Sufis:Love of God

1
SufisLove of God His Creation

Ahmed Mirza M.D.
Naqshbandiya Foundation for Islamic
Education

2
Divine Love

• The essence of God is love and The Sufi Path is
  path of love.  Love is to see what is good and
  beautiful in everything. It is to learn from
  everything, to see the gifts of God and the
  generosity of God in everything. It is to be
  thankful for all all God's bounties.This is the
  first step on the road to the love of God. This
  is just a seed of love. In time, the seed will
  grow and become a tree and bear fruit. Then,
  whoever tastes of that fruit will know what real
  love is. It will be differently for those who
  have tasted to tell of it to those who have
  not.        Muzaffer Ashki al-Halveti
  al-Jerrahi (1916-1985)

3
Premordial Covent

• And when your Lord brought forth from the
  children of Adam, from their backs, their
  descendants, and made them bear witness against
  their own souls Am I not your Lord? They said
  Yes! we bear witness. Lest you should say on the
  day of resurrection Surely we were heedless of
  this. Quran 7172,Shakir

4
Hadith Qudsi

• I was a Hidden Treasure,and loved to be known
  intimately,so I created the Heavens and the
  Earth,so that they may come to intimately know
  me.

5
SufisLove ofGodHis Creation

• All people are the children of God on earth
• Oh God! I bear witness that all Thy 
  creatures are brothersHadith 
• Why this meaningless talk about the believer,
• the kafir, the obedient, the sinner,
• the rightly guided, the misdirected, the
  Muslim,
• the pious, the infidel, the fire worshipper?
• All are like beads in a rosary.
• Abdul Quddus of Gangoh

6
SufisLove of GodCreation

• Adopt the ways of God
• To reflect in ones own thought and activity the
  attributes of God.
• Higher spiritual life is nothing but service
  of humanity, It is not (chanting) the rosary,
  (remaining on the) prayer carpet or (wearing)
  coarse garments.Nizamuddin
• To identy service of God with the service of
  man

7
SufisLove of GodCreation

• Unity of Divine Revelation. Say We make no
  difference between them (prophets of God)
  Quran378
• All these religions and faiths are branches of
  the same tree,They have sprouted from one and the
  same root.Shah Niaz Ahmad
• Learn from the eyes the way to develop,unity and
  oneness.The two eyes appear different
• but their vision is one.

8
Rabi'a al-'Adawiyya (717 - 801 AD)

• O Lord,Whatever share of this worldYou
  could give to me,Give it to Your
  enemiesWhatever share of the next world You
  want to give to me,Give it to Your friends.You
  are enough for me.

• O Lord, If I worship YouFrom fear of Hell, burn
  me in Hell.
• O Lord, If I worship YouFrom hope of Paradise,
  bar me from its gates.
• But if I worship You for Yourself aloneThen
  grace me forever the splendor of Your Face

9
Rabi'a al-'Adawiyya

•  Rabia a Sufi saint woman, was asked, "Do you
  love God?"She answered, "Yes.""Do you hate the
  devils?"She answered, "No, my love of God
  leaves me no time to hate the devil.
• You talk about loving God while you disobey
  HimI swear by my life that this is something
  very strange.If you were truthful in your love,
  you would obey Him,For a lover obeys whom he
  loves.

10
Sheikh Ansari Jabir ibn 'Abdullah al-Ansari
(1006-1089)

• 'Where Are You?'
• O God,You are the aim of the call of the
  sincere,          You enlighten the souls of the
  friends, (and)          You are the comfort of
  the hearts of the travellers---          because
  You are present in the very soul.
• I call out, from emotion          "Where are
  you?"

• You are the life of the soul,          You are
  the rule (ayin) of speech, (and)          You
  are Your own interpreter (tarjaman).
• For the sake of Your obligation to
  Yourself,          do not enter us into the
  shade of deception, (but)           make us
  reach union (wisal) with You.

11
Al-Ghazali

• Abu Hamid al-Ghazali (450-505 AH/1058-1111
  AD) aka Algazel is one of the great jurists,
  theologians and mystics of the 12th Century. He
  wrote on a wide range of topics including
  jurisprudence, theology, mysticism and philosophy
• Ghazali.org

• InfluencedFakhruddin Razi, Maimonides
  Thomas Aquinas, Raymund Martin, Nicholas of
  Autrecourt, Shah Waliullah Abdul-Qader Bedil

12
Sanai (1118-1152)

• Don't speak of your suffering -- He is
  speaking.Don't look for Him everywhere -- He's
  looking for you.An ant's foot touches a leaf,
  He senses itA pebble shifts in a streambed, He
  knows it.

• If there's a worm hidden deep in a rock,He'll
  know its body, tinier than an atom,The sound of
  its praise, its secret ecstasy --All this He
  knows by divine knowing.He has given the
  tiniest worm its foodHe has opened to you the
  Way of the Holy Ones.

