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

THE KEY TO THE GARDEN - Muhammad Sayyidina Miftahul Jannat (saws) and His blessed Nation

You may find Beauty in the Garden,

You may find Mercy in the Garden,

You may find Compassion in the Garden,

You may find Light in the Garden,

You may find Truth in the Garden,

You may find Love in the Garden,

And you may find yourself in the Garden,

So seek the One who has the Key to the Garden,

Seek the One who is the Key,

There is no mystery,

It is Him that you speak of...

Muhammad Mustafa, Sayyidina Miftahul Jannat!

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

What is Dalail-i Hayrat? Or to give its complete name... 

Dalail-i Hayrat 

wa Shawarqi'l Anwar fi Zikris Salat ala Nabiyil-Mukhtahar

It is a book written by Shaykh Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Suleiman Abu Bakar al-Jazuli al-Simlali, containing prose and verse of praise for the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s). Therefore, the title is translated thus - 

Guide of Good Deeds 

and the Brilliant Burst of Light in the Remembrance of Blessing on the Chosen Prophet.

It is a wonderful little book. For all those times when a Muslim is at lost of words to describe his (or her) love for the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s), this little guide nurtures this love and introduces them to the bewildering names and titles of the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s.). So much so, that you will find yourself pausing and smiling... thinking happily over one of his titles, "Yea... I did imagine the Prophet that way..."

Click Here to a PDF copy of this wonderful book by Shaykh Jazuli. Courtesy of the Naksibendi...

And do you know what is the amazing thing..? I do believe that the Dalail-i Hayrat is still be written. As the devoted lovers and followers of Muhammad (saws) continue in their study and understanding of his prophetic station, which is rising with each moment passing in creation, there are more wonderous names to discover, more wonderous titles to remember him by, this person whom God Himself calls Habibullah (Beloved of God).

Have a wonderful day, sunshine.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

LAMP OF THE LAMP, LANTERN OF THE LANTERN - books, saints and experiences

Why I Read

I read to sooth my nerves,

Tossed about like a ship in a storm,

I seek a quiet harbour full of divine words,

Stories of God and His Prophets...

I read to sooth my nerves,

Pulled and pushed by Love,

Driven to distraction by Beauty,

Pained by the bitter sweet taste of Truth!

I read to sooth my nerves,

To settle my ship in calmer waters,

And see how and where Love may take me

On my next love-drunk journey!

I read to sooth my nerves,

Torn ragged and sundered from my flesh,

To pass back through history

To the time of Adam and Eve,

And finding assurance in the Assurances of God,

His Words intimate, personal 

And oh so compelling!

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

Fitrah. Oh my friend, you and I, we are so alike, yet different. Heaven knows what divine fitrah (essence) that God has placed in your being... to be a cook, a leader, a soldier, a poet or a judge, or perhaps a singer or dancer? Or a preacher man preaching from the soapbox? And to be the best that you can be in your essence. May Allah (s.w.t.) guide you there. Me? I am the dog!

Book and Man. No book is comparable to experience and there is no book comparable to the Holy Quran and the walking, talking breathing manifestation and mirror of the Holy Criterion... that being our beloved Prophet, Muhammad Seal of the Prophets (s.a.w.s.). We look to our Murshid as he walks  us step by step, each moment closer and closer to the most exalted presence of Muhammad (s.a.w.s.). May Allah Almighty sanctify the secrets of the Saints who walk amongst us as a lamp of the Lamp and lantern of the Lantern, shining a bright starlight to guide us through the maze that is our life. insyaAllah...

May Allah bring you peace, and give you the ability to recognise peace. I stand outside your door, sunshine, to be your companion and friend always. Woof!

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

BEAUTY IN ART AND MUSIC - no one made this, the One (God) made this...

An artist at the door of his famous studio in Lefke, Cyprus.

I am Owned, so No Ownership Here

In my courtship of Muhammad, Prophet of God

I wish I could claim authorship of all this prose,

But truth be told, how can I claim to write

Something that is already written ... 

In his beautiful grace,

In his benevolent demeanour,

In his loving gaze,

In his patience,

In his devotion to duty,

In his tender ministration,

In his generous mercy,

And in his enduring mission

To heal our heart and raise us

From the ignominy

Of our sins and folly,

By asking, again and again…

“Look at me! Follow me!”

So how can I claim ownership?

Owned as I am already

By the Prophet Muhammad

Who is unto the worlds ordained

As God’s Sweetness of Mercy.

……………………….

The Blue Mosque, Istanbul.

God the Artist. Poets who write prose, writers who write books, architects who raise mighty minaret-ed mosques in glory of the Lord and the Lord's Beloved (pbuh), artists who carve or draw ornate pictures and designs, dervish dancers and singers for the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) all must ultimately resign themselves to this state of confession that verily, they cannot claim authorship of what they do in their chosen fields. For it would be akin to a traveler walking through a meadow of unsurpassed beauty and purity and then declaring, "I made this!"

No, no one made this. Only the One (God) made this and the artists and builders are simply bearing witness unto His heart-breaking Love and Beauty, and mind-breaking Creativity and Power. It is this intimacy that all artists and builders desire to provoke in the hearts of those who may read, listen, watch or contemplate over their labours of love.

