MERCY OCEANS

The teachings of
Mawlana ‘Abdullah al-Faizi ad-Daghestani

by

Shaykh Nazim Qibrisi

Khatmul Awliya Sayyidina ‘Abdullah al-Fa’iz Daghestani ‫ق‬
(39th Grandshaykh of the Most Distinguished Naqshbandi Way)
and his successor
Sultanul Awliya Mawlana Shaykh Nazim al-Haqqani ‫ق‬
(40th Grandshaykh of the Most Distinguished Naqshbandi Way)

© 1980 Shaykh Nazim Qibrisi

 “Follow in the path of him who has
turned to Me with love.”
-Quran (Luqman, 15)

These are the teachings of our Grandshaykh, Mawlana Abdullah al-Faizi

ad-Daghestani (may Allah be pleased with him), as told to us by our shaykh,
Muhammad Nazim Adil al-Qibrisi (may Allah be pleased with him). May Allah
Almighty grant us the power to take benefit from these words.

“Alhamdulillahi Rabbil Alameen, la hawla wa la quwwata

illah billah hil Aliyyil Adheem,
al-Fatiha...”
Sultanul Awliya Mawlana Shaykh Muhammad ‘Adil ar-Rabbani ‫ق‬
(41st Grandshaykh of the Most Distinguished Naqshbandi Way)
PART ONE
 MERCY OCEANS

* * * * * * *

Islam is founded on three pillars. The first is BELIEF, the second is

ACTIONS, and the third pillar is one’s character – or ATTRIBUTES.
BELIEF – The heart believes what the mind denies. This
must be understood first of all or else there is no lslam. It is
useless to base, or balance one’s faith on the level of the mind,
which doubts anything, that it cannot experience through the
senses.
ACTIONS – A believer must act with love. Love for Allah
Almighty, and His Prophet, and his Shaykh. In his actions, a
believer must imitate, or copy the behaviour of the Prophet
(peace be upon him) and his shaykh, submitting all aspects of his
life to them. There can be no ‘secret departments’ in his life. He
must, at all times, and in every situation, behave as if he were in
their presence.
ATTRIBUTES – Quran tells us that there are not two
hearts within the human breast. We may be slaves to our nafs, to
our ego’s desires, or we may serve our Lord. The character of a
servant of Allah is such that he is humble. He always considers
himself to be in need to his Lord, to be weak and insufficient
before his Lord, not puffed up with knowledge and self-
importance.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “We must believe that there are two
nations of the sons of Adam living now, imprisoned behind a great wall
built by Dhul-Qarnain. In front of this wall, Allah Almighty has put great
mountains of ice . . . unapproachable. These imprisoned nations, the Gog
and Magog people, by Allah’s will, shall be released at the coming of a
new star of great heat. They will quickly run out, eating everything softer
than stones and drinking rivers and lakes. They will stay on the world
until the Last Day, when the trumpet blows. Then all will die and the
mountains will be levelled. Stones will be reduced to sand by terrible
earthquakes. Afterwards, for forty years, there will be no life on earth.

Resurrection Day: Allah Almighty sends his rain. This rain is the
sperm of man. For forty days it will rain and soak into the ground.

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Seventy arm lengths of water will cover the earth. It is written in hadith
that all the bodies of people will be destroyed except for one piece of
bone – one cell.

This one cell will be like the egg cell of a woman, and it will be
fertilized by this rain. From it, all bodies will come back to life, growing as
in our mother’s womb, and soon becoming as they were on the day they
died. Only a few bodies, such as those of the Prophets, will not
experience this destruction and rebirth, but will, instead, be Divinely
protected.

On the second blowing of the trumpet, by lsrafeel, the bodies

lying in the graves will receive their individual souls, their human nature.
They will then be alive, waiting in their graves. The Prophet (peace be
upon him) will come up first. Gabriel is waiting for him to come to
judgment. Rasulullah (peace be upon him) sits up, brushing the dust from
his beard, and asks, first of all, “Ma dha an Ummati? (What about my
nation?)”

“O Muhammad, don’t be afraid,” replies Gabriel. “They are waiting

in their graves; waiting for you to command! You were the first to come
up, and authority is given to you for your nation.”

Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) gives permission for all
people to come up. Seventy people will try to crowd onto one square
foot. There is darkness – no sun, no moon. The people are naked, hungry,
and thirsty. No one can see another, they have risen to they know not
what. It is a fearful day.

Immediately, the Prophet (peace be upon him) will give the light
of lman to each person, according to their faith. The minimum light will
be like the end of the thumb, flickering on and off.

Then, from all directions, the people will be gathered on one plain
for the judgment. That will be on the plain of Damas, and the balance will
be set on the mountain (Jabal Qasiyun). (At this, the shaykh points to a
spot directly in front of him in the Masjid of ‘Abdullah Daghestani and
says, “Right here!”) Al-Kursi (the throne of our Lord) will be on the site
where today are the graves of two of the Prophet’s wives in Damascus.

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The full story of the Judgment cannot be told now. It is so long

that its telling would last until the actual event.

* * * * * * *

This description has a relationship to knowledge as a map has to

a real country. Many secrets are being kept for later. Our Grandshaykh
says that many secrets of Quran cannot be told now without raising
vehement objections from the Great Ones.

* * * * * * *

Hadith says, “The way to Paradise is filled with many things that
our nafs will never like. The way to Hell, on the other hand, is full-up
with our desires and pleasures.”

It was once a very cold day in Damascus at the time of the

morning prayer (fajr). Grandshaykh said to the people who had gathered
at the mosque, “Since you have been patient, here in the cold, for the
sake of your Lord, Allah Almighty will send the heat of hell fifty-years
distance away from you. This is for your one minute of patience!”

Patience is fighting all that the nafs likes. There are three types of
patience:

The first type of patience is patience with physical discomforts –

such as getting up on cold mornings for prayer, having cold water
for washing, waiting in line, being uncomfortable during illness,
completing difficult tasks, and so forth. To remain patient and to
be steadfast in your worship in spite of these difficulties is very
valuable in the sight of Allah.

The second type of patience is even more valuable, and that is the
patience to refrain from forbidden things. When you look at a
woman, for example, say, “O my nafs! This is my sister! How can I
look at her with bad eyes?” About this kind of patience there is a
hadith: “To live as a servant and to keep away from forbidden
things is more valuable than all the worship of all the angels, men,
and jinn throughout the ages!”

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The third type of patience is the best of all. It is to be patient with

the people who trouble you. Quran relates: “You must carry some
of you with others of you. We are trying some of you with others
of you.”
(Quran)

Patience is a most necessary thing in the life of a man. If a man

has hold of patience, all goodness is with him. Allah’s eyes are on you . . .
will you be patient?

* * * * * * *

Smoking is unlovely to Allah!

* * * * * * *

The pole star is fixed with all other stars revolving around it. The
Qutb is fixed with all the other saints revolving around him also. The
Qutb is the Sultan of the Awliya, the real Caliph and representative of
Allah on earth. This is the highest rank among the saints. The orders of
the Qutb are the orders of Allah, and his will is the equivalent of Allah’s
will. Why? It is because he is no longer subject to his nafs’ desires. Only
Allah’s Will is with him. There are no hobbies with him, only Allah’s Work.
Only this kind of man can be a Wali (saint).

It is very difficult to stay on the throne of the pole star. Our

Grandshaykh spoke of one Wali who stayed on that throne for forty
years, unsurpassed by any other saint. This is a sign of great ‘spiritual
poverty,’ and from this ‘poverty’ come his words. These words are
unchanging laws. He was our Grandshaykh’s Shaykh, and this is his
tradition coming to us.

He said, “If anyone doesn’t consider death and the hereafter at

least four times a day, his faith is too weak to build upon. To consider
death makes the soul free to contact its heavenly station and Divine
Powers.”

What is the meaning of death? It is to be invisible in this world; to

disappear from it and reappear in the Heavens. This is the meaning of
death to the saints. Remembrance of that gives us more spiritual power.

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It is the reality of death. At the same moment we are living here, we are
reaching there. When your spirit leaves your body, immediately it will be
in its Heavenly station. Our soul is waiting, like a bird in a cage, to be
free. It waits with endless desire for the time when it can fly to its
Heavenly station.

When a man knows the truth of death he no longer fears it, but
waits for it. This knowledge gives us love to reach our Heavenly home,
and also a Way. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “The way to meet
your Lord is death. If you don’t like death, you don’t want to meet your
Lord!”

All real believers must, therefore, like death – for it is the way to
the Heavens. Thinking of death gives more power to our faith. The love
of God is the power of our faith, the spirit of our faith. If you haven’t any
love for Allah, then you cannot have any faith. It is impossible.

* * * * * * *

Shaykh ‘Abdullah said, “If one louse gets on your foot and you say
to it, ‘It’s alright, it’s only my foot’ – soon you will find it, not on your foot,
but in the hair on your head!”

In the light of this saying, we must know that there are two kinds
of people. Good people will show mercy and tolerance to all. Those of
bad character, on the other hand, are pleased to see others miserable.
They give trouble to everyone. Bad people come to good people and say,
“Let us be your doorkeepers.” When good people accept them (saying,
“Alright, it doesn’t matter”), the bad ones usurp all that the good people
have.

You must be very careful. Never tolerate evil or give it any

authority. (Iran, for example, allowed Khomeini to return – and then –
finished!) It is like giving permission to snakes and scorpions to live in
your house. Democracy allows its enemies to work within its borders.
Quran says, “Do not trust those who are not of your faith, character, or
way.” Even if a man is a Muslim – if he doesn’t think and feel like you,
don’t trust him.

* * * * * * *

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Hadith says, “The best work is knowledge of Allah. That is the best
occupation for a man.” This Hadith is like an ocean, for Quran says, “O
my people, I am with you – all the time – everywhere.” He is always with
us. This is knowledge.

Our Grandshaykh says, “If a man is not aware that Allah’s eyes are
with him everywhere, all the time, that man is not a mu’min (believer).”
You must imagine, in your heart, that Allah’s eyes are with you. If you
forget this you will be absent from your Lord, and when you are absent
from your Lord you will be present with your nafs (ego). The best actions
come by holding this in your mind. “O my Lord, why am I writing this? I
am writing for you.”

* * * * * * *

What is the minimum degree of faith that we must keep in the

presence of Allah? Our Grandshaykh says to us that the minimum faith is
the same amount that we promised to Allah Almighty on the Day of
Promises before coming to this world. That minimum faith would be
enough to keep the remembrance of Allah while alone on a desert island
with a beautiful girl. How can one have such faith? What if she were your
sister? Your daughter?

lman (faith) means purity, and faith never lives in a dirty place or
in a dirty heart. In the light of this hadith, we must move so that we will
be living with people who are always with their Lord. Otherwise we are
still living with snakes and scorpions.

Iman must be forever – no exceptions.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh said that all Prophets and saints came only to
call people to the buildings of their Heavenly stations, and to advise them
how to do so. They don’t care if a man lives in a cave or a palace in this
life, because everyone eventually ends in the grave.

The place to build for yourself is in Heaven. As hadith says, “O

people, as much as you stay in this life you must work for it. And as much

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as you will stay in the next life you also must work for it.” This life is
temporary. The next life is eternal. Therefore, working for eternal life
must be unlimited. When we are working toward our heavenly stations,
it gives us endless pleasure and satisfaction – endless pleasure for the
heart of man.

In this age people are contrary to this point, giving all their
energies to working for the things of this world. This is the source of all
trouble and unhappiness of our time. How can a man be happy in this life
when his desires and demands are endless? People want the whole ocean
when they can have only one drop. How can they be happy?

I watched the young people in London. They looked like little fish
with their mouths open wanting to swallow all the world – all the girls –
all the good things. They run here and there, and in the end the world
swallows them. That is the life of this world and it is empty. A man may
live in Paris for forty years visiting the cafes and theatres every night.
Then he comes here and sits with us. Would you believe that he
swallowed all of Paris? No. Paris is still there without him. There is
always a bigger fish to swallow the little ones.

If a man acts according to his senses, he will be wrong. If he acts

according to his mind, he will be right. A man living for this world –
wasting his body, money, and life – will tire and die without any benefit
to himself. But a man, using his mind will take benefit from this life,
building home, family, and business from which he will take eternal
benefit.

When a man is thirsty he imagines he drinks all the rivers and

springs, yet one glass is enough. Why do you wish to drink all the rivers
and springs? You may fall in from too much drinking!

* * * * * * *

Another important subject from our Grandshaykh – l am asking

for more power to explain this lesson clearly to you:

Allah Almighty sends his Prophets with miracles and

extraordinary happenings as people ask for signs of Prophethood before
they are willing to believe. The most famous miracle of our Prophet

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(peace be upon him) was the night journey from Mecca to Jerusalem to
the Heavens and back again – the Me’raj. We must believe it as Allah tells
us this in the Quran. We must believe it in our hearts. “Be right, as you
have been ordered!” says the Quran.

Allah Almighty called Muhammad (peace be upon him) to His

Divine presence, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) went as ordered,
just as a dignitary is received by the Queen of England. This extreme
honour and respect was not given to any other creature. Muhammad
(peace be upon him) would never have received this honour for himself
alone. He told Gabriel, “If this is only for me, I have no need of it. I will
receive it only if it is also for my nation!”

Gabriel replied, “O Muhammad, if your nation is on the same

steps as you (sunnah), this invitation to the Divine Presence is also for
them. But, unless they follow you, it will be impossible for them to come.”

Thus, we have a promise from Allah Almighty to reach His Divine

Presence following the footsteps of the Prophet (peace be upon him).
This and nothing else is the highest aim for mankind. All religions and
Prophets came to ready man for this. It is like the bright preparations of
a bride for her marriage.

All Prophets had their Me’raj, but none to the station of

Muhammad (peace be upon him). When the great Wali, Abu Yazid al-
Bistami (may Allah grant him more honour) asked his Lord, “How can I
come to you?” Allah Almighty answered, “Leave your nafs, and come!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh said that Allah Almighty called Muhammad

(peace be upon him) twelve thousand times, inviting him to the Divine
Presence, but only once did he speak of it. The Prophet (peace be upon
him) was not called for himself, but for two reasons:

The first reason was to receive good tidings for the sons of Adam
(peace be upon him), as is related in the Quran. Allah swore, on His
Divine Honour, to make the sons of Adam beings of high respect and
honour, and spoke of this each time He called Muhammad (peace be
upon him). This is an endless honour for men.

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The second reason for which Rasulullah (peace be upon him) was
called to his Lord’s Presence was to receive authority and power to keep
the sons of Adam from all evils and devils (“… as much power as you need
to protect My servants!”).

You are a man – we are all men – and men are known by their
names. That one, for example, is named Tariq. We may further call him
an American, a Muslim, a farmer. More descriptions give honour to a
name, or, to put it another way, titles and names are the signs of his
honour. We say that there is a reality, a wisdom, in Arabic, that the more
names a man has the greater his honour.

The names of Allah Almighty, says our Grandshaykh, cannot be

counted. He has as many names as all the atoms in the universe, as all
the particles of all the atoms, down to the very last one. It is the sign of
endless honour. He is the Creator. He knows each piece and its location.
Can you understand the greatness of Allah Almighty? His beautiful names
reach to the very last piece. He called Muhammad (peace be upon him)
twelve thousand times to teach him these beautiful names, these names
of honour. When the Prophet was sixty-three, these teachings were
completed. He then went from this world into Allah’s Presence forever . .
. finished.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh tells us that no one can have as much tolerance

for mankind as Allah Almighty, Who said, each time He called the
Prophet (peace be upon him), “O Muhammad! Your nation is always
sinning! They never tire of doing evil deeds! But I, their Lord, never tire
of forgiving them! I am changing their bad deeds into good deeds!”

This is endless tolerance from Allah Almighty. He also told

Muhammad (peace be upon him), “Anything you ask for your nation, I will
give to you. I gave you ten Sahaba, each with a promise that they would
enter paradise. At the end of time, with the last day approaching, I will
give you a few people of your nation with such saintliness that it will be
ordered in Paradise to put on more lights and beauty to receive them!
This, O Muhammad, will be honour for you, as Paradise will be honoured
by them.” Some kings are honoured by palaces, while other kings may

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bring honour to a palace (There is an Arab saying: “The honour of a place

is according to who is standing in it.”) Among those for whom Paradise
will take on more beauty are Mahdi (peace be upon him) and his viziers
and ministers.

What is Allah preparing in Paradise for His believers? Our

Grandshaykh described the holy lights of Paradise in this way: “Beauty
there is represented by women of such radiance that if one stretched her
hand to the sky, the light of the sun would be as nothing! The perfume
scent of one of these Paradise-ladies would cause any man who breathes
her fragrance to forget eating and drinking until he would die! When a
mu’min puts his hand to her breast, she will give such sounds of pleasure
as have never been heard on earth…..”

“…..There is another Paradise above this. These endless beauty

oceans are His Divine Presence. The first Paradise is just a drop.
Whoever is interested in beauties will get that in Paradise, but the one
who wishes the Divine Presence will get that. It is never open, but
covered, because one single ray of Nur (light) small enough to pass
through the eye of a needle would destroy the other paradise. These are
the endless beauty oceans of Allah Almighty’s Presence.”

* * * * * * *

“We believe there is a Face of Allah Almighty,” says our

Grandshaykh, “But, a description of His Face is not imagination. You may
imagine one face, and he, another, and so on. If yours is right, what about
ours? We cannot describe all the attributes of Allah Almighty, we just
know that He has them.”

The greatest pleasure, and the highest honour for mankind, is to

be in the Divine Presence, looking at His Face. This honour is privately
for the few that worship only Allah, asking nothing from this world or the
next. Their heart is with their Lord, “I like you not for your palaces or
gardens – I like You, only.” This is the highest degree of worship, wherein
one is not interested in worldly or spiritual pleasures. To place one of
these worshipers in Paradise would be to put him in prison.

On the Judgment Day, Allah will order them to be taken to

Paradise: “Take Tariq to Paradise!” He tells His angels. But he escapes and

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returns. Then, the order comes, and he is bound in chains of light. Again
he escapes, and says, “My Lord! I don’t want these things; I Want you!”
Then, down upon him comes Nur and he disappears – gone into the
Presence of Allah.

People like this know which thing is cheap and which thing is
valuable. If they are shown a piece of glass and a diamond, they choose
the diamond. How can anyone with a good mind choose to leave the
Lord of the Universe? He is the Creator, the owner of all things. Accept
the good He gives but in your heart always say, “O my Lord, we are
asking for You only.”

Every Friday, in Paradise, Allah removes the veil from His Face. All
the people there who chose Paradise instead of Him immediately quit
whatever they are doing and look upon It – At that time there is no more
sweetness or pleasure in anything else.

For those who wanted Him, however, they are before His Face
eternally in His veiled Paradise beautified by the lights of His Beautiful
Names, numerous as the smallest pieces of the universe, and bathed in
the light of His Greatest Name. Each Name is an ocean of beauty and
lightened pleasures, with countless private areas and secret mercies. The
Greatest Name covers all.

Allah says, “O Muhammad! All of this for your nation – for My

people! Whoever believes in My Words, I shall give him this, and more!”
And so, we believe more and more, respect one another, and give trouble
to no one.

* * * * * * *

It is not a fit way for people to behave, biting and kicking like wild
animals. A hadith relates: “Who is a Muslim? A Muslim is he who gives
harm to no one. Not with his hands nor with his tongue.” This is a wide
entrance to Islam, and it is for all people. The Prophet (peace be upon
him) bears witness to this: It matters not which country or religion you
come from, if you harm others you are not a real Muslim; you are with
the animals in the stable.

* * * * * * *

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Mawlana asks one of his murids, “Did you pay attention to what I
just said? Don’t tell me that you have heard all this before. Some things
are suitable for using in more than one place. The onion used in cooking
goes well in many dishes. You don’t say, ‘No, I already used it for soup.’
You may use it for salad also. You must always pay attention to all I am
saying.”

* * * * * * *

Allah Almighty is greatest. He is timeless, ever ready, without

beginning – He is king.

And yet you cannot find a king without a kingdom. Without

subjects his kingship has no meaning. Just as there can be no meaning
for a Prophet without an ummah (nation). Therefore, Allah was ready
without beginning, and his servants also were ready without beginning. If
there were no people, to whom was He Allah? Was it to Himself? No! A
hadith relates: “l was a secret treasure and wanted to be known.” His
people were part of this treasure.

He is God to His people, and to each of them He gave a private

station in His Divine Presence. There we are always worshipping without
need of eating, drinking, or marrying. It is a reward for the sons of Adam
(peace be upon him). These Heavenly stations are fixed. When people
come to this world, they have the appearance of beginning, but in reality
they were with Allah always, without beginning. We come from Allah and
return to Him. You cannot say that we are a part of Him. We are only an
appearance of His power – no more. All things are an appearance of the
attribute of power. He says, “Kun! fa-yakun…” (“Be! And it is…”) Thus, we
have our realities in His Divine Presence. Now, in this world, we have
only a representation of that reality. This body, and all things of this
world, have their origin in the reality of the Divine Presence. We are like
a photograph. We, ourselves, are not on the paper – only an image. A
rocket is sent into space. Is the power that sent it here on earth, or there
with the rocket? The power is here, though we may see that rocket going
back and forth, seemingly on its own.

* * * * * * *

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Our Grandshaykh tells us more about the attributes of Muslims:

“We are always in need of so many things. Some of these we can take
with our own powers, our thinking and doing, while other things (most
things in fact) are beyond us. In his nature, the human being is weak. It is
not within our power to reach everything we need. When we know that
we are weak, we realize that we must depend on Him who is powerful –
Allah Almighty.”

It is good manners, therefore, for everyone, Muslims, and

especially those of the tariqats, to ask for everything that they need from
their Lord. Allah says, “O my people! Ask Me for everything, even your
shoelaces!” This is His order.

He knows best if something is suitable for us or not. When

something is suitable for us He gives it. If it is not necessary, He doesn’t.
This is why we must ask Him for everything. You may ask a person for
something and he may give it – not knowing that it may be harmful to
you. You, yourself, may not know if a thing will be all right for you to
keep or use, or if it is haram (poison, forbidden). If Allah gives you
something, you know it is all right. If it is not good, He prevents.

A person must know how and from whom he is asking. Man may
ask for things dangerous to himself. But, if you know that a thing is good
for you, you must ask strongly – not half-asleep! You must be like a little
boy, asking from his parents. He never ceases till they give him what he
asks. When you have been given a thing by Allah, you must keep it and
thank Him for it.

We live in a world where everyone is in need of each other. It may

be that if we ask another person for something, Allah will put inspiration
into his heart to give it or not. We must know, however, that it is Allah
who is giving – sending us His servants. In everything Allah knows well,
and looks for what is most suitable.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was the Sultan of the Awliya. Though he was

illiterate, Allah Almighty gave to him ‘ilma la dunni’ from His Divine
Knowledge. This is given only to those who fear and respect their Lord.
The following is a saying of his:

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“Now we are living in dunya, afterwards, akhira. The reality of

dunya is ‘fana,’ or ‘not existing.’ The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,
‘Allah never looks upon this world. If He did, it would stop!’ Though Allah
created this world, He never looks on it with love. This is because this
world is only temporary. You may, for example, build fifteen water
closets (toilet), but do you look upon this as being lovely? When Adam
(peace be upon him) ate from the tree of knowledge, his stomach started
to churn. ‘There is no water closet in Paradise,’ Allah said. ‘You must go
down to dunya – there is a water closet for you!’

“In Quran, Allah tells Moses (peace be upon him), ‘Look to the
mountain. When his Lord revealed Himself to the mountain, the
mountain came crashing down!’ (Quran, surah A’raaf, VII- 143)

“We are saying that the whole of the universe is less valuable than
even one of the sons of Adam (peace be upon him). Thus, for our sake,
Allah looks to us here, in this dunya, once a day. This world isn’t valuable
to Him, but the sons of Adam (peace be upon him) have endless value in
His sight.

“Nowadays people have forgotten this. They all hold this world,
this dunya, to be very valuable. For this dunya, they kill each other with a
quarter’s worth of lead! One of the pillars of Islam is to know the value of
people and things. A Muslim’s vision must be like his Lord’s vision. We
must treat each other with perfect love and respect. We must help each
other, not quarrel over the things of this worthless world. Allah Almighty
is ‘Rabbil-Alameen,’ the Lord of the Universe, and all people are equal in
His sight. They are all servants of their Lord whether they know it or not.
All of us are living in His Mercy Oceans.

“As we said, Allah Almighty looks to this world once a day. The
time He looks is from midnight until the adhan of fajr (the morning
prayer). What is the reason He looks? It is to see what lblis, the devil, is
up to. Allah sees what dirt Satan has thrown on his servants during the
day, and like a mother catching her dirty child after a day of playing, He
washes away their dirt. With His endless mercy He washes away their
bad deeds. Every night, for the honour of those awake and praying for
forgiveness, Allah Almighty gives His mercy generally to all the sleeping
ones. Every night Allah is destroying bad things and putting good things

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in their place. This is secret knowledge. lblis never knows of it. If he knew
that every night his doings were being destroyed, he would cease trying
to deceive people.”

* * * * * * *

Grandshaykh says that for people living in the area of Damascus,

Allah looks to them twice a day. If a man dies in Damascus with twenty-
four thousand sins, Allah will turn them into twenty-four thousand good
deeds. Damascus is a Holy area, the place of the Judgment Day, where
twice a day come Nur and mercy. This area covers all that a man can see
from the minaret of the Masjid Umawi, and its baraka spreads for a
distance of six days’ camel ride in all directions. So great is the honour of
this area that Grandshaykh once spoke of it for forty days!

* * * * * * *

Since the time of Adam (peace be upon him), and up until the Last
Day, Allah Almighty has given four great saints the task of governing and
looking after the whole world. When one goes, another comes to take his
place. Their decisions control kings and history.

Qutb al-Bilad is in control of all countries. Qutb al-Irshad sends

everyone to their destinies. The Pole of the Poles is Qutb al-Aqtab; he is
responsible for the other Qutbs, and his spiritual body is in the Ka’aba.
Qutb al-Mutasarrif is the ‘treasurer.’ He has the power to make
everything in accordance with Allah’s will.

These are secret titles, known only to the few who are holding
them. They are unknown persons; perhaps the man pushing a cart in the
market place is one of them! Allah Almighty leaves the sons of Adam
(peace be upon him) almost completely in their care; only once a day
does our Lord look to us to protect us from Satan.

Our Grandshaykh was the representative of the Prophet (peace be

upon him) for his century. He tells us that there have been one hundred
and twenty-four thousand Prophets from Adam (peace be upon him) up
until the last Prophet, Muhammad (peace be upon him). For every station
there is a higher station. Allah Almighty says, “Over every learned man,
there is a more learned man.” Knowledge is an ocean without end; there

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is horizon after horizon. We must always remember that however much

we know, there is someone who knows more. Always, we tend to put all
knowledge within the limits of what we, ourselves, know. We must not
make this mistake. There is no limit to knowledge, or searching.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says that Allah Almighty gives to those of His

servants who are on the straight way divine knowledge to come to His
Presence. Unless we follow that way, we cannot benefit from that divine
help. We must realize, for instance, that Allah Almighty gave us our
bodies, our precious organs, to use only according to His desires. “O my
servants!” He says, “Do as I would like, not contrary to My desire!” When
we use our bodies in ways that are not pleasing to our Lord, it is as if we
are saying to Him, “I know, and You don’t.” We are, at that time, fighting
with our Lord.

For example, Allah says to us, “Don’t look at that which is haram
(forbidden).” Our nafs (egos), on the other hand, say, “It is a pleasure to
look. I know more than You!” In addition to looking, there are, of course,
many ways in which we may use our bodies in rebellion to our Lord.
When we do this, we say, “I am free! No one orders me!” Bad kufr
(disbelief) begins with this.

We must, therefore, be very careful and never let our nafs

command us. This is a very sensitive point. Your ego (your nafs) will make
you a donkey for itself, riding you as it desires. There is a hadith: “Your
nafs is your donkey! Don’t be a donkey to your nafs!” The majority of
people are donkeys for their nafs. It is worse when you are angry over
something. When a man is angry, he is being ridden by his nafs, who
happily calls to Satan, “Come! Ride with me on this fellow!”

* * * * * * *

We are listening to the words of our Grandshaykh, and it is very

important to get all points accurately and correctly. Each has an
essential part in our Islamic life; leave one out, and the whole will suffer.

* * * * * * *

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It is very difficult for our nafs to accept that we are servants of

Allah. There is struggle. A hadith says that we are returning always from
the lesser fights, which are for the things of this world (including wars),
to the greater fights, which are to control our own egos. We must be
very careful as our nafs will not leave us even for a moment. Our ego is
not concerned with fighting for goodness. It claims instead to be our
lord, and demands that we follow its wishes.

Nimrod, the king of Babylon, once built a great tower for fighting
against Allah. Our Grandshaykh says that, unlike King Nimrod who only
built his tower once, we are continually building towers for fighting our
Lord, until we finally surrender and become Muslim.

Everyone knows fighting Allah, but almost no one knows fighting

their nafs. A man who takes a sword and kills one million men is not
brave. The brave one is he who fights his nafs. Everything your nafs says
to do – do the opposite! This is fighting!

“Astaghfirullah!” This means asking forgiveness from your Lord,

asking refuge in Him Almighty and from your ego’s claim to be king. “You
can’t find one moment in which you don’t need to say ‘Astaghfirullah’,”
says our Grandshaykh. “You are always in need of this. Furthermore, it is
highly recommended to give thanks to Allah Almighty two times with
each breath!”

Rabia (may Allah be pleased with her) was a descendant of the

Prophet (peace be upon him) and a great Waliyya (lady saint). Once forty
saints came to visit her. “O my brothers!” she told them, “For each
‘Astaghfirullah’ that we say, we need to say another until we overcome
our nafs and nothing is left. Then, our ‘istighfar’ will be all right.
Otherwise, it is just our nafs that are saying ‘Astaghfirullah’!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh relates a saying of Muhyiddin ‘ibn Arabi (may

Allah be pleased with him):

“If they offered me all the treasures of this world, I would not give
even one inch of my intestines!” To give such a thing may mean death for
the giver. In that case, what value do this world’s treasures hold?
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To be alive for one moment in which to speak one holy word, to

do one sunnah, is more valuable than the treasure of the whole world.
Our Grandshaykh says, “In the sight of Awliya, this is perfect respect for
the Prophet (peace be upon him). They are ready to give all treasures for
one sunnah. Muyhiddin is giving great respect to his Lord with this
saying. This is a sign of a servant of Allah.”

* * * * * * *

Here we are, sitting together. We are pleased with this, our

meeting. If not, we would look for another. Each to his own group. Some
like stalks, some like grain. Vultures, for example, like carrion, but not
fresh meat. In the marketplace there are thousands of shops. One person
goes to this one, another goes to that one; not everyone to the same
shop. If someone is not pleased with a group, he cannot sit with them.
This is an unchanging law. Our class is a free market, one may stay and
buy, or go. We are not angry if no one buys.

* * * * * * *

We believe that Allah Almighty has endless powers, that those

powers are absolute, and that He can do anything. He is not tied to
reasons as we are, nor is He compelled to do anything. “It is a big lesson
for us,” says our Grandshaykh, “that Allah Almighty has endless power –
without means and reasons. He is not limited, like men, to the world of
cause and effect. If a man wants to grow crops, he must have seed, and
fertile ground, and rain. Allah has no need of anything. He created all the
worlds in seven days. He says ‘BE,’ and it is. For what? To be a big lesson
for us that we must not be in a big hurry to do a thing. We must be
patient. It is for Allah to bring results quickly. For men, all things in this
world come step by step. Wheat grows little by little by little, until the
ear ripens. Nothing comes immediately. The sons of Adam (peace be
upon him) reach their aim, their Divine stations, step by step.”

Allah says, “Whoever fights their nafs for Us will reach to Our
Heavenly ways.” This means that you must be patient always, until you
reach a point where your Lord will take care of you. It can be compared
to what happens to a rocket when it reaches the edge of the earth’s
gravitational pull. That rocket must spend huge amounts of power to

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reach that point, until suddenly it is free from gravity’s pull. Then it can
travel easily. Likewise, until we cut the ‘gravity’ of our egos, it will be very
difficult. We must be patient – spending so much energy – fighting until
we can be free of our nafs hold. Then we may go more easily also.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says that Allah Almighty gave us very valuable

organs, and asks us to use them as He orders. When we do this, we are
riding our nafs. If not, our nafs’ are riding us. We must have patience to
ride. Otherwise it is impossible!

How are we to use our organs? What is the balance, what are the
criteria against which we can observe and criticize our actions?

For every action, you may find three ways, or positions. These are
called wajib, sunnah, and haram. We will illustrate these terms with some
examples:

The top class of people are the Awliya, the Saints. They have, in
their eyes, a divine light, a divine power, that burns away badness in
those people upon whom they look. Because of this divine quality, they
may look everywhere, at men or at women. It has been ordered for them
to look. There is no prohibition for them. Therefore, their looking is
‘wajib.’

