A Fly Makes Its Point

A tyrannical ruler was addressing the people, when a fly settled on his face.  He chased the fly away.  Back it came and again he chased it.  The fly was stubborn.  It settled on his face once more.  He tried to kill it, failed, got angry.  He then asked Dahhak, a scholar who was present:  “Why has Allah (swt) created this annoying insect?  Doesn’t it seem useless?”  Dahhak replied:  “It was created to show tyrants like you how impotent they really are; that they don’t even have the power to dispose of a fly.  You may hold sway over human beings, yet a feeble little insect refuses to obey you.  It settles on dirt, then comes and lights on the faces of those who imagine they are Allah (swt).  If it could express itself in words, it would say:  “You are a nonentity.  Do not forget that you are nothing.  You may conquer the world, but you cannot conquer me.  If Allah (swt) wills, He can kill you, as He killed Nimrod, with a miserable little fly.”


Taken from the Irshad (Wisdom of a Sufi Master) By Sheikh Muzaffer Ozak Al-Jerrahi, Page 365-366

Jibraa’iyl Abu Abdul’laah (KekuSmau)

Doctrine of the Necessity for Seeking Knowledge

We believe that Allah has endowed us with the faculty of the intellect ('aql), and that He has ordered us to ponder over His Creation, noting with care the signs of His Power and His Glory throughout the entire universe as well as within ourselves. It is stated in the Qur'an:
We shall show them Our signs on the horizons and in themselves, till it is clear to them that it is the Truth. (41;53)

Allah has shown His disapproval of those who blindly follow the ways of those who were before them:
They say "No, but we will follow such things as we found our father doing."
What! And if their fathers had no understanding of anything. (2;170)
and he has shown his dislike for those who follow nothing but their own personal whims:
They follow naught but an opinion. (6;117)

Indeed, our intellect forces us to reflect upon Creation so as to know the Creator of the universe, just as it makes it necessary for us to examine the claims of someone to prophethood and to consider the truth of his miracles. It is not correct to accept the ideas of someone without criticism, even if that person has the gift of great knowledge or holds an esteemed position.
The reason that the Qur'an has urged us to reflect upon Creation and to study the natural world and acquire knowledge is so that it may confirm in us mankind's instinctual freedom of thought upon which all sages are in agreement, in order that the power of human understanding and thinking may be so enlightened that it may fulfil the function for which it was created.

Thus it is wrong for a man to neglect the fundamentals of his faith and to put his confidence in what his instructors or other persons have said to him. On the contrary, it is necessary for him, on account of his natural intelligence as confirmed in the Qur'an, to search for, examine and come to a clear understanding of the fundamentals of his religion (usul ad-din), the most important of which (in Islam) are the Oneness of God (tawhid), Prophecy (nubuwwah), the Imamate (imamah) and the Resurrection (ma'ad). One who follows the dictates of his forebears or any other person in these matters has, in truth, committed an error and has wandered from the straight path, and there can be no excuse for such an action.

In short, there are two points:
(a) that it is necessary to examine and understand the fundamentals of our beliefs and not to follow what anyone else might say,
(b) that this is a requirement that stems from reason, and not one that we must accept from the religion (i.e. such knowledge is not only to be gained from religious texts, even if, as we have seen, it is confirmed there, but it is also to be obtained through the exercise of the intellect). The meaning of a requirement that stems from reason' is that reason enjoins us to acquire such knowledge and to examine these matters for ourselves.

  Doctrine of the Necessity for Imitation (taqlid)
in the Various Branches of the Religion (furu' ad- din)

By the branches of the religion we mean those religious laws which govern our actions (shari'ah), but concerning which not everyone is required to exercise juristic reasoning (ijtihad). However, it is the duty of everyone to take one of the three following ways in regard to them:
(a) he should exert himself in study until he becomes a mujtahid,
(b) he should exercise juristic precaution (ihtiyat) if he is able to,
(c) he should follow one who is a recognised mujtahid, who must be a man of wisdom and justice, "who keeps himself from sin, not following the dictates of his own desires, but obeying the commands of Allah." 

