitomising the portrayal of “There may be a disheveled, dusty person who, if he swears an oath by Allah,

SEEDS OF ADMONISHMENT AND REFORM

Allah will fulfill it.”

Meanwhile the horn of Jihad had blown, calling the army of a/- ‘Usr@ to advance to the battlefield, so he eagerly followed the traces of his beloved, mounting the back of his strong determination mixed with the anxiety, for the lover is oblivious of the hardships of a long arduous journey; his eye can only discern his final destination (ie. meeting the Prophet (¥g)). But the Angel of death descended to earth sealing his life with a divine seal connoting ‘Verily, the yearning of the virtuous who seek Me (i.e. Allah) has become unbearable.’ The Messenger (8) stepped down into his grave, leveling its floor for him to be laid upon, for it had been divinely ordained to him, that if you find someone seeking Me then be at his service. He then called to Aba Bak and ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (radiyAllahu ‘anhuma) to bring down their brother, and he signified his rank in words he uttered: O Allah I am pleased with him so be pleased with him. This testimony made Ibn Mas‘id (radiyAllahu ‘anhu) say: How I wish I were the person in that grave [so that I would deserve that statement].

? See Ibn Rajab, al-Jami al-Ulim wal Hikam (1/269) and al-Suyuti, a/-Jami‘ alSaghir, (4401).

* The Muslim army fought the battle of Tabak.

Unmindfulness of the Hereafter

lethal than poison, and the evils of this world are more

numerous in number than ants. But despite that, the eye of your assiduousness in obtaining it is sharper than the eyes of the hoopoe, the belly of your hope is thitstier [to this worldly life] than sand is for water, the mouth of your gluttony when it comes to life is more rapacious than that of camels. Whenever you engage in discourse about it, you ate more eloquent than Sahban'; whenever you scrutinise coins for counterfeit, you ate mote proficient than Daghfal.? The strategies you deploy to fulfill your desires are finer than hair, you are more organised than the honey bees when it comes to managing it, and you go through it for its most precious possessions, just like how ants collect the smallest particles.

() YOU, THE LOVE OF THIS WORLDLY life is more

O you whose idiocy matches that of the silkworm, truly I won-

' Sahbain ibn Wail: Known eloquent speaker.

2 Daghfal ibn Handhalah: Known lineage expert.

SEEDS OF ADMONISHMENT AND REFORM

der at you! Have you not benefited at all from the blessing of intellect and reasoning?! Your diligence for this worldly life after gtowing old is hotter than an ember! Is there any more time to live, O you who are colder in your insensate numbness than ice! Despite all this, the worldly life is dearer to your heart than your own soul is, even though after you die you shall become more insignificant than even the ground below your feet.

O you whose sleep is heavier than that of a leopard when it comes to your deliverance (from punishment), you have wasted time more precious than jewels. If you catch sight of a sin you

” Arabs used to make symbols by using the fingers of the hand to refer to

numbers. The number ninty was given the shape resulting from the circle made by having the index touching the bottom of the thumb.

Unmindfulness of the Hereafter

leap upon it like a tiger, but if you catch a glimpse of a good deed you dodge and evade it like a fox. When you intetact with people you are as treacherous as a wolf, While committing injustice you boldly step forward like a lion, and you seize a trust, just like a buzzard snatches his prey.

1 ‘This is used because scholars of Kufah were known of their scholarship in the field of Figh.