Murid's Log

In Memoriam

2011-12-31T15:33:00.000Z

Sidi Shaykh Buzidi

1925-2011

Bismi 'Llahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Rahim

I returned in the early hours of this morning from the funeral, in Nador, of Sid Shaykh Buzidi Bujrafi of the Shadhili-Darqawi-Alawi tariqa. I will not attempt to give an exhaustive obituary here - that should be left to one of his murids, I feel - but I would like to try and describe some reflections on the Shaykh and his passing while they are still fresh in my mind.

Upon entering the zawiya in Nador, the first thing I was aware of was timelessness, the timelessness of the place. Though I had not been there in two years or so, it felt as though I had never left. Sidi Nabil, muqaddam of the Oujda zawiya, said the same to me later on that day. In the zawiya of Shaykh Buzidi, there was no time. It was not Monday, Tuesday, Spring, Summer, December, July; it was only dhikr Allah, remembrance of Him who is beyond time.

Yet of course there was one crucial difference this time around: the Shaykh himself was not there to greet us; and this leads me to the second noticeable presence in the zawiya that morning: grief. We were greeted by Sidi Abd al-Rahim, the Shaykh's son, whose face was an image of grief and loss such as I have never seen. It was all we could do to embrace him, and add our tears to his, without any words being needed. We had arrived just in time to offer the dawn prayer with the congregation. Sidi Abd al-Rahim beckoned to Shaykh Sa'id of Salé to lead the prayer, but the Shaykh took off his woollen cloak and threw it over the shoulders of Sidi Abd al-Rahim, and bade him lead it. After the prayer, we recited together the surat al-Waqi'a and other litanies, and then withdrew to recite our daily wird individually. In gatherings of years past, the fuqara would usually take the two hours or so after this to snatch some sleep after their journeys, and the zawiya would echo with the sound of deep breathing and gentle snores. On this day, though, there was only the sound of muffled sobs and cries.

At around half past seven, a breakfast of olives and olive oil was brought out. Usually at this time, Shaykh Buzidi would come out clapping his hands and singing the Testimony of Faith to rouse the sleeping fuqara for a day of worship; today it was his memory that roused them. After breakfast and ablutions, we began the dhikr, singing the poems of the great spiritual masters of the Order. Many of the lines sung were, of course, those composed by the Shaykh himself. People began to trickle in through the doors of the zawiya, coming from near and far, many of them sobbing, almost all of them weeping. Shaykh Sa'id gave a short talk, quoting lines that would be repeated by many throughout the day, from a poem of the Shaykh al-Alawi:

My beloved ones, if you truly follow me,
Then here is the path: walk upon it behind me.

The path of the Shaykh remains, he said, and it is for his disciples to follow it. He also said that the death of a saint is a time of rejoicing, for it is only then that he is given his true life in the realm of the spirit, free of the chains of this bodily life. He then announced that instead of praying the Friday prayer and funeral in the zawiya, as had first been planned, he had advised the fuqara to bear the Shaykh to the mosque for the prayer, and then return him to the zawiya for burial. This, he said, was so that the funeral prayer would be attended by all, those who knew the Shaykh and those who knew him not, and also so that the people could observe the funeral procession and pay their respects.

At around eleven o'clock, the Shaykh's bier was carried into the zawiya, covered in a green cloth on which verses of the Quran were embroidered. The outpourings of sadness intensified; I do not feel you can know what grief is until you have seen elderly men, normally so stoic and calm, weeping and wailing for a man they loved solely for the sake of Allah. A hadra began, the circle made around the Shaykh once more as it had been so many times in his life. All the Jalal of Allah seemed to be manifested in the room, and it was too much for some, who collapsed into grief-stricken heaps upon the floor, clinging to each other for solace. La ilaha illa Allah. Such love.

And it was love, more than anything else, more even than grief, which was the dominant presence in the zawiya on this day. The Shaykh's bier was taken up by his sons and loved ones, and carried through the streets some distance to the mosque; the procession took perhaps half an hour. Those several hundred men who walked behind it were connected by nothing but love: love for Allah, love for His Messenger (upon whom be blessings and peace), love for those who love Him. If someone were to ask me what love is, I would attempt no definition, but simply say: Go to the zawiya of Sidi Shaykh Buzidi. If you cannot find it there, it cannot be found. The teachings of the Shaykh were simple: dhikr and mahabba. To describe his state would not take many words. What did he do? He invoked Allah. What did he embody? He embodied love for Allah and His Messenger (upon whom be blessings and peace). That is all. His poems of praise for the Prophet (upon whom be blessings and peace) were marked by a love that was pure and sincere, with no artifice or pretension. It was these poems that the fuqara sang as they bore the Shaykh back to the zawiya after the prayer, as tradesmen and their customers stood at the doors of their businesses and bowed their heads in respect. The Shaykh was interred in his zawiya as the mourners recited the Ya Sin, al-Mulk, al-Ikhlas. A few people spoke as best they could, choked by their grief; and Sidi Abd al-Rahim, who now finds the zawiya under his care, was asked to speak, but could not quell his tears long enough to utter even a word. The Shaykh was in any case not a fan of words, preferring the dhikr Allah and the poems of the righteous to fill his zawiya with sound and life; and the fuqara then set about doing just that. They are doing it still as I write this, and will continue to do it thereafter. In the zawiya of Sidi Shaykh Buzidi, after all, there is no time.

Radiya Allah 'anhu.

Mysteries of Fasting

2011-08-07T23:14:00.000Z

Al-Shaykh al-Akbar Ibn Arabi:

Know - may Allah aid you - that fasting (sawm) means both 'abstention' and 'elevation': sam al-nahar means 'the day rose'; Imru' al-Qays used the verb in this way. Because fasting is elevated in rank above all other acts of worship, it is called sawm. God raised it by making it incomparable, out of all the acts of worship, as we shall see; and He took it from His servants even as they worshipped Him by it, and ascribed it to His own Self; and He rewards those who do it by His own hand from His own vessel; and He connected it to Himself by calling it incomparable.

Now fasting is not really an abstention, not an action; and the fact that it is called incomparable makes it all the more apt to be connected with Him; for He says about Himself: "There is nothing like unto Him" (42:11). With this He negates that anything could be comparable to Him; and thus He is incomparable according to both reason and revelation. Nisa'i relates that Abu Umama said: 'I went to the Messenger of God (God bless him and give him peace) and said, "Command me with something that I can take from you." He said: "You must fast, for there is nothing like it."' With this, he negated that any other act of worship God established for His servants is like it. Anyone who understands that fasting is a negative attribute - since it means to abstain from all that vitiates it - will understand for certain that there is nothing like it, for it does not have any essence that could be rationally said to exist. This is why God says 'the fast is Mine', since in reality it is neither worship nor act. To call it an action is barely tolerable, just as to say that the Real (as we understand it) 'exists' is barely tolerable - for the existence ascribed to Him whose Existence is identical with His Essence in no way resembles the existence ascribed to us, for "there is nothing like unto Him."

Consider this Divine Hadith, narrated by Muslim on the authority of Abu Hurayra: The Messenger of Allah (upon whom be blessings and peace) said: 'Allah, Almighty and Glorious, says: "Every act of the Son of Adam is his, save for fasting, which is Mine, and I reward it." Fasting is a shield; and on the day when one of you fasts, let him speak neither obscenely nor loudly; and if anyone curses him or fights him, let him say: "I am fasting." By Him in whose hand is the soul of Muhammad, the changed smell of the mouth of the one who fasts is more fragrant to God, on the Day of Resurrection, than the scent of musk. The one who fasts rejoices in two joys: when he opens his fast, he rejoices in it; and when he meets his Lord, he rejoices in his fast.'

Know that since, as the hadith of Nisa'i has established, God declared fasting to be incomparable, and the Real is incomparable, the one who fasts meets his Lord in the attribute of "there is nothing like unto Him"; thus he sees Him by it, and He is both the Seer and the Seen. This is why the Prophet said 'he rejoices in his fast', not 'he rejoices in the meeting with his Lord'; for joy does not cause joy in and of itself, but rather is the conduit of joy felt in something else. If the Real is one's sight when he sees and witnesses, then he sees himself only through His sight. The one who fasts rejoices in attaining unto the rank of incomparability. He rejoices in breaking the fast in this world because of the satiation of the animal self which innately desires nourishment for itself; and when the gnostic sees the need that his animal and vegetative self has for nourishment, and sees His largess in providing the nourishment he gives it, thereby fulfilling its right (haqq), as God obliged him to, he thereby acts with the attribute of truth (haqq). Thus he gives with the hand of God, just as when he meets the Real he sees It with the eye of God. Therefore he rejoices in breaking the fast just as will he rejoice in his fast when he meets his Lord.

(Al-Futuhat al-Makkiyya, Chapter 71)

The Inner Fast

2011-08-05T15:00:00.003Z

Concerning God’s words

The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Qur’an, a guidance for mankind, and clear proofs of guidance, and the Criterion. And whosoever of you is present, let him fast the month, and whosoever of you is sick or on a journey, (let him fast the same) number of other days. Allah desireth for you ease; He desireth not hardship for you; and (He desireth) that ye should complete the period, and that ye should magnify Allah for having guided you, and that ye might give thanks. (2:185)

Kashani says:

The month of Ramadan, the burning of the soul in the light of the Real, in which, that is, at which time, was revealed the Qur’an, the universal unitive knowledge which is called the ‘Qur’anic intellect’ and leads to the station of union: a guidance for mankind, guiding them to Unity in the form of union, and clear proofs of guidance and the Criterion (Furqan); that is, signs which form a connection between union (jam’) and separation (farq) – meaning the detailed knowledge that is called the ‘Furqanic intellect’.

And whosoever of you is present in this time, having reached the station of direct witnessing of the Essence, let him fast; that is, let him abstain from any word, deed or motion bereft of the presence of the Real.

And whosoever of you is sick, his heart afflicted with the malady of psychological veils which prevent this witnessing, or on a journey, still travelling towards the vision of the Essence but not yet having reached it: (let him fast the same) number of other days; he has other stages to traverse before he arrives at that station.

Allah desireth for you ease in arriving to the station of Divine Oneness (tawhid) and drawing strength from the Divine Strength; He desireth not hardship for you, meaning the overburdening of the weak and feeble soul with deeds; and (He desireth) that ye should complete the period to complete those stages and stations which lead to this one, and that ye should magnify Allah and know His magnificence and His might for having guided you to the station of union, and that ye might give thanks to Him for making you firm therein.

(Tafsir Ibn ‘Arabi)

The Tariqa in a Few Words

2011-07-29T19:52:00.000Z

Sidi Ali al-Jamal:

All existence is like a single man, and you are like a single finger of this man. If you gain power over this finger (which is your soul), you will gain mastery over all of existence, conquering and overpowering it whether it likes it or not. You will then be able to act in existence however you please, and nothing will happen therein unless you please.

If you are overpowered by this finger (which is your soul), however, then all of existence will overpower you, dominating and conquering you whether you like it or not. All of existence will do with you whatever it pleases, however it pleases.

If you gain mastery over your soul, all of existence becomes your slave; if your soul gains mastery over you, you become the slave of existence. Now mastery over the soul can only be achieved by gaining knowledge of ‘those who know through God’ (al-‘arifin bi-Llah), and by keeping their company constantly.

The Veil of Light

2011-07-22T15:40:00.000Z

Imam al-Shādhilī (Allah have mercy on him) said: ‘I heard related to me the words of the Messenger of Allah (upon whom be blessings and peace), “Indeed my heart becomes veiled, and I ask forgiveness of my Lord seventy times a day”, and could not understand what it meant. Then I had a vision of the Messenger of Allah (upon whom be blessings and peace), and he said to me: “O blessed one! That is the veil of light, not the veil of contingent things!”’

يا مبارك ذاك غين الانوار لا غين الاغيار

والحمد لله وحده

Ibn Ajiba on the Spiritual Virtues (6)

2011-07-16T14:52:00.004Z

Love, Witnessing & Intellective Vision, and Gnosis

13 – Love is the permanent inclination of the fervent heart. This inclination is first manifested in the body in the form of servitude – this is the station of the pious; then secondly in the yearning heart in the form of purification and adornment – this is the station of the initiatic spiritual wayfarers; then thirdly in the spirit and the pure secret (sirr) in the form of spiritual firmness – this is the station of the gnostics. Thus the beginning of love is its manifestation in servitude; the middle of it is its manifestation in gratitude and fervour; and the end of it is its manifestation in tranquillity and sobriety, in the station of gnosis. Thus people are divided into three groups: the folk of servitude, the folk of spiritual states (ahwal), and the folk of spiritual stations (maqamat). Its beginning is wayfaring and servitude, its middle is attraction and extinction, and its end is sobriety and subsistence.

14 – Witnessing (mushahada) means to see the Subtle Essence in its manifested and coagulated forms; it is a question of the coagulation of subtle substance. And when love ascends higher, and the coagulated lights become subtle once more, this is intellective vision (mu’ayana)*; it is a question of the return of the coagulation to its subtle state. Thus intellective vision is more penetrating and complete than witnessing. The upshot of this is that the Essence cannot be seen unless Its subtle mysteries are coagulated into manifestations, for the subtle cannot be perceived as long as it is subtle. To see these manifestations in their coagulated form is called ‘witnessing’; and to return them back to their subtle origin by immersing them in the Ocean of Oneness is called ‘intellective vision’. Others say that mushahada and mu’ayana are simply synonyms.

15 – Gnosis (ma’rifa) means that witnessing becomes firm and perpetual; it is the permanent witnessing of the fervent heart. One sees nothing but one's Lord, and turns to none but Him, all the while maintaining justice and keeping to the formalities of the Sacred Law.

*Translator’s note: Sidi Ibn Ajiba is making the distinction here between the gnostic’s recognition of visible things as manifestation of the Real, which he calls mushahada, and the gnostic’s direct vision of subtle realities, which he calls mu’ayana. The term ‘intellective vision’ seems appropriate for describing this latter vision, which takes place via the vehicle of the ‘eye of the heart’ directly, without outward supports.

Ibn Ajiba on the Spiritual Virtues (5)

2011-07-10T16:34:00.000Z

Contentment & Resignation, Vigilance, Self-Reckoning

10 – Contentment (rida) means to meet misfortunes with a smiling face; or it means the happiness the heart feels as fate unfolds; or it means to forgo one’s own free choice and leave things to God’s plan and decree; or it means the expansion of the breast and the absence of any resentment for what comes to one from the One Invincible God.

Resignation (taslim) means to leave all planning and free choice by being still and tranquil as fate unfolds. Thus it is like contentment in essence, except that contentment is greater than it. It is said that the time for contentment is when things actually happen, whilst the time for resignation is before they happen. In this sense, resignation is the same as spiritual abandonment (tafwid). Its beginning is patience and effort; its middle is outward tranquillity despite feelings of resentment and unhappiness; its end is joy and peace without any resentment. The first is for ordinary people, the second for the elite, and the third for the elite of the elite. Even the first stage is not always possible for everyone, because of the human weakness that they, being human, cannot be free of; and thus they are forgiven if they fall short of it.

11 – Vigilance (muraqaba) means constant awareness that God is watching one; or it means to fulfil the rights of God both secretly and openly, without indulging any doubts or delusions, and with complete sincerity. This is the root of all that is good. Vigilance leads to beatitude and determines its power: the more powerful one’s vigilance is, the more powerful the beatific vision he experiences later on will be. Exoterists are vigilant by protecting their bodies from sin; esoterists are vigilant by protecting their hearts from indulging in vain thoughts; the elite of the esoterists are vigilant by protecting their innermost secret from inclining to anything but God.

12 – Self-Reckoning (muhasaba) means to censure oneself from wasting one’s breath and time on anything but obedience to God. It takes place at the end of the day, just as forming one’s spiritual intention (musharata) takes place at the start of the day. One says to oneself at the start of the day: ‘This is a new day, and it will bear witness against you; strive to fill it with that which draws you nearer to God. Had you died yesterday, you would have missed out on the goodness you have a chance to win today.’ One says the same thing as the night approaches, and reckons it when it passes. One continues to do this until he becomes firm in the Presence, whereupon his time becomes unified; this is to drown in the witnessing of the Divine, so that there is no longer anyone to reckon or to chastise. Thus forming one’s spiritual intention comes first, and reckoning oneself comes last; and vigilance must be constant, as long as one walks the path – and when one arrives, there is no longer any reckoning, nor any intention.

الصوفي لم يُخْلَق

Life and Death, Tears and Laughter

2011-06-01T14:14:00.003Z

Remember that when you were born, you were crying while all around you were laughing.
Die in such a way that, though all around you cry, you shall laugh.

-Mawlana Rumi.

Moulay Arabi and the Kittens

2011-04-29T08:42:00.003Z

Moulay 'Arabi al-Darqawi was walking along one day through the streets of Fes with a disciple of his, when they came across a pair of kittens playing in a doorway.

'Look at these kittens, master', said the disciple, 'and how they love each other unconditionally and purely. If only the fuqara could be that way!'

'Indeed,' said Moulay 'Arabi. 'Let us see.' He went over to a nearby butcher and asked for a sliver of meat, which the butcher gave him. He returned with it to the kittens and threw the scrap of meat down to them. Immediately they began to fight and scratch and yowl, each one trying to claim the meat for itself.

'Thus it is with the fuqara', said Moulay 'Arabi.

Ibn Ajiba on the Salat ‘ala an-Nabi

2011-04-01T11:50:00.003Z

The blessing (salat) which God sends upon His Beloved is His love and affection for him, and His drawing him nigh and electing him; and the peace (salam) He sends him is a salutation and generous ennoblement, and an expression of utmost kindness and favour.

In the invocation of blessings upon the Messenger of God (upon whom be blessings and peace), people are divided into three groups:

First there are those who send blessings upon his human form; these are the people of rational arguments and proofs. They envisage him in their hearts as they invoke blessings upon him, and as they invoke more and more (with presence of mind), the noble image becomes firmer and firmer in their hearts. Thus they see him often in their dreams; and perhaps his noble spirit might take the form of his blessed body so that they see him in a waking state.

Then there are those who invoke blessings upon his illuminating spirit; these are the people of witnessing who travel the spiritual path. They invoke blessings upon his light which flows down from the Realm of Domination (al-Jabarut), and they witness him most of the time, as long as they have presence of mind and vision.

Then there are those who invoke blessings upon his primordial light, which is the light of all lights; these are the people of spiritual firmness and mastery, they of direct witnessing and vision. The Prophet (upon whom be blessings and peace) never leaves them for a moment, which is why Sheikh Abu Abbas [al-Mursi], God be pleased with him, said: ‘Were the Messenger of God (upon whom be blessings and peace) to leave me for the blinking of an eye, I would no longer count myself a Muslim.’ In saying this he was alluding to his own firmness and mastery in the Presence, and his having come back to the station of subsistence (al-baqa) wherein one witnesses the Intermediary. Such people’s thoughts roam through the World of Dominion (al-Malakut), and their spirits are connected to the World of Domination (al-Jabarut), and in them is synthesised all that is lacking in others, as the Prophet (upon whom be blessings and peace) said: ‘All prey is in the belly of the wild donkey’; for the wild donkey is the fattest of all hunted animals, so that whoever catches one is as fortunate as he would be to catch them all. And the poet said:

It is not beyond God in the least
To combine all worlds in one man.

(From al-Futuhat al-Ilahiyyah.)

Ibn Ajiba on the Spiritual Virtues (4)

2011-03-22T17:04:00.004Z

7 – Scrupulousness.

Scrupulousness means to hold back the soul from indulging in anything with blameworthy consequences. Ordinary people are scrupulous by avoiding all that is plainly unlawful; the elite are scrupulous by avoiding all that disturbs the heart with ugliness and darkness, as summed up by the words of the Prophet (upon whom be blessings and peace): ‘Leave that which makes you doubt for that which makes you doubt not’. The elite of the elite are scrupulous by refusing to be attached to ought but God, and closing the door to desire for ought but God, and channelling the aspiration towards God, and being content with nothing but Him. This is the scrupulousness of which Hasan al-Basri was speaking when he said: ‘The essence of religion is scrupulousness, and the bane of religion is greed.’ Now the scrupulousness which is diametrically opposed to greed in every way is the scrupulousness of the elite of the elite; a single bit of is worth thousands of prayers and fasts. Thus (Ibn ‘Ata ‘Illah) says in the Tanwir: ‘The servant’s understanding is not proved by his having much knowledge or by his adherence to his litanies; his illumination and understanding are rather proved by his being satisfied with his Lord, and his heart’s being attached to Him, and by his breaking free of the thrall of greed and adorning himself with the robe of scrupulousness.’ (He is speaking of the scrupulousness of the elite of the elite.) God knows best.

8 – Asceticism.

Asceticism means for the heart to have no attachments save to the Lord; or for the life of this world to be alien to the heart and worthless to the soul. Ordinary people are ascetic by leaving all that is above their needs; the elite are ascetic by leaving all that distracts from the act of drawing nigh unto God in all situations; the elite of the elite are ascetic by refraining from looking towards anything but God at all times. In all cases, the essence of the matter is that the heart is alienated from all but God, and from any desire save for the Beloved. Thus, asceticism engenders love, as the Prophet (upon whom be blessings and peace) said: ‘Be ascetic in the world, and God will love you…’ It also engenders spiritual wayfaring, and is the means of arriving at its end; for the heart cannot undergo this journey whilst it is attached to ought but the Beloved.

9 – Reliance.

Reliance means for the heart to trust in God so that it depends on nought besides Him, and to be attached to God and consign all things to Him, secure in the knowledge that He knows all things. Or, it means to trust what is in God’s hand more than what is in one’s own. Its lowest level is to be with God as the deputy is with the kind and compassionate commissioner; its middle level is to be like the child with his mother: he turns to no one but her for anything; its highest level is to be like the dead body in the hands of the washer. The first is for ordinary people, the second is for the elite, and the third is for the elite of the elite. Doubt may enter the head of the first; the second is without any doubt, but he only attaches to his mother when he needs her; as for the third, there is no question of either doubt or attachment, for he is annihilated from his own self, and at all times he sees nothing but what God does with him.

Renewing One's Initiation

2011-01-25T16:20:00.003Z

I recently came across this passage in the book al-Ira’ah by the Tijani scholar Hajj Lahsan Ba‘qili, and it moved me deeply; I feel that had I read this some years ago, it would have given me immense benefit and saved me a lot of anguish; but that was not Allah’s will. Nevertheless, I reproduce it here in case it may benefit others and save them from falling into a demonic snare which has claimed many a Sufi aspirant over the centuries. The Sheikh says:

(The passage uses certain expressions of more use to Tijani disciples; I have taken the liberty of modifying them, so that it is of more use to those who are not members of that particular blessed order, as I am not)

…Many times people are initiated by a sheikh or muqaddam who has spiritual blessing, but then meet someone else who is more qualified, and renew their initiation with him, and then they neglect their relationship with the first one even though he was the one who first brought them into the order and began their blessed path. And they might even slight him by saying, “I was initiated by so-and-so,” naming the second, and when you press them they say, “I entered the order at the hands of so-and-so,” speaking of him as though he is unimportant and distant. By neglecting the first wellspring of their success in the order, they end up suspended halfway: neither disciples, nor otherwise. They are like someone who makes ablutions for the midday prayer and then retains his state of purity until the afternoon prayer: it is recommended for him to renew it anyway, for the sake of performing a recommended act, so he renews his ablutions. But if after he prays he remembers that the first ablution was actually nullified before he made the second, his prayer is invalid. It does not matter that he made ablutions the second time, since when he did so he only intended the blessing of it, and not to cleanse himself of his impure state, and nothing more. Likewise, when someone renews his initiation with another sheikh but still remains tied to the first initiation without honoring it properly, his initiation is invalid and no one else will benefit him, even if he were to meet with every sheikh in the world. The only way to avoid this is to repent and explain the reasons for the separation, and be given permission by the new spiritual guide; and then his intention should be to enter the order from the beginning again. And you find that those who go through this endure many difficulties and suffer from worry, sorrow and paranoia.

Sheikh al-Alawi's Lote Tree

2010-09-30T14:19:00.001Z

The lote-tree in Mostaghanem beneath which the Sheikh al-Alawi loved to sit and invoke.

Ibn Ajiba on the Spiritual Virtues (3)

2010-08-01T19:16:00.001Z

5 – Patience

Patience means that the heart accept the Lord’s decree gladly. Ordinary people have patience when their hearts gladly accept the difficulties of performing righteous deeds and abstaining from sins; the elite have patience when their souls gladly accept to endure the exercises, efforts and terrors of the spiritual path, keeping their hearts always attentive, and seeking to behold what lies beyond mystical veils; and the elite of the elite have patience when their spirits – or their secrets – gladly accept the presence of wonders and graces, or the constant and unending vision of God.

6 – Gratitude

Gratitude is the heart’s joy at receiving blessings whilst the body is devoted to obedience of the Blesser. Or, it is to acknowledge the blessings of the Blesser with devotion. It has three forms: The gratitude of the tongue, which is to vocally acknowledge the blessing with resignation, which is itself a blessing; and the gratitude of the body, which is to devote it to God’s service; and the gratitude of the heart, which is to see the Blesser in every blessing. The foundation of all of these is contained in Junayd’s words: ‘One must not disobey God by means of His blessings.’

Ordinary people are grateful when they praise God with their tongues; the elite are grateful when they serve God with their bodies; and the elite of the elite are grateful when they immerse themselves completely in the vision of the Giver.

Ibn Ajiba on the Spiritual Virtues (2)

2010-06-20T11:27:00.001Z

Penitence, Fear and Hope

2 – Penitence

Penitence goes deeper than repentance, because it means renouncement accompanied by a feeling of humble regret and a firm resolve to return to the straight path. It has three levels: To turn from sin to repentance, and from heedlessness to attentiveness, and from being divided from God to being united with Him.

3 – Fear

Fear is the heart’s worry of encountering something it dislikes or losing out on something it desires. Its fruit is that it makes one resolve to be righteous and flee from sin. And to act as though one is fearful whilst being remiss in piety is a false claim. Ordinary people fear punishment and the loss of reward; the elite fear rebuke and the loss of nearness; and the elite of the elite fear to be veiled from God because of poor etiquette on their part.

4 – Hope

Hope is the heart’s gladness in anticipation of something it loves, on condition that one does what one can to attain it – otherwise it is but a wish and a fancy. Ordinary people hope to attain unto reward in the hereafter; the elite hope to attain unto God’s goodly pleasure and His nearness; and the elite of the elite hope to be firmly rooted in the Beatific vision, and to continue to learn more and more of the mysteries of the Loving Sovereign.

Fear and hope are like the wings of the heart, without which it cannot fly; and perhaps the gnostics have more hope, whilst the righteous have more fear.

Ibn Ajiba on the Spiritual Virtues (1)

2010-06-13T17:31:00.000Z

1 – Repentance

Repentance means to renounce every vile action and adopt every pleasant one; or to renounce every base attribute and adopt every high one; or to renounce the vision of created things and immerse oneself in the vision of the Real.

Its conditions are regret, renunciation and a firm resolve not to repeat the sin; as for returning the rights of others, it is a separate obligation and repentance may be valid without it, just as it may be valid to repent from one sin while persisting in another. Ordinary people repent from sins; the elite repent from faults; the elite of the elite repent from everything which distracts the spirit from the Presence of God. Every spiritual station requires repentance: when one repentance has been sincerely made, another is then required. The station of Fear requires repentance at times of security and pride; the station of Hope requires repentance at times of hopelessness and despair; the station of Patience requires repentance at times of anxiety; the station of Asceticism requires repentance at times of desire; the station of Piety requires repentance at times when dispensations are needless sought out, and at times of avarice; the station of Confidence requires repentance at times when one engages in planning and decision-making and when one is concerned about one’s provision; the station of Contentment and Resignation requires repentance at times when one dislikes and objects to what fate brings one; the station of Vigilance requires repentance at times of poor outward comportment or evil thoughts; the station of Self-Awareness requires repentance when time is wasted on things which do not bring one closer to the Real; the station of Love requires repentance when the heart inclines to anything but the Beloved; the station of Vision requires repentance when the spirit’s attention is directed to anything but the Beheld, or when it is absorbed with a sensory matter instead of ascending further the ladder of divine mysteries. This is why the Prophet (upon him be peace and blessings) would seek forgiveness seventy or one hundred times in a single gathering.

Sincere repentance entails four things: to seek forgiveness with the tongue, to abstain with the body, to refrain from persisting with the heart, and to shun bad company. Sufyan al-Thawri summarised this by saying: ‘The signs of sincere repentance are four: Speech, intention, humility and solitude.’

(Mi‘raj al-Tashawwuf)

Tathir, Tanwir, Ta‘mir.

2010-01-25T15:14:00.002Z

The daily wird of the various branches of the Shadhili tariqa is generally composed of a certain number of repetitions of three formulas: the petition for forgiveness, the sending of prayers upon the Prophet, and the testimony of the Oneness of God; that is, to say Astaghfiru’llah, Allahumma salli ‘ala sayyidina Muhammad, and La ilaha illa ‘Llah or some variant thereof. Some years ago Sheikh Haddad in Fes explained to me that these three formulas perform respectively the functions of tathir, tanwir and ta‘mir; that is, ‘purification, illumination, and saturation.’

To understand this, we must first ask what it is that is being purified, illuminated and saturated or filled. The answer is the heart, which the faqir seeks to turn into a ‘house for God’.

In order for the house to be fit for God to live in, it must first be emptied of all other occupants, since ‘He hath no partner’ and ‘God hath not given a man two hearts in his breast.’ The house must be emptied of ‘all that is other than God’ (ma siwa Allah) and cleansed of all its idols as the Kaaba was cleansed after the conquest of Mecca. To ask forgiveness of God means to ask God to perform this cleansing for us or aid us to perform it, since we are too weak to do it on our own.

Once the house is clean it must be lit, since no one likes to live in a dark house. We illuminate our hearts by invoking prayers and blessings upon the Prophet; after having emptied the house of all that is ‘other than God’, we fill it with a light which, although not God, is not ‘other than God’ either: ‘He took a piece of His Light and said unto it, Be Muhammad!’ And again: ‘There hath come unto you from God a light.’ When someone asked the sheikh to elaborate on this, I remember, he simply asked one of us to turn on the light in the room in which we were sitting, and once it was done he said no more.

Once the house is clean and lit, it is ready to be occupied: the faqir invites God into his heart by invoking His Oneness. In principal it would be enough to do this only once; but since we are prone to bad housekeeping and allow our hearts to be cluttered up again and again with foreign objects and impure artificial lights, we repeat over and again the process of purifying, lighting and filling.

The hadith says: ‘The believer’s heart is the Throne of the Most Merciful.’ Or again: ‘My heaven containeth Me not, nor My earth; yet the heart of my faithful servant doth contain Me.’

Ibn Ajiba on the Spiritual Guide

2010-01-03T14:00:00.002Z

Ibn Ajiba:

What Sheikh Sharishi says about the necessity for spiritual guide (sheikh at-tarbiya) to be learned in both exoteric and esoteric sciences is correct. But as for the exoteric sciences, what is required is that he obtains the knowledge he requires for himself personally, and also that which his disciple will need as he travels the spiritual path – namely, the essential rulings concerning purification and prayer (at-tahara wa ‘s-salat), and the like; for many exoteric sciences have nothing to do with traversing the spiritual path to the King of Kings, such as the rulings of homicide cases, prescribed punishments, divorce, and manumission. Were things otherwise, many of the greatest and most renowned figures of the Way, paragons of virtue and true knowledge, would be thus demoted from their high ranks; for although many of them were well-versed in the Sacred Law, many others knew nothing of it save that which must necessarily be known by any Muslim.

I say that if you recognise this, you will recognise the falseness of the claim some people make that the spiritual guide must be proficient in all the Islamic sciences, such that if all these sciences were to disappear he alone would be able to revive them. How could this be, when many of those who were undisputed spiritual guides were unschooled?

In ‘Awarif al-Ma‘arif Suhrawardi quotes Bayazid al-Bistami as saying: ‘I kept the company of Abu Ali al-Masnadi, and I would teach him what he needed to fulfil his religious obligations, whilst he taught me pure tawhid and metaphysics.’

And it is well-known that Sheikh Ibn ‘Abbad (ar-Rundi) received his spiritual awakening at the hands of an unschooled man, as did Ghazzali. It is also known that Ghazwani was not well-versed in the exoteric sciences, and if anyone asked him a question concerning them, he would sent the questioner to his disciple al-Hibti.

Likewise, the guide of our guides, our master Abd ar-Rahman Majdhub, did not have knowledge of the exoteric sciences; and many of the greatest saints were unschooled – yet they were deeply steeped in the secrets of sainthood.

As for esoteric knowledge, the spiritual guide must be completely immersed in them, since the whole purpose of the spiritual guide (the ‘sheikh’ as the Folk call him) is to impart this knowledge, and the disciple only seeks the guide so that he might lead him along the spiritual path and teach him knowledge of the Way (tariqa) and the Supreme Truth (haqiqa). Therefore he must have perfect knowledge of God, His Attributes and Names and how they are manifested, and their meanings and details, and their benefits, wisdoms and secrets; and he must have perfect knowledge of the obstacles which lie on the spiritual path, and the ruses which the soul and Satan employ, and the different forms which spiritual experiences take, and the way in which spiritual stations are truly ascertained. And he must know all of this by direct taste and experience, so that if he is asked about the obstacles on the path and the way to avoid them, he is able to answer properly. And in addition to this, he must have the power and resolve to overcome all obstacles and go beyond all ties, both open and secret; and he must have a piercing insight by which he can ascertain the suitability and readiness of those who seek his guidance, so that he may deal with each one according to his particular status, and guide him to the shortest path to reach his Lord. This was said by al-Fassi.

As-Sahili said: ‘One of the necessary conditions of the spiritual guide is that he have enough knowledge of the Quran and Sunnah to fulfil his obligations as prescribed by the Sacred Law, and to guide him in his everyday affairs; and if this is complemented by the esoteric wisdom which God has bestowed upon him, he will thereby possess a light which will guide him amongst men, and lead him to a deep understanding of what the Quran and Sunnah say.’

And Abu ‘l-Hasan ash-Shadhili said: ‘Every spiritual guide from whom you do not receive graces from behind the veil, is not a true guide.’ Perhaps he means that the true spiritual guide gives aid to his disciple even when he is physically far from him. He also said: ‘By God, I can bring a man to God in a single breath.’ And Sheikh Abu Abbas (al-Mursi) said: ‘By God, nothing may occur between me and a man save that I look upon him, and thereby give him all the benefit he needs.’
And I say that we have personally met – praise be to God! – even in our time, men who give abundant benefit with a single glance; and we have kept their company and recognised that they are truly inheritors of Shadhili and Mursi – God be pleased with them all, and grant us to follow in their footsteps – Amen!

From al-Futuhat al-Ilahiyya fi sharh al-Mabahith al-Asliyya.

Translator’s addendum:

Mere days he needs, not years and years
To keep our company;
And if he gains the goal he seeks,
God’s servant shall he be!

-Sheikh Ahmad al-Alawi.

The Prayer of Ibn Mashish

2009-12-26T14:26:00.004Z

A nice rendition of Ibn Mashish's Salat, with a couple of nice images (sorry, I'm not really a film-maker...)

Sheikh ‘Adda on the Divine Name

2009-12-19T15:13:00.003Z

The ‘A’ of Allah is my sword, the ‘H’ my mount,
The doubled ‘L’ the bridle I hold in my grasp:
My winged steed upon which I may rise
And reach the heights of the Lote-tree when I wish.

The Name of God is my essence and my spirit,
My sight, my ear, my speech, my inner eye’s light:
About it spin the realms of man and angel,
And from it all God’s servants did spring forth.

It is the Tablet reflecting Its light onto man,
It is the Pen which, in His wisdom, has dried;
His Qualities make the One Name into Names,
His Act is His alone when it is quickened.

The keys to every door lie hidden within It,
And it opens every sūra of His Book;
By It the breath is cleansed from foolish utterance,
And the heart delights in the intimacy of the Essence.

Invoke it, then, my friend, and find a marvel
Which spares thee any need to follow factions:
It is enough that It is Light, and Light shines forth
In hidden seclusion just as it does in the open.
Ponder this: wherever thou might think to turn,
His Face is there – in truth, and not mere words!