It follows that one who is neither a mujtahid, nor exercises ihtiyat, nor follows a mujtahid, does all the actions of his din in vain, and that neither his prayer nor his fasting will be accepted by Allah, even though he has carried out his duties in these matters for the whole of his life; unless he begins to follow a mujtahid, in which case, those of his actions prior to his following the mujtahid which were done for the sake of Allah will be accepted.

Doctrine Concerning the Position of mujtahid
We believe that a fully qualified mujtahid is a representative of the Imam, in the case of the latter's absence. Thus he is an authority over Muslims and he performs the functions of the Imam as regards judgement and administration among the people. Because of this, Imam Ja'far as Sadiq said:
To deny the authority of a mujtahid is to deny the authority of the Imam, and to deny tile authority of the Imam is to make an objection to the authority of Allah. and this is tantamount to polytheism (shirk).

Therefore the qualified mujtahid is not only one who issues fatwas, but he also has general authority over Muslims who must consult him if they require judgement, this being obtainable only from him. It is correspondingly wrong for anyone to give judgement except him or one who is appointed by him, as no-one can pass sentence without his permission. Also, all that which belongs to the Imam should be given to the mujtahid.
Such authority has been bestowed upon the qualified mujtahid by the Imam so that he may represent him in his absence; hence he is known as the representative of the Imam (na' ib al-imam).
Muhammad Rida al-Muzaffar

Ziyarat Aale Yasin

Is Lying Ever Justified?

There are as many advantages for truthfulness as there are disadvantages for lying. Truthfulness is one of the most beautiful traits and lying one of the ugliest. The tongue translates man's external feelings to the outside. Therefore, if lying stems from envy and or enmity, it is one of the most dangerous sign of anger. If it stems from stinginess or habit, it is from the effects of burning lusts of man.

If a man's tongue becomes poisoned with lying and its filth appears on him, its effects are like the effects of the autumn wind on the leaves of trees. Lying extinguishes the light of man's existence and lights the fire of treachery in him. It also has an amazing reaction in terminating the ties of unity and harmony between and spreading hypocrisy.

As per the saying of Prophet Mohamed (pbuh): "The three signs of a hypocrite are: lying, betraying trust and going back on his word (not fulfilling a promise)." Therefore hypocrites are liars, because they lie to themselves. 

Noble Qur'an says about them: "In their heart, there is a disease and Allah increases their disease and they shall have a painful chastisement because they lie." (2:10)

"When the hypocrites come to you, they say: We bear witness that you are most surely Allah's Messenger; and Allah knows that you are most surely His Messenger, and Allah bears witness that the hypocrites are surely liars." (63:1)

For people with evil intentions lying is an open door for them to reach their selfish goals by concealing the facts behind their magical words and capturing innocent people with their poisonous lies.

Liars have no time for them to think or reflect. They rarely consider the possible conclusions, claiming that 'no one will ever discover their secrets'. In their words we find many mistakes and contradictions. Liars will eternally become covered with shame, failure and disgrace. Therefore, it is true to say that 'liars have bad memories'.

Islam and reason command that if a Muslim's soul, honor or essential belongings are endangered, it is his obligation to defend them by any means possible, including lying.

Prophet Mohamed (pbuh) said: "Lying is not permitted except in three cases: a man speaking to his wife to make her happy; lying in times of war; and lying in order to reconcile between people." (Tirmidhi)

Necessary lying has its limitations. It must stop on the border of necessity. Nevertheless, we should not ignore the fact that lying is a great evil, and that if some harm is removed by lying (when permitted) it is with the view of countering the greater evil with the lesser one.

There are no absolute justifications in Islam and the Prophet has asked us to tell the truth even under the harshest circumstances of oppression. However, one may choose not to tell the truth in the following situations:

a) He is under oppression and there is danger of losing his life if he told the truth.

Shaikh Saadi narrates a story, "A cruel king ordered an innocent man from village present in his court to be killed because of his lack of manners. Hearing this, the villager started to curse the king in his native language. The king asked the prime minister, who understood that villager's language, to tell him what that villager was saying. The wise minister, instead of telling the truth, told the king this villager is sorry for his conduct, praising his greatness and asking for his mercy. The king was affected and he spared the life of that innocent villager." Shaikh Saadi calls this a "lie with wisdom."

b) To promote mutual relationship between spouse.

