The Way of the Blessed

In our mubarra (immaculate) book, the Qur’an, Allah Almighty has shown the prophets and the righteous people who follow them as examples for humanity and has commanded us to follow their path. He describes them as “those who have been blessed” and tells us their way is right. Hence, the direction of those who have gone astray and incurred His wrath is indicated to be the opposite. As we pray with the words of surah Al-Fatiha in every rak'ah of salah, may Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) guide us to the pathway of those who have been blessed and keep us from the route of those who have gone astray and incurred His wrath.

The line of nubuwwah came to an end with our beloved Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), and there will be no prophets after him. In every age, within the time period we live in, we need knowledge and guides who bring that knowledge to life in order to walk on the road He has shown. If everyone tried to determine itiqad and deeds according to their own mind and understanding, there would be as many sects and madhhabs as there are opinions, and the origin of our religion would become untraceable and the religion itself impracticable.

Hundreds of sects that have deviated from the main body, the Ahlu’s-Sunnah, have emerged to this day. Throughout history, our scholars have described these sects and ideas that lead people astray from the “right path” as “fitnah” and handled each one by responding with the strongest of evidence. They also advised believers to firmly hold onto the Qur’an and sunnah and follow the guides of the truest way in order to be protected from these fitnahs.

The righteous pioneers of tasawwuf have made efforts throughout history to keep people on Sirat-Al Mustaqim. Those who applied for their guidance and became their disciples also walked together, remained on the right track, and served the ummah.

When Junayd Baghdadi (quddisa sirruhu), one of the first period Sufis, was asked,

“What is willpower?”

“Willpower is to abandon the will, within the will,” he replied.

In other words, it is to turn to the main purpose and never depart from it... This is the essence of the purpose and method of the adherents of tasawwuf.

Another time, a dervish asked Junayd Baghdadi (quddisa sirruhu):

“What is Sufism?”

“O dervish, take a pen in your hand. Write down what I tell you,” he responded.

When the dervish asked what it was he should write,

“Allah,” he said.

When once again asked what else he should write, Junayd Baghdadi (quddisa sirruhu) gave this staggering answer:

“What else is there to write besides Allah!”

The sole purpose in life, in all of humanity’s existence, is Allah Almighty; everything other than Him is mortal and will eventually fade away. Whatever belongs to this wasting world of fleeting, trivial gains, for which we spend our whole lives, is keeping us from our prime purpose, the ultimate goal of being with Allah (jalla jalaluhu). Therefore, one should fix their eyes on the horizons of eternity, realize where they came from, where they are going, and what kind of traveler they really are. Consequently, since it takes a pure heart to see this journey through, one should do their utmost to cleanse it from impurities. The following phrase, which the ancients kept alive to this day, expresses the same meaning as the words of Junayd Baghdadi (quddisa sirruhu):

“Allah is enough; desires are endless.”

Ibrahim Hakkı Erzurumi (quddisa sirruhu) explained being a disciple as follows:

“When a disciple comes before a shaykh and says, ‘Guide me,’ the shaykh says, ‘You must surrender and accept whatever I say.’ No matter how contradictory this situation may seem to the provisions of religion according to one’s initial observations, one should accept it as there is always much more to the words and actions of kamilmurshids than meets the eye. As a matter of fact, their commands are never against religion, and a murshid would not want his followers to diverge from the norms of Islam either. Such unquestioning submission is essential because the first thing on the path of tasawwuf is to connect one’s heart to one’s murshid, whose knowledge of the quickest, smoothest road leading to Allah’s pleasure far outstrips that of the murid. One should look at his murshid as a guide that leads them to Allah, and surrender to his words and deeds without hesitation. This way, wrong thoughts do not make their way into their tongue and heart. In this path, true fortune lies in unwavering submission.”

A Murshid, to whom a disciple surrenders, is not an ordinary person. His is a path linking to the Sahabah in a chain of succession and from there to Rasulallah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). This being so, Shah-i Naqshband (quddisa sirruhu) said the following to consolidate that the pathway of tasawwuf is nothing but pure sunnah as passed down from the noble Sahabah: “Neither did we remove a step from the path of the Companions, nor did we increase it.” Kamil murshids’ dedication to the preservation of the sunnah and shariah through tasawwuf is absolute because the way of tasawwuf is to understand the religion properly and serve it and not deviate from the Qur’an and sunnah. All tariqahs that preserve their originality are on this very road.

Hasan Unsi Shabani (quddisa sirruhu) said in a sohbah:

“Tariqahs appear to be different. However, their purpose is one. All of them are based on connecting the servant to Allah and living in accordance with the sunnah.”

Tasawwuf aims to illuminate the heart with dhikr and remove love of the world from it. In this way, a person corrects and purifies their nafs and inner world. Doing so increases their worship through the divine love they receive, and they gradually get closer to Allah through nafilahs. In the qudsi hadith, Allah Almighty states the following for such servants:

“... The most beloved thing with which My slave comes nearer to Me is what I have enjoined upon him; and My slave keeps on coming closer to Me through performing Nawafil (prayer or doing extra deeds besides what is obligatory) till I love him. When I love him I become his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes, and his leg with which he walks; and if he asks (something) from Me, I give him, and if he asks My Protection (refuge), I protect him." (Bukhari, Rikak, 38)

When the dhikr of Allah reaches from the tongue to the soul, the person becomes a distinguishably pious wali. They always perform dhikr with all their limbs. Tasawwuf is not only to purify the heart with dhikr but also to cleanse it from obvious harams and questionable things. It is to always be an advocate of good and prevent evil. It is to keep one's self under constant critical judgment and control while enjoining goodness to others. Since tasawwuf scholars were exemplary people in this regard, untold masses of people walked on their path and were blessed with hidayah (guidance) through them.

Tasawwuf means that a person is always awakened and sensitive to the law of their Lord and His servants. It is not being deceived by the good thoughts that people may harbor about them, but always taking themselves to task and struggling with their nafs. That's why it has been said, “Know your nafs to be more worthless than anyone else, because the first building block of this path is modesty.”

Tasawwuf is listening to and accepting the righteous words with eager ears, speaking of good things deemed worthy according to Islam, and refraining from engaging in empty talk, let alone haram words. The hadith, “Speak good or remain silent,” is one of the most essential principles of tasawwuf.

The route of tasawwuf exists to enable Muslims to firmly adhere to the faith of Ahlu’s-Sunnah and the righteous madhhabs with both their externally apparent and internal integrity. It is not an alternative practice nor in opposition to the way of Ahlu’s-Sunnah. Those who follow the way of tasawwuf are asked to correct their aqidah and actions first. Those who don’t take a sensitive approach to this issue and make a genuine effort to uphold the fundamentals of Islam cannot benefit from tasawwuf.

May Allah Almighty guide us to the track of those who have been blessed and not separate us from them.

With his tawfiq and inayah.

Sheikh Sayyid M. Mübarek Elhüseyni