-'Adda Bentunis

Response to some issues raised by the previous post

2009-11-27T16:10:00.003Z

The article I translated last week from the letters of Sidi Ahmad ibn Siddiq Ghumari seems to have raised one or two issues which might be worth addressing in a separate post. First of all, it was brought to my attention that Sheikh Gibril Haddad – may Allah preserve him – has written a short commentary on the letter I translated; I am not sure if he wrote it because someone showed him the translation I included on this site, or whether he had already written it as a response to the original letter when it was published, and I am afraid I do not have the address of the website where these comments were published; either way, the Sheikh’s comments were as follows:

The letter is thoroughly devoid of tahqiq and is merely Shaykh Ahmadal-Ghumari's opinion of Ibn al-Qayyim's opinion of Ibn Taymiyya's opinion.Yet the letter does make the important distinction that even though Shaykhal-Akbar's position and Ibn Taymiyya's position appear identical they differ fundamentally, in that the former's position is that the torment of hell does not end but that its pain is changed into bliss for its denizens whilethe latter built on some weak hadiths and aathaar that the fire of hell willbe extinguished. There is no full authoritative tahqiq on the issue I believe. Ibn al-Qayyim approached it in Hadi al-Arwah but he is overly preoccupied in justifying Ibn Taymiyya's position and defending him against Shaykh al-Islam al-Taqi al-Subki who denounced it in his Rasa'ilal-Subkiyya, in print, in which he considers Ibn Taymiyya's position a contradiction of the Qur'an tantamount to kufr, wAllahu a`lam.As for Shaykh Ahmad's disparagement of al-Subki and his son it is rejectedback to him as it shows poor judgment and only serves to ruin his own image.The unparalleled avalanche of criticism and refutations of Ibn Taymiyya both by his contemporaries and by later major authorities in comparison to thepraise heaped on al-Subki by his contemporaries *other* than his own son--such as Hafiz al-Dhahabi, for example, who considered him the greatest hafiz of his time--and later authorities, shows that al-Ghumari is leaguesoff the mark in his scoffing preference of Ibn Taymiyya over him. But Ghumari is known to be a rabid disparager of the Ash`ari School, and it is a mark of his imbalance that as much as he hates Ibn Taymiyya and reviles him in so many books of his, yet he hates the Ash`aris even more! He seems not to know that Hafiz al-San`ani the author of Subul al-Salam also authored a treatise in refutation of Ibn Taymiyya in respect to his belief in fana'al-nar--which al-Albani republished with a lengthy introduction- -among other such refutations. Yet, in the same book of al-Talidi, Ahmad al-Ghumari also heaps praises on al Albani.

Now first of all I should say that the Sheikh is absolutely right in saying that Sheikh Ahmad’s letter does not constitute any kind of argument or proof of the theological opinion in question; indeed it does not, and my intention in posting it was not to try and promote this opinion, because (a) I personally am not a follower of the views of Ibn Taymiyya/Ibn Qayyim, and (b) I do not find this issue particularly interesting. If I had wanted to do this, I would probably have translated Ibn Qayyim’s treatise on this matter, or given a link to a translation of it, or something. The actual reason I posted Sheikh Ahmad’s letter was more to do with the somewhat surprising attitude it expresses. I believe I made the mistake of assuming that Sheikh Ahmad is more well-known to English-speaking Muslims than is in fact the case; with this in mind, some additional background might valuably be provided here.
Those who are familiar with Sheikh Ahmad’s writings will know that when it came to debate and refutation, he was very much of the ‘no-punches pulled’ school of Shafi‘i, Ibn Hazm and Ibn Taymiyya of old, and – if we may say so – of more contemporary figures such as Sheikh Gibril himself. One of the figures for whom he reserved some of his harshest language was Ibn Taymiyya himself; some of the language he used against him, for example in what is otherwise perhaps his most important and useful work, Ali ibn Abi Talib, Imam al-‘Arifin, is scathing to the point of viciousness. When I obtained a copy of his collected letters, I was astonished to find several such letters in which he spoke more warmly of Ibn Taymiyya and seemed to back up some of his opinions. This showed me a side of Sheikh Ahmad which I had never seen before, and no passage was more astonishing to me than the one I translated last week. I remember reading it over and over again and being amazed, first by the fact that such an open enemy of Ibn Taymiyya would write so respectfully about one of his opinions, and secondly that an extreme literalist such as Ahmad ibn Siddiq would even hold such an opinion in the first place. I felt this alone was enough to make the passage interesting to those who are familiar with this figure, whether they are followers of his or not (I personally am not, generally speaking).

Secondly, I found it engaging that such figures as Ibn Arabi and Ibn Taymiyya – very much the ‘chalk and cheese’ of the history of Islamic thought – could, in this most unusual of cases, have come to such similar opinions, although of course they arrived at them by following very different roads. Regardless of what one thinks about the opinion in question, I again felt that this would be of interest for the small number of people who read this blog, who seem generally to be interested in such things.

As for Sheikh Ahmad’s comments about Imam Subki, although they are fairly restrained compared to his usual manner of dealing with those with whom he disagrees, I accept that some might find them disagreeable and disrespectful; but we should also remember that Sheikh Ahmad was also himself a scholar and muhaddith, and that on many occasions the language used by scholars amongst themselves can seem harsh. Imam Shafi’i made certain statements about Imam Malik in the course of disagreements he had with him which seem very strong and even disrespectful to our ears, and this is something which one comes up against time and again when reading works of scholarly refutation in all the Islamic sciences, even grammar; sometimes the only way to reconcile ourselves to these things is to say, ‘This is between the scholars, I’m staying out.’ (Of course, Sheikh Gibril is himself a scholar and so free to give his own opinions; these comments are not directed at him.) Whatever we might feel about Sheikh Ahmad’s attitudes and positions, I do not think it can be denied that he earned his stripes as a scholar and a muhaddith, and that he therefore might have felt he had the right to make critical statements about other scholars. Imam Subki himself is famous for saying of Ibn Taymiyya that ‘his learning exceeded his intelligence’ and for declaring him an unbeliever, which I’m sure seems very arrogant and offensive to the latter’s followers; but it was Subki’s right as a scholar to make such a statement about one of his peers.

As to Imam Subki’s refutation of the Ibn Qayyim/Ibn Taymiyya argument, as a layman I cannot appreciate the scholarly aspects of either – I cannot make any judgements about the soundness of the traditions narrated to support either position, for example – but solely in terms of the strength of arguments advanced it is difficult to declare Imam Subki the outright winner. Sheikh Hamza Yusuf wrote about the Ibn Taymiyya opinion that he was ‘dumbfounded by the strength of his arguments and the subtle points he brought up on the subject.’ This is essentially how I felt when I first read it, but as Sheikh Hamza continues:

His position is, however, heterodox, and thus rejected by almost all the scholars of Islam. And while some scholars anathematised him for his views, the majority recognized it was heterodox but rooted in a sophisticated ta’wil (interpretation) that was nonetheless incorrect.’

It seems that Sheikh Ahmad was similarly impressed with the arguments – even though they were made by a man he considered to be a great enemy of his, and even though those who know the Sheikh’s works will testify that he was hardly a bleeding-heart liberal when it came to his view of unbelievers, such that he might have been inclined to give preference to the argument for emotional reasons – and since he was not inclined to bend to any number of scholars if he felt the truth lay elsewhere than in their hands, he felt no need to accept a refutation which in his eyes was less well-argued.

For me the great irony here, which was another reason I felt people might be interested in the article, is that Ibn Taymiyya, the man castigated by so many for his ‘literalism’, is here placed on the side of his own bête noire, Ibn Arabi, the metaphysician and mystic, whilst on the other side we have the great Ashari theologian castigating him for his lack of literalism. I find this similar to what Sheikh Sa‘id Ramadan Buti does in his important work as-Salafiyya, quoting passages of Ibn Taymiyya which the uninformed might take to be the work of an advocate of wahdat al-wujud like Ibn ‘Arabi. Many people have simplistic idea of Ibn Taymiyya – this is true of both his most loyal followers and his harshest opponents – and I think it is nice to see him in a different light sometimes.

I do not think that it is a bad thing that Sheikh Ahmad, who as we have seen was capable of excessive partisanship and vicious invective, was also capable, on occasion and seemingly almost despite himself, of giving his opponents their due and acknowledging their efforts or their learning, or that he was even concerned with reconciling the views of thinkers who on the surface seem to be so far apart that any reconciliation would be utterly impossible. Such efforts – regardless of their specific content – exhibit an admirable level of objectivity and detachment, which is something we could all learn from.

Ibn ‘Arabi and Ibn Taymiyya on the Hereafter

2009-11-22T18:06:00.002Z

Shaykh Ahmad ibn Siddiq Ghumari:

Ibn Qayyim provided the proofs for the matter of hell’s coming to an end (fana an-nar) and did so in a perfectly sufficient manner, and some of the great gnostics followed him in this; and he affirmed that a day will come when watercress shall grow therein; although Sha‘rani answered this by saying that this refers solely to the highest lever wherein dwell the sinful believers, not the levels wherein the unbelievers dwell. The evidences regarding this are somewhat conflicting, yet the proofs of the opinion which states that hell will either come to an end in itself – as Ibn Qayyim maintains – or that the pain therein will end whilst the formal image of it remains – as the Shaykh al-Akbar (Ibn ‘Arabi) affirms – are stronger.

The sufficient proof of this is that God’s mercy is more powerful than His wrath, and always takes precedence over it; now this precedence and power would be meaningless if it were left unmanifested and if consequently the manifestation of wrath were not ended. When the manifestation of mercy is revealed to the denizens of hell and the manifestation of wrath ends for them, this will either take the form of the torment (‘adhab) becoming sweetness (‘udhuba) and the pain ending whilst its image remains in order that God’s warning be fulfilled, as the Shaykh al-Akbar maintains, or else it will take the form of the complete end of hell as others maintain. Yet this latter opinion could be reconciled with the opinion of the Shaykh al-Akbar by asserting that the meaning of the end of hell is the passing of its pain and torment, not the formal image of these things which will in fact then become bliss itself. Therefore the two opinions are essentially the same in my view, and this is our inclination – indeed, it is the conviction with which we stand before God Almighty.

And those who look to the inner meaning of this matter will come to know that nothing exists except the Act of God, first and last. As for Taqi ad-Din Subki’s attempted refutation of Ibn Taymiyya in this regard, I gained nothing from it when I read it twenty years ago, except the knowledge that Taqi ad-Din Subki – never mind his son Taj ad-Din – was not what I used to think of him, and certainly not what his son claimed about him. Back then, when I finished reading his work, I wrote a short rebuttal of it, the essence of which was the contention that between Subki and Ibn Taymiyya was a vast gulf of knowledge and strength of reasoning, and that the latter was leagues more knowledgeable than the former.

- Taken from the collected letters of Ahmad ibn Siddiq Ghumari, edited by A. Talidi.

Ahmad in Siddiq Ghumari (1901-1960) was universally acknowledged by scholars of hadith as one of the greatest such scholars of his time; he is known by many as ‘The Final Hafiz’, meaning the final scholar of the Islamic community who could be genuinely said to have earned the rank of hafiz, ‘memoriser’, traditionally given to those who have memorised over one hundred thousand hadiths and their chains of transmission. He was also a Shaykh of the Shadhili-Darqawi-Siddiqi tariqa, following in the footsteps of his father Muhammad ibn Siddiq Ghumari, one of the great Sufi Shaykhs of Moroccan history. He died in Cairo in 1960 and was buried there, God be pleased with him.

Of Books and Men

2009-09-06T16:15:00.002Z

‘Abd al-Karim al-Jili:

I say unto thee: The levels of certitude alluded to by the terms ‘knowledge of certitude’ (‘ilm al-yaqin), ‘vision of certitude’ (‘ayn al-yaqin) and ‘experiential realisation of certitude’ (haqq al-yaqin), which we have said are the ultimate benefit to be obtained from reading books (of metaphysics and spiritual realities), are almost impossible to attain – not the slightest amount of them – by means of even a lifetime of pious works.

I have seen young men of my brethren on the Path, by means of reading such books for even a few days, reach that which men devoted to pious works could not reach in forty or fifty years, even though they themselves were the cause for these young men to come to the Path; for when they limited themselves only to their way of action, whilst these young men read books of metaphysics and spiritual realities and understood them, they fell short of their full potential, and these young men became the true elders, whilst the elders became youngsters to them. One such as these said:

I adopted all my fathers in full trust,
And there is no doubt that I am the exemplar for all fathers.

This verse was composed by a certain Sheikh’s disciple, whose works in the Path were known to us to consist of nothing more than reading books of metaphysics and spiritual realities, until he reached a level of knowledge in this field such as was not reached by a great many of his predecessors. His name was Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad al-Hakkak, and he composed many verses concerning the science of metaphysics and spiritual realities; and whoever finds his collected poems and recognises their worth is lucky indeed!

I have only related to thee all of these stories in the preamble of this book in order to make thee understand the value of this science and its great eminence, that thou might yearn to attain unto this noble art by reading these books, applying them, and discussing them with those who are experts in them wherever they might be; for a man such as one of them might benefit thee with a single word more than all the books in the world could benefit thee in an entire lifetime. This is because what thou takest from books is dependent on thine understanding, whilst if a man who ‘knows through God’ (‘arif bi‘Llah) wishes thee to understand the matter as it actually is, he imparteth unto thee his own understanding of it – and what a difference there is between thine understanding and his!

For those of deep understanding, to read books of metaphysics and spiritual realities is superior to the pious acts of the ‘Wayfarers to God’ (as-salikin); and to sit with the Folk of God and keep good conduct with them is superior to reading all the books there are. I counsel thee, and I counsel thee again, to keep reading books of metaphysics and spiritual realities, and to act in conformity with the knowledge they impart; for in doing this, thou shalt achieve thy purpose and attain unto knowledge of thy God – if He so willeth!

(Maratib al-Wujud wa Haqiqatu kulli Mawjud)

Selections from the Aphorisms of Abu Madyan No.4

2009-07-19T15:59:00.004Z

Al-Ghawth Abū Madyan: When the heart forgets its passions, it is cured.

Sheikh al-Alawi’s commentary:

The heart has a secret illness, the symptom of which is its inclination to things beloved to the lower self. If it forgets these things and is purified and cleansed from the presence of animal passions, this is a sign that it is cured of its psychological ailments and satanic impulses, and this wellbeing allows it to bear secrets and theophanic illuminations. But as long as any of these impurities remain within it, it is not yet cured, and therefore requires a physician to treat it until it is cured of its sickness and turns once more to its Lord; otherwise, it will inevitably be veiled from Him. Someone once said:

Many ailments pained my heart, and all stemmed from
Its yearning for ephemeral things when it saw them;
But when my heart was cleansed by mention of its Lord,
It turned away from all that fades, and saw them not.

* * * *

Editorial note added by translator (Khalid):

O Rose, Thou art sick!
The invisible worm
That flies in the night,
In the howling storm,

Has found out thy bed
Of crimson joy:
And his dark secret love
Does thy life destroy.

William Blake.

Ramadan with the Saints of Morocco

2009-06-12T16:57:00.006Z

Ever thought of visiting all the places we've been describing here, and others besides? Well, the Subul Assalam Centre for the Arabic Language in Fes is putting on a ten-day tour in September (Ramadan) which is a wonderful chance to do just that. Achance to doa little Sacred Tourism in the Sacred Month. Here's the details (you might want to click on the picture to make it big enough to read):

Our Master Muhammad Volume Two Available for Pre-order

2009-03-12T15:36:00.003Z

The second volume of Imam Abdallah Sirajuddin al-Husayni's 'Our Master Muhammad the Mesenger of Allah' , with a foreword by Shaykh Muhammad b. Yahya al-Ninowy is now available for pre-order from Sunni Publications http://www.sunnipubs.com/

Here's the details:

OUR MASTER MUHAMMAD
THE MESSENGER OF ALLAH (ASWS)
HIS SUBLIME CHARACTER & EXALTED ATTRIBUTES
VOLUME 2
BY IMAM `ABDALLAH SIRAJUDDIN AL-HUSAYNI (RA)
FOREWORD BY SHAYKH MUHAMMAD B. YAHYA AL-NINOWY
TRANSLATED BY KHALID WILLIAMS

In this day and age, it is essential for the Muslim community and humanity at large to acquire a detailed description of the Best of Creation, the Messenger of Allah (asws). ‘Our Master Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah’, is a book of devotion written from the heart and addressing every heart that yearns to draw closer to best of Allah’s creation. In this second volume of the book, the author details the exemplary character traits of our Prophet (asws), his devout worship, his noble lineage and progeny, and the blessings of his physical-self and personal effects, and his infallibility in both religious matters.This expression of Prophetic love and longing was written by the ‘Pole of Prophetic love in our times’, the venerable saint, Hadith scholar and exegete: Imam ‘Abdallah Sirajuddin al-Husayni (ra). His book is an exceptional demonstration of sound scholarship and spiritual realization.

O you who love the Messenger of Allah (Allah bles him and give him peace)! Time has isolated us, tribulations have spread amongst us, the charlatans have spoken, and many people have preoccupied themselves with that which relieves neither hunger nor thirst. We have lost the warmth of the love of the Messenger of Allah (asws), the warmth that those who love him feel, and which those who yearn for him desperately
seek, and in the beauty of which the most knowledgeable ones in Allah lose themselves. The reality of this love is absent, whilst claims to it are many, and the way of the Companions and the model of their love have been reduced to mere stories and legends. So let us renew our covenant with the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) , and bear the banner of love to the most sincere and lasting love, and the most enduring and faithful reverence, and the brightest and most resplendent light, and the Beloved and Chosen One of Allah.’

– Shaykh Muhammad b. Yahya al-Ninowy

Selections from the Aphorisms of Abu Madyan No.3

2009-01-25T15:19:00.002Z

Al-Ghawth Abu Madyan: The heart has but one direction: if it turns to one thing, it is veiled from all else.

Sheikh al-‘Alawi’s commentary:

The heart is quick to turn, and when it turns one way it is veiled from everything else; so turn it, O disciple, to its Lord, and put the people in their proper place. The proper place of the heart is with the Real, not with anyone else, and the Real puts the servant where the servant puts Him. If someone wants to know his place with God, he should consider what place he has afforded God in his own heart.

Guard your heart, O disciple, for it is all you have. If you lose it, you lose all comfort you might derive from God. If your heart turns to anything but God, it will be veiled from God. So make – God bless you – the Real your direction, and accept the company of your Lord so that He does not afflict you with the company of anyone else, as Abū Madyan himself says: ‘If someone is not prepared to accept the company of the Real, he will be afflicted with the company of His bondsmen.’ For the Real is jealous; and if He does not accept works which are dedicated to others as well as Him, how should He accept a heart which is thus dedicated? [Indeed God does not forgive that ought should be associated with Him; He forgives all besides this for those He wills.] (Qur’ān 4:48) [When kings enter a village, they ruin it, and turn its noble folk into wretches.] (Qur’ān 27:34)

The heart should be feared for until full Knowledge is attained; once it is attained, there is no need to fear. Although the heart may have only one direction, we know that the Real has many: [Wheresoever you turn, there is the Face of God.] (Qur’ān 2:115) The disciple should be feared for until he has attained Knowledge of the Pure Oneness of God; once he has attained it, the Real will be the sole direction he faces. [Each face their own direction, and He is the focal point. Vie, then, with one another in good works.] (Qur’ān 2:148) His heart will be emptied of the existence of all besides God, as the heart of Moses’ mother was emptied: [And the heart of the mother of Moses became empty, and would she would have disclosed all about him] without even being asked, for there was nothing in her heart but Him, and vessels only disclose what lies within them, [had We not fortified her heart.] (Qur’ān 28:10)
Such is the heart of the Knower when it is purified for God to dwell within: he almost divulges its secrets, and would indeed do so were it not that the Real – Blessed and Almighty be He! – fortifies his heart so that he does not divulge its secrets. One of them said:

My shyness before You kept me from showing my love:
Your nearness to me meant I had no reason to tell;
You appeared to me without my knowing, as though
You were telling me, in secret, that You were mine.
I see You, and feel awe before You, and fear;
You comfort me with love and tender care.
The one who loves You lives, yet dies in Your love:
So strange for one to live while yet he dies!

This is due to the jealous protection the Real affords the Knower; for to reveal such secrets would be bad for the one who possessed them, as it would cause him to go down in the estimation of the people. The Real is jealously protective of His Friends just as they are jealously protective of Him. One of them said:

‘Show us Layla,’ they said, ‘for you are her keeper!’
What kind of keeper would I be if I gave her up?

Another one said:

If they asked me whom I loved, and I spoke her name,
They would say, ‘He is mad, and has surely been possessed!’

Searching for Saints in Northern Morocco

2008-07-12T12:23:00.012Z

I spent the last week, along with my wife Sara, her mother, and our two children, travelling in northern Morocco, the area south of Tetouan in the west to visit some of the Saints buried there. What follows is an account of this journey and some of my reflections on it. Also, several people have contacted me lately asking for instructions on how to get to some of these places, particularly the shrine of Ibn Mashish, only to be told that I do not have the slightest idea. This time, therefore, I decided to pay attention to the road and take notes. Those who do not have time to read my blather might then like to flit their eyes down to the instructions on how to get to these sacred places.

Sunday

We caught the one o’clock train to Fes, arriving there at around 6pm. We had lived in Fes for a year in 2003-2004, so it was nice to be back. We checked into a hotel and found a grand taxi (basically a large car that usually sells its six places individually and follows set routes like a coach or bus, but which can also be chartered to go anywhere you like) to take us the next day. We were surprised to learn that Chaouen is only 3 hours or so from Fes – we had expected it would be a much longer trip.

Chaouen

Monday

We headed out first thing Monday morning. It is a simple route, just following the road to Ouezzane and then carrying straight on through it and beyond for another half hour or so. The taxi driver had on a cassette of the famous Moroccan singer Abdelhadi Belkhayyat; the song sounded rather familiar to me. After a moment I realised he was singing the Munfarija, a very famous Sufi poem. Fair enough, I thought.

We arrived in Chaouen (or Chefchaouen if you like, in any case the name is Berber and means ‘the horns’, referring to the twin peaks that tower above the town) at around midday.

We found a hotel and prayed Dhuhr, and then Sara and I set off for the cemetery, located on the hill to the east of town on top of which lies the famous ruins of the ‘Spanish Mosque’ so favoured by photographers and postcard designers. My intention for visiting the cemetery was to pay my respects to Hajj Mukhtar al-Ghumari, the Sheikh of Hajj Saeed, whose Zawiya in our hometown of Salé I frequent. Hajj Mukhtar took directly from Sheikh al-Alawi. Hajj Saeed once said of his Sheikh that in the physical world, he was unknown, but in the spiritual word, he was famous. This is reflected by his having no marker or tomb to commemorate his place of burial in the cemetery, and without Hajj Saeed I had no hope of finding his exact grave, so I made a general intention to visit the Sheikh and all the others interred on this beautiful spot in the mountains.

Tuesday

On Tuesday afternoon I went to visit the Patron Saint of Chaouen, Moulay Ali bin Rashid. I had noticed his tomb next to the large mosque on the main municipal street the day before, but had never heard of him. Sara and I entered the small graveyard next to the mosque and found a lady there, a descendant of the Saint as is usual, to open the tomb for us. I went in and greeted the Saint, and sat down by his head as my wife stayed with the lady and asked her about him. She told us that he was the founder of Chaouen, and originally came from the town of Moulay Abdessalam, which would be our destination for the next day. Chaouen was for centuries a secret community unknown to the Westerners, and used as a base for military attacks against the Portuguese occupiers of the town of Sebta (Ceuta) on the north coast, which is now in Spanish hands. I recited the Qur’anic chapter al-Waqi‘a,1 and then al-Ikhlas eleven times. I asked God to donate the reward of this to the Saint and to all His Saints, at the head of them the Prophet (God bless him and give him peace), and to all the Muslims and believers. I gave the lady a few coins for her trouble, as is customary, and then we left.

Wednesday

On Wednesday morning we chartered a taxi to take us to Moulay Abdessalam by way of the birthplace of Imam Abu al-Hasan Shadhili, which we had heard was nearby. From Chaouen, to get to the Imam’s birthplace we first took the road to Fes and Ouezzane, which is the right first exit (on the right, as they drive on the right in Morocco) at the roundabout just after the petrol station. After a short while there is a right turn signposted ‘Tanakoub’ (تنقوب) and ‘Ksar el-Kebir’ (القصر الكبير). There is also a sign for the birthplace of Imam Shadhili here, in Arabic only. The turn took us sharply uphill and almost doubled back, and then wound along through the hills for a while. After around 10 kilometres (half way to Tanakoub), there is a right turn down a dirt track which, although not signposted, leads to the village of Shtunaghin (شتوناغين).

We went along this dirt track for a while and then began to feel we had come the wrong way (the driver had never been there before himself). We told him we wanted the birthplace of Shadhili, and he became surprised and said that he thought we wanted Shtunaghin. We had never heard the name of the town before (we had agreed the destination with the manager of the taxi stand, who had then passed in on to the driver), and so there was a little confusion. The driver decided what we actually wanted was the village of Zawiya (الزاوية) which was a long drive away. He reversed down the dirt road, and we continued on towards Tanakoub and through it, and on for another forty minutes or so on the same road, heading for a town in the distance with a tall minaret. We came to a fork in the road in which the left turn was signposted ‘Ksar el-Kebir’, and took the right fork. After around ten minutes we crossed a rather frightening stone bridge that twisted across a small gorge, and pulled up next to a large mosque, which cast its shadow over a small group of houses with roofs made of corrugated iron. This didn’t look like the place we wanted. We got out and asked a man standing by the mosque where we were. He told us we were at the grave of Sidi Yusuf al-Talidi. I was not familiar with that name. ‘This is wrong’, I said, ‘we want Shadhili, not Talidi.’ The taxi driver began to argue a little with the local man and his friends. While I tried to follow their difficult accents, I realised I was being very rude to the Saint buried here by stating so boldly that I didn’t actually want to see him. I excused myself and went in to visit his tomb, behind the mosque. I recited Surat al-Ikhlas eleven times, and donated the reward to the Saint as before. I then went out and talked a while with the man we had asked before. ‘You’re writing a book, yes?’ he asked. I allowed that this was so. (This was not incorrect, as I do hope to write a book about the Saints of Morocco if I can find anyone who wants to publish it) ‘So get out your pen’, he said. I did as he asked. He bade me write, ‘Sidi Sheikh Yusuf al-Talidi, from the tribe of Khammas.’ I wrote it, and thanked him.

The taxi driver had consulted the others and realised that the place we wanted was in fact the place we had been an hour previously, at the end of the dirt road, in Shtunaghin.

(Later, when I arrived home, I looked up Sidi Yusuf al-Talidi. He was a disciple of Sidi Abdullah al-Ghazwani, on the Jazuliyya branch of the Shadhili Tariqa, from Imam Jazuli, author of the Dala’il al-Khayrat. The name of the town, Zawiya, is of course derived from the presence of his tomb there.)

As we left, the driver told me that he had brought a group of Gulf Arabs to this same town a few years previously, and that the large mosque and domed shrine were new additions which had been funded by a source in Kuwait. God works in mysterious ways, I thought.

We headed back towards Tanakoub and beyond. As we drove up through the mountains, I looked at the stunning view of the valley floor and the imposing, muscular mountains facing us across it, and thought about all the Awliya who had their origins in this small corner of the world, and whose teachings and spiritual heritage can now be found in just about any place where there are Muslims. How could so many Saints have come from these small mountain towns? Looking at the scene before us, and the inexpressible beauty of this manifestation of God’s Glory, I understood how it could be possible.

We found the dirt track again, and this time followed it all the way to the end, about 30 yards further than where we had got last time. We stopped near a small wilderness of large boulders and twisted trees with wide canopies, and made our way across it to the small, white building that stood alone in the midst of them. This was the birth place, and later the khalwa (place of spiritual retreat) of Imam Shadhili. We took a few photographs in a hurry, as the battery was about to finish. I chanted the Testimony of Faith, as is customary when visiting any zawiya or house of a faqir, and entered the building. There is a grave in the centre, but not that of Imam Shadhili, who is buried in Egypt of course. This had led to some confusion on a television program about the region we had seen a few weeks before, where this place had been confidently announced as the grave of Imam Shadhili, which had me somewhat apoplectic with rage because of its inaccuracy. But then again, I had failed to recognise the site two hours earlier despite being only a few dozen yards from it, so I couldn’t really talk, could I?

I sat by the tomb and did a few circles on the rosary, saying ‘there is no god but God’, and then recited al-Ikhlas eleven times and asked God to donate the reward to Imam Shadhili, and all who followed his path, and to all the Muslims and believers. I looked at the walls of the building, where people had written simple prayers and invocations: ‘Glory be to God’, ‘Lord forgive me and my parents,’ ‘God is great’. I heard the sound of children playing from outside, and then three kids came in, two boys and a girl. One of the boys, around ten years old I would say, came up to me and kissed my hand; I kissed his own simultaneously, greeting him as a faqir. He then disappeared, and then returned with his playmate and encouraged him to greet me in the same way. I then stood up to leave, and greeted the girl on the way out. I climbed the small hill singing the Testimony of Faith, and the children watched me for a moment, and then went back to their game.

Sara told me she had asked the children who was buried inside, and they had told her it was someone named ‘Tabulsi’ or some such thing, they seemed unsure. We got back in the taxi, and I told the driver the story of how Imam Shadhili had walked all the way to Iraq searching for the greatest Sheikh of his time, only to be told that he in fact ought to look back in Morocco, on top of a mountain named Jabal Alam, only a short journey from his own hometown – a journey that we now set out to cover, with a rather more comfortable form of transport than they enjoyed back then, it must be admitted.

Moulay Abdessalam

We returned to Chaouen to start all over again. This time we took the road to Tetouan, and continued until we reached the small market town of Bani Hassan, whereupon the driver informed us he knew a short-cut along a seldom-traversed road up through the forest. Instead on continuing on in the direction of Tetouan, we took a left fork towards the end of the town and headed further up into the mountains. This road takes you all the way to Moulay Abdessalam, and is indeed quick and virtually empty – so don’t go this way at night, as if you break down you are unlikely to be found until morning. It is possible to follow the Tetouan road as well, until you find a turning for Moulay Abdessalam. If you are coming from Rabat or Casablanca, you should first go to Larache (العرايش) and then follow the road to Tetouan and Bani Arouss (بني عروس).

The driver told us that the woods we were traversing were still home to monkeys, wolves and wild boars, although these latter two only came out at night. The road twisted and turned up through the thick forests, and I began to become excited as we got closer to our destination. We stopped at a mountain spring, and the driver assured us that the water was excellent, and we might want to fill up our bottles. We went over to a small pool covered with a stone roof. The driver drank first and then returned to the car. We looked at the water. It seemed clear, although it was virtually still, not fast-flowing. I took a cup and drew some, it was perfectly clear despite the algae-covered plants, so I drank it. Sara then noticed a blue-grey frog sitting at the corner of the pool with its legs splayed, looking like nothing so much as a tired businessman finally enjoying a dip in the jacuzzi after a long day, and regarding us with an expression of faint curiosity.

We decided not to drink any more water.

After another half-hour or so, we reached a right turn with a sign saying ‘Moulay Abdessalam 2km’. We took it. We passed a few houses with cows grazing outside looking as peaceful as can be, and it occurred to me that although the three years since I had last come here had been a whirlwind of changes and events for me personally, this place had not changed in the slightest, and was not likely to do so any time soon. A few minutes later we found ourselves at the car park near the large mosque at the end of the main street of the village. We thanked the driver, apologised for the inadvertent extension to our journey, and agreed to pay him a little more than we had first agreed because of this. ‘Never mind’, I said to him, ‘I got a chance to visit the Saint.’ ‘Yes’, he said, ‘it was destined for you. He wanted to see you, and so he called you to him.’ I told him that I hoped this was so.

We went down and found a house to rent (there are no hotels, but people rent out their houses to visitors). We chose the same one we had stayed in three years previously. This time they had running water, whereas before we had to use a well, so things had changed a little. We prayed our Dhuhr in the house, and then I went up to visit the Saint. I cut through the graveyard immediately above the town and climbed to the top of the mountain, stopping only to catch my breath and reflect on what a pansy I am for not being able to climb 50 yards of mountain without hyperventilating, whilst old women like the one who passed me by right then could climb all day without becoming tired. I took in the view from the west side of the mountain as I caught my breath, and then climbed the rest of the way up to The Most Beautiful Place On Earth.

I have done my best before to express my feelings about this place, even writing a poem if you can stand it, but I still have no idea how to describe the tomb of Moulay Abdessalam ibn Mashish. The Sheikh is buried on the spot where he used to live, having deliberately chosen the mountaintop so he could worship in seclusion (the town did not exist at that time, for reasons I will explain shortly). Ibn Mashish is in many ways the Patron Saint of Moroccan Sufism in the same way that Moulay Idris I is the Patron Saint of the Moroccan state, and so you might expect there would be a huge mausoleum here with a bulging green dome and lots of white marble. Yet setting aside the question of the practicality of building such a thing in a place like this, there is simply no need; for God Himself has provided the Saint with his own dome, a magnificent cork oak tree spreading its boughs and branches over the simple white stone walls of the tomb and beyond.

The trunk of the tree is growing from the centre of the tomb, which contains Ibn Mashish, his son Muhammad, and a man who used to serve him.2 Whether or not the tree is growing directly from the Saint’s heart in actuality, it is certainly a powerful symbol of the great spiritual lineage that grew from a man who never sought to be known, and who only ever had one disciple as far as can be established, and who was largely unknown to his contemporaries (Tadili does not mention him in his Tashawwuf, nor is there any suggestion that Ibn Arabi or Abu Madyan had ever heard of him although they all lived at the same time in essentially the same place). Yet there are men whom God simply will not allow to go unnoticed by His creatures, and Ibn Mashish is certainly one of them. The tree that grew from his grave is a compelling symbol of this. It is a most splendid example of Sacred Architecture designed and built by the Creator Himself; I can say without hesitation that it is the most beautiful structure I have ever seen, or am ever likely to see, unless God decrees that I perform the Hajj.

Around the tomb, covering a space of perhaps 100 square metres, the floor is covered in slabs of cork taken from the nearby forest, secured down with nails made of the hard oak wood found under the cork skin. This provides a surface soft enough to walk on without shoes to preserve the sanctity of the tomb, without needing a roof to be built to keep off the rain, as the use of carpets would demand.

I took off my shoes and began to sing the Testimony of Faith as I approached the tomb, stopping when I reached the stone wall. I greeted the Saint, placed my hand on the wall and kissed it. Some might object to this, but it seems to me that the correct etiquette when greeting a Saint is the same whether he is alive or dead,3 and when we greet a living Sheikh, we take their hand and kiss it, and kiss their head; such should be the case with those who have passed on, too. I then sat down in the shade of the tree and recited Surat al-Waqi‘a and the litanies of the Tariqa. I asked God to donate the reward of this to the Saint and all His Saints, the foremost of them being the Prophet (God bless him and give him peace), and to all the Muslims and believers. I then simply sat and enjoyed the company of the Sheikh.

There is a poem by a Japanese poet of the 15th Century named Issa, which reads:

The cool breeze
comes winding and wandering.
At last it’s here.

I had cause to dwell on this poem during the short period of time I spent with the Saint this week. Aside from its plain exoteric sense, the poem was intended to convey a sensual meaning, and therefore also a spiritual one. The tranquillity and inner peace that comes with the satisfaction of a deep longing is one of the highest states of human existence, and this is manifested in both the sensory and the spiritual, as indeed are all things of true significance. The relief of cool, clear water after a long thirst; the embrace of two lovers after a long separation; what else are these but reflections of the true inner peace, the true relief that comes from a meeting with the Divine? Is this not their purpose – to give us a taste of what is truly possible?

Sheikh Moulay Sulayman, of the Alawi Tariqa, said in one of his poems, ‘To yearn is to arrive.’ That is, when one truly yearns for God, one finds Him in the same instant; as disciples of the path, we are not attempting to reach the object of our yearning, but rather to develop this yearning in the first place: we do not ‘want God’ as such, rather we ‘want to want God’, since if we truly wanted Him with all our being, He would not refuse us, as this is why He created us. If as disciples we are trying to cultivate this yearning and make it real, one of the most direct ways to do this is to place ourselves in the presence of one who has realised it, that is, in the presence of a Saint, living or dead. To see one who yearns is to see a True Man, and this in its turn provokes a yearning deep within us to follow in their footsteps, to see one who saw The One. This is one of the significances of the spiritual chain of initiation, and this is the meaning of the wasila, the intermediary between one and God that He commanded us to seek when He said: ‘Seek the means to Him.’ (Qur’an 5:25) This is not shirk, idolatry, because shirk means to ascribe the attributes of God to any other than Him, whilst to seek an intermediary to God is merely to seek that which inspires one to yearn for Him Alone.

