Making the Prose of Rumi more Beautiful and the Discourses of Geylani more Meaningful - honest toil and the virtues of household chores

Prose does not put food on the table, the kitchen stocked
nor the pathways and bathrooms clean...
For that we need the honest toil of workers and domesticity
of the home-makers. Blessed be the Prose of God in action!

(Prologue: This write-up is inspired by the exhaustion of the sinner after only two days' prep and household chores for yesterday's Eid open house. I plonked dead on my bed at 10pm, waking up 12 hours later...)

Kids... Mikhail and Imran.
You want them not to make the mistakes
you have made, and the easiest way is for you
to nag them. But the best way is by example.
You know it, I know it and
they know it too! (dammit)

Secrets. So what? There are secrets, and there are secrets of secrets. On the spiritual path, you will be pleased to know that many veils of such secrets are lifted,... and hey! Kudos to you because you now know! But so what?

For what is the point of knowledge if it is not manifested in your every day life? And as a registered sinner, I am the first to admit that this is not easy. But there are some very basic things which is important and we must at least try to do.

Self Improvement. The path (tarikat) does not enjoin the seekers to give up on the world, for there is much to do and improve, if we would only realise this. And of course it all begins with our own selves, first and last. For the journey to improving our habits and life style does not end until we exhale our last. So for acolytes of the mystic ways to espouse great transcendental knowledge about God and humanity, about the ordering and corruption of society... they must ask first what they are doing (or trying to do) to remedy their own faults - Their own personal health and eating habits. Their own exercise and concern for the household and their neighbours. After all, if nothing is attempted, nothing is gained. 

With Knowledge comes Responsibility. But for those blessed with secret knowledge, the responsibility is heavier. For as Imam Shafi'e said - Knowledge without practice is arrogance. In other words, you are principled in words and thoughts, but unprincipled in actions. This is not a good place to be in. In fact, it would be better to know less or nothing at all.

Honest Living. If you toil every day for an honest living, you gain money and wealth. With that prosperity, you can share it with your family and friends, your neighbours and needful charities, and there are a great number of people needing help out there. If you do not work, what are you contributing to the world? Whether you are trading, working for people, there is always room to work. 

Mikhail is a grandson of a great and efficient home-maker.
Though he never got the opportunity to meet my mum,
I hope to instill a little of my mum's domesticity in him.
(And in my own lazy self, come to think of it.)

The Prose of Rumi, the Discourses of Geylani. Even if you have no job whatsoever, you can at least be helpful about the house. For me, fixing the toilet, changing the light bulbs, sweeping the garden and throwing away the rubbish properly, are all a necessary and distinguished part of life. For it makes life for ourselves and everyone around us better. Menial though these chores may be, but the truth is they make the prose of Rumi and the discourses of Geylani even more beautiful, poignant and moving. Otherwise, are we not merely pandering to our spiritual ego?

Household Chores. Such things must be taught when young. And we must take the effort and be patient with our children. Otherwise, they will grow up dismissive of domestic chores, giving little credit to the little wives, mothers and sisters without whom a house can turn into a dung heap really, really fast.

So God bless all house-makers, and may we always be reminded to help them in their virtuous work!

Oh, and thank you to all who came yesterday. Most of all, I did the open house in loving memory of my late mother, Arbayah binti Haji Hashim, who made us a loving and generous home. May Allah (s.w.t.) bless her in the company of His friends.

My late-mum, the efficient home-maker. She only rested when she died.
But I wonder if she is now just as efficient in the Hereafter as she was here,
...watering the roses and weeding the Eternal Garden of the eternal weeds. He he he
al fatiha

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

IF YOU HURT, AT LEAST YOU KNOW YOU ARE NOT HEARTLESS! the benefits and advantages of pain and hurt

A mureed was attending the discourses of a mighty Shaykh, a well-known master of the spiritual path of Islam. The Shaykh was not the sort to mince his words, and as he spoke, barbed darts and barbed arrows issued forth from his lips and pierced the conscience of all the mureeds in attendance. Each one felt it, in his or her own way. Ouchie.