For example, if wife asks you, "Am I beautiful?" or "Do you love me?" there is nothing wrong with saying "Yes," even if this is not the case. While these types of lying are tolerated, it is crucial not to step over the bounds of what is and is not acceptable. For instance, if a wife asks her husband if he is having an affair and the husband lies and says that he isn't (when he is) to make her 'happy' is not a permissible lie. This scenario is not what the above hadith permits. This is a deceptive lie which the husband is engaging in to serve his own agenda.

c) This also applies during war.

If a prisoner is captured by the enemy and perhaps asked how many soldiers are with his army, he can lie about the number in order to protect his own fighters.

d) While making peace between two quarrelling parties.

While making peace between two quarrelling parties, instead of igniting them against each other, i.e., "He said such and such bad thing about you," just say, "He says such and such good thing about you." Tradition: He is not a liar who tries to bring peace between two people by trying to tell the truth.

e) To make unbelievers realize the truth.

To make unbelievers realize the truth as described in Surah al-Anbiya (21:62-65), when Prophet Abraham (pbuh) broke all the idols except the biggest one, the unbelievers entered the temple.

Prophet Abraham (pbuh) hid and put his ax in the hand of the chief idol. They asked, "Who broke our gods?"

Prophet Abraham (pbuh) said, "Ask the chief idol, he has the ax."

They said, "Don't you know he can't speak or do anything?"

Prophet Abraham (pbuh) said, "That's what I have been telling you, so worship Allah (SWT), rather than these stones that cannot harm or profit you."

Lies often roll off the human tongue just as fast as the moths are attracted to an open flame. The consequences of both are sometimes equally flammable. Being truthful is an endearing quality that we all would be blessed to attain in our lifetime and is a commodity that is becoming more and more scarce in this present world as the hands of time relentlessly spin round and round.

The Eight Benefits

It is said that among the students and mureeds of Shaykh Shafeeq Balkhi was a disciple named Hatim. One day Shaykh Shafeeq Balkhi (May Allah Shower His Mercy upon him) said to him: “O Hatim! For how long have been in my company and have been listening to what I have been saying (teaching)?”

Shaykh Hatim replied: “Thirty Three years!”

Shaykh Shafeeq Balkhi asked: “In that [long] time period, what benefit have you derived from me?”

Shaykh Hatim responded: “[I have] obtained eight (8) benefits [from you].”

Shaykh Shafeeq Balkhi “Inna Lillahi Wa Inna Ilaeyhe Raji’oon (To Allah we belong and to Him shall we return). O Hatim! I have spent my lifetime in teaching and training and you have just gained eight benefits from me!”

Shaykh Hatim replied: “O my teacher! If you asked [me] for the truth then the reality is what I [just] told you. I do not need any more [benefits] and these benefits from knowledge are quite sufficient because I am certain that I will attain salvation [and success] in this life and in the life hereafter through these eight benefits.”

Shaykh Shafeeq Balkhi: “All right! Tell me what are those eight benefits?”

THE EIGHT BENEFITS NARRATED BY HATIM

1- “O my teacher! The first benefit is that I looked at the people of this world and saw that everyone has a beloved. But these beloveds of the people [of the world] are such that some of them (i.e. the beloveds) are with them (i.e. the people) until their illness that brings death, some of them are with them until death, some of them are with them until they reach their graves, and after burial all the lovers return from there. None of their beloveds go with them in their graves to live with them there and to provide their company [in the darkness, solitude, narrowness, and horror of the grave]. I contemplated on this and said to myself that only that is a good beloved who goes with them in the grave and lives with his/her lover, who will provide the company, who will illuminate the grave, who will be a partner on the Day of Judgment and its destinations

(stations that one goes through after burial until the Day of Judgment). I saw that the only beloved who has these [good] qualities is my good (pious/righteous) deeds. After this [determination and awareness], I made my good deeds my beloved so that it goes with me in my grave [when I die], will provide me with its company, will become an illuminated candle in my grave, will be my partner in all stages of life hereafter, and never ever separate away from me.”

