LECTURE SERIES 01 THE BENEFITS OF ISTIGHFAR (Seeking forgiveness)

 

Honorable Shaykh Shah Hakeem Muhammad Akhtar

Under the supervision of Honorable Shaykh Shah Hakeem Muhammad Mazhar.

 

ENGLISH TRANSLATION NOTES

It is a great honor and blessing from Allah جل جلاله that we are able to translate this great booklet from the written collections and lectures of Honorable Shaykh Shah Hakeem Muhammad Akhtar.

 

The Following Guidelines Were Used For Translation:

 

To convey the actual meaning from Shaykh’s Urdu words into English, without adding a new meaning.

To add relevant references and authentic sources at appropriate places, from books of Hadith and narrations from Sahaabah

To use contemporary English as used in the western world, using simple words when possible.

Explanations were added for terminology and cultural expressions, to convey the essence of Shaykh’s advises to an average English reader.

We thank almighty Allah جل جلاله, the Lord of Honor and Power, who enabled us to work on this project.

DEDICATION

 

As per Honorable Shaykh Shah Hakeem Muhammad Akhtar, all his writings and compilations are collections of the benefits and blessings of the companionship of his spiritual mentors:

Honorable Shaykh Shah Abrar-ul-Haq Hardoi

Honorable Shaykh Shah Abdul Ghani Phoolpuri

Honorable Shaykh Shah Muhammad Ahmad Partabgarhi

 

THE BENEFITS OF ISTIGHFAR

(Ibn-e-Maaja, Al-Tirmidhi)

I have recited a Hadith from the Mishkah to you. Through the medium of Rasulullah, Allah has given His sinful servants a great gift and wonderful solution. If you commit sins and definitely you will, in fact, you will sin excessively, then the solution is excessive repentance. The fact that man sins excessively is substantiated in Hadith.

 

The Hadith mentions:

“Every man is an excessive sinner and the best of sinners are those
who repent excessively.” (Al-Tirmidhi)Al Imam Ali Qari has written that the word “Khatta” has been used and this word means ‘excessive sinner’. So, what is the cure for excessive sinning? The cure for excessive sinning is excessive repentance!

 

CONDITIONS FOR THE ACCEPTANCE OF TAUBAH

 

What are the conditions for the acceptance of Taubah (repentance) and when is it accepted? The Muhadditheen (experts on Hadith) have mentioned three conditions. Shaykh Muhi-ud-deen Abu Zakariyya Nawawi has written the three conditions in his commentary on the Hadith compilation “Al-Muslim”.

 

THE FIRST CONDITION

 

“He separates himself from that sin.”

Some people keep staring at women and while staring recite “La Hawla Wa Laa Quwata Illah Billah.” Then they say: Ya Shaykh!
“See how much nudity, indecency and neglect with regard to Hijab” He keeps on staring and simultaneously recites La Hawla… Such a La Hawla is reciting La Hawla upon the reciter!
Such an ISTIGHFAR requires ISTIGHFAR! (He is not true to himself; he keeps on staring and at the same time takes the name of Allah, he is fooling himself). So Taubah is accepted when a person distances himself from the particular sin.

THE SECOND CONDITION

“Truly regrets from his heart.”

Regret means to be grieved and be repentant from the heart. You are aware that when the Noble Sahaabah (companions of Rasulullah) perceived that Allah and His Rasul were displeased, the Quraan mentions their condition: (At-Taubah -118)

“The earth was straitened for them despite all its vastness. And even their own souls were straitened for them.”
This is among the etiquette and rights of love; the effect of the displeasure of the beloved is in proportion to the amount of love for that person. When a person commits a sin, then nothing is enjoyable to him; his wife and children, food and drink, his home and properties, the entire world becomes joyless for him and he becomes strained within himself until he performs two Rakaat of Salat-ut-Taubah, cries, repents and please Allah again.
To enjoy the favors and gifts of Allah while being disobedient to Him and sinning against Him is against all decency and nobility. There is a stanza on the etiquettes of love.

 

“I felt the whole world become ruined,
When I saw the behavior of beloved displeased.”

 

There was a poet who loved his wife dearly. When she became annoyed with him, he said in a poem: when I see her displeased, it seems to me that the pulse and beat of the entire world is becoming weak and feeble. He did not only think that his own pulse rate is becoming feeble, rather he felt that the pulse rate of the entire world is decreasing! This is love! So it is from the etiquettes of love that when the beloved is displeased then such a condition is experienced; everything becomes tasteless and joyless. The love of this poet is temporal and short-lived,
whereas the right of Allah over us cannot even be imagined. Allah is closer to us than our jugular veins, our existence is through His grace, and all our worldly and hereafter needs are linked to Him. Al Imam Sayyid Sulaiman Nadwi says that even if a lot of people in this world put a price on you and evaluate you; don’t fall for that and put that price on yourself, because a slave cannot evaluate another slave. The value of a slave is determined by the pleasure of the master. There is a stanza of Al Imam Sayyid Sulaiman Nadwi.

