Shaykh Abdul Qadit Jilani & Tasawwuf (Sufism)

Shaykh Adbul Qadir Jilani and Tasawwuf (Sufism)
Faqir (Poor,Needy Before Allah)

It is a tradition among the mashaayikh (spiritual masters) to explain about matters pertaining to the religion of Islam in both prose and poetry. For example, when Shaykh ‘Abdul Qadir Jilani Rady Allahu ‘Anh was asked to explain the meaning of the word faqir (poor, needy before Allah), he said that the word faqir is formed with four letters, “faa”, “qaaf “, “yaa”, and “raa”, as cited in Qalaid al Jawahir (Necklaces of Gems). Then he explained the significance of each of these letters in four verses to convey the meaning and the essence of the word faqir.

faa-u’l faqiri fanaa-u-hu fee Dhaatihi

wa faraaghu-hu min na’tihi wa sifaatih

wa’l qaafu quwwatu qalbihi bi-Habibihi

wa qiyaamuhu Lillahi fee Mardaatih

wa’l yaayu yarju bihi wa yakhaafuhu

wa yaqumu bi’t taqwa bi-haqqi tuqaatih

wa’r raa’u riqqatu qalbihi wa safaauhu

wa ruju’uhu ‘an shahawaatih

The letter faa in the word faqir stands for his annihilation for the sake of Allah and getting rid of his own description and attributesThe qaaf stands for the strength of his heart that is with his Beloved Allahand his standing up for the sake of Allah is purely for His Good PleasureThe yaa stands for his hope in Him and his reverential awe of Himand he performs his duty as true devotion demandsThe raa stands for the softness of his heart and its purityand its return to Allah from its carnal desires.Allahu Akbar!We notice that when he talks about the letter “faa”, the Shaykh uses two words that begin with the letter “faa”. These are fanaa and faraagh. Similarly, when he comes to the letter “qaaf”, he uses three words – quwwah, qalb and qiyaam – that begin with the letter “qaaf” . The words associated with the letter “yaa” are yarju, yakhaafu and yaqumu while those that go with the letter “raa” are riqqah and ruju’. Shaykh ‘Abdul Qadir Jilani Rady Allahu ‘Anhu was for sure not only a master of the religion of Islam but a master of the Arabic language as well.Yaa Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa QayyumYaa Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyumhttp://iqra.net/articles/Jilani/jilani9.htm

Tasawwuf (Sufism)is an acronym made up of the four consonant letters: t, s, w, and f.

t stands for tawbah, repentancess

s stands for safa, purity, peace and joy

w stands for wilayah, the sanctity of the lovers and friends of Allah

f stands for fana, the annihilation of self into the nothingness.

from 'The Secret of Secrets' by Hadhrat Abdul Qadir Jilani (raa)translated by Sheikh Tosun Bayrak al Jerrahi al Halveti

Shariah and Tariqah

Shaykh Abdul-Qadir al-Jilani said:
Anyone who does not follow the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace), taking his Law [shari`a] in one hand and the Book that was revealed to him in the other hand, and who does not attain to by his path [tariq] to Allah (Almighty and Glorious is He), will perish and perish, will go astray and go astray. They are two guides to the Lord of Truth (Almighty and Glorious is He). The Qur'an is your guide to the Lord of Truth (Almighty and Glorious is He), and the Sunna is your guide to the Messenger (Allah bless him and give him peace).
O Allah, cause a separation between us and our lower selves [nufus], and:
Give us in this world good, and good in the hereafter, and guard us against the torment of the fire. [Qur'an 2:201] From Shaykh Abdul-Qadir al-Jilani, "The Sublime Revelation" [Al-Fath ar-Rabbani], translated by Muhtar Holland (Published by Al-Baz Publishing, Houston, Texas, 1992). The quote is from the end of the twenty-fifth discourse, p. 182.