Excerpts from Nafahat al-'Uns: The Lives of Notable Figures of the Spiritual Path

Mosque/Tomb Complex,Abu Nasr Parsa,Balkh,Afganistan

Excerpts from Nafahat al-'Uns: The Lives of Notable Figures of the Spiritual Path
Answered by Sidi Ruslan Moore

Khwaja Abu Nasr Parsa
May Allah (Exalted is He) increase the sanctity of his innermost being!
This was the son of Khwaja Muhammad Parsa, the fruit of his sainthood and the successor to his spiritual station. His honorific title is Hafiz ad-Din, but he is generally known by the patronymic Abu Nasr. His full name is Khwaja Hafiz ad-Din Abu Nasr Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Hafiz al-Bukhari (may Allah bestow His mercy upon him). By means of his distinguished father, he acquired knowledge of the sciences of the Sacred Law [Shari'a] and the customary practices of the Spiritual Path [Tariqa]. The technique of evanescence and self-extinction was also transmitted to him by his father. He concealed his spiritual state and station with such skill that it seemed as if he had never set foot on this Spiritual Path. The observer would assume that he had no knowledge of the science of this Sufi order. If someone asked him about some problem, he would say: "Let us look it up in the book!' As soon as he opened the book, he would come across the matter at issue. The solution to the problem would then be found by turning one or two pages in either direction. This would seldom prove inadequate. At his meeting one day, the books of Shaikh Muhyi'd-Din ibn al-'Arabi came under discussion. Quoting his father's words, he said: "The Fusus is the soul, while the Futuhat is the heart." He then went on to say: "If anyone reads the Fusus, let him be well aware that the summons to follow the venerable Messenger (Allah bless him and give him peace) will be firmly rooted in that person!" His death occurred in the year A.H. 865 (1460 C.E.). His blessed tomb is in Balkh. May Allah be well pleased with him! (Sunni Path)