For the second class of people, their looking is ‘sunnah.’ When one
looks at a beautiful girl in this manner, he sees her as she would appear
two years after her death! In this way, he can know what is temporary
and what remains. He looks and learns, like a medical student looking at
a cadaver.

For the third class of people, looking is prohibited – ‘haram.’ This

is because they are always present with their nafs. All bad powers come
into action with their looking. It is on the same level as a donkey when he
sees a mare.

What is music in Islam? It is haram, forbidden, to listen to music

that is arousing to the ego. How can you tell? If the heart goes to haram,
it is haram!
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Some people, on the other hand, when they listen to music are
changing, looking at their incompleteness. This is a funny happening, and
with it comes a very strong desire to complete one’s self, to save one’s
self from incompleteness. This is Divine music, special music. We may
say it is ‘sunnah.’

There is also another class of people, those who must listen to

music. The music of Jalaluddin Rumi (may Allah be pleased with him), for
instance, was the opening to Divine knowledge. From it one could take a
power to protect the nation of Muhammad (peace be upon him). This is
‘wajib’ music.

Originally, no action was prohibited. Prohibition came only after

that action started leading away from Allah Almighty, and towards our
nafs, our egos. This is a general law. As our Grandshaykh says, “I am
giving you a balance and a base. You may now go anywhere, east or west,
and not lose your way. In every action, you may find ‘wajib,’ ‘sunnah,’ and
‘haram.’ One man goes to a saloon to drink; it is haram, Another goes to
take knowledge; it is sunnah. The third man goes to smash bottles; that is
wajib!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was telling us about our responsibilities,

according to the Awliya:

“Every day,” he said, “there are twenty-four thousand breaths,

sixteen thousand movements and thirty thousand works for each person.
On the Judgment Day, each of us will be questioned: ‘What was your
intention for each of those actions?’ If you can reply to Allah Almighty, ‘I
was intending your pleasure,’ this will be enough.”

It is a clear hadith of our Prophet (peace be upon him): “I came to

you with Shariah (laws, rules, methods) like the sun shining.” We are,
therefore, under heavy responsibility every moment. Either we are
obedient servants, or we are not.

If a man is thinking this, how can he find time to find faults with
others? You must always be thinking, “What will be my situation in the
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Divine Presence?” This makes for good character. It is a formula for

human life, a base to build upon.

Allah Almighty says, “Your every action – your praying, working,

living, and dying must be for Me only.” This means that we must live and
act and die in His way. We are sitting here for Allah Almighty, not for
ourselves. To find fault with others is haram. It is a big sin to set oneself
up as a judge of others. That is for Allah alone. He has no partners. When
a man looks for another’s faults, he is ‘junub,’ impure. He must quickly
make ghusl (bath, major ablution) to be clean. Under this imposition he
will be afraid to find fault with other people.

* * * * * * *

The Grand Wali in these times, the keeper of this world, is Sahib
uz-Zamaan (peace be upon him). He said, in the assembly of the Awliya,
one word; one very important sentence – Our Grandshaykh repeated it
as he heard: “The summary of all Holy Books, what is it? It is fear of God!”

If you have fear of God in your heart, you have the summary of all
holy books. You will not leave any good action; you will do it! Also, if you
have fear of God, you will not be able to do any bad deed. It is the main
aim of all Holy Books to direct people in this way. What thing does man
need to escape badness, and go to goodness? It is the fear of Allah in the
heart. Without this he is like a wild animal.

Hadith tells us that in the last days few people will have the fear of
Allah Almighty in their hearts. Animal nature will surface among us, and
human nature will disappear.

Yet, from Allah come ‘radio waves’ to guide us to Him. He who has
fear of Allah Almighty in his heart, he who believes in the Judgment Day
and that Allah is Judge, he who believes that he will be asked to give
account for his life – for his actions, that man will fear his Lord, and keep
away from doing bad deeds; keep away from evils and devils!

If a man says, “I believe in Allah, but not in the Judgment Day,” he

has no fear of God in his heart. Now, in our time, devils are fighting to
destroy Iman (faith) in Allah. If they are unable to destroy a man’s belief
in God’s existence, then they will try to destroy his belief in the

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Judgment Day. If those devils succeed in doing that, it is the same as if

they had destroyed belief in the first place. With no Judgment, there is
no fear, no responsibility, and a man without responsibility is terrible. If
you say to a wild tiger, “Goodness, Justice, Mercy,” will he listen? A man
without responsibility is worse!

In this way devils are now working against humanity and good
character. Bad people are defending disbelief, fighting against believers.
Show me one man who believes in akhira (the life hereafter) doing bad
things.

A man without conscience is dangerous, you must be very careful

of him. The character of bad people is that they want all others to be like
them. In badness, they are envious (hasad). Now, in our community,
people are too much like this. They can’t look on another person’s
goodness without wishing that it would go away. Envy! This is the worst
character! Iman (faith) never lives with this!

* * * * * * *

A hadith relates: “My Lord taught me all good manners.” In Islam,

manners are known as ‘adab,’ and he who keeps adab will bear the fruit
of good character. It will seep through and permeate his being, as if he
were an earthen vessel.

It is sunnah for a man to keep the adab of the Prophet (peace be

upon him). “A man may make mistakes,” says our Grandshaykh, “but if he
keeps good manners, the Prophet (peace be upon him) will intercede for
him. Therefore, good manners are a means for a man to gain
intercession.”

* * * * * * *

“We must believe,” says our Grandshaykh, “and, we must know

that all of our actions, no matter how small or insignificant they may
seem to us, are recorded by two angels sent by Allah Almighty to observe
our deeds here on earth.” One angel sits on our right, and records our
good deeds and words. The other sits on our left, and makes note of the
bad things we do and say. We must know this.

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On the Judgment Day each of us will be witness to the deeds of

his or her life. Everything has been recorded like a cinema, and on that
Day, Allah Almighty says, “Each person will see the good that he has
done; even as small as the smallest atomic particle! Also, every bad deed
will be seen, no matter how slight.”

The Prophet (peace be upon him) says that for every person there
will be a life record consisting of seventy rolls. Each roll will be as long as
the eye can see. Nothing is hidden, and all can be seen at a glance. Allah
Almighty will say, “Look at this man’s actions! What is your judgment for
him?” The ‘film’ is your own and you will be your judge. It will be exact
justice! There can be no question of anything being left out as the two
angels are with us always, recording all we say and do.

In addition, Allah and His Prophet (peace be upon him) each have
a private book for us, one for every person. While the book written by
the two angels is always open, the book of Allah is closed. It is opened
only when a man is not occupied with this world, only when he is praying
and working sincerely for his Lord. The book of the Prophet (peace be
upon him) is opened for those servants who are keeping the sunnah,
those who respect the Prophet (peace be upon him) in their hearts and in
their actions.

* * * * * * *

Once our Grandshaykh was sitting at dinner with his murids. It

was a big feast, with rice and turkeys, so big that the people could not
finish it all. Grandshaykh looked at all the food that was left over and
called to one of his disciples, a man named Taseen Effendi. “Eat!”
instructed our Grandshaykh. Taseen rolled up his sleeves and ate it all!
All night, until one hour before fajr (the morning prayer), that murid
stood in prayer without drawing a single breath!

Hudur: this means to lose oneself in the Divine Presence, to give

your heart to that ocean! It is like a man taking off his clothes and diving
into the sea! There are so many beautiful things that we cannot speak
about. It is prohibited!

* * * * * * *

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From the sayings of our Grandshaykh, on the manners of the

Sahaba (the companions of the Prophet, peace be upon him):

“Visiting is sunnah among the Muslims. It is for the love of Allah,

and for His sake and that of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Disciples
of the Prophet (peace be upon him) always visited each other.

“Assemblies amongst believers must be in mutual confidence,

with no share for Satan. lblis always searches for an opportunity to enter
the assembly, but he should not be allowed to take part! This is an
important point! Always, if two people are sitting together, he is trying to
be the third!

“What was the way of the Sahaba? When they were in assembly,
they were using such a power that all the devils of creation, numbering
to infinity, could not find a way to enter. The wall of power!

“The Sahaba were all awakened people, not asleep. They never
gave occasion to lblis; not with their eyes, ears, tongues, hands, legs,
noses, hearts, or thoughts. There wasn’t occasion for him.

“If one party to an assembly gives way to Satan there will be

trouble for all. lblis is always coming to lead you, to ride you. You must
take shelter with Allah Almighty or Satan will wound you, bind you, and
take you as his slave. You must be careful to guard every moment. Allah
is the shelter for you; be ready with Him, and the devil cannot approach.

“Satan has arrows. The Prophet (peace be upon him) says, ‘They
are poison arrows.’ If, for example, a man is looking at a forbidden thing,
he is pierced by an arrow of Satan. A man who can’t refrain from looking
to haram is not given the Divine Light for looking upon the Heavenly
Universe. The eyes must be kept for Allah Almighty or He will not permit
your heart to look upon the unseen worlds. If you can’t keep your eyes
from haram, you will stay blind in this world and the other. You cannot
attain the station of those who have learned the Heavenly looking.

“The Awliya have eyes in their hearts. Allah says, ‘It is important
for every Muslim, while in this life, to take Divine Light for looking to the
Heavens.’ This is impossible for a man with the love of this life in his

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heart. It applies not only to men looking at women, but to any looking
after this life.

“Who prefers to have a picture in place of the original? This life is

like an imagination, a photograph. The original life is in akhira, the
hereafter. That is the valuable thing, not this dirty world! He who
believes always prefers the eternal life to this dunya. A mu’min takes care
with his actions, because he knows that whoever looks at this
‘photography,’ to this world, is prohibited from looking at the ‘original.’”

* * * * * * *

We believe that Paradise and Hell are real. It is ‘Haqq,’ truth. Our
Grandshaykh says, “I’m always surprised to hear people say, when told
about Hell, ‘O my Lord! Protect us from Hell.’ They ask the wrong thing.
They should say, ‘O my Lord! Protect us from bad actions, and reasons
that would lead us to Hell!’ Don’t fear Hell, but your bad actions!”

A mu’min, a believer, must be awake to those things which are apt

to make one fall into Hell. A person doing bad actions immediately has
fire coming into his heart, burning there. He feels tormented, dark and
troubled. He has fallen into Hell! Unable, therefore, to find pleasure
within himself, ..he turns to the outer life, to the pleasures of this dunya.
Thus, they are floundering around in search of pleasure – television,
radios, discos, bars; they have fallen into Hell! Allah Almighty tells us that
every time they come out of Hell a little bit, they are pushed back in!

There is not real pleasure for them. Real pleasure must come from
the heart. A man may sit in Hell on a throne, but he will still have no
happiness.

People’s bad characteristics bring all of Hell’s troubles into their

lives. Worshipping, and good characteristics, on the other hand, will
bring Paradise into their hearts. If a person has this, he may be put into
prison and yet his soul will be free! Are you asking pleasure, or sorrow?
It’s in your hands! Our Lord says, “Everyone must taste his own goodness
and badness, even if it is as small as an atom.” Do you understand? You
are free if you show mercy to all things. Mercy then comes to you. This
lesson is enough to last a man his entire life. We must know, and we
must act.

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* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh asks, “How do we know what is good, and what

is bad?” He answers, “Allah Almighty is teaching all people. He created
the sons of Adam (peace be upon him), and He sees that each one has a
conscience.”

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “You must ask your
conscience!” A mufti (judge) may give a verdict here on earth, but on the
Last Day, you must be the judge for yourself. Allah Almighty has given all
people a judge right here in their hearts. It is always saying, “Be on the
straight way, as you have been ordered!”

People think Islam is like a coat; something you carry around with
you and put on whenever you like. This is a mistake. Islam must be both
inside and outside of you. It is a way of living, the best way, for it
contains all things needed by the sons of Adam (peace be upon him).
Whoever is asking happiness, Islam gives him light. It is the solution to all
problems.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “For every believer, it is wajib (obligatory)

to sacrifice, with his soul and with his life; to keep standing by Rasulullah
(peace be upon him) and his ways, his sunnah. He must not leave them
lying down. The Prophet (peace be upon him) brought the sunnah from
Allah Almighty, to make it living, to bring the dead to life! For a man to
sacrifice his life for the sake of one sunnah is not asking too much!

“What kind of benefit would you expect to take from a man who
wouldn’t sacrifice to keep the sunnah alive? None!

“The sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is

more valuable than our souls. We make our lives and our souls valuable
only when we are willing to sacrifice them for it. Only then will Allah give
us real life and a valuable Soul. This is the way to reach real life!”

* * * * * * *

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How is a wife to receive her husband? Our Grandshaykh gives us

Divine Knowledge on this subject:

“If a woman is smiling at her husband, Allah orders all Paradise to

open for her to enter. For her, He especially prepares such a palace as
was never before prepared. He will bestow blessings that have never
before been bestowed! Why does Allah Almighty bestow such blessings?
It is because when a wife smiles at her husband, she takes the whole
day’s troubles from his shoulders. It gives love between them, from her
heart to his.

“Love is the reason to continue family life. If there is no love, the

family separates. Therefore, Allah likes smiling faces. It is a simple thing,
but very important. Allah never likes hatred between husband and wife,
or between mu’min.

“The Prophet (peace be upon him) said that a smile is a sadaqa

(charity) for everyone. Rasulullah (peace be upon him) came to increase
the love between people; therefore we must do likewise. Don’t behave
differently with different people. Don’t show a good face to one man, and
a bad face to another. You must remember that we are all servants of
Allah Almighty, and we have been ordered to do only goodness to each
other. This is a unique attribute of man, it is not given to animals to smile
or cry.

“In Paradise there are private sections for each person. When one
does a good action, it appears in one of these sections as a bounty, or
blessing. Paradise is filled with such bounties so much that there isn’t an
empty place to put a finger! Mu’min (the believer) will enjoy that
abundance every moment, endlessly.

“However,” continues our Grandshaykh, “If a woman receives her

husband with an angry face, Allah will order his angels to shut Paradise,
and will order Hell to burn hotter for her. Because of her anger, all the
abundance of this life and the next are made haram for her. She must
quickly turn and make repentance, before it is written in Allah’s book!

“Angry looks cause her husband’s heart to feel hatred for her.
Even if she herself has troubles and is feeling miserable, she must receive

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her husband with a smile. For this, Allah will reward her by removing all
her troubles. This is the secret that keeps the family strong.

“If the family is strong, the community is strong. Life can then
proceed happily, with no troubles. Therefore, in Islam it is sunnah for
wives to smile so that love can grow. A simple thing, but it carries great
consequence.”

* * * * * * *

“Allah likes smiling people,” says our Grandshaykh. “The highest

degree for the human being is to smile at every event. It is one of the
signs of Iman (faith) that may be seen in those who sit on the throne of
the Awliya. It means that he is satisfied with the will of Allah Almighty,
not fighting or coming opposite to Him.”

Only a few people can reach this point; among millions only one
or two will reach it. They are very rare, like rubies among stones. Our
Grandshaykh is teaching us little by little, directing us to that aim. It is
very hard. One doesn’t reach the summit of Everest on the first step!
They who succeed are kings in the next life with private stations in
paradise. No one can know what is in them. If one knew even a little, they
would smile at every event, for every ‘wrong’ in this world! They would
be pleased with everyone. If a man is pleased with everyone and
everything, he is in Paradise now! It is difficult, but we must try. We must
know that no pleasure or sorrow in this life can last, but will come to an
end and pass away. There is, therefore, no need to dwell upon a sorrow,
no need to hold it in the mind. When a sorrow comes have patience, and
a pleasure will come as a result. It is difficult, but important, to be
satisfied with Allah Almighty when there is sorrow and things are not to
our liking.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “There is no jealousy in Paradise!” There is

no character worse than jealousy. lman (faith) cannot exist with jealousy.
All sadness and troubles are a result of the envious. It is ugly between
ordinary people, and even uglier between learned people. If there were
no envy, people would be so pure as to shake hands with the angels!

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Among children, the biggest will take everything for himself.

When something is brought for the little ones, the older ones will try to
take it away from them.

Envy is a veil over the heart. It comes between a man and his
Lord. You may find jealousy among all peoples, everywhere. When a man
becomes pure from envy, this veil is removed. At that moment he may
look upon the Prophet (peace be upon him). It will be as if you were
dreaming, but you will be awake and able to speak with him. He will
appear in a spiritual body.

A sign of the end, of the last days, is envy. It is like psoriasis of the
skin, leprosy. If you sit with one so afflicted, you may be affected also.
That is why there are hospitals for them.

Now jealousy is spreading like fire among all people, all leaders, all
learned men, even women. It is like an ocean. In it live all the bad
characters. Even a single glassful of this ocean will support millions of
death-causing bacteria. Iblis fell from grace for this ‘hasad,’ this jealousy.
Cain and Abel knew all about envy. Everyone looking to another with
jealousy will be thrown from Allah’s mercy. As long as jealousy exists,
there will be unrest in the heart.

Jealous people burn in this life with the fire of Hell. If there is a
little jealousy, it will be a little fire. If there is a lot of jealousy, there is a
big fire. For both, there will be no rest day or night.

Islam is fighting against this ocean of jealousy. It doesn’t accept

even the tiniest amount! Allah Almighty orders us to seek protection in
Him from jealousy, to dry up that ocean so that all the bad characters in
it will die. When it is dried up completely, then the Light of Iman will
come to your heart.

Shaykh Muqtadee says, “Jealousy is when you ask for good things
to go away from another person.” For example, when a man gets a new
car, the jealous person will wish for the car’s owner to wreck it or drive it
off a bridge. If the accident happens, the jealous man will gloat.

In the time of Moses (peace be upon him) there lived a very poor
man. One day he asked Moses (peace be upon him) to pray to Allah to

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give him a cow. Moses (peace be upon him) agreed and asked his Lord to
send that poor fellow his cow. Allah Almighty answered, “O Moses! Tell
that man to pray for his neighbour, and I shall give two cows, one for
each of them!” So, Moses (peace be upon him) went back to the poor man
and told him what Allah had said. “If my neighbour gets a cow,” replied
the indignant man, “then what would I want one for!”

This story shows us the nature of jealousy. That man wanted good
things for himself alone. Not only did he not care for his neighbour’s
needs but he actually went out of his way to prevent the other man’s
happiness.

The first step towards Iman is to ask on behalf of everyone what

you ask for yourself. There is no envy in Paradise. Envy is the fruit of the
jealousy tree. Where this tree does not exist there can be no envy and,
therefore, no bad character.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh said that wives have three obligations to their

husbands. Only these, and nothing more, can a man place upon them:

The first obligation is that she must be under her husband’s will.
She must be as his shadow, her likes and dislikes must be his likes and
dislikes. When she acts contrary to her husband’s will, she is not a wife in
the sight of the Awliya.

Her second obligation is to be the keeper of his property. She

must not spend without his permission even if he has millions. If he gives
permission, she may spend all of it. This is adab.

Thirdly, she must keep his honour when out of his presence. She
must not sit with another man in her husband’s absence, even his
brother. When a man and a woman sit together alone, Satan is always the
third party. In ancient times when a man knocked at the door, a woman
would answer with her thumb in her mouth so as not to sound lovely.

Abu Muhammad al-Madani (may Allah be pleased with him) was

the uncle of our Grandshaykh’s shaykh, Sayyid Sharafuddin Daghestani
(may Allah be pleased with him), and a great Wali in his own right. No one

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dared question him or raise their face to him, such was his majesty. And
yet, he said that he would have preferred to have been a woman rather
than a man! He said this because a woman has only these three
responsibilities, and if she honoured them, she would enter Paradise
without any questions. A man, on the other hand, would be asked so
many questions that he would wish he were dirt, let alone a woman! “I
say this because I am a weak servant,” said Abu Muhammad. “If the
husband is pleased with his wife, Allah is pleased.”

Nowadays, women are asking to be treated like men, wishing to

bear the same heavy load. This is lack of wisdom. Women have the same
chance as men for improvement in the Divine Presence, but they are
created in a different way. Their inner lives are different. Men are hard
and women are soft. “Men are the controllers of women,” says Allah. The
souls of men are the perfection of Allah, while the souls of women are
the appearance of the beauty of Allah. ‘Jamal,’ ‘Kamal,’ ‘Jalal’ – beauty,
perfection, and majesty…

* * * * * * *

“What is the highest point of selfishness?” asks our Grandshaykh.

“It is egotism, and it is the worst character in a man. It means that such a
man cannot carry anything contrary to his will. He must always do as he
likes or he will be angry. There is no speaking against his opinion. He has
no respect for the ideas of anyone else, and he won’t admit that he is
wrong.”

Ego is the attribute of Pharaoh. It demands always to be chief, to

dominate. It is the character of Satan, the worst character of the nafs,
and the last to leave a man. The love of being chief! If there were only
two people on earth, you would see it!

It is so difficult to rid a person of egotism. To conquer it is like

trying to kill a snake, when the head is cut off the tail still wiggles! It is
the aim of the tariqats, especially Naqshbandiyya, to eradicate this evil
character.

* * * * * * *

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The Prophet (peace be upon him) never did anything without

consulting Allah and the Sahaba (his companions). It is sunnah for us to
do likewise. Our Grandshaykh tells us that no matter how clever a man
may be, he is still in need of consultation.

Once, according to our Grandshaykh, a certain king was speaking

with his grand vizier. “Tell me,” asked the king, “Why does a man need to
consult with another? Doesn’t he have eyes to see with, and a mind with
which to decide what to do?”

“O my king,” replied the vizier, “While it is true that a man has

eyes, it is also true that he can never use them to see himself. On that
point, each of us is blind!”

We learn correctness quickly with consultation. Everyone must

have a consultant, or ‘mustashar.’ We must also know that if a man
wishes to follow on the footsteps of the Prophet (peace be upon him), he
must have a shaykh. He must ask Allah to send him a teacher.

“What are the good characters of a consultant?” asks our

Grandshaykh. “You must be satisfied in your heart with his adab, his
manners and mentality, and his ‘deen,’ his religious actions. The Prophet
(peace be upon him), for example, consulted with his wives.”

His was the way of gentleness. His manner for asking for help
would be to initiate the action himself. For instance, he might say to his
wife, “May I put that jar over there?” Quickly she would understand, and
pick it up herself. This is good manners, you can’t find this anywhere. Or,
perhaps Rasulullah (peace be upon him) would place the jar himself, thus
showing respect for his wife and raising her to his level. If a wife was
listening closely enough to place the jar herself, it would be better for
her than forty years of nafl (voluntary, or supererogatory) prayers. His
giving her this chance increases domestic pleasure.

His was the way of consultation. When men consult each other,
love and respect grow. “You have the best character,” Allah Almighty says
of Muhammad (peace be upon him).

People would reply to the Prophet (peace be upon him), “O

Muhammad! You know best,” whenever he would ask them a question.

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Thus, social harmony is completed by consultation. Through

commanding comes hatred, disrespect, and wildness. If all people
practiced consultation, there would be the highest form of civilization
and perfection.

* * * * * * *

“All religions teach people the ways of real obedience to Allah

Almighty,” explains our Grandshaykh. “We are His servants whether we
accept it or not. Yet, knowing this is not enough. Anyone may say, “We
are the servants of Allah Almighty,” but how many are truly serving as our
Lord wants? Something is preventing us from real service, real obedience
to Allah. It is our nafs.

“Therefore, man is always between two poles. From one Allah

Almighty is calling us to His service, and from the other calls our nafs.
When a servant is listening to his Lord, he is the servant of his Lord.
When he listens to his nafs, on the other hand, he is the servant of his
nafs.”

The Prophet (peace be upon him) was teaching us how to save

ourselves from being the slave of our nafs. “O people!” he said, “Die
before you die!” This is the advice to those wanting to be real servants to
Allah Almighty; always listening to their Lord.

For such a person there are not two Lords, only Allah. Quran says,
“If there are two Lords, one must be killed!” A man cannot serve two
masters. Our nafs are asking for high life in this world; slay them, and
you will be free for your Lord’s service and worship.

Our Grandshaykh says that the sign of a man’s having reached

that point is that he has no demands other than his Lord’s. There are, for
him, no demands in front of his Lord’s. He doesn’t say, “I like this. I don’t
like that.” If his Lord likes, he likes – no demands. This is real obedience.
He is like the dead body in the hands of the washer. He has surrendered.
Does the dead person harm anyone with his hands or with his speech?
No, it is impossible! People may give him harm without a reply from him.

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This is the meaning of the hadith: “There is no harm in Islam;

there is no giving harm for harm.” Suppose, for example, that I plant a
tree and someone comes and pulls it up. That is a harm. Yet, Rasulullah
(peace be upon him) says, “Don’t go and do the same to him!”

Of course, if there is no original harm, there can be no reply. No

more harms for harms piling up. This was the personal sunnah of the
Prophet (peace be upon him). He was a mercy for all of creation, and all
of the universe. His real followers are also mercy for all creation;
fountains of mercy in this life, and after leaving it. I am not saying ‘dying.’
Everyone who comes to these people, whether during their lives or by
visiting their tombs, will find mercy with them, will find pleasure at their
hands.

* * * * * * *

Our Shaykh says that haste in all things is not good. There are
only three things for which haste was advised by our Prophet (peace be
upon him):

The first case in which haste is recommended is when boys and

girls reach puberty, we must hurry their marriage. Haste in this case is
recommended because it will bring satisfaction for both the community
and the individuals involved. All troubles come from unmarried people.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “The worst people are the
unwed.” Badness in society comes from unmarried people. When Mahdi
(peace be upon him) comes, the first order will be for everyone to marry.
No single people will remain, and community problems will draw to a
close. The Prophet (peace be upon him) says about marriage, “A married
man will protect one half of his religion but must be very careful of the
other half, fearful of his actions before his Lord.” Therefore, marriage is
very important in Islam.

The second case in which haste is advised by the Prophet (peace

be upon him) is burying the dead. We shouldn’t wait for any reason. The
dead body’s wish to meet the soil is as a groom’s desire to meet the bride.

The third case for haste is in providing for guests. Anything which
is ready in the house should be placed upon the table. Do not delay to

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make an elaborate preparation. A hadith relates, “If you believe in Allah

and the Hereafter, you must provide for your guests.”

Haste in other than these three things is undesirable. To be

patient is an attribute of Rahman (mercy). Our Grandshaykh says, “Sabr
(patience) is an attribute of Allah Almighty. If a person wears this
attribute, he will be given endless mercy, and will reach the side of Allah.
It is only given to those who wear patience.”

* * * * * * *

Says our Grandshaykh on correcting wrong actions into right, “In

this time it is very difficult. You can’t find anyone on the correct way,
generally speaking. All are on wrong ways, not pleasing Allah.

“What are these ways? They are the ways of pleasure for the nafs,
‘hasad al-amu’ (lusts). Nowadays, evils and devils are leading people. Even
if all learned people were to meet to try and stop this facade, they would
be helpless. Even if all Awliya gathered, they could do nothing. Rasulullah
(peace be upon him) said, ‘The attribute of people (in our times, today) is
tyranny. They deny the existence of the Creator, Allah Almighty.’ What
can be done?

“Allah will send, for this time, a great Wali, a representative of His
power. He will come with miracles of the Prophet (peace be upon him),
and will destroy evils and devils. He is Mahdi (peace be upon him), and
Allah Almighty will prepare him in one night to hold the entire universe
in his hands!”

* * * * * * *

Concerning the hadith, “Die before you die,” Mawlana was asked,
“How can one accomplish this quickly?”

He replied, “For that, I must lock you in the water closet! Then
you will see what this dunya is!”

When we started to write this, he said, “Don’t write! Everyone will

run away!”

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* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “When Ibrahim, the son of the Prophet

(peace be upon him), was born, a neighbouring Jew came to congratulate
him saying, ‘May this son be a faithful follower to you, O Muhammad.
May he not be lazy and may he take your place active with himmah
(power of faith!)’

“The Prophet (peace be upon him) replied, ‘O my neighbour, may

Allah give you long life, and protect you from all evils and troubles. May
He make this world give you much richness!’

“The Prophet (peace be upon him) made this gesture of goodness

to an unbeliever, even though he knew that unbelief, denial of the truth,
is the biggest evil and the source of all troubles. Allah accepted the
Prophet’s prayer, and the neighbour came into Islam.

“Therefore, it is sunnah to visit neighbours, even if they are not

Muslims. One should respect them, pray for them, and ask Allah to keep
them and protect them from evil. You should keep good relations among
those living forty houses’ distance from you in all directions. Then the
country will have a close relationship.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh said, “I’m surprised at how quickly and easily

people are learning the language of Satan without a school or teacher!
They may learn it anywhere, in the home or in the street. I’m wondering
how they learn it so quickly!”

Satan’s language is the cause of all troubles. Those words come

out like fire. They must destroy both the one who speaks, and the one
who listens. They make traps for men, catching them and throwing them
into hell. Now we are living in a time when all people, from the highest to
the lowest, are speaking Satan’s language; each one making traps for
another.

Mankind and nations are on this way until they return to Allah’s
ways. Until there is Allah’s language, no love will live among people. It is
the honour of mankind to speak Divine languages. He who likes Allah

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must speak Holy words. Therefore, we are waiting for a big teacher to
come and teach Allah’s language with Divine power!

* * * * * * *

Each one of these lessons solves one problem for mankind. Each
one is a help for a certain situation. They may be of use now and also
when Mahdi (peace be upon him) comes. They will not lose their value.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh described how a dervish may be acceptable as a

servant to Allah Almighty:

“He must have one character from each of three animals,” he said.
“From the donkey, he must be able to carry burdens with patience, and
without objections. Unless he can do this he will be unsuccessful, for
without patience one cannot carry the responsibilities of life.

“From the dog, he must learn faithfulness to his master. If the

master tells the dog to stay somewhere until the man returns, that dog
will stay, even until death. If the owner beats it and chases it away, the
dog will still return, with tail wagging, when its master calls.

“Finally, when a man looks at a pig he must know that his nafs is
dirtier and filthier than the pig. The dirt of pigs is external, while the nafs
is dirty inside. The nafs’ dirt comes from fighting with his Lord. Pigs’ dirt
comes from eating dirty things, not from fighting. Perfect man must have
such a character that he will accept whatever dirt is thrown on him,
whether by words or actions, knowing that his nafs is dirtier.

“These three characters of animals are for Prophets and Awliya. If

a man doesn’t have these characters, he isn’t a Prophet who carries all
the burdens of the world, accepts all sorts of abuse, and still keeps total
faith in his Lord and patience for all. These are the footsteps upon which
we must follow. These characters give man rest and satisfaction in his
heart. Only in this way can he reach happiness in this life. Otherwise, he
will be unhappy always.

* * * * * * *

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“If our actions of today are not better than our actions of
yesterday, it would be better for us to be in the earth than on it!”

So says our Grandshaykh speaking about the hadith which tells us

when death is preferable to life. It is an exact balance upon which we can
weigh our actions and measure our progress. It means that every day we
must turn to our Lord more and more. This is improvement, to place our
hearts more and more in the Divine Presence. Day by day, we should
improve, cutting the bonds with which our nafs tie us to this life so that
we may go freely up to Heaven. No one who is filled with the
satisfactions and pleasures of this life may approach the Divine Presence.
This is because he who is aiming towards his Heavenly station has no
interest in this life, this dunya.

He who thinks about the Divine Presence, all troubles of this life
will be as nothing for him! The best day for him will be the day when he
is free from all his bonds and goes to Allah! There is endless pleasure in
the Divine Presence, and he enters into oceans of satisfaction! The
ancient doctors of wisdom had a prescription for nervous people. They
told them to look at the sky instead of the ground. It is a simple example
for this point. When a man looks to the Heavens, even if it is only with his
eyes, he forgets his troubles. What will be the result if he looks with his
heart to his Lord!

Our Grandshaykh says that nowadays it would be better for

almost everyone to be under the ground, in their graves. This is because
every day they are making new ties and bonds to this world. For them
troubles are growing every day also. “O My people! Cut your ties and
come to Me,” says Allah Almighty. “I have prepared for you all pleasures!
Endless beauty, enjoyment, and happiness!” This announcement is for
every moment. Everyone may hear this in his heart, but people are not
using the ears in their hearts.

* * * * * * *

“The balance of the community is with the family,” says our

Grandshaykh, “and the balance of the family is with the obedience of the
wife to her husband.”

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No one may object to this point. When a woman obeys her

husband, it is a decree for her pleasure in Paradise. Obedience has been
ordered for wives to husbands, not husbands to their wives. It is contrary
to nature for the strong to obey the weak. This is the law of nature, and
the law of Allah; anyone going against this law must be punished.