And foremost in their labour of love is their untiring courtship of Muhammad Habibullah (pbuh), yearning above all else to be guided by the Most Beloved to the All-Loving. For it is the lore that when God first created the NurMuhammad (Light of Muhammad), He was Most Pleased by what He saw, and thereupon issued forth all of creation, from the Pen and the Tablet and the Throne, to the Angels and the Heavens and Hells, to the Djinns of the smokeless fire and to Man of clay and water, and all creatures and spirits both seen and unseen of all the world(s).

Love makes the world go round? Without love, sunshine, no world would have ever existed.

Life in the Artists' Commune: A bunch of artists and their Mentor and Grand Muse. Alas, one of the artists (al-marhum Shaykh Raja Ashman) has passed on, and like many artists before him, his work is now greatly prized and sought. They are hanging in the antechamber of his mureed's hearts. But I don' t think any of his mureed would part with his work for all the jewel and gold of this world.
al fatiha

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

Two Languages and Two Personalities - trashing out a new blog and the startling discovery of another personality...

It's you! It's no one else. He just sounds a little different, that's all...

I have been busy this weekend, sunshine. I am trying to concoct a blog in my native Bahasa Melayu (Malay) language. It is funny how we appear to have different personalities in one body, and think and write in different languages. It is not as unusual as some people may think, and I have an impressive royal personage from the past who said something along a similar vein...

I speak Spanish to God, Italian to women, French to men and German to my horse

(Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, 1500-1558 a.d.)

If you can understand Malay, you might want to read it. It's entitled 'Chembul' and can be accessed by Clicking Here.

My posting in my native Malay is very different from the Almanac. The language is err... how shall I say it...  replete with marketplace language (bahasa pasar), informal and often crass. It is very crude with little subtlety, almost non-existent prose and even my late sainted mother would be reluctant to consider it a fine piece of writing. And to top off this strange menagerie of language, I have adopted a different personality too, for I am known as 'Gue' in this new blog. Let me tell you that this is a startling surprise even to myself.

I am not sure whether I can keep up two blogs in my life. As it is, I am stealing time between chores and work to handle the Almanac, so perhaps I won't be maintaining Chembul. We will see...

Nothing to report today, sunshine. Just the strange thoughts that writers think in their tiresome search to find their voice... In whatever and however many languages they are 'fluent' in. 

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

Women, The French and Their Wicked Witty Wisdom... of sorts

Heche presented to me a couple of very old looking books, all of which I shall share with you one day. But perhaps the most quirky little hardcover is a book entitled ‘A Thousand Flashes of French Wit, Wisdom & Wickedness’ - A compendium of collectible French quotes and proverbs by one J. De Finod. The book was first published in 1880 and this particular copy being the 1916 publication. The book is almost 100 years old with 100 years old social niceties and prejudices. People were quite conservative in those days, priggish even. Or at least Finod himself had that impression, when he wrote in his prefatory to the collection…

“In compiling this book, I have carefully excluded everything that would seem objectionable to you, my liberal but virtuous reader, the English language being the more austere than the French in its expressions; but, after having paid a legitimate tribute to your just susceptibilities, I have, without timorous scruples, preserved such piquant gems as could be enjoyed without endangering your morals.”

He is afraid of endangering your morals. But I think we will do just fine, sunshine. Moving on he writes…

“A final word to the lady reader: You will see, fair reader, that much good has been said of you, and, alas! Much bad also; this is because no subject more worthy of attention has ever haunted the minds of all great philosophers of the world. But listen to this well-meant injunction: Believe unhesitatingly all that is said in your favor, and deny energetically, as myself do, all that is said to your prejudice. Do not criminate an innocent compiler, who would not exchange one of your smiles for all the wisdoms of Solomon, and who has inserted in his book the malicious remarks of certain ill-natured philosophers, only to show how far man’s ingratitude can go. “

De Finod

My initial impression was - An Apologia pathetic and groveling to womankind. But having read some of the quotable quotes from the French about women, I am not surprised. Perhaps he was not compiling all these French sayings alone. Perhaps De Finod was married, and his wife (or mistress) was hovering around him, reading the manuscripts and muttering, “Hmm… I hope you yourself do not subscribe to some of these vicious things that the French say about women!” To which De Finod may have protested, “Of course not, my little pumpkin! I condemn such prejudices from the core of my being. They are after all, just being French”

Just perhaps.

Well, without further ado, these are some of the more succulent morsels of French wit, wisdom and wickedness that I found worthy for my reader’s attention. And just like De Finod, let me tell you that I am just quoting. Please don’t shoot the messenger. 

 Poor old Hugo. Either he fell irresistibly in love with a Femme Fatal
or maybe his Landlady kicked him out.

Criticism of the sex does not totally come from the opposite. 

I disagree with this 17th century writer. I think that wrinkles are
the grave of vanity, not love at all. But of course some are
prone to treat them both alike.

 True. And boy, are men good kindler of fire!

Uh oh.

 Who's gonna argue with De Sade?

*Gulp* 

Have a lovely Friday, sunshine.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way