This wasila, this ‘cool breeze’ of which we are speaking, can be found in many different places. A view from a mountaintop or a expanse of desert or ocean can fill us with awe for the Glory of God; a particular verse of Qur’an can have an impact on us that we cannot quite understand; an element of ritual can cause our hearts to overflow with the love of God. Some people break down and weep upon seeing the Kaaba with their own eyes for the first time. The Prophet (God bless him and give him peace) said, ‘The coolness of my eyes has been placed in the prayer.’ Another source of this ‘cool breeze’ is the company of the righteous. ‘How sweet the day of meeting!’ Moulay Sulayman exclaimed in the same poem we quoted above.

I sat by the grave of Ibn Mashish and felt the slightest trace of this ‘cool breeze’ blow over me. I remembered the last time I had sat in this exact spot, one of the most glorious moments of my life, which I cannot imagine I will ever forget. It was in 2005, the first time I came to Jabal Alam. Having spent the previous afternoon with the Saint, I decided to come up after the Fajr prayer to read my wird there. It was May as I recall, and particularly cold on top of the mountain, and only one other person was there, a man fast asleep wrapped up in a thick woollen cloak. I sat by one of the supports holding the ancient tree in place and recited the wird. As I did so, a young girl, perhaps in her late teens, wearing the traditional white woollen clothes of the area, came up and greeted the Saint. She stood by the wall of the tomb and place her hand on it, and then kissed it several times in different places. There was no sound whatsoever other than the click of my rosary and the soft sound of the kisses she placed on the stone. She then turned and went back down the mountain. I cannot say exactly what it was, but something about the simple beauty of this action tore my heart open. The girl had no reason for coming up except to pay her respects to the Saint, which she did despite the cold and the early hour. Doubtless, when she got home there would have been plenty of tasks for her to do; I cannot imagine she had an easy life. Perhaps she would have to draw water from the well, and milk the goats, or the cows, and take them out to graze, and take her family’s clothes to the spring to wash them, and make the dough and bake the bread, and all the other things expected from young women in traditional societies such as this one. Yet she found the time first to come and express her love for the Saint with such tenderness and obvious sincerity. There may well be many who would object to this, and call it ‘backward’, or ‘superstitious’, or ‘heretical’; I can only feel sorry for anyone who feels this way. All I could do was try and concentrate on my wird, and hope that one day God might grant me such sincerity. It remains my hope to this day.

So I sat in the same spot three years later and thought about that moment, and listened to the sounds around me. The shrine of Ibn Mashish is a place of constant worship, where Qur’an is recited all hours of the day by the descendents of the Saint. They were just finishing their fourth complete recitation of the day as I arrived, and their leader collected up the individual juz’ portions which they had divided amongst themselves. They then sat and said prayers for the visitors sitting by the grave as I was. Some people gave them money, and so they said prayers for them. I gave them something and they prayed for me and my family. Again, there are many who would object to this, but I mention it here for a specific purpose, which is to explain my understanding of the situation:

Jabal Alam is a harsh mountain. In winter it is freezing, and covered with snow; in summer the sun beats down in the day and the cold wind blows at night. The soil grows nothing but cork oaks which can be stripped only once every ten years. Crops will not grow in such soil, even if it were flat enough to farm them. There is no logical reason for there being a town there at all, and indeed no town existed there until Ibn Mashish came. He chose the spot exactly for this reason, so he could worship, and study with his Sheikh, al-Zayyat, when he was around, and otherwise be alone with his Lord. In the years after he died, people began to hear of him and his greatness, and come to visit him. His descendants took it upon themselves to maintain his grave and the surrounding areas, such as the mosque where he prayed and the spring where he performed ablutions. They sacrificed their lives to preserve the place so that people could visit it and pay their respects. How many great Saints lived and died in Morocco and all over the Muslim world whose graves are utterly unknown to us because no one was there to preserve them, and how many ruined mosques and mausoleums there are where the Name of God was once mentioned and now is no more because people moved on to bigger and better things and chased the dunya, the worldly life of gains. It would have been easy enough for the people to abandon Jabal Alam and go down to the plains further south where the soil is fertile and seek their fortunes there, or to grow hashish in the valleys to sell to the Europeans. They did not. They stayed, and filled the summit of Jabal Alam with dhikr and Qur’an for eight hundred years, and they continue to do so until this day. The money the visitors give them, once divided between them, is not much. They could live more comfortable lives if they chose; yet they choose to serve God by serving His Saint, and those who wish to visit him. Radiya Allahu anhum.

I went back down to see my family, and after Maghrib we all came up together. Sara is a direct descendant of Ibn Mashish on her father’s side, and so I said to my son, ‘Give salams to your grandfather!’ We sat on the raised bench by the tomb, and I recited the wird and then watched as the people came in groups of two and three to pay their respects to the Saint. Some of them lit candles, which is a common practice in Morocco at mausoleums. I do not know if they took it from the Christians or what; Morocco has never had many of those, although there have always been Jews here. For that matter, I don’t know where the Christians took the practice of lighting candles from, either. In any case, my upbringing was nominally Catholic, and I remember going to church and walking on the stone floor, smelling the wooden pews and the leather kneelers, and of course the wax of the candles. Although I was not religious in the slightest then, I still came to associate these things with the sacred, and even now if there is a power cut and we need to light candles, I get a rather other-worldly feeling. But I did not light a candle for the Saint, partly because I do not know exactly why it is done, and partly because my Catholic background would make the action a little too close to syncretism (combining the rituals of different religions) for comfort. Admittedly there is something powerfully symbolic about the action of lighting a candle: however infinitesimally and however briefly, you add to the sum total of light in the universe.

Sara asked me what I was thinking about. I told her that up here, in this place of all places, I have a feeling of complete safety. Throughout the trip I took the opportunity of lots of free time to finally finish Rama Coomaraswamy’s ‘The Destruction of Christian Tradition’, which documents the final capitulation of the Roman Church to Protestantism, which came in the form of the Second Vatican Council. There is a lesson for all Muslims in what has happened to Christianity over the last few centuries. Reformers emerged with the intention of ‘taking the Church back to its roots’, and ‘returning to Scripture’, and all the rest of it, and they were forceful enough and eloquent enough to convince people that their religion needed to be ‘reformed’. And what is the result? After the Reformation, and the Enlightenment, and the separation of church from state, Christianity no longer has any real place amongst its own people. It is entirely incidental to their lives. Missionaries go abroad, and for every one person they convert, five apostate back home. Even those who practise their faith do so on a level that is entirely sentimental, not spiritual or intellectual. A few attempt to resist this under the banner of ‘Traditionalism’, but they are fighting a losing battle. In any mosque in the Muslim world you will find people sitting outside on the floor during the Friday prayer because the prayer hall is overflowing with people. When was the last time you saw a church filled to bursting?

There are those amongst the Muslims who would like to ‘reform’ their religion, too. They seek to do away with tradition, superstition, and ‘hidden idolatry’,4 and return to the ‘Book and Sunnah’, as though these two foundations of the faith have somehow been abandoned. This is coupled with a kind of insane modernism, whereby it is seen to be absolutely fine not only to build hotels and shopping centres which tower over the Holy Sanctuaries, but actually to advertise that fact as though it is a virtue – what a fine view you can get from your hotel room! Shopping malls have beautiful prayer-rooms installed in them so that the faithful can offer their Salat in between the movie and the round of bowling, and cafes serving ‘non-alcoholic beer’ are forced to close during prayer times. All of these actions and attitudes are backed up by fatawa from scholars eager to embrace this modern reformation. The Christians had their reformation, and the modern civilisation is the result of it. Some Muslims seem positively eager to follow them down the same fox-hole. If we do not learn from the mistakes of others, we are doomed to repeat them ourselves.

Yet here on the mountain by the Saint I felt completely safe from all this, safe in the certainty that wherever these ideas may spread, they will never come here. The town exists because of the Saint. Every shop on the street leading up to the cemetery is geared towards the visitors who come every day of the year: rosaries, sweets, candles, rosewater, traditional clothes, restaurants selling grilled meat. If the Saint were not there, people would not come, and the town would be finished. All of this is from the Baraka of Ibn Mashish. All who live there derive their sustenance by means of the Saint; or we might say, God provides for them by means of His Friend. They love him not only as a religious figure but also as a father-figure. How could such people ever abandon him? And so I felt as though I were in a sanctuary, a fortress against any forces that would seek to undermine the spiritual traditions of this religion. As long as people come, the sanctuary will remain; as long as the sanctuary remains, people will come.

As we spoke, two girls, perhaps six and four, went over to the Saint and kissed the wall, and then ran back to their mother to be congratulated. I told Sara that this gesture embodied everything I felt for this sacred place, and the hope I felt when I sat there.

We sat in silence for a moment and I watched the moon climb steadily in the sky through a gap in the branches of the great tree bursting from the heart of Ibn Mashish. An elderly lady approached the tomb, placed her hand on it, and said, ‘Peace be upon you, Saint of God! May God forgive you, and give to you with abundance.’ Then she moved on. I quietly sang a poem of Muhammad ibn Habib Buzidi, one of the spiritual descendants of this great Sheikh, until the call for the Isha prayer was sounded.

Thursday

Sara and I went up to the tomb after the Fajr prayer to try and get a photo of it at sunrise. Once we got to the summit, we realised how cold it can get on top of a mountain. There were perhaps ten men sleeping there, probably visitors who couldn’t find a room to rent, or couldn’t afford one. They were wrapped up with blankets and cloaks, and all but one were asleep. The wind was ferocious, and it was clear we could not wait here for an hour for the sun to come up. We snapped a couple of shots of the tomb and then retreated. On the way down, I told Sara of how my father would tell me Welsh traditional stories that held that mountains are living things, which every now and then have to remind men that they are not their masters.

I got talking to Sara’s mother, a descendant of the Prophet (God bless him and give him peace) herself from Moulay Idris, about what she felt were the excessive practices of the marabout culture. She is not herself a big fan of these things, even though she is a Sharifa. Her own father, however, was a Sufi of the Darqawi Tariqa. I have inherited his rosary, since the rest of the family are not really interested in Sufism. This is a common thing in Morocco, where the generation that emerged after Independence was set firmly against the attitudes of their parents. She is a very pious Muslim, but she has no time for what she sees as traditions based on ignorance – and of course to a certain extent she has a point. She particularly objects to the money that changes hands. I gave her an analogy that was first given to me by a Sheikh in Fes when I told him I planned to visit Ibn Mashish: Imagine you have a friend, a very beloved friend, whom you love to visit. The only problem is that your friend is a real cat lover. He must have thirty cats in the house! So every time you go, you have to go to the butcher first and get some little scraps of meat to give to your friend’s cats. You can’t just go kicking them out of the way, can you? You might not love them, but your friend does.

We went down to one of the springs that flow from the mountain, where people come to wash their clothes. I looked around at the trees, stripped bare up to the first branches, and thought again about the long wait for them to grow more cork to be stripped and sold. Cork has been largely replaced all over the world by plastic, anyway, and there was evidence of that all over the place in the plastic bags and containers that stuck to the branches of the trees. This is a clear example of the way the modern world has clashed with the traditional life that existed before. A few decades ago, there was no plastic, and so everything that was thrown away was biodegradable. The people haven’t got used to the idea that this stuff isn’t going anywhere, that it will be here long after we are gone. So much of the modern world is so ugly. Perhaps some of this is just false sentimentality, yearning for a ‘golden-age’ that never existed – but I don’t think all of it is. Further up the hill, a group of men slaughtered a goat and then hung it up on a tree to skin it. No abattoirs needed here, I supposed. That’s what it used to be like everywhere.

In the afternoon we went back up to the Saint to watch the sunset. My daughter was feeling ill, and looked very pale, almost blue in the cold, so I ran back down to get her some warm clothes. When I came back up, some ladies, obviously visiting from a city, perhaps Tangiers, had gathered around the front of the tomb. They sang some sacred odes, and then the famous prayer of the Prophet (God bless him and give him peace) composed by Ibn Mashish. They sang it with one voice, clearly well-used to doing it, with a very lovely tune I had not heard before. Then they began to sing some poems with refrains, sounding exactly like how we sing them in the Zawiya. I had never heard women singing in that way before. Sara said she had; her aunt used to gather with a group of lady Sufis, faqirat as they call them. But these things are rarer in the big cities now because of all the population movement; the real thing is out here in the country, where everyone knows one another. I sat to one side and watched the sunset, and sang along with the ones I knew, and then we went into the mosque to pray Maghrib.

After the prayer, Sara told me that our daughter was still looking very ill, so we decided to go back to the house out of the cold. We were set to travel in the morning, so this meant goodbye to the Saint. I went to the gathering of Qur’anic reciters and asked them to pray for my sick daughter, and they did so. I am writing this less than twenty-four hours later, and she is completely recovered.

I approached the Sheikh for the last time, and sat and prayed for him. I asked God to forgive me and have mercy on me, and guide me, and forgive my family and friends, and I tried to remember as many names as I could to pray for. I asked Him to do all this by the honour of this Saint of His, and the honour of all His Saints, the foremost of them being the Prophet (God bless him and give him peace). I felt a deep sadness in my heart that I would leave, and I feel this sadness now as I write this back home. But then I remembered that, as the Sheikh himself quoted at the end of his Salat, Allah says:

"Verily, He who hath made the Qur’an binding upon thee will bring thee home once more.” (Qur’an 28:85)

Khalid

1 This is the usual practise of our Tariqa. Sheikh al-Alawi encouraged the fuqara to recite this chapter every day.

2 The tomb to the right, which is usually asumed to contain the grave of al-Zayyat, the Sheikh of Ibn Mashish, is actually his place of sacred retreat; the grave inside is that of a twentieth-century tribal leader. Al-Zayyat is reported to be buried in the coastal town of Targha, where he is known to the people as ‘The Faqih of Ibn Mashish.’ Other narrations state that he returned to Medina, where he lived before coming to Morocco, and died there.

3 Of course, the two states are the same; the Saints do not die.

4 The true hidden idolatry is not ‘saint-worship’ but rather ostentation and pride, and the performance of religious works to please anyone other than God. All Muslims are susceptible to falling into this, not only the ‘backward’ Sufis.

Dhikr is the Source of All Good

2008-05-17T16:00:00.001Z

Shaykh al-'Alawi's poem, sung by Sidna Shaykh al-Buzidi. It always feels like an honour to be present when the Shaykh sings.

Dhikr Sbab Kull Khayr.mp3

Selections from the Hikam of Abu Madyan

2008-04-05T16:09:00.000Z

Al-Ghawth Abu Madyan: By accounting oneself, the status of awareness is reached.

Sheikh al-‘Alawi’s commentary:

To account oneself (muhāsaba) is the first stage of the Way, and by passing though it the servant reaches the station of those who are near to God. It means to not allow the soul to wander free in the fields of sin. By accounting oneself, the soul is restrained and kept from total abandon. If the servant excels in this level, and does so with consistency, he will arrive to the level of awareness. This is because accounting oneself implies that one still falls into sin through heedlessness; but when the stage of awareness (murāqaba) is reached – which means to behold the Real from behind a veil without fully being immersed in His presence, or to be aware that God knows the condition of His servants, and to be conscious of the fact that He sees all – the one who reaches this stage is always in a state of awe and good behaviour before God, and therefore has left the stage of self-accounting. This is because self-accounting comes after sin, whereas awareness of God prevents one from falling into sin to begin with, because of one’s awareness that God sees one always. If the servant remains predominantly in this state, it will lead to the stage of witnessing (mushāhada).

And whosoever is conscious of God, He will make for them a way out. (Qur’an 65:2)

That is, whoever is conscious of God from behind a veil, fearing Him whilst not seeing Him, He will make for them a way out of the prison of creation, so that they see the Creator, because they have shown themselves to be ready for such a state. So first comes self-accounting, then awareness, then witnessing: Muhāsaba, Murāqaba, Mushāhada; and this is the sum of all religion: Islām, Īmān, and Ihsān (Law, Faith, and Way.)

One of them was asked the meaning of Islām, Īmān, and Ihsān. He replied, ‘Islām means to worship God, and Īmān means to be aware of God and fear Him, and Ihsān means to behold Him and see Him.' The people of witnessing cannot commit sin as long as they are in the presence of their Lord. One of them said:

When I intend an action and find You are watching me,
I leave off what I intended, and rise to see You.
To behold the Real keeps the servant pure;
Were it not for awareness, there would be no penalty.

And so the goal cannot be reached unless the beginning is sound, which means there must first be self-accounting, as we said. One of the saints (God have mercy on him) would account himself for everything that he said; if he found a good word, he would give thanks to God, and if he found other than that he would reproach himself, and vow to God not to return to the like of it.

Khalid

Selections from the Hikam of Abu Madyan

2008-02-23T13:19:00.005Z

Al-Ghawth Abu Madyan: Whosoever clings to the promise of hope
will never be free of indolence

Sheikh al-‘Alawi’s commentary:

People are indolent in two ways: some are too indolent to bother with good deeds, whilst others are too indolent to seek their Lord. This is caused by their lack of yearning for Him; if they yearned for God, He would yearn for them, as the Prophet (God bless him and give him peace) said: ‘Whosoever loves to meet God, God loves to meet them.’ A Sacred Hadith reads: ‘If My slave draws a hand-span nearer to Me, I draw an arm-span nearer to him.’ And He also said (in a Sacred Hadith): ‘I am the companion of he who remembers Me,’ and ‘Wherever My slave seeks Me, he will find Me.’

Is this anything but a pure blessing and a generous favour? Sufficient ignorance be it from you, O disciple, that you seek that which has no inherent existence, ignoring He Who Must Surely Exist! If you knew what was in front of you, you would abandon this heedlessness; for the Real is closer to you than yourself:

If My slaves ask thee of Me, I am surely near. I answer the call of the supplicant when he calls Me. (Qur’an 2:186)

It is an ignominy for the disciple to be characterised with indolence in the matter of seeking God. He is like a procrastinator, who every day says ‘Tomorrow I will get to it’, until he spends his whole life in idleness. The poet said:

They are happy to hope, afflicted by fortune;
They claim to have plunged into the Sea of Love
- Yet they have not been wetted!
They have not yet moved from their places,
Or even set off, yet they are exhausted!
When they chose blindness over guidance
out of pure envy –
They lost the way.

The Real yearns for His slave more intensely than the slave yearns for Him. Our master, ‘Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani, said in his Munajat: ‘God said to me: “What a fine Seeker am I, and what a find object is mankind! If man knew the rank he holds in My sight, he would say with every breath: To whom belongs sovereignty on this day?...” ’

And so the only thing preventing us from arriving to God is indolence. As we said, there are those people who are too indolent to do good works, imagining that this is simply what fate has decreed, when really it is nothing more than what their own caprices have decreed. Do you not see that if any of them saw some possible worldly benefit, he would strive with all his might to reach it, saying: ‘Provision is written, but the means to it should be sought’? Yet when it comes to seeking the Real, he does not seek the means, nor does he do good works in order to draw close to Him, nor does he strive to gain His Divine Grace. He behaves as though he is completely secure; yet God says: None feel safe of God’s design save those who are lost. (Qur’an 7:99) If you tell them to fear God, they will say, ‘God is Merciful.’ This is true; but do you not know that He is also All-Providing? Why, then, do you seek the means to obtaining provision in any way you can, yet you do not seek the means to obtaining His Forgiveness in any way at all? You behave as the denizens of Hell behave, yet you hope for Paradise! How far-fetched this is! Whoever comes forth with a bad deed will only be requited with the like thereof. (Qur’an 6:160) Show yourself some mercy, for you cannot hope to achieve what you are attempting! One of them said:

O ye who works for Hell, your body is soft,
So test yourself with the midday heat,
Or try a hornet’s sting, then add
The venomous bite of a terrible snake.
And if you cannot bear it, alas!
Why seek to anger the Lord of All Being?
Day by day, you reveal your folly,
Whilst wearing the robes of piety and honour!
Your boldness exceeds that of all mankind,
By the ignorance and ill-intent of your soul.
You say, ‘As for sin, my Lord doth forgive it!’
You speak true, yet He forgives those whom He wills.
Just as your Lord forgives, He provides;
Why, then, do you not see these two equally?
You hope for clemency without repentance,
And you plan and scheme to obtain your provision;
Yet He charged himself to provide for His slaves
And did not guarantee Paradise for all men.
Why, then, do you chase what is provided for you,
And abandon what you have been charged to perform?
In every matter, your thoughts of Him waver
Between good and ill, as your caprice dictates.

This is the state of he who has been overcome with hope. Generally, he is content to remain estranged and distant from God as he is. All of this stems from a dearth of love for God. How strange it is that a person could be content to be estranged and veiled; yet were they to know the rank they could hold in their Lord’s sight, they would not stop until they had realised it.

To this end, it has been said:

How far they are from it, and how poorly they have chosen!
Their aims are cheap; their every move a sin.

Give life to our hearts, Lord, and inspire us to seek You; for none can inspire us but You, and we want for nothing but You!

Khalid

Tawhid

2008-02-17T14:13:00.003Z

Tawhid.mp3

Sheikh al-'Alawi's poem:

Tawhid

You desire tawhid, and ask it of us;
Yet were we to tell you of tawhid,
You would surely flee from us!

But –
In the heart there lies something veiled,
Which is nothing else but that which you desire.

By God, it is the Truth, and the Goal, and the Purpose
– yet you are heedless of it, and in heedlessness you remain.

His Oneness is the Essence of Essences, nothing less,
And so he who knows tawhid conceals well the secret.

But –
Rivalry in worldly increase overcame you all
Until you lost sight of it –
And now at last you have noticed!

I pray to God for you all,
And for myself:
Protect us from our weakness, and have mercy upon us,

Until the Root of All Roots is within our sights
And the Branch is in our hands –
Never to break.

Khalid

Spouses, Seeds, and Prayers.

2008-02-01T15:52:00.000Z

One of them said: 'Marriage does not guarantee children, and planting seeds does not guarantee crops, and prayer does not guarantee Paradise.'

Getting married does not necessarily mean we will have children; yet how are we to have children if we do not take spouses? And planting seeds does not necessarily mean that the crops will flourish; yet how are we to get crops without planting? And praying does not neccesarily mean that we will enter Paradise; yet how are we to get there without praying?

So marry, and trust in God; and sow, and trust in God; and pray, and trust in God.

Khalid

Moulay al-‘Arabī al-Darqāwi (1159-1239 IE)

2008-01-13T12:34:00.000Z

He was born in the year 1159 IE (1745 CE) in Bou Barīh in the mountains north of Fez among the tribe of Bani Zarwāl where his family had settled for generations. His family name goes back to Sīdī Muhammad who was nicknamed ‘Abu Darqa’ because he was of large build. He was a great fighter and carried a shield (darqah) with him into battle to protect himself, hence the name Darqāwi. He is buried in the region of Tāmsanah in Cheoun close to Umm ar-Rabī‘. He was a disciple of Ibn ‘Atā Illāh al-Iskandarī who donned him the patched robe. His family line goes back to the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) through Imam al-Junaid back to Imam al-Hasan.

There are many virtues attached to this tribe. The ancestors of all the four Caliphs resided here. One of the pious men of this tribe once went on the pilgrimage and sat at the grave of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) and recited all seven variants of the Quran. When he finished, the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) spoke to him, saying, “…and thus it was revealed to me, O Imam of Zarwāl. May God bless you and your tribe.” The land is extremely fertile producing fine olives, grapes, grain and fruit. The men of the tribe are also famed for their braveness and courage. Moulay al-‘Arabī said, “Whoever’s robe touches the robe of a man from Banī Zarwāl will always profit and never taste ruin.”

He was the founder of the Darqāwī Order of Sufis, a Moroccan branch of the great Shādhilī Order which was itself founded by the Shaikh Abu al-Hasan al- Shādhilī in the 13th century CE.

He lived a childhood of modesty, chasteness, chivalry and honour. He spent his youth in study and visiting the pious people of his time. He was shielded by God from committing any manifest sin. He relates:

“One day, while I was still young, I entertained committing a sin with another youth whose habit it was to fall to his desires and as soon as the notion came to me, my whole body broke out in blisters. I quickly begged God’s forgiveness and the blisters vanished as quickly as they had appeared, by the grace of God and His blessing.”

He did not need to memorise the Book of God more than once and his memorisation was firm and strong. He was loved by all around him. When he used to check the slates of the students who had written their portion of Quran he would hold it up and say to the boy, “This slate is heavy. It has this mistake and this mistake…or I would hold it up and say this slate is light. It has only a few mistakes or none at all. Upon looking at the slate, I would find it exactly as I had said; inspiration from God all-Mighty. ”

When memorizing, he used to write on the tablet and go over it for a short time and then leave it. Then he would occupy himself with the writing of the other children’s tablets and dictating to them their portion of the day. This was how he studied until he had memorised all seven variants of the Quran. Once he had finished his primary studies, he went off to Fez to study knowledge in the Medrasah Misbāhiyyah, which faces the Qarawiyyīn. Soon after, he met with his master in the path Sīdī ‘Alī, known by the people as ‘al-Jamal’’. This was in 1767 when he was around twenty three or four. The story of his first meeting with his master was a strange one:

“I used to spend time in the shrine of Moulay Idris the Second. I would sit by the shrine and recite Quran until I had completed sixty reading praying through the blessing of what I had read to find a spiritual guide. When I had finished my sixtieth, I began to weep so greatly that my eyes turned red. I walked out of the shrine and passed by Sīdī Hamīd, a descendent of Moulay Abd al-‘Azīz ad-Dabbāgh; a man of great presence and awe. “What is the matter? Why is it I see you in such as state?” he asked. He persisted in asking me until I told him that I was in need of someone to take me by the hand on the spiritual path. “Don’t you worry, I will point you the way to him as long as you don’t consult the people who are short of insight and lacking in intellect. “Who is he?” I asked. “He is the most noble master and descendent of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace); he is the succour of our time and the vast ocean, Abu al-Hasan ‘Ali b. Abd al-Rahmān, known to the people as al-Jamal (the camel) and al-Jamāl (Divine Beauty) according to the angels-as some of the men of God have informed. He is a man that the angels address and send greetings of peace upon. The angels even informed me that he has been the succour (Ghouth) of the time for the past thirty years.

“It was my practice never to approach an action until I consulted God through the well-known prayer of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) (Istikhāra). That night, I spent the time consulting God and pondering over this man’s characteristics, how he might be and how I might meet with him to the extent that it deprived me of an sleep. The next day I headed for his zāwiyah in the Rāmilah District that lies over the bridge called Baina al-Mudun (Between Cities) where his shrine resides today. I knocked the door and found him sweeping the zāwiyah (he would sweep the zāwiyah every day by himself despite his old age and high station with God). ‘What do you want?’ he asked. ‘I want you to take me by the hand and guide me to God’, I answered. He began to shout at me with the most severe of tones. ‘Who told you this?!! Who took me by the hand whereby I might be able to take yours and guide you?’ (All this was a test of my resolve and sincerity). I rushed out of the zāwiyah and returned to home. That night I consulted God once again. In the morning I prayed the Dawn Prayer (Subh) and headed for his zāwiyah once more. I found him sweeping the floor again. I knocked on the door and he opened it for me. I said, ‘Will you take me by the hand and guide me to God?’ He grabbed my hand and said, ‘Welcome.’ He was overjoyed to see me and most happy. ‘How long have I been searching for a master’, I said. ‘How long it has been since I have been looking for a sincere student!’ he replied. He read the litany of the order to me and said, ‘Leave now and come back from time to time.’ For the next two years I would visit him everyday. On each occasion he instructed me in the company of other brethren resident in Fez.

“One of the first lessons I learnt from my teacher was when he placed two baskets full of berries in my hands. He did not place them on my shoulders like my peers. Even so, it bore down so heavy on my ego that I felt intensely constricted deep inside. I was so disturbed, shaken and felt so indecent that I became to weep. I swear to God, I wept out of the humiliation, abasement and utter wretchedness of the situation, as my ego could not bear to take such a lesson; it would not bow down to the test ever in a thousand years. I was so oblivious of my own arrogance, haughtiness, malignancy and stubbornness and I had previously had no idea whether it was arrogant or not. I had never learnt this lesson from any teacher of law throughout all my previous studies, and I had studied with many a teacher. Whilst in this state, my teacher saw what had come over me because of his deep insight into the hidden secrets, for which he was well-known to all. He came over, took the baskets and placed them right on top of my shoulders just like my peers, who were so much more righteous and advanced on the path than me. Then he said, ‘This is for your own good in order to chase away some of that arrogance of yours.’ Instantly, a door of understanding opened for me, and things became clear. I was now able to distinguish the truth in everything. I could discern the arrogant from the humble, the serious from the lax, those of knowledge from amongst those of ignorance, those who follow the way of the Prophet, peace be upon him, from the people of innovation and those who practice what they preach from those who do not. No one was able to get the better of me after this event, because my teacher had taught me how to distinguish truth from falsehood, may God reward him and protect him. Amin!”

After some time the Sheikh entered him into the retreat to invoke the Supreme Name “Allah”:

“We believe, and God knows best, that the state of annihilation can be achieved in a short space of time, God willing, by invoking God’s majestic name ‘Allah’ in a specific manner. I found this method mentioned by Imam Shādhili in a book which was in the possession of one of the scholars of my homeland Banī Zarwāl. My teacher Sīdī ‘Alī also taught me this but in a different way which is even more effective and whose results can achieved in a shorter space of time.

“The method is to picture the five letters of the name when reciting it. Whenever you feel the image in front of you slipping away you bring it back even if you have to one thousand times in one night and one thousand times in a day. Using this method, a great thought came to me. I used to invoke using it at the beginning of the path for up to one month. Divine knowledge in its plenty would come to me, but I was not distracted by it; rather I focussed my intention on invoking the Name, bringing the letters constantly to mind for one whole month until the words of God came to:

‘He is the First and the Last, the Manifest and the Hidden.’ (Quran: 57/3)

“I immediately turned my thoughts away from it back to the invoking of the Name as I had done so to many other notions that had come to me. However, this one would not leave me; rather it grabbed a hold of me and would not let go. I tried to turn my thoughts time and again from it but it would not leave me. I said to it, ‘As for His exalted words “He is the First and the Last” and “the Hidden” I understand, but I do not understand the word ‘Manifest’, as the only things evident that we see is the creation. The notion replied back, ‘If the meaning of the word “Manifest” had meant anything other than that which you see before you, it would have been hidden, and not manifest; and I say to you “The Manifest!’ “ From that point I realised that there was nothing present but God alone and there is nothing in the creation but Him, thanks and praise be to Him.

“After I had become firm and sure in the path and I had attained a clear opening, and my master wanted me to benefit others, he told me to go back to my homeland with my family and children.”

Before taking from his master, he visited many of the other masters of his time:

• Moulay at-Tayyib b. Moulay Muhammad of Wazzān: “I visited him on seven different occasions whilst I was still a youth. On one visit, I found him surrounded by a huge group of people, yet he moved the people aside for me and ushered me forward. I kissed his hand and knee and proceeded to place two tablets of Quran in his lap; on one of them was Sura al-Jumu‘a. He took hold of it and read a section of it silently whilst pressing his palm upon my forehead. He was overjoyed at my being there and he prayed that God grant me much good. After that visit much good and blessing came to me; I was able to memorise much after being very weak at retaining information. I consider him one of my teachers.”
• Sīdī Muhammad b. ‘Alī b. Risoun al-Hasanī al-‘Alamī: He was from Mount ‘Alam in Tāzourt nearby the shrine of Moulay Abd al-Salām. “I met with him seven times in Banī Zarwāl and once or twice in Fez also. He was a man of great states. When I visited him, he would break into a recital of Sura Yāsīn, then Sura Tāhā, then he would break into tears and then he would laugh. In the same gathering, he gave me two loaves of fresh hot bread filled with clarified butter I no-pone had any idea where he had got them from. He placed them in my hands and did not share them with any of the other people present. Later, he struck me on my back with his right hand and said, “May God strengthen you!” three times. When he said goodbye to me, he pushed me with both arms and said, “Off you go! We have given you the highest of stations!” In my eyes, he is one of my teachers like Sīdī ‘Alī al-Jamal is.”
• Sīdī al-‘Arabī al-Baqqāli. He was a man lost in the attraction of the Divine. If he came out of his intoxication of God, he would carry out all his ritual obligations. However, he was rarely aware of what was going on around him. One day I came to Fez and people were around him whilst he was in a state of deep intoxication in the Divine. He called me over and pressed me against his chest and poked his tongue into my mouth and said, “Suck!” Then he pushed me away and said, “Go! I have given you all that is in the East and West. I left the gathering and when I came back I found that he had passed away. He is buried in the zāwiyah of his uncle Sīdī Muhammad al-Hājj al-Baqqāli in Fez.

He would also visit the shrines of the men of God in Morocco, among them Moulay ‘Abd as-Salām, Moulay Abu Silhām, ‘Abd al-Wārith al-Yaslouti al-‘Uthmāni. He continued to visit them until his opening came. He once said:

“If you want to visit the people of the path of Fez then start with Ibn al-‘Arabī al-Ma‘ārafī, then ‘Alī b. Hirzihim, ‘Abd Allāh at-Touwdi, Yusuf al-Fāsi, Muhammad b. ‘Abdullāh, Ahmad al-Yamani, ‘Alī al-Jamal, Abu ‘Alī Bāytousi, Abu Ya‘za in Tāghya, Abu Silhām on the coast close to Umm ar-Rabī‘, ‘Abdullāh b. Ahmad in Meknes, Abu Zakariya of Meknes, Moulay Abd as-Salām, Abu Yazīd (the Shaykh of Abu Madyan) in Maziyyāt and finally Abu Madyan in Tlemcan.”

He succeeded his master in 1779, living to be about eighty years old and passed away on Tuesday 23rd of Safr in 1823 (1239 IE). They buried him in his zāwiyah there on the Wednesday night. He had two zāwiyahs in Bou Barīh. Both of them lie on Mount Zabīb, two days journey from Fez.

He mainly taught his disciples to be abstinent with regard to worldly things both outwardly and internally. He persisted in recognizing his state of slave-hood before God all-Mighty and strived to oppose his ego in all affairs, leaving aside matters that the ego inclined to or found too easy, imposing whatever appeared burdensome for it. He believed that whatever was burdensome on the ego must be the truth. He was not concerned what the people thought of him, he did not incline towards their praise nor did he feel rejected by their absconding him. He constantly sought to humble himself and see himself impoverished at all times. He warned his disciples of hoarding wealth and gathering it. He did not leave any of his meal for the next. He would take only that which was sufficient to remain healthy for himself and his family, not going beyond the means. If he had any surplus food he would give it to the poor. He wouldn’t even leave enough oil for the candle to burn for the next morning, trusting that God would provide and holding firmly to Him alone. He remained upon this practice for twenty five years.

In his early years he donned only the harshest and roughest forms of clothes. He wore coarse wool, sometimes worn inside out, a patched robe, or at times merely a sack. He used to wear an old hat on his head or even wear one on top of the other and he would sling a wicker basket over his shoulder. At other times he would walk into the streets with his head bare and bare footed, begging in the streets and sitting amongst the trash. Sometimes he would take a water skin and quench the walkers by’s thirst in the street. He sought to repel the people from him and kill his desires so that he would depend solely on God. He continued to act so until he arrived in the inward realisation of the Divine.

As for his devotions, he never slackened in the outward rituals of the religion. He did not go to extremes, though. He stressed the performance of the obligations in the religion and not neglecting the stressed supererogatory acts such as the two cycles before the Dawn Prayer (Subh) and the three cycles of prayer after the Evening Prayer (Isha). He stressed the importance of keeping oneself clean and pure. He would say, “Whoever makes his ablution before making sure all the drops of urine have gone, does not have any ablution, prayer or religion for that matter.” He made sure he was in a state of purity at all times. He encouraged his student to recite Quran, hold to the supplication of God’s Consultation (Istikhāra), visit the righteous; both alive and dead, perform the Duhā Prayer in the morning and the two cycles when entering the mosque, wake up before dawn and perform extra prayers, visit the sick, accompany the deceased to the cemetery, host guests and give of charity everyday and night. He loved to sit on the ground without taking a carpet of any sort. “Sitting on the earth without a rug brings about enrichment.” In the prayer he would recite the ‘Basmala” before the Fātihah quietly to himself and after the prayer he would read ‘Astaghfirulla’ (I ask God’s pardon) three times and then say:

أَللَّهُمَّ أَنْتَ السَّلاَمُ وَ مِنْكَ السَّلامُ وَ إِلَيْكَ يَعُودُ السَّلامُ حَيِّنَا رَبَّناَ باِلسَّلاَمِ وَ أَدْخِلْنَا دَارَ السَّلاَمِ تَبَارَكْتَ وَ تَعَالَيْتَ يَا ذَا الجَلاَلِ وَ الإِكْرَامِ لاَ إِلهَ إِلاَّ اللهُ وَحْدَهُ لاَ شَرِيكَ لَهُ لَهُ المُلْْكُ وَ لَهُ الحَمْدُ وَ هُوَ عَلىَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ اَللَّهُمَّ لاَ مَانِعَ لِمَا أَعْطَيْتَ وَ لاَ مُعْطِيَ لِمَا مَنَعْتَ وَ لاَ رَادَّ لِمَا قَضَيْتَ وَ لاَ يَنْفَعُ ذَا الجِدِّ مِنْكَ الجِدُّ

“O God, You are peace, from You ensues peace and to You returns peace. Bring us alive though peace and enter us into the abode of peace. You are most blessed and You are most High. O One of Majesty and Generosity, there is no god but God, He is alone, He has no partner. To Him belongs the dominion and to Him belongs all praise. He is upon all things able. O God there is no one to hold back what You grant and there is no one to grant what You hold back and no one can repel what You have already ordained, and no-one’s might can benefit him against You.”

