'Let it be known that Allah's people always do good deeds' (qasida 62:11)

This is the motto of this section, which is for talking about the the people of Allah who are the people who are constantly preoccupied with Allah

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For an Honest Seeker (cont’)

Sufian Al-Thawry and Bashr ibn Al-Harth said: 'If you hate loneliness and love being around people, we will be worried about you being hypocrite'. Abu-Mohamed used to say: 'All goodness is in four attributes: fasting, silence, solitude and lack of sleep'. Abdellaziz said: 'for a saint, being around people is a humiliation and solitude is dignity. I rarely see a saint who does not prefer solitude'. One of those who know Allah stated: 'Loving loneliness is a sign of finding the path. [Preferring the previously-mentioned attributes] is a sign of honest willingness, true repentance and strong determination. Their opposite is the door of the worldly life, the key of forgetfulness and the path of self desires”.

Eating Full

Being full brings heart cruelty and darkness. It also helps self attributes to revive and strengthens them, the fact that leads to the weakness of faith.  The weakness of self is associated with the strength of faith and with the expansion of the lights of truth. This makes one close to Allah. Being full is the key for the love of the worldly life. Some of the prophet’s companions said “The first heresy happened after the prophet’s death is being full. When the stomachs are full, self desires take reign”. Alsayda Aisha – peace be upon her – narrated that prophet Mohamed and his companions used to starve themselves even if there was food.  Ibn Omar said -in the time of Al-Hajaj- “I never ate to the full after Othman’s murder”.  Abi Jahifa stated that when he vomited in the presence of prophet Mohamed – peace be upon him, prophet Mohamed said “Clean your vomiting! Those who have full stomach in the worldly life are starving in the hereafter”.  Abi Jahifa said “By Allah, I never enjoyed food since that day”. Being hungry more than being full is an attribute of awlia (saints).  If you eat, when you are hungry after skipping two meals, then your hunger is more than your fullness. If you eat a light meal after being so much hungry, then you are moderate in your hunger and fullness. If you eat twice a day or eat without being hungry, then your fullness is more than your hunger and this is not recommended. If you eat when you are hungry but never be full, then your hunger is still more than your fullness. This is the moderate scenario. Hisham narrated what Al-Hassan said “By Allah, I saw people who never ate until they were full, never bought new clothes, and never asked their family to cook them a specific dish. Jafer Ibn Hayan said “ The believer never eats to the full”.

Al-Thawry said “There are two attributes which harden the heart; too-much eating and too-much talking”. Makhul stated that there are three attributes which Allah loves and other three which Allah hates. The ones Allah loves are less eating, less sleeping and less talking. The ones Allah hates are too-much eating, too-much talking and too-much sleeping.

Sleeping

Too-much sleeping involves forgetfulness, insanity, lack of intelligence, and absence of the heart. These things cause regret in the hereafter. The prophet- peace be upon him- said “ Om Soliman Ibn Dawoud said to her son; My son, don’t sleep much at night, because too-much sleeping leaves the servant poor in the day of judgement.” It has been said that there were some Israelites worshipping God. Whenever their dinner was served, their most knowable guy stood up saying “You seekers, don’t eat much, so drink much, so sleep much, so lose much”.  Some ancestors used to say that the last things a believer does are sleeping and eating, whereas the most things a hypocrite does are sleeping and eating. Someone asked a wise philosopher to tell him how to sleep during the day. He replied “you are insane. You already spend half of your life sleeping and sleeping is death.  Do you want to spend three quarters of it dead?”  He asked “how?” He replied “If you live 40 years, they are actually 20. Do you want them to be 10?”

Too-much Talking

Too-much talking implies lack of faith and long judgment in the hereafter, because talking is the key of the big sins of the tongue. It contains backbiting, false testimony, accusing believing women in their chastity, and being nosy.  There is a saying “most of man’s sins are committed by his tongue.  Nosy people have the most sins in the Day of Judgment”.  Tongue can say lies and be hypocrite. Tongue makes seeker’s heart distracted and puts him in a lower rank. Ibn Abbas advised Mujahed “Don’t accompany the patient or the insane. The patient will be displeased with you and the insane will harm you”. There is a saying “One can say a word which he does not pay attention to. This word can throw him in hell in the hereafter”.  Loqman said to his son “It is better for you to be mute than to be nosy”. Who starts a bad word, and caused people to get into it, will be responsible for all their sins. It is also believed that only bad people always say bad things.  It has been said that Ibrahim Ibn Adam never accompanies someone who says bad things. In a Hadeeth “Who says what he sees or hears, Allah writes him as someone who likes bad deeds to spread among believers”

It has been narrated that Al-Imam Ali said "Whoever spreads bad deeds is like whoever has done them". It has been narrated that one martyred. His mother said "Congratulations for the paradise. You fought for Allah and died for His sake". The prophet relied "How do you know he is in the paradise? he may have been nosy and cheap". Once, prophet's companions described someone as sleepy. The prophet said "you have backbited your brother. Go and ask him for forgiveness". In another story, Aisha described a woman as short. Prophet Mohamed told her that she backbited her. Other said that he said "You uttered a word if mixed with the sea water, the sea water
will be mingled". This exaggeration to show how ugly backbiting is. In a hadeeth, "whoever says what is in his brother, has backbited him"

to be continued ...

Written by A Murid seeking sincerity

Translated by Nahed.

Whoever wants to get more about this, can browse the pages of Sufism in the official site of tariqa Burhaniya.

The Editors Team