The Whole of Creation is their Playground of God, Tariqa & Syaria - Prose of Ramadhan Part 34

If your idea of the Syaria leaves you groping
in the dark, why don't you switch on the light of the tariqa?

Islamic State of Mind (Ramadhan Verses 20)

They want the Islamic State

But they are not in the Islamic

State of Mind...

- Writing laws into law books

And saying "This is God's law!"

When I see that it is a human hand

Still holding the pen.

- Disconnecting the law from the love,

Demanding obedience without discretion,

Thinking only they must be right -

Building the fences of law so high,

That we cannot see the garden inside.

- Following the religion of hubris,

These fancy God-botherers,

Acting like tourists, coming and

Going as they please.

TARIQA SYARIA. A wise man once described the connection between the tariqa (the spiritual path) and the syaria (the law) of Islam thus - 'The syariah is like a fence, it protects a beautiful garden which is the tariqa." And that, in a nutshell is the symbiotic relationship between the two essence of the faith.

ISLAM WRONG? If the pronouncements of the syaria, if the canons of law themselves, as interpreted by man does not reflect the inner beauty of Islam, then frankly, I don't think that the law, the lawmakers and the lawgivers are Islamic. If they say that this fence is to protect a glorious garden of paradise which is Islam, but from outside the fence I see no garden, I see no beautiful trees or flowers, well, what are you talking about, then? Either you are wrong or Islam is wrong, and to be honest, I believe in Islam but I disbelieve in you.

I think Sufis exist. Because all Sufis love cats. Purrrr...

SUFIS? BAH, THEY DON'T EXIST! It is of course even worse when the lawmakers and lawgivers don't even recognise that tariqas and Sufism have a role to play in Islam. They will say that Sufism, if it ever existed (which they doubt), is long dead, buried with the Prophet and his Companions. But if the tariqa, the inner spiritual path towards divine servanthood and taqwa (the pacific heart) does not exist anymore, then what on earth is the law protecting?

I am an angel, but the coldness of their hubris
have turned me stone cold to them.

HUBRIS. So I hope these 'defenders of the faith' will come to heel before God, the Owner of the faith. But I am afraid that unless a divine intervention happens, they shall not submit. They shall continue to pray in the religion of hubris and by their love-less and rude 'declarations of law', they shall continue to exhibit their personal insecurity over their own faith, and their despair to openness, transparency and truth. They are running from shadow to shadow, bleating like paranoid sheep, "We are being oppressed! We must fight! We must fight!" - These are the men who think they represent the Nur (Light) of Islam? This is so funny, I could cry. I do actually. Too often. sigh.

HEROES. The Sufis fear no oppression, so they do not oppress. And the Sufis love frankness and openness, so they do not run from interfaith meeting. For to them, it doesn't matter where they are or whom they are with, if the purpose is to explore and extol the Divine Attributes of God and how He manifests His Love and His Plan over mankind, then it is always a good place. In that way, the whole of creation is their Playground of God.

Have a thoughtful Friday, sunshine. 

wa min Allah at-taufiq