Then he would recite the Verse of the Footstall (Ayah al-Kursi) and recite ‘Hallowed be God’ (Subhāna Allāh), ‘All Praise of for God’ al-Hamdu Lillāh and God is the greatest’ (Allāhu Akbar) thirty three times each then raise his hands and supplicate to God for His grace and for the wellbeing of himself and all the believers.

He would persistently stress the importance of the prayer and tell whoever had missed any prayers in the past to make them up before they come to regret it.

He would read the books of knowledge with his following. He liked to read the books of Law such as the commentaries on the Rislāh of Ibn Abī Zaid al-Qarawānī and the commentaries of Mayyāra on Ibn ‘āshir, the commentary of Wughlusiyyah by Ahmed Zarrouq, the book Tabaqāt al-Awliyah by ‘Abd al-Wahhāb as-Sha‘rāni, Tabaqāt al-Ulumā by Ahmed Bābā as-Sudāni, and the book ‘al-Ma‘zā’ relating the virtues of Abu Ya‘zā. He loved to read the Commentaries of Quran such as Ibn ‘Atiyyah, al-Khāzin and Jalālayn. However, there were only two books that he read from beginning to end and they were Sahīh al-Bukhāri and the Shifa of Qadi ‘Iyād. He said that the books of the path are: the Wisdoms of Ibn ‘Atā ‘Illāh, al-Mabāhith al-Asliyyah and the Rā’iyyah of ash-Sharīshī.

He would perform the invocation known as the Hadra or ‘Imāra throughout his life with his disciples. The followers would hold each other by the hands and form a circle initiating the ritual with ‘Lā IIāha Illa Allāh’ (There is no god besides God) and begin by stretch it out until it became quicker and quicker. As the invoking progressed, they would recite the name of God “Allāh” alone with the tongue until it became a sound in their chests. Then they would sit as one does in prayer and recite Quran. He would not like women to be present in any form at the gatherings. They would come together and invoke God by themselves far from the ears of others.

Sīdī Mahmoud Abu as-Shāmāt describes the manner in which the Hadra is performed in detail according to the Darqāwiyyah Madaniyyah Yashturiyyah Order in his commentary on the Wadhīfa as-Shādhiliyyah:

“After reading the Wadhīfa in a circle, the Shaykh or Muqaddam, who has the permission of the Shaykh, initiates the invocation of Unity (Lā Illāha Illallāh). After he says it once the Fuqara repeat it in unison in one tone. They repeat this for a least ten times or more. Then the Shaykh invokes the name “Allah” whilst stretching out the long vowel in the middle of the name. The Fuqara repeat it after him three of five times. Then everyone stands and each one of them takes the other at his side by the hand placing his palm in his and interlacing his fingers with his with energy and determination. They stand in the shape of a circle standing close to one another. Then the Shaykh or Muqaddam moves into the middle of the circle and he has two singers on either side of him as if they were two hands of a scale. The singers take turns to sing and when he finishes his turn he will join in with the invocation along with his brothers with energy and determination…. As the invocation progresses, the name “Allah” becomes shorter and shorter at a pace suitable for the time and mood of the brethren. Then he will change the tempo of the invoking to the name of God “Ah” (i.e. Alif and Ha) which is the name of the Divine essence of God all-Mighty by agreement amongst the Men of God. Whereby, the scholars of jurisprudence have related in their books that the sick should say “Ah” and not “Akh” because “Ah” is the name of God whereas “Akh” is the name of Satan. This mode of invoking is called the invoking of the chest meaning that the brethren emit the invoking of the noble name from within their chests. They continue to do this for some time according to the time and mood of the brethren. Then he moves them onto the second mode of invoking which is called the invoking of the throat, meaning that they emit the noble name from their throats and they do this for a suitable time and then he moves them onto third and last mode which is the invoking of the name from the head whereby they emit the sound of the name from their heads. This mode is carried out with small swaying with jumps by raising their heels off the floor and then returning them back as a group in one fluid motion. The toes must not leave the floor though in order that they do not break the circle. They do this for a certain amount of time according to the time and mood and then the Shaykh or Muqaddam raises his index finger and says: “Muhammad Rasul Allah” and then they sit down together in one joint motion in a circle close to one another. If then the Muqaddam is inspired to give a talk of some advice he does so and finishes it by invoking “La Ilāh Illallāh” and the brethren repeat it after him seven times or ten whilst stretching out the long vowel in the name “Allah”. Then he points to them with his index finger and says, “Muhammad Rasul Allāh”. Afterwards, if any of them has memorised some verses of the Quran he is free to recite them. If not they read the Fātihah together and dedicate the reward to the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace), his family, companions, to the souls of the Masters of the path that have preceded and the Muslim community as a whole…”

When he passed away he left behind him forty thousand students able to guide others to God.

He was succeeded in Morocco by his son Moulay at-Tayyib from whom the present Moroccans head of the order is descended. Another one of Moulay al-‘Arabi’s successors was the Shaykh Muhammad al-Fāsi, who founded one Darqāwi Zāwiyah in Cairo and another in Colombo. Many of the Shādhiliyyah of Ceylon are in fact and look to the Cairo centre of the Fāsaiyyah- Darqāwiyyah as being their mother Zāwiyah. Before Moulay at-Tayyib passed away he passed the responsibility of directing the followers onto his son Moulay Abd al-Rahmān ad-Darqāwi. It was his nephew Muhammad b. at-Tayyib that had a dream of Shaykh al-‘Alawī:

“I saw a group of people who told us of the descent of Jesus-peace be upon him-and they said that he had already descended, and that he will have in his hand a wooden sword with which he struck stones and they became men, and when he struck animals they became human. Now I was conscious (in my vision) that I knew the man who had descended from Heaven, that he had written letters to me and I to him. Then I made ready to meet him, and when I reached him I found that he was Shaikh Sīdī Ahmed al-‘Alawī-but in the guise of a doctor, tending the sick, and with him were more than sixty men to help him–may God be pleased with him.”

He subsequently went to his uncle Moulay ‘Abd al-Rahmān ad-Darqāwi and asked him permission to take from Shaykh al-‘Alawī. His family blamed him for following him but he ignored them. As for his uncle, he showed no opposition to his following the Shaykh:

“What I saw in the Shaykh and his disciples compelled me to cleave to his presence, and in the longing for a possible means of opening my inward eye I asked him permission to invoke the Supreme Name. Until then I had simply been an initiate of the order and nothing more, but I had heard that my ancestors used to rely on the Order as a means of direct attainment, not merely of attachment to a spiritual chain. After I had practised the invocation of the Name according to his instructions, I had certain experiences which compelled me to persevere in it, and before long had direct knowledge of God…If I served the Shaykh as a slave for ever and ever, I should not have given him back a tenth of what I owe him. In a word, it was what compelled my great-grandfather to follow Sīdī Moulay ‘Alī al-Jamal which compelled me to follow Shaikh Sīdī Ahmed al-‘Alawī…I paid no attention to those of my family who blamed me for following him, for they did not know the truth of the matter…But when I explained things to my uncle, Sīdī Moulay Abd al-Rahmān, he showed no opposition to my following the Shaykh. On the contrary, he often gave me to understand that he had no objection.”

The Moulay ‘Ali ad-Darqāwi mentioned in Titus Burkhardt’s book Fez City of Islam was the grandson of Moulay al-‘Arabi.

Sīdī Moulay Abd al-Rahmān was also the initial Shaykh of Moulay Sulaimān, the Shaykh of our teacher and master Sīdī Bouzīdī. Sīdī Bouzīdī relates the life of his teacher Moulay Sulaimān:

“When he was around twenty eight years of age, in the year 1315, he travelled with some local fuqarā to visit the Sheikh of the Darqāwi Order in Bou Barīh, Sheikh ‘Abd al-Rahmān, who was the grandson of Moulay al-‘Arabī al-Darqāwi. He was the youngest of the travellers, but when he arrived at the Sheikh’s home, the Sheikh cried, ‘Welcome, my beloved! Welcome, my beloved!’ He sat him at his side and he was given the litany of the order.

He visited his Sheikh 25 times in his life. When setting off to visit, he would gather the fuqarā and travel as a group on foot from Nādur to Banī Zarwāl, singing out odes on the road ahead. They would rest from village to village until they arrived at the zāwiyah of the sheikh. His sheikh always sang his praises; he used to call him the ‘Stallion of the Order’.

One day he was sitting by the side of Moulay ‘Abd al-Rahmān in a gathering with the fuqarā when the sheikh put his hand on Moulay Sulaimān’s back. He called out, ‘This is the Stallion of this Order. Everyone repeat after me, ‘By God, this is the Stallion of the Order,’ so they repeated the words of their sheikh. One day he was with his sheikh and he said to him, ‘This order holds direct knowledge of God and I want a portion of that knowledge.’ The sheikh replied to him, ‘Invoke God until the knowledge comes to you.’ From those words, Moulay Sulaimān knew that the future would hold great things for him. He was highly respected in the order and all the brethren loved him and honoured him.

After the death of Moulay ‘Abd al-Rahmān, Moulay Sulaimān travelled to take from Sheikh al-‘Alawī. He came to know of Sheikh al-‘Alawī through his friend Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj.”

However Moulay Sulaimān was in a dilemma whether taking from Shaykh al-‘Alawī was being treacherous to his Shaykh Moulay ‘Abd al-Rahmān. Sīdī Bouzīdī relates:

“Whilst in this dilemma, he dreamt one night that his sheikh Moulay ‘Abd al-Rahmān visited him, saying, ‘Give me my letter that you have.’ Moulay Sulaimān took out the letter and gave it to him. The sheikh then signed it with his signature and returned it to him. When he awoke he interpreted that it meant he had permission to visit Sheikh al-‘Alawī and join his order.”

When he passed away he left behind him forty thousand students able to guide others to God.

The branches of the Order are as follows:

His student who passed away in his lifetime and is buried in Tajsās outside Tangiers Sīdī Muhammad al-Bouzīdī (d. 1229) He was the teacher of Ibn ‘Ajība (1224) who is buried in az-Zamīj.

Sīdī Ahmad b. ‘Abd al-Mu’min (d.1262) He is buried Tajgān outside Tangiers, too. He is the grandfather of Muhammad bin as-Sadīq (the father of Shaykh Ahmed bin as-Sadīq). It is though him that the Siddiqiyyah and ‘Ajibiyyah Orders stem.

Sīdī Muhammad al-Harrāq (d. 1261), who passed away in Tetoun.

Sīdi Ahmad al-Badawī Zwiten al-Fāsi (d.1275) It is through his line that Shaykh Muhammad b. Habib teachers came. He is buried in Fez.

Sīdī Abu Ya‘za al-Mahhāji (d.1277) He is buried in Fez. The ‘Alawiyya, Karkariyyah, Boushishiyyah and Hibriyyah Orders stem from him.

Sīdī Muhammad b.Hamza Dhāfir al-Madani. It is said that the Ottoman Sultan ‘Abd al-Hamīd was initiated in his order through his son. He is buried in Misurata in Libya.

Idris

O Ye Who Comprehend Not My Discourse

2007-12-28T14:56:00.000Z

Shaykh al-'Alawi's poem, performed by the fuqara of the Alawiya zawiya in Oujda, November 2007

Ya man la Tafham Maqali.mp3

Sheikh al-'Alawi's Legacy

2007-12-23T15:40:00.000Z

His Will

When Sheikh al-‘Alawi felt his time drawing near, he called for two officials to write down his will. The first things he called for was that everything the Zāwiyah contained including the lands and properties around it remain for the general benefit of the Fuqāra. He made Sīdī ‘Udda b. Tunis responsible to oversee that it remained so as long as he respected the practices of the Order and did not change anything therein. He was ordered to respect the people who dedicated themselves to the Zāwiyah, whether they had been then for a time of whether they were newcomers. He was told to provide for them from the funds of the Zāwiyah. Any guest coming to the Zāwiya was to be honoured and treated with the utmost respect. His wife ‘Waraqa Mughniya’ daughter of ‘Ali was given the choice to take her inheritance from his personal wealth that he had earned from before he dedicated himself to the Order or she could remain there where she would be fully honoured and respected. When she was to pass away, he asked that she be buried next to him. As for the spiritual inheritance of the teachings of the Order, he declared that everyone who was affiliated had their portion of it, but his true inheritor would appear after him and spread the Order in respect with the teachings that Sheikh al-‘Alawi had laid down. This did not have to be from his family or close companions; he could be from those now far from him, and God chooses whom He wills.

Forty days after the Sheikh’s death the terms in his will were not respected. Sīdī as-Salih b. Dimrad gathered all the representatives of the Sheikh and called them to pledge allegiance to Sīdī ‘Adda b. Tunis. Sīdī Ahmed b. Sādiq stood up and exclaimed, ‘If we pledge allegiance to Sīdī ‘Adda b. Tunis and then another arises more deserving of the role who will benefit the people more, what do we do? Do we break our oath or do we remain in allegiance to Sīdī ‘Adda even though it is not just? I suggest we stay as we were in the life of the Sheikh unified. Everyone remains in his Zāwiya and no-one interferes with each other without their permission and we respect each other.’ This is where the division started; anyone that did not join the ranks of Sīdī ‘Adda was considered outside the fold of Order. Fuqāra were thrown out of the Zāwiyas in Algeria and the wealth of the Zāwiya became controlled by one particular family.

His Passing

The Sheikh lived a life of 63 years that was spent calling people to God. He passed away on July 14th July 1934. He remained on his bier for three days in order that the people from their respective regions could come to pay their respects. Thousands came to visit both men and women. At the time, the heads of the Order came together under the leadership of Sīdī Muhammad al-Madani, who was the biggest scholar of the Order, to discuss who would take the reins of leadership now that the Sheikh had passed on. He said, ‘We cannot decide on this matter you ask me about until we consult Sīdī Muhammādi Bil-Hājj. He was the greatest of Sheikh al-‘Alawi’s disciples. When they consulted him, he replied, ‘If that was the position of the Sheikh then we must leave it at that.’ The reason that Sīdī Muhammad al-Madani referred to Sīdī Muhammādi Bil-Hājj was that he heard Sheikh al-‘Alawi allude to the special station that Sīdī Muhammādi Bil-Hājj had and that he was the one to inherit the teachings of the Order. Once the Sheikh was buried and the people had paid their respects, his disciples returned to their respective homes to carry on his teachings as he had ordered

The Number of his Disciples

Moulay Sulaimān: ‘I was present in Mostāghanem when I heard one of the people who had dedicated their lives to the Zāwiyah and was a scribe for the Sheikh say, ‘Sheikh al-‘Alawi wrote to all his representatives and disciples of the Order all over the world and told them to collect the names of everyone that affiliated themselves to the Alawi Order. After they wrote back to him the number came to around 33 million. Sheikh al-‘Alawi also left behind him more then 50 thousand man capable of leading others to knowledge of God all-Mighty. Sīdī Sālih bin ‘Abd al-‘Azīz said he heard Shiekh al-‘Alawi say, ‘My hope, God willing, is that I leave behind me more teachers than Sidi Moulay al-‘Arabi left behind him, may God be pleased with him, and he did not pass away until he had left 40, 000; all of them were from the people who could take others to knowledge of God.

The Zawiyas he Left Behind

Algeria:
1) Tlemcan (district of al-Haddādīn): Representative: Sīdī al-‘Arabi ash-Shawwār (washed Sheikh al-‘Alawi’s body and was previously affiliated to the Hibri Order)
2) Oran (New City): Representatives: Sīdī Sālih bin ‘Abd al-‘Azīz
Sālih b. Murād
Sīdī ‘Ali Bilahsan
Sīdī Ahmed Bil-Farhat

3) Ghalīzān: Representative: Sīdī Sālih b. Murād at-Tilimsāni
4) Algiers (Bu Zarī‘ah): Representative: Sīdī al-‘Abbās al-Jazīri at-Tilimsāni
5) Burj Abi ‘Arīrīj: Representative: Sīdī al-Hasan b. al-Joudi al-Azhari
6) Ja‘āfra: Representative: Sīdī ash-Sharīf b. al-Hasan
7) Region of ‘Iyād: Representative: as-Sa‘īd al-Mekki
8) Khanshala: Representative: Sīdī Muhammad b. Da‘ās
9) Bani Ya‘lā: Representative: al-Hājj al-Hāshimi Bu ‘Amāma
10) ‘Ināba: Representative: al-Hājj al-Hasan (student from Zaytouna)
Sīdī Muahammad as-Salim (affiliated to Sulaimiyya Order previously)
11) Mostaghānem
The Reef (North Morocco):
1) Bani Yaznāsa: Representative: Sīdī al-‘Arabi b. ‘Umar ash-Shabābi
2) Ahfīr: Representative: Sīdī Abu Madyan al-Butchīchi (affiliated to the Qādiri Order previously) He went to visit the Sheikh and took the litany from him. Then the sheikh entered into spiritual retreat for a number of days. Then he went back to his people with the permission of the Sheikh to inculcate the order to the people.
3) Bani Bu Yahyā: Representative: Sīdī Muhammad as-Saghīr (grandson of Sīdī Muhammad b. Qaddor al-Wukīli and resident at the Zawiya in Kerker).
4) Bani Bu Yahyā: Representative: Sīdī Bil-Qāsim b. Ahmed as-Sa‘īdi.
5) Kebdāna: Representative: Sīdī al-Mukhtār b. Hadīdwan.
6) Bani Shikār: Representative: Sīdī Muhammādi Bil-Hājj
7) Farkhāna: Representative: Sīdī Muhammad b. Rahu
8) Qal‘iyya(Bani Muzuja): Representative: Sīdī al-Bashīr b. Abd al-Rahmān
9) Qal‘iyya(Bani Bu Yifrour): Representative: Moulay Sulaimān b. Mehdi
10) Qal‘iyya(Bani Sadāl): Representative: Sīdī Ahmed b. ‘Allāl
11) Bani Sa‘īd: Representative: Sīdī Muhammad b. Isā as-Sa‘īdi
12) Bani Tuzīn: Representative: Sīdī Muhammad Emziyān at-Tafrīsīti
13) Bani Wulīshk: Representative: Sīdī Shu‘aib b. Muhammad b. Tāhir (previously affiliated to the Nāsiriyya Order)
14) Bani Wulīshk: Representative: Sīdī Hadu b. Muhammad b. ‘Allāl al-Wulīshki
15) Bani Wulīshk: Representative: Sīdī Shu‘aib b. Maimoun
16) Tamasmān: Representaitve: Moulay Tāhir b. Muhammad b. Tayyib b. Muhammad b. Qaddour.
17) Bani Waryāghal: Representative: Sīdī Muhammad b. Muhammādi b. at-Touzāni
18) Bani Abdullah: Representative: Moulay Abd al-Rahmān al-Ghalabzouri
19) Bani ‘Amart: Representative: Muhammad b. Muhammad ash-Sharqi
20) Bani Mazdawi: Representative: Sīdī Muhammad Aghrabi
21) Sanhāja: Representative: Sīdī Muhammad b. al-Hājj Muhammad as-Sanhāji
22) Ghumāra: Representative: Sīdī Muhammad b. al-Mufaddal al-Ghumāri
Morocco:
1) Tetoun: Representative: Sīdī al-Mukhtār b. al-Hājj ‘Abd al-Qādir
2) Tangiers: Representative: Sīdī Muhammad b. al-Hājj Ahmed Tai Tai
3) Tangiers: Representative: Sīdī Ahmed al-Hassār al-Jazā’iri
4) Sebta: Representative: Sīdī Muhammad ad-Dou
5) Fez: Sīdī al-Hājj ‘Umar al-Labbār (gatherings were held in his house)
Tunisia:
1) Sīdī Muhammad al-Madani al-Qasībi
2) Tunis (Shrine of Sīdī Yahyā): Sīdī Muhammad b. al-Wunīsi
Yemen:
1) Aden: Representative: Sīdī Amir Yahyā b. Hāmid ad-Deen. (He has numerous followers in Europe)
France:
1) Paris (Algerians)
2) Marseilles
Holland:
1) Lahai (Yemenis under the leadership of Sīdī Abdullah al-Hakīmi)
Britain:
1) Cardiff: Representative: Sīdī Hasan Ismā‘il
2) Birmingham
3) Liverpool
4) Hull
5) South shields

Syria:
1) Damascus: Representative: Sīdī Muhammad b. al-Hāshimi
Jerusalem:
1) Jāffa: Representative: Sīdī Muatafā ‘Abd as-Salām al-Filāli
2) Gaza: Sīdī Muhammad b. ‘Amīmour al-Hilāli
3) Falouja: Sīdī Hussein b. Muhammad b. Sulaimān
Sudan:
1) Representative: Ibrahim b. Abu Bakr
He also had zawiyahs in Medina and Somalia.
Ethiopia: Representative: Ali b. Muhammad as-Saqqaf al-Yemeni

Idris

Sheikh al-'Alawi's Teachings

2007-12-23T15:33:00.000Z

His Method in Educating his Disciples

He would order his disciples to hold firm to the rites of the path and the way of the Sufis of old, whilst making sure to uphold the rites of the religion in their entirety as well. He would tell them to be dressed well and clean, to adhere to Islamic attire, to let their beard grow and to wear their rosary beads around their necks. One time he went to Tlemcān to visit the Fuqāra there. It was a time when many of the youth had entered the order in the city. When he arrived, they gathered around him and sat at his feet yearning to hear from him. However on glancing at their attire he was disappointed to see them dressed in western clothing. He ordered them to imitate the Sufis in their dress and wear what the righteous wore. They quickly responded so that when he came back to them another time he saw them all wearing white turbans and they had let their beards grow, with their rosary beads hung around their necks. He instantly when it a state of great joy, so much so that when he returned back to his Zāwiyah, and he began to contemplate on their state, a poem came to him:

يَا اهْلَ أَهْلَ وُدِّي حَسْبِيَ رِضَاكُمْ
O Brothers, my dear beloved brothers, your pleasure alone suffices,
شَوْقِي زَادَ فِيـكُمْ مَلَكْنِي هَوَاكُمْ
My yearning for you wells up and my love for you has taken a hold of me.
أَحِبَّـتِي أَنْتـُمْ تَيَّهْنِي مَعْنـَاكُمْ
My loved ones, my mind is bewildered by your inward being,
أَبَـى قَلْبِي مِنِّي أَنْ يَنْسَى لِقَاكُمْ
And my heart refuses to forget your meeting.
أَخَذْتُمْ فُـؤَادِي فَذَاكَ فِـدَاكُمْ
You have snatched my heart, so that is your ransom,
تَرَكْتُمْ سُهَادِي يُنْبـِي أَنْ هَوَاكُمْ
You have left me with sleeplessness nights; this is what informs me of my love for you.

He would order his disciples to always present themselves with the best of manners and to enumerate the remembrance of God and always stay close to the other brethren. His addresses would speak to the heart and many a time tears would be seen on the cheeks of the listener. Even screams would be heard from those present out of their love for God all-mighty. In the gatherings they would rise for the Hadra and it could last for hours. They would not grow weary and lazy at all. He would be seen in the middle of the circle singing the odes to the movement of the men with a powerful voice that moved the men even more. If he saw someone lower their head, he would raise it and if he saw someone with his eyes open he would close them for him. If he saw anyone raise their feet above the floor he would usher him to keep them on the floor and if he saw someone too far apart from those next to him, he would draw them close. He placed the strong with the strong and the weak with the weak; he placed the tall with the tall and the short with the short, so that the Hadra ran in the best of fashions. All this was done with gentleness, compassion and the best of manners.

The Regime of the Zawiya

The Zāwiya was divided into different sections, each one dedicated for a specific purpose. There was an area for the children to study how to read and write and memorise Quran, and there was an area for the Fuqāra to study with local scholars the basics of the religion and memorise small parts of the Qurān. He appointed an official Imam to lead the prayers in the Zāwiya and he had someone who gave the call to prayer as well.

The Annual Gathering

The Sheikh had an annual gathering for all the Fuqāra to attend that would be held either in Mostaghānem or in Algiers. The purpose of this was to strengthen relationships between the Fuqāra who might not see each other through the rest of the year because of their daily duties. Thousand would attend the gatherings and they would behave as if they were one body united. Local and governmental officials as well as scholars would be invited to attend in order that they have an idea what the Order was about. The gatherings were passionate and emotional occasions. The Fuqāra would weep when the Sheikh stood in their presence and they would perform the ‘Hadra’ from Ishā until the early hours of the morning. The occasion would last three whole days. On the last day after Dhhur, some of those present would present speeches which they had prepared. Sīdī ‘Ali al-Boudilmi was the one who presented the names to the Sheikh and he would review the material before it was presented. The speeches would go on until ‘Asr. Then the Sheikh would lead the people himself or call one of the scholars forward and finally pray for all the people both men women old and young present, scholars, Muslim community, and the Muslim leaders. There would be around 6, 000 present at these gatherings as attested to by Sīdī ‘Ali Boudilmi.

Conditions of the Gatherings:
• He would invite all the Fuqāra no matter where they be. He would also invite scholars, local governmental officials and followers of other Orders if they wished to attend. However, they would come with respect for the Order and not try to take control of the gathering. They would not recite any poems or perform any act until they had asked permission from the host himself.
• The celebration cannot, by any means, conflict with the Divine Law. The brethren shall all pray together at the correct times and sit together to remember God and teach others about drawing close to Him.
• That the speakers not prolong their speeches so that the audience grow tired.
• That the organizer of the event be a master of the path that has been given authorization from a previous master. He should also have the required knowledge of how to organise the event in the best possible way. He should not be influenced by suggestions coming from people that have no understanding of the path who may ruin the whole event.
• All the attendees should come with the intention to invoke God alone. They should hold only love for their other brethren. They must represent the order and respect it. They should not come clean shaved or wearing anything other than Islamic attire such as a white ‘Jalāba’ with their prayer beads hung around their necks in order that the people present will see the beauty of the order and revel in the sight of being amongst fellow men of God.
• The best singers are to be chosen to sing at the gatherings and they must sing from the collection of Sheikh al-‘Alawi’s poems or from some of his followers so that people hear what this Order has to teach. The people should avoid letting just anyone attend in order that the event not be spoilt by the bad manners and behaviour of some.
• The attendees should respect the practices of our pious predecessors who brought us this order. When they come to the Zāwiya or any of the Fuqāra’s houses they should enter by saying at the top of their voices the Testimony of Faith. They must not look down on any practice they brought and speak badly about it such as the ‘Hadra’ and reciting the invocations out loud in unison.
• There should be no intermixing of the sexes under any circumstances throughout the whole event. There must be a barrier between them that prevents any contact in order that the hearts remain sound and pure. In the time of Sheikh al-‘Alawi there was not a sign of intermingling at the events. There would be a specially allocated area for the women to invoke God all-Mighty. He would not let even a young girl appear in the company of the men and likewise he would not let a young boy appear in the company of the women.

His Wisdom

Once Sheikh al-‘Alawi asked some of his visiting disciples from afar, “Do you come together?” They replied that they did not. He exclaimed, “Then you have no path; coming together is necessary even if it is just once in a week.”
Once he was sitting with the Fuqāra and he asked a man beside him, “If you found Paradise opened up before you and the Fuqāra were besides its door invoking God which one would you choose? Would you sit with the Fuqāra or enter the door into Paradise?” The man said he would choose Paradise. “Nay, I would choose to sit with the Fuqāra; their company is the gardens of Paradise.”
One time, he was sitting in his private quarters and could no longer hear the sound of Fuqāra invoking God in the Zāwiyah so he asked why it was so. He was told that a scholar was given the Fuqāra a lesson. The Sheikh came out of his room and went into the Zāwiyah to see this scholar. The sheikh came and sat by the side of the man and noticed that he was clean shaven and dressed in western clothes. “What are you saying?” The Sheikh asked the man. “O sir, I am apologise, I am just imparting some words to these brothers.” The Sheikh replied, “Your knowledge is dry; they will not accept it nor digest it.” Then he clapped his hands and the Fuqāra rose up and began a Hadra. When they finished, the Sheikh said to them, “My brothers, the state of someone suffices one from needing to ask about them. If again you see a scholar like this one, clean shaven and dressed in western attire, then take him and his knowledge and throw it to the waves.”
One day, Moulay Sulaimān was with Sheikh Muhammādi and he asked him what women should do with regard to the litany: do they read the whole litany like the men? He replied, “Women have many chores in the day, such as having to educate the children, clean the house and so forth. Therefore it is enough that she read ten of each invocation instead of the prescribed one hundred.” Then he asked him how the Fuqāra should read the litany: should they do so individually or as a group? He answered, “If one intends to teach others how to recite the litany, then it is preferable do so in group; otherwise it is better to recite it individually.”

His Keenness to Preserve the Sunnah

The Sheikh was adamant that his Fuqāra practice only that which is closest to the practice of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace. Therefore he ordered all of his students to pray with their hands clasped in prayer and not by their sides. This practice began to spread throughout the north and east of Morocco because of the Sheikh. The Spanish authorities were strongly opposed to them doing so and they would arrest people seen praying thus. However this did not prevent the practice from becoming widespread throughout Morocco and Algeria and the scholars of the regions submitted to it. Other strong supporters of this practice at this time were the Kettāni and Bin Siddīq families. He also called his disciples to read out loud after the five prayers ‘La Ilaha Illa Allah’ three times and then recite, ‘Sayyiduna Muhammad Rasul Allah’. This became specifically known only amongst his Fuqāra.

Idris

Shaykh Ahmad al-Alawi - His Life in His Own Words

2007-11-26T20:10:00.001Z

He is:

Abu al-‘Abbās Ahmad
b. Mostafā
b. Mohammad
b. Ahmad, (who was known as ‘The Judge’)
b. Muhammad, known as ‘Bo Shantōf’, who according to the author of the book ‘Sabīka al-‘Iqyān fi man bi Mustaghānem min al-‘Ayān’ was a devoted worshipper who followed the Hanafite school of law and was an adept canonist)
b. Madbōgh al-Jobha’(the one of a tanned forehead) and was known as a godly man in the town
b. al-Hajj ‘Ali known as ‘Alīwa and so Sheikh al-‘Alawī’s order was named after it was known previously as al-Darqāwiyya al-Shādhiliyya
b. Ibn Ghānim, who came from the capital Algiers to Mostaghānem either to reside or he was appointed as a judge there.

The family was well known as righteous and upright amongst the people of the town. It was said that in the time of the Ottoman Caliphate the appointing of judges in the town was restricted to this family alone. It is said that over 30 men from the family were appointed as judges.

Sheikh al-‘Alawī’s Appearance

He was of tall stature and very slim. He skin was olive-coloured, with a hint of red. His beard was silvery white. He had a long slender nose and his cheeks were sunken. His eyebrows were thick and prominent. His eyes were dark and piercing. If he spoke, his voice was soft and calm.

Sheikh al-‘Alawī’s Life Related from His Own Account

Martin Lings translates the words of the Sheikh himself:

He was born in Mostaghānem, Algeria in 1286 Islamic era (1869). He was an only son with two sisters. A little less than a year before his birth his mother Fātimah saw in her sleep the Prophet with a jonquil in his hand. He looked her full in the face and smiled at her and threw the flower to her, whereupon she took it up with humble modesty. When she woke, she told her husband of the vision, and he interpreted it as meaning that they would be blessed with a pious son, and he had in fact been importuning God not to leave him without an heir ... and after a few weeks God confirmed her dream, and she conceived her son.

After the Sheikh's death in 1934, the following autobiographical extract was found among his papers. He had evidently dictated it some years previously to one of his disciples:

As to learning how to write, I never made much effort in that direction, and I never went to school, not even for a single day. My only schooling was what I learned from my father at home during the Qurān lessons which he used to give me, and my handwriting is still quite inept. My learning by heart the Book of God went as far as Sura al-Rahman, and there I came to a standstill owing to the various occupations which I was forced to turn to through sheer necessity. The family had not enough to live on-although you would never have thought it, for my father was proud and reserved to the point of never showing on his face what was in his mind, so that nobody could have concluded from outward signs that he was in need of anything. I hesitated between several different crafts, and finally took to cobbling and became quite good at it, and our situation improved as a consequence. I remained a cobbler for a few years, and then went into trade, and I lost my father when I was just sixteen. Although I was so young I had been doing all sorts of things for him and I was bent on nothing so much as giving him pleasure. He was exceedingly fond of me, and I do not remember him ever blaming me for anything or beating me, except when he was giving me lessons, and then it was because I was lazy in learning the Qurān.

As to my mother, she was even more lavish in her affection, and she worried more about me than he had done. In fact after his death she did all she could in the way of harsh words and blows and locking the door and so on to prevent me from going out at night. I wanted very much to humour her, but I could not bring myself to give up attending lessons at night and gathering to invoke God. What made her so anxious was that our house was outside the town on a road which one might well fear to go along alone at night; and she continued in her attempts to stop me, and I for my part continued to attend those gatherings, until by the grace of God she gave her full consent, and there was nothing to mar our love for each other, which remained unclouded until the day of her death in 1332, when I was 46. As to my attendance at lessons, it did not amount to much, as it was only possible now and then, in between work, and if I had not had a certain natural aptitude and understanding I should not have gained anything worth speaking of. But I was very much addicted to learning, and would sometimes steep myself in books the whole night long; and I was helped in these nocturnal studies by a sheikh whom I used to bring back to our house.

After this had been going on for several months, my wife took offence and claimed divorce from me on the grounds of my not giving her rights, and she had in fact some cause to complain. My attendance at lessons, such as it was, did not go on for as much as two years; it none the less enabled me to grasp some points of doctrine in addition to what I gained in the way of mental discipline. But it was not until I had busied myself with the doctrine of the Folk, and had come to know its masters, that my mind opened and I began to have a certain breadth of knowledge and understanding.

After he had reached manhood and gained a modest amount of Islamic knowledge he felt the need to find a spiritual guide to take him to his Lord. He was always concerned about finding this man and he would ask God to guide him to the right person. In the meantime, whilst he was still looking, he decided to go into the streets to look for righteous company. He came into contact with a representative of the ‘Isāwa Order. On seeing that he was a man of uprightness, he decided to join the order.

As he says with his own words:

My first leaning in that direction was marked by my attachment to one of the masters of the 'Isāwa Order who impressed me by his unworldliness and evident piety. I made ever effort to comply with the requisites of that order, and this came quite easily to me on account of my youth and the instinctive attraction for wonders and marvels which is part of human nature.

I became proficient in these practices, and was well thought of by the men of the order, and I believed in my ignorance that what we did was purely and simply a means of drawing near to God.

He took on the litany of the order and its rights and remained with the order until he met Sīdī Buzīdī. For all this time he represented Sufism in its fullest by donning the attire of the righteous and being rigid in performing all the rites of Islam, invoking God constantly and avoiding at all times any people known for their heedlessness. He never failed to attend the congregational prayers in the mosque, and tried at all times to maintain his ablutions. He made sure to attend the local gatherings of exoteric knowledge, especially those who practiced what they preached. He made sure he sat in the company of only the best of men. He loved to read the books of the spiritual masters especially that dealt with the character of his sheikh at the time Muhammad b. ‘Isā. Since his intention was sincere, God answered his prayers and provided him with a teacher.

On the day when God willed that I should be inspired with the truth, we were at one of our gatherings and I looked up and saw a paper that was on one of the walls of the house we were in, and my eye lit on a saying that was traced back to the Prophet. What I learned from it caused me to give up what I had been doing in the way of working wonders, and I determined to limit myself in that order to the litanies and invocations and recitations of the Qurān. From that time I began to extricate myself and to make excuses to my brethren until I finally gave up those other practices altogether. I wanted to drag the entire brotherhood away from them also, but that was not easy. As for myself, I broke away as I had intended, and only retained from that contact the practice of snake-charming. I continued to charm snakes by myself or with some of my friends until I met Sheikh Sīdi Muhammad al-Buzīdī.