“Whether we reside in this life luxurious or troubled,
The important is the achievement of the Hereafter (eternity).”

 

If the entire world praises us, it means nothing, until and unless Allah on the Day of Judgment tells us that He is pleased with us. Here people may praise us excessively but what will be our  value there, this we will know on the Day of Judgment. Some people become fooled with the glitter and glamour of this  world, so I relate another stanza of

Al Imam Sayyid Sulaiman Nadwi in this regard:

 

“Why concern yourself with Comfort and grief of this short-term life Remain as a traveler in any condition”

 

SUPERFICIAL LUXURY AND COMFORTS

 

If a person is in (superficial) luxury, it does not mean that his heart is also at peace and in comfort.

Al Imam Jalal-ud-din Rumi says:

“The grave of a disbeliever may be decorated from outside,
But inside; punishment of Allah is taking place.”

If the grave of a disbeliever king is constructed with marble, allthe rulers of the world place garlands of flowers, there are musical bands playing their music and there is (a 21 gun) salute, the reality will be (as stated above); the punishment that is taking place inside the grave cannot be compensated with the marble-stone on the grave, with the lights outside and with the salute and greetings. Thus, if a person does not please Allah and even though he may be in an air-conditioned apartment, he may have wife and children, he may possess an enormous amount of wealth and he is constantly counting his notes and he has a huge bank balance, this is all superficial comfort. The external
comfort and beautification may not lead to internal comfort. The air-conditioner cools the skin but cannot douse the fire within the heart. Irrespective of how much the body is in superficial comfort, if Allah is displeased with that person, the heart will remain in punishment. A Shaykh says:

“When the heart was a garden, spring dripped from everything
When the heart became desolate, the whole world became desolate.”

 

THE SWEETNESS OF THE NAME OF ALLAH

A person is sitting in a Masjid on a broken straw mat but he is in bliss and ecstasy; he is taking the name of Allah with sincerity. He experiences so much pleasure in taking the name of Allah; it seems that all the pleasures of the universe have been capsulated and entered into his heart. Al Imam Jalal-ud-din Rumi says:

 

“When i take the name of Allah on my tongue,
Then every hair on my body converts into a river of honey.”

He elucidates further on this in Deewan Shams Tabraiz. This Deewan (compilation of poems) titled “Deewan Shams Tabraiz” was actually written by Al Imam Jalal-ud-din Rumi but he referred to his Shaykh (Spiritual mentor) Shams-ud-deen Tabraiz.

“O heart! Is this sugar sweeter or the creator of the sugar sweeter?”
“O heart! Is the moon more beautiful or the creator of the moon
more beautiful?”

If Allah does not create the juice and sweetness in the sugar cane, all the sugar cane will be sold at the price that normal sticks are sold at. No one will even bother about the sugar cane sticks (it will have no value).

SHAYKH SHAH WALIULLAH AND THE GEMS OF EMAN

When the Waliullah achieve that Divine love then this is the result: Shah Waliullah stood on the pulpit of the Grand Masjid in Delhi and addressed the Mogul rulers: “O Mogul Rulers! Waliullah Possesses A Heart In His chest And In That Heart Are The Gems Of The Love Of Allah.” Sometimes a small box is placed in a bigger box but value of the bigger box is estimated according to the value of the smaller box. If the bigger box contains pieces of cotton wool, rags and soiled napkins of children, then it has absolutely no value and will not be safeguarded. While if the bigger box contains a smaller box and this smaller box has a pearl of millions in it, there will be a guard appointed to protect it. Because of the small box and its contents, the bigger box will also be safeguarded. Similarly, if our hearts are filled with divine love, Eman (belief), Taqwa (piety) and such favors, then our external will also be protected.
Today we question that why are we being oppressed by our opposition? What is happening to us in other countries?
Why are Muslims all over the world being humiliated? The reason is that we only have the bigger box and this bigger box is much more adorned and beautified than in previous times. Our external is much more beautified compared to the Sahaabah, but our hearts are void of the precious pearls that they possessed within themselves. This is what we lack (in our lives) and what is that? It is the connection with Allah, love for Allah, fear and Taqwa. This is what Shah Waliullah is referring to in his poem:

“If some one’s heart possesses the precious gems of divine love,
Then nothing is more precious than that heart in the whole world.”

O Mogul rulers! Waliullah possesses a heart in his chest which contains the gem of the love of Allah, if there is anyone wealthier than me then let him come forward. This is the condition when a person possesses divine love; he is not even awed by the rulers!

THE PRICELESS TREASURE OF EMAN

Hafiz Sheerazi says:

“When hafiz becomes immersed with divine love then he does not
consider the kingdoms of kay kavus to have any value at all.”
(Kay Kavus: two powerful and wealthy kingdoms of Iran in those days).