Shaykh Shafeeq Balkhi said: “Bravo O Hatim! You have told a very good thing. Now narrate the second benefit.”

2- “O my teacher! The second benefit is that I glanced at the people of the world and saw that everyone was following after the pleasures and desires from the Nafs (lower self that instructs one to commit evil) and [everyone] is subservient to the desires from the lower self. Upon seeing that, I deliberated on the following holy verse [from Quran]:

‘Wa Amma Mun Khafa Maqama Rabbihi Wa Nahun Nafsa ‘Anil Hawa Fa Innal Jannata Heyal Mawa.’

‘But the one who has stood in fear of his/her Sustainer’s Presence, and restrained his/her inner self from the base (low and evil) desires, Paradise will the place of rest [for this person].’ (Quran 79:40-41)

I developed the certitude that the Wise Quran is correct and the book of Allah is the truth. Then I established a front against my Nafs (lower self) and became determined to oppose it. I moulded it (i.e. my lower self) in such a shape that I did not fulfill any of its desires until it started to find peace [and satisfaction] in the worship of Allah, the Exalted.”

Shaykh Shafeeq Balkhi responded: “May Allah, the Exalted, provide His blessings in your good deeds. Now narrate the third benefit.”

3- “O my teacher! The third benefit is that when I glanced at the people I saw that every person, with great pain and hard work, is busy in accumulating the possessions (money, wealth, goods) of this mortal world and is very happy that he/she has a lot of goods and material possessions. But when I contemplated on the following holy verse from the bounteous Quran:

‘Ma ‘Indakum Yanfadu Wa Ma ‘IndAllahi Baaqin.’

‘All that is with you is bound to come to an end, whereas all that, which is with Allah is everlasting.’ (Quran 16:96).

Then whatever [material possessions] I accumulated in the world, I spent it all in Way of Allah by distributing it among pious indigents and beggars so that it (the material possessions that I distributed in the Way of Allah) will get deposited with Allah, the Exalted, as my trust and will become source of immense good and ransom (i.e. salvation) in the life hereafter.”

Shaykh Shafeeq Balkhi said: “O Hatim! May Allah grant you His Compensation (reward for your spending in His Way)! You said a very good thing and have done a very good thing. Now narrate the fourth benefit.”

4- “O my teacher! The fourth benefit is that I looked at the people of the world and saw that some of them think that grandeur and honour belong to the nation or tribe (group) that is big and powerful, that’s why they are expressing pride in their tribe (nation or group). Some of them are such that they think that the grandeur is obtained through abundance of wealth, [material] possessions, family and relatives that’s why [some] people are expressing their pride in their wealth and children. Some [people] are such that they think that their grandeur and honour is in displaying anger, beating, killing, murder and pillage and they express their pride in that. Some [people] are such that they think that their grandeur is in wasteful spending that’s why they

consider their wasteful spending a source of honour and express their pride in that. But I deliberated on this verse in which Allah, the Exalted, says:

‘Inna Akramakum ‘IndAllahi Atqakum.’

‘Verily, the noblest of you in the sight of Allah is the one who is most deeply conscious (i.e. fearful) of Him.’ (Quran 49:13).

Therefore this is correct and is the truth and the creations’ thoughts are false and wrong conjectures. That’s why I adopted Taqwa (pious reverence, consciousness, awe, and fear of Allah) so that I get counted as the one with the highest rank in the sight of Allah, the Exalted.”

Shaykh Shafeeq Balkhi said: “O Hatim! May Allah be pleased with you. You have said a very good thing. Now narrate the fifth benefit.”

5- “O my teacher! The fifth benefit is that I looked at the people who were complaining about each other. It was found that they were doing all this because of envy, jealousy, and enmity and the main cause of that is [the desire and competition for] greatness, grandeur, [material] possessions, wealth, and knowledge. I contemplated on the following verse from the Holy Quran in which it’s said:

‘Nahnu Qasumna Baeynahum Ma’eeshatahum Fil Hayatid Dunya.’

‘It is We who distribute their means of livelihood (sustenance) among them in the life of this world.’ (Quran 43:32).