One particular mureed actually winced as if hurt by physical pain and the Shaykh noticed. He turned to him and addressed the mureed and by that way he addressed all the mureeds. "Oh foolish one! You winced, did you? You felt the heat of my white words, did you? Well, take that as a good sign from Your Creator, for He has left you now, even after years of your neglect, forgetfulness and sinning, with a heart that could still feel!"  

Hurt Heart

It is better to have feelings,

And with that, the ability to feel hurt,

Than to be heartless

And be known to your God

As someone without feelings.

..............................

And here we are today, sunshine. And I reckon just like me, you still have a heart that Allah (s.w.t.) has bestowed that you might feel and find your way through the maze of this dunya (physical world). Yes, I know... sometimes we stumble and fall, and often enough falling foul of God's commandments. But alhamdulillah (God be praised!), that when we fall we feel the hurt. 

Other wise, how long do you think we would still be falling into the abyss, unknowing of our errors and mistakes?

Greetings of peace and blessings upon the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s.), and His inheritors through whom we may learn a little about who we are. They are like mirrors into our own souls.

Have a lovely Sunday.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

The Physical Gloss over the Spiritual Essence - knowledge and learning in the embrace of the Master

I asked a friend of mine recently, "Have you read Shaykh Abdul Qader Geylani?* (*a famous Sufi Grandshaykh of the Syariat (the Law) and the Tarikat (the Path)). To which he replied in the negative. And I think he was amused by my crestfallen reaction (which I think I found hard to hide) for he said, "He is not in my priority of reading..." 

So I asked him what was his priority reading, and he said, "The Holy Quran, the Hadith (verbal traditions of the Prophet), perhaps the books of the four school (mahzabs) of jurisprudence of Islam..." He felt that it is important for him to focus on these basic groundings and not be distracted by other books, which I guess appear to him to be secondary and collateral to these books.

My first (and emotional) reaction was to spring on him and shake his structure- Oh why oh why would you not want to open yourself to the love manifested by someone such as Shaykh Abdul Qader? A love of divine presence connected through the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s.) and the Companions and Saints? A love that you can sense, taste and feel through his spiritual discourses? Why would you not want to grab hold of this Saint's robe and let him drag you through our simple hypocrisies though it may hurt our spiritual sensibilities? Why would you not want Love at all? But then someone interrupted us and he whispered to me,

In the Kiss, In the Embrace

Love cannot be informed upon,

Love cannot be explained,

Love cannot be told from 

One person to another.

Love must be transmitted in a kiss,

In the embrace of the Master 

And submission by the apprentice.

................................

So I said no more on this matter.

But the next day, another old friend of mine dropped by in the hallow of my thoughts and by this he challenged my friend's view - You say that you wish your religious study not to be distracted by other spiritual books than the Holy Quran and the Hadith and the books of the four Imams of Jurisprudence. But in your life you are reading the newspaper, you are reading about politics, the economy and society in general. You are driving and you would be studying the advertisement billboard that litter the roadside. You are reading books, journals, magazines, brochures for computers and surfing the internet and reading all sorts of things, written by all sorts of people. And this you say is okay because those reading material are not spiritual or religious in nature. 

But what is 'nature'? At another level everything in its very nature is spiritual. Whether it is about health or wealth, science or technology, people and society, politics and ideologies, banking and commerce - Such things sometimes appear with a gloss of materialism because we are dealing with the physical world and its inhabitants. But truth be told, the knowledge is coming from the same source and MORE importantly, one way or another, it is TALKING about that same source - the One Originator of all things physical, felt or deserving of our contemplation, our One Lord God.

Coming and Returning

All knowledge comes from God,

And all knowledge returns to God...

............................

But I cannot share such things with him because there is of course adab (good manners) to consider. I cannot intrude into the bridal chamber of Love. So I ask of Love for Love and no more. Love will bide His time as He wishes.

Have a lovely day, sunshine.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

TOUGH BUT TRUE - Love and Discourses of Love with the Great Shaykh Abdul Qader Geylani

Actual excerpts from the Jila' al-Khatir

Nothing happens by chance, and everything happens for a reason. How many years ago was it, when I first came across the discourses of Shaykh Abdul Qader Geylani, the great Shaykh and Sufi Master? Maybe 17 years ago? ...all those many moons ago when I was still a paid-up member of a bachelor pad in Bandar Utama that was full, not surprisingly, of bachelors.