When he experiences the wealth of divine love then he is not prepared to purchase those two kingdoms for even a barley seed. The ruler of Sanjar wrote to Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jeelani that he wished to donate the income of Nimroz for the Khanqah. The Shaykh responded:

“May my fate be blackened like the color of the umbrella of the ruler of  sanjar, if i have any inclination (greed) towards the kingdom of sanjar.”

 

I have no inclination towards your wealth especially after I have experienced and possessed the kingdom of the middle of the night spent in the remembrance of Allah and the joy of the Sajdah (Prostration) of Tahajjud. If a person experiences the joy of a single Sajdah, he too will want to for sake his kingdom just as Ibraheem ibn Adham had done. Usually while walking, etc. we recite SUBHANALLAH, but when in Sajdah we are instructed to recite “SUBHANA RABBIYAL AALA”. Sajdah is a position of extreme closeness to Allah; it is as if the person is making Sajdah on the feet of Ar-Rahman (Allah جل جلاله). Thus, in Sajdah this closeness is expressed by adding the letter ‘Ya’ to the word ‘Rab’. We are acknowledging that Allah is our Rab. “SUBHANA RABBIYAL AALA” means: Pure is my Rab, the Most High. Shaykh Abdul Qadir says:

 

“Since i have got the kingdom of the half night, I am not agreed to
buy the kingdom of Nimroz for even one grain of barley.”

 

Shaykh Shah Fazl-e-Rahman﷬ told Shaykh Ashraf Ali Thanwi: “Dear Ashraf Ali, “I experience such joy when
making Sajdah, it is as if Allah is embracing me and when I recite Quraan, Allah gives me so much pleasure that if you have to experience such pleasure, you will tear your clothes and flee to the jungle (in ecstasy). He then said: When the Hoories in Paradise will come to me then I will say to them: “O Hoor! If you want to listen to Quraan then stay here, otherwise move on.” From this, judge how we think and how the Ahlullah (Friends of Allah) think. There is a vast difference between our thoughts and theirs; they love the very Being of Allah!
A scholar who was employed by the municipality of Rampur came to Shah Fazl-e-Rahman and at that time he was engaged in teaching “Al Bukhari”. During the lesson when the scholar got a chance he said: “Respected Shaykh! The Nawab (honorific title) of Rampur said that if you come to his territory (Rampur) then he will present you with a contribution of a One Lac Rupees.” Shaykh became extremely grieved and said: “O my Brother, bury the Lakh Rupees, listen to what I am saying (teaching), it is more valuable.” Then he recited the following stanza:

“When we experience his mercy in our hearts,
Then we feel our heart full of treasures.”

 

When we experienced his blessings and mercy of Allah on our heart then we become independent from the territories and millions of rupees of the Nawab. Because when an elephantkeeper befriends someone and comes to visit him, he comes with the elephant, thus the entrance is renovated and broadened to accommodate the elephant. In the same manner, when Allah wishes to place His special luster and nearness into a heart, then Allah broadens that heart. Al Imam Jalal-ud-din Rumi says:

Whether a mosquito bite can agitate a them (Waliullah),
But spiritually they can bear the burden of seven skies.

 

This means that the external of a Waliullah (friend of Allah) can be so weak that when a mosquito bites him, he will be agitated and prance around, but his internal and spiritual self is so powerful that he can withstand the revolutions of the seven skies. Dr.Abdul Hayee says:

 

“Whenever he (Allah) passes by here (in my heart)
Then so many realms become apparent”

 

Friends! I was saying that there is so much sweetness and pleasure in the name of Allah that no tongue or language can adequately explain it. There was pious elder in Thana bhawan by the name of Tawakkul Shaah. He told Shaykh Thanwi: “Ya Shaykh, I experience so much pleasure when taking the name of Allah that my mouth becomes (literally) sweet. He then took an oath by saying I take an oath on Allah and again said that his mouth becomes sweet.”

 

THE METHOD OF RECEIVING THE SWEETNESS OF EMAN

 

Shaykh Muhi-ud-deen Abu Zakariyya Nawawi explains how to receive the sweetness of Eman. He says that every person who adopts the actions on which there is a promise of receiving the sweetness of Eman will experience it (sweetness of Eman). Examples: love for the friends of Allah, to save oneself from illicit gazes, etc. In other words, when a person adopts those actions on which there is a promise of receiving the sweetness of Eman, then by doing them it is granted. Some people also experience this sweetness literally; their mouths become sweet and this is a gift from Allah جل جلاله. He grants it to whomever He wishes but the sweetness in the heart is experienced by all of them. All of them immediately experience a special tranquility in the heart.