As for myself, I broke away as I had intended, and only retained from that contact the practice of snake-charming. I continued to charm snakes by myself or with some of my friends until I met Sheikh Sīdī Muhammad al-Buzīdī. ‘ As to my meeting with this sheikh, whichever way I look at it, it seems to me to have been a pure grace from God; for although we-that is, I and my friend Sīdī al-Hajj Bin-‘Awdah who shared my business with me-were longing to find someone who could take us by the hand and guide us, we did not go to the Sheikh al-Buzīdī and seek him out where he was, but it was he who came to us, quite unexpectedly. My friend had already told me about him. He said: "I used to know a sheikh called Sīdī Hamu of the family of the Prophet. He left his home and went for several years to Morocco, and when he returned many people attached themselves to him. He used to speak with authority about the path of the mystics, but to try him, God sent against him a man who did him much harm so that he found himself faced with all sorts of opposition, and now he is as subdued as any disciple, without a trace of his former spiritual activity. However, I think that he is one who could be relied on for guidance upon the path. No true spiritual guide has ever appeared whom God did not try with someone who wronged him either openly or behind his back.” This was the gist of what he said, and immediately I determined to go to this sheikh on my friend's recommendation. I myself knew nothing about him except that once, when a boy, I had heard his name in connection with an illness which I had. They brought me an amulet and said: "This is from Sīdī Hamu Sheikh Buzīdī”, and I used it and was cured. My friend and I were at work together some days after this conversation, when suddenly he said: "Look, there is that sheikh going down the road.” Then he went up to him and asked him to come in, which he did. They talked for a while, but I was too busy with my work to be able to notice what they were talking about. When the sheikh got up to go, my friend begged him not to stop visiting us. He said good-bye and went, and I asked my friend what impression he had had, and he said: "His talk is far above what one finds in books.”

He came to see us from time to time, and it was my friend who talked to him and plied him copiously with questions, whereas I was more or less tongue-tied, partly out of reverence for him and partly because my work left me no time to talk. 'One day, when he was with us in our shop, the sheikh said to me: I have heard that you can charm snakes, and that you are not afraid of being bitten." I admitted this. Then he said: "Can you bring me one now and charm it here in front of us?" I said that I could, and going outside the town, I searched for half the day, but only found a small one, about half an arm's length. This I brought back with me and putting it in front of him, I began to handle it according to my custom, while he sat and watched me. "Could you charm a bigger snake than this?" he asked. I replied that the size made no difference to me. Then he said: "I will show you one that is bigger than this and far more venomous, and if you can take hold of it you are a real sage." I asked him to show me where it was, and he said: "I mean your soul which is between the two sides of your body. Its poison is more deadly than a snake's, and if you can take hold of it and do what you please with it, you are, as I have said, a sage indeed." Then he said: "Go and do with that little snake whatever you usually do with them, and never go back to such practices again", and I went out, wondering about the soul and how its poison could be more deadly than a snake's.

Another day, during this period when the sheikh used to call on us, he fixed his eyes on me and then said to my friend, "The lad is qualified to receive instruction" or "He would be receptive to instruction", or some such remark; and on another occasion he found a paper in my hand on which was written something in praise of Sheikh Sīdī Muhammad ibn ‘Isā, and after looking at it he said to me: “if you live long enough you will be, God willing, like Sheikh Sīdī Muhammad ibn ‘Isā”, or “you will attain to his spiritual rank”. I forget his exact words. This seemed to me a very remote possibility but I said: “God willing”; and it was not long before I was attached to his order and took him as a guiding light in the path of God. My friend had already been received in the order about two months previously, though he had kept this from me, and only told me after I myself had been received. I did not understand at that time the reason for this secrecy.

After the sheikh had transmitted to me the litanies for morning and evening recitation he told me not to speak about them to anyone-“until I tell you”, he said. Then in less then a week he called me to him and began to talk to me about the Supreme Name (Allah) and the method of invoking it. (One day he was in a gathering of the Sheikh and he asked his student, ‘How does one destroy one’s lower soul? He replied, ‘By invoking the Supreme Name one does so.’) He told me to devote myself to invoking ‘Allah’ in the way generally practiced in our order at that time; and since he had no special cell of retreat for invocation, I was unable to find a place where I could be alone undisturbed. When I complained of this to him, he said: “There is no place better for being alone than the cemetery”. So I went there alone at nights, but it was not easy for me. I was so overcome with fear that I could not concentrate on the invocation, although for many nights I tried to do so. I complained again to the sheikh, and he said: “I did not give you a binding order. I merely said there was no place better for being alone than the cemetery”. Then he told me to limit my invocation to the last third of the night, and so I invoked at night and made contact with him during the day. Either he would come to me, or else I would go to him, although his house was not always a good place for meeting on account of the children and for other reasons. In addition to this, at midday, I went on attending the lessons in theology which I had attended previously. One day he asked me: “What lessons are those that I see you attending?” I said: “They are on the Doctrine of Unity (at-Tawhīd) and I am now at the ‘realization of proofs’.” He said: “Sīdī so-and-so used to call it ‘the doctrine of turbidity’ (at-Tawhīl)”. Then he added: “You had better busy yourself now with purifying your innermost soul until the Light of your Lord dawns in it and you come to know the real meaning of Unity. But as for scholastic theology, it will only serve to increase your doubts and pile up illusion upon illusion”. Finally he said: "You had better leave the rest of those lessons until you are through with your present task, for it is an obligation to put what is more important before what is of lesser importance." No order that he ever gave me was so hard to obey as this. I had grown very fond of those lessons and had come to rely on them so much for my understanding of the doctrine that I was on the point of disobeying him. But God put into my heart this question: How do you know that what you are receiving from the Sheikh al-Buzīdī is not the kind of knowledge that you are really seeking or something even higher than it? Secondly, I comforted myself with the thought that the prohibition was not a permanent one; thirdly, I remembered that I had taken an oath of allegiance to obey him; and fourthly I told myself that perhaps he wanted to put me to trial, as is the way of sheikhs. But all these arguments did not stop the ache of sorrow that I felt within me. What sent that away was my spending in solitary invocation the hours which I had previously devoted to reading, especially after I had begun to feel the results of this invocating.

Story of a Visitor to the Town

One day Sheikh al-‘Alawī accompanied his teacher to the mosque to greet a guest visiting from a neighbouring village. The sheikh was Sīdī Muhammad Zāfir al-Madani as-Safāqsi from the Sanousi Order. (This man was the Sheikh of Sīdi Muhammad al-Madani’s father). He stayed in the Zāwiya of Sīdī al-Harrāq b. Karītli, who was still alive at the time. At the gathering, there was both layman and notable and they had surrounded around to listen to him, treating him with great reverence and respect. At one point of the gathering, Sīdī al-Harrāq left the room to attend to the food and the Sheikh called out at the top of his voice, ‘Oh, Harrāq!’ Sīdī al-Bouzīdī heard him and replied sharply, ‘He is not to be named Harrāq in our order until he has burnt the creation from the earth to the heavens!’ (The word ḥarrāq literally means ‘one who burns’) The sheikh present heard what Sīdī al-Bouzīdī had said and shouted out, ‘Who is that man who uttered this wisdom?’ The people told him it was Sīdī Hamu, who was a teacher of children. The sheikh replied that this was no teacher of children; rather he is a teacher of men. The sheikh fell silent for a while and did not speak. He invited him forward and they talked about the matters of the spiritual path. Then he cried out, ‘Brothers, tomorrow, God willing, I want every one of you to write whatever comes to his mind on a piece of paper. Then bring it to me.’ Sīdī al-Bouzīdī gave the responsibility to his student to write something. When the next day arrived, they brought the sheikh the papers and laid them out in front of him. Everyone one had written whatever had come to his mind. The sheikh read the papers one after the other until he came across one that read,

If you wished, with a glance of an eye, you could quench the people’s thirst,
If you wished, with a flicker of an eye, you could suffice the world in its entirety.

On reading the note the sheikh took hold of the paper and held it tight and said, ‘Take these other papers and burn them. Who wrote this paper?’ They told him it was the student of the man who had spoken yesterday. The sheikh rose up and spoke at the top of his voice, ‘People of Mostaghānem, if your desire is God, then your town is full. From this day on you will not see me here.’ He left and did not return to Mostaghānem ever again. This was the point where Sīdī Bouzidi became accepted in the community and many people took from him.

As to his way of guiding his disciples, stage by stage, it varied. He would talk to some about the form in which Adam was created and to others about the cardinal virtues and to others about the Divine Actions, each instruction being especially suited to the disciple in question. But the course which he most often followed, and which I also followed after him, was to enjoin upon the disciple the invocation of the Divine Name with distinct visualization of its letters until they were written in his imagination. Then he would tell him to spread them out and enlarge them until they filled the entire horizon. The invocation would continue in this form until the letters became like light. Then the sheikh would show the way out of this standpoint- it is impossible to express in words how he did so-and by means of this indication the spirit of the disciple would quickly reach beyond the created universe provided that he had sufficient preparation and aptitude-otherwise there would be need for purification and other spiritual training. At the abovementioned indication the disciple would find himself able to distinguish between the Absolute and the relative, and he would see the universe as a ball or a lamp suspended in a beginningless, endless void. Then it would grow dimmer in his sight as he persevered in the invocation to the accompaniment of meditation, until it seemed no longer a definite object but a mere trace. Then it would become not even a trace, until at length the disciple was submerged in the World of the Absolute and his certainty was strengthened by Its Pure Light. In all this the Sheikh would watch over him and ask him about his states and strengthen him in the invocation degree by degree until he finally reached a point of being conscious of what he perceived through his own power.

The Sheikh would not be satisfied until this point was reached, and he used to quote the words of God which refer to: One whom his Lord hath made certain, and whose certainty He hath then followed up with direct evidence. When the disciple had reached this degree of independent perception, which was strong or weak according to his capability, the Sheikh would bring him back again to the world of outward forms after he had left it, and it would seem to him the inverse of what it had been before, simply because the light of his inward eye had dawned. He would see it as Light upon Light, and so it had been before in reality.

In this degree the disciple may mistake the bowstring for the arrow as has happened to many of those who are journeying to God, and he may say as more than one has said: "I am He whom I love, and He whom I love is I", and the like-enough to make anyone who has no knowledge of the attainments of the mystics and is unfamiliar with their ejaculations throw at him the first thing that he can lay hands on. But the master of this degree comes before long to distinguish between the spiritual points of view and to give to each of the different degrees of existence its due and to each of the spiritual stations what rightly belongs to it.

This station took hold of me, and it has been my home for many years, and I have become as it were expert in it, and made known its obligations, and my followers have had what I wrote about it when I was first in its grip, and some of them now have knowledge of its obligations, and some of them fall short of this knowledge. The acuteness of this state still comes back to me sometimes, but it does not compel me to write about it. True, it prompts me to speak about it, but it is easier to live with than it was, something that I feel rather than something that I am submerged in.

This path which I have just described as being that of my Master is the one that I have followed in my own spiritual guidance, leading my own followers along it, for I have found it the nearest of the paths which lead to God.

When I had reaped the fruit of the invocation-and its fruit is no less than knowledge of God by way of contemplation-I saw clearly the meagreness of all that I had learned about the doctrine of Divine Unity, and I sensed the meaning of what my master had said about it.

Then he told me to attend once more those lessons which I had attended previously, and when I did so I found myself quite different from what I had been before as regards understanding. I now understood things in advance before the sheikh who was teaching us had finished expounding them. Another result of the invocation was that I understood more than the literal sense of the text. In a word, there was no comparison between the understanding which I now had and that which I had before, and its scope went on increasing, until when anyone recited a passage from the Book of God, my wits would jump to solve the riddle of its meaning with amazing speed at the very moment of recitation. But when this took hold of me and became almost second nature, I was afraid that I should come altogether under the sway of its imperious and persistent impulsion, so I took to writing down what my inward thoughts dictated to me by way of interpretation of the Book of God, and I was so much under its sway that I brought them out in a strange and abstruse form.

This is what led me to begin my commentary on al-Murshid al-Mu'īn, in an attempt to stop myself from falling into a still more abstruse manner of expression. God be praised that this did in fact help to stem the onslaughts of that surge of thoughts which I had tried by every means to stop and could not, and my mind came near to being at rest. It was much the same kind of predicament which had previously led to my putting together my book on astronomy called Miftāh ash-Shuhud (The Key of Perception). I was absorbedly pre-occupied for certain reasons with the movements of the heavenly bodies, and the arrow of my thoughts had gone awry. To make a long story short-and I have already referred to this question in the book itself -when I found that I was unable to resist this surge of thoughts, I complained to my master about it, and he said: "Take them out of your mind and put them in a book, and then they will let you rest", and it was as he had said.

When he had completed the book he brought them to his sheikh and on reading, clasped them to his breast and wept, overjoyed and beyond words in thanks to God for giving him such a student. He cried out, ‘Praise be to God who has not left Mostaghānem empty but rather full! A tree has been sown which will shade the whole earth.’

But I have still not been able to bring myself to allow the book to be published, and God alone knows whether it ever will be. 'To revert to what I was saying, when after many long days I was freed from the obligation of devoting myself exclusively to the Divine Name, my Master said to me: "Now you must speak and guide men to this path inasmuch as you are now certain where you stand." I said: "Do you think they will listen to me?", and he said: "You will be like a lion: whatever you put your hand on you will take hold of it." It was as he had said: whenever I spoke with anyone in the intention of leading him to the path he was guided by my words, and went the way I pointed out to him; and so, praise God, this brotherhood increased.

And it was as he said and this was all because of a dream that he had of the Prophet in which he had seen giving him permission.

Elsewhere he says:

Our Master, Sīdī Muhammad al-Bouzīdī, was always urging us to visit the tomb of Sheikh Shu'aib Abu Madyan at Tlemcen. He spoke of him with great reverence and said that prayers made at his tomb were answered; and he used to tell us: "It was through his blessing and with his permission that I went to Morocco. I spent a night at his shrine, and after I had recited some of the Qurān I went to sleep, and he came to me with one of my ancestors. They greeted me, and then he said: "Go to Morocco, I have smoothed out the way for thee." I said: "But Morocco is full of poisonous snakes. I cannot live there." Then he passed his blessed hand over my body and said: "Go and fear not. I will protect thee from any mishap that might befall thee." I woke trembling with awe, and immediately on leaving his shrine I turned my face westwards, and it was in Morocco that I met Sheikh Sīdī Muhammad ibn Qaddour".

The Sheikh’s own narrative continues:

I asked my Master why he had ordered me to speak after first having imposed silence on me. He said: "When I returned from Morocco I taught our doctrine as I had taught it there. Then when I found myself faced with opposition I saw the Prophet of God in my sleep and he ordered me to remain silent. From that time I kept such a hold of silence upon myself that sometimes I felt I would burst into flames. Then, just before my meeting you, I had another vision in which I saw a gathering of fuqarā, and every single one of them had my rosary round his neck. When I woke I took what I had seen as a good sign of activity in the future. That is why I am willing that you should propagate the doctrines of our order. Otherwise I should not have dared to allow you to make them known. Moreover, I saw very lately one who said to me: "Speak to people; there is no harm in it". By "one who said" he no doubt meant the Prophet, though God knows best.

Such was my beginning; and I remained at his side for fifteen years, doing all that I could for our order. Many others helped me in this, though of the old ones there are now only about ten left-may God lengthen their lives and show increasing solicitude for them! ‘As for myself, I was so taken up during all that time with the service of the Sheikh and with furthering the increase of our order, that I neglected the demands of my own livelihood, and but for the friendship of Sīdī al-Hajj Bin-' Awdah who took care of my finances and kept my affairs in order, my business would have been altogether ruined. I was so busy in the service of the order that our shop was more like a zāwiya than anything else, what with teaching there at night and invocation during the day-all this, God be praised, without any loss of money or lessening of trade.

Then, not long before the death of my Master, God put into my heart the desire to emigrate. I was so struck with the moral corruption in my own country that I began to make all possible arrangements for moving further east, and some of my friends had the same intention; and although I knew very well that my Master would not allow me to leave the country unless he came with us, I was driven on by all sorts of plausible motives. However, after I had actually started on the removal-this was some days before his death-freed myself from all trade obligations, sold my possessions and mortgaged what was difficult to sell in the way of immovables with the intention of having them sold by someone else when I had gone, and after my cousins had already started off ahead of me, and just when I myself was on the point of leaving, my Master who was already ill suddenly grew much worse, and one could see on him the signs of approaching death. I could not bring myself to leave him in that state, nor would my friends have allowed me to do so.

His tongue was paralysed so that he could not speak, but he understood everything. What was especially painful to me myself was that I felt pulled in different directions to do things which were scarcely reconcilable one with another: on the one hand there was my master's illness which obliged me to stay with him, and on the other hand I had a permit to travel for myself and my family which was due to expire on a certain date, after which it was no longer valid, and what made matters worse was that at that time it was difficult to obtain a permit. In addition I was also burdened with winding up my business and selling my furniture; and I had sent my wife to her family in Tlemcen so that she could say good-bye to them.

In fact it was as if I were no longer in my own country. None the less I decided that I could not possibly leave my master just as he was dying, and go off after I had spent fifteen years with him, doing all I could to serve him and never having once crossed him even about the smallest point. 'It was not many days before he was taken to the mercy of God. He only left one son, Sīdī Mustafa, who had something of the holy simpleton about him; he also left a wife and two brothers, of whom one, Sīdī al-Hajj Ahmad is now dead, whereas the other, Sīdī ' Abd al -Qādir, is still in the bonds of life.

The Sheikh was exceedingly fond of his family and especially of his son, Sīdī Mustafa. Just before his death I saw him give a long look at him, and it was clear that he was thinking of his simpleness, and that he was afraid he would be neglected after his death, and when I realized this I said to him: " Sīdī, act on our behalf and take care of our interests in the next world before God, and I will act on your behalf in this world and take care of Sīdī Mustafa." His face shone with joy, and I kept my promise and did everything I could for his son until the day of his death, and was never in the least troubled by his state of mind which others found so irksome. I took care of the Sheikh’s daughter also-he only had one-until she married.

After we had said a last farewell to our Master, some of us prepared him for burial, and he was buried in his zāwiya after I had prayed over him the funeral prayers-may God shower mercy and blessings upon him!

Scholars from all around came to pay their respects to the family of Sīdī Bouzidi. One of the most prominent of them was Sīdī ‘Abdel-Hayy al-Kettāni. He spent seven days in the hospitality of the Fuqāra. The Fuqāra expounded as much effort in honouring him that the sheikh believed it was possible to convince them to renew their oath of allegiance with him. As soon as the sheikh suggested the notion, the host Sīdī Ahmed b. Ismā‘īl stood up and said, ‘By God even if the angels were to descend and order us to take such and such as a sheikh, we would say off with you and your sheikh. As for us, God has blessed us with a firm footing in both the Divine and Muhammadic presence. God bless our Sīdī Bouzidi who took us to the state of certainty with the eye in which there is no state of certainty after. At that point Sīdī Abdel-Hayy turned to his companion and said, ‘Look at these men that Sīdī Bouzidi has produced!’

A few days later news came to me from my parents-in-law in Tlemcen: "Your wife is very seriously ill." So I went to Tlemcen, and when I arrived I found that my wife, who was so deeply religious and so full of kindness and so pleasant to live with, was almost at her last breath. I stayed with her for three days, and then she died and went full of grace to the mercy of God; and I returned to Mostagānem, having lost my master and my wife, homeless, without means of livelihood, and even without my permit to travel, which had expired.
I went to the ministry to have it renewed, and they put me off for several days. Then they promised to give me a permit for myself alone. 'Meantime, while I was waiting for it to be issued, the men of our order were conferring together about who should take charge of the fuqāra. I myself was not present at their discussion, being prepared to accept their choice. Moreover I was quite unreconciled to the idea of remaining in the country, so I said: "It is for you to appoint whom you wish for this function and I will support you." for I knew that there was one amongst them who would be capable of it (apart from myself, and I assumed that they would appoint him).

But since this meeting of the fuqāra proved somewhat argumentative, because (although they would all have agreed to choose me) they knew that I was determined to go away, so that each one proposed the solution that seemed best to him and there was much difference of opinion, the Muqaddam Sīdī al-Hajj Bin-' Awdah said: "We had better leave this question for the moment, and meet again next week, in the meantime, if any of the fuqāra has a vision, let him tell us about it," They all approved of this suggestion, and before the appointed day many visions had been seen-they were all written down at the time-and everyone of them was a clear indication that the matter in question devolved upon me. So the fuqāra were strengthened in their determination to make me stay with them and act as their remembrancer.

(While trying to find some details of the visions, I came upon the following passage by Sīdī 'Uddah: 'The Sheikh Al-Bouzīdī died without ever having told anyone who was to succeed him.)

The question had in fact been broached to him by one of his more prominent disciples who thought well of himself and fancied that he was qualified to fulfil in our order the functions of upbringing and remembrancing; but the Sheikh al-Bouzīdī answered him as follows: 'I am like a man who has been living in a house by permission of the Landlord, and who when he wishes to leave that house gives the keys back to the Landlord. He it is, the Landlord, that sees who best deserves to have the house placed at his disposition; I have no say in the matter. God createth what He will, according to His Choice' ... and after his death his followers were left in a state of great upheaval, although most of them showed quite plainly their leanings towards Sīdī Ahmad Bin-' Alīwah on account of his having, as was known, already exercised the function of his sheikh, even to the point of guiding disciples to the end of their journey, although his sheikh was still alive. This was the strongest indication of how well he was thought of by him, and how qualified he was to succeed him. 'Now since visions are to be relied on for ascertaining the truth about things which lie hidden from our normal perceptions, I just as they are to be counted as glad tidings for him who sees them, or for him on behalf of whom they are seen, I wish to set down here some of those visions that were seen on behalf of our Master, Sheikh Sīdī Ahmad Bin ‘Alīwah. He then gives an account of some of the many visions which were seen after the Sheikh al-Bouzīdī's death, and of which here are a few:

In my sleep I saw Sheikh Sīdī Muhammad al-Bouzīdī, and not forgetting that he was dead I asked him of his state, and he said: "I am in the Mercy of God". Then I said to him: “Sīdī, to whom have you left the fuqāra?”, and he answered: "It was I who planted the shoot, but it is Sīdī Ahmad Bin ‘Alīwah who will tend it, and it will come, God willing, to all fullness of fruition at his hands.” ('Abd al-Qādir ibn 'Abd ar-Rahmān of Mostaghānem).

In my sleep I saw myself go to visit Sheikh Sīdī Muhammad al-Bouzīdī, and Sheikh Sīdī Ahmad bin-'Alīwah was sitting beside the tomb which was open. I saw the body of the dead rise up until it was on a level with the surface of the earth. Then Sheikh Sīdī Ahmad went and took the shroud from off his face, and there, unsurpassably beautiful, was the Sheikh. He asked Sheikh Sīdī Ahmad to bring him some water, and when he had drunk he gave what was left to me, whereupon I started saying to the fuqāra: "In this water which is left over from the Sheikh there is a cure for all sickness". Then he began to talk to Sheikh Sīdī Ahmad, and the first thing he said to him was: "I shall be with you wherever you may be, so have no fear, and I give you tidings that you have attained to the best of this world and the next. Be very sure that in whatever place you are, there shall I be also." Then Sheikh Sīdī Ahmad turned to us and said: "The Sheikh is not dead. He is as you see him to be now and the death that we witnessed was just a rite which he had to perform." (Al-Munawwar bin-Tunis of Mostaghānem).

I saw Sheikh Sīdī Muhammad al-Bouzīdī stop and knock at the door of my house, and when I rose to let him in I found that the door was already open. He came in, and with him was a companion, tall and very thin, and I said to myself: "This is Sīdī Ahmad bin 'Alīwah." After they had sat with us for a while, Sheikh Sīdī Muhammad al-Bouzīdī rose to his feet, and said he wanted to go. Then someone said to him: "If you go, who will you leave to look after us?", and he said: "I have left you this man", and he pointed to Sheikh Sīdī Ahmad bin ‘Alīwah'. (A member of the family of al-Hajj Muhammad al-Sousi of Ghalīzan)

I saw the Imam 'Ali-and he said to me: "Know that I am ‘Ali and your order is 'Alawīyyah." (Al-Hajj Sālih ibn Murād of Tlemcen).

After the death of Sheikh Sīdī Muhammad I had a vision that I was on the shore of the sea, and near at hand was a huge boat in the centre of which was a minaret, and there, on the top most turret, was Sheikh Sīdī Ahmad Bin 'Alīwah. Then a crier called out: "Oh you people, come on board the boat," and they came on board from all sides until it was full, and each one of them was well aware that this was Sheikh Sīdī Ahmad's boat; and when it teemed with passengers, I went to the Sheikh and said: "The boat is full. Are you able to take charge of it?", and he said: "Yes, I shall take charge of it by God's Leave.”’ (Al-Kilani ibn al-' Arabi)

Sīdī 'Uddah also quotes the following from the Shaikh Al-' Alawī himself:

In my sleep, a few days before the death of our Master, Sīdī Muhammad al-Bouzīdī, I saw someone come in to where I was sitting, and I rose out of reverence for him, overcome with awe at his presence. Then, when I had begged him to be seated and had sat down facing him, it became clear to me that he was the Prophet. I turned on myself reproachfully for not having honoured him as I should have, for it had not occurred to me who he was, and I sat there huddled up, with my head bowed, until he spoke to me, saying: "knowest thou not why I have come to thee?", and I said: "I cannot see why, O Messenger of God". He said: "The Sultan of the East is dead, and thou, God willing, shalt be Sultan in his stead. What sayest thou?" I said: "If I were invested with this high dignity, who would help me, and who would follow me?" He answered: "I shall be with thee, and I will help thee." Then he was silent, and after a moment he left me, and I woke up on the heels of his departure, and it was as if I saw the last of him, as he went, with my eyes open and awake.

The dictation continues:

Since the fuqāra knew well that there was no turning me away from my intention to go, they compelled me to take charge of them if only while I was waiting for the permit to travel, although their aim was to make me give up my journey by every possible means. One of those who were most bent on my staying was my dear friend Sīdī Ahmad bin Thuraiya, and he spared no possible effort to that end, all for purely spiritual motives. One of his devices was to marry me to his daughter without imposing any conditions on me, despite his knowledge that I was determined to go away. I accepted his offer very gladly, and gave her what little I could in the way of marriage portion.

Unfortunately she did not succeed in living on good terms with my mother. As time went on my dilemma grew worse and worse. I felt bound to do all I could for my mother, and I had already taken her part in more than one situation of this kind; but a separation which had been relatively easy for me in the case of other wives seemed very hard in the case of this last one. As for any possibility of reconciliation between the two, it was clearly very remote indeed; and when my father-in-law saw the dilemma I was in, he suggested divorce and even demanded it with some insistence, saying: "It is your duty to look after the rights of your mother. As to the rights of your wife, they are guaranteed by the words: If the two separate, God will enrich both out of His Abundance; and all that, God willing, shall not affect our friendship in the least." He went on and on repeating this suggestion, and I knew that he was sincere, although my own feelings were all against it; and when God brought it to pass, against the will of both parties, I was full of regrets, and so, no less, was my father-in-law. But there was nothing for it but to resign ourselves to what seemed clearly God's will. Our friendship however remained undiminished and that saintly man continued to be as devoted to me as ever until the very end of his life, thanks to the fineness of his feeling which was so well integrated into the spiritual path.

Much the same took place between me and Sīdī Hammādi Bin-Qāri' Mustafā: I had to divorce a wife who was a member of his family and whose guardian he was; but God is witness that both to my face and behind my back-to judge by what I heard of him-his attitude was very like that of Sīdī Ahmad Bin Thurayya, and we are still the best of friends. As to the cause of this divorce, it was my being preoccupied at that time, almost to the point of intoxication, first of all with learning and then with the invocation. Meanwhile the rights of my wife were neglected, as were, very nearly, the rights of my whole family. So, in one way or another, it has been my fate to divorce four wives. But this was not because of any ill treatment on my part, and therefore my fathers-in-law did not take it badly. In fact they are still fathers-in-law to me; and what is more surprising, some of my wives forewent the remainder of their marriage portion after we parted. In a word, any short-comings that there were were on my side, but they were not deliberate. 'When the fuqāra had made up their minds, with the circumstances all in their favour, not to let me go away, they decided to have a general meeting in our Master's zāwiya, ... and they took the oath of allegiance to me by word of mouth, and it continued to be taken in this way by the older fuqāra, whereas all subsequent newcomers took it through the clasping of hands. As to those members of the order who were outside Mostaghānem, I did not write to any of them, nor did I put them under any obligation to come to me. But it was not long before groups of fuqāra started coming to me of their own free will to acknowledge me, testifying as to their own convictions and telling what they had heard about me from our Master or what had come to them by way of intuition or inspiration.

So it went on, until all the members of the order were united except two or three. This union of the fuqāra was counted by us as a miraculous grace from God, for I had no outward means of bringing within my scope individuals from so many different places. It was their unalloyed certainty, nothing else, as to how I had stood with our Master in this respect. Moreover the training that they had had from him was firmly engrafted in them as regards recognizing the truth and acknowledging it whatever it might be, for he had gone on giving them the means of doing this until, thank God, it had become second nature to them.

I received their oaths of allegiance and gave them advice, and I spent on those who visited me at that time part of what I had in hand for my journey, and I took nothing from them, for I never felt easy about taking money from people.

This was in the year 1327. The first people to enter the order after Sheikh al-Bouzīdī’s students were the people from neighbouring towns. This was due to Sheikh al-‘Alawī’s constant visits he held in order to call the people to spread the teachings of the order. On these trips he would be accompanied by a number of singers. The trips could last up to two weeks or more and if he saw that the singers accompanying him were growing tired he would return to the zāwiya so they could rest and take another group with him to continue to visits. He would never tire and become lazy. On one trip to Algiers, hundreds of people were drawn to him:

Once when the Sheikh as in Algiers he was followed on his way to the Great Mosque by a crowd of over a hundred men who, far from being initiates, were mostly no more than Muslims by name. When they reached the door of the mosque he told them to go in with him, which they did. Then he told them to sit down, and sitting down himself in their midst he preached to them. When he had finished they turned to God in repentance and gave the Sheikh their oaths and made covenants with him that they would never revert to their former state.

As a result of all this I was left in a quandary, not knowing what to do or where the will of God lay. Ought I to go away, according to what I felt to be an imperative need, or ought I to give up all idea of going and devote myself to acting as remembrancer to the fuqāra, according to what seemed to be already my fate? I was still hesitating when the time came at which God had ordained that I should visit the seat of the Caliphate.

One day He put into my soul a feeling of constriction which was so persistent that I began to look about for a means of relief and it occurred to me to visit some of the fuqāra outside the town. So I took with me one of the disciples who was staying with us, Sheikh Muhammad ibn Qāsim al-Badīsi, and off we went with God's blessing. Then when we had reached our destination it occurred to us that we might as well visit some of the fuqāra in Ghalīzan, which we did; and after we had stayed with them for about two days, my companion said to me: "If only we could go as far as Algiers! I have a friend there, and what is more, we could go to some of the publishers, and this contact might bring al-Minah al-Quddousiyyah nearer to being printed." We had the manuscript of this book with us at the time, so I let him have his way.

We had none of our fuqāra in Algiers, and when we arrived, my companion set about trying to find his friend, although he was not particularly anxious to do so. In this connection he said to me: "Places in which there are no fuqāra are empty"-such was his experience of their kindness and cordiality. ‘After we had made contact with a publisher, we had the impression that for various reasons no Algerian firm would be likely to accept my book, so my companion said: "If only we could go as far as Tunis, the whole thing would be quite simple." I myself was busy revising my book (which I could do equally well elsewhere) in between visits to the publisher and other outings, so I let him have his way once more, and we travelled from town to town until we reached Tunis. The only practiser of remembrance (dhākir) that I knew there was a blind man who knew by heart the Book of God. He used to call on us at Mostaghānem on his way to visit his master in Morocco. But as to my numerous fellow countrymen who had settled in Tunis, there was none of them that I wanted to meet, so we entered the town at an hour of siesta, and found lodgings, and I constrained myself not to go out until there should come to us some dhākir whom we could go out with. This was on account of a vision I had had in which men who were members of Sufic brotherhoods came and entered the house where I was and took me out with them to their place of gathering. When I told my companion this, my idea was too much for him, and he said: "I did not come here to stay shut in by these four walls." So he would go out on various errands and walk round parts of the town and then come back; and after we had spent four days in that house, there came to us the company of people I had seen in my vision.

They were from among the followers of Sheikh Sīdī al-Sādiq al-Salirāwi who had died only a few months previously. This holy man traced back his spiritual ancestry in the path of God through Sīdī Muhammad Zafir and his father Sīdī Muhammad al-Madani to Sheikh Sīdī Mawlay al-'Arabi al-Darqāwi. 'Some twenty-five years previously al-Sādiq al-Salirāwi's Master, Muhammad Zafir al-Madani, had written:

My honoured guide and father, Sheikh Muhammad Hasan Zafir al-Madani, left Medina about AH 1222 (AD 1807) and went as far as Morocco in search of a way by which he might attain to God, and he took guidance from many Sheikhs ... Then God brought him together with his Master, the Standard- Bearer of the Shādhili Order in his day, Sīdī Mawlay al-‘Arabi ibn Ahmad al-Darqāwi. His meeting with him was on Safar 23rd, A.H. 1224, in the Darqāwi Zāwiyah at Bu-Barīh in Bani Zarwāl, two days journey from Fez. He took the path from him, and his heart was opened under his guidance, and if it be asked who my father's Sheikh was, it was Mawlay al-Arabi al-Darqāwi.

For about nine years he was his companion. ...Then Mawlay al-' Arabi said to him one day, in great earnestness: "Go to thy home, Madani. Thou hast no longer any need of me"; and on another occasion he indicated that he had reached the end of all perfection, and said to him: "Thou hast attained unto that which is attained to by the perfect among men," 'and he told him to go to his native town, the House of the Perfumed Shrine, and when he bade farewell to him, he wept and said: "I have made thee the instrument of my credit with God and a link between me and His Prophet".

'He went to Medina, and stayed there with his family for three years, and every year he joined the Pilgrims on Mt Arafat and then returned to Medina where he visited continually the Shrine of the Prophet, spending his time turned towards God, steeped in contemplation, in utter detachment. ...And he said: "During that time I met with the perfect Sheikh, the Gnostic, Sīdī Ahmad ibn Idrīs. I found him on a most exalted footing as regards following the wont of the Prophet, and I so marvelled at his state that I took initiation from him for the blessing of it." 'During his stay in Medina he was asked for spiritual guidance by some who were seeking a master but he made no response to them out of pious courtesy to his sheikh until he heard a voice from the Pure Shrine which said to him: " Be a remembrancer, for verily remembrancing profiteth the betievers. He said: "I quivered and shook at the sweetness of that utterance, and I understood it to be an authorization from the Apostle of the All- Bountiful King". So he obeyed God's command and transmitted initiation to various persons in the city of the Prophet ...and returned to his Master Mawlay Al-' Arabi ad-Darqāwi ...and remained in his presence for some months. Then Mawlay Al-' Arabi died, and my father set out once more for Medina ... and when he reached Tripoli the eyes of some of its people were opened to the excellence of his virtues and the fullness of his spiritual realization, so they took initiation from him. Then the number of his disciples increased and the brotherhood became famous and men associated it with him, and on this account it was named al-Tarīqat al-Madaniyyah and it is a branch of the Shādhili Order.

The whole gathering sat down and we talked together for a long time, and I saw the lights of their love of God shining on their foreheads. They asked me to go out with them to a place they had in mind, and they did not stop insisting until they had taken me out and lodged me at the house of one of their friends. Then one after another the fuqāra came to visit us, full of ardour. Such was their hospitality to me, and the honour they showed me - may God reward them! 'During my stay in Tunis I was continually visited by theologians and canonists and other eminent men… and with them came a number of their students. Some of them were already initiates and others were not, and of these last several entered upon the path.

One of the students had suggested that I should give them a lesson in al-Murshid al-Mu'īn. What I said found favour with my hearers, and this was the cause of some of the students becoming initiated into the order. That is how we spent our time, both as rememberers and remembrancers, and some derived benefit. God be praised for that the owner of a press through the mediation of a fellow traveller. We liked them both very much indeed, and this was what prompted us to make the contract, although we knew that this particular press was not well equipped. As a result the book did not come out at the promised time, and I had to go and leave it behind me for somebody else to look after. 'I had decided to go on to Tripoli to visit my cousins, who had left Mostaghānem, as I have already mentioned, to settle there.