Now all of those bachelors are happily married, with their own little brood. None of them are rolling in the riches, but they appear to me to be happy and contented with their lot. But I bet that however they have matured as men and husbands and fathers, when they begin to furtively open their old books of the Great Shaykh Abdul Qader, they are prepared to be criticised, lambasted and generally made aware of their terrible shortcomings.

He he he. It is called tough love. 

For me at least, the discourses of the Great Shaykh is always a direct conversation, as his sincerity and love for Allah (s.w.t.) and the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s.) resonates through his words. And this is true even though they have been translated by different people. I say it is a conversation, but I guess it is almost always a divine monologue, with me cringing, and mumbling my acceptance of my poor state as Shaykh Abdul Qader dissects through the many layers of my ego, "...yes, yes, Shaykh... yes, yes... yes, Shaykh..."

If you have not read any of his discourses, why haven't you? Step up and  take it like a man (or woman). It will make your day.

He he he. God bless you, sunshine.  

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

Mr. Ikhlas Prayer - Waiting outside the Gate of Knowledge and walking through...

49. What is your God like?

One day someone asked me,

“O’ stranger, what is your God like?”

And this was what I wished

I was able to reply,

“My God is kind, like me.

My God is generous, like me.

My God is truthful, like me.

My God is patient, like me.

My God is understanding, like me.

My God is loving, like me.

My God is merciful, like me.

“He is all that?”, he asked.

“Yes. And so much more.

For He is not my God.

He is our God.”

And thus would I conclude,

“So if you wish

To know Him,

Then know me.”

...........................

The above prose does not make sense perhaps, unless the stranger is one of the Prophets of God, and even more so if he is the Seal of the Prophets himself, Muhammad ibn Abdullah (pbuh), born in Mecca, passing on in Medina but a Mercy to all the world(s).

And if it is not the Prophet Muhammad, then the stranger could very well be one of his Companions (Umar perchance?), and in that context God is taken out of the equation, and in His absence the Prophet becomes the best guide to God.

And if it is not a Companion, then it may be one of the Saints of Islam, say perhaps Shaykh Abdul Qader Geylani, and the other person he is referring to would be a Companion, Salman al Farsi, for instance.

You can guess where this is heading. He he he. The stranger is you.

.........................

I had a long chat with my friend, Mr. Ikhlas this morning. Many fascinating things we covered (which I hope to share with you here one day) but this is one nugget of advice he gave me. "You must have the best of ambitions. Do not allow the Prophet, the Companions or the Saints to become a veil between you and success in this world and in the next. The holy ones are meant to be gates of knowledge, not veils of knowledge."

"I am a little afraid, Ikhlas." I confessed. "Who am I, and who are they? I am worse than nothing, I am a bad sinner."

"No, my friend." He admonished me. "Why are you sitting out here by the gate of knowledge, pussy-footing at the peripherals? Are you waiting for the holy ones to invite you in? There is the gate. There is the door. Walk through!"

(Easy for him to say, I thought)"Walk through? How?"

Mr.Ikhlas then chuckled, "He he he. The easiest thing in the world - just ask. Ask God - o' Lord, however you have made Shaykh Abdul Qader to be, make me like him! However You have made Shaykh Jelaluddin Rumi to be, make me like him! However You have made Khalid al Walid to be, make me like him! However you have made my Mawlana to be, make me like him!"

Then he paused, before giving me the clinching reason. "After all, Taufiq, if you ask for something good from God. Would He deny you? If you asked your mother for something, if it was in her powers to give, would she have not granted you your wish? Are you telling me God does not love you as much and even better than your own mother? Or are you suggesting that God's power to grant His servants their most impassioned desire is limited or somehow constricted?

..............

The story of Mr. Ikhlas is an interesting and continuing tale that traverse across decades of his long life, and crisscrosses between the world of Man, the world of the Unseen beings and the world of the Djinns. But essentially, at this point in his life, it is to the world of Man that Mr. Ikhlas belongs. Contented at home and happy to be in his skin... perhaps that is why he can come up with some poignant and wonderful prayers.

