The Angel of Adab
(or The Exhilaration of Ascent and Descent)
One evening, I met the Angel of Adab,
And he gathered me in his arms,
Spread his wings far to the East
And further to the West,
Before carrying me up,
High above the mountains,
High above the clouds,
High above the meaning
Of mountains and clouds,
To places whose names
Are not recorded in
Any earthly
Book.
"Look here, Mr. Angel" I said,
"It is all very well for you to
Bear me up so high,
But why?"
The Angel said,
"To experience the exhilaration
Of the ascent, of course!"
"And what if I was to fall
From the sky?"
To which the Angel replied,
"Then you shall experience the exhilaration
Of the descent, of course!"
.........................................
(adab means manners, or good manner)
Angels. What a humourless lot they are. We were keeping company with books in the Hermitage in the Sky, when above us, clouds and sunlight formed to create a beautiful tapestry. He watched my face brighten with gladness looking at the stunning vista, before he interrupted my thoughts thus, "Aah... no doubt that so high above the earth you would feel so close to God and to goodly thoughts, do you not?"
I nodded my agreement.
Then he continued. "Yet to take that final step towards the Divine Presence, you need to be met by the Brethren Angel of Death and your inert body lowered into a freshly dug grave, into the Earth itself. Is this not true?"
"Yes, true and very ironic." I noted.
"You will find many ironies on this journey." He concluded, before once again, we fell silent in awe of Allah's manifest beauty and recreation.
 |
| Humourless, angels might be, but by God they are truthful. He he he. |
wa min Allah at-taufiq, madad ya Saydeena Muhammad (s.a.w.s.), madad ya Shah e Mardan, Saydeena Ali Ibn Abu Talib (r.a.)
Hate has no place in Islam
Love will show the Way
Salam, may I please request a dua from yourself for me and my husband? Please ask for us a closeness to Allah and His Beloved Rasool, and a huge forgiveness for our sins - and I will pray that Allah blesses you with the closeness you are a 'bundle of yearning' for, Insha'Allah, Allahumma Ameen! You ever continue to inspire, maashaAllah, sometimes I feel I am closer to someplace that is HOME inside of me after I read your words...maybe If I can find the door of that home inside of me, I can knock and maybe Allah will let me in, by His Mercy and Grace. I pray to find myself at that door one day...for now I am hopefully trudging in the right direction. Allah bless you and yours, ameen!
ReplyDeleteyour sister in deen,
Asifa.
Dear Sister, That which you asked, I have done. But undoubtedly it will barely be a whisper of a murmur in the musical throng of prayers and good wishes that is accompanying you and your beloved husband already, from both the great and good in your kin and friends, past, present and future. And of course, we shall always have the Prophet (s.a.w.s.) His Family and the Companions, and the Saints, past, present and future. I am a poor, poor sinner and I thank you for your kindness always. May you be blessed with patience always, that irreplaceable key to divine happiness. And if you do find the key, tell me how you found it because I am still looking! He he he. Pax Taufiqa.
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