Nowadays, men are obeying women. Every day, troubles are

growing. People are leaving their obedience to Allah, and following Satan!
The results of this are today’s endless troubles. It is the order of Allah for
the wife to obey the husband. If she disobeys, however, and her husband
has patience with her, it will mean degrees in Paradise for him. The
goodness or the badness that we do in this life will not go unnoticed by
our Lord.

* * * * * * *

“I’m not giving advice to people,” said our Grandshaykh, “because

I can’t find anyone who can keep that advice!”

“All Awliya are now hidden, because no one is listening to them.

When there is no one to listen, they do not speak. People aren’t listening
to the ulema (scholars), or the Awliya (saints), but only to the commands
of their nafs, their egos. Only through fear of punishment will they obey
any law at all, like small boys fearing the teacher’s stick. But the wise
men, the ulema, have no power in these times. No one will listen to them.

The only correction for this is the edge of the sword of Mahdi
(peace be upon him). There is no other way. This is not an ordinary
sword, but a miracle sword, a terrible sword! Therefore, we are waiting,
all goodhearted people are waiting for this power to come. It will come
to cut off all the evils and devils now governing this world.

Bad people are not waiting, not looking for this huge event. They
wish to continue forever. But, there is a Divine law; for every period
there is a limit. No one can change the limits set by Allah Almighty. Now,
we are in the period of tyrants. They have their limit, and then, finished!
They are like a man stepping towards a buried mine; step by step, and
then. . . BOOM! They will have reached their limit. Every day, the world is
approaching this limit; it is the third world war!

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* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh said, “If twelve thousand real believers were to

fight against seven kingdoms, they would win.”

Hadith, also, tells us that, “It is impossible not to win if twelve

thousand of my nation will go against any army.”

The quantity isn’t important, but the quality is. In the army of
Mahdi (peace be upon him), each man will be worth an army. What will
be their qualities? “If you cut off their skins,” said our Shaykh, “they
would not change!”

The owner of Bilal (may Allah be pleased with him) placed him
under a rock in the desert. His only reply was, “Allah, Allah!” If a person
has real faith, like that, in difficult situations, Heavenly power will come
to him. If there is no faith, he will die.

Our Grandshaykh told Mawlana that one day, he was at sea in a

terrible storm. Quickly, the little boat in which he was traveling began to
fill with water. All the people began to panic, except our Grandshaykh
and one other man. Our Grandshaykh asked that fellow, “Why aren’t you
afraid?”

“O Shaykh ‘Abdullah,” replied the man, “nothing is changing. We

are in Allah’s hands!”

Soon, a big ship came, and saved them all from the storm. In this
way, Allah Almighty was testing and trying his servants. When He sees
that their lman is all right, He takes them out of danger. For this, a
servant must develop ‘sakina’ (calm) in the face of difficulties.

When Mahdi (peace be upon him) comes, twelve thousand

soldiers from five countries in the west (known only to the Awliya) will
come. Those twelve thousand are always in contact with Divine powers,
a sign of real faith. They are forever steadfast, never turning their faces
from the Face of Allah Almighty under any circumstances. Armies turn to
ashes under their gaze. They are descendants of Sayyidina ‘Ali (may Allah
be pleased with him). When Mahdi (peace be upon him) says, “Allahu-
Akbar!” they will be ready at the south gate of Damascus, from Aman.

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Allah sets limits, and this one is soon to be suddenly finished.

Each happening has its proper time. You may wake in the morning to a
different world!

* * * * * * *

An important and fine point from the teachings of our

Grandshaykh:

The best of knowledge is the secret wisdom in it, not its outside
shell. Whoever has been given this secret meaning has been given that
which is most valuable. Anyone may find oysters on the shore, but to find
a pearl you must dive to the depths.

The shell is the keeper of the pearl. Everyone may read Quran and
hadith, but not everyone can understand the secret wisdom contained in
them. It is not given to every person. Allah Almighty only gives these
secrets to the hearts of His pure servants.

When a servant is given this valuable knowledge, his heart

becomes like a fountain where many people may drink. Our
Grandshaykh’s heart is a fountain of secret knowledge. It is the power of
our ‘Buraq’ (our Heavenly ‘horse’) with which we are approaching the
Divine Presence. As much as we have ‘Hikmah’ (wisdom) we are
approaching…

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “Here is an important and useful secret. It

can be knowledge for anyone. As much as he remembers and knows, he
will draw much benefit.

“We can observe the universe, and know that it is filled with many
creatures, all made by the Creator. What we must also see, however, is
that the Creator and His creatures stand together. All things exist by the
power of the Creator. If He Almighty did not support all things, they
would vanish instantly. They have no existence outside of their Lord’s
power. They are like shadows. If you hold your hand over a table, you can

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see its shadow. If you remove your hand, the shadow goes away. One is
original, the other is not.

“Allah Almighty is the original, the Creator. All Prophets and

Awliya teach that absolute existence is for Him alone. There is no
existence for any other. This must be a base for our knowledge to stand
upon. If there is no true foundation for building knowledge, then our
building will be imaginary, useless.

“Some foolish people ask, ‘Who created the Creator?’ It is a stupid

question. The Creator cannot be created. All religions, all Prophets, give a
description for Allah Almighty by saying, ‘By Allah, I am Lord! I am not in
need of anything! I am He who stands by Himself! All the universe stands
by My power!” Qayyum. Therefore, the Creator must be one; two is
impossible, for one would then be in need of the other. He Almighty is in
need of nothing. This is the explanation of ‘Tawhid.’

“Our existence is by Him Almighty. He is sending the spirit to us

at all times. If He is not sending, there is no existence for us. We are
nothing by ourselves. All creation is as a shadow of the hand of Allah.
When the hand moves, the shadow moves. All things, all goodness and
badness, no matter where, or from whom they appear to be coming, are
in reality coming from Allah Almighty. This is deep knowledge. If a man
knows this, he will be fixed in his belief, unmoving, like a mountain in
powerful winds! It is the sixth pillar of Iman, of faith.

“When a man knows that all things, all people, are only an
appearance of the power of Allah Almighty, then he will, out of respect to
his Lord, keep respect for everyone. Allah Almighty will then change
what had been badness into goodness for that servant. When you reach
the reality of this point, no one can harm you or give you trouble. For
your good manners, and your respect of your Lord and His creatures,
Allah will change your harmer into your helper! You must say, ‘This
fellow coming to me exists by my Lord’s will. He is my Lord’s servant,
therefore I must keep his respect.’

“Fighting evils? You must know that the father of evils is within
ourselves. It is our nafs. To fight your own nafs is enough. This is a strong
lesson.”

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* * * * * * *

Here is another important lesson from our Grandshaykh:

“Allah sent one hundred and twenty-four thousand Prophets

(peace and blessings be upon them) since the time of Adam (peace be
upon him). From the Heavens He sent so many Holy books. What was the
Divine reason for this? After the last Prophet, Muhammad (peace be
upon him), so many Awliya were also sent to lead and teach people. For
what?

“They were sent to show people how to put out their egotism.
Each person has a nafs which claims, ‘I must be obeyed. I must be the
sultan to which all people obey!’ There is no limit to the nafs’ demands.
Egos wish even Allah and his Prophet (peace be upon him) to bow to
their desires!”

This is a complete description of our nafs. Prophets taught that

the danger to people lay within the ego. They came, therefore, along with
all the Holy books, to teach people how to strip off their nafs until they
can’t claim anything. Our Grandshaykh knows the secret tricks of the
nafs. He tells us that people’s sickness is a result of their egos. All
problems result from this, personally and generally. Remember, the nafs
claims always to be first, and that all must listen to it. Therefore, you
must not listen. It is dangerous to listen to the nafs. Only by fighting
against your ego can you reach happiness, here and hereafter…

“How can we fight our nafs?” asks our Grandshaykh. “The law
(Shariah) of the Prophet (peace be upon him) puts men’s actions into two
categories: those that we are ordered to do, and those that we are
prohibited from doing. We must follow this law, that is the way to leave
egotism.

“The nafs will always fight the orders of Allah, and run toward
prohibited actions. We must refuse them. If we can defeat the nafs, then
all things will be all right for us. With our nafs dead, there are no more
objections to the orders of our Lord, no more claims to be sultan. We will
say only, ‘O my Lord! I am your servant!’

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“The main target of all Prophets is to teach man to say, ‘O my

Lord, as you like. I am ready!’ Allah Almighty then says, ‘O my servant! As
you like!’ This is the station of the Awliya, where people may be given
immediately upon asking.”

* * * * * * *

“There is a hadith,” says our Grandshaykh, “that tells us that we

must ask for knowledge. It is an order of our Lord. Whoever asks for
knowledge will be taught by the Prophet (peace be upon him), the Awliya
or by Allah Himself. The condition is that we must ask.

“Who is a seeker of knowledge? What are his attributes? His first

sign is humbleness. It is a necessary condition for learning, for whoever
is humble may accept all the conditions and difficulties he will encounter
on his way to knowledge. He may, for instance, have to leave home and
live among foreign peoples with unfamiliar customs. He must, if he is a
real seeker of knowledge, be willing to wear old clothes, sleep on the
floor, and share unaccustomed meals with strangers, always being
patient for the knowledge to lead him to his Lord’s Presence. If a man
cannot accept difficult situations, whatever they may be, then he is not
humble. Allah gives to everyone who askes with humbleness and
sincerity, but Holy knowledge is prohibited to those whose hearts are
filled with pride.

“Egotism is the worst character of the nafs. It was for this

character that Allah Almighty expelled lblis from the Divine Presence.
When Iblis was ordered to make sajdah (to bow down) to Adam (peace be
upon him), he hesitated and remained standing for a moment. This
hesitation was so slight that it went unnoticed by all, save Allah Almighty.
In that one instant Iblis claimed, ‘I am also God. No one is ruler over me!’
For that one moment’s rebellion, Iblis was thrown from the Divine
Presence! Our nafs have the same character as this. They are always in
rebellion to our Lord’s orders. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,
‘The greatest enemy to man is his nafs.’ Therefore, if anyone is thrown
from the Divine Presence, it is due to egotism. This is very strong
knowledge if a man knows and believes.”

* * * * * * *

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We are trying here not to teach, but to be believing. That is the

difference between this place and other schools. We are taking care to
make people believe, for whoever believes will keep orders.

The Prophet of Allah (peace be upon him) was in Mecca for

thirteen years, trying to make people believe. It was only afterwards that
they were sent to Medina, because only the believers could keep the
orders. Millions of people know this hadith, but what is the benefit; they
don’t keep it!

The important point is to make people believe. Nowadays, there

are millions of Muslims, but you can’t find many believers among them.
The Sahaba (may Allah be pleased with them) of the Prophet (peace be
upon him) were only a few thousand, but there was not one unbeliever
among them. Because of their belief, victory was with them. The thirteen
years spent in Mecca formed a foundation of belief to build a religion
upon. Only when they believed exactly did Allah order the Hijra.

We must take an example from the Prophet (peace be upon him).

You must do your best to make people believe in you, even if it is only
one person. Then, you will be beside Prophets on the Judgment Day! You
must be trustworthy; for if a man believes in you, he will do whatever you
advise.

You must follow a man ninety-nine steps, so that he may come

with you one step. Even if that man is going to haram, don’t abandon
him! If you saw a man drowning in a dirty river, would you stand on the
bank and refuse to jump in and save him because the water was dirty? If
you can swim, you must save him. As our power allows, we must do our
best; ninety-nine “NO’s” for one “YES.” Ninety-nine steps for friendship,
it is a strong sword.

* * * * * * *

“Nafs is our most dangerous enemy,” says our Grandshaykh. “We

must be very careful of its endless traps and tricks. One trick of our ego
is to claim humbleness when what it really desires is to be highly
regarded by others. Abu Yazid al-Bistami (may Allah grant him more
honours) said to us, ‘You must look to your nafs, O my sons, with such a
looking that you may see that it is lower than all people. You must say,

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‘My nafs is no good. My nafs is worse than those of all people. It is worse
than Pharaoh, worse than Nimrod, worse even, than Satan!’ Unless you
are saying this, you cannot smell the good smells of reality within our
Tariqat. If a man doesn’t accept that his nafs is worse than everybody
else’s, he really is the worst! Proud people cannot enter paradise, or
smell the perfume.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “Allah gives to any who ask. He never

refuses His servants, even unbelievers. It is not his attribute to refuse
anyone asking, ‘O my Lord! Give to me!’

“It is also ordered for us to give, when our Lord asks. As we give,
He gives to us. It is like taking water from a well, the water level stays the
same, without becoming less and less! if you give one, Allah Almighty will
give ten, twenty! There would be no problems if everyone in the world
believed this, especially the wealthy. Abu Bakr (may Allah he pleased with
him) said to the Prophet (peace be upon him), ‘Before Islam, I kept my
hand in a tight fist, but now I open it without end.’

“Everybody may ask Allah for anything. Sometimes, He gives

immediately, sometimes He gives later. Maybe He will not give during a
man’s life, but will give after death, in Barzakh (between this life and
akhira, the life hereafter). We determine here, in this world, what
Barzakh holds for us. Maybe Allah won’t give until the last day.”

* * * * * * *

“What is the most valuable thing to ask from Allah?” a visitor

asked Shaykh Nazim.

“Our Grandshaykh is speaking to me,” replied Mawlana, “and

asking me to tell you of a dream he had.”

“O Nazim Effendi,” says our Grandshaykh, “l was dreaming today

of the eyes of my Lord! I cannot describe the beauty of his eyes! They are
not like anything. ‘What do you want?’ He asks me. ‘O, my Lord! I am
asking to be your obedient servant, nothing else!’”

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* * * * * * *

From Tariq’s notes:

Today there are only three of us for Salat al-Dhur (the Noon
Prayer); Shaykh Mustafa, Shaykh Muhammad Salli, and this writer. As we
stand in the doorway of the mosque, waiting for Shaykh Nazim to enter
first, he stops and turns to us.

“Shaykh Mustafa, what are you thinking?” asked Mawlana.

“Nothing,” he answered.

“Shaykh Muhammad Salli, what are you thinking?”

“Right now, I am not thinking of anything,” replied the other.

“You must think,” said Mawlana. “I am asking for power to catch

my nafs, and a sword with which l might return to my country and fight
the dragon of evils, and save my people! Your time is very valuable here
in this sacred area of Damascus. Here, Divine Power is coming down!
Each day, you must ask for more power. You must be aiming at this , not
just passing the day!”

* * * * * * *

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PART TWO
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* * * * * * *

Rasulullah (peace be upon him) said, “lman is sabr!” Faith is

patience. Patience (sabr) is the root of all good character. It is enough for
the practice of Islam, completely! How can you reach the end of
patience?

Our Grandshaykh tells us that Allah Almighty tries His servants to

see if they will be patient. We must remember this so that when an event
comes to tax our patience, we will remain firm. We must keep ‘patience
at the first blow.’ If we keep patience, if we keep our Iman, our power will
grow and our enemies’ power will become smaller.

When we speak of enemies, we must know who our enemy really

is. So many people are ready to go to war to kill other people. In Islam
there can be no war without a Khalif, a leader bringing the authority of
Allah and His Prophet (peace be upon him). We are waiting for such a
leader to come. He will be Mahdi (peace be upon him), and until he
comes, there is no authority for war in Islam.

War against other men is the lesser of two wars for man. The war
that must concern us now is the greater war, the war against our nafs.
That is our real enemy, our own egos! In this war, the angry man loses
and the patient man gains.

* * * * * * *

If Satan, himself, would ask pardon of Allah Almighty,” says our

Grandshaykh, “Allah would pardon him! He will not ask pardon, though.
Why? It is because of his ego and pride.

“All of us have such a character. We say to ourselves, ‘lam

something!’ We give ourselves rank and distinctions. ‘I am a scholar,’ we
may say about ourselves. Or, ‘I am a German, an American, a Creole, a
Turk, a shaykh..’ Each one of us makes of himself something to be proud
of.

“This keeps us from our Heavenly stations. Our egos tie us in this
way. Allah Almighty would pardon even Satan if he would leave his ego,
his self-importance! This is the main strategic point in the great war on
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our nafs. We must not be proud. We must not think, ‘I am something.’ We
must lose our self-importance. This is the top point! If we reach this,
then we may take other points easily.”

* * * * * * *

Now, another lesson from our Grandshaykh:

“All believers from all Holy religions believe that Allah is Creator.
He created all bounty and all favours. For whom did He create all this?
For His obedient servants.

“To be an obedient servant means to be doing your actions with

your Lord’s pleasure. If an action is for your Lord’s pleasure, or a favour
is taken with your Lord’s pleasure, it means that it is ‘Halal.’ If a favour is
taken without your Lord’s pleasure, that thing is ‘Haram.’ Allah Almighty
gives to all His servants, believers, and unbelievers alike; but for non-
believers, those who take and do without their Lord’s pleasure, those
favours are ‘haram.’

“It is Halal to remember your Lord when you take a favour. When
you say, ‘Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim’ before you take something, and
‘Alhamdulillah’ afterwards, it indicates that your heart is with your Lord,
even if you say it without thinking. It is, of course, better to say it from
the heart, knowingly.

“Anything an unbeliever does is ‘Haram,’ for he does it without his

Lord’s pleasure.”

* * * * * * *

“If everything is written for us,” asked a murid of Shaykh Nazim,

“then what difference does it make what we do? We can only do what we
are destined to do.”

“Do you know what is written for you?” replied Mawlana. “Can
you see what the future holds for you?”

“No,” replied the disciple, “but still, if something is written for me,
I will have no choice but to do it. I have no free will in my actions.”
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Again the Shaykh replied, “We don’t know what is written for us.
Therefore, we have the responsibility to choose our actions. We must
choose our Lord’s pleasure. If we could see what is written for us, then
we would have no responsibility. But now we can’t see, we don’t know,
and so we must assume responsibility for our actions. We can choose
halal or haram. We must choose our Lord’s pleasure. If we will listen to
our conscience, we can know goodness from badness, halal from haram.
Our conscience is from the Heavens, it is always right.

“There is no such thing as a sick conscience, but sometimes we

put such a heavy load on it that we are unable to hear its cry. Therefore,
we must make an intention to always listen to our conscience. lf we do
this, Allah will give our conscience more power. Our conscience is giving
us good signs, don’t try to fight against it. Don’t try to justify bad actions.
It is wrong.

“When Allah is not pleased with a man’s actions, he makes all

favours for that man haram, in this life and in the next. Adam (peace be
upon him) disobeyed his Lord’s orders and was cast out from Paradise.
His trial and examination were from Allah Almighty, but Adam (peace be
upon him) did not know this. He did not know what was written for him.
He listened to Satan and to his ego, not to his Lord. He had a
responsibility to choose goodness and obedience to Allah, and so do we
today. Discussions of free will versus predestination are empty talk. We
don’t know the reality of that point. Therefore, we have choice. We must
intend to listen to our conscience, and to choose our Lord’s pleasure,
always.”

* * * * * * *

“Don’t be lazy!” says our Grandshaykh.

* * * * * * *

Here is an important point for all people, especially believers:

We know that Allah Almighty sent one hundred and twenty-four

thousand Prophets. They began with Adam (peace be upon him) and
ended with the Seal of the Prophets, Muhammad (peace be upon him).
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We also know that Allah sent all the Holy Books. Why were they sent?
There are so many tariqats, sufi schools, and shaykhs, but what is their
wisdom? What are they teaching people?

The main point, the goal (riya) is to teach people that they are the
servants of Allah Almighty, and how they can be obedient servants.

“Our serving Allah Almighty,” says our Grandshaykh, “how shall it

be?” He is answering for us: “It is not asking anything from Him. It is
honour enough for men to be His servants, nothing more.”

Sayyidina ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “It is glory
enough for us to be Your slave, and it is honour enough for us that You
Almighty are our Lord.” When a man reaches this point, it means that he
has stopped being his ego’s servant.

He will then be as Sayyidina ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him)

was – his Lord’s sincere servant.

Our Grandshaykh says, “When we shall be free of our ego’s

enslavement, we will be free from our bad characters. This will take
fighting step by step, like capturing a country. First you must capture the
capital, then you may rule! The ego is always demanding to be king.
While it rules, your inner kingdom is hidden. You can never reach it
while your nafs is king!

“If a man is serving his Lord and asking rewards, he and Satan are
on the same level. Satan was asking big rewards – to be chief of all
creatures. When Allah made Adam (peace be upon him) chief. Satan
began rebelling. If he had not been asking rewards to begin with, he
would never have felt the need to rebel. He would have been, instead,
satisfied with his Lord’s will in all matters.

“The most acceptable dua for us is to ask, ‘O my Lord! May l be

your sincere servant! May l be always with that honour, here and
hereafter!’ According to their level, people are asking something. But the
highest level of faith is to be asking nothing, to serve for the love of Allah
Almighty.”

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Shaykh Nazim said, “Shaykh Anwar here serves us tea. I do not
pay him any money to do this. No, he serves for the love of his Shaykh
and his Grandshaykh, and therefore for the love and pleasure of our
Prophet (peace be upon him) and our Lord, Allah Almighty. This is how
our serving should be.”

* * * * * * *

“Mawlana,” asked one of his murids, “You told us that there were
one hundred and twenty-four thousand Prophets before Muhammad
(peace be upon him). What happened to the revelations that they
brought? Did they become so changed over the years that their followers
were no longer people of the book?”

Shaykh Nazim answered him, “Before Holy Books were sent, there
came to man only pages. Each Prophet received his special orders. Some
of these are mentioned in Quran, some are not. It is not important to
know all the names and times of those Prophets. Before us, so many
nations passed away. Now it is our turn. Therefore, the most important
thing for us is to know that those Prophets came only to teach men how
it is to be an obedient servant to Allah Almighty.”

Mawlana continued, “It is important to know what is the main

goal for our lives. Each of us has an ego, nafs. saying that it is our king,
and that we must be its subjects. All Prophets came to show men how to
take that kingdom away from our nafs and give it to our spirits. Only
then can we be real servants to Allah Almighty. This alone must be our
goal. This is what is important, not so many names and places.

“Our egos never finish with asking questions. You must say ‘NO’
to your ego. Otherwise, your soul will remain imprisoned.”

“What exactly is the ego?” asked another murid. “What are its
weaknesses, and what is the best way to fight it?”

Again, Shaykh Nazim spoke, “There are, within ourselves, two

contrary powers always in struggle. One takes us toward goodness, the
other takes us toward badness. Our nafs is asking badness from us
always. It demands that you serve it, and it is never satisfied. It is asking

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all things; there is no end to its cravings. You must stop it. You must say
to it, ‘Nothing for you, O nafs! But all things for my Lord!”‘

The murid continued his questioning, “Does this mean that I

should give up things like eating, etc?”

“No,” answered the Shaykh, “You must eat to stay healthy. The
nafs, however, demands not only what the body needs to sustain itself,
but also to eat all things. The ego desires its own share, and also
everybody else’s share! This is the character of the nafs, and it is growing
with us as we get older. A little boy wants all toys. A big man wants the
whole world!

“We are like little fish with their mouths open wanting to swallow
the ocean. All nafs’ are like this. We are little creatures, but our desires
are endless. Therefore, we are saying firstly that you must stop all your
desires. Take only as you need. We are all sitting at the Divine feast. Allah
Almighty says, ‘O my servants! Each of you may take from what is
provided as you need.’ Each of us has a share, but ego says, ‘No! Whole
feast for me! Nothing for another!’

“So, each ego tries to swallow the whole feast. But it cannot: we
can hold only a little. Therefore, all Prophets are saying, ‘Each of you
must take as he is given from his Lord’s table. You must not look to
other’s shares.’ You are not real believers if you are not accepting for
each person as you are accepting for yourselves.”

A disciple asked, “How do I recognize my rightful share? For

instance, when I go out to run my business, how shall I know what is
mine and what is not?"

“Your share will come to you,” answered the Shaykh, “But, if you
are looking to take from him also, no. You must look to what is coming to
you, not what is coming to another. Never take from your neighbour’s
share!”

“Do I have to take everything coming to me’?” came the question.

“Yes!” came the reply. “If it is more than you need, and more than
those dependent upon you need, you must give it to those who have
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nothing. Allah will give you rewards for your giving! Don’t keep from
Allah’s favour more than you need. It is your Lord’s pleasure that you give
to those who don’t have!”

Shaykh Nazim went on, "There is no end to pursuing your ego’s

desires. Our greed grows in proportion to our wealth. In the time of
Moses (peace by upon him), there was a very rich man named Kora. So
wealthy was he that it took sixty mules just to carry the keys to his
treasure chests! And yet this man found it impossible to spare any of that
enormous wealth for zakat. (In Islam zakat is the obligatory charity to be
given to the needy. For each person, the amount of zakat is figured to be
one-fortieth of all that he owns in excess of what is required to sustain
him and his family.)

“This is the character of the nafs. As riches grow, so does greed. A

man may have one dollar, he will give away fifty cents. If he has ten
dollars, he will give ten cents. If he has one-thousand dollars, he will give
nothing! Until we leave that character, we will not be our Lord’s sincere
servants. All problems come from that character; when a man is not
satisfied with his share, he looks to take from others.”

“Shaykh Nazim,” asked another murid, “today l was walking in the

town, when I saw a beggar. I was carrying a lot of money with me, and
suddenly I felt the desire to give it all to that man. But quickly l thought
that if l gave him everything, while l was in this city so far from home, it
wouldn’t be such a good idea. So, I gave only a coin. As l walked away,
however, I began to feel terrible, like I had something very bad. And yet,
the idea of leaving myself stranded in a strange country with no money
still didn’t seem too good either. Was that original impulse to give
everything away the correct one?”

“Yes,” the Shaykh laughed, “that was all right. But this character of
the ego is very difficult to fight. It needs long treatment!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying how we can be sincere servants of

our Lord:

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“When a man is the servant of his Lord, he is not asking anything
from Him. Then he is a real servant. He says only, ‘May you be pleased
with me, O my Lord.’ All Prophets and saints are real servants of Allah
Almighty. They have been taken to freedom from the hands of their
egos.”

* * * * * * *

“There are three actions,” says our Grandshaykh, “that will never
leave their actors. Even if a man becomes an unbeliever he will find these
actions at the end of his life. At that time, they will come to save him
from unbelief and carry him into lman! He will come to Islam at the end
of his life.

“The first of these good actions is Salawat for the Prophet (peace be
upon him). ‘Allahumma salli ala Muhammadin wa ala aali Muhammadin
wa sallim’: this gives our respect and love for our Prophet (peace be
"upon him). It means, ‘O my Lord! Give Muhammad your mercy and your
glory and your honour, here and hereafter.’ This respect, even if spoken
only once in a man’s life, will come back at the last moment of his life to
save him. It is a mercy from Allah.

“Secondly, we have been ordered in Islam to do goodness along

our lives (ma’ruf). There is no permission for us to do or think badness
for anybody. We must do goodness for everyone. Our faith pushes us
away from badness and pulls us toward goodness. Even after our death
we have been ordered to do goodness! ‘Wasiyyah’ is the obligatory
inheritance we must leave for the general good of the community. One-
third of our estate must be left for the benefit of the needy, and the
other two-thirds may go to our heirs. This may be used to build schools,
for instance, or hospitals, or to feed the poor. It is ordered for us. Yet, as
beneficial as ‘wasiyyah’ may be, it is even more acceptable to Allah if you
give during your life. It is, in fact, better to give one dollar with your own
hand, during your life, than it is to leave seventy dollars in your will, after
your death. This action, to do goodness throughout your life, and to give
to those who are in need, will not leave a man at the end of his life, but
will come back to save him. It is a sign that you believe in the Last Day, in
the Judgment and the Resurrection.

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“‘If anyone harms you, forgive him!’ This is the third action that
will come back to save a man at the last moment of his life. The act of
forgiveness cannot be lost to a man; it is the character of Prophets. If a
man has the character to forgive people, Allah Almighty will forgive him
huge sins. He will not give permission for the angels to write any sin
against him! People with the character of forgiveness are very, very few –
not even one in one million! it is the reality of faith, for a believer believes
that ‘If I am forgiving, my Lord is forgiving me.’ If anyone is forgiving,
believer or unbeliever, his Lord is forgiving him. This is the character of
Prophets, and will come to a man even at the last moment. He will not
die an unbeliever. Even among believers, this character is very rare!”

A question was asked, “What if you witness a crime?”

Shaykh Nazim answered, “For those things, there are two

responsibilities: for the victim, and for Allah Almighty. If a man is stealing
your property, you may forgive him. Allah also may forgive him, or He
may punish him as He wishes. If a man is stealing from someone else, and
you see it, then you may be a witness in court. If you are called, then you
must go and tell what you saw. If you are not called, if nobody knows you
witnessed the crime, you may go your way. You may try to stop the
criminal, if you can, but you must not throw yourself into danger. You
are not a policeman. What can you do if the criminals have guns?

“The rights of forgiveness are for yourself. If someone is harming

you, you may forgive. You must remember this with regard to crimes
involving things: there is no value for this world in the sight of Allah
Almighty.

“Forgiveness brings peace; revenge brings troubles. Allah says, ‘If

you are bringing peace, your reward is on My shoulders!’ When a murder
is committed, it is permitted in lslam to take revenge on the killer.
However, if even one of the victim’s heirs says, ‘No!,’ then that revenge
cannot be carried out. Instead, ‘blood money’ is paid to the dead person’s
survivors. Even in a case such as this, however, forgiveness may be
better. When Jesus (peace be upon him) was reminded that the Torah
prescribed execution, he replied, ‘That was for governments, not for
Prophets!’ (In lslam, Shariah is law for governments also.)

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“Absolute forgiveness is for Allah only. To let incorrigible
murderers, repeat offenders who are dangerous to society, loose would
be a mistake. To forgive them would not bring peace. This is the essence
of the principle of forgiveness. Will it bring peace? Why are you leaving
snakes? You cannot forgive a snake!”

Then someone mentioned a news item of the day that a former

government leader had just been hung for crimes he had committed
while in office. He asked Mawlana, “Should we be glad when a villain like
that gets what he deserved?”

The Shaykh answered him like this: “Allahumma la takilni ila nafsin
tarfata ayn! ‘O my Lord! Keep me from my ego!’ This is what we must say
when we hear or see anyone undergoing any punishment. This is
because it was his ego’s badness that led him to that fate, and if we are
left to the hands of our egos, our fate may be the very same! We cannot
enjoy the punishment of another; when we hear of such a thing, we must
immediately escape to our Lord, and ask not to be left to the hands of
our egos. ‘Allahumma la takilni ila nafsin tarfata ayn.’ It means, ‘O my
Lord! Don’t leave me to my ego’s hands for even one moment!’ It is so
dangerous; in a single moment, the ego may make a mistake that will
carry a man to punishment along the rest of his life. Imprisonment!
Hanging! All for one moment’s mistake, khatam (finished)!

“Therefore, it is not enough to say only in words, ‘l am Muslim! l

am a believer!’ You must really believe; you must show it in your actions.
Just because a man is Muslim, it does not mean that he has conquered
his ego. Muslims have more responsibility than others. Our punishment
is heavier than others’ punishment. We are responsible as our knowledge
grows. There is no responsibility for ignorant people.

“Our Grandshaykh once told me, ‘The most acceptable, the most
valuable, the most lovely worshipping is sajdah (prostration). If a man
makes sajdah from the beginning of the world to the end, how big will be
his reward! But, if a man tries to make peace between two people, it is
more lovely and more acceptable to Allah than all the worshipping of all
men and all jinn since the beginning of time!”

* * * * * * *

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Our Grandshaykh says, “FATIHA, the first surah of Quran, came
twice, once in Mecca, and once in Medina. What is the reason that Allah
sent this surah twice?

“It is because FATIHA is the most important surah in Quran.

According to tradition all Holy books are contained in Quran, and all
meanings of Quran are contained in FATIHA. Therefore, if a man reads
surah FATIHA, it is as if he had read all Holy books and Quran also!

“FATIHA contains the Bible, Torah, Psalms, one-hundred pages

that were sent before the Holy books, and all of Quran. Therefore, it has
been ordered to read FATIHA in every rak’at (cycle) of every prayer. It a
man reads Quran seven times, without FATIHA, he cannot reach the
reward gained by one reading of FATIHA!

“Allah sent FATIHA first in Mecca. Along with it came endless

Rahmah (mercy). Gabriel, bringing FATIHA to Muhammad (peace be upon
him), said, ‘O, Muhammad! Allah Almighty gives you His salaams and says
to you, “Good tidings for FATIHA; if anyone from your ummah (nation)
reads FATIHA even once in his life, it will be enough, and more, for that
servant!”

“He who reads FATIHA will take enough Rahmah from one reading
to last his whole life. Even if he is an unbeliever, one reading will bring
him to lman, perhaps at the last moment of his life. This is because faith
is original, inborn with people. Unbelief is a temporary condition added
later. FATIHA will bring faith even to a doer of bad things.

