From the Teachings of Shaykh Hisham
All praise belongs to the one who created everything in
perfection. The one who perfected our
master Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings upon him) and made him the best
example for us to follow. We seek
support in every breath from our perfected guides Mawlana Shaykh Nazim Haqqani
(q) and Mawlana Shaykh Hisham Qabbani (q) who are the inheritors of the seal of
messengers. They are oceans and even a
drop from their knowledge will give us an understanding to safely move from
this life to hereafter. Their teachings
and methods are for us to put into action for the best of results. The best of results lead us to knowing
ourselves and our lord.
Sufi Meditation is a step which begins the process of self
awareness. The Prophet Muhammad (saws)
mentioned; the one who knows himself will know his lord. This involves learning the inner and
outer. The inner part of our hidden
characteristics and outer for the makeup of our physicality. A simple function as breathing which we may
perform 15 to 25 times per minute. It is
a step we are so unaware but so essential for our existence. How perfect our creator made it. Our chest expands to bring the outside air
into our lungs where fresh oxygen is supplied to the blood and the waste
(carbon dioxide) produced by the cells is exhaled out. This oxygen enriched blood is pumped to the
heart to be circulated thru out the body.
This process is continuing around the clock inside our bodies and
sustaining us as long as we have to be on this earth. It takes place whether you are aware of it or
not. Our Guides begin to teach us to be
aware of it and all that is inside of us and outside. Contemplate on what is happening and meditate
on the wonders of your lord.
They begin to teach us to be conscious of that breath. When we sit to meditate to inhale and exhale
with the name of the absolute essence ‘Hu’.
The most unknown to his creation and without any limits. Again, Allah (swt) granted this mercy to
everyone. There is no difference as all
human beings naturally breathe with the words ‘Hu” when they inhale and
exhale. You just have to pay attention
and we notice the rhythm of our heart is also beating to ‘Hu’, ‘Hu’, ‘Hu’. Consciousness of this breathing leads you to
remember your lord. Your heart is remembering
without us knowing but now when you sit to meditate on it you are trying to
connect with realities that are unknown to you at the moment but exist by our
lords’ command. We are taught to
remember because our return is back to the heavens where we are coming
from. While on earth we have to sustain
the physicality and the soul. The soul
is the divine energy and source of life for the body to exist. We have to feed both, food for the body and
God’s remembrance for the soul. So this
process is happening at the minimal but the perfected guides want you to
increase the consciousness and increase the connection between you and the
divine energy.
There is too much negativity around us on this earth and conscious
breathing attracts positive energy so we become balanced and push away the
negativity around us. We become like a
molecule which is attracting ions.
Initially we can balance ourselves with positive energy, as we attract
more positive energy and build ourselves.
We can begin to give off these ions to those around us that are in need
and begin to make them balanced. How
does that happen? By the simple presence of the positively charged person. It is how God had created and put these laws
forth on his creation. Such is the
example of our guides. They have reached
such levels in the divine that their simple presence will bring tremendous
positive energy at any place. They
encourage us to do the same and follow their steps because we are helping those
around us and being true servants to our lord.
That is the highest honor for us to be of service to Allah (swt), his
Prophet (saws), and our guides.
According to Khaliq al-Ghujdawani
(q), a saint in the Naqshbandi golden chain said that: "the wise seeker
must safeguard his breath from heedlessness, coming in and going out, thereby
keeping his heart always in the Divine Presence; and he must revive his breath
with worship and servitude and dispatch this worship to His Lord full of life,
for every breath which is inhaled and exhaled with Presence is alive and
connected with the Divine Presence. Every breath inhaled and exhaled with
heedlessness is dead, disconnected from the Divine Presence."
The breadth of mercy is by the order of our Lord who says to
something ‘Be’ and it is. The importance
of it and the evidence is in the words that Allah (swt) sent to his beloved
messenger Prophet Muhammad (saws). We
learn from the teaching of Mawlan Shaykh Hisham (q), it has been placed in the
first verse of chapter 112 of Holy Quran.
Surah Ikhlas (chapter of sincerity).
It comprises of 4 verses. To get
a better understanding you have to see the Arabic and the order of these
letters. The first verse of Surah Ikhlas
reads in Arabic. ‘Qul Hu-walaahu
'Ahad’. The translation of this verse
is: ‘Say: He is Allah, the One and Only’.
Allah (swt) is ordering thru his beloved to Say Hu Allah Hu. This is the same recitation we use during
Sufi Meditation. We inhale the word ‘Hu’
to bring this divine energy inside and the apex is to before exhaling to say
the divine name Allah in our heart and exhale with ‘Hu’. We repeat this process thru out our practice
and it begins to dress us with angelic energy.
The first word of this verse is ‘Qul’, it comprises of Arabic letter Qaf
and
Lam . Qaf
is also the first letter for the Arabic word ‘Qalb’ which means the heart. The first order is for our soul to say it
which was created first before this physicality. Allah is ordering this remembrance and by his
order it is happening in our heart whether we are aware of it or not. The next letter is ‘Lam’ which is also the
first letter for the Arabic word ‘Lissan” which means the tongue. Allah is
ordering our physicality which came afterwards to say it. This requires an effort from us to now bring
it to our tongue. It is an action we
have to perform. In the first verse of
Surah Ikhlas, these letters are not separate but combined to make ‘Qul”. It is directing us to combine what our soul is
saying thru the heart and the physicality saying thru the tongue and make it
powerful and effective. It is an action
that becomes a daily part of our life. And
what is this order asking for us to say.
Say: ‘Hu Allah Hu’. It is the
first step on this journey of Gnosticism.
Sufi Meditation is not asking to do something out of the
ordinary. But simply following the order
of our creator. Begin by saying Hu Allah
Hu. The order is to combine the two by
saying in the heart and the tongue to make it a complete action. One will notice that all of the chapters in
the Quran have a title and that title is found within each of the
chapters. But Surah Ikhlas is one unique
chapter that the name is not within its 4 verses. It is an indication that it has to be found
within these verses or obeying the verses and belief will make you to reach
sincerity. This is the highest level of
Islam as was described in the hadith of Pophet (saws) where he divided the
religion into three levels: Islam (religion), Iman (faith), and Ihsan
(sincerity and good manners).
We are asking to be dressed with the lights of our pious
teachers in these dark times.
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