I just thought I would share this prayer with you today, on the eve of Malaysia's Hari Merdeka. So be not reticent in your congress with your God, sunshine. Ask! Ask! Ask and never stop asking! 

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

Who Are You In History? - the deniers and nay-sayers

Even these little flowers know their history. It is embedded in their DNA.
But too few Muslims understand their own past.

A History Lesson

They have not been to the Library of Baghdad,

They have not seen the singers and dancers

In the market place of Damascus,

They have not looked as Ibn Arabi

Walked across the town square,

They have not eaten in the taverns of Cordoba,

They have not seen the sun rise over

The Dome of the Blue Mosque,

They have not eaten the dates

From the plantations of Medina,

They have never seen the golden glory of the Ottomans,

The delicate royal flourishes of the Andalusian Umayads,

The Sword, The Lion and the Gentle Sultan,

Love-torn Rumi, Mighty Abdul Qader Geylani,

Wise and Crazy Nasruddin...

... are all their history

If only they would inquire and ask,

If only they would open a book to learn,

And as we bear witness of the most misguided

Claiming leadership over our community,

Claiming jihad on behalf of our community,

We pose a question, "If you are a leader,

Whereof is your knowledge of 1,433 years

Of your own history?"

If you are not crying for the loss of our Lord's glory

Dressed in the society of good people,

If you harbour hate and bitterness in your heart

And bear the standards of hubris into battle,

Who are you in your faith's history?

My dear Muslims, we will all play our part in history. So find out how you got to where you are now and learn of your roots. Close your ears to those Deniers and Nay-Sayers among the Muslims who will tell you that 1,400 years of Muslim history never happened. Those preachers who will tell you that only they have the perfect absolutist faith. They are often called Wahhabis, though they will deny it. It is not for the disagreement in the protocols of religion that their falsehood begets the evil, but their trenchant denial of the true state and nature of Muhammad, the Prophet of God, that is corrupting their lessons. 

Have a sweet Sabbath, sunshine. Do not let my little rant spoil your breakfast. You yourself are part of the beautiful history, so don't worry...

Pax Taufiqa

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

HAVE HOPE. BECAUSE DESPAIR IS FORBIDDEN - Imam Ghazali and the Alchemy of Hope

I was breezing through Martin Lings's book 'The Meaning of Sufism' when I came across his reference to the late great Imam Ghazali, a man who stands in the same nightscape of celestial knowledge, a starlight of the Faith, together with the likes of Rumi and Shaykh Abdul Qader Geylani (among others!). Lings was referencing Imam Ghazali’s opus entitled Ihya Ulum-id-din. So I too started opening up my translated version of the book, 5 volumes in all (translated by Maulana Fazlul Karim). I bought it in 2003, 9 long years ago.

HAVE HOPE. BECAUSE DESPAIR IS FORBIDDEN.

In volume 4, chapter III, Imam Ghazali spoke of Fear and Hope. This was what he said of Hope...

“Love is made strong by hope... God says: Don’t be despaired of God’s Mercy – 39:53 of the Holy Quran. So he made hopelessness unlawful.”

So mankind are forbidden to despair. To sink into a state of helplessness and hopelessness. What is despair? Despair begets despair. It is already bad that if we despair we sink into a state of inaction. But perhaps even worse is when we permit despair to motivate our action. Why? Simply because inaction caused by despair has no good coming out of it. But action motivated by despair often begets great evil. We need only open the newspapers today to read the fruit of mankind's despair - terrorism, war, poverty, iniquity, hatred, racism, bigotry and hubris. So our Beloved God decides to strike an injunction at the very root, and to quote His Words in verse 39:53 in whole...

Say: "O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (translation by Yusuf Ali)

Imam Ghazali extends his elaboration about keeping hope in God alone, and to not despair out of fear of any thing else, be it a tiger in the forest, or the malice of jealous siblings...