“The second time FATIHA came was in Medina. Again it came with
endless Rahmah, but this Rahmah was not like the first. The second
Rahmah for FATIHA was so big and so powerful that the angels who
brought the first Rahmah were unable to carry it. Allah said to
Muhammad (peace be upon him) the second time, ‘O my Prophet! I am
sending to you, from My mercy oceans of FATIHA, only one wave; one
wave only from the mercy oceans in My Divine Presence! If you knew the
whole mercy oceans belonging to FATIHA, you would not order your
nation to worship, pray, or anything else; for that mercy from FATIHA
would be enough! But no one knows the wideness of My mercy oceans!’

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“This second wave of mercy from FATIHA was so strong that, by
comparison, the first wave, which came in Mecca (and from which one
reading in a man’s life is enough), was nothing. Allah Almighty said, ‘O My
beloved Muhammad! If My servants know what I am hiding from them in
My mercy oceans they would say, “No need for any worshipping. If a man
does sajdah all his life, he will take from that ocean only a drop. But Allah
is sending oceans, not drops. He gives out of His generosity, not because
of anyone’s worship and regardless of anyone’s lack of worship. This is
the interpretation of the verse, ‘Allah Almighty is giving endless honour
and glory to the sons of Adam (peace be upon him).

“If a man knows that his Lord, Allah Almighty, gives His mercy to
all regardless of their worshipping, he will gain adab, good manners. How
can he be proud of his worshipping, when a lifetime of prayer will bring
only one drop compared to what his Lord is sending out of His Divine
generosity? The worst thing for a man is to say, ‘I am a good worshipper.
I am a good servant, and others are bad.’ This is the way of Satan. This is
a good lesson for all religious people; don’t be proud with all your
prayers, fasting, Hajj, long beards, big turbans. It is as nothing. More
Rahmah than you could ever gain is already coming; coming also to those
you hold in contempt.

“Knowing this makes us humble. None of us can be the authority

to put people in Heaven or Hell. Allah gave without looking for our
prayers and worship. He gave before our birth. We need do nothing, and
yet we still worship to show thanks, to show good manners to our Lord.
We are in need of His mercy. Without it, nothing.

“Therefore, we give good tidings and happiness to people. If we

say to unbelievers, ‘You will receive punishment,’ will their love for their
Lord grow? Or will good tidings of their Lord’s endless mercy for them as
they are cause their hearts to open! So we are giving good tidings to
people, not making them afraid or unhappy. If you were to tell people, for
example, about a good king, so much tolerance, so much justice, so much
goodness and mercy – wouldn’t they open their hearts to him, and look
to find him? But if you tell about a bad king – so difficult, stern, giving
punishment, all his prisons are filled up – will people like him or hate
him? Allah said to Moses (peace be upon him), ‘O Moses! Make My people
like Mel’ This is the order of our Lord, not hating – liking! Therefore, we

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give all good tidings for all people, whether they accept our beliefs or
not. It is not important.”

* * * * * * *

“The first sunnah,” says our Grandshaykh, “is to ask only for life in
the Divine Presence. Don’t hold any love for this world in your heart. A
man who asks only the Divine Presence, and who directs all his actions
toward that goal, will receive strength in this life. The Sahaba followed
this way and, therefore, were glorious in everything that they did.

“Sunnah is the way of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Where

does his way lead? It leads to the Divine Presence; and so, we must
follow it. It is simple. ‘What was the way of Prophets?’ I ask all religious
men. The way of Prophets is to reach the Divine Presence. Who can say
differently?

“Men have changed their ways to those different from the way of
the Prophets. Now, we are on the way of this life; the way of devils! More
and more, we are tasting this life; more things, more palaces, more
money, more pleasures. Therefore, we fight with each other. We fight
over this dirty life.

“You can’t see a man who asks for the Divine Presence, who is
asking for Allah, fighting for that dirty life. This is the sunnah! it is not
external things. It is not making wudhu, praying, wearing turbans. The
sunnah is making your heart pure. The sunnah is asking to be in the
Divine Presence, and leaving the love of this dirty life! This is a powerful
lesson for those who object to following Islam.

“The vulture is the biggest of birds, but its character is not to run
after its prey. It waits, and eats after the other animals have eaten. This is
a good way for us. When you see all people rushing on a thing, leave
them. Take only what you need. This is the way of Prophets. Anyone
taking more than he needs takes poison, not pleasure!

“In this life, the measure of richness is by zeroes. Ten, one-

hundred, one-thousand, one-million, people are rushing after zeroes!
They are fighting for zeroes; one for today, and some more to keep for
tomorrow. No! This is the way of devils. This lesson is for people who are
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running after zeroes; who are running after nothing. We may show them
that they may leave ‘nothing,’ and come to reality, the way of Prophets.
Don’t keep zeroes!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “In your opinions, you must come to Allah
and His Prophet (peace by upon him). It means also, that you must come
to a representative of Allah and His Prophet (peace be upon him), so that
you can take the right answer from them. In every time there are, there
must be in this world, some persons who are representatives for Allah
and His Prophet (peace be upon him). You must ask them: they will
judge.

“Two men may turn to Quran and hadith, looking for the answer
to a particular problem or question. Each may read the same verses, yet
each will interpret a different answer from them. Therefore, Allah says,
‘Wattabi sabiila man anaaba ilayy’ (Quran, Luqman, 15). It means ‘Follow
in the path of him who has turned in repentance to Allah.’

“Repentance, real repentance, means to leave your ego’s desires

and turn to Allah. Therefore, we have been ordered to follow someone
who has defeated his ego, and is living as his Lord’s sincere servant only.
It is fard (compulsory), and whoever denies this denies Quran.

“Each of us must follow a man who is on the way to Allah. If a man

is not doing this, he is wrong; he is mistaken. You cannot go toward Allah
without that person. You must follow! lf a man won’t do this, devils will
lead him to their ways. Even though he says, ‘l am Muslim,’ he will be
going after devils!

“No one can say, ‘We are looking in books and we are going to
Allah.’ No! Here is a story:

“Imam Nawawi was a distinguished scholar (alim) who wrote a

famous book about Hajj (the pilgrimage to Mecca), although he had never
been there himself. It so happened that one year he at last had the
chance to make the journey he had described in his book.

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“When he returned he told of how it was. One day he was in
Mecca walking along a certain way when a little boy came up to him and
grabbed him by the arm. ‘O shaykh!’ cried the little boy, ‘You must not go
that way.’ Imam Nawawi was perplexed. ‘What do you mean l can’t walk
here? How do you know this?’ he asked the boy.

“‘Because, O shaykh,’ the boy returned, ‘Imam Nawawi has told us

in his book that we must go another way!’

“Therefore, we can see from that story that a man needs a guide
when he is going to a place where he has never been before. A man may
read Quran and hadiths, but still he cannot know the way to go unless he
will take a guide. If it was enough to merely read Quran, Allah would have
sent the Book alone. But Allah also sent the Prophet (peace be upon him)
as guidance in front of the ummah (nation). In every age, the ummah
must have a guide. If there is no guidance, a man’s work will be
unacceptable. Perhaps Satan will be leading him!

“Thus, Allah says, ‘You must follow a man who is on My way.’ But
so many people are too proud to follow another man. They say, ‘We
know! We are reading Quran, we know sunnah, we are not in need of
guidance!’ They are wrong, because they are proud. Whoever comes to
Allah with pride is refused, not accepted. Satan didn’t accept Adam
(peace be upon him) for his guide. He said, ‘I know more than he. I am a
better worshipper than he, and therefore I am not in need of his
guidance.’

“The way begins with a guide. Everyone is free to take a guide or

not, but Allah says, ‘We didn’t accept anyone without a guide. You must
take a guide.’ Therefore, for anything that happens to us, we must ask the
advice of a man who we trust is in the way of Allah. He is guide.

“This is fard (order of Allah), but nowadays, people are denying

this. ‘No Madhhab (the 4 schools of jurisprudence)! No Tariqat (Sufism)!’
they say. They are wrong. Allah says, ‘Wattabi sabiila man anaaba ilayy.’
Follow in the way of he who has turned to Me in love. (Quran, Luqman,
15)

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“If your heart and your conscience are satisfied with a person,
there is no need to look for another. He is your guide. But you must
choose someone; to deny this is kufr (unbelief). It is denying Quran.”

“Shaykh Nazim,” asked a murid, “how can we keep from arguing

among ourselves when we aren’t with you?”

“In every place,” answered the Shaykh, “we shall appoint one
person to be a director for our brothers. If a question arises, or if
something happens, he shall decide among you. If he cannot find an
answer, then he may write to us.

“Eastern people are like sheep; they agree easily and follow.
Western people are learned people. Each looks to himself and says, ‘I
know something.’ Therefore, they cannot agree; they are not coming
together. They are like goats scattered about on the mountainside, each
goat standing by himself.

“Just as we follow an Imam (leader) in prayer, so also must we

follow in our lives. The Sahaba (companions) followed Rasulullah (peace
be upon him). After his death, they followed Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (may
Allah be pleased with him). Like this, we must have a leader to follow; an
Imam for our lives.

“When people don’t have a leader, or won’t follow the one they
have, quarrelling and fighting result. This is how the Arabs were in the
days before Rasulullah (peace be upon him), filled with pride and fighting
amongst themselves. InshaAllah (if Allah wills), there will be one imam for
all Americans, one for all Germans, one for all French, and so forth.”

Shaykh Nazim continued, “When l was younger, I read and

studied a great deal. Not only religion, Quran and hadith, but also
‘European’ knowledge, ‘positive, objective knowledge,’ as they called it at
the university. So many books I read. Also I met several shaykhs and
learned people, but my heart was not at peace with anyone until I met
our Grandshaykh. When he was speaking, Ah! He was illiterate, but with
his words he gave Divine knowledge; knowledge that I could trust one-
hundred percent! I was at peace in his meetings. For forty years I was
with him, and for forty years I tried to follow him. I am the weakest
person, but my intention was to follow him. I felt as though I were an ant
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with a broken leg trying to crawl from Damascus to Mecca; that is how I
saw myself in our Grandshaykh’s presence. But my hope was to follow
him, as my Prophet says, ‘The value of actions is according to the
intentions behind them.’ Therefore, I hope my Lord, Allah Almighty, will
send me to where Grandshaykh is; to the Divine Presence; even though I
am like that little ant. I accepted Grandshaykh as Allah Almighty ordered
in Quran (‘Follow him who has turned to Me with Love’). This is my
intention. I intend to follow him, and I am interested only in that point. I
left all my knowledge and intended to follow his way to Allah Almighty.

“Now, I am reading to you from his teachings. As much as I have

trust in him, you may have trust in me. However much I am clutching his
hand, you may clutch my hand as strongly. However much I am weak
with him, you also will be weak with me. Thus, the Prophet (peace be
upon him) was strongly with his Lord, and the Sahaba were strongly with
the Prophet (peace be upon him). Anytime you are looking at a man who
is clutching strongly at the Prophet’s ‘coat-tails’ you may trust in him.
However strongly you are believing, people may trust in you. However
strongly you have trust in one man (your shaykh), people can trust in you
also. This is important. Therefore, when you have trust in me, he will
have trust in you, and another will have trust in him also. This is the
reason you must keep a relation with a person strongly in love with Allah.
Then that love may come to you as well.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh told me this story about his Grandshaykh, Abu

Ahmad as-Sughuri (may Allah be pleased with him):

“My Grandshaykh was living in a village in Caucasia. One day as he

was walking near his house, he saw a cat catch a neighbour’s chicken and
run off with it in its mouth. Quickly Abu Ahmad (may Allah be pleased
with him) said, ‘Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un!’ This is a verse from
Quran (surah Baqara, 156), and it is sunnah to say it when we are coming
upon any bad thing, disaster, or affliction. It means, ‘To Allah we belong,
and unto Him we are returning!’

“‘How many years have I lived in this village?’ he thought, ‘yet until
now, I never saw a cat attacking a chicken before. I must leave this village
and these people. This is no mercy coming down here!’
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“He made hijra to another village one-half hour’s walk away where
he lived for the rest of his life. He said, ‘lf there were no bad character in
people, all the blossoms on the trees would bear fruit and none would fall
to the ground.’

“What is the meaning of this story? Why did Abu Ahmad (may
Allah be pleased with him) leave his home because a cat ate a chicken? It
is because lie knew that the wildness of people’s bad characters has an
effect on their animals. The bad characters of the people in that village
were going through their animals. They could be seen affecting that cat
which, up until then, had never attacked any chickens. It is an important
sign; when people’s characters are good, it shows in their animals. When
their characters are bad, there is badness and wildness in their animals
also.

“Solomon (peace be upon him) once came upon two dogs fighting.
As he was given the power to talk with all creatures, he asked them, ‘Why
are you fighting? You are dogs, not people! What can you take from this
world that you will quarrel about?’

“‘Yes, O Prophet!’ replied the dogs, ‘It is as you say. We haven’t

anything from this world. It is our owners’ bad characters that you see
fighting here!’

“You may see this quality in children as well. Hard people will
have wild children, whereas soft, gentle people will have gentle children.
Therefore, our good and bad characters have a pronounced effect upon
all who are around us – our families, our neighbours, and our animals.
We must carry a good view of our surroundings, not darkness. When Abu
Ahmad (may Allah be pleased with him) saw that cat acting wildly, he
knew that the characters of the people in the village were no good and
that it was time for him to leave.

“It is also people’s bad characters that cause blossoms to wither

and die without bearing fruit, and insects to infest them. In these times,
how many medicines and chemicals are needed to make things grow! If
people’s characters were good, there would be no need for all those
things! Now it is the twentieth century. People are proud of their
learning and technology. But originally, before all the modern
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‘improvements,’ people found life to be easier. All the things that make
life easy were readily at hand. That satisfaction is lost now. It is
impossible today to find any good people. Everywhere bad character is
growing.

“Therefore, we must fight to erase, wipe-out (mahw), our bad

character. The more we wipe out bad character, the more happiness will
come down on that place. Nowadays, happiness is not coming down.
Such dirty places! Everywhere there is cruelty. You cannot find one place
to step on! This world is filled with wild characters, running after such a
power to whip up all people. Such terrible weapons. It is a sign! When no
mercy is coming down, it means that there are no good characters. Good
characters are living in mercy oceans of Allah Almighty. Without belief in
our Lord, there are no good characters and mercy in people. In
unbelievers’ hearts you cannot find a minimum of mercy.

“Today,” said Shaykh Nazim, “a letter came to me. In it was a

newspaper clipping perhaps from the London Daily Telegraph. It says
how Marxism has killed one hundred and forty-three million people:
sixty-five million in Russia from nineteen-seventeen up until nineteen
fifty-nine; sixty-three million in China! Other places total one hundred
and forty-three million! Because Marxism denies all Prophets, all
religions, and all Holy things, you cannot find any mercy in it. Marxists
have no mercy for other people, not even for themselves. No mercy in
Marxism!

“As we said,” repeated the Shaykh, “good characters only live in

mercy oceans where there is belief in Allah Almighty. Therefore, we must
look after the mercy in our hearts to grow. As your mercy grows, you are
approaching Allah. Abu Yazid al-Bistami (may Allah grant him more
honours) was praying to his Lord, ‘O my Lord! You have power, You can
do anything! l am asking to make my body bigger and bigger, till it will fill
all Your Hell, so that there will be no place to put anybody else there! Put
them in Paradise, and give me the punishment!’

“When your faith grows up, your mercy grows up. All Awliya have
in their hearts oceans of mercy. Another one said, ‘O, my Lord! Make me
into a bridge over Hell, that Your people may pass over me into Paradise!’
It is like that. If any of them have been given permission for ‘shafa’a’
(intercession) on the Day of Judgment, they are not going to let even one
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person go to Hell! This is the meaning of Iman. If a person says, ‘l am a
believer,’ and he has no mercy, he is a liar. No mercy, no Iman.

“The biggest ocean of mercy is for our Prophet (peace be upon

him). He was sent as a mercy for all creatures, the whole universe.

“Everyone will see his deeds on the Judgment Day, whether they
are going to Heaven or to Hell. Then Allah will decide. He may do as He
likes. The Almighty is not obliged to pardon or to punish. He may, if He
likes, pardon everybody.”

“What about that man in Quran, Ahu Lahab, and his wife?” asked
one of our brothers. “Doesn’t Allah promise a punishment for them?”

“That verse (surah Lahab) was sent only as a warning,” re- plied
Mawlana, “so that people will not do like Abu Lahab. Allah Almighty will
show each servant what he has done with his life on the Judgment Day.
But He Almighty is free to give mercy as He likes.

“The Ummah, the nation of a Prophet, is dearer to that Prophet

than children are to their parents. If you have one hundred boys, and
ninety-nine are with you but one is in prison, are you happy? No!
Because one of them is suffering punishment. Even if one out of one
thousand is suffering, your heart is with that one who is suffering.
Therefore, our Prophet (peace be upon him) will stand by the entrance to
Paradise. How can he have pleasure in Paradise if his nation is in Hell!
How?! He will stand by the entrance and when Allah Almighty says,
‘Enter, O Muhammad!’ He will say, ‘O my Lord! I cannot enter until my
nation enters.’ He will then look, ‘One, two, three, four, . . .,’ and if any are
missing, he will say, ‘O my Lord! I cannot enter!’”

“Mawlana, who are the Ummah? Who will be counted among

them on the Judgment Day?”

“He Almighty knows,” answered the Shaykh. “Don’t be worried,

European people also are his nation. American people, also; Russian
people, also; Chinese people, also; Hindus, also; Negroes, also; all are of
his nation! The Prophet (peace be upon him) says, ‘If I am given
permission, I will not leave one person behind!’ Do you understand? You
are coming home with your one-hundred boys, riding on your horses,
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coming up to the palace gates. You stop and count, ‘Thirty, fifty, one-
hundred boys.’ When you see that they are all safely inside, then you will
cross over the bridge, and close it behind you. You are not leaving one,
two, or ten outside. No! Especially when they are little boys. Father will
come and put little boys inside first, and then he will enter. Yes? Too
many good tidings for us. We are like little boys. There is no worry for us.
You are big boys? MashaAllah!”

* * * * * * *

One day, after the Dhuhr (Noon) prayer, Shaykh Nazim told his
murids that they could ask whatever questions they wished. The group
consisted mainly of Europeans and Americans, and so they used this
opportunity to question the Shaykh about difficulties they had
encountered trying to practice his teachings in their own countries.

“Shaykh Nazim, what is our job in America? Why is it that we must

go back there to live, away from you and your teachings?”

“Allah Almighty created this world,” replied the Shaykh. “You can
see here, all around you, the city of Damascus. Perhaps there are one
hundred thousand houses. Each house has some people. Those people
are not distributed without an arrangement but are appointed, each to a
private place. These people must live in this place next door to some
other people. They cannot be in this place too. Also, in each place, there
may be several rooms; in each one there must be different persons. The
Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) said, ‘Allah created people, and made
for each a private station.’

“Therefore, Allah decides for Syrians to live in Syria, Turks to live

in Turkey, Americans to live in America, and so forth. In each state, some.
In India, Madagascar, in every place, must live whoever Allah has
appointed. He Almighty decided. He Almighty appointed.

“Our Lord decides movement, travel, also. Some travels are

temporary, some are permanent. All are directed by Divine Wisdom.

“Allah Almighty appointed our breaths for us – when, where, and

how many. We must be there, where He has appointed those breaths.

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“Therefore, you will be in your homeland, as your Creator has
appointed for you to be there. The important thing for every servant who
knows his Lord, who believes in his Lord, who loves his Lord, is to be
with Him everywhere and always! When a servant is with his Lord, with
love, with belief, and with obedience, his Lord will be with him always,
with His mercy, with His protection, and with His help! Enough?”

“Then why do we become disturbed in our hearts?” asked a

disciple.

Shaykh Nazim answered, “Disturbances come when you are

forgetting your Lord’s relationship with you, when you are forgetting His
mercy. When people forget that they are in mercy oceans, all
disturbances and sufferings come into their hearts.

“They are like fish out of water oceans. To be happy, you must
always remember that you are in mercy oceans. This is a fine point, an
important matter (Dhaqiq). You must be careful."

“I know it in my head, but I don’t always know it in my heart.”

"Yes! . . . InshaAllah.”

“Is there anything specific that we could do, like teaching?”

“Teach yourself!” returned Mawlana. “Teach yourself that you are

in the mercy ocean, forever! No teaching another! This is a job for all
people, not just Americans. You will be like a fish swimming in the ocean,
joyful in the water, for outside it will die. Why are you coming out of that
ocean? You are mad people!”

“What if people ask us about what we are doing?”

“You are swimming in mercy oceans. Therefore, you are happy

everywhere.”

“Shaykh Nazim, are these teachings, these words, just for

ourselves? Are they just for your murids, or may anyone read them?”

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“They are for everyone, because no one will come to hear these
teachings, or to read these words unless he has a promise from Allah
Almighty in the spiritual world. This promise was made on the Day of
Promise, in the Divine Presence, before we came into this world. No one
can listen to these words, nor can he read them, unless he is from our
group. Don’t be worried about that!”

“In other words, if someone comes to read this, is it a sign?”

“You must know that he is sent,” replied Shaykh Nazim, “Whoever

is sent will come to you. He will come to listen to us because it is his
destination. He will come, he will listen, and he will take it! Clear
enough?”

“Thank you. Now I have a question about how we should dress.

Should we wear sunnah clothes, turbans, and so forth, when we are back
home in our country?”

“When you are in your home, with your Lord only, you will dress
like this (he indicates his own clothing; loose pants, jacket, and a turban).
When you are with other people, dress like them. He who is working for
Allah alone is free to dress as he likes. He who must work in the world,
with other people, must be like them. For Jumma (Friday prayers), for
worship, and when you are alone with your Lord at home, you may put
on turbans and sunnah dress.”

“Shaykh Nazim, as it is written in hadith, and as you have

explained to us, there are signs in the world now that the great war is
coming quickly. What preparations can we make for this terrible event?
Shall we try to build some kind of a shelter, community, or retreat?”

“We are saying,” said the Shaykh, “that shelter will be for everyone
who is with his Lord. We are asking shelter with Allah Almighty. Any
other shelter will not be enough, not at all enough during that war. Our
‘Noah’s Ark’ is in our hearts! You cannot find any shelter without our
Lord’s shelter.”

“What can we do for concentration? Are there any techniques you

can recommend to us to keep from forgetting that we are in the mercy
oceans?”
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“As we are beginners,” the Shaykh replied, “we must keep in our
hearts, fifteen-hundred times, ‘Allah, Allah, Allah….,’ every twenty-four
hours. Once daily, you must listen to your heart’s dhikr. When you listen,
you can hear your heart saying ‘Allah, Allah, Allah.’”

“Is this dhikr separate from the wird that we say ever day?”

“This is a wird also,” said Mawlana. “This is an important wird,

more important than our tongue’s dhikr. This gives concentration for all
of the body.”

“What is the best time of the day to do this wird?”

“After midnight, tahajjud. First make two rak’ats, then sit and
listen to your heart’s dhikr fifteen hundred times. For tahajjud prayer, the
minimum is two rak’ats, and the maximum is eight. For witr prayer, we
are praying after isha (the late night prayer). Perhaps it may be that we
cannot awaken before the time for witr goes away. Therefore, it is a
precaution to pray witr immediately after isha; it is better. You may pray
tahajjud after witr. It is permissible. When you listen to your heart’s dhikr
as I have told you, your concentration will grow from this point to where
that dhikr, the remembrance of your Lord, will be with you twenty-four
hours a day! Yes, this is the beginning! I am giving you permission as my
Grandshaykh gave me permission for that.”

“Thank you.”

“Permission; it means to take that ‘electricity’ from the center

they are opening for us. When my Grandshaykh gave me permission, he
was opening, from his heart to my heart, such power.”

“This may be too big a question for a beginner, but I’ll ask it
anyway.”

“What is that?”

“When I first met you, in London, they told me that you could
appear to me wherever I am, and to experiment with this. I have tried
various things, but so far, with no success. Can you tell me how to do it?”
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“Ah, yes! You may do that. You may do it with your heart. When
you are in need of something, your heart may be in connection with me.
Anytime!”

“There are no special words I have to say, or any special

technique I have to do?”

“You can call, ‘O my Shaykh! O my Grandshaykh! Reach to me, I

am in difficulties, I am in need of your help!’ Your Grandshaykh is
‘Abdullah Daghestani (may Allah be pleased with him). It is enough to call
him.”

“How shall we make ready for you to come to America? Should we

arrange for lectures, TV? We haven’t talked to Hollywood yet!”

“Cinema? Some people came to Cyprus, once, and made a huge

photo of me with my turban. Then, some filmmakers came to find me to
make a film of Moses! Fortunately, I was absent. If I had been in Cyprus,
they would have caught me and taken me to America to make a film with
me!”

“Better than Charles Heston?”

Shaykh Nazim stroked his long white beard, “Much better!” He

then continued, “We ... our way, is to step after Allah opens the way for
us. Therefore, we are not using so many programs, so much planning to
do this and that. We are living as our Lord’s demands appear, and He
sends us toward His will. Therefore, if we are coming to America, it will
become clear, little by little, how we shall act. We are not going to decide
from now, but a decision will come as soon as possible from our Lord’s
Will. Therefore, we do not worry about that point. It is easier for us.”

“If it is a question of us doing something for you, we’ll do it. If it is

a question of us getting money to send you a ticket and saying, ‘Shaykh
Nazim, come!’ we’ll do everything for you; we’ll do it.”

“Thank you. When my Lord wills to send me to your country, He

will send me, also a ticket! I am waiting for His command.”

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“What are our wives’ responsibilities?”

“Three times shahada, every day, and to be clean always. And, for
beginners, one sajdah, five times a day, at the time of the regular prayers.
At each prayer, only one sajdah. It is enough.”

“What if they want to do the whole prayer, is it all right?”

“For beginners, one sajdah is enough. As they are stepping

forward, they will ask. This command is from my Grandshaykh. Also, they
should love only believers, not unbelievers. They should sit with
believers, and not with unbelievers.”

“What about parents? What if parents are unbelievers?”

“I meant to say for other people. Your parents, you must respect
them forever!”

“I had been doing a lot of physical training – running, lifting

weights, and so on. Is this good?”

“Why are you doing this, to be stronger than animals, quicker

than animals? If it were an honour to carry heavy loads, then we shall
give medals to donkeys! Why this stupidness, this foolishness?”

“I think you’ve answered the question!”

“This is not to say that we shouldn’t play, or practice games of

war. This is sunnah. Walking, swimming, riding horses, swords and
shooting – those are sunnah. But the most beautiful game is the game
with your wife!”

“How about the martial arts, karate and judo?”

“It is too much. You must use your strength for useful things.
When you are free, you must set apart a time for a useful thing, like
gardening and planting, for instance. This is very good. In Islam there is
no waste of time. Every action must bring a benefit. It is a bad thing to sit
down. All or at least most illnesses come from sitting too long without
moving. Therefore, games and useful work will be beneficial for you. Also,
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every weekend you must gather in a good place with friends for talking
and doing halal. Not preaching! Not tabliq! It must be a simple gathering,
a meeting of friends. It is enough simply to make friends. If people like
you and respect you, they will come. If we are preaching, the load will be
too heavy for their egos to bear! We are not Jamaat al-Tabliq! People
cannot carry heavy loads.”

“Can you tell us when the war will happen?”

“Allah knows well. But it will happen, maybe within two years. Our
Prophet (peace be upon him) gave to us knowledge of the Last Days’
signs, and as he said, those signs indicate that huge event is nearly upon
us now. Afterwards, there are some other big signs for Qiyama, the
Resurrection Day. This is what we are saying.”

“But within two years, not longer?”

“Within two years. It is waiting. It is expected.”

“Is Mahdi (peace be upon him) supposed to come before, or after

this war?”

“During.”

“And Dajjal?”

“Same time.”

“I read a hadith that there would be a fire from east to west. Is

that referring to the war?”

“No, that is after.”

“Are there any signs that we can look for?”

“For Mahdi (peace be upon him) coming, there are two signs. The
first is that Turkey will become communist. Then, the great war will
break out. That is the second sign. Then, Mahdi (peace be upon him) will
come. I just now heard this from my Grandshaykh. And Turkey is going
to be communist very quickly now. I first heard this from my
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Grandshaykh over forty years ago, when you couldn’t find even one
communist in Turkey. And now, . . .”

“Mawlana, how do the saints receive their knowledge?”

“It is through the Prophet (peace be upon him).”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “Allah Almighty created all mankind, all

human nature, and He said, ‘I have directed everyone to his destination.’
So, for everyone, there is a destination to which he is being guided.”

Our Lord said to Rasulullah (peace be upon him), ‘O Muhammad,

to reach My Divine Presence, there are so many ways! As many as all the
breaths of all creatures!’ Each day, one man has twenty-four thousand
breaths. How many, then, for all mankind, for all creatures?! As many as
that number, there are ways for reaching to Allah! These are very good
tidings, but what does Allah say also, ‘No one knows from which way My
People, My servants, are corning to Me.’ All ways are going to Him. Every
way that a man may walk, he must arrive at the Divine Presence. He
Almighty says, again, ‘No one except me can know those ways by which
My servants are coming to Me. By looking, you may see that a servant is
going another way. But he is coming to Me also. He cannot find anything
except Me, no matter which way he may travel! Any way, that My servant
follows, he must come to Me!’

“Buddhists, Christians, Catholics, Communists, Confucians,

Brahmans, Negroes; who created them? He created all of them, and each
one says, ‘We are going on a way that leads to the Divine Presence. So
many, many ways; you cannot know. Therefore, Allah says, ‘Allay sa’llahu
biya kaymi hajimn.’ This means, ‘No one may judge for My servants,
except Me! I will judge for My servants. Not any of you will judge for My
servants, not Iblis, and not even Prophets! They haven’t any authority to
judge My servants. I am the judge!’ This is the order of our Lord, Allah
Almighty.”

“Mawlana?” asked a disciple, “What about the ways leading to

Hell? Do they lead to Allah, also?”

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“Yes,” replied the Shaykh. “The ways to Hell are going to Him,
also, after Hell. Hell is cleaning people, cleaning them from sins and bad
characters and then guiding them to Allah!

“And some stay in Hell always?”

“Yes.” The Shaykh paused, and then continued, “Iman is original,

kufr is temporary. With all people, faith is the permanent condition.
There may be one man to be endlessly in Hell, if He so orders, but
everyone is going to His Divine Presence. He is not going to leave His
servants to the hands of Satan, and Satan will not be the judge of His
servants either! Do you think that Satan will win? Satan will never win!
Allah Almighty is victorious! His mercy is not leaving any to endless Hell.”

“I don’t understand this,” said one of the brothers, “Yesterday, you

said that a man must have a guide, that he must follow one who is on the
way to Allah. Now, you said that all are on the way to Allah.”

“To understand this point,” answered Mawlana, “you must know

that people are of two kinds. Ordinary people, common people, are, in
general, satisfied with their actions. They do not see a need to follow a
man. But whoever is asking higher degrees in Divine Presence, he must
take a guide. Does everyone have a college diploma? No, only a few
people. Common people are not asking for a diploma. There are,
however, a few people who are in need to reach more excellent
positions, the highest degrees before the Divine Presence. The first rank
are Prophets and those who are on the ways of Prophets. Then comes
the second, the third, and so forth. But all glory comes to the first rank. It
is they who will take the most glory, the most mercy, the most light. Of
course the glory of Allah will reach to all people. But only as much as
they are approaching His Divine Presence. Therefore, Allah says, ‘You
must follow one man who is approaching me in order to be in the first
rank.’ If you are not interested in the first rank, you may take the second,
or the third, … do you see?”

“But what about those who have their backs to the Ka’aba? “

“Some may return to Him by their own good will, but most need
urging with power. If they don’t accept power (take a guide), then Divine
power will make them ready to return.”
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“So, ultimately, after Paradise and Hell, there is only Allah?”

“All things are in the oceans of His power. We are swimming in

power oceans. We are only like shadows; we haven’t any real existence
for Allah Almighty. He stands by Himself. He is Qayyum; not in need of
another to make Him stand. He stands by Himself. But, we are standing
with Him.”

Trying to understand this point, another murid asked, “Then,

Allah will eventually finish with the creation? Will there then be only
Him?”

The Shaykh spoke, “There is no finish to creation. Creation is

always going on, and we are creatures.”

“Then what does it mean when Quran says that, ‘Everything will
vanish, except His face?’”

“Yes,” responded Shaykh Nazim, “this world is going to be

vanishing. But those belonging to Allah Almighty, our spirits, are not
ending, not vanishing. Our bodies will go, but our spirits are with Him
always. We say that our bodies are from ‘Alam-al Khalq,’ and our spirits
(arwah) are from ‘Alam al-Amr.’“

Another brother continued, “Sometimes it seems as if all is Allah,

and there is no ‘I’.”

Mawlana spoke to him, “You are asking what is Creator, and what
is creature?”

“Yes,” answered the murid, “When we go from this world, do we

remain as individuals? Will we sit, InshaAllah, in Paradise with Nazim
Effendi?”