Since I had a permit to travel, I thought that I had better take this opportunity. I was also prompted by thoughts of visiting the Holy House of God and the tomb of the Prophet, but unfortunately a letter came to me from Mostaghānem telling me that the Pilgrimage was forbidden that year, and cautioning me against standing on Arafat for fear of incurring the penalty. At all events I embarked for Tripoli-by myself-and suffered some hardship through travelling at that season, for it was cold winter weather. In fact I only had one day of relief: I was meditating on the crowd of people-men of ]erba and others- who thronged the boat and I was wondering whether there was a dhākir amongst them, when one of the travellers stopped beside me and looked hard at me as if he were trying to read my face. Then he said: "Are you not Sheikh Ahmad bin 'Alīwah?" "Who told you?” I said. "I have always been hearing about you", he said, "and just now while I was looking at you, as I have been for some time, I suddenly realized that you must be that very man"; so I said that I was. Then I went with him to another part of the boat and having asked his name, was told that he was al-Hajj Ma'tuq; when we began to talk together I realized that he was a Gnostic. I asked him if he found any spiritual support among his fellow countrymen, and he said: "I am the only man of this art in all of ]erba." From my meeting with him the time passed as happily as I could have wished until he and those who were travelling with him landed at ]erba, and I was once more in the grip of loneliness and the inevitable hardships of travelling in winter until I myself landed at Tripoli. My cousins were waiting for me at the harbour.
We were longing to catch sight of each other, all the more impatiently on account of our enforced separation. No sooner had we reached their house and sat down than we discussed the question of emigration and all that was connected with it, and they told me that materially speaking they were well off, thanks to God's safe care. As to the country, it seemed to me as far as I could tell a good place to emigrate to, since its people were as like as possible to those of our country both in speech and in ways.

Towards sunset I asked my cousins if they knew any dhākir there, or any sheikhs who were Gnostics, and they said that they only knew a Turkish sheikh, who was the head of some government department, a man of the most evident piety. I asked if it would be possible for us to meet him the next day, and just as we were considering this there was a knock at the door and one of them went out and came back saying: "Here is the sheikh himself at the door, asking if he can come in." He had never visited them at their home. I told them to bring him in, and in he came, a tall man with a long beard dressed from head to foot in Turkish fashion. 'We greeted each other, and when he had sat down he said: "A man from the West-he meant Shustari - says of the Divine Manifestation: 'My Beloved embraced all existence, and appeared in both black and white.' I said: 'Leave Western talk to Western folk and let us hear something from the East." He said: 'The poet said "embraced all existence", and did not specify either West or East', whereupon I knew that he was well versed in the lore of the mystics. He sat with us for an hour or two that night, all eagerness, listening with all his faculties rapt in attention, as I noticed. Then he took leave of us, but not before he had made us promise to visit him at his office the next day. We went the next morning to where he worked- the department of maritime revenues, of which he was the director. He received us most joyfully and gave orders for work to be stopped and gave his staff a holiday, although there was much work to be done.

Then we went off with him alone, and it would take too long to tell of all that we spoke of in the way of mystic doctrine, but I may mention that he said to me: "If you wish to stay in our country, this zāwiya here is yours, and all the outbuildings that go with it, and I will be your servant." I knew that all he said was spoken in perfect sincerity, and I told him that I would leave my home and settle there. I went for a short walk round the district and found myself very attracted by that neighbourhood as if it corresponded to something in my nature.

On my third day in Tripoli I heard a town crier calling out: "Whoever wants to go to Istanbul can have a ticket for very little” and he added that the boat was due to leave at once. Immediately I had an urge to visit the capital of the Caliphate, and I thought that very likely I might find there the learning I felt the need for. So I asked one of my cousins to go with me, and he said he would, but the sight of the fury of the sea and the crash of the waves stopped him. It was certainly no weather for a crossing. Suffice it that we reached the other side! 'Don't ask me for any details about our embarkation! Once I had found a place on the deck I began to wonder where I should turn for help and refuge upon the journey, and I found no comfort in anything but reliance upon God. 'By the time we reached Istanbul I had almost died of seasickness, and what made my plight worse was that at that time I had not a single friend in Istanbul to take me by the hand, and I was so ignorant of Turkish that I was hard put to it to say the simplest thing.

One day after my arrival I was walking at the outskirts of the town, and suddenly a man took my hand and greeted me in clear Arabic, and asked me my name and where I came from. I told him who I was; and who should he be but an authority on Islamic law from Algiers, a man of the family of the Prophet. By that time I was very eager to see the sights of the capital, so I put myself in his hands, and he was a great help in showing me what I wanted to see. But I was unable to satisfy my thirst to the full owing to the upheavals in which the Caliphate l was involved and the troubles which were soon to break out between the Turkish people and their so-called "Renaissance Youth' or "Reformist Youth".

This movement was headed by numerous individuals whom the Government had banished and who had consequently become scattered throughout various countries of Europe where they had started newspapers and periodicals in the sole purpose of criticizing the Government and exposing its weaknesses in the eyes of foreign states; and self-seekers found in this subversive movement loopholes and doors through which they pushed their way and gained their ends. Thus was the Caliphate doomed to have its ruler arrested and thrown into prison, while the "Renaissance Youth" went about its work with utterly unbounded ruthlessness until in the end they succeeded in achieving their aim, and the meaning of their "Renaissance" and "Patriotism" and "Reform" became as clear as day to anyone who had eyes to see. But I will say no more: what the Kemalists have done makes it unnecessary for me to trace this degradation step by step. '

I was convinced that the stay which I had hoped to make in those parts was not feasible for various reasons, of which the chief was that I sensed the impending change from kingdom to republic and from republic to unprincipled tyranny. So I went back to Algeria, feeling that my return was sufficient as fruit of my travels, even if I had gained nothing else; and truly I had no peace of soul until the day when I set foot on Algerian soil, and I praised God for the ways of my people and their remaining in the faith of their fathers and grandfathers and following in the footsteps of the pious.’

By the time the Sheikh had returned from his journey, his book al-Minah al-Qudsiyyah had been printed (1329/1911) and become well known among the people. It was printed a second time by Sheikh al-Hāshimi in Cairo in 1940. Throughout his life he taught relentlessly, especially Fiqh and Arabic language. However, his core aim was to spread the principles of the religion to the people of his region. His order spread throughout the neighbouring regions especially the villages around Ghalīzan and Tlemcan, were he was venerated greatly.

The Sheikh changed the order’s name from Darqāwiyya to ‘Alawiyyah in 1333(1914). This resulted in a number of outside parties bearing jealousy and spite for this reviver of the religion. They began to try to place obstacles in his way to prevent his order from gaining acceptance among the people. At the beginning the number of his followers was no more than the disciples of Jesus himself. However, it was not long until his zāwiya became to resemble a place of pilgrimage. People came from far and wide to take from him. Through his efforts a number of people embraced the faith, some having been Christian missionaries in Algeria.

At the beginning of his teaching, he wrote the words:

بَشَّرْنِي بَدْرُ البُدُورْ
The moon of all moons brought me glad tidings
بِالنَّصْرِ مَعَ الظُّهُورْ
Of success accompanied by renown;
مُحِبُّنَا فِي السُّرُورْ
The one who loves us is in bliss,
مَحْفُوفاً بِلُطْفِ اللهْ
Enveloped by the clemency of God.
وَ اللهِ لَقَدْ قَـالَ
By God, he did say
بِـأَفْصَحِ المَقَالَةْ
In the most eloquent of words,
نَصَرْنَاكَ فِي المَلاَ
‘We have brought you victory amongst the masses,
أَنْتَ فِي أَماَنِ اللهْ
You are under God’s protection.’

On hearing these words, one man questioned such a bold statement. ‘These words need some sort of backing’, he said. The Sheikh replied, ‘It is enough that I said them for you now. You see me now with little following and the future will clarify things,’ and so it came to be.

Some Pictures from the Gathering at Melilla, 2006

2007-11-26T15:14:00.001Z

The Hadra begins

Sidi Shaykh al-Buzidi leads the Hadra

The climax of the Hadra

Our very own Sidi Idris gives a talk

Shaykh Sa'id, of Salé, gives a talk on the roof

Shaykh Sa'id

Moulay 'Abd al-Kabir, of the

Darqawi-Habibi zawiya, Meknes

Shaykh Buzidi Bujrafi of Nador

And when Abraham Raised the Foundations of the House...

2007-11-14T15:44:00.001Z

Qur'an from Taurirt, Summer 2007. One of the most beautiful and haunting Qur'anic recitations I have ever heard.

QuranwaIdhYarfauIbrahim.mp3

Muhammad al-Habīb Hamū al-Būzīdī (1824-1909)

2007-10-30T15:13:00.000Z

His lineage goes back to the family of the Prophet through Moulay Isa b. Moulay Idris II b. Moulay Idrīs I b. Moulay Abdullah al-Kāmil b. Moulay Hasan al-Muthanna b. Moulay Hasan b. Imam ‘Ali. He was born in Dabdaba; Mostaghānem in 1824. He was educated by his father who was a prominent scholar of the region. When he was still a boy, he moved on to study in a zāwiyah affiliated to the Sanusi order in the village of Bu Qarītat just outside the town. He studied with the local scholar there known as ash-Sharif b. Takouk who was a disciple of a Qādiri sheikh named Sīdi Bil-Qadouz. This sheikh suffered a lot near the end of his life due to the treatment of local Turkish authorities who oppressed him. Things became so difficult for him near the end of his life that he advised his student Sidi ash-Sharif b. Takouk to go back to his family and teach the people. It was in this zāwiya that the sheikh completed his studies of Qurān, Fiqh and Grammar.

The Sheikh at times would miss his family, so he would often return to visit them in Mostaghānem. On one of these trips back to the town, he was arrested whilst in the company of his father in the market on the premises that he was an informer for the Algerian resistance movement against the French, which was led by Amīr ‘Abd al-Qādir. He was arrested and held for a number of days where he was exposed to torture. The Sheikh was only twenty years of age at the time. One of his relatives on his mother’s side managed to get him released but he was advised to leave the town immediately or he would be killed. He fled the town as soon as he could, in fear of his life. Now he was all alone with no-one familiar around him.

His journey led him to Tilimsān and there he went to visit the grave of Abū Madyan to find some solace. Night arrived and he decided to stay there until the morning. After reciting a part of the Qurān, he fell into a slumber and dreamt that he saw one of his ancestors, Abu Sa’īd b. ‘Ali, accompanied by Abu Madyan. Al-Būzīdī greeted them both and then was ordered by Abu Madyan to head for Morocco. Al-Būzīdī replied that Morocco was filled by serpents and poisonous beasts and that he was unable to live there. Abu Madyan passed his blessed hand over his body and said: “Go and have no fear! You are protected from anything that could possibly harm you.’ He awoke in a state of shock and headed directly for Morocco.

When he set off he contacted two friends, Muhammad al-Hibrī and ‘Abd al-Qādir b. ‘Adda Bu ‘Abd ‘Allī, who were also students studying Quran at the time. They decided to travel with him and went around mosques on their journey, correcting the tablets of students studying the Qurān. On their way, they passed by a mountain called the spring of ‘Zūrā’. At that time there was a man of God called Muhammad Qaddūr al-Wukīlī residing in the mountain. There he would teach children the book of God. Once they met him, they asked him if they could reside with him and study the Quran with him. He gave them permission and sensed that they would be men of great stature in the future. There they studied the variants of the Qurān for some time. After a time, he granted them permission to recite the general litanies of his order, and finally he gave them the litany of the Divine name ‘Allāh’.

Once they had grown strong and able in his teachings, he sent al-Hibrī to the region of Ahfir; Barkān and Bu ‘Abd ‘Allī to Ghalīzan; Algeria. He sent another student of his Sidi Muhammad b. Mas‘oud to the region of al-Ghazawat. The Shiekh was now very old so he kept Muhammad al-Būzīdī at his side in order to teach his children, who were still very young. He stayed, serving him and taking care of the daily affairs of his master, whilst his master taught him more about the order. One day he told him, ‘Do not move from this place until your permission comes.’ His teacher would on numerous occasions praise his student saying, ‘Buzīdī has taken the water carrier with both hands,’ indicating he was to become the inheritor of the sheikh’s teachings. Before his teacher passed away, he gave him permission to stay in the zāwiya to take care of its affairs. He remained there teaching the students and distributing the litanies to new aspirants until some of his master’s relatives threw him out.

He went on to Banī Sa‘īd and his students from the zāwiya followed him there. There he resumed his teachings, but his master’s children, who had been convinced by some people who wished ill for Buzīdī that he had fooled them into allowing him to run the zāwiya, sought him out in order to kill him. He caught wind of their intention and realised his master’s permission for him to leave had come. He headed for Melīllia but he would only travel by night in order that the people chasing him would not get scent of his trail. He arrived in Nador and stayed in a place called Wardāna. He arrived at the time of the Isha prayer and asked if the people would put him up. They asked who he was and he told them that he taught children Qurān as a profession. He led them in prayer, and then they apologised that they could not put him up due to hostilities from neighbouring tribes. They also warned him of a devious jinni that had occupied the mosque.

In the night, the jinni visited Sīdī Buzīdī. It had a fearsome form; it breathed fire and smoke from its mouth and nose. Sīdī Buzīdī began to recite Sura al-Ikhlas. He kept repeating it whilst pointing his index finger at the jinni wherever it turned. The jinni eventually burned up through the light of this Sura, and it turned to ash. Sīdī Buzīdī slept and woke just before Fajr to perform some prayers. Then he read his Fajr prayer and recited his litany.

When the people came to see what had happened through the night, they were astonished to find Sīdī Buzīdī safe and sound. He pointed to the ashes of the jinni and told them to bury them. In the morning, he asked their permission to leave, but they insisted that he stay to teach their children. The head of the region, Muhammad b. Yahya al-Wardani, was so impressed with Sīdī Buzīdī that he offered him his daughter’s hand in marriage. He stayed for a while until his reputation had spread though the North of Morocco. The disciples from Karkar came to invite him back but he refused; he was now determined to return to his homeland. On his way home, he passed through Melīlia and came stayed in the mosque of Moulay Idrīs for two days. Then he took a ship to Mostaghānem.

Once he arrived in Mostaghānem, he did not initially invite people to the path. He was content to teach the children and keep himself unknown. He eventually established a zāwiya and began calling people to God. He would walk the streets with his walking stick in hand and his rosary around his neck. He managed to produce a number of fine students but after some disputes he was forced to shut his zāwiya and began visiting his students in their work places. There he met his protégé Ahmad al-‘Alawī.

Character of Sīdī Buzīdī:

One day, Sīdī Buzīdī was invited by the local French authorities for a meeting. When he went to see the man he gifted him with two cloaks. On leaving the building, he found a man walking the streets with no clothes on. He quickly covered the man with one of his cloaks. Soon he came across another man similar to the first, and he gave him the second cloak. Later on, an official from the local authorities came to the zāwiya to see what he had done with the gifts. When he found him wearing his normal clothes, he asked his students what had happened to the two robes, and they told what he had done with them.

On another occasion, his students knocked on his door and on opening for them, they were shocked to see him wearing his wife’s gown. When asked why he was dressed so, he told them he was washing the only garb he had. His students fell silent out of embarrassment that they were wearing their fine clothes and their teacher had only one set of clothing in his wardrobe. They rushed off to buy him clothes, but he would only take one of the items they gave him; the rest he gave in charity.

One day, he was invited to attend a wedding and it just so happened that another sheikh had been invited as well. When the sheikh heard that Sīdī Buzīdī was among the guests he refused to enter unless they told Sīdī Buzīdī to leave. The host was perplexed as what to do and rushed to his wife to relate to her his predicament. However, his wife was very wise and told him she would prepare food for Sīdī Buzīdī and his family and tell him to go and give it to them. They prepared the couscous and asked him to pray for the newlyweds. However on his way home, he decided not to take the food home. A notion came to him that he should take it to the sister of the host who was not invited to the wedding because they had fallen out. He went to their home and knocked on the door. He gave the food to her husband and told them that her brother was sorry that he had forgotten to invite them and here was some food as a gesture of apology. He asked them to go and attend the event at once. Once they had eaten the food they went to attend the wedding with the plate now filled with sweets for the happy occasion. The man was so happy to see his sister and it was only on seeing the plate that the host realized that it was Sīdī Buzīdī who had been the means to get them to attend the occasion.

One day, the sheikh was walking in the street when an elderly Jewish man fell over on the floor in front of him. The Sheikh rushed to pick him up and comfort him, and placed the man’s hat back on his head. Some other Jewish men from the town came along at that point and were so shocked to see Sīdī Buzīdī tending to the man. From that day on the Jewish community treated him with the utmost respect.

On another occasion another sheikh came to see Sīdī Buzīdī to tell him that he had seen the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, in a dream telling him that Sīdī Buzīdī was destined for the hellfire. Sīdī Buzīdī responded by breaking into a warm smile and he thanked the man, saying, ‘The Prophet said I was destined for the hellfire! May God bless you! I thought I was so insignificant that it would not be possible for me to even be mentioned by the Prophet. I am grateful that my name was even mentioned on his lips and that he is concerned about me; for I know that he is the intercessor for all those who transgress and commit sin. God bless you, and peace be upon you!’

Sidi Mustafa b. Karitli was a member of the council of security in the time of the French occupation. One day, the local French mayor was coming to visit the area, so Sidi Mustafa b. Karitli got ready to receive him by dressing up in his finest clothes. He stood in the street with his entourage in the Arab quarter ready to walk up to the French quarter, when all of a sudden Sīdī Buzīdī came up to him carrying the innards of a sheep along with its liver and lungs, and placed them straight in Sidi Karitli’s hands. Blood was dripping from the meat, and flies had gathered all around him, but Sīdī Buzīdī insisted to walk beside his colleagues until he got to the square between the two districts. There he stopped him and said, ‘Enough now my son; glad tidings are yours, for God has cured you of arrogance, vanity and any pride of leadership and notoriety you might have had today. What a great servant of God you are!’

One day, one of his disciples came to visit him. On the way, he was thinking about what kinds of delicious foods he would eat at the house of the sheikh. When he arrived, instead of taking him downstairs where the guests would normally sit, the sheikh took him to the top floor. Then he brought him a plate of broad beans and told him to eat. Once his student began eating, the sheikh pointed to his stomach, saying, ‘This is nothing but your foul smelling intestines, so quickly fill it with what’s in front of you. Then rise, and invoke your Lord though the day and night, in order that God’s mercy might encompass you, and drag you from your slumber and heedlessness into the vigilance of direct divine knowledge whereby you witness God’s light with your inner sight. Then once your inner darkness dissipates, the light of your inner sun will shine and point you towards guidance. Once you reach this state, you will not wither or change until you reach your Lord, having attained His contentment and pleasure.’

One year at the celebrations of the birthday of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, his son was killed by a firework someone had set off. When the sheikh came to look for his son he found him on the floor in a pool of blood. A man came from the crowd and told him, ‘Come and I’ll show you who killed your son!’ The Sheikh immediately spoke back to the man harshly, saying “You fool! I know who killed my son! He is the one who decrees death of every soul!” Sidi Buzidi then picked his son up and prepared him in order to pray over him. He did not file any complaint against the person responsible for the death of his son.

Idris

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi al-Darqawi

2007-10-28T18:11:00.000Z

Letter 13

The disciples long before never busied themselves or strived in anything unless it smote their egos and brought life to their hearts. Today we have turned things over on their heads. They strived to let go of their desires and lower themselves. I say these words to you only because I have seen the gifts of those who smite their egos and bring life to their hearts. Unfortunately we have become content with less; and whoever is content with anything other than arrival at the witnessing of God is an ignoramus.

However, being attached to one’s desires and seeking to raise one’s station in the eyes of others is not the only thing that prevents one from receiving these gifts; one also needs a natural gift in one’s heart. The inner meanings do not descend on a heart unless it has a mighty connection with seeing the essence of its Lord. If so, the realities of the Lord’s essence will descend upon it until they efface him, whereby he will no longer imagine there is anything else besides His presence. Whoever has a strong connection with his Lord will be thus so. As for one who is naturally drawn to knowledge alone or works alone, he will never obtain the inner meanings of things or taste them, because his heart is directed to other than the essence of God; and God provides for His servant according to his aspiration.

Know that these inner meanings are ever present in the human being and they are as many as there are waves in the ocean. However, the material world has overtaken them and taken a grip on their hearts and limbs, preventing them from obtaining these meanings, for they are opposites that never meet.

This arriving is not reached through acts, whether abundant or sparse; it is reached through the bounty and grace of God alone.

(Ibn Ata ‘Illah) ‘Were you only unable to reach Him after all your blameworthy traits and empty claims were effaced, you would never reach Him; if He wishes to bring you to Him, He covers over your traits with His, and your qualities with His. Therefore your arrival to Him is from Him to you and not you to Him.’

This is a grace from God that He has granted the masters of the path. Were it not for them, no-one would be able to reach Him, as to know a man of God is far more difficult than to know God himself.

(Ibn ‘Ata ‘Illah:) ‘Hallowed be He who only made guidance towards His close ones as a means of guidance towards Him, and only guided to them those whom He wanted to bring unto Himself.’

There is no doubt that our Lord of the heaven and earth, the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, was present and plain to see as the sun above the mountain, but despite that not everyone saw him. Others were veiled from him as were so many before amongst whom dwelt their prophets, and the men of God of their time, yet they rejected them and did not believe.

‘And you witness them looking unto you, but they do not see.’

‘And they say: “What sort of a messenger is this, who eats food, and walks through the streets?’ (Quran: 25/7)

More than two thirds of the Book of God is concerned with those who rejected the message and did not perceive the reality of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace. Consider Abu Jahl! He saw him as a mere orphan charge of Abu Talib!

If one finds a master of the path, at times he will see that breaking free of the ego is accomplished some times by hunger and at other times by satiation. At other times he may see that he must call you to increase your means, and at other times to limit them. He may call you to sleep, and at other times order you to limit it. He may call you to flee from the people, and at other times to sit with them and take solace from them. This is because one’s inner light may become so strong that the master fears that it will crush the disciple as it has done to so many others before. He may therefore take him out of isolation into the company of others to quell the light within, so it does not crush him; or he may do the opposite.

‘To thy Lord is the final goal.’ (Quran: 53/42)

Due to the limited number of people whose hearts are ready to follow, spiritual training has become so scarce. However, God’s knowledge is never completely severed.

This path will always be, through God’s power and might, as it is taken from our masters all the way back to the Messenger himself, who took it from the archangel Gabriel, who took it directly from God Almighty. Whoever comes forth to teach it has done so with the authority of God and His messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, and as Sidi al-Mursi said, ‘No teacher comes forth to teach the disciples until divine inspiration has overcome him and he has been given authority from God and His messenger.’ It is through the blessing of this authority that this matter still stands and its folk remain upright, and God knows best.

Sidi Abu al-Mawahib al-Tunusi, may God be pleased with him, said with regard to witnessing the essence of our Lord, ‘Annihilation (fana’) is effacement and dwindling away until you cease to remain and are removed.’

(Sidi Abu Madyan:) ‘Whoever has not ceased to exist has not seen the Real.’

Be wary of assuming it is the dense or opaque matter that has veiled you from your Lord. It is your own delusion that has done so; and delusion is opposed to the truth.

(Ibn ‘Ata ‘Illah:) ‘It is not the existence of something present alongside Him that has veiled you, for there is nothing besides Him; rather it is the delusion that there is something present alongside Him that has veiled you.’

The state of annihilation can be achieved in a short space of time, God willing, by invoking God’s majestic name ‘Allah’ in a specific method. I found this method mentioned by Imam Shadhili in a book which was in the possession of some scholars in my homeland of Bani Zarwal. My teacher Sidi ‘Ali also taught me this, but in different way which is even more effective, and which achieves results in a shorter space of time.

The method is to picture the five letters of the name when reciting it. Whenever you feel the image in front of you slipping away, you must go back to it, even if you had to one thousand times in one night and one thousand times in the day. Using this method, a great thought came to me. I used to invoke using it at the beginning of the path for up to one month. Divine knowledge in its plenty would come to me, but I was not distracted by it; rather I focussed my intention on invoking the Name, bringing the letters to my mind constantly for one whole month until the words of God came to:

‘He is the First and the Last, the Manifest and the Hidden.’ (Quran: 57/3)

I immediately turned my thoughts away from it back to the invoking of the Name as I had done to so many other notions that had come to me before. However, this one would not leave me; rather it grabbed a hold of me and would not let me go. I tried to turn my thoughts time and again from it but it would not leave me. I said to it, ‘As for His exalted words “He is the First and the Last” and “the Hidden” I understood, but I did not understand the word “Manifest”, as the only thing evident that we see is the creation. The notion replied back, ‘If the meaning of the word “Manifest” had meant anything other than that which you see before you, it would have been hidden, and not manifest, yet I say to you ‘The Manifest!’ From that point I realised that there was nothing present but God alone and there is nothing in the creation but Him, thanks and praise be to Him.

Annihilation in the essence of our Lord can be achieved, God willing, in a very short space of time by applying this method that we have laid down to you. By using it, it brings about divine thought from morning to evening if one has the time. I achieved it in the space of one month, and God knows best.

And without a doubt, if one is able to gain divine thought in his life even if it takes one year, two years or even three, then he has gained a great blessing and clear well-known secret. As the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said:

“A moment’s contemplation is more virtuous than seventy years of worship.”

Contemplation can take one from the material realm to the realm of purity; or we can say from the presence of created being to the presence of the Creator, and I say this as God is my witness.

We stress to anyone who has come back from a state of heedlessness to a state of remembrance that he must attach his heart to seeing the essence of his Lord at all times in order that it grant him its meanings. This is the way of its folk. Also I stress that he not suffice himself with the notions that come to him, and leave the litanies of the path, in order that he not be deprived of obtaining the goal.

Idris

Sîdî Muhammad b. Qaddûr

2007-09-20T14:52:00.000Z

He was a descendant of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, from the family of Wukîl. His grave is still to be found in Mount Karkar, which lies underneath a great dome. By the side of his tomb lies a sweet spring. Inside the dome still resides his rosary, which bears 1000 beads, and his giant lance, with which he hunted wild beasts.

He studied reading and writing in his youth by frequenting a scholar on Mount Qal‘iyya in Nador. The teacher would write him his portion of Qurân, leaving a
space at the bottom of his slate upon which he would write the divine name of God: ‘Allah’. He was instructed, on finishing his portion of Qurân, to close his eyes and invoke the Divine Name. He continued to do so, regularly repeating the Name after finishing each of his daily portions, until one day a powerful state overtook him and he fell to the ground unconscious. When his teacher came to check on him, he
found him lying still on the floor. Believing him to be dead, he fled the village fearing for his life. Once the boy had regained consciousness, he was in a
distant state and not all together himself.

He remained in this state for some time. He wandered into Algeria, where he met a man of God, who said to him:‘Were it not for your ancestor Muhammad, I would
not have wasted a word speaking to you. Your need is with the spiritual pole, Muhammad b. ‘Abd al-Qâdir al-Bâsha who resides in the region of al-Khurûb.’ The
boy headed off earnestly to meet the Master and dedicate his services to him.

After a time, some of his master’s relatives began to despise the boy and grow jealous of him. The master ordered the boy to leave, so he went to the bottom of
the mountain, where he hid in the day, at night, he bringing fodder for the master’s animals. He remained like this for some time. There were times when hunger overcame him so that he was forced to eat snails to stop the hunger pangs. One night one of the master’s relatives spotted him moving amongst the animals, so they reported him,
believing him to be a thief. The master began to look out for the thief at night, but when he saw who a figure moving around outside he called out to him: ‘Who is it?’ He replied: ‘It is I, Bin Qaddûr.’ He invited him to come out and sit with him. Whilst they were speaking, a maid came up to them and reported that the vessel they used to make bread with was missing. When Sîdî bin Qaddûr heard this, he ran off to the market in search of one,and with which he returned, carrying it on his back all the way to his master’s house, a great distance. When his Master found him, he asked him where he had located the vessel. He told him that he had brought it from the marketplace at Qal‘iyyah. His master stood back astonished. The boy grew even dearer to his teacher from then on.

He remained in the service of his master until he was told to go to his homeland to spread the teachings of the path. ‘Be honourable and generous but also be on guard against your fellow family members, who will be envious.’ And so it happened that his family plotted to kill him. Whilst he was far off from the village on a mountain side, a man appeared before him bearing a knife, wanting to kill him. Sîdî bin Qaddûr began to admonish him and told him to fear God, but it was to no avail, so Sîdî bin Qaddûr was forced to shoot him with his rifle, killing him. Immediately, he ran home gathered his family and fled with them to a mountain called ‘the Spring of Zûrâ’. There he dug two caves in the earth, one for his family and one for his
students. There he lived with his family and disciples.

His reputation soon spread far and wide amongst the neighbouring tribes. One day a tribe called Banî Bûhyâ, who had previously pledged allegiance to him, came to visit him. They took him to their homeland at night on Mount Karkar. He ordered them to leave him there, and it was on this mountain that his zâwiya was built. It was also here that he issued people the invocation of the Divine Name and spread his teachings
until he finally passed away.

Idris

Sîdî Bû ‘Azzâ al-Mahhâjî

2007-09-20T14:48:00.000Z

His name is Abu ‘Abdullâh Bû ‘Azzâ al-Tilimsânî al-Mahhâjî from the tribe of Mahhâja, who originate from a region outside of Tilimsân, Algeria. He had two
zâwiyas: one in Oujda in Morocco, the other in Tilimsân. He took from Moulay al-‘Arabî al-Darqâwî. He was a man of a high spiritual station. It was related
that one day he was sitting with a scholar of law when a man came asking about a very complex issue. The scholar gave his answer, quoting what he had memorised
from the book of Khalîl (a traditional Maliki book of law). Once the scholar had finished his answer, Abû ‘Azzâ sat up and said, “I don’t think that to be the
correct answer. Go back and review the issue in the commentaries of Khalîl.” (This he said even though Abû ‘Azzâ had never touched a book of law.) On reviewing
the commentaries, the scholar found to his astonishment that the matter was just as Abû ‘Azzâ had said.

He would always surpass the scholars in discussion and leave them speechless if they sat with him. He would say, “If the angels were to descend from the
heavens, I would be able to converse with them.” At first he was a man of silence, until one day his teacher ordered him to speak. From that day, he would talk of things that would confound the intellects of the people.

He passed away on Friday 15th (in the middle of Rabî’ al-Awwal) September 1277. He was buried in the Ramîla District of Fez just in front of the mosque of Sîdî Bû Madyan.
Idris

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi al-Darqawi

2007-07-31T16:15:00.000Z

Letter Six

I was once with one of the brethren, Sidi Ahmed at-Tahir, in the Qarawiyyin. We were both in a strong state of witnessing in those times, but that day I found he had withered, or should we say ‘weakened’, until he had started to fall into idle prattle like anyone else. I scolded him violently, saying: 'If you wish to succeed, then strike your ego and throw it aside.'

I also said to one of the brethren, who had told me that one day he had lashed out at a Jewish man, not for any reason but his own vain-glory, and maliciousness: 'Do not strike anyone, be he Jew, Christian, or Muslim, but rather strike out at your own ego, and continue to do so until it dies.’ This is of the up most importance.

Brethren, you too must leave the idle chatter aside completely. It is the worst of all mischief, and is not befitting of your station, nor does it comply with your state. Do not mention anyone unless you mention him well – ‘Whoever has not been grateful to the people has not been grateful to God.’

We believe, and God knows best, that he who has lost sight of the people has not truly witnessed God in all His glory. The one who is complete is he who is not veiled from the creation by his Creator, or from the Creator by His creation in all its shapes and forms. This is the one who has arrived and is complete. This is the Gnostic; and the opposite of this is the one who is lost and confused; except for the one who has lost his mind out of love for God (al-Majdhūb), for he no longer has the faculty to perceive things, and is therefore not lost and confused. Peace.

Idris

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi al-Darqawi

2007-07-31T16:13:00.000Z

Letter Seven

Occupy yourselves with that which your Lord has called you to do. Do not be concerned with those who harm you, whether they be from amongst you or from outside. If you do not seek to stand up for yourselves then God all-Mighty will do so for you and subsequently take over your affair, and if you stand up for yourselves then He will leave the affair in your hands and you will be left helpless, and God has power over everything.

(Sidi Qasim al-Khassasi:) ‘Don't ever be concerned with those who come to harm you. Instead, occupy yourself with God, and He will turn them away. He is the one who brought them to you in order to test whether you were being truthful in your claim. How many a man has slipped up on this point, and become concerned with defending himself against those who harmed him, therefore causing the harm to persist and falling into sin at the same time. If only he turned to his Lord He would turn them away from him, and suffice him.’ Peace.

Idris

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi al-Darqawi

2007-07-31T16:12:00.000Z

Letter Eight

Concern yourself with that which kills your ego and brings life to your heart. The source of all things righteous is in emptying the heart of love for worldly things; and the source of all things putrid is in filling your heart with love for those things. I wrote to some of the brethren concerning those things that bring about immorality and deviancy, and all of it stems from the love of this material world. Whoever turns towards it with his heart and limbs is the most deviant of people and the worst of oppressors. Were it not for the faith in his heart we would have labelled him a disbeliever, so stick to that which kills your ego and brings life to your hearts as we have said. There is no way to God until we have killed out egos, no matter what knowledge we might have accumulated.

Abu Madyan: ‘Whoever has not killed his ego has not witnessed God.’

One of the brethren complained to us about someone who had oppressed him harshly. We said to him: ‘If you wish to kill he who oppresses you, kill your own ego. By killing it you wipe out all oppressors, and God’s curse is upon those who lie.’

Woe to him who sees his own ego in front of him and does not efface it. One does this by making it bear what is heavy for it, until it is finally slain.

Love is a bride and her dowry is ones ego, so slay it, and your heart will come alive. Once you do so you will be free of fault, and will witness the unseen world. Whoever reaches this station is amongst the best of creation.

Always be in a state of purity, humbleness and contentment as long as you live. No one is truly impoverished until they have killed their ego and known their Lord. Accumulation for the sake of God brings you towards God and accumulation for other than God’s sake takes you further away from Him, and we seek God’s refuge. In truth there is nothing but God alone. He was, and nothing else was; and He is now as He was. Peace.

Idris

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi al-Darqawi

2007-07-31T16:10:00.000Z

Letter Nine

Praise God that He has directed you to Him in a time when so many hearts have been snatched away by worldly things. Not being tied up in worldly affairs is a high station that holds a secret well known to those whose hearts are illuminated. God does not forsake he who has fled the means, and rejected wearing fine clothes and seeking solace in sitting with loved ones and friends. One must try to emulate the people who came before. Whoever wants to be truly adorned, let him strip himself of his own desires. Because many of those from the east and the west fled from the means, they were remembered after their time. Peace

Idris

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi al-Darqawi

2007-07-31T16:04:00.000Z

Letter Ten

You cannot get to God until you efface your own self. You cannot do so unless you see the image of your ego in front of you. You cannot do this unless you rid yourself of this world, companions, loved ones and everything you are accustomed to.

Someone once said to me: 'My wife has got the better of me.' I replied, 'It is not she that has got the better of you; rather, your own ego has got the better of you. If you can get the better of that, you will overcome the entire creation whether they like it or not, let alone your wife. Our own egos are what get the better of us; nothing else besides. If we efface them, in doing so we will efface all other opposition in our lives.'

Do not astound the people with your ability to perform miracles; rather, busy yourself with that which destroys the ego and brings life to the heart. I was shocked and disturbed when I heard that they were exposing the secrets of the path to the people. If they do so, their inner light will turn to darkness. Peace

Idris

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi al-Darqawi

2007-07-31T15:58:00.000Z

Letter Eleven

Whoever wishes to be close to his Lord, and be granted a special place beside Him, then let him take only what is necessary from this world, that which can be obtained without hardship and toil. Do not be deceived by the knowledge of those who are in love with this world, nor by their works, no matter what the case; they are ignorant, and bereft of knowledge. The scholar who follows the Sunnah is the one who detests this world and takes only that which is sufficient for him.

This is the way of our Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace. Whoever's heart is absorbed with the love of this world, and his limbs with accumulating from it, has no knowledge, and no works.

'God does not look to your images, nor to your bodies; rather, He looks to your hearts.'

'Truly, it is not eyes that are blind, but the hearts that lie in the breasts.' (Quran: 22/46)

Peace.

Idris

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi al-Darqawi

2007-07-31T15:55:00.000Z

Letter Twelve

The ego is a wondrous thing, for it is the creation complete. It is a copy of it, and everything found in the creation can be found therein, and vice-versa. Whoever takes hold of it will doubtless take hold of creation itself; and whoever lets it take hold of him will be taken hold of by the whole of creation.