TRUE HAPPINESS AND CONTENTMENT

My friends! If you wish to live in peace then the concern that we have for our internal (spiritual) selves and to be connected with Allah should be much more than the concern for our external selves and ordinary comforts. Otherwise although staying in air conditioned apartments, our hearts will be aflame with worries and difficulties. Although a person may own millions of Riyals, the heart will be hammered and battered by worries and grief and he will remain uneasy. Thus, external and superficial comfort is not a precondition for internal peace. Al Imam Jalalud- deen Rumi﷬ says:

 

“The one who is delighted even on the straw of Masjid,
The other who is anxious and unfavorable even in garden”

 

This poem means that there is a person sitting on a simple straw mat in a Masjid but he is in ecstasy, happy and contented. While there is a person sitting in a garden surrounded by flowers but he is being pricked by the thorns of grief and is wretched. This person is crying although surrounded by flowers and beauty whereas the first person is laughing (happy). The first person will seem to be in an unhappy state but it is not so. Someone can say that this is bringing together two opposites (sadness and happiness) and this is impossible! How can a person be seen in a sad and pitiful state but still be happy? I say that look at the waterproof watches being manufactured by Switzerland. Place the watch in water; the watch is covered with water but not harming the watch at all! Why? Because it is waterproof! Allah also makes the hearts of those who love Him grief-proof! The heart that receives the mercy and special favors of Allah remains happy and tranquil although the person is surrounded  by thousands of concerns. The concerns become a means of his spiritual nurturing and reformation and for development of his Eman. So even if he is in tears (externally), inside he is content and at ease. As an example, his child is ill and he cries because of the ill child, but it does not affect his heart. What is the proof of this? The proof is a very spicy food. It is loaded with spices
and chilies; a person is eating it and because of the chilies, his eyes are watering (crying), but if someone tells him to leave the food because it is putting you in difficulty, it is making you cry, do not eat it, give it to me. What will his reply be? He will say that internally I am enjoying it tremendously; these tears are tears of joy and pleasure, and not tears of grief!

 

EFFECTS OF SIN AND DISOBEDIENCE

 

In the same manner, if you please Allah, refrain from sin and disobedience, because disobedience drives away the Mercy of Allah, every sin distances a person from Allah, it is the special feature of sin irrespective of how small; it distances one from Allah. While the special feature of a good action, irrespective of how insignificant it seems to be, draws one closer to Allah. Thus every sin irrespective of the size, consider it a poison and refrain, adopt the company of the pious and take the name of Allah then Allah will make your heart grief-proof. Such a person always remains content in this world and all types of grief remains outside his heart. When Allah places His special favors and Gaze of Mercy on someone and wants to keep him happy, then such a person is not affected and grieved by calamities and hardship. Al Imam Jalal-ud-deen Rumi says:

“If Allah decides to make a person happy
Then He Changes the actual grief into happiness”

To remove grief, people will bring forth the means of happiness, to remove fire they will bring forth water, but Allah can combine two opposites; He can turn fire into water and change actual grief into happiness and convert the chains on the legs and captivity into freedom. So when Sayyiduna Yusuf was thrown into prison, he said: (Surah Yusuf)

“My Lord, the prison is dearer to me”

O Allah, this imprisonment is in your path, I am going to prison for your sake, and where you are; the Creator of the gardens, that prison does not remain a prison, it is dearer to me! I usually explain this in the following manner: Allah is so beloved that if imprisonment in His path can be dearer, then imagine the gardens in His path!

Friends! If in protecting the gaze for His sake and if a thorn pricks because of leaving sin and the heart becomes grieved, then By Allah! If all the flowers salute that thorn, they will never be able to fulfill and express the greatness of that single thorn! If all the joys and happiness of the world salute the one grief experienced in the path of Allah, they will never fulfill the greatness of that single grief. How can they, this thorn is a thorn in the path of Allah; a grief in the path of Allah, do not even inquire regarding its value! The Prophets and Auliyaa (friends of Allah) understand its value; therefore they are always satisfied in all conditions. The reason is that they have pleased Allah so Allah always keeps them happy, anxiety and grief does not penetrate their hearts, but it remains outside. How can happiness and grief be combined (in a person) and how can a person be smiling while thorns are pricking? I have a stanza explaining this:

“The likeness of the smile of my grief stricken heart
Is to the bud that blooms although surrounded by thorns”

If the buds can receive this favor that they can bloom among thorns, then can’t Allah through His Grace and Benevolence keep the hearts of His special servants happy even though they are in apparent grief, because of their submission and obedience? My other couplet:

“Through the dagger of submission on this grief-stricken self
It is enjoying the bliss of martyrdom at every moment”

Every time I sacrifice my illicit pleasures for the sake of Allah, it is like I am being martyred by the dagger of submission, resulting in me experiencing the pleasure of martyrdom over and over. In whatever condition Allah keeps a person, it is the duty of the servant to accept and be pleased. Then Insha Allah through the blessings of this acceptance and submission, he will be contented in all conditions. I remember another couplet of mine:

“We got our life relaxed although the heart was tensed
Due to the mercy of His grief I remained delighted even in grief.”