“Yes, there is individual life,” replied the Shaykh.

“And will we have knowledge of ourselves, too?”

The Shaykh smiled, “We shall have absolute knowledge.”

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“And individual existence?” the brother persisted.

“And individual existence!” returned the Shaykh.

“Yes?”

“Yes!” said Mawlana. “You understand?”

One of the disciples shook his head. “Who can write that!”

Shaykh Nazim remained patient: “All of us have individual

personality in the Divine Presence.”

“I have read things like this,” said another murid, “but don’t know
how to really understand it.”

Mawlana smiled again. “Yes,” he explained, “because now, we are

yet at the beginning. You cannot describe for a person how it is working.”
He paused, and gestured to the tape recorder we were using to record
his lectures. “This is a tape recorder,” he said. “Can you explain to a
common person how it works? You cannot explain. He can look at it, and
see that is working, but he does not know how. Only a few people can
know this. Each time we raise our knowledge levels, we understand more
and more. You are asking for those things that we are not yet ready to
understand.”

“We know that we are creatures,” the Shaykh continued, “and that
we are created by the Creator. How He created, where we were, and
where we are going, we cannot know till those realities will open for us.
All the time we are stepping forward, stepping forward, coming... It is
impossible to speak about colours for a blind man. You cannot describe
even a fine face from an ugly face, or night from day, green from red,
white from black. What is green? What is blue? What is red? What is
beautiful? What is ugly? Can you describe this for a blind man? It is
impossible. Now our heart’s eye is closed. It has yet to open, to look at
the reality. Now, we are believing, only. We must believe, then it will
grow up; it will open.”

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“Mawlana? Please, what are the people doing in Paradise. What is
their occupation?”

Shaykh Nazim answered, “As Allah says, ‘A very happy

occupation!’“

“But does Allah say in Quran what the inhabitants of Paradise are
doing?”

“A very happy occupation,” repeated Mawlana. “They are looking

to His Divine Face, and looking at His Divine Light coming on Paradise;
swimming in beauty oceans, swimming in happiness oceans. They are
drunk! Drunk with enjoyment from His Divine Face and beauty oceans!
What occupation are you asking! You are mad!”

At this point the whole group is experiencing a somewhat giddy

state, laughing and smiling, resembling a mild drunkenness. The brother
who has been questioning Shaykh Nazim about the inhabitants of
Paradise tries to continue his line of thought: “But,” he said, “do they not
stay in connection with the earth?”

“Earth!” replied the Shaykh, with amusement, “Phtt!” He made a

gesture of disgust.

The disciple continued, “But the saints – they work on earth, no?
Is Grandshaykh not in connection with you, even though he is in
Paradise?”

“After Qiyama, we are in Paradise,” replied Mawlana.

“But aren’t some people already in Paradise?” asked the murid.

“Paradise?” returned the Shaykh, “this is Barzakh Paradise! When

all Judgment is finished, then people will be in Paradise!”

Again, the murid asked, “Do the Awliya live in Barzakh?”

“Yes.”

“They have a nice time there, too?”

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“Yes,” the Shaykh was laughing now, “nice time … gazing at you;
too much laughing, now!”

By now, everyone was laughing. More questions came: “Is the

Prophet (peace be upon him) also in Barzakh existence?”

“Yes.”

“But working on earth?”

“What working!”

“The saints work on earth from Barzakh, too; no?” At this point,
another brother introduced a different line of thought: “I remember the
first time I was in London,” he began, “you described the grave. You told
two stories that night. One was about the Me’raj; where Rasulullah
(peace be upon him) saw the endless oceans of mercy and compassion.
The doors opened for him, and he saw a tree.”

“Ah, yes!” remembered Mawlana.

The brother continued, “And, in the tree was a bird, with a ball of
dirt in his mouth. Muhammad (peace be upon him) said to that bird,
‘What is that thing you are holding?’ and the bird replied, ‘O Prophet,
these are the sins of mankind; this tiny ball of dirt! What will it be when it
falls into this vast ocean that you see before you? Nothing!’”

The disciple went on, “Then you told a story about what it would
be like in the grave. You said, ‘When you die, an angel shows you a Divine
Name. Then, your spirit comes out, and then, finished.’”

“Yes, I remember,” said the Shaykh.

“Then,” said our brother, “you told us that the dead person would
see a horrible thing coming toward him. The dead person would try to
escape from it, but it would come after him and say, ‘O, but how happy
you were with me when you were alive! Why are you running from me
now? Don’t you recognize me? I am your bad deeds!’ What I am asking is:
are you limited after death to the grave? Are you actually in the ground?”
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Shaykh Nazim answered this way: “Yes, there is a physical body

and a spiritual body in the grave. It is from His mercy; to clean His
servant as much as that servant made himself dirty in this life. He needs
to be clean, so Allah makes him clean in the grave. He is cleaning that
servant up till the Judgment Day. Then, that servant will come up clean!”

A disciple commented, “You gave us a good lesson, Mawlana,

when you told us that there is no king without a kingdom, no Prophet
without an ummah, no Creator without creatures. Allah is uncreated, and
servants are also uncreated. But when we come to this life, we forget.”

“Yes,” replied the Shaykh. “It is enough. You cannot go too deep
without sinking!”

* * * * * * *

Islam came to teach people good character. It fights against bad

characters, and the worst character is to be angry! Whoever is angry has
all bad character. He who cannot stop his anger cannot keep his Iman,
nor his good works. Anger destroys all good things; nothing can stay
when anger is present. Therefore, our Prophet (peace be upon him)
ordered his nation to keep away from anger when he said, “‘The most
powerful wrestler is he who can stop his anger!”

Whoever is conquered by his anger, he is a useless person and

cannot be a servant of Allah Almighty. This is because when he is angry,
he will leave all things for his anger. It means that his ego is ordering him.
He is under the command of his ego, and he cannot obey his Lord.

We must always practice leaving anger. Once, we were sitting

with our Grandshaykh and his servant, who was an old man. While we
were sitting, a fly came up and bit the servant. Quickly he became angry
and killed the fly. Our Grandshaykh looked at him and told me, “Tell him,
Nazim Effendi, that he must get up and renew his wudhu. His wudhu is
no good – it went away with his anger.”

To kill a flea in anger is a criminal action, a sin! Anger is the worst

character. All governments are fighting for anger, and all people also.
Anger grows: it is like an ocean for all bad characters. If you can dry up
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that ocean, no more bad characters can live in it – finished. This is a very,
very good manner. You must use this, for it is the order of Allah, His
Prophet (peace be upon him), and all Awliya.

Our Grandshaykh is a great doctor for the illnesses of the ego.

Here is his prescription for us when we are angry: If you are angry, go
and make wudhu. This is because anger is fire, and fire goes away with
water. Therefore, do wudhu. Anger is permitted only for our egos. If you
must be angry, be angry at your nafs, leading you away from your Lord! I
shall tell you a story, also from our Grandshaykh, on that point:

A ‘majdhub’ is a man who is crazy, but not in the usual sense of

the word. He is a man who is ‘crazy’ for Allah. He is above ordinary
people, on a different level from them. (Conversely, a ‘majnun’ is a crazy
person, in the usual sense of the word; he is on a lower level than
ordinary people) At any rate, there was a majdhub living in a certain
town. One day he was walking along when he came upon a group of
children playing. Now, children know when a man is on an extraordinary
level. They like to run after them and make trouble for them. And so it
happened that a boy threw a stone at the majdhub, and hit him on the
head. As soon as the stone hit him, the majdhub began to slap himself,
saying, “Go to your homeland! Go to your home!” As the startled children
watched, the majdhub continued down the street in that way, striking
himself and saying, over and over, “Go to your home! Go to your home!”

What is the meaning of that story? Our Grandshaykh says that the
majdhub was teaching us about our egos. When he said “Go to your
home, go to your home!”, what he meant by that was: “O my ego! If you
were all right, then these children wouldn’t be throwing stones at you.
You must return to your home, to the promise that you made to your
Lord. On the Day of Promise, before you came into this world, your Lord
asked, ‘Am I your Lord?’ and you answered, ‘Yes, you are my Lord!’ When
you return to that promise, nothing gives you trouble. When that boy hit
you with that stone, O my ego, it was to call attention to the fact that you
must be careful with your promise to your Lord. You must, therefore, go
to you homeland, return to your Lord!”

This story means that you have no right to be angry with another
person. You must turn your anger to your own egos! You must think, “If I
am all right, then all things will be all right with me. If I am not all right,
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then people will not be all right with me.” So, we will be angry and
fighting our egos only.

“Anger is of two kinds,” says our Grandshaykh. “The first kind is

the anger of ordinary people. Ordinary people are angry on behalf of
their egos, not for Allah Almighty.

“You may say, ‘How? If a man sees a wrong thing, mustn’t he get
angry?’ Yes, I agree with you. But first, I would say to you, why are you
not angry with yourself, your nafs? If you are seeing wrong things and
getting angry, you should look first to yourself, to your ego! Be angry
with it! Punish it for your wrongdoings! For bad speaking, for looking to
haram; why are you not punishing yourself? It is easy to punish another,
too easy. It is easy to kill others; kill, instead, your ego! When you are
angry make a new wudhu, and say three times ‘Shahada,’ and seventy
times ‘Astaghfirullah.’ This is your punishment!”

Here, the murids, anxious to punish their egos, asked Shaykh

Nazim these questions:

“Is it all right to fast on the light days of the week?”

“No,” replied the Shaykh, “no need. It is enough.”

“But we’ve been fasting, already. Every Monday and Thursday

since Ramadan,” a disciple insisted.

“No need,” replied the Shaykh. “You may fast from haram looking.
You may fast from anger. You may fast from bad words! Not eating or
drinking – that fast I don’t want. It is too easy to go without eating. I
don’t want that. No bad speaking, no bad looking, no anger; that is
difficult. So many people fasting, yet they are angry seventy times until
maghrib (sunset)! They say, ‘We are fasting!’ How can you be fasting if
you are angry!”

“I’d say that that describes most of my fasts!”

“Ah?” smiled the Shaykh. “It is clear, plain?” He turned to the

other murids, and joked, “Now he is afraid I shall put him three days
without eating!”
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Mawlana continued, “The second kind of anger is for Allah

Almighty. This is only for those who have killed their egos.”

“I don’t think that we have to worry about that, yet,” said one of
the ikhwan.

“Yes,” replied the Shaykh, “we are too far from that!”

Another brother asked, “What do you do about children who

misbehave? Sometimes they can make you get very angry.”

Shaykh Nazim said, “You may give them ‘tarbiya,’ which is to

educate them with good manners. Also, ‘taqlib’, to make them fear your
speaking. It is like acting; a fierce voice, but inside you are not getting
angry. You may also spank them, but never in anger. Anger is prohibited!”

Another question: “If you are in Jihad, if you are at war, is it also
better to fight without anger?”

The Shaykh answered, “Without anger.” This brought him back to

his original topic: “Anger is for Allah. It must be in Jihad, in war, but that
anger is not for yourself: It is for Allah. Our Grandshaykh told the story of
Sayyidina ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), which may educate us on
that point:

“Once, during the Holy war in the time of Rasulullah (peace be

upon him), Sayyidina ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) was fighting
with an enemy soldier during a fierce battle. This soldier was a huge
man, a powerful wrestler, and it was a difficult fight. Suddenly, ‘Ali (may
Allah be pleased with him) managed to disarm his opponent. He flung
him to the ground and raised his sword to kill the man. Just at that
moment, as the sword was about to strike, the fallen soldier spat into
Sayyidina ‘Ali’s face! Sayyidina ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him)
lowered his sword, and looked at his enemy. ‘Get up!’ he said. ‘Get up! I
cannot kill you!’ The enemy soldier was dumbfounded. ‘Why are you not
killing me, ‘Ali?’ he asked. ‘Why are you leaving me like this? Am I not
your enemy?’ Sayyidina ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) spoke: ‘It is
because I became filled with my ego’s anger that I cannot kill you! Before
you spat in my face, I was fighting with you for the sake of Allah. But,
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when you spat on me, I became angry for the sake of my ego! Therefore,
I cannot kill you! You may go.’ These words reached the fallen man’s
heart. ‘O ‘Ali!’ he cried, ‘You are on the right way! Please take me to your
Prophet (peace be upon him)!’ Then, the soldier was taken to Rasulullah
(peace be upon him), and, at the Prophet’s hand, he entered Islam.”

“Therefore,” said Shaykh Nazim, “if your anger is like this, if you
are like Sayyidina ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), then you too, may
be angry. If your character is not like that, you must keep it to yourself!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “Allah Almighty sent our Prophet (peace

be upon him) for what? He was sent to complete good characters, for
changing bad characters into good characters. He was teaching, during
his life, how a man can change his bad character into good. This is the
main goal of Prophethood.”

Once, I asked my Grandshaykh, “O my Master! Is there any

complaining from a man with good character?” “Never!” he replied to me.
“You, won’t find a man with good character complaining!” So many
complaints from man, you cannot count them. Yet, you never find a man
with good character complaining. Good charactered people are like a
healthy body. (He nudges one of his murids.) If you touch a healthy body,
there is no complaint. But if a man has sores on his skin, then, “Ouch!”
So, likewise, good charactered people are healthy in their spiritual lives.
But bad charactered people, they are like a man wounded; wounds
everywhere, you cannot touch any side of him, any part of his body.

Therefore, it is the measure of a man’s good character, or bad;

how much complaining he is doing. As much as his complaining is little,
you may know how few bad characteristics are left with him. When you
finish all your complaining, you may know that you are healthy. No more
bad character! This is an important point, because a good-charactered
person, if he has no complaint, has patience. And when he has patience,
it means that he has real faith, real Iman. Real faith equals good
character, and real faith also equals patience. To be patient, always.
Anywhere you are not patient, you are not in Iman. If a man complains, it
means he hasn’t any patience, no Iman. No Iman, no good character.

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Therefore, you must diminish your complaints until you haven’t
any left. Then, you will be restful. Nothing can give you trouble. You will
be like a rocket, going up till it reaches the point where it escapes the
earth’s pull; then, no troubles for it. When we can escape the pull of our
bad character, and reach the level of good character, there will be no
troubles for us also. Finished, in this life and in the life hereafter.

“How does one do that?” asked a murid.

“I am saying,” replied the Shaykh. “You must diminish complaints,

little by little. Rockets going up like this (he gestures with his hand). How
much power it is using to reach that point! It is not easy. You are starting
with so many complaints: of your wife, of your children, of your
neighbours, and of your family! From Jews, from Americans, from
Russians, from Jinn, from women, from boys, … everything! Too much
complaining! When it will be finished, good tidings!

“People are in trouble until they reach to the level of good

character. This is important. Therefore, our Prophet (peace be upon him)
said, ‘I came to take you from the lowest level of bad character to the
highest level of good character. Then, you will be in absolute happiness
and enjoyment!’ Do you understand now the wisdom of the Prophet’s
word, the hadiths? This is a lesson for all mankind. They can know
themselves; they can recognize their personality with this balance. Then
they can save themselves from all troubles, from all problems. This, only,
is enough. A little sentence; one question, and one answer, from my
Grandshaykh (may Allah be pleased with him); giving mankind such a
knowledge that it will be enough to carry them from all troubles to a
level where those troubles will be gone! Do you understand? Now we
must practice always to leave complaining. These words you wrote here
(and you are reading here), but it is written also will be able to remember
all the time. Divine powers are going through your heart, helping you to
recall these words. Immediately, will come to your heart, ‘I will not be a
complainer, because this thing that is happening to me is going on with
my Lord’s will!’ This is the key. This is the medicine for that illness! When
a complainer comes to you, you must remember that, ‘This thing is going
on with my Lord’s will. With Allah’s will it is going on!’”

“Are you speaking of the thing that is making us complain?” asked

a disciple.
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“Yes,” replied the Shaykh. “Without Allah’s knowledge and without

Allah’s will, nothing is going on. You must say, ‘Why am I complaining,
when He Almighty ordered this to be!’ Understand? This is practice.
When you remember this point, you will be satisfied with His will. You
will agree, also, with His will, with your Lord’s will. When you agree with
Him: happiness for you!”

Another question came: “What if you come up against injustice?

Wouldn’t this attitude lead you to say, ‘O, well, it’s just Allah’s will?’ Isn’t
this fatalism?”

Mawlana answered, “Correction for wrong things is another thing

entirely. We are not saying that you shouldn’t try to make wrong things
right, that you shouldn’t try to prevent badness. No! As much as we can,
we are correcting all things, if we can. But, what we are talking about
here, when we speak of reducing our complaints and accepting all things
as they come from our Lord’s will, are those positions in which Allah is
leaving us. For example, if we are poor – no complaining. If we are ill – no
complaining.”

“I don’t understand these things,” said one of our brothers,

“They’re very subtle. So much of the time, there’s confusion. When you
say not to complain, I think, ‘Okay, I’ll accept everything.’”

“We accept everything,” answered the Shaykh, “that Allah

Almighty is making happen to ourselves, and to other people.”

“How do you tell the difference between a badness that needs

correction, and a condition that you should accept?” asked another.
“Some things we definitely bring upon ourselves with our bad actions.”

Shaykh Nazim responded, “Bad actions bring some things on us,

but, when we keep ourselves, they do not come on us.”

A murid objected, “Don’t they sometimes come more? If you are a

man of God, doesn’t it make people angry with you?”

“Yes!” agreed the Shaykh. “But we are not complaining! We know

that if there is a tree with fruits on it, children will throw stones.
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Children cannot reach the fruit in high places, so they throw stones to
make it fall to them. Therefore, all Prophets have people throwing stones
at them. Understand? Some bad things come upon men because of their
bad doings, but that which comes upon Prophets and holy men is not
because of their bad doings. No, it is because they are like trees, full of
fruit which is high up and out of reach. Common people are like children,
they cannot reach the fruit. Therefore, with stones, bad people are trying
to reach those fruits.”

“Good people are waiting for the dates to fall?”

“Yes.”

A disciple said, “So, if something is going on in your house, and

you don’t want it, you can correct it? You can say, ‘Don’t do this, don’t do
that?’ You only have to accept that which you can do nothing about; is
that correct?”

“You may correct whoever will listen to you, but you must be very
careful,” Mawlana replied, “because all people, each of us, each man is
looking to himself and seeing that he alone fills the whole world. So big is
this looking to himself! Therefore, if you say to him, ‘Don’t do this!’ he will
never accept. But you may say instead, ‘O my Lord! If I were to do like
this one (the person you wish to correct) is doing, how would you look
upon it! Is it good, O my Lord, to do like this?’ When he hears this (or
words to that effect), he may realize that he is wrong, and come down
from his position. But, if you are saying to him, ‘Don’t do this!’ he will
never accept. He will have too much ego.” Mawlana went on: “In the case
of something going on in your home that is in direct violation of Allah’s
orders, for example, a family member wanting to eat pork, you may
forbid it. This is not complaining.”

A murid offered this comment: “Yes, but then if I forbid something

to my wife or children saying, ‘You can’t do that because it is against
Allah’s orders,’ they just say, ‘That’s just what you believe, not what I
believe! You have no right to impose your beliefs on me!’ That’s the
American way, Shaykh Nazim!”

“When that happens,” said Mawlana, “you are free. You may
continue to live with them or not. You are free. Or,” he added, “you may
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let them do those things, but you must not sit with them while they are
doing them. You must make it clear that you will not participate. She
(they) may sit alone, eating or drinking. As long as she (they) is not
Muslim, we cannot ask her (them) to obey the Islamic laws. She may even
go to church; she is free. Shariah gives us permission to marry someone
of another religion.”

“Don’t the children have to be raised Muslim?” asks another.

“The children are your responsibility, if they are your children.”

“So, we must make it clear that we are not free to take part in
forbidden things’?” said a murid.

Shaykh Nazim answered, “Yes.”

The murid who had originally raised the question objected,

saying, “But aren’t we getting off the point?” The second disciple
interrupted him: “No, because that’s leverage. If they realize that you’re
not going to participate certain things with them, no matter when they
do or say. . .”

“Yes,” said Shaykh Nazim.

The second brother continued, “. . . then they will either have to

drop what they are doing, or drop you!”

The Shaykh then said, “She may eat, she may drink! You must not
sit with her. She may go to church; you are not going with her!”

Still another murid asked, “What of the case when a neighbour’s

animals, for instance, destroy your property? Mustn’t we go to the judge
and complain? We can’t go around saying, ‘What a bad man my
neighbour is!’”

Mawlana answered, “If a man is bringing harm to you, Shariah

gives us the authority to prevent it. Shariah gives authority to prevent
harm among people. This is not complaining. It is your right to keep your
property secure. If anyone harms you, with his hand or with his tongue,
he is not a Muslim, not a believer. If you take action against that, we are
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saying that is not complaining. That is the right of Shariah. Say, for
instance,” elaborated the Shaykh, “that a man comes and cuts fruit off
your trees and takes it away. It is not complaining to stop him. If he is
making trouble, it is not complaining to take legal action against him. It is
the right of Shariah. There is no permission for doing harm in Islamic
law.”

A brother asked, “What are my rights regarding my non-Muslim

wife? Must I allow her to do as she wishes? What is legitimate for me to
demand of her, if anything?”

“Your rights?” said Mawlana. “To keep your honour. Your honour
is with your wife. If she is honourable (faithful), that is enough for you.
When you find her faithful with you, and she likes to be with you, it is
enough.”

“This is for a non-Muslim wife, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” replied the Shaykh, “and also for a Muslim wife.”

“But,” said a murid, “if you find a Muslim wife eating pork, or
drinking wine. . .”

“No,” replied the Shaykh, again, “because in the case of a Muslim,

she has been ordered not to do these things. We cannot give permission.
How? The answer is ‘No!’”

“You said before that there should be certain conditions in the

relationship. What should these be?” asked another disciple.

Mawlana answered him, “If your wife likes you and said ‘I am
satisfied with you as my husband. You are free in your religion, and I am
free in mine’, then there are no more conditions. The only conditions are
to be faithful with you, with your children, and with your property.”

“Is there anything else I have to submit to?” the first murid asked.

“If you like!” returned Shaykh Nazim. “If you don’t like, leave her!
But we prefer for believers to marry with unbelievers; so that from their
love for their husbands, they may approach belief themselves. Therefore,
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we are saying, ‘Keep her,’ so that day by day she may agree with you
because of her love for you. We have a saying: ‘Shartul mu’arfiqa
mu’arfiqa.’ It means ‘From the condition of friendship, we may me meet
on the same way.’ Therefore, she will take him on her way, or he will take
her on his way.”

“What if you marry an unbelieving woman,” asked a murid, “and,

as time goes by, and even though you are tolerant, still she is not coming
to Islam?”

“You must be patient with her for some time,” said the Shaykh,
“and you must pray to Allah to make her with you on the same way. ‘Keep
me, O my Lord, on Your way, and keep her with me also on Your way.’ If
there is no result, then you may say to her, ‘You are in your way and I am
in my way!’”

A murid said, “What if she begins to hate Islam, to speak badly of

the Prophet (peace be upon him), and to be vicious? Sometimes lslam
evokes very strong feelings in people.”

“You must leave her!” said the Shaykh. “Not coming to discussion!”

“But not until you’ve done the other things first?” said a murid.
“Not until you’ve been patient first?”

Shaykh Nazim nodded. “Yes,” he said. “An important point. We

must know that each person – their forelock is in the hands of Allah
Almighty. You cannot change people until Allah changes them. Even
Prophets cannot change people. If Allah is not changing, no one can
change. The hearts of people are in the hands of Allah Almighty. Maybe
Allah’s will is going to change a servant: therefore He is sending her to
you. If you have patience with her, your patience will bear fruit at the
end, and she will come on your way.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “Allah likes His servants to be obedient,

not stubborn and hard-headed. He never likes His servants to be hard-
headed.”

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“This is because Satan’s head was the first hard-head,” said
Shaykh Nazim, “and, whoever is walking on Satan’s way will be Satan
also!

“Our Grandshaykh also says that the sign of a man who is not
hard-headed is that he listens with respect to everyone. Clear? When a
man respects everyone, and listens to them, regardless of whether they
are young, old, or whatever, Allah Almighty promises to give to that
servant a knowledge, a wisdom, from the speech of people. This is
humbleness – to be soft-headed. Understand? You may find, from the
words of those you listen to with respect, something useful to you. This
is the reward for being soft-headed. This is a good manner, and a high
character also. We must listen, for as the hadith tells us: ‘You can take
wisdom, even from little boys, and those you think are mad!’ Divine
knowledge: Respect all and listen to all. You are ‘ribhan’ – profiting.
Good? Who can object to that? No one can object!”

A question: “Shaykh Nazim, you once said that if you go with

people of bad character, you’re going to carry some of that bad character
with you. Likewise, if you go with people of good character, you will
acquire some of that good character.”

“Yes,” agreed Mawlana.

“So, if that’s true, isn’t there a danger in listening to people?”

The Shaykh spoke, “Listening means that you may hear his words
only. I don’t mean to say that by listening, you must follow! I mean to say
that by listening you can take a benefit from his words. Even if a man is
speaking bad words, you may take something. You can look at how ugly it
is to speak bad words. You can learn not to speak bad words by listening
to those who speak them!”

“It makes me a little afraid,” responded a murid, “because,

sometimes you listen to people talk, and they just draw you right in.”

Another advised, “You must watch. You must be a good

watchman.”

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The first murid continued, “They’re very seductive with their
speech, and, as you listen, you find yourself starting to follow them. You
don’t want to, but you’re not paying attention, I guess…”

Shaykh Nazim answered, “Don’t be afraid of that. You must listen

in order to take something useful from his words. If you can find it, that
is your profit. Don’t refuse a man’s speech. If you listen with respect,
Allah Almighty will give you a knowledge from his speech.”

“Mawlana, there’s an ayat, I don’t remember it exactly, but it says

that if people are sitting and speaking badly about Islam, you must leave.
You may only return when they change the subject.”

“Yes,” replied the Shaykh, “you are learning from their bad words
how people are making themselves dishonourable and dirty. You must
see that, and then escape. You will profit.

“On the other hand,” Shaykh Nazim went on, “when a group of
people are sitting for the sake of Allah and His Prophet (peace be upon
him), the hand of our Lord is over them, protecting them. This was
taught to us by the Prophet (peace be upon him). We are, for instance,
sitting here in such a meeting. Here, over us is the hand of Allah Almighty
protecting us. We are sitting under his protection. Therefore, our
Grandshaykh says, ‘If any danger, or dangerous event happens, then
quickly sit somewhere in a group and make dua, dhikr, pray, or read
Quran. That group will be under divine protection.’

“During the war there will be huge events, terrible events, and
very difficult situations. There must be two or three (or more), as a group
praying. Then, no more fear for you; no more danger for you.”

A murid asked, “Does it have to be a group? it can’t be just one

person?”

“It is promised for a group,” said the Shaykh. “For two, or more; if
they are sitting (for the sake of Allah), there will be a private protection.
This is very important. If the meeting is for the sake of Allah and His
Prophet (peace be upon him), there will be protection.

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“Our Grandshaykh also said that, ‘When a group is sitting for the
sake of Allah and Muhammad (peace be upon him), then Allah Almighty
will give them something – a Divine knowledge will appear in that
meeting, one from which the whole group can take benefit. There will be
“inayah” – Divine help and care for them.’

“This meeting will be a holy meeting, and Allah will send to them
His Divine help, and mercy, and protection, and also a Divine knowledge.
It will appear in that meeting to guide them from all dangerous places
and lead them to the Divine Presence. it will be protection from life’s
dangers, and those of the Resurrection Day as well. So many groups will
be sitting for the sake of Allah and His Prophet (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:

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“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.

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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
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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.

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“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.”
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“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’
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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
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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.
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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?”

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“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.

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“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!
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“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.
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“’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.”

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“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.”

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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

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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?”

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“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.

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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!
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“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 world.
It is very clean, beautiful, joyful – exact happiness, no harm, no bad
things, no death, no ugly things!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “Knowledge is an endless ocean. All things

that belong to Allah Almighty are endless, and Allah is teaching His
servants so many different kinds of knowledge. Some of this knowledge
originated at the time of Adam (peace be upon him), and has come down
to our times. It is a huge body of knowledge, but it is very small
compared with the knowledge that saints know about from before the
time of Adam (peace be upon him).”

Shaykh Nazim continued, “Now, from Adam (peace be upon him)

up until our time, there is Divine knowledge, held by the Awliya. But,
before the creating of Adam (peace be upon him) there was so much
knowledge, according to those who know. This knowledge, the
knowledge that we have about our own era, is only like a drop from an
ocean!

“This makes our heads turn! What was there before Adam (peace
be upon him)? Thinking of these things makes man humble, not able to
say ‘l know all!’ What do we know? Only a little drop from oceans, no
more.”

A brother asked, “Was Adam (peace be upon him) the first man,
or, was he the first man of this batch of men, of which we are a part?”

Shaykh Nazim answered, “We are coming to that now. Our

Grandshaykh said that this is the period of our father, Adam (peace be
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upon him), and his sons. We are living in it now. But, before our father’s
period, so many Adams have been created, no one knows how many
except Allah Almighty, the Creator! No one knows their number!”

A murid asked, “Were these…”

“Adams,” supplied the Shaykh.

“…Adams,” repeated the questioner, “Were they like us, or were

they different?”

“Like them,” answered Mawlana. “Each Adam, and his sons, were
generally like us, in that they may be recognized as sons of Adam. All are
servants of our Lord. Also, He Almighty, alone knows how many Adams
will come after us, how many periods there will be. Not on this world,
because Allah Almighty has so many universes beyond counting.

“He is Creator,” Mawlana continued, “Creating. To create means

to make them appear. They are hidden; to create is to make them appear.
We were hidden in His power oceans but now He makes us appear.
When our period is finished, we will go back into that power ocean, to be
hidden again. We are going to another station in that power ocean,
Paradise. Paradise is also in His power oceans. They are swimming in His
power oceans and in His mercy oceans, living, enjoying. When we
disappear from this appearance, then we shall be in mercy oceans,
enjoying.”

* * * * * * *

“Our Grandshaykh says, ‘Allah Almighty was addressing those

Adams that were created before our father, Adam (peace be upon him),
with the secrets of Holy Quran. Quran, the Holy book, contains endless
secret knowledge. Its secrets are such that you can find, included in it, all
news from before and after us.”

Someone asked, “When the Quran is translated into English, are

all the secrets lost?”

Shaykh Nazim answered, “From translations you can take only a

little part. What is a translation? It is like you and your photograph. What
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is the relationship between them? Are you the same as your picture? One
may look at the photograph, and know that it is you, but... Do you prefer
to take the photograph of your wife to sleep with, or her? The original
and the translation is like this. Now, Shakespeare’s Hamlet is translated
into German. Is it the same? It cannot be. It is only an appearance
without spirit!”

The Shaykh continued, “Our Grandshaykh says that secrets of

Holy Quran will appear in the time of Mahdi (peace be upon him). Jesus
(peace be upon him) also said, ‘The secrets of Holy books will appear at
the end of our period when Mahdi (peace be upon him) comes.’ Quran is
addressed to all and speaks to all. No one can be excluded from the
Quran’s address. It is for everyone, generally and individually.

“There are seven heavens – no planets, but seven flats of heavens,

and so many creatures, most of them angels.”

A disciple asked in surprise, “You say there are no other planets?”

“Everywhere, there are so many creatures,” said the Shaykh.

“Nothing is empty. Everything is full-up with servants of our Lord,
worshipping and giving respects to their Lord.”

“Mawlana, is this the only place there are disobedient servants,

Satan, etc?”

Shaykh Nazim replied, “This is for the sons of Adam (peace be

upon him). When the secrets of Holy Quran appear, it means we shall be
in contact with Heavens, that people will be in contact with their
Heavenly positions.

“Our Grandshaykh says that the Holy Quran is written in the

Divine Presence, but not in the words and letters that we use here. It is
written in a manner that is impossible to speak about. You cannot
describe it.”

A murid points to some copies of Quran, and says, “Then these

books are not the real Quran?”

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Mawlana answered, “In the Divine Presence, it is completely
different writing.”

“The same words?”

“It is different, quite different. That is the secret Quran, in the

Divine Presence. It belongs to Allah Almighty, eternally.

“Now,” continued Shaykh Nazim, “we are coming to that question

you asked that ‘Alim, that Shaykh, last night. (He was referring to a
discussion some of the murids had at dinner the night before. They had
been the guests of a scholarly shaykh who lived in Damascus.) Here, our
Grandshaykh asks, ‘When Allah said, ‘I am Allah!’ (Inna anAllah) – He is
the first, eternal, no beginning and no end for Him, to whom did he say, ‘I
am Allah?’ Was he Allah for Himself? It is impossible. The king is not king
for himself. He is king for his people. Allah, to whom was Allah? Without
anything He was Allah? Do you think so? Servants need Allah, but Allah
does not need to be Allah for Himself?