Once there was no harvest in the region of Tafillelt, so when they went to perform the rites of pilgrimage, they decided to search for someone related to the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, to ask him to grant them one of his children. When they found him, he agreed to do so. He called one of his sons to come and join them and asked him: 'If someone is good to you, how do you respond?' The son said: 'I would be good to him as he was to me.' Then, he asked him: 'What about if someone treated you badly?' The son replied: 'We treat him just as he treated us.' The father told him he could go. Then he called his sons one after the other and they responded with the same answer until they came to his youngest. When he was asked the second question he replied: 'We treat him well.' The father inquired: 'How is it you treat him well after he has been bad to you?' The boy responded: 'He is as he is, and I am as I am, until my good treatment of him gets the better of him.' The father gave his son over to the men and prayed for them all. Out of their love for the boy their crops yielded produce from then on.

The moral of the story is to love the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, because his love will rectify anything. Be good to whoever treats you badly, until you overcome him. This is honour and this is high moral character. God produced from his descent many a scholar and righteous man who were the like of the Companions themselves.

These people embodied modesty, generosity, high aspiration, and high moral character, may Allah grant us their love, Amin. Peace.

Idris

Hadra from Melilla 2007

2007-07-21T15:34:00.001Z

Imara Melilla1.mp3

Here's a Hadra from the annual gathering of the Alawi Tariqa in Melilla, Morocco, July 2007, in the presence of our Shaykh, Sidi al-Buzidi. (The photo is actually from a couple of years ago)

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi ad-Darqawi

2007-06-14T15:58:00.000Z

Letter Five

Begging in the streets and wearing the patched robes are both part of the Order. However, we see many of those who accompany us spending all their time talking about them both more than they talk about God Almighty Himself! The problem is that a lot of them take the litany from us, and then straightaway don the patched robes and go out begging. This is because his only intention after donning the patched robe was to rush out to beg. This was the only intention he had. Therefore, he took the litany and the donning of the patched robe from me as a means to go begging. I said to this man, “Leave the patched robes for it is only a means to prominence for you. Instead, focus on invoking your Lord until your heart is aflame, and your spirit is illumined. Then and only then can you wear the patched robe and go out begging.”

There is no doubt that wearing the patched robe and begging weighs heavy upon the soul; but it can seem easy for some. If you find it easy, leave it; and if you find it burdensome, take it up. Know that sincerity is in the thing that weighs heavy on your ego, naught else; and sincerity is what is needed. Work on yourself, choosing the thing that weighs heavier on the ego, or the thing that tests your sincerity more, until you no longer care what afflicts you in life, and ease and hardship, and praise and criticism are equal, and sincerity is one’s constant state. Then you will be truly free: and one who is free is truly a friend of God.

I pondered upon the one who leaves aside everything related to the attachments of life but begging, which no doubt is the lowest form of seeking means in this world, yet at the same time this, man has not experienced the station of leaving aside the attachments in their entirety, or in fact has not even caught the scent of it. It became plain to me that his inclination towards it was a move towards fulfilling his own desires, and this was all he had actually attained. If he were just to let go of his desires, his angelic nature would become intensely strong, and his human nature would subside. Then he would experience what the men of this path before have experienced.

(Junaid:) “Whoever alludes to God, but his heart is attached to other than Him, will be severely tested and he will be stripped of the fruits of invocation. Then if he realises what he has done and reattaches his heart to God, the tribulation and test will be removed.”

Don’t conceive for one second that the aspirant who has left behind everything will not be in the presence of God Almighty. That is not possible; because one who has aspiration beyond the creation will arrive at the Creator. What is meant by ‘arriving’ here is arriving at knowledge of Him. Withdraw with your utmost determination from that which you have become accustomed to-whatever it may be- and don’t ever find solace in it ever again.

He has failed whoever is content with other than You,
And he is ruined whoever desires someone in Your place.
–
You can find a replacement for everything you turn away from,
But there is no substitute for God if you turn away from Him,
Say, ‘I have no desire other than Your divine presence,
No image that appears before me or any glance that I may steal.

Sidi Abu Madyan:

“What a difference there is between he who aspires for maidens and palaces, and he who aspires for the removing of the veils, and for God’s constant presence!”

Be extremely cautious of seeking fame and prominence. One of the great benefits of ignoring outward and inward benefits is the vouchsafing of extraordinary acts, true miracles. We believe that God is forever there ready to generously offer them out. Peace.

Idris

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi ad-Darqawi

2007-06-14T15:57:00.000Z

Letter Four

Know that if the aspirant, instead of busying his mind with superficial things, concentrates his thoughts and remembrance on God alone, he will achieve the station of true slave-hood. Whoever does so is a true friend of God; and God’s curse is upon those who lie

Do not mention anything besides God, and devote yourselves to God; for whoever devotes themselves to God, God devotes Himself to them. What a joyous state to be in! It is enough that God says:

“Remember me; I will remember you.” (Quran: 2/152)

The Messenger of God (may God bless him and give him peace) related from his Lord, “I am in the company of those who invoke me.”

My master used to say, “We love what we hear being said about you.” Just like this, al-‘Arabi al-Darqawi loves what he hears being said about you, if it is that which destroys the ego and brings life to the hearts; but not vice-versa, for no one but the heedless ignoramus, whose heart has been effaced and whose soul’s candle has been blown out, occupies himself with what brings life to the ego and destroys the heart. Man has but one heart, and if he heads in one direction, he turns his back on the other.

“God has not assigned to any man two hearts within his breast.” (Quran: 33/4)

(Ibn ‘Ata Illah:) ‘Directing yourself towards God is turning your back on the creation; likewise, directing yourself towards the creation is turning your back on God.’

One of the brethren said to me, ‘I am nothing!’ I said to him, ‘Don’t say “I am nothing”, and don’t say “I am something”. Don’t say “I need something”, or “I don’t need anything”; rather say “Allah!” and you will see wonders.’

One person asked me, “What is the medication for the ego?” I replied, “Forget it, and do not ponder upon it at all; for only the one who forgets his own ego remembers his Lord.”

Don’t conceive that it is the creation that has made us forget our Lord, or that it has placed a barrier between Him and us. It is nothing but our being consumed in our own passions and caprices that has made us forget. If we were only to forget our very selves entirely, we would find the Creator, and we would lose sight of our very existence completely. Likewise, don’t conceive that one can lose sight of the creation whilst he has not even lost sight of his own self yet. I swear by God that can never be so. Peace.

Idris

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi ad-Darqawi

2007-06-14T15:30:00.000Z

Letter Three

Invoking your Lord is the foundation stone and the aid in traversing the path toward God. Therefore, hold firm to it as you have been ordered, and God will make you strong. We would like you to constantly remind God’s servants of God Himself, and the Sunnah of His Messenger (may God bless him and grant him peace), and warn them of ever falling into disbelief. Teach them humility at all times, and inspire them towards abstinence in this world, so that they suffice themselves with the bare minimum of it, as God has commanded.

One of the first lessons I learnt from my teacher was when he placed two baskets full of berries in my hands. He did not place them on my shoulders like my peers. Even so, it bore down so heavy on my ego that I felt intensely constricted deep inside. I was so disturbed, shaken and felt so indecent that I began to weep. I swear to God, I wept out of the humiliation, abasement and utter wretchedness of the situation, as my ego could not bear to take such a lesson; it would not bow down to the test ever in a thousand years. I was so oblivious of my own arrogance, haughtiness, malignancy and stubbornness. I had previously had no idea whether I was arrogant or not. I had never learnt this lesson from any teacher of jurisprudence throughout all my previous studies; and I had studied with many a teacher.

Whilst in this state, my teacher saw what had come over me because of his deep insight into the hidden secrets, for which he was well-known to all. He came over, took the baskets and placed them right on top of my shoulders just like my peers, who were so much more righteous, and further advanced on the path than me. Then he said, “This is for your own good, in order to chase away some of that arrogance of yours.” Instantly, a door of understanding opened for me, and things became clear. I was now able to distinguish the truth in everything. I could discern the arrogant from the humble, the serious from the lax, those of knowledge from those of ignorance, and those who follow the way of the Prophet (peace and blessings of God be upon him) from those of innovation, and those who practice what they preach from those who do not. No one was able to get the better over me after this event, because my teacher had taught me how to distinguish truth from falsehood, may God reward him and protect him, Amen!
I would like Sidi Ahmed ibn ‘Ajiba to encourage the servants of God to practice truth in their speech and actions, and to show caution in all matters. Through this, the fruits of the path are reaped, and ultimate realisation is gained, and God is a witness to what I say. Peace.

Idris

Fuqara of Salè in Annual Gathering in Melilla, 2005

2007-06-12T15:01:00.001Z

This is a recording of the Fuqara of Salè, Morocco, at the annual festival of the Tariqa in Melilla, summer 2005. The dhikr is being led by Hajj Siddiq and Sidi Mustafa, who is the son of Shaykh Sa'id al-Alawi, and was only around fourteen when this was recorded. Hajj Siddiq is in his late fifties; depite the age difference, I don't think I have ever heard any singers blend so well together. They were really in the zone this day, too. It was between Asar and Maghrib on a warm afternoon, and we were sitting in the street outside a mosque, around fifty of us (the Mosque was already full). I had a friend visiting from the UK; it was his first time at a gathering in Morocco. He told me later that by the time Hajj Siddiq and Si Mustafa had finished, he was just staring at them, mouth gaping!

Mellila.mp3

Khalid

Hadra from Nador

2007-05-30T13:39:00.001Z

Hadra from the gathering at the Zawiya in Nador on the 29th of October 2006, to welcome Sheikh Sidi al-Buzidi back from 'Umra.

Nador Part One 29 10 2006.mp3

Nador Part Two.mp3

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi ad-Darqawi

2007-05-23T21:08:00.000Z

Letter One

One should just focus solely on performing one’s obligatory and highly stressed prayers and not go overboard on supererogatory acts. One should make sure one’s clothes are clean from dirt and filth. Make sure to shave one’s armpits and pubic area, and clip one’s nails. One must do his best to be sure or be at peace of mind that one has fully drained oneself of urine when relieving oneself. One should try one’s best not to get attached to the superficial and material matters. Cut yourself off from your caprices and mindless habits and don’t think it too farfetched or impossible to achieve either.

(Imam al-Busairi:)

‘The soul is the like of a child, if you leave it to its own devices it
Grows up attached to its suckling, and if you wean it, it is weaned.’

(Ibn ‘Ata Illah:)
‘Whoever sees it farfetched that God can deliver him from his passions and desires and take him out of his state of heedlessness, has belittled the might of God for God has power over all things.’

We believe that the obligatory acts are enough along with what we have mentioned. This assuredly is sufficient for one. Plenteous acts without performing what we have mentioned are not sufficient. In saying this, we still prefer one to perform just the obligatory and the highly stressed prayers, and God is the one who brings about success. Peace.

Idris

The Letters of Moulay al-'Arabi ad-Darqawi

2007-05-23T21:05:00.000Z

Letter Two

If you wish to traverse this path quickly and attain ultimate realisation, undertake to perform the obligatory and highly stressed supererogatory prayers, and learn what is fundamental of the exoteric sciences, because God is not worshiped except by means of them, but do not go to great depths in one’s studies of the exoteric sciences; rather what is required is that you go to great depths in the studies of the esoteric ones. Turn against your caprices and surely you will see wonders.

High moral character is the essence of Sufism, according to the folk of this discipline. It is the very core of the religion itself according to the people of religion, and may God strike me down if I should be lying! Flee always from the sensory for it is opposed to the spiritual realities; the esoteric and the spiritual realities do not mix. Every step you take closer to one is a step further from the other.

Listen to what occurred with our teacher, Sidi ‘Ali al-Jamal, may God be pleased with him, at the beginning of his affair when he sowed three measures of wheat. When he informed his teacher, Sidi al-‘Arabi bin Abdullah, of this he replied, ‘The more you absorb yourself in the sensory, the further you draw away from the spiritual realities and vice-versa.’

The issue is clear for once you catch the scent of the people: you won’t find even a sniff of the spiritual realties on them; all you smell is the odour of their own sweat since the sensory has a grip on them. It has taken hold of their hearts, limbs and all the benefit they might have had. All they do is busy themselves therein, addressing nothing else besides it. They are unable to free themselves of it, despite many others having been able to do before them. Those people immersed themselves in the spiritual realities through their turning away from the sensory throughout their lives, may God be pleased with them and let us benefit from their blessings Amen! Amen!

It is as if God has written that they should never have a portion of the spiritual realities even though every one of them has his portion deep within him just as the sea has waves. If they knew that to be so, they would not spend a moment of their time occupied in the sensory. If only they knew, they would find themselves oceans without shores, and God is witness to what I say. Peace.

Idris

Gathering at the Alawi Zawiya in Sale

2007-05-12T15:24:00.001Z

Gathering in the presence of Sheikh Sa'id al-'Alawi at the Zawiya in Sale, Morocco, on Thurday, the 10th of May, 2007

Sale 10th May Part One.mp3

Sale 10th May Part Two.mp3

Sale 10th May Part Three.mp3

Moulay Idris the Second

2007-05-09T18:12:00.000Z

Idris the Second was born on Monday the 13th of Rajab or the third 175/791 or 177/792. It was said that he was born with the declaration of faith and ‘there is no strength or might except through God’ written between his shoulder blades. Raashid took him under his wing. He memorized the Quran by the age of 8. Raashid then taught him the sciences of Hadith, Islamic law, language, poetry, literature, horse riding, archery and other forms of the art of war. At the age of 11, he was ready to take up the responsibility of leadership. The Berbers pledged allegiance to him on Friday 7th Rabee’ al-Awwal 804/188; he addressed the people with a powerful speech calling them to God and His obedience. Raashid had been killed two years before Idris became leader. Berbers who had been paid off by Ibrahim al-Aghlab, the ruler of Tunisia at the time, killed him. They carried his head to Tunisia. Haroon Rasheed had appointed Ibrahim al-Aghlab over Tunisia in 184/800.

Idris was fair in complexion with a touch of rose to his skin with straight black hair. His nose was aquiline in shape and his eyebrows were set far apart. His had large beautiful eyes, which were black, and his figure was full with broad shoulders. His teeth were set apart and his hands were large. He was known later as ‘Fadl’.

People flocked from near and far to be in the presence of this new leader. Many Arabs came to live under his rule. He made the Arab migrants his courtiers and the Berbers became a little marginalized. ‘Umair b. Mus’ab al-Azdi was made his minister, Amir b. Muhammad b. Sa’eed al-Qaisi his judge, who had studied with Malik and Sufiyan al-Thauri, and Abdullah b. Malik al-Khazraji was made his secretary. ‘Umair b. Mus’ab brought the Muwatta of Imam Malik with him and Idris ordered the people to study it. He was heard to he said, “We have more right than anyone to this book and its study because Malik was from amongst the supporters of the Prophets family.” Before this, Morocco followed the school of al-Awzaa’i. He soon began to suspect that Ishaq b. Muhammad al-Awarbi had leanings towards Ibrahim al-Aghlab, so he had him killed in 192/810.

Walili soon became overcrowded. He felt the need to establish a city for himself and his notables. They went out to find a suitable place until they arrived at Mount Zalagh in 805/190. Here the air was good and its soil fertile.

He first tried to build houses and a surrounding wall on the mountainside, but floods came down at night and destroyed them, killing many and ruining the crops. He chose to build in another area close to the Sabu River where Sidi Harazim is today, but soon realised that it would be too hazardous there in the winter due to floods from Sabu. He returned to Walili.

Soon after, he sent ‘Umair to go out and look for a suitable place; he arrived in the valley of Sais. They prayed Dhuhr there and asked God to ease their affair. It was here that he discovered over 60 springs. On tasting the water, he found it to be sweet. He followed the springs until he arrived at Wad Fez. Between the two mountains there, he was captured by the lush area, which was covered in trees and filled with rivers and springs. This is where Fez is today. He found Berber tribes there who lived in tents made of hair. Some tribes were Zoroastrian in religion, some Jewish and some Christian. There were 2 main tribes: Zanata known also as Zawagha and Banu Yarghush. They were known to always fall into conflict amongst themselves. He went back to Idris to tell him of his find. Idris brought the tribes to Islam and bought the land from them for 6000 dirhams.

It is related in a weak tradition of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, related by Darras b. Ismail through Malik b. Anas and al-Zuhri to Sa’eed b. al-Musayyab to Abu Huraira:

“There will be a city in the west named Fez, whose people will be the most precise in their direction of prayer in the west and the most abundant in their prayer. Its people will be followers of my way (Ahl al-Sunna wa al-Jama’a) and upon the truth. They will hold tight to it undeterred by their opponents. God will not afflict them with anything they would detest up until the Day of Judgment.”

Fez was known for its sweet water, moderate air and fertile soil. It was surrounded by thick woods and gardens, which prevented any enemy from being able to make a feasible attack on the city. There were numerous springs and rivers that ran through the city. The water was warm in the winter and cool in the summer. It was said that the water of Fez is good for digestion, could cure gallstones and soften skin. It was even said that it could rid you of lice, increase your sexual appetite and remove stains from clothing without the need of soap.

There are different relations regarding the reason for the naming of Fez:

When Idris was planning the foundations, a 150 year old monk came to him and asked him what he was doing. Idris explained that he was planning to build a city here for himself and his children where God would be worshipped, His scripture recited and His laws upheld. The monk exclaimed, “I bear you good tidings. A monk who passed away 100 years ago and lived here in this monastery told me that he had found a manuscript; this manuscript explained that there was a city here before called Saf, which collapsed 1700 years ago and a man from the progeny of Prophet-hood called Idris would restore it. He will live a great life and God’s religion will prevail there until the end of time.” Idris decided to turn around the letters of the original city name and call it Fez.

When they were digging the foundations, they fell upon a pickaxe of gold and silver. Idris took it and completed the foundations with it.

Some say the name comes from the word horseman (‘faris’) in Arabic because of the horsemen or Iraq that had come to pledge allegiance to Idris. Then later on the word was shortened to Fez.

On a Thursday morning in Rabee’ al-Awwal 192/808, the foundations were built on the Andalusia bank in the Garwawa area. Before commencing the work, he lifted his hands and prayed for the city and its people:

“Oh God, You know that I do not intend in establishing this city any ostentation or pride; rather I want that You be worshipped, Your scripture recited, and that Your Law and the practice of Your prophet will be followed as long as it remains. Oh God grant its people the ability to follow good and aid them therein, and protect them from their enemies and any tribulation and trial and grant them their provision with ease.”

There was an area filled with trees near a spring called ‘Aloon. A black slave lived there who was ferocious and robbed any passerby. The area was also filled with wild boar and thick foliage. People only went through it in groups. When Idris heard about this man, he ordered his arrest. Horsemen went out in search of him. He was caught and taken to Idris who ordered him to be crucified and hung in ‘Aloon.

He started the walls from the ‘Aloon which is now the gate that leads to ‘Tarrafeen.’ He called it ‘Bab Ifriqia’. He built it up to the incline between ‘Ashshabeen’ and Bab al-Geesa where Sidi Bin Yahya is buried. It was called ‘Aqba Za’tar’ at the time. He built a gate there called ‘Bab Hisn Sa’doon’, which is in the ‘Haffareen’ quarters. Then he kept building to where the ‘Funduq al-Yahood’ is and ‘Baleeda’, where he built ‘Bab al-Faras’. Then he continued until he got to the river separating the banks and built ‘Bab al-Fasil’, which is ‘Bab al-Naqba’ today. Then he took the wall alongside the river up until were ‘Bab Silsila’ is today and built ‘Bab al-Faraj’. He continued along the riverbank up until where ‘Bab al-Hadid’ is now until he joined the wall with ‘Bab Ifriqia’. Other gates were also built around the Andalusian quarters. There was ‘Bab al-Fawara’ where ‘Bab Zaitoon’ (Bab al-Hamra) is, and he built along until the neighborhood of Sidi ‘Awad where another gate was built facing ‘Bab al-Faraj’. He then built a gate facing ‘Bab al-Fasil’ called ‘Bab al-Shaibuba’. He built another gate called ‘Bab Abu Sufiyan’ facing the North and then took the wall to Garwawa and built ‘Bab al-Kanisa’, which later fell in 546 and was rebuilt in 602 and named ‘Bab Khukha’. At that time, the lepers were located outside the gate there to avoid them contaminating the river as it was at the bottom of the river flow.

He built a mosque called al-Ashyakh where he prayed the Friday prayer. Later on he moved to the Qarawiyeen bank in an area called Maqramda and built al-Ashraf Mosque where he prayed the Friday prayer and built his house there, called al-Qaitoona. Later on the Friday prayer was moved to the Qarawiyeen. He then built a covered market space. He ordered people to build next to the market and said, “Whoever builds their house before the wall is completed it is his to keep.” Many Iraqi migrants came and settled in an area called ‘Ain. Soon Arab settlers moved from Qairawan in 210/825. There were some 300 families. More than 8000 families came from Andalusia in 202/818, who had fled after an attempted overthrow of al-Hakm in Cordoba. Idris had encouraged them to move to Fez. Many Jews came to settle from Cordoba, too. He put them in Bab Guisa.

The city was traditionally divided into two by a river and there is a bridge that connects them today called Bain al-Mudun.T

here are other sources that suggest Fez was built by his father in 172/788, and that Idris al-Azhar built the Qarawiyeen bank in 193/809.

In 197, Idris went out to fight renegade Kharajite Berber tribes and continued to do so in 199. Then he returned to Fez to take rest and in the same year headed for Tilimsan. He stayed there for three years. He wrote his name on the pulpit there just as his father had done. Then he fought on until he was able to wipe out any remaining trace of the Kharijite teachings in Morocco.

Al-Aghalib and the Abbasids were unable to move him. He passed away on the 12th of Jumada 213/828 at the age of 36. He died choking on a grape seed. Some say he was poisoned. He was buried in his mosque. Before, it was believed by some that he was buried next to his father until the left wall of the Qibla was being restored and they came across his untouched body in Fez in Rajab 841. He left 12 sons: Abdullah, Muhammad, Isa, Idris, Ahmed, Ja’far, Yahya, al-Qasim, ‘Umar, ‘Ali, Dawud, and Hamza. Kenza in accordance with an old Berber tradition divided up the country for her grandchildren. Each son had an area to rule under the authority of the eldest son Muhammad. Kenza is buried in Walili next to her husband, Moulay Idris 1st.

Ibn Zakari: “Let no-one doubt neither this man’s special station nor his closeness to God….There is consensus amongst the people of divine knowledge and understanding that he is from among the elite in the eyes of God just like his father.”

Mesnawi: “Our teacher ‘Abd al-Qadir al-Fessi, may God have mercy on his soul, would point to the fact that there was consensus among the people of deep understanding that Moulay Idris b. Idris was buried in Fez and was among those who God had given permission to act as he wishes in the creation…This man was one of the spiritual poles who acts as he wishes alive and dead in the material and angelic world.”

Ahmed Tijani: “If the people knew of the station of Moulay Idris they would sacrifice their children for him.”

It has been said that whoever visits him for forty days in a row praying Subh in congregation there in his mosque and then asks after the prayer to bring him and the Qutb together or asks for any need, God will grant him it.

Idris

Map of Bat Ftuh Cemetery, Fes

2007-05-08T21:34:00.000Z

This map shows the resting places of many of the scholars and saints buried in the cememtery at Bab Ftuh, Fes. It follows the path laid out by al-Kattani in Salwat al-Anfas

Moulay Idris the First

2007-05-08T21:17:00.000Z

It is related in a rigorously authenticated tradition that the Messenger of God (may God bless him and grant him peace) said, “This affair belongs to the Quraish as long as they uphold God’s law. No one will oppose them except that God will humiliate them.”

The four rightly guided Caliphs had passed away, and the matter of the Muslims went into confusion with the conflict between Ali and Mu’awiya. The position of the orthodox is that the Muslim community has a good opinion of both. We believe that both made a judgment seeking the truth, but Ali was in the right. Then Ali was murdered, and the people of Basra pledged allegiance to his son al-Hasan. Mu’awiya set out to Syria to confront al-Hasan’s supporters upon which al-Hasan saw it in the interest of the community, in order to prevent Muslim blood being spilt, that he stand down from competing for the Caliphate. All this was in accordance to al-Hasan’s grandfather’s prophecy, the Messenger of God (may God bless him and grant him peace), who declared that he would bring peace between two great parties from amongst the Muslims.

Mu’awiya held the Caliphate and it was past on to his son al-Yazid, who established the Umayyad dynasty after numerous conflicts with the family of the Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace).

The majority of the Muslim’s saw that the leadership of the community belonged to the Family of the Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace) for many reasons. They were from prophetic blood, thus having a rank over others and were upright and well versed in the laws of the religion. According to the orthodox position it was not necessary that the rule go to the family of the Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace), but it was most certainly preferable if they fitted the prerequisites for leadership.

From this time on the descendents of the Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace) rebelled against Umayyad rule, demanding their right to leadership.

There is no doubt that the greatest of creation is our Prophet and master Muhammad. Razi related that there is consensus on that.

He had three sons: al-Qasim, (who was born before prophet-hood), Abdullah (who died early whilst the Prophet was still in Mecca), and Ibrahim (who was born in Medina in the year 8 if the Islamic era and lived for eighteen months).

He had four daughters: The first was Zineb, then Umm Kalthum, Fatima and last was Ruqayya. All of them were born by Khadija. All of them accepted Islam and immigrated to Medina with their father. None of them left any children except for Fatima and she was the most virtuous of them. Fatima was the only one to outlive her father. The Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace said regarding her, “Oh my daughter, are you not content that you are the best of womankind?”

Those of divine knowledge regard her as one of the spiritual poles of this world. She never once had a menstrual cycle, so she not once missed a prayer. This is why she was called ‘al-Zahra’ (radiant). Another reason is that she was conceived as a result of the Prophet having eaten an apple from the gardens of Paradise. She was born five years before migration and was named Fatima by God himself. It is related in a prophetic tradition that she was called Fatima because God had distanced her and her children and whoever loves them from the hellfire. She was labeled ‘Batool’ because she cut herself off from the world for the sake of God and this trait passed onto her children.

God chose Ali for her as a husband. She bore al-Hasan, al-Hussein, Muhsin, Zainab and Umm Kalthum. Muhsin died in infancy. Umm Kalthum was married to Umar b. al-Khattab and they had two children together: Zaid and Ruqayya and they did not leave behind them any children. After Umar had passed away, Umm Kalthum married ‘Awn b. Ja’far. On his death, she married his brother Abdullah. She left no children behind her.

Zainab married Abdullah b. Ja’far. She bore him five: Ali, ‘Awn al-Akbar, Abbas, Muhammad and Umm Kalthum. After Abdullah died, she married Kabeer b. Abbas and she bore him no children. None of Zainab’s sons had children except for Ali. His progeny are considered from amongst the Prophet’s family. Descendants of the prophet are not necessarily just from Ali and Fatima. In fact, as long as they can trace their linage back to the sons of Hashim and they accepted Islam, they are considered ‘Sharif’ (descendant of the Prophet). Therefore his uncles Abbas and Hamza and their progeny are all descendants of the Prophet. However, the progeny of Hamza have all passed away. The progeny of Abu Talib’s children are considered from the family of the Prophet too. They are Ali, ‘Aqeel, and Ja’far. The progeny of al-Harith son’s Abu Sufyan and his brothers are considered so too, and the Muslim sons of Abu Lahb ‘Utba and Mu’tib.

Al-Hasan was born in Ramadan three years after the migration to Medina. He was said to be the closest in looks to the Prophet himself, may God bless him and grant him peace, from the head down to his chest the opposite to Hussein. He was well known for his patience, kindness and forgiving nature. It was said that he married over seven hundred women. When his father died, over four thousand pledged allegiances to him from Kufa. He remained the caliph over the Hijaz, Yemen and Khurasan for seven months. Then Mu’awiya set out to fight him. When the two armies met, Hasan looked at them both and said to himself, “Will these all fight one another over the rule of this world? I have no need of this.” He sent a messenger to Mu’awiya and pledged allegiance to him. When Hasan gave up rule of the Muslim community outwardly, God recompensed him with rule over them inwardly. It is said by many that all of the spiritual poles of the times are from his progeny. Abu al-Abbas al-Murci said that he was the first of the spiritual poles of this community.

He was poisoned by one of his family under the instruction of Yazeed in the year 49. He left 11 sons behind him. Only three left children behind them: Hasan, Zaid and Umar. Umar has one son called Muhammad who was a great scholar but he did not leave any children behind.

Hasan al-Muthanna was one of the greatest of the generation after the Companions of the Prophet. He related many prophetic traditions. He passed away in the year 97. He left behind him six sons. The greatest of his children was Abdullah al-Kamil. He was from the fourth generation and lived in Medina. He was asked to take up the Caliphate but refused.

It was not until Abdullah b. al-Hasan al-Muthanna b. al-Hasan al-Sibt b. Ali b. Ibi Talib’s six sons that there was a real constituted effort to reclaim the right to leadership. They were Muhammad, Idris, Yahya, Sulaiman, ‘Isa, Musa and Ibrahim. Umayyad rule was weakening. The family of the Prophet had been waiting for an opportunity to take their rightful place as leaders of the Muslim community. They saw this as the right time. In 131, they gathered in Medina to consult each other as to who should come forward to claim the right. Muhammad, who was labeled ‘the pure soul’ for his piety, was eventually chosen, and the other brothers pledged allegiance to him. Abu Ja’far al-Mansur, the future Abbasid Caliph, was present at the pledging of allegiance and supported Muhammad. However, al-Mansur went back on his oath when his family seized power. al-Saffah ascended the throne and the Muslim community was forced to pledge allegiance to him. al-Mansur then took the title after his brother’s death. Both Malik and Abu Hanifa openly stated that Muhammad had more right to the title and testified to his merit. This led to both imams suffering great affliction for their political stance. Abu Hanifa subsequently withdrew from his judiciary duties.

Al-Mansur’s brother, al-Saffah was not bothered by the Hassanid uprisings, but al-Mansur was more concerned about their claims to leadership. It reached him that the family of the Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace) and their supporters set out to oppose him. He heard of support for them rising up in Khurasan. In 140, he had grown frustrated by his governors’ lack of heart in arresting the Hassinid members. Muhammad and his brothers were living a time of great adventure and danger. They secretly went around gathering support for their cause. No one would turn them over because people’s hearts were inclined to them. al-Mansur decided to kill two birds with one stone. He made the pilgrimage that year. He found some of the heads of the family, including their father Abdullah, but they refused to reveal the whereabouts of his sons. al-Mansour seized them and took them to Kufa with him where they were thrown into a foul dungeon, treated most brutally and left to die in prison. al-Mansur made the same move in 144. He seized still more of the Hassinid family and brought them back with him. However, Muhammad and his brother Ibrahim had escaped arrest. Ibrahim had already left for Basra and was calling people to his brother’s cause. ‘Isa went to Africa to collect support. Many Berbers were ready to support him. Yahya had been sent to Khurasan. He was to continue the struggle after his brother’s death. Harun Rashid sent forces to extinguish the rebellion there, which later led to a truce. Yahya was convinced to return after Harun Rashid made an oath not to touch him. He was later poisoned and died.

In 144, al-Mansur finally found a man true to his heart in Riyah b. Uthman. He appointed him governor of Medina and he feverously continued the campaign to find Muhammad and his brothers.

Riyah was saved the trouble, though. In 145, Muhammad appeared in Medina and publicly denounced al-Mansur and called the people to pledge allegiance to him. Riyah was taken completely by surprise. Muhammad had the opposition to his call arrested, including Riyah. He refused to have any blood spilled, though. At the time, the people came to Malik to ask him what they should do as they had already pledged allegiance to the Abbasid Caliphate, but they had done so against their will. al-Mansur said they were bound to their pledge, defending his position with a fabricated prophetic tradition that he banned anyone from questioning. When asked about this tradition, Malik did not hesitate to announce its fabrication. The people rushed to pledge their allegiance to Muhammad. Malik was later flogged by al-Mansur for his actions. Malik kept to his house through out the uprising.

Al-Mansur was relieved to know that he finally knew Muhammad’s whereabouts. He sent a garrison of 4,000 men to reason with Muhammad. Muhammad built a trench around Medina just like at the ‘Battle of the Trench’. All the signs pointed to a re-enactment of the ‘Battle of the Trench’. He was advised to give up and flee Medina, but he considered this an insult to the sacred city. Some people in the city became dismayed and refused to fight on hearing the approach of al-Mansur’s troops. This did not perturb him, however. He drew out the sword of his grandfather, the Messenger of God, called the people to fight, and cried out the battle cry of Hussein when he was martyred. The art of single combat was revived and Muhammad killed over seventy men that day alone. However, the forces of al-Mansur easily passed the trench. They placed doors over it and moved into the city. Muhammad’s forces were weakened and he new the battle was lost. He pulled out of the battle and joined Dhuhr and ‘Asr and burned the record of those who had pled allegiance to him, so that their names would not be discovered. Then he proceeded to wash himself to prepare his body for burial. After, he went to the prisons where he had held those who had opposed him and killed them. Finally, he headed back into battle and was martyred at Ahjaar al-Zait. His head was decapitated from his body and carried to al-Mansur. His brother Ibrahim kept up the resistance in Basra but was later to fail as well. All this was prophesized by the Prophet, “A pure soul from my progeny will be killed at Ahjaar al-Zait.”

The brothers had opened their campaign far too early. They had also underestimated the hesitancy of a lot of the Muslim community. Musa, who was sent to Syria, was rejected; the people were afraid and wanted to see the result of the conflict in Medina before they made any allegiances to Muhammad. It was a time of political and social instability. People were not spiritually ready to support an uprising against the Abbasids.

Later there was another attempt to overthrow Abbasid power in 169/786 on the eighth of Dhu al-Hijja. The descendent of al-Husain Ali b. Hasan b. al-Husain b. al-Husain b. Ali b. Abi Talib called people to follow him. Idris and Sulaiman pledged allegiance to him. They fought a battle called ‘the Battle of the Trap (Fakhkh)’ 5 miles outside of Mecca, but were defeated. The survivors sneaked into the ranks of the pilgrims and escaped. They went into hiding, including his two brothers Idris and Sulaiman. After they had recovered from their wounds, Sulaiman fled to Sudan and Idris, accompanied by his freedman Raashid al-Awarbi (who was said to be a Berber from the valley of Zarhoun), moved onto to Egypt, heading for the Maghrib.

On their arrival to Egypt they hid themselves fearing danger. Wadih, the slave of Salih b. Mansour, was responsible for communications and export in Egypt. Wadih had affections for the efforts of the family of the Prophet. He found out their place of hiding, and advised them to leave immediately as Musa al-Hadi, the brother of Harun Rashid and who reined before him, was trying to track him down. Later, when Musa al-Hadi found out that he was allowed to get away, he had Wadih crucified and killed.

There is another relation that the two of them were walking the streets of Cairo whereupon they came across a beautiful building. The owner of the house came out and greeted them. He noticed that they were strangers. He asked where they were from and when they told him they were for Arabian Peninsula, he realized they must have fled from the Battle of the Trap and that they were Hasanids. He agreed to help them. He hid them in his house. It soon reached the governor of Cairo at this time, ‘Ali b. Sulaiman, that this man was hosting strangers in his house. He told the man to send these men to him because the Caliph has asked that all strangers be identified, as there are renegade Hasanids on the run. The governor told them to flee for he did not want the blood of the family of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, on his hands. He gave them three days to leave. The man of the house bought them steeds and gave them provision for the road. The man went with Idris on a more obscure path and told Raashid to take main road. Raashid went out with the merchants and the Wadih went with Idris until they met up later on. The man wished them well gave them more provisions and left back for Cairo.

Idris and Rashid moved on towards Qairawan. Throughout the journey, the two men exchanged clothing, so that people they passed would not suspect Idris to be anyone of importance and Raashid acted as if he was his superior. They moved onto Tilimsan and then moved on up to Tangiers and finally stopped in Walili, where they met Ishaq or Abd al-Majeed b. Muhammad b. Abd al-Hameed al-Awarbi (al-Awrabi) al-Mu’tazali in the month of Rabee’ al-Awwal 172.

The Ummayads ruled Spain at the time under the rule of Abd al-Rahman, but their rule did not extend to Morocco. They continued to rule Spain for 150 years, and the majority of the ruling class was Syrian. Berbers inhabited Morocco. ‘Uqba b. Nafi’ had reached Tangiers in 67/682, spreading Islam to the South of Morocco. The majority of them had converted en masse, but had been left to themselves and rebelled against any Abbasid attempts to control them. However, a lot of Morocco was still non-Muslim.

When Idris arrived in Zerhoun, there was a lot of political instability. Ishaq announced Idris’ presence to the tribes and the major tribes pledged allegiance to him on Friday the 4th of Ramadan. Idris assembled an army to combat the local rebel Berber tribes who were mostly Jewish and Christian. They were soon defeated and most of them converted to Islam. He took rest for a time and then headed out to conquer more of the surrounding tribes. They either became Muslim or were taken prisoner and some were killed. The battles stopped in 173/788 when Idris made a visit to Tilimsan. The people there pledged allegiance to him and a mosque was built. His name was carved into the pulpit there.