 

Acceptance and being pleased with one’s fate are great qualities. Shaykh Ashraf Ali Thanwi asked my Shaykh Shah Abdul Ghani: “Which level is higher than Ikhlaas (sincerity)?” He replied: “I do not know”. Shaykh Thanwi then said: “Tasleem and Radha” (accepting the decree of your lord), to remain pleased with what Allah has decreed.” Great rewards are achieved through adopting Tasleem. Al Imam Sayyid Sulaiman Nadwi﷬ said:

 

“If I receive the treasure of your pangs of love
Then I will receive freedom from the grief of both worlds”

 

Pangs of Divine love are extremely enjoyable; it is the allotment of the Prophets and Auliyaa (friends of Allah). In the Divine path Allah takes half your life (by you striving) but in return, grants many more lives (true pleasure, enjoyment, etc.) Thus, those that are blessed with Divine love and recognition, they happily leave all sins.

 

JIGAR MORADABADI

 

Jigar Moradabadi stopped drinking liquor and kept a beard. He used to consume so much liquor that he had to be carried to the poetry sessions. He says in his own poem:

“Now i have the fear of the day of reckoning
As far as drinking is concerned, i drank relentlessly”

 

When he got the fear of Allah he repented (made Taubah) and requested Shaykh Thanwi to make certain Dua (supplication) for him. He said: make Dua that I leave alcohol, I perform Hajj and that I keep a beard. Thereafter he kept a fist-length beard. The medical board of doctors advised him that if he left alcohol completely, he will die. He asked them that if he carries on drinking, how much longer he will live. They said that two or three more years. He replied (beautifully): it will be better for Jigar to leave alcohol and die now, because if I die now then I will die engulfed in the Mercy of Allah. If I carry on drinking then I will be with the Wrath of Allah and die while in His wrath, so I rather die now (without drinking). Thereafter through the Mercy of Allah Jigar Moradabadi lived for a long time and regained excellent health and he kept a beard according to Sunnah. In fact, even before he changed, Allah made him say a poem:

“Let us go view the spectacle of Jigar
We heard that the disbeliever is going to become a Muslim”

 

One day he was sitting on a carriage in Meerut and the driver began reciting this poem, not realizing that that the composer of the poem is sitting on his carriage, completely changed and now a true Muslim. When Jigar heard the driver reciting it, he began to weep and said: O Allah! Through your grace, you made me say this poem even before I changed and you have granted me freedom from disobedience and sin.
My friends! I was saying that to wear the pants above the ankles (for males), to keep a fist-length beard, to protect oneself from illicit gazes, to stop backbiting, to consider oneself as the lowest, in summary; to fulfill all commands whether related to the internal self or external self, are necessary. For this to be achieved, company of the Ahlullah is necessary.
Through the company of the Ahlullah, Yaqeen (firm belief) is transferred. The importance of the company of the Ahlullah is apparent from the narrations in Bukhari and Muslim.

 

THE PERSON WHO COMMITTED A HUNDRED MURDERS

 

The person who had committed one hundred murders was instructed to go to an area wherein the pious lived and his repentance will be accepted. Subhanallah! The dignity of the Ahlullah is such that on the portion of earth where they remember Allah, say “Subhanallah, Alhamdulillah”, shed tears, Allah gives that portion of earth honor. Thus the condition is applied that go to that area for your repentance to be accepted.
Although Allah who is Qadir (Able), Ghaffar (Oft-Forgiving) and One who turns towards His servants when they repent (Tawab) can forgive a person anywhere, but to express His special favors and special mercy, He chose that portion of earth which was inhabited by His pious servants. The value of the Ahlullah can be gauged from this. Al Imam ibn-e-Hajar Asqalani﷬ has written that the name of the place of the pious was ‘Nasarah’ (assistance) and the name of the place where the sins were committed was ‘Fajarah’ (nefarious). That person did not even reach the area of the pious, he was still en-route and death came upon him, so as he was dying, he turned his chest towards that area and Allah granted him His Grace. How was this grace granted? The angels of punishment said that we will take him (his soul) because he did not reach the place of the pious. The angels of mercy said that we will take him because he was enroute but death, which is not in his control, overtook him, so we are more entitled to take his soul. To settle the matter, Allah sent another angel to the two groups. He told them: measure the distances between the two places and at the same time Divine instruction was given to the land of the pious to come nearer and the land of evil was instructed to move farther! The scholars of Hadith have termed this Divine grace as ‘Grace in the form of justice’. This is grace in the form of justice; the angels are measuring; this is justice, and one portion is instructed to come nearer while the other is told to move farther away; this is grace. The land of the pious was farther away but this was the mercy of Allah (that He brought it nearer). If we take His name and please Him with our Istighfar, then those that repent will be included among the pious.