“We need Allah for ourselves. But Allah has no need for Himself to
be Allah. Allah is the Creator, isn’t He? He became Creator after a time, or
was He Creator? He was Creator! All His attributes are eternal. All things
belonging to Allah, His attributes exist with Him eternally. If a thing came
later, it would not be fitting to be a Divine attribute. He is not like us. We
have beginning; from weakness we grow, becoming stronger. We are
illiterate and then we learn. But Allah? He is not like His creatures. The
Creator has completeness forever – Perfection. He was Creator at the
beginning. Was He Creator without creatures? You think so? You are
wrong. How can you say that Allah is Creator and had no creatures? Is it
only a title, without meaning? No, He is the owner- ‘Rabbil alameen.’ He
is Lord, ‘Rabb,’ He was Lord for ‘alameen,’ for all. When was He the Lord?
He was Lord at the first, and at the last. He is Lord, arranging His
creatures, and giving them directions to their destinations. Without any
servants how can He be Lord of creatures?

“Therefore, when we say, ‘When He created,’ it means that all

creatures were hidden in His mercy oceans. When He wills, when He
orders creation; He makes them appear. All the universe was in His
mercy oceans. It was in His power oceans, hidden, without appearance.
Creation makes it appear. Understand?”
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A brother said, “So we, His servants, always were? Is that

correct?”

“Always,” replied Mawlana.

“And always will be?” the brother asked again.

Before the Shaykh could answer, another asked, “Before this was
made manifest, when we were hidden in the mercy ocean, was there any
awareness of existence?”

“We are coming to that,” answered Shaykh Nazim. He continued

his talk: “Is there anything you can imagine that is out of His power? Or,
is there anything out of His mercy? He says, ‘My mercy is around all
things.’ Therefore, it encompasses all things – finished. Did any other
creature buy us from Him? Did they capture us from Him, and bring us
here? What are you saying – not thinking?

“This is a very deep ocean, but Alhamdulillah, with the power of

Grandshaykh, makes it easy to understand. He says, ‘La Ilaha illAllah’ is
written eternally. Muhammadun Rasulullah is written in eternal
existence, also. Allah wrote, in His Divine Presence, also, ‘La Ilaha illa
anna wa Muhammadin Rasuli!’ This means, ‘I am your Lord, and
Muhammad is My servant and My Prophet!’”

“Shaykh Nazim,” asked a murid, “when you said that there were
countless Adams before us, were there also countless Muhammads?”

“Just one,” answered the Shaykh.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says that in our time no one from among the
Awliya has been given permission to speak about secret knowledge
except him. He may speak Quranic secrets. He says also that Allah
Almighty opened to Muhammad (peace be upon him) the ocean of
secrets of the Holy Quran, and He is also opening it to Mahdi (peace be
upon him), and giving to him from that secret knowledge of Quran.
Mahdi (peace be upon him) is given seven hundred kinds of knowledge
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over the knowledge of all saints! No one has yet been given such as
Mahdi (peace be upon him) has been given. Because he is coming to
address all people, it will be enough to correct and direct all people on to
their destinations.

* * * * * * *

It is from secret knowledge that our Grandshaykh says that Allah

Almighty wrote His Name and His Unity (La Ilaha illAllah) firstly, and no
one can know the time it was written. At the same time it was written,
‘Muhammadin Rasulullah’. As Muhammad (peace be upon him) was
Prophet, he was also his Lord’s servant. This is very important – that
Muhammad (peace be upon him) was worshipping his Lord at the same
time that he was Rasulullah. No one, except his Lord, knows when he
began worshipping his Lord. Muhammad (peace be upon him) was the
servant of Allah Almighty from the beginning. No one knows that
beginning. It is in eternal existence.

“We are saying,” continued Shaykh Nazim, “to whom was Allah in
eternal existence? Who was in the Divine Presence that Allah was
speaking to, who was He addressing? He was Muhammad (peace be upon
him). Muhammad (peace be upon him) was His servant and His Prophet
in eternal existence. Other Prophets were under the flag of Muhammad
(peace be upon him), worshipping their Lord, also.”

Mawlana continued, “When a Prophet comes, he makes wrong

things correct. He doesn’t destroy good things also. Such a person is a
devil, not a Prophet. You may look in history; every time people were
becoming like animals, Allah Almighty sent them a Prophet to keep them
on the right way, and to keep their honour – to correct people’s wrong
actions. All Prophets came just for that purpose. if anyone says that after
Muhammad (peace he upon Him) there is a Prophet, we must look at
what he did. Nothing! If they are saying Bahaii is a Prophet, we must ask
what he did. Did he correct wrong things in people, or did he make them
more wrong? If a man claims Prophethood after Muhammad (peace be
upon him), he must show us what good thing he did for mankind. Bahaii?
Show us what he did. The followers of Muhammad (peace be upon him)
number millions and millions, and many people are correcting their
wrongs when they follow him. But who corrects his way from Bahaii?
They are drinking, they are eating dirty things, they are doing dirty
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actions. They are not preventing zina, adultery! How will it be a
correction for people to follow that way!

“We understand that Prophets and religions are sent to give us a

control on our nafs, to give people a power for controlling themselves.
This is the meaning of religions, and the purpose of Prophethood. As our
Prophet (peace be upon him) said, ‘I came just to complete good
character, and to save people from bad character. And, no one can reach
good character until he can control himself, his ego.’

“This is because egos’ characters are all the worst characters. If a

man cannot control himself, his character is the worst: he will be worse
than wild animals.”

“Shaykh Nazim,” said a murid, “in America, a man may say, ‘I can
do whatever I like as long as I’m not harming anyone else, and I am still a
good man.”

“If he is a good man,” answered the Shaykh, “he cannot harm

himself either. How may a man who destroys his house with his own
hands be a good man? He who burns his house, his family, is he good?”

“People say this,” the murid insisted.

Mawlana replied, “He may go to the jungle to make himself free!

Understand? In jungle, freedom; no one says ‘No.’”

“But that’s the kind of questions they ask!” the brother said.

“He may ask question,” said Mawlana, “we shall give answer, ‘O
guy! You may be in jungle, free! Not here, O guy! You may go to jungle,
where animals are free like you!’ (Everyone is laughing.)

“We have a method from our Grandshaykh. You must not argue
with a man, if you know that you are on the right way, if you know that
rightness is with you. If that person doesn’t accept, don’t tire yourself in
arguing with him or trying to teach them. Don’t argue with hard-headed
people. Leave them! You must be like rivers; when a hard rock is in the
way, you must go around it. You must not stop with hard-headed people.
Change your way to a soft one. In the time of our Prophet (peace be
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upon him), he left hard-headed people, and so many Sahaba came and
accepted him. ‘Argument,’ says our Grandshaykh, ‘extinguishes the light
of faith.’ Therefore, it is prohibited.

“This is a very important point! Because, nowadays, men are

proud of their knowledge, of their thinking. No one is humble enough to
listen to another. Everyone says, ‘I know!’ Therefore, you may find so
many arguments everywhere. Quickly leave that argument; no baraka, no
blessing from that meeting. There is no ‘inaya,’ no Divine help. Therefore,
you must leave it. Understand? The example of the river is very good for
us. It is an important lesson for us, because arguing is wasting your time,
wasting your energy, and wasting your faith, also!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh is explaining to us the reality of mankind, the

sons of Adam (peace be upon him):

“Our bodies have no life without spirit. Also for our spirit there is
again a spirit. And then for that spirit there is also a spirit. No one knows
what is the reality of spirit. What is spirit? No one can explain it. There is
no description for the spirits of men. And no one can know the spirit of
our spirit except Allah Almighty.

“We were already with our spirit’s spirit in the Divine Presence,
when Allah Almighty said, ’La Ilaha illAllah, Muhammadun Rasulullah.’ We
were in the Divine Presence; our spirit was there.”

Someone asked, “How many spirits?”

Mawlana answered, “Three: spirit, spirit’s spirit, and spirit’s spirit’s

spirit! The third spirit was in the Divine Presence when Allah said, ‘La
ilaha illAllah, Muhammadun Rasulullah.’ We accepted that, and we were
His servants from that time. Those spirits belong to Divine stations, it is
out of time and space. When a thing is out of time and space, you cannot
give any description for it: It is impossible.”

“When Allah said, ‘La Ilaha illAllah, Muhammadun Rasulullah,’ was

that out of time and space?” asked a brother.

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“Yes.”

“So, when you say, ‘We have been serving him ever since,’ you
don’t mean ‘ever since,’ as in time?”

“Now, we are in time and space,” said Mawlana, “we cannot

understand.”

“But it doesn’t mean the same thing if Allah said it yesterday, does
it?” the murid wanted to know.

“No,” replied the Shaykh, “no time, no space in Divine Presence.

Therefore, people lose their understanding. They are trying to bring all
the realities into time and space. How can you put an ocean in a glass? It
is impossible. How can you bring realities from out of time and space
into time and space? But we believe only that our origins are out of time
and space, that we have been caught from that Presence and brought
here to this world.”

“The mercy oceans are out of time and space?” asked a brother.

“Yes,” said Mawlana. “Yes. All things belong to Allah. Allah

Almighty is out of time and space, and we are His servants out of space
and time, also. We are worshipping Him, timelessly and endlessly.

“Do you think that we came from that Divine Presence with our
whole originality, our whole personality? Never! We are like one ray
coming from the sun. We are, in our originality, in reality, still in the
Divine Presence. Not moving, out of time and space there is no moving.
We are worshipping, continuously. Here, in this life, there is only one ray,
from that timeless ‘sun,’ for us. We are here for a little time, only.

“There are so many things you have yet to hear. Now, nothing.
When you break your prisons, you will be free and you will catch your
personality. At that time you will know your Lord; not now. Our
worshipping is going on, without stopping, out of time and space. We are
always in the Divine Presence for service. Prophets have come to us to
open that door through which we can look at our realities. We have
realities in the Divine Presence (Haqiqat). Step by step, if you are going, it

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will open for you to look at yourself, to know yourself. As of yet, you
don’t know yourself!

“Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says, ‘When you know yourself,
you will know your Lord.’ We don’t know ourselves; we need a Divine
mirror to look in to see ourselves. You are asking why we are coming to
this life. It is to be witnesses of ourselves! We were in Divine oceans; no
time to look at ourselves. When we come to this world, there is no time
to look to that position; now, we are all looking to ourselves. We have
been sent to attain perfection, to look at ourselves and say, ‘We are
something, also!’ We recognize ourselves now.

“These things,” Mawlana went on, “all that I am saying to you, is

like trying to describe the taste of honey. Yet, you have never tasted it.
When you will taste, you will know. More than this description I cannot
make until you taste it by yourself. Then… (he puts his finger to his
mouth, as if tasting) . . . ‘It’s honey!’

“How can I describe for a little boy what it means to be a perfect

man? Can you describe anything about the attributes of a perfect man to
a three-year-old boy? A five-year-old boy? Can you describe it? Never!
He may sleep with ten girls; nothing. He knows nothing, and you cannot
describe to him yet what it will be like. But when he reaches the age of
perfection, he will know! Understand? Now, we are saying, ‘Like this, like
that.’ We must wait to reach that age; then you will taste.

“And this is the way for tasting; there is no other. You can’t find it.
So many devils, making such wrong ways; making people most foolish
also! No one is coming for dunya to this masjid. No, you are asking
valuable things. You are asking to know yourself, and my Grandshaykh is
ordering me to tell about all ways, directing you to your stations in the
Divine Presence. You are asking me if I know your positions in the Divine
Presence. I know who is sitting on my right side, on my left side, in front
of me, behind me, around me; I know!”

* * * * * * *

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PART THREE
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* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “Allah says that He has all power, and that
His servants are powerless. Only Allah has absolute power. Now, people
are saying, ‘We have power!’ They don’t accept their powerlessness.
Therefore, they cannot reach any target in their lives.

“All the universe needs power to work. Without power, nothing

moves, nothing stands. The smallest atomic particle – from where does it
get the huge amount of power it needs to exist?

“Allah, nothing else, is giving this power to all the universe. All
things, from the smallest to the biggest, are receiving from the endless
power oceans of Allah Almighty. Only the Creator can say. If He withheld
that power for even an instant, everything would vanish!

“Who gave Prophethood to Prophets? If Allah didn’t give

prophecy, they would be ordinary people. Sainthood is also a power
given by Allah Almighty. So it is for all creatures; each has a power given
to it by Allah. From where does the ant get his huge strength? The
elephant his huge size? There are countless insects, countless creatures
in the oceans; each has been given a private destination and
corresponding power from Allah’s endless power oceans.

“Muhyiddin ibn ’Arabi (may Allah be pleased with him) spoke

about ‘Malakut,’ describing it as the Divine power that accompanies all
things. He said that this power is in our Lord’s hands, and that it is within
everything that is in existence. His kingdom is going on everywhere,
from the smallest to the biggest.

“Allah is the main power station for all creatures. Therefore,

Muhammad (peace be upon him) asked his Lord, ‘O my Lord! Don’t leave
me to myself! If You leave me to myself, I will perish!’ The Prophet (peace
be upon him) had exact knowledge of this point. Therefore, he was
asking for Divine help and Divine power every second, every moment, in
all conditions throughout his life. If a man knows this point (yaqin), he
knows that as much as you are powerless, you must ask from your Lord.

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“All Divine help, all Divine power, comes to weak people more
than to powerful people. As much as you are in need, as much as you are
opening to Allah, help is coming. If you don’t feel in need of your Lord,
you will be left to yourself, and you will perish.

“O my Lord, every second, I am in need of Your Divine help! Don’t

leave me for even the blink of an eye to my nafs, or I will perish! This is a
most important thing to know. Very few people possess this secret.

“Now, learned people depend on their knowledge, rich people on

their wealth, powerful people on their power. This is wrong. I am always
asking my Lord for power to explain these realities. Without it, I am
nothing. If a man claims, ‘I am clever!’ he is stupid-clever. Don’t be this
way. He who claims, ‘I know! I am a learned man!’ he is an ignorant
learned-man. He who claims, ‘I am rich! I do not need anyone for
anything!’ he is a poor rich-man.”

* * * * * * *

“This my Grandshaykh taught me,” said Mawlana. “The Prophet’s

hadiths are equal to and have the same rank, as Quran. We must respect
the hadiths as much as we respect the Holy Quran’s verses. They are an
explanation of Quranic verses. In hadiths the Prophet (peace be upon
him) did not speak for himself, but with revelation from Allah Almighty. If
Allah didn’t permit it, he couldn’t speak. Therefore, we respect the words
of the Prophet (peace be upon him) as much as we respect the words of
Holy Quran.”

Someone asked, “Does this mean that we should make wudhu

before reading a book of hadiths, as we do for reading Quran?”

Mawlana answered, “If we are asking real goodness from any

religious book, we must not take it without wudhu. Without wudhu, we
are not on the right way. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) advised us
always to have wudhu because it is the weapon of Muslims against devils.
Devils cannot approach a man who has wudhu.

“Our Prophet (peace be upon him) explained Holy Quran

according to our capacity,” the Shaykh continued, “because the Quran is
Allah’s word while hadiths are the Prophet’s words. Our Prophet (peace

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be upon him) is from mankind like ourselves, and so his words are easier
for us to understand. Therefore, he is explaining the intricacies of Quran
to us.”

A murid asked, “How do we know if a hadith is authentic?”

Shaykh Nazim replied, “If a trustworthy ‘Alim says or writes in a

book that such and such is a hadith, you must believe. For example, al-
Ghazali (may Allah be pleased with him) wrote many books containing
many hadiths. Some people consider some of these hadiths to be weak,
but we are not in agreement with this thinking. We believe Imam Ghazali
(may Allah be pleased with him) to be a gigantic ‘Alim, a ‘king size’ ‘Alim.
He is not an ordinary ‘Alim; he is true and trustworthy. Therefore, we
trust in all hadiths that he has written.

“If you find any learned man in whom your heart believes and
trusts, you must believe any hadiths he tells you. This is the way of
students and also of common people, for hadiths. But Awliya, to whom
Allah Almighty has given light, are different. They may listen to a man and
see if light is coming from his speech. Then, they may know if his words
are correct. Also, when Awliya are reading, they may see those hadiths
which are exact, shining from the page. They are the words of the
Prophet (peace be upon him), coming with light, filled with light. When a
man can see this, he is not in need for the opinions of another as to
which hadith is strong and which is weak.

“So many ‘Alims are denying this or that hadith While Awliya say
that those hadiths are all right. Thus, we take hadiths from those people
who have the light of lman in their hearts showing them the truth. Also, if
any book has hadiths from the Prophet (peace be upon him), we accept it
out of respect for the Prophet (peace be upon him). If it is an incorrect
hadith, there is no responsibility for us if we accept it. This is a high adab,
or good manners. If someone says, ‘This is a hadith,’ we believe it out of
respect to our Prophet (peace be upon him)”

Someone asked, “So, until we receive that higher vision that the
Awliya have, we must accept all hadiths as true?”

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“Yes,” said Mawlana, “if you are not doing this, you cannot go
forward, no! If we read it in a book, hear it from an ‘Alim or from a man,
out of respect for our Prophet (peace be upon him) we must believe it.”

“You mean, we cannot question the source?” said a murid.

“No,” Mawlana answered, “it is no good. To agree, to say, ‘All right’

is better. But it is difficult to do this. It is a sign of a clean heart to say, ‘All
right.’ If a man’s heart is not clean, he will ask, ‘From where is this? From
where is that?’ So many questions! It shows that his heart isn’t clean. As
much as he questions, so much is his heart filled with doubts.”

“Are there many collections of hadiths that are valid?”

“So many,” said Mawlana. “All of them. Any book that is written as
hadiths of Prophet (peace be upon him), we must believe. This is my way
(madhhab).”

“But now have you reached the point where you can see the light
coming from the true hadiths?” asked a disciple.

The Shaykh replied, “Ahh, yes. But you cannot reach that point
until you believe every word and saying that is hadith. This way will take
you to that point; to look . . . Lights! It is very difficult to accept this.”

* * * * * * *

Shaykh Nazim said, “Our Grandshaykh also told me another

important point. It is about the importance of dhikr-the importance of
remembrance of Allah.

“He said to me, once, ‘O Nazim Effendi! All ranks, or spiritual

levels, that a man may reach in this life and the next life will be reached
by remembrance of Allah with dhikr. Dhikr means to be with Allah
Almighty always; in all situations all the time. So many people are saying,
“Allah! Allah!” but when they are acting they are not with their Lord; only
their tongues. Understand? It is not important to say, “Allah!” It is
important to remember, always, that He is with you. When you are
looking, He is with you. When you are walking, He is with you. When you
are sitting, He is with you. When you are speaking, He is with you. When

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you are thinking, when you are eating, when you are sleeping, He is with
you. He is not going to leave you. This is dhikr!’”

* * * * * * *

My Grandshaykh taught me:

“The highest degree of miracles for a person, what is it? It is to

keep the way of his Lord firmly so that any time his Lord looks after him,
He will see him on his Lord’s way. He will see him on the correct way –
moving towards Him. If you catch a thing, it must be forever, without
leaving it. If you catch something in your hand, no one must take it from
you; even if they cut off your hand. Our Prophet (peace be upon him)
said, ‘In those times (He was referring to the times We are living in
today), it will be more difficult for a man to keep religion, to keep belief
in his hand, than to keep fire in his hand!’ It is so difficult, but you must
keep it.”

“What about a man who gives up his religion?” someone asked

Shaykh Nazim.

“It is like a man who had a ruby in his hand and threw it away,”
answered Mawlana. “He didn’t know the value of what he had. If he knew,
he wouldn’t leave it.”

“So,” the brother said, “that man never really knew what he had?”

“Yes,” the Shaykh answered. “If he knew, how could he leave it? If
a man has a diamond in his hand and knows it, he will not give it up even
if they cut his hand.”

“Our Grandshaykh told me a story that took place during World

War I. Some soldiers from one side were chasing a soldier from the other
side. They came to a river, where they finally caught him, and took his
rifle away. When the soldier who took the gun examined it, he found that
the stock was filled with diamonds! When his comrades, who were in
need of weapons, tried to take the captured rifle from him, that soldier
wouldn’t give it up. He struggled so hard to keep it that seven men
couldn’t get it away from him. Finally, our Grandshaykh persuaded him

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to let them have the gun, saying, ‘O my brother! We are not the enemy!
We are your comrades, and we need that gun to defend ourselves!’

“Your service to your Lord should be like that. You must not leave
it. No one must take it from you. This is the biggest miracle for Muslims,
for believers. When you know that an order, a faith, an action, or a
religion is true, you must keep it forever, until the end. Don’t leave it!”

“This belief that we are holding in our hands,” said a murid, “can
you pass it along to others, also?”

“Yes,” said Mawlana. “You may look in your hand and say, ‘So
many diamonds! Look! Each of you may take one and keep it!’ You must
advise them.”

“Must people ask for that knowledge?” said another.

“If someone asks you,” replied the Shaykh, “you may give to him, if
you know. If you are with your Lord, you will be able to answer him. You
will not be alone if you are making dhikr. Allah says in Quran, ‘You must
ask from those who are in remembrance with Me.’ If you are with your
Lord, anyone can ask you any question; your Lord will put answers on
your tongue.”

* * * * * * *

“For each act of worship that Allah or Prophet (peace be upon

him) has ordered, Allah Almighty opens a door from His mercy for those
who perform that worship. It is a reward for them from their Lord. There
are five hundred kinds of worship, or five hundred different acts of
worship and goodness. According to a servant’s capacity, he may do as
much as he is able. All of them are to please Allah only. This is our target,
to make our Lord pleased with us.

“He is pleased with us when we do goodness, but He is not

pleased with us when we leave worship and do badness. For each
worship, there is a special mercy coming. That door is opening into this
life from time to time, and if a servant meets that opening time, he can
reach his Lord’s Presence very quickly at that moment.

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“For example, Allah Almighty gave the order for the Laylatul Qadr,
the Night of Power. It is only once in a year, and during that night there
is only a second in which the Divine Presence occurs. At that time, the
Heavens 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!’

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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

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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.

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“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

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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.

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“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

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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

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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

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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.

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“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

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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!

* * * * * * *

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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,

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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.

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“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!”

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* * * * * * *

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.

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“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 to be asked what he is bringing, but he
is asked, “What do you want?” I am coming, O my Majesty Sultan, to You,
and I am expecting You to ask me what I want! What can I bring to You?
You have all things, endless treasures. I have nothing. I am asking from
Your mercy, O my Lord! Give to me!’ – This is from the Sultan ul Arifin,
the King of the Knowers!”

* * * * * * *

Allah Almighty accepts our prayers. Everything we ask of Him, He

is going to accept; maybe He gives it quickly, or maybe He delays it until
our life’s end, until the grave or until the Judgment. But, He will give to
every person who asks from Him. He is ‘Al-Mujib,’ the Accepter, the
Answerer.

My Grandshaykh said to me: “O my son! I will teach you a short,

but powerful prayer – Say, ‘O my Lord! I am asking you to accept all the
prayers I have made to You until the end of my life; also all the prayers at
which I was present, or that I hear, before I go from this life. O my Lord!
Show me the results of these prayers. May my prayers be acceptable
from now up until my life’s end and give me from Your secret mercy
treasures, from Your secret favours, more ‘hidaya’ (guidance), and make
me more respectable here and hereafter.

“Thirdly, give me power, from Your power oceans. From Your

endless power oceans give me power so that I can help all Your servants
and guide them to Your mercy oceans and favours, so that I may be as
Your Prophet (peace be upon him) says, ‘The leader of a nation is the
servant of his nation.’”

* * * * * * *

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Our Grandshaykh was saying, about all Awliya, “Some Awliya are
too ashamed to ask anything from their Lord, because they see that they
are in endless need of their Lord. They say, ‘O my Lord! You know best
what I need from your mercy. My needs are endless. Fulfil my needs, O
my Lord, as you know.’

“If any man reaches to absolute cleanliness in his heart, so that no

more bad characters will be with him; if a man has a pure heart, and he
has reached the Divine Presence, and he has authority to always be in
the Divine Presence; if he has pleasure with being in the Divine Presence;
if that person is veiled, for even one moment from the Divine Presence,
his heart will explode! Literally! So great will his sorrow be! Those people
are making dhikr silently, duas secretly. This is the highest degree for
people. Pure heart.

“For people still approaching this level, it may be better to make

dhikr loudly, duas loudly. Even dancing, for the sake of Allah, may be
acceptable!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh teaches us about those situations in our lives

that we can meet with joking and laughter. Many people like joking, but it
is not true of everybody. Not every person carries joking with them. (You
can’t make jokes with everybody, because some people can’t take it.) To
whom may you make jokes? To one who, if you break his hand, is not
angry with you. He is not changing his situation with regard to you, not
changing his love for you. With such a person you may joke, not with
everyone. Joking is a good way to keep peoples’ hearts good with you.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying that Sayyidina Umar (may Allah be

pleased with him) was always praying witr at the end of the night, but
Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) was praying before sleeping.
Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “I am praying witr before
sleeping because if I am going to die before I awaken, I don’t want to be
in my Lord’s Presence without witr. Therefore, I am hurrying to pray witr
before sleeping.”

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But Sayiddina Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) delayed witr
until the end of the night, and he said, “As our Prophet (peace be upon
him) said, ‘Actions are rewarded according to intentions.’ Therefore, I
intend to pray witr at the end of the night. If I die before praying witr,
but I intend to pray, it is all right.”

“An important point,” says our Grandshaykh, “is that, in the sight
of our Prophet (peace be upon him), Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with
him), and all Grandshaykhs in Naqshbandiyya; their opinion is not to
delay any worship out of its time.

“Everything must be in its time. You cannot put it out of its time,
because every time is occupied, full-up. You cannot find empty time.
Therefore, it is a foolishness to say, ‘I shall do this tomorrow.’ It is
craziness and stupidness because tomorrow is not empty. It is occupied,
full-up with actions that you have, responsibilities for fulfilling. If you
cannot carry today’s load, how can you carry tomorrow’s load also – two
loads!

“Therefore, in our tariqat there is no delaying actions. Actions

must be done in their times. As Allah Almighty says, ‘For praying there is
a special time and order.’ This is a sign for us that for each action, there
is a special time, and we must do it in that time without delay. Thus, to
delay an action is an unacceptable thing before our Prophet (peace be
upon him), Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him), and all
Naqshbandi Grandshaykhs!

“Asking to delay our actions comes from our nafs. Our nafs is very
lazy. It does not like to move. Therefore, it wishes to delay all things. To
our nafs, it seems easy to say, ‘I shall do it tomorrow.’ It is always
escaping from serious actions. The nafs only likes to play.

“There is an important hadith on this subject. It applies to all

people, not just Muslims. ‘Halakal inu safafu’: ‘Procrastinators are self-
destroyed!’ This hadith signifies that Muhammad (peace be upon him)
was sent for all nations. It is a high wisdom. He who delays his actions is
destroyed, because today’s working is better than tomorrow’s working. It
is golden! If you can do the whole work tomorrow, it is only silver!
Today’s action is a virgin, tomorrow’s will be a widow!”

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* * * * * * *

Now we are speaking on the beauties and endless pleasures and

endless favours of Allah Almighty, the endless taste of Paradise such as I
heard from my Grandshaykh and such as you have never yet heard!

In Paradise, there are so many favours of Allah Almighty that it is

impossible to describe. Only some of them can you understand. My
Grandshaykh said to me: “If a man eats from Paradise, one small morsel,
how shall I describe how it will be! An olive, for example – in this life, it is
very bitter. But, in Paradise. . . You will take more good taste from one
olive there than you can find from all the good tastes from forty days’
meals in this life!

“How will it be? O my brother! We are in prison, and we don’t

know! There is no taste in this life, yet we are running after it. In this life
the first piece of food is the best, the second not as good, and the last
one is tasteless. But in Paradise the more the eating the more the taste!
With each, the taste increases successively.”

“And,” our Grandshaykh was saying, “if a man looks upon one of
the ladies of Paradise (houris), he will be useless with the most beautiful
girl in this world. So radiant are their beauties!

“But, if a woman is a believer in this world, her beauty in the next

world will be greater than that of those girls in Paradise. Women
believers will be queens in Paradise; the houris will be their servants!
Theirs will be endless pleasures and beauties.

“Allah Almighty will ask each servant on the Judgment Day, ‘O My

servant! What about My favours to you? How did you use them, for good
or for bad?’ This is the most difficult situation for believers, indeed, for all
people. We must be ready to reply quickly so that we may move on to
Paradise. If you used His favours for His pleasure, it is a pleasure for you,
also, that day – no difficulties.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying that egoism is the worst character

in people. It is born with people, and grows with them. You may see it in

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everyone. They attribute all things to their ego – their mind, their
success, all things and, in so doing, they are losing their Creator and
their Creator’s favours for them as well. Every person’s ego thinks
himself to be his majesty, the king, and this is the reason for all the
troubles in this world.

All Prophets have come to fight this false idea. Even a believer
may fall prey to his egotism. Every time he thinks that his good deeds or
his prayers are the result of his own doing, he fails to observe that those
actions are his Lord’s favours to him. He is thus at fault, having left good
manners.

It is good manners to observe all goodness as being from our

Lord’s favour to us, and all badness as being from our ego. He who says, ‘I
am such and such’ (a worshipper, a commander, a learned man, etc.), is
claiming Divinity. It is only for Allah to say, ‘I am.’ When He says, ‘I am
your Lord!’ it is true. It is not for His servants to say, ‘I am.’ This is what
Iblis said, and it was the first egoism. ‘I am better,’ he said, and whoever
says this about himself is on the same level with Iblis!

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh explains ‘tawbah’ (repentance):

“What is tawbah? It is not listening to your four enemies – nafs,

hawa (desires), dunya, and Satan. To repent is not to listen to ego and its
desires, or devils, or the temporary pleasures of this life. This is the
reality, the real meaning of repentance. Man may agree with his Lord or
with his four common enemies. If you are in agreement with your
enemies, you haven’t faith nor mind. If you are in disagreement with your
Lord, you must be an unbeliever!

Thus, real tawbah, real repentance, is to be in disagreement with

your enemies. Don’t listen to their orders! If a man is asking to return to
his Lord, he must leave; he must be in rebellion against those four
enemies.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh said, about women:

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“Once, in a dream, I saw our Prophet (peace be upon him), who

said to me, ‘A woman must keep respect for her husband so much that if
she is sitting in a meeting with Khidr (peace be upon him), all Prophets,
and all saints, she must keep her husband’s respect above all of them!’

“If she is not going to respect her husband as much as that, she
cannot take any good results from her serving and worship. The most
important thing for wives is to keep their husbands’ respect.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying that what Allah Almighty asks of His
servants is that they worship with ‘Ikhlas’ (sincerity, purity). Allah
Almighty asks only pure worshipping, and pure worshipping means to
have a pure heart.

What is a pure heart? It is a heart that has nothing but his Lord in
it – only Allah Almighty. This is a pure heart. If there is something except
his Lord in one’s heart, he hasn’t a pure heart.

Allah Almighty isn’t asking just salat (prayer) or fasting (sawm).

Those acts of worship are not targets in themselves. They are not
original, they are only means for reaching pure hearts. They are the
means to an end. This is important.

Therefore, our Grandshaykh says, “Don’t give yourself such a big

load for learning or worshipping. The important thing is to have a pure
heart. Each one of us knows which side of himself is not true, or which
character from himself is not good. Each of us knows What is his
deficiency. Everyone knows and he must complete that point, he must
clean that character from his heart, so that he may strive to have a pure
heart. This is ‘mujahida,’ struggle! Struggle must be for everyone to fight
with his bad characters and change them into good ones. We must
defeat our bad characters in order to have a pure heart.

Everything that occupies your heart and keeps you from your
Lord is making your heart impure. You must try to keep everything away
from your heart but Allah. There is no room in your heart for romantic

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love! We say that the heart is for Allah alone. For children, we say our
love for them is in the liver! For our wives…!

You are asking why men and women have such love for each
other, why they may love the opposite sex to the point of idol worship? It
is because they don’t know where to put their love! Man is created for
the love of Allah Almighty. Allah Almighty loved Muhammad (peace be
upon him), and created all the sons of Adam (peace be upon him) for His
love. Therefore, love is original. Each one of us has love, but most people
have forgotten what its object is. When they put their love in women, in
children, or in anything except Allah, it means that love will be lost. If you
put your love with your wife, she will die and your love will be wasted
(souda). For children – the same. Any time you put your love in this
dunya, it will be wasted! But, if you are putting your love with Allah
Almighty it is never going to be wasted – not here, not hereafter. It is not
going to be wasted. If you are putting your love with your Prophet (peace
be upon him), or with your Shaykh, or with your fellow mu’mins, you may
find that love here, and hereafter.