“The story runs thus of Prophet Eakub (Jacob) that God revealed to him : Did you know why I made separation between you and Eusuf (Joseph)? The reason is that you uttered; I fear lest a tiger may eat him when you remain unmindful of him. Why did you entertain fear of (the) tiger and not hoped in Me? Why did you look to the neglect of brother(s) and did not look to Me?”

And again he refers to another icon, Saidina Ali (cousin and fourth Rightly Guided Caliph of Islam)..

“Hazrat Ali saw a man very much despaired on account of his many sins. He said: O brother, you despair of God’s mercy is a greater sin that your sins.”

That is a good point. It is a point of observation placed on the peak of saintly reflection. You cannot give up. You cannot lose hope. You cannot, because simply, God loves you. And He has thus commanded us - do not despair of His Mercy and Salvation. However you have hurt your own self by your sins and misdeeds, do not ever give up on Him.

In this little posting, to which I owe everything to my ancestors and teachers, to the Great Reviver, Imam Ghazali, Jewel of Divine Contemplation, who was learned, became lost, and was found by God in the wilderness of his own despair, Who gently guided him back to true knowledge, above the sciences of religion, into the science of Love, enduring and mighty above all other human conjecture - in this little posting, let Imam Ghazali himself give the conclusion -

“The Prophet said: Let nobody die without having a good idea of God. He said: God says; I work (am) according as my servant thinks of Me. Let him entertain any idea about Me.”

So think good thoughts of God, sunshine. This is an exercise not only of spiritual contemplation, but simple good manners - You can wrap all of Creation in a beautiful bow, but nothing will compare to the goodness and love of God, who continues to think good thoughts of us, despite our folly and forgetfulness. I am not lying here. I am telling the truth.  Reciprocate His Love...

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

In the Library of Love

The Library of Love

I wandered into the Library of Love,

And what a strange collection

That Love possesses,

For in all its cabinets and shelves

Are filled with books

All embossed by the singular title of

“Ahad & Ahmad”

I have been honoured with the permission

To open and read many

Although there is still

A mountain of books

Yet to be read.

In one book

I found an illustration

Of my mother,

In another I read the life of

My paternal grandfather,

In one giant book I became

Enamoured with the Angels,

And in the next I studied

The map of Hallaj’s heart.

In a colourful tome I was

Educated in the stories of

The People of God,

And their names were

Both Muslims and

Non-muslims.

I became acquainted with Raj,

Amir, John, Karen, Martin,

William and Maria.

In the donors' list

Of the Library I found

The names of the people

Who came to donate

Their own books… and

Their names were

Ominously familiar to me -

Rumi, Ruzbihan,

Abdul Qader Geylani,

Ibnu Arabi…

Pax Taufiqa

Love, Servanthood and the Science of Knowing Thyself - My School Daze Part 1

149. School Daze
O’ Ministry of Divine Snubs,
How have you compiled the syllabus
Without touching upon the need
To recognize and control the human ego?

On the basis of which touchstone
Have you given the children garden implements
But no lessons in how to use their hands?
No lessons as to why they need to tend the garden?

You think a spade is good in itself.
But I say, Nay!
For even a spade can be put to murderous use.

TASAWWUF is often referred to in Malay as ‘ilmu mengenali diri’, which translates to the Science of Knowing Thyself. It is too bad however that nowadays not many Muslims here even use that word regularly.

POEM NO. 149 was written depicting the absence of Tasawwuf in the medium of Islamic knowledge teaching during my time. And the conclusion – that sometimes, religious education can lead to crime and mindless zealotry is sadly true today as it was 7 years ago when I recorded the prose. I am a sinner, but even I can comprehend that the teaching of the Science of Knowing Thyself must be an essential part of religious education. And in the context of our ego, which often corrupts our humble faith into hubris, I didn’t even acknowledge the concept of ego, until I was in my late 20s. And in a country where almost half of the population are non Muslims, I do believe that religious hubris and arrogance must be addressed at a young age (high school at least). Not only because it is will help ensure harmony amongst the multi-faith Malaysians - but because it is the Essence of what Muhammad Habibullah is teaching us. Otherwise religious intolerance will grow into a malignant tumour and will eat into the beautiful inheritance of my brethren - it has already for some of my co-religionists… much to my sadness.