 

“Indeed those who repent regularly are in the grade of pious.” (Mirqah -Al Mafateeh)

I recited a Hadith on Istighfar in the beginning, now listen to the translation. Rasulullah﷐ said that whoever makes Istighfar compulsory upon himself, in other words, a person who makes Istighfar excessively, with its conditions and two have already been discussed;

1. To separate oneself from the sin

2. To have regret in the heart.

 

THE THIRD CONDITION

 

“He makes a firm intention”

He makes an aim: O Allah, I will never commit this sin again. If Shaytan whispers in his ear that you will commit it again, then answer: for the acceptance of Taubah the intention to adopt Taqwa suffices and such an intention is accepted by Allah, on condition that I do not have the intention of breaking it. If you do not have the intention of breaking this promise then it is accepted by Allah. At the time of making Taubah, trust in Allah and say: O Allah, I have made this promise trusting in you. If the promise breaks then seek forgiveness again. (At least have the intention of not breaking the promise when making Taubah and if it does break then repent again). Khuwaja Aziz-ul-Hasan Majzub says:

 

“If you cannot overpower the Nafs (self) that wrestles with you, then do not leave your limbs loose and useless O person! Wrestling with it is for the entire lifetime, sometimes it will overpower you and sometimes you will overpower it Even if a person fails for his entire life Anyway, the lover will not discard effort This contact of love should always remain, if it breaks a hundred times then reconnect a hundred times”

 

Aah! A person does not leave sin but he leaves Allah! Is there any refuge besides from Allah? Is there any other deity?

Oh Allah! if you will not bless peoples except pious, Then where will your sinner peoples go.

 

TRUE MODESTY

Friends! It is the same Allah for the sinners and for those who do good. Where else can we go if we leave Allah? Is there any other refuge? It is necessary to cling to Taubah and ISTIGHFAR. At the time of Istighfar, Shaytan (devil) brings ‘shame’ to the heart, he pushes a wrong notion of shame and says: with what face are you repenting? Aren’t you ashamed of yourself? You will repeat this sin daily and you want to repent! This is not shame (ignorennthose thoughts). Al Imam Ali Qari﷬ writes in Mirqah (the commentary of Mishkah):

The definition of shame and modesty: your master (Allah) does not see you when you disobey him (This is not possible because Allah sees everyone and everything at all times. In other words, when there is an urge to commit sin then at that time remember that Allah is watching).Allah observes us in all our conditions of disobedience, whether day or night. All of a sudden we are ashamed to repent unto Him but we are not ashamed when committing sin? This is a massive deception of Shaytan. Actual shame is to refrain from sin (and not from repenting).

 

THE ERRONEOUS POEM OF GHAALIB THE POET

 

Ghalib the poet addressed himself in a poem and said that O Ghalib

“With which face will you go to the Kaabah, aren’t you ashamed of yourself (to present yourself at the House of Allah with all your sins)?”

 

If people have to follow this poem they will become despondent and deprive themselves of visiting the Kaabah. It was necessary to correct this poem, so Shaykh Shah Muhammad Ahmed who is a Khalifa (successor) in the Silsilah (spiritual series) of Shah Fazl-e-Rahman said to me: “Dear Akhtar! I have corrected this poem; otherwise this poem of Ghalib would have made the people despondent of the Mercy of Allah and deprived them of visiting the Kaabah”. I said to him: “Shaykh how did you change the poem”? He said:

“I will go with this same face to the Kaabah.
I will rub my ‘shame’ in the sand.
I will cry and please Him.
I will repair the damage in this way.”

 

Allah! Allah! See the difference between a poem of a person linked to Allah and a worldly inclined person. If you catch the same fish ten times and every time you whisper to the fish: do you want to go back into the water or will you be shy? It will say:

“Even the land is much colorful’
But this glow is death for us.”

These colorful world is not beneficial for us; throw me back in the water. Even the storm of sea is beneficial for us. All goodness for a believer is linked to the Pleasure of Allah, there are blessings (Barakah) in it and in whatever condition Allah keeps a person in. While, if Allah is displeased with him and even if there are thousands of means of luxury and comfort at his disposal, his soul will be like that fish out of water; uneasy and restless.
So Rasulullah said: whoever makes excessive Istighfar compulsory upon himself, i.e. he keeps on striving to please Allah, breaks his connection with sin, pleads earnestly unto Allah, keeps on connecting his link with Allah with tears in his eyes, what does he receive? I will explain this later.

 

THE VALUE OF TEARS

Friends, first understand the value of those tears! It is mentioned in a narration in Mishkah:

(Ibn-e-Maja)

“Rasulullah said: There is no believing servant that tears come out of his eyes because of the fear of Allah, even if it is the size of the head of a fly and reaches the surface of his face, but Allah will make the fire forbidden upon that face.”