Love is the most precious thing for everyone. It is the most

precious, most valuable, and most expensive thing that the sons of Adam
(peace be upon him) have been given. How can you put the most
precious thing in dogs and cats? For what? Are you putting a diamond on
the neck of a pig? No, you are putting it on the neck of a beautiful lady!
You must think about what western people are doing now. Their minds
are not working – no taste with their doings!

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying that our egos have eighty- thousand
bad characters. That means that there are eighty-thou sand veils
between us and our Prophet (peace be upon him)! If you can’t break all
those veils, if you can’t cut them, then you cannot see your Prophet
(peace be upon him) unless you are dreaming.

Some people can see the Prophet (peace be upon him) in their
dreams, but the Prophet (peace be upon him) may be seen when you are
awake also. Who can see the Prophet (peace be upon him) without
sleeping? Those people who cut out all those veils from their hearts may
see our Prophet (peace be upon him).

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And the worst one of those veils, the worst of those bad
characters – what is it? “Egoism!” says our Grandshaykh. From egoism
come thousands of bad characters! And, out of all those thousands of bad
characters coming from egoism, what is the worst one? “It is anger!” says
our Grandshaykh again.

‘Ghadab’ (anger) is the worst, because he who is angry is not

listening or accepting anything from Allah or Prophets. This is because
an angry person has lost his mind; he is acting without mind, like a car
without a driver! Anger is the opposite of mind; you cannot do anything
with your mind when you are angry. All things will be bad and become
worse and worse, with anger. He who is angry may damage everything
with that anger.

Therefore, it is the most important duty for all believers, perhaps

for all people, to fight their anger; not to be angry. This is a very
important point for every person. Our Grandshaykh says we must fight
firmly against anger; not to let it be judge of us, or dominate us. “If
anyone is angry,” he says, “and he is making dhikr, saying, ‘Allah! Allah!
Allah!’ the angels are answering him, ‘O, liar! O, liar! O, liar!’ If you are
angry, you cannot say, ‘Allah!’; you must say, instead, ‘Astaghfirullah! I am
asking forgiveness, O my Lord! I am asking pardon, O my Lord!’ This
means you are accepting your mistake, admitting your wrongness. Then
Allah Almighty will save His servant from that mistake. He is not going to
leave that servant with that bad character.”

It is enough for a person, a very great success, to be able to leave

his anger. Our Prophet says, “Al hilmi sayyid ul akhlaq.” It means, “Not to
be angry – it is the king of all good characters!” Clear? Not to be angry is
the king of all good characters. To be ‘hilm’, to be restrained, soft, not
coming quickly to anger; this is the best character in a man. To be white
in his heart; to be able to carry all things without anger is the first order
for every believer, and especially for every person who says, “I am on the
way of the Sufis, I am on the way of Tariqat.” They must keep themselves
far from anger.

Whoever can judge his anger, it means that he has power to judge
his ego. When you can judge to keep yourself far away from anger, it
means that you can control your nafs. Otherwise, it is impossible. You

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must know that all actions, all events, are not going to happen as we like.
Nothing happens, no one can be as we like; it is impossible. When you
know this you may keep yourself far away from anger, because anger is
the result of thinking that you can do everything as you like. No one can
do this; so for what will you be angry?

Our Grandshaykh says, “You must be patient in your house. You

must try not to be angry in your house; with your wife, with your
children, with your business, with little boys, with big men; you must
keep quiet with yourself, with everyone. You must keep soft, softness.
You must deal with all people with softness and gentleness; Gentleness –
it is the king of all good characters. So says Allah Almighty.”

Try this and see if it is correct or not: “Nothing like gentleness,”

says our Prophet (peace be upon him), and therefore he has ordered
Muslims to be gentle with all; not harming anyone. Now, however, we are
very far from our Prophet’s advice, from his directions, guiding us to that
point. If we were keeping that advice, being gentle with all, not being
angry, the whole world would have come to Islam. But we are so far from
that point – as far as the skies are from earth!

“You must not even be angry with animals,” says our

Grandshaykh. “He who is angry with animals leaves his human nature,
and descends to the level of animal nature.” So many people are angry
with animals, and Islam does not accept anger, even for animals. You
must have mercy for animals because they have no minds. Why are you
angry with them?

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh told me that, on the Judgment Day, cats will

come bringing fire with their tails to burn their owners. But dogs will
rush upon them saying, “Are you not ashamed? Why are you bringing fire
for your owners? You say that they didn’t give you enough food? They
left you to go hungry? For shame! Didn’t they keep you indoors, inside
their warm houses while we were left outside in the cold? Weren’t you
around them when they were eating? In their houses, on their tables?
How can you say that they didn’t feed you? We were kept outside, but
they didn’t leave us to go hungry! How can you speak against them this
way?”

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What is the meaning of this story? Our Prophet (peace be upon

him) says, “Ittaki sharri min qassante ilayh.” It means, “Here is the evil
from the one to whom you have done good!” Therefore, he is saying that
we must keep ourselves from those for whom we are doing goodness!
Fear from one for whom you have done good! You must be careful; there
are so many people that you may do goodness for, only to have them
turn and do badness to you. You may try this; it happens so many times.

What does it mean? Prophet’s hadith shows us that we must not

forget a goodness that has been done to us. Yes, it is from good
characters not to forget those who have done goodness for you – to
remember. We have a saying: “If someone gives you one cup of coffee,
you must keep remembrance of that goodness for forty years!” We shall
make this more clear. Our Grandshaykh says that if some person does a
goodness for you, and afterwards you become displeased with that
person over something he said or did, your displeasure, your
forgetfulness of that person’s good deed toward you is from bad
character.

When you forget a person’s goodness toward you, then you will
be like cats. One hundred times you may give it meat; so many things you
may give it. But, if you leave it just once, that cat will make objections
and complaints to Allah, saying, “He left me hungry!” This is bad
character, and if anyone is doing that, it means he has no good character.
If a man does goodness for you one hundred times, and then he does one
wrong thing to you, you must not become his enemy. You must not
forget his goodness to you from before. If you do that, you will have no
good characters; you will be like cats.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “There are twelve good characters in dogs

that you may also find in Prophets and Awliya. They are:
Not forgetting goodness, they don’t forget those who have
done goodness to them. They are not going to be angry with their
owners even if they are beaten and sent away;
If their owner calls, they will return with tails wagging;
They have humbleness;
They have obedience (kana-a);

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They are satisfied with small things;
They are truthful;
They are trustworthy, good friends;
They are loyal, they will remain with their owners and
never turn traitor;
They are ‘zahid,’ not looking to anything from this dunya. It
means that they have nothing from this world, no place for
themselves. They may sleep anywhere, and if someone throws
stones at them, they quickly get up and go somewhere else;
They are very light sleepers, they don’t sleep too much, and
quickly awaken;
They are very patient;
They are always grateful for everything that they are given.

If a man has those attributes, he will be a Wali. Those twelve

attributes belong to Prophets and Awliya!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was speaking about the hadiths of our Prophet

(peace be upon him). He said that if a man tried to find all the meanings,
or tried to come to the end of any hadith, he couldn’t do it! This is
because every hadith is also a ‘wahyun,’ a revelation from Allah Almighty,
and everything belonging to Allah Almighty is endless.

Our Prophet (peace be upon him) never said one hadith without
knowing what its reality was in the Divine Presence. ‘Azali Haqiqat,’ or
eternal truth, was known by our Prophet (peace be upon him), and said
in his hadiths. Rasulullah (peace be upon him) said, “If all the trees were
pens, and all the oceans were ink, they would not be sufficient to write
all the meanings of hadiths!”

This is great respect for Muhammad (peace be upon him). He has

so much knowledge, but that knowledge is only a tiny point, a dot in
relation to Allah Almighty’s knowledge. The knowledge of Muhammad
(peace be upon him) is not even a drop from an endless ocean! If you dip
a needle into the ocean, how much will stay on the needle’s point? It is
like that. The ocean is endless, and our Prophet’s knowledge is less than
a drop!

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And yet, that tiny drop is like an endless ocean itself when
compared with all creatures’ knowledge! “This,” our Grandshaykh says,
“is the minimum respect for Allah’s knowledge. If anyone does not speak
like this, then they have responsibility for that point that they are not
giving complete respect to their Lord.”

Once upon a time, there was a big ‘Alim – an ‘Alim that was too
big. He was so proud of his knowledge. One day, a dervish came to him, a
simple man who said to him, “Please, O my master! I am coming to ask
one question.”

The ‘Alim said, “Ask as you like.”

So, the dervish said to that grand ‘Alim, “What about all
knowledge in relation to our Prophet’s knowledge? Give me an example
that I can understand.”

The scholar took a big sheet of paper and taking his pencil he put
a tiny dot in the middle of the paper. Then he said, “O my brother, O my
fellow, O, my guy! We are saying that if this sheet of paper is all of our
Prophet’s knowledge, then this tiny dot is all other people’s knowledge!”

Then that simple dervish said, “Can you find, in that tiny dot, how
much knowledge is coming to you? What is your share from that point
that you have drawn? What is your knowledge in relation to all
creatures?”

When he heard those words that big ‘Alim began to shake.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh is asking, “Who is the happiest person in this

life? Who is most satisfied? He is that person who is satisfied with that
station in life in which his Lord put him. It is the station of contentment
– to look at everything and see that it is most suitable for him, and also
for all.”

Shaykh Nazim told us, “This situation is the most suitable thing
for me because my Lord put me in this situation. If it were no good for
me, He wouldn’t have put me in it. He says who is the most satisfied

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person, and the happiest person in this life. We must believe that Allah
Almighty desires for us goodness – always.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was describing how real faith should be:

“We must believe that all actions, whether from goodness, or

from badness, are from Him Almighty. If we truly believe this, we shall
reach the real faith.

“It is not enough to merely say this. You must practice, exercise
for this purpose, until you reach the point where you cannot see
anything from goodness or from badness coming to you without His will!
This leads us to real faith.

“If a man harms you, and you become his enemy, it means that
you are not a believer. It means you do not believe that his action was
from your Lord’s will, that all things are from Allah. If we believe, we
must be patient with each other’s actions. Allah is trying our faith, each
of us with others. We must see, therefore, that all actions are from our
Lord’s will.”

Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says, “People will deal with you
according to your actions.” If you are good and someone intends you
harm, Allah will defend you. You must not be afraid of people’s harm. You
must be honourable to all, good to all, respectful, merciful to all,
generous, and good-thinking to all. We must be patient with all people
because we believe that no one comes to us without our Lord’s will.

Therefore, no enmity in Islam. It is an important point. There is a

saying in Islam: “Goodness for goodness, anyone can do. But, goodness
for badness, only a few people can do.” We have been ordered to do
goodness. We have not been ordered to do badness.

And we must know that nothing happens in this universe without

Allah Almighty’s will. If a man objects to Allah’s will, then he is fighting
Allah Almighty. When he says, “Allah! Allah!” the angels say, “Liar! Liar!”
and Quran gives him a curse!

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“Don’t be teacher to Allah!” says our Grandshaykh. “Allah knows
best, and you don’t know anything! Don’t make any objection for
anything; you are servants, you are slaves to Him and He is Governor,
Absolute King of the Universe!”

* * * * * * *

An important point for everyone:

Our Grandshaykh was saying, “If a man is going to do anything,

worshipping, or any other actions, it must be voluntarily and gladly. If he
is not pleased with that action, he must not do it, for there will be no
good result for him from it.”

Worshipping, eating, drinking, sleeping, working – all must be

done with pleasure. If there is no pleasure in it for you, there will be no
pleasure in it for Allah Almighty.

For worshipping, it is important to realize that we are speaking of

our souls’ pleasure. When we are worshipping, our nafs is not pleased,
but our souls are. We must look to our souls’ pleasure.

For ordinary working and business, if you have pleasure with a

given situation, it will have good results. You may observe this readily
among people. Two students, one studying with pleasure, the other
forced. What will be the result? It is like this in all occupations; there is
so much difference between people. You must do everything you do with
pleasure. Actions may be easy or difficult; what is easy for one may be
difficult for another. What is the secret? For the one who finds it easy, it
is because it gives him pleasure; while the one who finds it difficult, it is
because he is forced to do it.

To be a servant to Allah Almighty is easy or difficult according to

different persons. Therefore, Allah says, “You must do your worshipping
with pleasure. If you are not pleased, I am not in need of your worship. I
am asking only your pleasure with worshipping. When it is easy for you,
do it.” Easy actions make people happier; difficult make people unhappy.

* * * * * * *

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What does Holy Knowledge (Ma’rifat) mean? “Knowledge,” says
our Grandshaykh, “is a Divine power, given to servants so that with that
power they can look at the greatness of Allah Almighty.”

In every knowledge, if you look deeply enough, you will see the
greatness of the Creator. In Botany, in Chemistry, in Physics, in
Astronomy, in every branch of knowledge you will find this to be true. He
who looks deeply enough must acknowledge the greatness of the
Creator.

Therefore, Grandshaykh says that in knowledge there is a power

leading people to the greatness of Allah Almighty. What is the benefit of
that knowledge? It is that when a person knows more and more of Allah’s
greatness, he will see himself as smaller and smaller until he will accept
that he is nothing in the sight of the greatness of Allah Almighty.

This is because the worst characteristic of the nafs is to look at

himself as the greatest. All egos say, “I am the greatest!” But, when the
greatness of Allah Almighty appears to him, he will say, “I am nothing.”
This is the benefit of real knowledge.

Nowadays, so many persons miss this point. They are learning so

many things, but instead of looking through their knowledge to the
greatness of Allah Almighty, they are looking to their egos and giving
themselves such gigantic personalities! They are mistaken.

* * * * * * *

Our knowledge about Allah is going to increase always and it is

endless. If it is going to finish, it is not Allah. All things belonging to Allah
are endless. As our knowledge of Allah increases, we are going to
approach His Divine Presence, and as we are approaching His Divine
Presence there will be more pleasure for us. From everything, from every
atom in the universe, you may take knowledge about your Lord.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh asks, “What is the first fard (order) from Allah to
His servants? The first order, ordered to Adam (peace be upon him), is
marriage.”

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On the marriage night, when two people come together, Allah

forgives all their previous sins, so much does He like marriage. (And, as a
counterpoint, devils hate marriage.) In our times, marriage is second only
to lman in importance, because marriage keeps a man far away from all
prohibited actions.

It is terrible to intend not to marry. For those who intend

marriage, and wait for Allah to make it easy for them, it is all right. But,
not to intend marriage is bad. All bad character comes as a result of
refusing marriage.

Therefore, when Mahdi (peace be upon him) comes, the first

order will be for all to marry. He is not leaving anyone to be without
marriage.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh said, “What is the description of the period we

are now living in? We are living in a time where if a man intends to take
one step on the right way, he will find one hundred obstacles in front of
him. A very difficult time, one hundred hindrances for every step on the
right way! And you must pass all of them to continue on your way.”

It was not like this before. But, inasmuch as it is now so difficult,

so in these times it is also more valuable, in the sight of Allah, to step on
the right way. Therefore, our Prophet (peace be upon him) says, “As
much as you encounter difficulties, your reward for good actions will be
more and more.” Easy work, . . . easy. But, for difficult worship – endless
rewards for those who do. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) also said, “In
this time, for one sunnah, a person is given the reward of one hundred
martyrs!”

A brother commented, “So, it’s a good idea to always carry a

turban!”

“Yes!” said Shaykh Nazim.

* * * * * * *

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Love is best. This is the way of all Prophets and Awliya. They love
Allah Almighty, and for His sake they love all His creatures. Real love is to
love all things belonging to the beloved.

There is a story about Layla and Majnun: He became crazy

(majnun) for her love. Everything belonging to Layla was lovely to
Majnun, even stones and trees! It must be this way with love for Allah
Almighty. Everything belonging to Him must be lovely to one who loves
or his love will not be true.

Therefore, every Prophet was ready to sacrifice his soul for the
servants of his Creator. All Awliya are also following that way. They are
looking to servants of Allah with mercy. Not one of the Saints bears any
hatred for his fellow servants even though they may be sinners. This way
will win victory.

Now we are living in a time when enmity and hatred are reaching
their highest degree. People are in need of love. Not the sexual kind; this
may be found in animals even more than in people. Love is a grant from
Allah Almighty. Some keep it in a precious place, and some put it in a
dirty place. Some keep that love for Allah Almighty and some for this
dirty life. Some people are keeping their honour; they have families, and
honourable wives. They are giving their love to their honourable wives.
But some people put that precious love in dirty places.

Now, all people are in need of love for their Lord alone, and we
must ask our Lord to give us love – more love. When love comes, so does
mercy. The attribute of souls is love. Souls are living in love-oceans.

The attribute of ego is enmity, hatred. Divine armies are coming

to fight egos, to fight enmity and hatred. All people are waiting for this
Divine Help to reach them so that they may save themselves from the
enmity and hatred of egos. This hatred is an endless ocean; we must stop
it here!

If anyone claims he is a man from the sons of Adam (peace be

upon him), he must understand this lecture and fight for love among all
people, and to defeat enmity and hatred among all nations, and among all
servants of Allah Almighty.

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* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying that people may be in one of two

conditions:

One, the expanded person has an open face, smiling, not solemn
or angry.
The second condition is contrary to this. He who is in this
condition is angry, sorrowful, and solemn.

Which is lovely for Allah Almighty? The first. Allah likes His
servants to be open, expanded, always pleased. If a man is not
complaining, if he is smiling under all conditions and carrying only
goodness in his heart for others, Allah is pleased with him.

It is the greatest sin, before Allah, to condemn a man without

knowledge, without proof, without witnesses. It is ‘su uz-zan’ – a wrong
or bad assumption. You must think all people are good. Then, even if
your own sins are great, Allah may forgive you easily. No harm for
smiling, expanded persons. All badness coming from stern, angry people.

In dark places, you may find poisonous insects. Though a stern,

angry person may do as much worship as all people combined, it is not
acceptable. He who has a stern face, he who is not thinking goodness for
other people, that person is refused from the Divine Presence.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying, “If a man has troubles from illness,
from courts, from poverty, from government – so many troubles – these
are punishment for his actions.

“There are two kinds of troubles:

“One kind comes to Prophets and Awliya. It may be of any kind,

but it is not the result of their bad actions. They haven’t any bad actions;
those troubles come to give them higher degrees.

“The other kind of trouble comes to people for their bad actions,
and for the purpose of making them clean. When they have been

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punished in this world, there is no punishment in the next world for
them.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh spoke about the hadith, “The value of actions is

according to their difficulties.” He said, “The more difficult an action, the
more valuable it is. In our times, one who asks to walk on the straight
way may find a very heavy load on his shoulders. Therefore, when one
walks the straight way under these conditions, under this heavy load,
Allah rewards him accordingly.”

In these times, for keeping one sunnah, Allah gives the reward of
one hundred martyrs. Nowadays, people may stay awake in theatres, in
discotheques, in cinemas, and in bars and other such places – very
enthusiastic, with such power to stay awake all night! But, if anyone will
awaken after midnight to pray two rak’ats, he will feel the weight of the
world on his shoulders. So difficult will it be for him to awaken! We can
feel this heavy load over our bodies. It is the result of living in a time of
darkness among people.

‘Futur’ is a kind of tiredness. If a man is walking on the straight

way, he always feels tired. But, if he is going on the devil’s way, he is
always finding pleasure, not tired. Understand? As much as you are tired
for your worship, you have been given more rewards by Allah Almighty.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying, “If a man is coming into association

with Shaykh, or dhikr, or for praying in the masjid, or for a sunnah
meeting (jamaat), those persons will be under Divine Protection. Allah’s
hand is over a Jamaat (assembly); if they are meeting for a worship, there
will be Divine assistance for those people. Even if a man is ready once in
a day for such an assembly, Allah will forgive him, and not leave him with
any sins on the Judgment Day.

“There will be Divine Protection from everything, even from wars

and bombs, for those who are ready for Jamaat, even once in a day. If a
man is going to a group that is worshipping according to the advice of
the Prophet (peace be upon him), then he will be under the guard of the

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Prophet (peace be upon him). If they are going to do something
according to our Lord’s order, they will be under the guard of Allah
Almighty.”

Our Grandshaykh is giving us good tidings in our time, because

we are, nowadays, so weak in our worshipping. So many people are even
leaving worship. As much as we are weak, Allah is giving more mercy
according to His most beautiful name (known only to Him, and to those
who have been given this secret). This mercy is open for us now in our
times; whereas it never was before. Therefore, if during twenty-four
hours anyone is ready for an assembly (jamaat), even one, Allah promises
to keep that servant from all cruelties, badness, and accidents.

* * * * * * *

Rabi’a (may Allah be pleased with her), a great Waliyya, advised us

always to ask forgiveness (Astaghfirullah). She said our ‘istighfar’ is
always in need of another ‘istighfar,’ and our Grandshaykh tells us about
the reality of ‘istighfar’:

“Whenever and wherever a prohibited thing meets you and your

nafs want to go after it, you must keep it far away. This is ‘istighfar,’ this
is the power of ‘istighfar.’ When a servant asks pardon from his Lord, his
Lord not only cleans him, but gives him power to stand firmly against
prohibited things. All things for the protection of the ummah.”

* * * * * * *

It is not enough to say, “I am a Muslim.” It is not enough to say

‘shahada’ (the Testimony of Faith). You must keep your organs on the
way of lman. You must try and keep your organs far from all actions that
are not Muslim; far from haram; far from prohibited things.

When you are looking to a prohibited thing, you are leaving faith.
You must quickly ask pardon from your Lord, so that you may return to
Islam once again. Rasulullah (peace be upon him) says, “Our eyes make
zina (adultery).” We have been ordered to carry our organs into the way
of Islam. If a man uses his organs in the way of Allah Almighty, he will
have real faith, real Islam.

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* * * * * * *

‘Ma la yani’ means, ‘that which does not concern you.’ You must
not speak of or act on that which does not concern you. This is the order
of the Prophet (peace be upon him), and it is very important in Islam. You
must be careful with this point.

Our Grandshaykh told this story to me:

“Once, there was a Wali who had been given the power to listen
to the angels’ speaking. One day, that Wali was traveling on his horse
when he came to a fountain. He stopped there for a rest, and to renew
his wudhu and make prayers.

“When he dismounted, he removed the reins from his horse and

said to it, ‘Go, O my fellow! You may enjoy this fine grass here!’

“Suddenly, that Wali heard two angels in discussion. The first

angel (the angel on the right-hand side, who writes our good deeds and
speech) was saying, ‘I will write those words he spoke to his horse, and
credit them to his good deeds.’

“‘No!’ said the angel on the left (responsible For recording our bad
deeds and speech), ‘You can’t write this! I must do it.’

“’Why?’ said the angel on the right, ‘Is it a sin, what he said? He
spoke only good words to his horse!’

“The angel on the left replied, ‘That is true, but you must know
that he spoke about a thing that did not concern him. Is there any horse
that needs to be told to enjoy grass? Why did he speak? Allah gave him
that tongue. He may use it for useless things (ma la yani) or not. But he
has been ordered to speak good, or hold his tongue. Is that horse waiting
for his words to eat? I must write this deed as a sin!’

“All the while the Wali had been listening to their conversation.
When he heard the words of the angel on the left, he immediately threw
himself into sajdah, crying, ‘O my Lord! Forgive me!’

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“When Allah Almighty heard his servant asking like that He said to
the left-hand angel, ‘Don’t write! Leave it for the other angel because My
servant is asking forgiveness, and I accept!’”

Now, for what are these conditions placed upon us? If a man takes
care with his speech, Allah Almighty gives Divine Wisdoms to his tongue.
That person, who keeps his tongue, will speak only truth and right. He
cannot say wrong things at that point.

This may seem a simple thing, to take care with one’s speaking,
but it has such strong wisdom. It is so powerful! To him who intends to
keep his tongue only for goodness, and not to speak on that which does
not concern him, Allah Almighty promises to give Divine Wisdoms to
speak. Then you are not in need to read books to learn. Allah gives you,
on your tongue, so many Divine Wisdoms. To speak of that which doesn’t
concern you makes your Iman weak. When you leave this bad habit, your
faith takes more power. You cannot know what concerns you or not,
save through your inspirations. Then you may know well what is yours or
not.

A murid asked Shaykh Nazim, “How can we know what is true

inspiration and what is nafs?”

Mawlana answered, “If it is an inspiration, there is never going to

be a doubt in your heart. You will find exact satisfaction. But, if it is from
your ego, your conscience will not be at rest.

“Also, when something is from Divine Inspiration, it is not going to

leave you until you do it. It will come back again and again. Badness and
wrong suggestions from nafs and devils will come for a while, and then
go away.”

“Often, maybe, you have the right inspiration. But then you say,
‘Ah, but if l do it, then such and such may happen; so I’d better not do it,’”
the murid continued.

“That is wrong, also,” said the Shaykh.

“Also not inspiration?” asked our brother.

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“Not inspiration,” repeated Mawlana, . ..That is, the first is
inspiration, ordering you to do something. The second one, coming to
destroy it, is from your nafs, from Satan; just from Satan.”

* * * * * * *

This is an important lesson:

Our Grandshaykh was speaking about good character. He asks,

“What is the attribute of one who has a good character?”

He is also answering for us: “If a man gives you one thousand
dollars, and then another one comes and takes it away; if you act
differently in front of each then you haven’t good character!

“If you are glad from the first one, and sorry with the second one,
it is a sign that you haven’t yet reached good character. If a man has
good character, it means he has a strong faith in Allah. He believes that
everything that comes to him is coming from Allah.

“He is the Giver, and He Almighty is also the Taker. This is a

stronger faith; you must believe this. Allah is the giver, and Allah is the
taker. You must know this, and you must believe this. It is the sixth pillar
of lman, and it must be with you.

“Also, our Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “In the sight of Allah
Almighty, the whole world and its treasure is worth only as much as the
wing of a mosquito!” So, what about one thousand dollars! If someone
gives you the wing of a mosquito is it pleasure for you? And, if someone
should take it away are you sorry?

“If a man goes to court against another, it means that the love of
this life is yet in his heart, and our Prophet (peace be upon him) says,
‘The worst thing for a person is to like this world and its life.’

“How can we love this life?! We are imprisoned in this world. We

may eat, we may drink, but death is waiting for us. If a man is sentenced
to death, how can he have enjoyment? He must be crazy to like a life that
has death as its end! A man can take everything in this life – endless
treasures, money, palaces, everything – but he has been judged for

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death. Nothing from this world’s treasures can save him from death. You
can be like Alexander the Great, but in the end even he surrendered to
death.

“Therefore, if a man has good characters, he cannot like this life.

His sight must be on eternal life, not this temporary life. If he is given all
the treasures of this world, he is not going to be pleased. If whole treasures
are taken from him, he will not be sorry.”

* * * * * * *

My Grandshaykh was describing to me how a real believer must

be:

“His hand must be open. If your hand is open, maybe someone

may put something there. Or, maybe someone who is in need may take
from there. Don’t have a closed hand. Then, no one may put anything
there, nor may anyone take anything. Good character is to have an open
hand; something may be put in, something may be taken.

“All problems, all cases in courts, are for this dunya. Good
character people are not fighting, or making cases for the treasures of
this life. This is because they know that all things in this life are
temporary; nothing is permanent. In real faith, this dunya is not a goal, or
target.

“Real Islam shows believers the real target – love for Allah. And
real Islam is never fought for dunya, never for the treasures of this world,
never for this life’s dragon. Because this life is a real dragon, eating all
people and never becoming full.

“This dragon doesn’t know kings, presidents, ministers, lords,

governors, rich men, commoners; it eats them all, swallows them up! And
yet, all people are running after this terrible dragon. Thousands of years
have not dulled the hunger of this dragon. It will eat millions of people
and ask, ‘What? No more? Give me more! More!’ All people work for it,
and in the end it eats them.

“Therefore, clever is he who is working for his Lord’s service. It is

he, only, who will be happy and satisfied. Our Prophet (peace be upon

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him) called people to their Lord and not after that dragon. But people
don’t like to hear this, and run instead after that dragon. They are tired.
No rest for them.

“Therefore, none of the Prophets are fighting for this life. They
are fighting to save people from this life’s dragon.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying, “There is a method which is

necessary for everyone to keep. What is that method?

“First, everyone must know where he is looking, and for what he is

looking. Is he looking for his ego’s pleasure, or looking for his Lord’s
pleasure? He must distinguish between the two. If he is looking for his
Lord’s pleasure, he may look. If he is looking for his ego ‘s pleasure, no
permission, no good.

“Second, you must know, when you are speaking, if it is for your
ego’s pleasure or for your Lord’s pleasure. You must know what you are
going to speak. If you don’t know, don’t speak! You must know that when
you speak it will be written by either the angel on the right or the angel
on the left. Lf you know that what you say will be written by the angel on
the right (good), you may speak or not. If a man is in court, he will be
very careful with his words. One word may cause judgment against him,
or one word may save him. We must be careful like this.

“Third, we must be careful with our listening. We must know to

whom we are listening. If he is going to speak for his Lord’s pleasure, we
must listen to him. But, if he is going to speak on his ego’s behalf, it is not
good to listen. Perhaps you may hear some words, along your life, that
will stay in your memory and give you harm, and it may be that you
cannot forget them. Some words are dangerous for listening. You may
eat something that is no good for you; yet, you can put your finger in
your mouth and take it out. But, you cannot remove bad words from your
ears. Therefore, you must be very careful listening.”

* * * * * * *

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“What is the biggest dragon, swallowing all our good actions?”
asks our Grandshaykh. “What is the biggest dragon, eating all our
worshipping?”

He is answering for us: “Everyone, when he is a baby, takes the

breast of his mother. Also, there is the pacifier given to babies to keep
them from putting their thumb in their mouth. This is a bad habit.

“And so, from childhood up to fifteen years he may take many bad
habits. Unfortunately, if he cannot stop them when he reaches the age of
maturity, those bad habits will destroy all the goodness he may do. This
is the worst terrible dragon for everyone.

“Therefore, we must fight to leave our childhood’s bad habits. You

may be ninety-years-old, and yet, if you cannot leave those bad habits,
you will be a child. Before reaching maturity, we are too much like
animals, because we haven’t responsibility. When we reach the age of our
mind’s perfection, we become responsible. It is the first level of
perfection for people. Then, you must become perfect in your actions
also.”

* * * * * * *

If a man asks to keep deep knowledge and Divine Wisdom

(Hikma), he must do three things:

First, he must not walk without wudhu, nor must he touch any
book without wudhu.
Second, he must use a miswak (tooth stick); and,
third, he must keep the midnight salat (Tahajjud).

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying, “What is the biggest sin in the sight
of Allah? Allah Almighty created mankind so honourable, and respectful,
and lovely to Him Almighty. And then He gave all mankind to Muhammad
(peace be upon him) as a trust. All nations have been given to
Muhammad (peace be upon him) on the Day of Promise. Therefore, the
greatest sin in the sight of Allah is to search out everyone’s faults.

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“Our Prophet (peace be Upon him) says, ‘Happiness is for him who
is occupied with correcting his own faults, for it keeps him from looking
to another’s faults.’ Clear? It is a very big sin to look to others’ faults, and
to try to harm people. All troubles, all unsolvable problems, come after
looking to another’s faults. A bad habit, indeed!

“He who forgets his own faults,” continues our Grandshaykh, “and
looks after other people’s faults, is like a man who says, ‘I am God!’ To be
without fault is only for God, not man. All people must have some faults,
some more than others.”

“Even Prophets?” asked a brother.

Mawlana answered, “They have been protected (Ma’sum).”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says that each person, each servant of Allah

Almighty, has two positions or duties: One toward their Lord, and one
toward other people.

Toward Allah Almighty, his duty is to be Allah’s sincere servant,

without asking any reward in this world, or in the next world.

Toward other people we shall, first, love all Allah’s servants. We

must keep, in our hearts, love for them without making any difference
between them. Allah created His servants clean; they are originally
lovely.

You like your children, for example, even if they do wrong things.
Allah Almighty created all people originally clean from all badness and
evils, and from all kufr. Their essence is clean always. Like a ring that
falls into the toilet. You may take it out and wash it, and it will be clean
again. The essence of mankind is endlessly precious – the most precious
thing in the sight of Allah. Therefore, we like all people because they are
the servants of our Lord, and they are our Lord’s creation. That is our
first obligation to other people.

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Our second obligation, or duty, to people is to help them as much
as we can. We must help everyone, according to our Prophet’s Hadith,
‘Help all people, both oppressor and oppressed!’

When our Prophet (peace be upon him) said that, his Sahaba
asked, “How can we help Oppressors!”

Replied the Prophet (peace be upon him), “By catching his hand to
prevent him from oppressing!

Our third obligation toward other people is to think good of

everyone. We must not think bad thoughts about people.