LOVE & SERVANTHOOD. Islamic Knowledge education has been in the national syllabus for Muslim students long before the day I first stepped into primary school, some 34 years ago. In my time the ustaz or ustazah (female religious teacher) were, as far as I can recall, kindly and patient dearies. But even up to college level, I do not remember any specific focus on Tasawwuf. It was only much, much later, after I started work that I bumped into a couple of gentlemen attached to a local branch of a Sufi Order. It so happened that they were my close friends. When they spoke, I listened. And I thought that they made a lot of sense. They lent me books about Shaykh Abdul Qader Geylani, Jelaluddin Rumi and a few other old-time favourites of the Sufi library. Hmm, I thought. Very interesting, and it was all about Love and Servanthood…

May God bless all Saints and saintly teachers who acquaint us as to the nature of true Love and true Servanthood. The brighter their light shines, the better for us to expose the deception and ugliness of terror which is disguising itself under the cloak of 'jihad' and 'jihadis' - such bandits are our everlasting enemy.

Pax Taufiqa.

The Servant and the Master, Rumi and Abdul Qadir Geylani

PARK HERE. Many eminent people park their cars in the multi-level car-park of my soul, but two names often appear on the bumper stickers - Mevlana Jalaludin Rumi and Shaykh Abdul Qadir Geylani (note that spellings of their names differ according to the book / website that you are reading). They are revered as saints and masters of the Path (Tariqa).

ASK FOR A MASTER. I never did, but a friend of mine, Ranaz once said, “O’ Taufiq. I made a good bargain with God. God always asks us to pray to Him for help. Well last night, I asked Him to find me a true Master. A Man of God who will help and guide me through this world. If God does grant my wish, well and good, but if He doesn’t, He cannot very well then blame me if I fail to stick to the straight and narrow, right? I have got all the bases covered!”.

JALALUDIN RUMI. The great master was once reputed to admonish a seeker who was traveling to see Shaykh Abdul Qadir Geylani. “No, No, don’t go to that shaykh. Stay with me! Stay with me!”

SHAYKH ABDUL QADIR. This sublime master once said, “Whoever doesn’t have a master, I will be his / hers!” He is yours, you know. The default Shaykh. Hehehe.

.

Initially, I rather thought Shaykh Abdul Qadir to be an exponent of tough love. Being the coward that I am, I therefore ran to Rumi, only to find him a little err… dramatic for my taste. Hehehe. So now I bounce like a beachball between one and the other. I am no scholar though. I have never finished reading any compilation of Rumi’s work. Others however appear unable to get enough of this fellow’s prose. In 2002, Time Magazine named him the best-selling poet in the western hemisphere. Wow. Dead for centuries and still shooting arrows of love into the hearts of man.

OKAY, SERIOUSLY SERIOUS. The sinner here wishes to apologise. Firstly, for making jokes that isn’t funny, and secondly, for the flippant writing about topics, that let’s face it, are seriously serious, like religion, soul, life, hope, hubris, hate, mankind, prophets, saints, love and God. I write with levity and humour (well, my idea of humour) because my day job is a lawyer and draughtsman. I have legally serious terms coming out of my Wazoo. Nuances, definitions and interpretations of words are my bread and butter. My battlefield lies in statutory meanings, and customary usage of words. By my pen I try to bring a little certainty into the tumultuous world of commerce and contracts. It can get tiring. It is my daily relief therefore, to be able to write what I write here. 6 years ago, worn and world-weary, this sinner wrote…

167. World Weary
World weary,
The mind becomes numb,
And because it considers itself superior,
It feigns deafness to the good advice,
And exhortations of the heart.

The heart, unbowed, unbroken,
Takes its sustenance from a fountain
In the heart of a Shaykh,
Who draws sustenance
From the heart of Muhammad,
Who in turn, drinks from
The Fountain of Divine Presence,
Beyond which there is no further
Drawing or taking that we are aware of.

And Allah knows best.