I saw my Shaykh Shah Abdul Ghani Phulpuri; he would always wipe the tears on his (entire) face and he would say that I saw Shaykh Ashraf Ali Thanwi﷬ doing the same. I then saw a narration of a Sahaabi, he says: I always wipe the tears on my face because Rasulullah said: the fire of hell is forbidden wherever these tears touch.

 

A QUERY AND ITS ANSWER

 

Shaykh Ashraf Ali Thanwi says that a query can be raised here that if the tears are wiped on the face then it will be saved from torment and entered into Paradise, but what about the rest of the body, what will happen to it? To explain this, Shaykh mentioned an incident. During the reign of King Alamgir, there was a Hindu Ruler of a certain territory who had died. The uncles and other members of the family wanted to usurp the kingdom from the son who was the rightful successor but who was still quite young. The ministers of the late king were loyal and wanted to prevent this from happening. The ministers told the son: Son, let us go to Alamgir and ask for his letter of recommendation on your behalf so that you are not deprived. On the way to Alamgir, the ministers started teaching him that if Alamgir asks this question, then you will answer in this manner, and so forth. When they were approaching the Red Fort of Delhi, the boy said to them: whatever you have taught me is fine, but what if the king asks another question which you have not taught me, how will I answer? The two ministers laughed and said: this boy is intelligent, he will be capable of answering by himself; there is no need to guide him. When they reached,
Alamgir was bathing in the pond. The boy greeted and said: Sir, I have a request, and thereafter explained his purpose of coming. After listening to him, Alamgir caught the boy by his hands and told him that he will drown him in this water but the boy burst out laughing. Alamgir said: that how can this boy be given the kingdom, he should have pleaded not to be drowned; it is an occasion of fear, he seems to be insane so how can he be fit to rule? The boy said: Sir, first ask me my reason for laughing, thereafter your decision will be binding. Alamgir said: okay, tell me why you laughed? The boy said: Sir, you are a king and the good fortune of a king is extremely lofty. Even if only my finger was in your hand, I would never drown and with both my arms in your hands, it is not possible!
After relating this incident, Shaykh Ashraf Ali Thanwi﷬ said: a disbeliever child has so much trust in the benevolence of a worldly king, so can the benevolence of Allah be compared? If Allah enters the face into Paradise, will He throw the body into the fire? Allah is ‘Kareem’. Al Imam Ali Qari has explained the meaning of Kareem:

(Mirqah-Al-Mafateeh)

“Kareem is that being who is benevolent to us although we are unworthy and undeserving.”

It is not in conformity with His benevolence that He enters the face into Paradise and the body into the fire. I have heard that Shaykh-ul-Hadith Muhammad Zakariyya would recite “Ya Kareem Ya Kareem” in abundance towards the end of his life.

IF A PERSON CANNOT SHED TEARS

 

We should, without any hesitation and apprehension, turn towards Allah, be hopeful and if the tears flow, then rub it on the face. If tears do not flow, then make the face like that of a crying person. Sayyiduna Saad ibn Abi Waqqas narrates a Hadith. This Sahaabi was the third to accept Islam and he was the first Sahaabi to shoot an arrow in the Path of Allah. Rasulullah made a Dua for him: O Allah! Let his shots be accurate and accept his Supplications. He also said: “Shoot O Saad! My father and mother be sacrificed for you!” The Muhadditheen have said that this sentence was only said to two Sahaabah; one was him and the other was Sayyiduna Zubair. Rasulullah did not say it for anyone else besides these two. He is from the Asharah Mubasharah (from among the ten who were given the glad tidings of Paradise in this world already by Rasulullah﷐). Also, he was the last to pass away from among the Asharah Mubasharah. Anyway, he narrates:

(Ibn-e-Maja)

“Cry, and if you cannot cry, then make (your face) like a crying person.”

There is another Hadith; A Sahaabi asked Rasulullah: what is salvation (the means to gain salvation)? Rasulullah replied: Control your tongue. This means: do not say anything harmful
and keep it in control. Then he said: let your house be spacious for you. This means not to leave the house except when necessary, do not go around unnecessarily and remain immersed in your good actions. Al Imam Ali Qari when explaining this Hadith wrote a beautiful comprehensive sentence:

 

(Mirqah al Mafateeh)

“These times demand silence, sticking to the homes and
contentment with one’s provision, till death.”

 

The last part of the Hadith “Cry over your sins”. So we learn from this that one of the ways of salvation is to cry over one’s sins. If a person cannot cry and crying is not in the control of a person (some people cannot cry), may we be sacrificed for Rasulullah, to turn the mercy of Allah even on those who are unable to cry, he taught us; if you cannot cry then make your face like a crying person, and this is within your control and choice.
When the generous people of this world do not even deprive those who adopt the appearance of the poor, and this generosity is not from themselves, rather, it is from the generosity that Allah has blessed them with, then imagine the generosity of the Owner of generosity (Allah)! It cannot be imagined! So if tears do not come out then make the face like that of a crying person then witness the display of the Grace and benevolence of Allah.