These three characters or attitudes toward others, to love them,

to help them, and to think good of them, are wanted from all believers, in
fact from all people. They are the sign of high character. Acceptable in
the sight of our Lord. Without them, no one can be acceptable in the
sight of his Lord. When a person keeps these obligations, he will be
rewarded by his Lord in that all people will love him, help him, and
respect him. This is the secret of success in our lives, and the meaning of
the hadith, “A malukum um malukum” (You will be dealt with according
to your actions). So many sins may be forgiven by keeping this. Never
harm anyone with your hand or with your tongue!

All non-Muslims living within Islamic communities have the same

rights as Muslims. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says: “Anyone
harming a protected servant is harming me!” As we understand this
saying so we must keep it. Our Lord’s pleasure is with this character.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “We must be careful to take knowledge

from everything.” If a man can take wisdom from every event, then he
will be most strong in his faith in his Lord. It gives him more power for
Divine Knowledge. He may take knowledge even from a donkey’s braying!

You must look to take a secret wisdom from all things. You can
find, in each thing, such knowledge as you won’t find in another thing.
Islam says, “Look deeply for all things.” It is an order from Allah.

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We are not animals. Sheep look – but, if we see the way sheep do,
then we are sheep also! Therefore, Allah orders us to look deeply into
each thing, into each event, to find a secret wisdom that gives it value.
And, our Grandshaykh says, “If you look deeply, you will taste!”

Allah Almighty will give a reward to European people for the

discoveries and inventions they have made from looking deeply into
things.

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “Everything that is going to happen in this

life has a fixed time. There is, for every event that will happen in this life,
an appointed hour. If you ask for an event to happen before its appointed
time, you cannot find it. If you ask for it to be delayed, it is impossible
also. Not before – not after. Everything must be at that appointed time.”

What is the benefit to know this point? If we know that all events
will come in their appointed time, we will be at rest, patient; and
patience shows the perfection of man. As much as you are patient, you
are perfect; you have strong Iman.

* * * * * * *

Consultation has been ordered. it is not right to do something

without consultation. If you are going to consult, it must be with a man
in whom you have trust.

It is not consultation to come to a man and say, “I am doing

something now, I am going somewhere now; what do you say?” It is not
right for a man to come to a person and say, “O my Shaykh! O my Master!
I intend to travel, I’ve got my ticket. What do you say about my
traveling?” This is not consultation. I shall tell you, “Very good. No
worry.”

Before doing anything, you will ask, “O my Master! I intend

traveling. How do you see it? Is it all right or not?”Then, as you are
advised you must do, you must listen. This is consultation.

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You must bring the whole cloth to the master saying, “Please cut
as you like.” This is consultation. Then he cuts. You must not bring cut
cloth. So many people say, “We consulted!” but, in the end, finally coming
no good. “How can this be? I consulted with my Shaykh, and I went.
What happened to me?”

You must be careful, especially about three things: marriage,

divorce, and traveling. You must ask your Shaykh about these three
important points!

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “Good is in that which happens. A servant

must be thankful to his Lord for His favours.

“Allah Almighty sometimes gives good tidings to people,

promising Paradise to people, and sometimes He makes them fear His
punishment. You will not give thanks to your Lord until you believe that
whatever happens is a favour from Allah Almighty. If you don’t know that
it is a favour from Allah Almighty, you are not thanking your Lord.”

This recognition is the beginning of thanks to Allah Almighty. No

recognition, no thanking Allah. For example, you have a wife. You must
say, “O my Lord! Thanks to You for my wife. You gave me a queen of
beauty! I am so pleased! I am so proud of my wife, O my Lord!” Can you
say this? This is recognition of a favour from Allah Almighty. If a man
complains about his wife, how can he be thankful to his Lord for His
favour?

Again, recognition is the first step for thanking Allah Almighty. If a

man complains of anything, how can he be thankful to his Lord? It is
impossible. Therefore, you must say, “My wife is the most excellent one
among all ladies! She is sweeter to me than anyone!” This is because halal
is sweet. Haram is poison. Other ladies, they are haram; but your wife is
halal to you. Therefore, she is sweet to you and others are bitter to you.

If a man does not recognize a favour, then Allah takes it from him.
If this happens to you, then you will understand! Then you will know it
was a favour!

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Once upon a time, some people were on board a ship. The servant
of that ship was new to the job. It was the first time he was on a ship, and
the first time, also, that he had seen the ocean. As soon as the ship set
sail that servant became seized with fear and began to cry out in a very
loud voice. He kept screaming at the top of his lungs and no one could
make him stop.

There was also on board a certain wise man. When he heard that
servant crying, he said to some of the other passengers, “Take that man
and throw him overboard!” So, they pushed him into the sea.

Immediately the servant swam back to the ship and climbed up

the side. The passengers pulled him back on board. Now that servant sat
in silence. He had learned that the ship was a favour!

Therefore, so many favours may go unrecognized by people. But,

when it is taken away, they will cry, “Ooooh!” If a man doesn’t give thanks
for favours, favours will go, and troubles will come in their place.

Our Grandshaykh says that among the biggest favours from Allah
is that when two brothers (ikhwan), friends, are sitting together, in
association for the sake of Allah. All the worship they could make
individually for two thousand years would not equal the reward that
Allah Almighty gives for that association! Because, through that
association Divine Care will come. Also, one of the greatest favours from
Allah Almighty to His servants is for them to be witnesses to His Unity.
To say, “La ilaha illAllah Muhammadun Rasulullah!” is one of the greatest
favours from Allah to His servants. If a man speaks this, Allah cleans him
of all his sins up to that time!

This secret word “La ilaha illAllah Muhammadun Rasulullah”

keeps whoever speaks it from humiliation, here and hereafter. No
humiliation for those who are saying, “Ash-hadu an la ilaha illAllah, wa
ash-hadu anna Muhammadan ‘Abduhu wa Rasuluh!” also. Therefore, to
speak with this Holy word is the biggest favour from Allah to His
servants. If a man knows “La ilaha illAllah Muhammadun Rasulullah”
exactly, then it is impossible for him to waste his time without benefit,
without saying that Holy word.

* * * * * * *

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On the verse, “No one is to be forced for anything in Islam”: Allah

says after this, “Goodness and badness are clear. They are not secret.
They are known by everyone. You cannot find a man who has even an
average mind who cannot separate the two. Therefore, Allah says, “Leave
them! No need to force a man into goodness. He can distinguish it for
himself.”

If a man hasn’t the mind to be able to distinguish good from bad,

he has no responsibility. But, if a man knows goodness and badness, he
has the responsibility to choose goodness and to leave badness.

A brother asked, “How does this relate to fard in lslam?”

Mawlana answered, “lslam came to make goodness all over the

world, and also to take badness from the world.”

“Allah could do that if He wanted,” the disciple insisted.

“Yes,” answered the Shaykh. “He has that power. But, He doesn’t
force people. He asks them to do good with their own wills, as they grow
in understanding. It does not mean that you force a man if he has rabies,
for example, when you catch him and restrain him for an injection. We
use that force for his own good. If we leave him free, he will die or he
may be dangerous to others. Therefore, when we use that force on him,
it does not mean that we are using that force on him to make his will
useless. No, we are using that force for his own good.

“Therefore, when Allah says no people should be forced to do

anything because they can distinguish between good and bad for
themselves, it doesn’t mean that we cannot sometimes use force to
restrain them from doing badness, from causing harm to themselves and
others. For their own benefit, we are doing it. Our Prophet (peace be
upon him) said, ‘You must help people – cruel people also.’ How shall we
help a cruel person? By catching his hand, to prevent him from harming
others. This is not using force to make goodness; this is using force to
prevent badness only.

“If we have a field for keeping sheep, or for making a garden, we

must kill the snakes and poisonous insects first. Shariah always uses

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force to prevent badness. Not all people have the same level of
willpower. Some people can control themselves to prevent their falling
into bad ways, while others are weak. They need help. They cannot, by
themselves, protect themselves against falling into bad ways. We must
help them, and help needs force sometimes. We are using force to help
people.

“Force may be used for goodness or badness. Therefore, Shariah

says that if you can prevent a person, with your hand, from falling into
badness, you must catch him. Or, if you can stop him with your speech,
you must speak. Finally, if you cannot stop him with your hand or with
your speaking, you must pray for him: ‘O my Lord! Keep him from falling
into bad ways!’

“No force may be used on Christians and Jews for becoming

Muslims. They are able to distinguish between a true man and a liar;
therefore, it is useless to force them to be Muslims. They are free to
think as they please, until the time for thinking is ended with the return
of Jesus (peace be upon him). Then, he will judge among them.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying about keeping our lman, “We must
keep, very carefully, the light of faith because enemies are trying to take
away that light. Faith is the light of Allah given to His servants. Therefore,
everyone must be very careful to guard against those enemies who are
trying to extinguish the light of Iman.

“There are three entrances by which those enemies try to

extinguish the light of Iman. You must put guards at those three doors in
your body. What could be a more precious treasure to guard than lman?
If Allah sees His servant dutifully guarding His precious favour, He
Almighty looks with pleasure on that servant. And, when Allah Almighty
looks to His servant with pleasure, He sends Divine favours, Divine
mercy, Divine pleasure to that servant’s heart. And, whoever guards
those three doors carefully, will be granted the wisdom of all one
hundred and four Holy books, because he is a trustworthy person.

“All Prophets came to teach people how to protect those three

doors. Also, all tariqats, all Grandshaykhs, are trying, with exercises, with

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training, wirds (daily litanies), khalwa (seclusion); to make their murids
keep those three doors carefully.

“The first door, or entrance, that is vulnerable to attack by devils

who try to extinguish the light of lman, is the eyes. A man may reach the
highest degree of Iman when suddenly, through prohibited looking (the
most attractive thing is women), his Iman is gone. We are very easily
taken and our lman extinguished through our eyes.

“The second door is our mouth, our tongue. Quickly, devils catch
us by our tongues, enter and extinguish our lman. You must be very
careful with your speech. You must be like a man on trial. In a court
everything may turn on a single word. In reality, we will be in court on
the Judgment Day before the Judge of Judges, Allah Almighty.

“The third door is the ears, and other organs. You must not let
them be used by devils, for their purposes. You must keep your organs,
so that devils and Satan cannot use them as they like. Concerning the
ears, there are two ways to use them: hearing and listening. You may
hear anything, but, only if you want, if you will it, must you listen. Allah
Almighty says that when Quran is being read, you must listen to it. On
the other hand, you may hear a donkey’s braying but you are not
listening. You may hear some bad speech but you are not listening. When
you are listening, you have responsibility. But, if you are only hearing,
there is no responsibility for you.

“It is the same for the eyes. You may see everything. But, when
you look, you have responsibility for that looking. That means every
believer, every Muslim must consider the reasons for his actions and
know the consequences. He must know his purposes; heedlessness is
prohibited in lslam. If you are looking at a lady; What is your purpose?
Why are you looking? For your ego!

“Allah Almighty teaches every believer. And, every believer knows

what is good for him, or what is bad. Your conscience always gives you
exact signs on goodness and badness, but every time your conscience
points you toward goodness, your ego says, ‘No!,’ because its pleasure is
with badness. This is an important lesson. If you keep this, Allah Almighty
promises to teach you all the knowledge of Holy books. If you cannot

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protect these three doors, then, sometimes, enemies will come and
extinguish the light of your lman.”

* * * * * * *

“It is a good manner,” says our Grandshaykh, “not to argue with

people. If you know you are on the right way, don’t argue.

“Arguing extinguishes lman. If you are right, and you are arguing
with someone who is wrong, perhaps he will say some wrong thing that
may be harmful to you. For example, if a man calls you a kafir, you must
not argue. ‘No! I am not kafir!’ Instead, you must agree with him, in this
manner: ‘Yes! You are right! My nafs’ bad habits are kafir!’

“All people are making arguments now. Each one imagines himself
to be the most clever of people. He likes his word to be listened to and
respected in every place. All enmity grows from this, from arguing.
Therefore, you must say in response to any argument, ‘Yes, it is as you
say. My ego is responsible for what you disapprove of in me. It is very
bad. But, I am not in agreement with my ego. I am trying to keep its bad
habits away from me, to improve my character. O my brother! If you are
right in your argument, may Allah correct me. And, if you are wrong, O
my brother, may Allah forgive you and make you right!’”

* * * * * * *

“If a man tells you a lie,” asks our Grandshaykh, “what will be your
position? You must not say, ‘No! That isn’t true.’ You must not refuse his
words. This is a high character and good manners.

“You may tell him, ‘Oh? Is it so?’ Maybe, in your sight his
statement has no reality, but you must be gentle. We have not been
ordered to refuse people, but to make them more pleased. We are living
in a time when people may say anything and everything; you must be
patient with them, and excuse them, always without fighting. You must
know that people are ill in their egos. If you are claiming to be doctors,
you must excuse them. If you are on the way of Prophets, you must help
them and be tolerant of them. This is the highest degree of good
manners.”

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* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was making an important point for everyone:

“Everyone must know the value of himself. If a man has no self-

respect, gives himself no value, then he will not give another person’s life
any value either. For example, if a doctor knows his body’s value, how will
he be toward the bodies of his patients? He who is ignorant of himself
will be more ignorant of others!

“We have been ordered to keep our bodies excellent throughout

our lives. You must not load your body with more than its capability; nor
will you load others in that way. Our bodies are amanah, trust from our
Lord. On the Judgment Day we will be asked, first, how we kept our
bodies. All Holy books are in agreement on this point, namely that we
must keep our bodies in very good condition, not doing anything that
gives harm to them. You must not misuse your body. No poisons!

“In our time, people find their bodies very cheap. Therefore, lslam
is making health first in all things. Everyone, especially those on top
stations, must keep people very carefully so that they may not harm each
other. If they are saying, ‘I am free to do as I like!’; they may go to the
tops of mountains, and to the jungle! When you live with other people,
you must keep yourself healthy, keep your self-value and self-respect.
Keep this respect, and others may respect you.

“Real religions all fight badness. They never agree with any bad
characters. Muhammad (peace be upon him), the last Prophet, clearly
said, ‘I came just to complete good characters.’”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh is speaking about Mahdi, the keeper of this time

(peace be upon him). Grandshaykh was sitting in Mahdi’s assembly, and
listening to his words: “O my brother, Shaykh ‘Abdullah!” he said. “In our
time, the sign of good character, and the highest degree of Jihad al Akbar
(fighting with your ego), is to carry other people’s bad characters, to bear
with them, and to tolerate them. As much as we have patience with
people, forbearance, we have good character. It is the sign of good
character in our time.”

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* * * * * * *

My Grandshaykh was wondering one day, “O Nazim Effendi!

People are passing through so much difficulty in this life when, in reality,
it is so easy! It is too simple! Why are men making it so difficult?”

Before one hundred years ago, life was so simple in comparison

with today, and people were much happier. Now, inventions and
discoveries are increasing, and life is more and more complicated. Also,
every day troubles and problems are increasing. Therefore, we must try
to make this life more simple. If we don’t do this, our troubles and
difficulties will be never-ending.

Before, there were ten drugs and ten illnesses. Now, perhaps
there are one hundred thousand drugs, and a like number of afflictions
as well! We must simplify; move back into harmony with Nature. Mother
Nature embraces us. Therefore, our Prophet (peace be upon him)
foretold a miracle in his hadiths. Saying, “O my people! There will come a
time on you!...” he went on to describe all the troubles that will appear on
the world as the last day approaches. Then he advised his nation about
who would be saved from all troubles; he who took his sheep and went to
the tops of mountains. This hadith is a sign for us to return to nature and
the simple life.

Allah originally made life so easy, but now we make it so difficult.

This is a punishment for us now. All economic problems come after this
point. One hundred years ago a man could have one suit of clothes for
two, perhaps three, years. Now, his ego orders him to change it perhaps
every fifteen days, every week, perhaps morning and evening!

Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says, “The contented man is the
richest man.” If you are running after things, you are poor. Allah likes his
servants to live with pleasure, not solemn and sad, because solemn and
sad are signs of dissatisfaction with your Lord. If a man is pleased and
satisfied, it is a sign that he is pleased and satisfied with his Lord.
Satisfaction makes even a short life happy, but dissatisfaction makes a
short life very, very long – a destroying burden. Be pleased with your
Lord, and everything in this life will be enjoyable for you.

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* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying, “What is one important thing,

making our lives more difficult? if a man never accepts any rule except
his own, he is not going to save himself from trouble. Everyone who says,
‘My rule is excellent. I am not in need to ask anyone,’ is not going to save
himself from trouble.

“A man may plan something. He may regard that plan as excellent,

and, so thinking, he will not consult with anyone. That man will always be
in trouble, throughout his life. Be humble, so that you are able to consult
with other people. Their observation may be better than yours. Perhaps
they may see an easier, better way for you. But, if you never ask other
people, you will be always in trouble.

“Allah Almighty orders His servants, ‘Ask for everything from

authorised people.’ When people don’t do this, it is another source of
trouble for them. Therefore, you must ask someone who knows well the
matter that is before you. There are specialists for everything. If a man is
going to lose his eye, he is not going to go to a heart specialist!

“If you don’t have advisors, you will have endless trouble. As we
are in need of advisors for this life’s problems, we are more in need of
advisors for our spiritual, or Heavenly progress so that we may know the
shortest, safest way to our Heavenly stations. If you don’t take advisors
for your Heavenly life, you cannot reach your Heavenly, spiritual station.
Our Heavenly advisors are, first of all, Prophets (peace be upon them all).
Next come their spiritual heirs, the Awliya, or Saints (may Allah be
pleased with them all).”

* * * * * * *

Allah Almighty orders His servants, when they come for prayer, to
put on their ornaments. What does this mean? We must look to the
Prophet’s sunnah, for he knows, more than any other man, how one
should be for praying. He stood for prayer in the Divine Presence exactly
as his Lord ordered him, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “O
my nation! Pray as you see me pray!”

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The Prophet (peace be upon him) never prayed without a turban.
Only if he didn’t have one (because it was being washed, for example, or
sometimes when he prayed alone) did he pray without a turban. But he
says, “Always pray with turban.”

A turban is the ornament of man for praying. On the Prophet’s

Night Journey did he go without a turban? No, he went with turban!
Gabriel came to him wearing a turban; all angels are coming with
turbans. Turban is the perfect ornament for praying.

So, if you have no excuse, you must use turbans. We must not
discount its importance. I never saw our Grandshaykh praying without a
turban. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says, “If a man prays with
amama (turban), Allah will reward him with ten-thousand goodness’s.”
And, in our time, as it is a famous sunnah, he who uses turban is given
the reward of one hundred martyrs! This is because now, even Muslims
are fighting against the turban. They wish to lose it, like the Saudis, so
that no one will wear it. But, our Prophet (peace be upon him) says, “He
who keeps my sunnah, in the last days, will be given the reward of one
hundred martyrs.”

But people are killing the sunnah. Devils are fighting turbans now
because it is a sign of Islam. No fighting for beards, because everyone can
grow his beard. No problem for beards. In every religion, in every way of
life, people can grow beards. But most important is the turban! Devils are
fighting to make men lose it. Allah is giving to my heart to make all, from
east to west, wear turbans.

When a devil looks at a man with a turban, Satan says to him,

“This is the Prophet’s soldier, you must fight him!”

* * * * * * *

You are asking for Divine Powers, to approach the Divine

Presence. Our Grandshaykh has such powers. Once, he said to me, “O
Nazim Effendi! We have such miraculous powers; we are power stations!
From ants to elephants, from mankind to angels, from earth to Heavens,
Jinn and men, everyone!

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“We are power stations. To any person who is asking for that
power to reach his destination, we shall give. We are ready; waiting for
those who come, asking to travel to Heaven. We know what he needs,
though he himself may not, and according to his desire, according to his
capability, we give. He may feel it or not; it doesn’t matter!

“There is a mill for making flour. Wheat is put between the stones
for grinding. When the grinding is finished – flour! Don’t be worried for
yourself. The mill will not cease functioning. Divine help will come to
your heart, like drops or like a torrent.

“You do not need to ask with your tongue. We are not looking to
your speech, but we are looking to your heart’s action. It is all right; that
Divine help is falling on your heart, more and more. You must not ask
with your tongue, ‘I am in need!’ There is no value in that. We are looking
at your nature’s need. If you are in need, we will know.

“Increase your need – that is important! Every time you are in

action, this power increases. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says,
‘From heart to heart, there are secret ways.’ Especially from the hearts of
Awliya to their followers. This relationship is strong, bringing people all
together.

“Therefore, according to your love for Awliya, they will give you
more power. This is the way. When you are showing love, respect, and
charity toward Awliya, they also return to you more than your love, more
than your respect, and more than your charity.

“Allah is the source, the fountain. No one can approach Niagara

Falls to drink; but you may drink from a cup (Awliya) and say, ‘I am
drinking from Niagara!’ Wahhabis say that all people are the same; no
difference among men. They are not accepting that Awliya have
extraordinary powers. You may take two wires; one, you put into an
electrical outlet; the other, no. They look the same, but touch them and
you will feel the difference! Yes, all people are the same; but some of
them are connected with Divine Powers. You cannot know by sight
alone.

* * * * * * *

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Our Grandshaykh was telling us about Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (may
Allah be pleased with him), who said, “Before I became Muslim, I kept my
money in my hands very firmly. I feared it would be finished if I spent it.
But, after my Islam, I opened my hand with giving, and, as much as I am
giving, my money is not going to run out!”

This is the meaning of the Quranic verse, “O My people! As much

as you give in charity, I am giving better, exchanging your charity with
My Charity!” Therefore, don’t be afraid. If you are giving for the sake of
Allah, He will give to you. Sayiddina Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with
him), before he became Muslim, was afraid to spend all his money. But,
when he believed Allah’s words, he gave and gave, and there was no end
to his money and property.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “It is impossible to

decrease the money of a man who gives in charity.” And, our
Grandshaykh was saying, “Allah Almighty sometimes is trying His people.
Prophets have been tried, and Awliya have been tried; because each trial
gives them higher degrees. Once, Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (may Allah be
pleased with him) gave all his money and things away. He didn’t even
have anything left to wear, so he wrapped a straw mat around himself.
But, after that trial was finished, more and more came, also.

“O believer! Do you think a well will run dry from your drawing?
When Allah tried Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), and saw that
he didn’t change his belief when hardship came, it meant that he passed
the examination. When that happens, Allah Almighty opens His oceans of
mercy to that servant.”

Allah tried even His beloved Muhammad (peace be upon him).

When his Sahaba tied one stone on their stomachs for hunger, the
Prophet tied two stones. When his belief remained unchanged, the
examination was finished. No more trials came to him.

What is the wisdom of Allah trying His servants? He is trying His

servants to see if they see that all things come from Him Almighty. He is
giving, and He is stopping. He is teaching patience. He says, “Good
tidings for My patient servants!”

* * * * * * *

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Our Grandshaykh says, “You must not be worried about your

sustenance, because for everyone living on this world there are chains of
sustenance coming down. As much as you will cut from that chain, more
will come down. If you are cutting a little, little will also come. If you are
generously cutting, it will generously come. If it is finished for you, you
may ask.

“If something is given to you, without your asking, it is halal, good

for you. You must not refuse it. It is not good manners to refuse a
person. That person is giving to you with his inspirations, and if you
refuse, he will be ashamed, broken. You must take it and thank him, pray
for him. If you are not in need, you may keep it aside for giving to
someone who is in need later on.

“If you are a traveller and someone asks you if you are in need you
must reply, ‘As you like’ or ‘As you know.’ Then, as they offer, you must
accept. This is a good manner – to place consideration for your plight on
his conscience. He may give, or not; but in Islam, the best manner is
‘Don’t ask!’ This manner is true for the giver as well as the receiver. Don’t
wait to find out if he is in need. Your inspiration and your conscience will
cause you to give freely, but Satan will come to you and say, “You must
ask, and then give. Perhaps he is not in need.’ Then, you will not be so
generous. Give!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh says, “Don’t be afraid of death. This is the sign

of lman. To be fearful of dying is the sign of no lman. Bravery comes from
the power of our faith. As our lman increases, fear of death recedes, and
bravery grows. There is no fear of death for a mu’min. One who fears
death will try to escape it, whereas a believer will be brave, hoping to
meet his Lord.

“Without bravery in the face of death, lslam cannot spread on the

world. Without this faith and courage, people will hide in their houses.
Believers need to appear all over this world, in order to put the signs of
Haqq (Truth and rightness) there.

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“The fear of death prevents mu’min from many good actions,
especially from fighting for the sake of Allah, and for the sake of
goodness, justice, and rightness. When believers show fear of death, it
encourages bad people and devils to more cruelty. Dogs have a
character; if they feel you are afraid of them, they will attack you. But, if
they feel that you are not afraid of them, they will run to escape from
you. Devils are this way. If believers and good people don’t fear devils,
then those devils will be afraid. Otherwise, it will be the reverse; if we are
afraid, then they will be brave toward us. Therefore, in Islam, it has been
ordered not to be afraid of death.”

* * * * * * *

We know that Satan is the first, and most dangerous enemy for
us. He is always trying to destroy our lman, always renewing his attacks
on believers. Our Grandshaykh said, “The first step of Satan to destroy
our lman is to make us in doubt about our sustenance. The devil says to
us, ‘What are you doing? How are you going to live? Where is your job?
Where is your money?’

“People are of two kinds: One kind works for this life and this
world; the other kind is working for his Lord. The first kind becomes
tired with his working. The second kind, who are working for their Lord,
are not tiring themselves working for this world; Allah makes other work
for them.

“When Allah Almighty created all our souls, He made an exhibition

of all the kinds of jobs that people could do; every occupation. Then, He
ordered each person to choose one of them for their life and every
person chose one.

“After the last person had made his choice, there remained one
group of people who had waited without choosing. Allah asked them,
‘Why haven’t you chosen?’ They replied, ‘O our Lord! We choose only
your service! No occupation for us but that!’

“Allah Almighty was so pleased, and He addressed them, ‘O My

servants! You chose My service; therefore, I made all those other people
servants to you!’ Then, He ordered this dunya, ‘Serve My servants!’

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“Satan attacks believers, making doubt come into their hearts
about their sustenance so that they will leave their Lord’s service and
pursue the things of this world. Satan makes all people, especially
Muslims, think deeply about their future, about their welfare, about their
children’s future. Why? Allah doesn’t ask us for tomorrow’s worship, only
today’s, only what is due now. Why are we asking Allah for tomorrow’s
sustenance?

“We must have faith in Allah to provide for our needs. ‘Am I not
your Provider?’ says our Lord. ‘Do you not trust in Me, O My servant?’

“New day, new sustenance. Our Prophet (peace be upon him)

says, ‘Sustenance is provided for everyone, throughout his life. Each man
must complete his share before he dies. Until he finishes what is written
for him, what is allotted for him, he will not die.’

“We must take a lesson from the pets of men. Look how much
they trust their owners for food. In European countries, cats and dogs
are kings. Did you ever see a cat or a dog working? They trust their
owners, who feed them without expecting work in return. Have we
reached this level of trust to our Lord? Allah says, ‘You must not trust
your own powers, your minds, businesses, money, etc. You must trust
Mel’ It is Satan who tells us the opposite.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh was saying, “What are the attributes of Awliya?

Anyone who believes in Allah and eternal life, and Holy Books, and Allah’s
messengers, and Paradise and Hell, and the Last Day, that person is
stepping on the way to the first station of Wilaya, to be a Saint.

“That belief is the first step toward Wilayat. It is our will to begin,
but to reach that goal we need Divine Help. For this reason, the Prophet
(peace be upon him) always asked for Divine Help, and therefore, we too
must not trust our own powers, but must ask and trust our Lord’s Help.
That is most important for everyone, especially those who are traveling
for the sake of Allah Almighty.

“What is a Wali’s attribute? What is his belief’s power? How is his

belief in his Lord? It is like this: If Allah Almighty covered all the sky with

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an iron cover and all the earth with rock, and that Wali is ordered to
provide sustenance for all people, he will not worry. His belief is so
strong in Allah the Provider (ar-Razzaq). If any doubt comes to his heart,
he is thrown out of Sainthood!

“Allah is Lord of the universe, and He may order us to do anything

at any time. We must always be ready to accept those orders. Ordering is
for Allah. To keep His orders with no objections is for his servants. When
Allah Almighty orders, that order must be kept. When Allah ordered the
angels to make sajdah, lblis refused, and Gabriel made sajdah twice in his
place!”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh said, “When does the power of our faith

appear? When an unlovely thing happens to you, and you remain
unchanged, firm in your faith, your Iman is real. If you can bear with
those undesired things, the power of your faith will appear. Without trial,
you cannot say that you have real power of faith.

“When Abraham (peace be upon him) was about to be thrown into

the fire, the angels wept for him. They appealed to Allah for permission
to help him. Allah agreed and sent Gabriel down on behalf of all the
angels to help Abraham (peace be upon him), but only on the condition
that Abraham (peace be upon him) must first ask for that help.

“So, Gabriel came to Abraham (peace be upon him) and asked, ‘O

Ibrahim! Do you need help? I am ready for that!’

“Abraham (peace be upon him) replied, ‘O, Gabriel! From you I

need nothing. Only from my Lord!’

Then you must ask your Lord for help!’ Gabriel said again.

“And, Abraham (peace be upon him) replied again, ‘It is enough

that He knows I am here.’

“This is real power of faith, unchanging in the face of trials. This is

the target. We must continue, until we are like Abraham (peace be upon
him). You may, throughout your life, be in so many heavy positions. You

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must not melt; you must be solid! Our life’s problems and troubles are so
many. According to the power of our Iman, our faith, we can stand up to
them. You may see some people killing themselves in the face of their
troubles. When people are faced with great events, strong faith keeps
them from panic.”

* * * * * * *

Our Grandshaykh said that rebellion against our Lord is the main
reason for the prevention of His favours to us. If you understand this,
you will always be in good condition, enjoyment, and happiness.

Sayyidina ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “If a man fears
Allah Almighty, he will live a happy life, and travel over the whole world
safely.” No problem for that person, and no difficulties.

So many people, on account of their rebellion to their Lord, are

lying in hospitals and prisons. We must be, instead, obedient to our
Lord’s will. When confronted with a great event that we cannot face, we
must leave it to Allah’s will, to Allah’s power, saying, “La hawla wa la
quwwata illah billah hil-‘Aliyyil ’Azeem.” (No power or strength except by
Allah the Highest, the Most Great One.) We can’t change anything, but
He has the might to change everything as He likes.

This is an excellent good manner, and a very lovely attitude or

attribute for a servant toward his Lord. If you are faced with a heavy
happening, or a great event that you can’t carry, that you cannot bear,
you must say, “O my Lord! La hawla wa la quwwata illah billah hil-‘Aliyyil
’Azeem! You Almighty can carry it. You, alone, can change it!” Only in this
way can you bear some things. You cannot carry them with your own
powers, but must transfer the load to your Lord.

All problems of servants can be easily solved in this manner, with

this saying. it is the sign of perfect obedience to your Lord and according
to our Prophet (peace be upon him), “La hawla wa la quwwata illah billah
hil-‘Aliyyil ’Azeem” is a treasure from Paradise. The servant with this
word is the most powerful one in the whole world, and, in our tariqat, we
have been ordered to repeat it one hundred times in a day. With it a
servant can bear everything in this world; as much as even mountains
can bear!

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* * * * * * *

For what reason are we learning? For what reason are we taking
knowledge? What are Holy Books for? Do you not know that Satan knows
all Holy Books? So many religious people are reading Holy Books and
trying to take more and more knowledge.

I heard today about a contest in Jerusalem among young people,

to see who is the most knowledgeable of their Holy Books. For what? It is
more important to know the reason for learning. Iblis, as we said before,
knows all Holy Books. If it were enough merely to have this knowledge in
order to be saved, then Iblis would also have reached that point!

Therefore, we must understand that our target, or aim, is not to

possess so much knowledge. Holy Books are lights from Allah Almighty to
His servants. You must take that light in your hands, and you must go
through darkness until you reach your realities in the Divine Presence.
That knowledge is Shariah, and acting according to that knowledge is the
meaning of tariqat – to go on toward your Heavenly positions.

The meaning of tariqat is ‘way,’ and when you enter this ‘way’ and
go on, you will reach your Divine Positions in the Divine Presence. They
are the realities of mankind, of human nature. It is the recognition of
ourselves and our realities. Everything has a reality and when a man
recognizes himself, he may know his Lord.

Our realities are in the Divine Presence, but we separated and

came into this world. As of yet, there is no connection between ourselves
and our realities in the Divine Presence. All Prophets (peace be upon
them all) and all Awliya (may Allah be pleased with all of them) came to
make that connection for us, as they themselves are so connected.
Therefore, Allah Almighty ordered His servants to follow one of those
Prophets and Awliya, so that we may also become connected to our
realities.

“Follow in the path of him who has turned to Me with love.” Thus,
Allah Almighty describes the personality of those who are connected
with their Divine Stations: “. . . who turned to Us with love…”

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* * * * * * *

Notes

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Notes
 “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.”

~Sultanul Awliya Mawlana Shaykh Nazim al-Haqqani ‫ق‬