YOU HIT THE JACKPOT. If you do come across a bona fide master, good for you! He will speak your name and you will think that no one has ever spoken your name in such a beautiful voice. Never have you heard your name sound so appealing… so beautiful. If people do not understand this relationship that you shall have with him, do not worry. It is your path, and only the master would understand what actually transpired…

8. The Observer
The man observed
The long line of devotees
Waiting outside the Master’s cottage.
Each entered. And in time
Each one left the cottage.
The observer approached everyone and queried;
“Are you happier now that you have met him?”

All in their turn answered, “Nay, we were mistaken.
He is not the one. He cannot help us.”

After awhile, the man left,
Convinced that the Master was a fraud,
Though he knew not, in truth,
What really transpired
Beneath the thatched roof.

BAH! HUMBUG! What people do not understand, they become suspicious of. And perhaps a little envious. This is a common perception faced by all apprentice of love in all religion. Your critics shall say that you are stupid to place someone between you and God. They shall say that man is supposed to be a servant to God and no one else. They will say that this is innovation. They shall say all this because they forget an old wise saying… “If you cannot bow to another man, how can you bow to God? If you are not a servant to mankind, how will you ever be a servant of God?” Dear friends, the best of Masters is the best of Servants and the best of Servants is the best of Masters. That is the rule, but some people will not be able to circumnavigate their mind through this Sea of Love... Not everyone are born to be sailors, you see...

13. I am a servant II
I am a servant,
But it is my Master
That supports me,
Attending to my every need,
Knowing what is best for me,
The Guarantor of my success,
My Love, My Layla.

O’ gainsayers!
Begrudge not my happiness.

For what you call the chain of servitude,
I call home.

And what you say is your mind,
I call it a prison of self-deception.

THEM ARE FIGHTING WORDS! Hehehe. Well, do not take what I write here too seriously, pumpkin. I am after all a sinner (and, OH God… a lawyer too!). But you, who are bright and fresh like a boiled egg, you would see better and travel further along the spiritual path to God. My only hope is that wherever you find yourself, perhaps atop some peak of guided enlightment, you will not forget this old sinner. You will write me a postcard, yes? .

Have a good day, sunshine. Meow.

Pax Taufiqa.

The Art of Drinking in the Tavern of Love, with Abu Yazid, Hallaj, Rumi and Abdul Qadir Geylani

In Teddy Bears and Sweet Gentle Walks we spoke of how Love will change your life. And I must warn you that, given free rein, Love will demolish your doubts and sadness. I know this to be true, because more than a year ago a kindly bartender in the Tavern of Love told me…
.

21. A heady draught II
Ah, drinkers,
Did you not see
The sign outside?
“Verily, you who
Wish to enter,
Leave your doubts
And sighs outside.

For only love is
drunk here. Love
in all her delight.
Love! Love!
Love without respite!”

So how can we stop drinking Love, my friends? It is a most addictive beverage. A drink distilled by the Very Best of Distiller and promoted by the Very Best of Copywriter …

22. A Heady Draught III
Love is a draught
Exquisite in nature,
Brewed in secret
Like no other,
A loving nectar,
A liquid amber
Coursing through
Your soul like a
Golden river.

So, again and again we order from the bartender, “One more! One more!”, despite the looming hangover which we sometimes suffer because …

.

23. A Heady Draught IV
Without discretion
Love manifests itself
In the morning after
As a painful hangover.

And after 4 prose of Love, where are we? Ah, here… to the fifth and final round, which I invite your toast, ladies and gents, in the honoured remembrance of Abu Yazid al-Bistami, Hallaj, Rumi and Shaykh Abdul Qadir Geylani! Come on, sinners… finish it and I will join you drunk under the Table of the Prophets and Saints! Because, if we are not worthy to sit with them, at least let us get intoxicated under them!
.

A Heady Draught V
If you desire Love, Happy Hour is Every Hour
Alas for those who seek Love without Love,
For only by Love will you find Love.

And if you have passed that stage,
And come to know the Bartender
A little better, then
You will finally realise that
In the Tavern of Love,
All drinks are, In Truth,
On the House!

Have a great Sunday, sunshine.

Pax Taufiqa.

.

P/S - First 3 poems here are from the chapter entitled 'How Beautiful Love is' completed 9th October 2009. The last, is happily freshly brewed this wonderful Sunday morning, 14th November 2010. How lucky are we!