 

THE FIRST PART OF THE HADITH

 

Now I will translate the Hadith and end the discussion.

“The person who makes excessive Istighfar, Allah will grant him
relief from every difficulty”.

 

People complain that they are caught in difficulties, what shouldwe do? The remedy is Istighfar.

 

THE MIDDLE PART OF THE HADITH

 

“And He Will Receive Relief From Every Grief.”

The word for grief in the Hadith is ‘Hamm”. What is the meaning of ‘Hamm’? Al Imam Ali Qari﷬ explains:

“’Hamm’ is that grief which withers away a person”.

There is another word for grief and it is ‘Huzn’. ‘Hamm’ is more severe the ‘Huzn’. Through the blessings of Istighfar, Allah removes it (Hamm) from a person because a repentant person
becomes the beloved of Allah. The Noble Quraan says:

“Allah loves those who repent.”

A friend will not want to see his friend in grief, so when Allah befriends someone, how can such a person be engulfed in grief?

 

THE LAST PART OF THE HADITH

 

“And (Allah) Will Grant Him Sustenance From Unimaginable Sources.”

 

Allah grants sustenance to those who repent, from sources that they never thought of. Al Imam Ali Qari writes under the commentary of this Hadith that this Hadith is a great means of solace for sinners; the favors usually bestowed upon the pious ones, the same favors are being promised to those who repent, cry and are remorseful. Through their repentance they reach the same level of the pious. He then says that this Hadith is based on the following verse of the Quraan:

Shaykh Ashraf Ali Thanwi explains this verse in the following manner: When a person fears Allah (adopts Taqwa) then Allah grants him the path of salvation and grants him sustenance from sources he never imagined, and because Tawakkul (trust in Allah) is a portion of Taqwa, its special feature is that when a person trusts in Allah, then Allah is sufficient for all his issues. Friends! May we be sacrificed for the mercy unto the worlds (Rasulullah), his merciful self, did not bear that the sinners of his Ummah (Muslim Nation) be deprived, so he made the same promises to the repentant ones that are made to the pious servants! Is this a small favor that the repentant ones (through their repentance) can reach the level of the pious ones, even though they may be in the second row and not in the first row? Hafiz Abdul Wali﷬ wrote to Shaykh Ashraf Ali Thanwi: Ya Shaykh! “My condition is very bad; I don’t know what will happen to me on the Day of Judgment” Shaykh replied: Insha Allah you will be in a favorable condition; if you will not be included among the Kamileen (achievers) then you will be included among the Taaibeen (repentant ones) and this too is a great favor. He then said: it is the blessings of our spiritual chain that those who constantly keep contact with the pious will never be deprived. Al Imam Jalal-ud-deen Rumi says that the thorns that hide themselves close to the petals of the rose are never removed by the gardener. On the other hand, those thorns that are separate and away from the roses, they are removed and thrown away.

 

IMPORTANCE OF PIOUS COMPANIONSHIP

A thorn was crying and said: O the One who hides the faults of the creation, how will my fault be hidden, I am a thorn? Its lament was heard and to cover and hide it, Allah through His Grace, created flowers around it and the thorns hid among it. So if we are thorns and unworthy, then we should adopt the company of the pious servants of Allah, Insha Allah through its blessings, we will also be clothed with the garments of piety and like the thorns, we will not be deprived.

One of the smallest benefits of adopting the company of the pious is that the person will not remain persistent on sin and he will receive the Taufeeq to repent. His misfortune will change to good fortune. There is a narration in Bukhari:

 

“Those who associate (with the pious) are not deprived.”

Al Imam ibn-e-Hajar Asqalani explaining this in his commentary on Bukhari called Fath-ul-Bari writes:

“Those who sit with the pious are included among them and are granted the favors that are granted to the pious. This is in honor of the pious (that those in their company are granted the same favors).”

When a person has a special high-ranking guest, then those of his employees who have accompanied him will receive the same special treatment and delicacies offered to the special guest.

 

DUAA (SUPPLICATION)

 

O Allah! Grants us the Taufeeq to practice on whatever was said. Grants us the Taufeeq of repenting and grants us a strong bond with You.

O Allah! Grant us the highest position of friendship with You. You are Kareem and you grant your benevolence to even the unworthy ones

O Allah! Grant us in accordance to your quality of Kareem.

O Allah! Grant us that level of friendship with You that there is no level after that; take us to the highest level of friendship.

O Allah! Grant us the character, Eman and Believes of the Auliyaa (Friends of Allah). Set right the matters of our world and hereafter.

O Allah! Reform us, our children and families, and purify us.

O Allah! Correct our world and hereafter.

 

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