Then I thought that Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, has appointed the possessions and ranks since the first beginning [of the creation] and no one has any control [or say] in this matter. Therefore, I did not compete or had jealousy with anyone and remained agreed to Allah’s distribution [of worldly bounties] and [His appointed] destiny and got along with the whole world [by giving up all jealousies and enmities against God’s creations].”

Shaykh Shafeeq said: “O Hatim! You are saying the truth and you are doing the right thing. Now narrate the sixth benefit.”

6- “O my teacher! The sixth benefit is that when I glanced at the people, I saw that every person is having enmity with someone else for some reason. Then I deliberated on the following verse:

‘Innash Shaytana Lakum ‘Aduwwun Fettakhizuhu ‘Aduwwa.’

‘Verily, Shaytan (Satan) is your enemy so treat him as your enemy.’ (Quran 35:6).

After that, I developed the certitude that Allah’s saying is the truth, I should not have any enmity with anyone other than Shaytan (Satan). Since then, I considered Satan as my enemy and did not obey any of his orders. Instead, I developed obedience [of Allah] and followed the commandments of Allah, the Exalted and adopted only His worship and servitude. The correct way is the Sirat al-Mustaqeem (the straight path of guidance in which there is no crookedness) as Allah, the Exalted, has Himself said:

‘Alam A’had Ilaeykum Ya Bani Aadama Al La Ta’budush Shaytana Innahu Lakum ‘Aduwwum Mubeen Wa Ane’buduni Haza Siratum Mustaqeem.’

‘Have I not obtained this promise from you that O you the Children of Adam! Never ever obey the Shaytan (Satan). No doubt, he is your avowed (open) enemy and worship Me alone [because] this is the straight path.’

Shaykh Shafeeq said: “O Hatim! You did a very good thing and said a very good thing. Now narrate the seventh benefit.”

7- “O my teacher! The seventh benefit is that I looked at the people and saw that every person is preoccupied with his/her livelihood and search for sustenance and is involved in an intense effort. In this regards, he/she is not even differentiating between Halal (permissible) and Haram (forbidden) but instead, is getting humiliated with doubtful and Haram (forbidden) earnings. Then I deliberated on the following verse:

‘Wa Ma Min Daabbatin Fil Arde Illa ‘AlalAllahi Rizquha.’

‘And there is no living creature on earth whose sustenance is not the responsibility of Allah.’ (Quran 11:6).

Then I developed the certitude that the Wise Quran is the truth and is correct and that I am also among those living creatures [of God] that are present on earth. So thus, I got engaged in the worship of Allah and developed the certitude that He will bring to me [my] sustenance because He has promised [to provide me with] sustenance.”

Shaykh Shafeeq Balkhi said: “You did a very good thing and told a very good thing. Now narrate the eighth benefit.”

8- “O my teacher! The eighth benefit is that when I looked at the people I found that every person’s reliance [or trust] is on someone or something. Some have trust [or rely] on their [material] possessions, some trust [or rely] on other people. Therefore, I pondered on this holy verse in which Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, says:

‘Wa Maey Yatawakkal ‘AlalAllahi Fahuwa Hasbuhu.’

‘And for everyone who places his/her trust in Allah, He [alone] is enough [for him/her].’ (Quran 65:3).

‘Wa Huwa Husbi Wa Nai’mal Wakeel.’

‘And He is sufficient for me and He is the best Helper.’

[Therefore, I adopted complete reliance on Allah in every matter.]”

When Shaykh Shafeeq Balkhi heard these [eight] benefits, he said: “O Hatim! May Allah grant you His Tawfeeq (i.e. enable you to do righteous deeds and to walk on His Path). You have told [us] very good things. I have seen in Taurat (Torah), Injil (Gospel of Prophet Jesus), Zabur (Psalms), and in the praiseworthy differentiator between right and wrong (i.e. the Holy Quran), that all these books [of God] mention these eight benefits, i.e., all four books in their teachings have told [us] these eight benefits. Whoever acts on these [eight

principles] is like as if he/she has acted on all four [holy] books.”

The above is an excerpt from  Abu Hamid al-Ghazzali’s Ayyuhal Walad (My dear child) in which he narrated the story between a Master and a Disciple, and the benefits the disciple had gained from the master during his time with him.