It soon reached Haroon Rasheed that Idris’ influence and popularity were spreading east. He feared that he would conquer the whole of Africa. He sent a cunning assassin named Shumakh b. Sulaiman b. Jarir to take care of him. Haroon Rasheed had promised him great riches if he could carry out this task. Shumakh was sent to Ibrahim b. al-Aghlab in Tunisia where he was allowed protected passage into Morocco. Shumakh entered the court of Idris acting as if he had fled from Arabia. Any Arab that came fleeing from the Abbasids was protected and honored by Idris at the time. Idris found Shumakh to be well educated and eloquent. Shumakh would compose magnificent poetry in praise of the Prophet’s family whilst calling the Berbers to Idris’ cause. Idris was so impressed with him that he made him one of his closest men. However, Raashid did not trust Shumakh. He was very careful not to leave Shumakh alone with Idris.

One day Raashid was held up somewhere. Shumack took his opportunity. He presented Idris with a gift of perfume. “This is a bottle of the finest perfume that I have with me, but I see that you are more deserving of it than I.” Idris thanked him and opened the bottle. He took one sniff and he fell to the ground. It was a deadly poison. Shumakh moved quickly to the stables and took his horse that he had been preparing for his escape. He mounted him and rushed back east. When Raashid came back, he found his master on the floor. He bent down and placed Idris’ head on his lap. Idris was opening his mouth to tell him something, but he could not speak. He stayed in this state until the afternoon and finally passed away. Raashid soon heard of Shumakh’s presence on the road east. Rashid set out to catch him with a band of Berbers. He soon caught up with him and was able to injure him, but Shumakh managed to escape and reach Baghdad. It was said he returned to Baghdad with one of his hands paralyzed.

Idris died in Rabee’ al-Thani 175/790 or 177/793; he left behind a Berber slave girl, Kenza, 7 months pregnant with his heir. Raashid prepared the body of his companion and buried him in the gravesite where the Berber leaders were buried. Raashid advised they wait to see if Kenza would bear a boy. “If it is a boy, we will raise him to the best of our ability until he reaches the age of manhood. Then we will bear allegiance to him out of respect for the progeny of the Messenger of God, and if it is a girl, then look amongst yourselves for a leader.” The Berber chiefs agreed and placed Raashid as temporary leader. The child was born three months after Idris’ death.

Idris

Surat Maryam

2007-05-02T18:34:00.001Z

A beautiful recitation of part of Surat Maryam, from the Mawlid celebrations in Nador, 2007

Nabil - Surat Maryam.mp3

Muhammad Istafak al-Bari

2007-05-02T17:29:00.001Z

Sheikh al-Alawi's Qasida, performed by the Fuqara of Nador and Melilla, at the Mawlid celebrations in Nador, 2007

Muhammad Istafak al-Bari.mp3

Sīdī Būzīdī Bujrāfī (1925-)

2007-04-28T17:11:00.001Z

His name is al-Yazīd Bujrāfī. He was born in Banī Shikār in 1925. He memorised the Quran under the guidance of his father, who himself had memorised it by heart, was adept in the sciences of Islamic Law and led the prayer in a number of different mosques in the Reef region. His father had taken the spiritual path directly from Shaykh al-‘Alawī. At the age of 19, in the year 1943, accompanied by his father, Sīdī Bin ‘Isā, a muqaddam (representative) of the order, took al-Būzīdī to visit Muhammādī Bil-Hājj. It was from Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj that he took the litany of the ‘Alawī order.

One day, he went with a fellow disciple to visit Sīdī Muhammādī with the intention of invoking the Divine Name. After completing the discipline, Muhammādī told them both to continue their spiritual training with Moulay Sulaimān.

Moulay Sulaimān was overjoyed with his new student. One day, in 1944, in front of all his disciples, he announced, “Bear witness, my Brethren, that today this man has become my son, so venerate him.”

On another occasion, his teacher, Moulay Sulaimān, announced to his disciples that he was changing his student’s name to al-Būzīdī and told them from this day onwards not to address him as al- Yazīd. The reason he chose al-Būzīdī was because Moulay al-‘Arabī al-Darqāwī had a disciple called al-Būzīdī al-Ghumārī, and he was the one who inherited his teachings as stated by Moulay al-‘Arabi himself. Shaykh al-‘Alawī’s teacher was also called Hamū al- Būzīdī; not to mention that changing one’s name for a better has its origins in the Prophetic tradition.

From then on, he served the zāwiya in both body and spirit. He never left his teacher’s side. Moulay Sulaimān appointed him to lead the people in prayer and lead the gatherings, too. He was gifted with such a strong memory that he was able to memorise all the poems of his teacher, which totalled 214. He would memorise them and then choose a melody for each one. He was well-known for his beautiful voice.

On one occasion, Moulay Sulaimān said to Sīdī al-Būzīdī, “Strive and work hard for after 8 days Sīdī Muhammādī will pass away, and we will be establishing a new order.” And it happened just as he had predicted. The news came of Sīdī Muhammādī’s death in 1946. All of his students without exception pledged allegiance to Moulay Sulaimān. One night al-Būzīdī dreamt that his teacher said to him, “Rise and strive and I will marry you (into my family) outwardly and inwardly."

And it happened just so, for in 1947, Moulay Sulaimān married him to his daughter. Moulay Sulaimān took care of the dowry, as al-Būzīdī was much too poor to do so.

He initially worked in the army where he had a great influence on his colleagues. He was able, by the grace of God, to bring great numbers of them into the Order. They would even hold dhikr gatherings in the trenches.

In 1953, he left the army and focussed all his efforts on serving his teacher and the zāwiya after taking his permission. He spent the next two years without work but later worked as a guard for one of the companies in Isutulasi, Nādūr where his teacher’s zāwiya was. Even in his second line of work he was able to bring over fifty of the workers to the zāwiya and they entered the Order.

Now the number of disciples was too much for the size of the zāwiya, so al-Būzīdī decided that they should work on adding an extension to the building. He went around encouraging people to give donations and support for the project. He was able to get the support of a group of Spanish architects who installed water and electricity in the zāwiya. When the zāwiya was finally finished, a great gathering was held in celebration.

Moulay Sulaimān was now 80 years old and was unable to either walk or leave his house. Al-Būzīdī was now responsible for Moulay Sulaimān’s whole family. He would wait on his teacher’s wives and children as well as the affairs of the zāwiya itself, such as organising any events or travels with the brethren.

When Moulay felt his time was drawing close, he gathered his closest disciples and told them, “I will relate to you all what Moulay al-‘Arabi said in his letter wherein he spoke regarding his student al-Būzīdī, ‘No-one has served me like al-Būzīdī, and no-one has supported me financially like he has, and no-one has worked as tirelessly as he. It is my will that within this zāwiya, he shall be the one to lead the people in prayer and be the imam of the brethren. However, Moulay Sulaimān knew that envious eyes were watching al-Būzīdī. He told him, “If they leave the zāwiya to you, then you are its imam. If not, then depart and take your children and wife with you. Wherever you go you will find success.” He also asked him to take his own wife with him and his two sons Sīdī ‘Abd al-‘Azīz and Sīdī Muhammad.

In 1970, at the age of 103, Moulay Sulaimān passed on. Sīdī al-Būzīdī was to remain in the zāwiya for the next two years. Then the tribulations began, so he left, following the instruction of his teacher and established his zāwiya at Zaghanghan. The vast majority of Moulay Sulaimān’s disciples followed Sīdī al-Būzīdī, too.
It has now been 35 years since he assumed the mantle of the order.

Idris

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Moulay Sulaiman

2007-04-28T17:10:00.002Z

His lineage:

Sulaiman b. al-Mahdi b. al-Yazid b. Muhammad b. Umar b. Muhammad b. al-‘Abbas b. Abu al-Qasim b. Muhammad b. ‘Ali b. Musa b. ‘Isa b. ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Wughiri b. Ya‘la b. ‘Abd al-‘Ali b. Ahmad b. Muhammad b. A‘mar b. Sulaiman b. Muhammad b. Moulay Idris II b. Moulay Idris I b. ‘Abdullah al-Kamil b. al-Hasan al-Muthanna b. al-Hasan b. Ali.

His father, Moulay al-Mahdi, was originally from the tribe of Qal‘iyya, Nadur. He was a fine horseman and was highly respected by all the people of the region in the Reef. When there were disputes or conflicts between tribes, he was the intermediary who solved them and reunited the parties. He had a huge influence amongst the people. If he spoke the people fell silent and if he ordered them they followed. His house was open to anyone. People would come from far and wide to ask him for his prayers and he would feed and honour them. Later, he moved to the region of al-Lahyaina just outside of Fez. There he married and settled for some time. He was gifted with two sons whilst resident there; Hashim and Sulaiman. However, after some time, he was forced to leave his sons with their maternal uncles and return to Nadur and was absent for many years. He only visited them once while he was resident in Nadur. When Sulaiman was twenty years of age, his father sent him a letter calling him to attend in Nadur. There his father married Sulaiman to the wife of his brother, al-Hasan, who had recently passed away. Sulaiman returned to his homeland al-Lahyaina accompanied with his new wife.

When he was around twenty eight years of age, in the year 1315, he travelled with some local fuqara to visit the Sheikh of the Darqawi Order in Bu Bareeh, Sheikh ‘Abd al-Rahman, who was the grandson of Moulay al-‘Arabi al-Darqawi. He was the youngest of the travellers, but when he arrived at the Sheikh’s home, the Sheikh cried, ‘Welcome, my beloved! Welcome, my beloved!’ He sat him at his side and he was given the litany of the order.

Soon after joining the Darqawi Order, he travelled to visit his father in Nadur. He resided there and took his new spiritual allegiance with great sincerity and seriousness, becoming completely engrossed in worship and invocation of God. He loved to visit the brethren of the order and he made his house a place of invocation for the brothers whenever they wished to visit. Wherever he moved, he would bring the brethren together for remembrance of God. He had memorised vast numbers of spiritual odes and poetry and would recite them in the gatherings with power and passion. He would never tire of invoking God and singing His praise. When he went out on his travels, he would always be accompanied by the fuqara and from the moment they left their homes their tongues would not cease from invoking their Lord. At times, they would stay up the whole night until the dawn prayer invoking or in spiritual discussion. He loved to read the books of the previous spiritual masters such as the letters of Moulay al-‘Arabi al-Darqawi. He would read them out to the fuqara out loud and contemplate over the meanings and express them to his audience. He frequented the scholars of the region and would always inquire about the matters of his religion and act upon what he had learnt. He visited his Sheikh 25 times in his life. When setting off to visit, he would gather the fuqara and travel in groups on foot from Nadur to Bani Zarwal, singing out odes on the road ahead. They would rest from village to village until they arrived at the zawiya of the sheikh. His sheikh always sang his praises. He used to call him the ‘stallion of the order’.

One day he was sitting by the side of Moulay ‘Abd al-Rahman in a gathering with the fuqara when the sheikh put his hand on Moulay Sulaiman’s back. He called out, ‘This is the stallion of this order. Everyone repeat after me ‘by God, this is the stallion of the order,’ so they repeated the words of their sheikh. One day he was with his sheikh and he said to him, ‘This order holds direct knowledge of God and I want a portion of that knowledge.’ The sheikh replied to him, ‘Invoke God until the knowledge comes to you.’ From those words, Moulay Sulaiman knew that the future would hold great things for him. He was highly respected in the order and all the brethren loved him and honoured him. When they were in the gatherings, he would never mention a word related to worldly affairs. He detested hearing the brethren talk about matters that did not concern them. He remained like this until his sheikh passed away. He served his sheikh for 35 years.

After the death of Moulay ‘Abd al-Rahman, Moulay Sulaiman travelled to take from Sheikh al-‘Alawī. He came to know of Sheikh al-‘Alawī through his friend Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj. He had met Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj in a gathering with the fuqara. Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj had related Sheikh al-‘Alawī’s qualities and teachings and given him a copy of the sheikh’s poetry. On reading it, he became engrossed in its meanings until he lost consciousness. He was carried to his bed without even being aware of his surroundings. When he came to, he found himself drawn towards meeting the Sheikh. He became perplexed what he should do. Every time he thought about visiting him, his mind would play with him. Half of him wanted to visit and the other half would put doubts in his mind.

Whilst in this dilemma, he dreamt one night that his sheikh Moulay ‘Abd al-Rahman visited him, saying, ‘Give me my letter that you have.’ Moulay Sulaiman took out the letter and gave it to him. The sheikh then signed it with his signature and returned it to him. When he awoke he interpreted that it meant he had permission to visit Sheikh al-‘Alawī and join his order. He set off towards Mostaghanem with a friend, but before going into Algeria, he consulted Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj. He was in prison at the time in Melilia. He found Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj with a group of fuqara. On seeing Moulay Sulaiman, Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj rose from the gathering beaming with happiness. Moulay Sulaiman informed him that he wished to visit Sheikh al-‘Alawī to join the order. Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj was overjoyed on hearing this. He rushed to get a pen and ink to write a letter that Moulay Sulaiman will take with him. He insisted that Moulay Sulaiman give the letter to Sheikh al-‘Alawī personally. Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj escorted them out of the prison and on departing embraced Moulay Sulaiman out of his love for him.

The two companions then headed for Mostaghanem. On arriving at the zawiya they found Sheikh al-‘Alawī sitting with a group of his fuqara and scholars. He went to greet him and handed him the letter. The sheikh was overjoyed on reading the letter. Once he had read it, he fixed his gaze on Moulay Sulaiman for a time, and then spoke, ‘From what I have read, Sheikh Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj praises you highly and asks me to take good care of you, so order your beloved friends.’ Moulay Sulaiman replied, ‘Sir, your order requires a dowry, and we are desolate. We have nothing to give you in way of a dowry. Sheikh al-‘Alawī answered with a Quranic verse: ‘Verily charity is for the poor and impoverished.’ Moulay Sulaiman said, ‘We have come to take direct knowledge of God from you but which is accompanied with safety.’ On hearing these words, Sheikh al-‘Alawī rose his hands in prayer for Moulay Sulaiman along with everyone else present, saying, ‘May God raise the veils from our Brethren.’ From this visit on, Moulay Sulaiman felt a spiritual change in his life. He first met Sheikh al-‘Alawī in 1350 at the age of 63. Moulay Sulaiman continually visited Sheikh al-‘Alawī and strived spiritually and physically for the sake of the order.

Once Sheikh al-‘Alawī had passed away, he took his instruction from Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj. He would attend the gatherings in the zawiya of Bani ‘All and Melilia. They would hold long conversations between themselves which would at times go on until dawn. They spoke of the spiritual realities and the science of spiritual allusions. They never liked to part from one another’s company. Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj said to him one time, ‘I desire the company of he who I can exchange with in understanding of divine realties. If I find one, I wish never to leave his company.’ Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj would come from Melilia on frequent occasions to visit Moulay Sulaiman in Nadur, so they could discuss these subjects which are the very core of Sufism. Moulay Sulaiman would ask Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj permission to go out and visit the fuqara to teach them and visit the neighbouring towns to spread the Order. Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj thanked him for carrying this burden off his shoulders on numerous occasions.

When Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj passed away, the overwhelming majority of the fuqara came to pledge allegiance to Moulay Sulaiman. Many more entered the order through his efforts until the regions alongside Nadur brimmed with his followers. He often went out to visit the regions with members of the fuqara and reciters of Quran. Once they had arrived at their destination, he told members of the fuqara to sing out loud the ‘Testification of Faith’ with their beautiful voices. When they came to the door of their host, all the fuqara would sing out aloud in one voice an ode of the order. If the tie of prayer had come they would pray the obligatory prayer first and if not they would proceed with the Hadra. Moulay Sulaiman would lead the singing of the Hadra with his sweet but powerful voice. Once the time of prayer had arrived, they would all fall quiet and he would order someone to perform the call the prayer from the door of the house. Then he would lead the prayer or ask one of the fuqara to do so. Once they had finished the prayer, they would read Sura al-Waqiya, the Latifiyya of Sheikh al-‘Alawī and invoke God’s name ‘Ya Lateef’ 129 times. Then they would proceed with the singing of the odes of the order and finally stand for the Hadra. Once the host had given them permission to leave they would leave the house as the entered, reciting the odes of the order. He lived out his life in this way from beginning to end.

He never used to laugh out loud but always had a smile on his face, and was always full of advice for the brethren. If wealth ever came to him he would spend it on the brethren. He was never harsh but treated the brethren softly and with wisdom. If anyone did something unbecoming in his company, he corrected him gently. The most important thing for him was the performance of prayer. He would make sure he himself and the people around him performed it in its time. If the time came to pray, he would go to the middle of the house and call out to his family to pray, ‘It’s time to pray.’ If he noticed any of his children become lax wit their prayers he would become extremely angry. Whoever came to visit, he would remind them not to neglect their prayers. He would say, ‘whoever squanders his prayer is not one of us nor are we one of them.’ He also advised his companions to constantly invoke God and send blessings on His prophet. He would say, ‘If you send blessings on the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, or hear about his noble qualities, envision him in your minds, so that your veneration and love for him increases. If you do so you will certainly see him by the grace of God.’ He always reminded the fuqara of the closeness of death and that they should prepare for the next world. He constantly reminded them to know the basics of their worship and to ask if they did not know. He said, ‘Ask about matter pertaining to your obligatory and recommended acts of worship and be sure of them because God is not worshipped with ignorance, but rather by knowledge and understanding.’ He loved to discuss matters related to spiritual allusion and inner divine realities. He would say, ‘Whoever does not understand these discussions or does not find out he has no existence in the eyes of the spiritual masters.’ Moulay Sulaiman has many poems related to the spiritual path as well as aphorisms and profound words. He composed around 240 poems related to the unity of God, spiritual allusion, inner divine realities, and praise of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace. He used to say, ‘whoever contemplates these poems and really strives to understand them, then lets himself float deep into their meanings, he will achieve spiritual enlightenment soon enough because they suffice one from invoking the Divine Name in spiritual retreat.

If some people came with the intention of refuting him in a gathering, he would remain silent and not speak; he would not even answer them. If reciters of Quran attended he would honour them and respect them and order his followers to do so, too. If he was given a gift he would give it over to them. Every time his ablutions were broken, he would remake them instantly whether it were in the night or day. He often granted his followers permission to recite the Divine Name in addition to the general litany of the path. Great numbers achieved divine enlightenment through his teachings and directions or merely by a glance of approval. He always encouraged the fuqara to never tire of invoking God. He would say invoke until it flows from your tongues and your hearts gain solace through it. Heedlessness is the worst of calamities. If one becomes heedless, Satan takes a grip on one’s heart.

Some of His Sayings

‘Heedlessness is the worst of all calamities. If one becomes heedless, Satan takes a grip on one’s heart.’

‘Gathering with the brethren for the sake of God is a mercy and wandering from their presence is torment.’

‘If the aspirant invokes God, harm flees and if he becomes heedless of invoking God it returns.’

‘If the brethren come together, then they are glorified and full of force, and if they separate they become humiliated and base.’

‘If one sticks to the brethren, he will achieve spiritual enlightenment from his Lord, and if he dallies off from the group, Satan will take hold of him and play with him amongst his colleagues.’

‘I highly detest he who is silent whilst his brethren are discussing with him matters of the spiritual path. The one who engages in conversation of matters of the spiritual path is like running water and the one who does not is like a stagnant pool.’

‘Discuss the matters of the spiritual path as long as you live, for it is the very spirit of the order, and the order without it is like a body without soul.’

‘Bring to your consciousness love and contemplation. One who loves is like one who soars high in the sky and one does not it is like one who travels with his feet on the ground. Love will bring you much closer than acts ever will.’

‘He who has only love for worldly matters will not produce anything. If worldly matters take a grip of him, they will rule over his heart and limbs. If they do so, he has passed on as those who went before with his and our recompense in wait in the next life.’

‘Oh Lord, we have neglected and squandered your rights, so please grant us your grace and mercy, Oh Most-Merciful, Lord of the worlds.’

‘Invocation of God is a fire that burns away wrongdoings, refines one’s character, replaces blame worthy traits with praiseworthy ones.’

‘Whoever does not find himself in increase, is in decrease and whoever finds himself so, then death is more fitting for him.’

‘Who venerates the brethren gains provision from them and is indeed victorious and whoever belittles them, his own self will debase him and will reap only loss.’
He was frequently known to weep. If he wept he would wipe the tears into his face and say, ‘these are the tears of love.’ He liked to keep himself unknown and did not try to make himself known amongst the people or raise himself up. Anyone that came to him constricted or plagued by worries would get up from sitting with him relieved and joyful. He was constantly concerned with the affairs of the Muslim community. He would rejoice at their rejoicing and become saddened at their situation and what afflicted them. If he was informed of tragic event that had occurred for the community he would pray for them and order the brethren to read the litany of ‘Ya Lateef’. If he heard of anyone’s death, be it man or woman, he would order them to invoke the ‘Basmala’ 11, 000 times for them, splitting the number up between the brethren and he would pray that God has mercy on them and forgives them.

One day he was sitting under a tree when all of a sudden a man approached him. The man was tall in stature with a rosy face. He was wearing was ornately designed and of many colours. When I managed to get a good look at him, he looked back and I fell into a faint. When I came to, I found no one there. When I began to think who he could have been, a notion came to me that this must have been al-Khadir (al-Khidr), peace be upon him.’

Near the end of his life, his body became extremely frail and had lost all his strength. One day he went to make his ablutions and he fell breaking his left leg. From then on he was bedridden. The brethren used to carry him and his bed on their shoulders out with them. They could not bear to be apart from him in the gatherings. They would delight in seeing the light in his face. Just to stare in his face would increase their state and lift their spirits. Despite his weakened state he would order to be taken out to travel or visit the brethren.

After he had reached 100, he would spend the whole day without food because of his weakened state. When he felt his time draw near, which was eight days before his death, he called his grandson Sidi al-‘Arabi al-Waryashi, and dictated to him how he wished his will to be. From amongst the things he stipulated in his will was that he be buried in the zawiya, and that Sidi Buzidi remain the imam of the zawiya, that he lead the people in prayer, and that he remain to take care of the its affairs. He died Thursday 17th if Shawwal 1390 17th December 1970 at the age of 103, may God be pleased with him and grant him His mercy.

Idris

Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj

2007-04-28T17:10:00.001Z

His father was from the tribe of Banī Sa‘īd but moved later on to the tribe of Banī Shikār. His father was a follower of the Qādirī order. He was highly respected by the heads of this order in the zāwiya of Wark. The followers would come and visit him in his home and he would host them and show them great generosity. He was made a representative (muqaddam) of the order and they married him. He had many children and one of them was Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj.

When Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj was seven years of age, his father entered him into a Quranic School to memorise the book of God. He memorised the Quran very quickly, but soon after, his father died and he was left an orphan along with his other siblings. One day, he felt the urge to travel to perform his duty of the pilgrimage across land, so he headed off to Algeria. However, he soon ran out of provisions and he was forced to move from mosque to mosque, offering his services in teaching the children or leading the people in prayer. One day, a disciple of the ‘Alawī Order, who had come from Mostāghanem, came to visit the mosque he was frequenting. The man spent the night with Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj relating to him the qualities of Shaykh al-‘Alawī and his methods of teaching. His words struck a chord within Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj so much that he asked the man to take him to visit the sheikh as soon as possible.

When they arrived at the door of the zāwiya in Mostāghanem, the disciple sung out at the top of his voice the words, ‘There is no deity worthy of worship besides God.’ The sheikh heard his voice and came out to greet him. The man introduced Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj to Shaykh al-‘Alawī and he kissed the sheikh’s hand. It was now time for the prayer, so the sheikh invited him to call the people to prayer. Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj had a very powerful but sweet voice. After the prayer, the sheikh gave him the litanies of the order. He then immediately entered him into khalwa, and he quickly achieved results. The sheikh ordered him to stay at his side so as to be of service to him. He would teach the children the Quran and at other times watch over the cattle.

Later on, he was sent with a representative (muqaddam) of the order to the region of Zawāwā to gather donations and gifts for the mother zāwiyah to be built in Mostaghānem. Their presence was immediately felt and people came from all around to donate and listen to their teachings. Many people entered the order through their efforts. However, the local authorities became suspicious of their activities, so they were imprisoned and held for three months. After his release, Shaykh al-‘Alawī used his services again in the zāwiya. Then after some time he told him to head back to his homeland and gave him permission to spread the tea chings of the order there.

He initially arrived in Farkhāna where his sister lived, who was married to a man from the region named al-Hajj Hammū. He was appointed an imam in a mosque there. He soon moved to another mosque named Moulay Idrīs and there he called people to join the order. People would come in great numbers both men and women. It was at this time that one of his students, Sīdī ‘Allāl Zaryūh, married Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj to his niece, so he moved to the village of ‘Atītan where Sīdī ‘Allāl’s family lived. He would hold the dhikr gatherings in his house there, but later they moved them to his father’s house in Bāni Shikār.

More and more people were entering the order and the head of the Qādirī order grew jealous of his success and feared that their followers would leave them and enter into this new order. They had ties with the Spanish government at the time, so they were able to chase him out using physical force if necessary. He was forced to flee the region, so he headed to Mostaghānem to consult his sheikh what he should do. Sheikh al-‘Alawī told him to return, bear patience and be steadfast. He went back to the region teaching children Quran in local mosques. He continued to spread the teachings of the order, so his enemies came back to attack him. They complained to the Spanish authorities and spread lies about him, so that he was eventually arrested and imprisoned in the Taztūtin where he was held in the caves there deep under the land. There he found solace in his Lord. He would spend the night and day engrossed in invocation of God as witnessed by soldiers who were guarding him there. Later they moved him to Zāyu and finally to Melīlia. He remained imprisoned in Melīlia for the next seven years, but he was steadfast and faithful to his sheikh, in complete adoration for him. Throughout his time in prison he would not move unless he had consulted his sheikh.

This was how he obtained the contentment of his sheikh and thus his Lord. He gained the wisdom of his teacher due to his patience throughout his tribulation as expressed in the proverb, ‘It is through tribulation that a man is made noble or is humiliated.’ He strived on the path to God, giving up his soul for the sake of his Lord. There was no other disciple of Shaykh al-‘Alawī who had been tried like he had. He spent years far away from his family and children, who were but infants when he left them. He sacrificed all this out of love of God and in order to give victory to his teacher’s order. By doing so, he gave root to the ‘Alawī order in the Reef region despite the number of initial enemies there. The Spanish authorities throughout his time in prison promised him they would free him if only he would join another order, but he refused and told them to return him to his cell. Once they had seen his sincerity and how adamant he was to remain loyal to his teacher, the Spanish gave him certain dispensations whilst he was in prison. They allowed him to have visitors whenever they wished and the fuqarā were free to sit with him. They came from all over the region to learn from him or ask him to pray from them. He also granted some of the fuqarā the permission to recite the Divine Name with him within the walls of the prison.

On his arrival to Melīlia prison, he found his fellow inmates ignorant of God and heedless. They ridiculed him for occupying his time with meditation and worship. They told him he was wasting his time and to give up his worship and join them in playing cards and so forth. Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj saw his opportunity. He agreed to join them on condition that if they spend one day playing cards, the next day they sit with him and do as he does. On the first day, he humoured them by playing cards with them. The second day he called them to sit with him and recite after him the invocations he read. The days passed on until the inmates no longer wanted to play cards and everyday was a day of invoking God. He taught them the basics of their religion and gave them the litany of the order to recite. The prison now began to resonate with the sound of invocation of God and soon was embellished with the rites of Islam such as the call to prayer, the five prayers in congregation, gatherings of invoking God and the ‘hadra’.

This great man was the first to bring the ‘Alawī order to the Reef region and was fundamental in establishing it there. Whilst in prison, he would give out the litanies to followers, appoint representative for the order in the region and establish zāwiyahs there. The first zāwiyah he established was the zāwiya of Sheikh Sīdī Bil-Qāsim al-Sa‘īdi, who was an ancestor of the great Sīdī Muhammad bin Qaddūr al-Wukīlī. He established the zāwiyah while he was still in prison. At the time, he directed the representatives of the order secretly, fearing the Spanish authorities would catch wind of their activities. Many of his followers were imprisoned and tortured, too for their joining the order. However, they never submitted to the torture; in fact it only made them firmer and more faithful to their teacher Shaykh al-‘Alawī.

Throughout the time of tribulation and torture, Shaykh al-‘Alawī would constantly pray for Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj and his compatriots. Many people bore witness that Shaykh al-‘Alawī would single out the fuqarā of Reef for special praise. If any faqīr from the Reef came to visit Shaykh al-‘Alawī he would ask them about Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj inquire whether they had visited him or not. If they told him they had visited him or came bearing his greetings to the Sheikh he would bear them good tidings and warmly welcome them, telling them to hold nothing but love for this man and to be loyal to him, but if they told him they had not seen him or came with no news about him, he would turn his back on them and ignore them. On another occasion, he was sitting amongst members of the order and a group of scholars and at the end of his address he proclaimed, ‘This Sheikh, Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj, even if he were to claim his own order, then he has truly paid out its dowry in full.’ Another time during a talk he was giving before his followers, he said, ‘This sheikh, Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj from the Reef, is in prison because of this order of ours. When he is brought before the Spanish judge in court, he is asked to turn his back on the ‘Alawī order and take on another order and he can walk free. He replies to them, ‘Take me back to my cell.’ By God, if I were in his place, I would have thrown this rosary to the floor,’ and the Sheikh at that point threw his rosary to the floor. One time, Shaykh al-‘Alawī said, whilst hosting a group of fuqarā from the Reef, ‘Brethren, if any one of you is unable to visit me for any reason then he should visit Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj, for he is our hand in the Reef. These are but few of many testimonies of Shaykh al-‘Alawī regarding the station of Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj in the ‘Alawī order.

While Shaykh al-‘Alawī was in the east performing the pilgrimage, he met with some Moroccans who had positions of authority in the Reef region and were employed by the Spanish. He spoke to them regarding Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj’s predicament and he asked them to use their influence in order to get the Spanish to release him. When the Moroccans returned, they spoke to their superiors in Tetoun and managed to convince them to issue his immediate release. When Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj was released from prison, the fuqara came from all around the region to celebrate the event. The Spanish authorities called him to Nādūr and asked him to pardon them. They explained that they were given false information from his fellow Muslim brothers who were jealous of him. He forgave them and said he forgave those who plotted against him. They thanked him and told him that from now on that if anyone appeared carrying animosity for him and attempted to harm him, he could call them to court and he could take his full rights from them. He replied, ‘I have no enemy other than Satan himself.’

When he was released, the annual celebrations in Mostghānem had arrived. Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj headed off to Algeria with 500 fuqarā by his side. They went bearing many gifts for the zāwiya. When Shaykh al-‘Alawī saw them, he was taken back with such happiness and joy. He came out to greet them with the rest of the fuqarā of the zāwiya and hugged him. He was smothered by the fuqarā that day as they all pushed their way through to greet him. It was an unforgettable celebration that year was full of intense energy and love amongst the brethren. Once the celebrations had finished, Shaykh al-‘Alawī called Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj to visit him in his house, so that he could speak to him in confidence. When they were alone, Shaykh al-‘Alawī gathered all the financial gifts from the celebrations and passed them over to him. He told him to establish a zāwiya with the money in the Reef like that of the mother zāwiya in Mostaghānem. Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj did as his sheikh told him, building the zāwiya in Banī Shikār. He made it a centre for the fuqarā so that they could gather and call others to the path. When the structure was finished, they held a big celebration that lasted for three whole days. At the end of the celebrations, the fuqarā all prayed to God to grant Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj long life, this man, who by the grace of God, had established this fresh new order in the Reef and brought meaning back to the people’s lives there. Every Thursday night, around 200 fuqarā would gather to invoke God and rejoice in the blessings He had bestowed upon them. The regions of Banī Shikār and Farkhāna were changed dramatically by the fuqarā’s activities. At this time, it was rare to find a man or woman not invoking God. The people came from all around the region to receive teachings from Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj. The people there become known for their exceptional character and their abidance to Islamic character and attire. In their gatherings, no-one would raise their voices and would not speak about anything besides God. Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj had organised them and educated them. They were tireless in their worship. They would spend hours performing the Hadra. He would stand in the middle to inspire them. Once they finished, he would recite some verses of Quran that were appropriate for the ambience of the moment. Everyone would have their heads bowed in front of him humbled by the setting. Moulay Sulaiman would sit by his side in the gatherings. He would give the talk in the gatherings. His words had a great effect on the hearts of those present and he would repeat the same talk two or three times and clarify it for the fuqara.

Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj was very humble. He did not speak unless necessary. He would serve the fuqarā himself and prepare the beds for them at the time of the festival. When the fuqarā came to the zāwiya he would come out and greet them himself and then sit amongst them. He would never raise himself above them nor raise his voice over them. He would never get angry at those who mistreated him. He would teach them with compassion and a gentle nature. He would spend his own money on the fuqarā. When there was a festival, he would send out all the invitations to all the fuqarā himself. On numerous occasions he would go out and visit the fuqarā from around the region. Moulay Sulaiman would carry out this responsibility for him at most times, though. He would travel with the fuqarā to Tetoun, Tangiers, Qasr Kabir and Salé just to mention a few.

After Shaykh al-‘Alawī’s death, some of his followers who had bore jealousy and contempt for Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj plotted against him with the support of some notables in the region of Bāni Shikār. Their efforts failed, but Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj felt it was best to move from Bani ‘All and build a new zāwiya in Melilia. From then on he would hold his circles there. People came from far and wide and he entered many there into spiritual retreat and invocation of the Divine Name.

When his time had drawn near, he was of good health and had no illnesses or ailments. On that fateful day, he made his daily ablutions, walked out from his house but suddenly ran quickly back. He ordered the teacher of the children in the zāwiya to prepare his bed and he laid down facing the direction of prayer. There his soul left him. The news soon spread throughout the city. The fuqarā came straight away, and both men and women were struck with grief by the news. Moulay Sulaiman came with a group of fuqarā and sat by his head. He uncovered his face, kissed his forehead and bid him farewell for the last time. He died on Thursday the 13 of July 1946 and was buried on the Friday the day after.

Some of the Many Scholars who Bore Testimony that Sīdī Muhammādī Bil-Hājj was a Sheikh in the Alawi Order

Moulay Sulaiman
Sheikh Muhammad al-Madani (Major scholar in the ‘Alawi Order from Tunis)
Hajj Salih bin ‘Abd al‘Aziz al-Qadiri (First man to submit his full services and time to the Order in Mostaghanem)
Sheikh ‘Ali al-Budilmi (Major scholar in the ‘Alawi Order resident in Tilimsan)
Sheikh ‘Abu Madyan al-Bushishi from Barkan
Sheikh Muhammad bin Qaddor from Karkar (A descendent of Muhammad bin Qaddur)
Sheikh al-Mukhtar al-Ghumari from Chefchouni
Sheikh Ahmad al-Hassar from Tangiers
Sheikh Ahmed al-Malusi from Qasr Kabir
Sheikh Muhammad Bil-Hajj al-Sinhaji from Fez
Moulay al-Tahir al-Timasmani (The grandson of Sidi Muhammad bin Qaddur)

Idris

Fuqara of Fes

2007-04-11T19:06:00.000Z

The Fuqara of Fes do their thing at the Mawlid celebrations in Nador. Masha Allah, most of these singers are still teenagers. They do a bit of the Burda as well!

Fuqara of Fes.mp3

Aya Laimi Da'ni and other Qasidas

2007-04-11T18:31:00.000Z

From the Mawlid celebrations in Nador, Morocco

Aya Laimi Da'ni and others.mp3

Hadra

2007-04-11T18:15:00.000Z

Hadra from the Mawlid celebrations of the Alawi Darqawi Shadhili Tariqa in Nador, Morocco, with the presence of our Sheikh, Sidi al-Buzaydi.

Imara 1.mp3

Waqaftu fi 'l-Bab

2007-04-07T11:23:00.000Z

'Waqaftu fi 'l-Bab', a Qasida by Sheikh Muhammad ibn al-Habib al-Buzaydi, from the Zawiya Alawiya in Nador, Morocco, December 2006

http://khalidgarethwilliams.googlepages.com/WaqaftufilBab.mp3

Sheikh Abdullah Siraj al-Din

2007-04-04T21:22:00.000Z

Biography of the great Scholar of Halab, Sheikh Abdullah Siraj al-Din, whose book on the noble characteristics of the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) has just begun being translated.

http://www.marifah.net/articles/sirajuddin-hamoud.pdf

'Arrafani Mahbubi

2007-04-04T21:20:00.000Z

'Arrafani Mahbubi', a Qasida by Sheikh Ahmad al-'Alawi, from the Zawiya Alawiya in Oujda, Morocco, Autumn 2006

http://khalidgarethwilliams.googlepages.com/ArafaniMahbubi.mp3