13
Attar (1119 - 1230)

• From each, Love demands a mystic silence. What
  do all seek so earnestly? Tis Love. Love is the
  subject of their inmost thoughts, In Love no
  longer "Thou" and "I" exist, For self has passed
  away in the Beloved.

• Now will I draw aside the veil from Love, And in
  the temple of mine inmost soul Behold the
  Friend, Incomparable Love. He who would know the
  secret of both worlds Will find that the secret
  of them both is Love

14
Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi

• Mystic, philosopher, poet, sage, world's great
  spiritual teachers.Muhyiddin (Revivifier of
  Religion)Shaykh al-Akbar (Greatest Master), born
  1165 AD in Spain, the centre of an extraordinary
  flourishing and cross-fertilization of Jewish,
  Christian and Islamic thought, through which the
  major scientific and philosophical works of
  antiquity were transmitted to Northern Europe.
  Ibn 'Arabi's spiritual attainments were evident
  from an early age, and he was renowned for his
  great visionary capacity as well as being a
  superlative teacher. He travelled extensively in
  the Islamic world and died in Damascus in 1240
  AD. (The Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi Society)

15
Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi

• 
  350 works
• Fusûs al-Hikam, an exposition of the inner
  meaning of the wisdom of the prophets in the
  Judaic/ Christian/ Islamic line
• ,
• Futûhât al-Makkiyya, encyclopaedia of spiritual
  knowledge which unites and distinguishes the
  three strands of tradition, reason and mystical
  insight.
• Diwân and Tarjumân al-Ashwâq poetry in the Arabic
  language.
• These extensive writings provide a beautiful
  exposition of the Unity of Being, the single and
  indivisible Reality which simultaneously
  transcends and is manifested in all the images of
  the world. Ibn 'Arabi shows how Man, in
  perfection, is the complete image of this Reality
  and how those who truly know their essential
  self, know God.
• (The
  Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi Society)

16
Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi

• It is He who is revealed in every face,
  sought in every sign, gazed upon by every eye,
  worshipped in every object of worship, and
  pursued in the unseen and the visible. Not a
  single one of His creatures can fail to find Him
  in its primordial and original nature

• The movement which is the existence of the
  universe is the movement of love.

17
1207-1273

• Oh!  Supreme Lover!Let me leave aside my
  worries.The flowers are blooming with the
  exultation of your Spirit.By Allah!I long to
  escape the prison of my egoand lose myselfin
  the mountains and the desert.These sad and
  lonely people tire me.I long to revel in the
  drunken frenzy of your loveand feel the strength
  of Rustam in my hands.

• I'm sick of mortal kings.I long to see your
  light.With lamps in handthe sheikhs and mullahs
  roamthe dark alleys of these townsnot finding
  what they seek.You are the Essence of the
  Essence,The intoxication of Love.I long to sing
  your praisesbut stand mutewith the agony of
  wishing in my heart.

18
Rumi ,The Poet of Love

• Gamble everything for love,if youre a true
  human being.If not, leave this
  gathering.Half-heartedness doesnt reach into
  majesty.You set out to find God,but then you
  keep stopping for long periodsat mean-spirited
  roadhouses.

19
Saadi Shirazi (1215-1292)

• How could I ever thank my Friend?No thanks could
  ever begin to be worthy.Every hair of my body is
  a gift from HimHow could I thank Him for each
  hair?Praise that lavish Lord foreverWho from
  nothing conjures all living beings!Who could
  ever describe His goodness?His infinite glory
  lays all praise waste.Look, He has graced you a
  robe of splendorgtFrom childhood's first cries to
  old age!He made you pure in His own image stay
  pure.It is horrible to die blackened by
  sin.Never let dust settle on your mirror's
  shiningLet it once grow dull and it will never
  polish.When you work in the world to earn your
  living

• Do not, for one moment, rely on your own
  strength.Self-worshiper, don't you understand
  anything yet?It is God alone that gives your
  arms their power.If, by your striving, you
  achieve something good,Don't claim the credit
  all for yourselfIt is fate that decides who
  wins and who losesAnd all success streams only
  from the grace of God.In this world you never
  stand by your own strengthIt is the Invisible
  that sustains you every moment.

20
Hafiz of Shiraz (1230-91)

• We are the guardians of His Beauty We are the
  protectorsOf the Sun.There is only one
  reasonWe have followed God into this worldTo
  encourage laughter, freedom, danceAnd love.Let
  a noble cry inside of you speak to
  meSaying,"Hafiz,Don't just sit there on the
  moon tonightDoing nothing -

• Help unfurl my heart into the Friend's
  Mind,Help, Old Man, to heal my wounded
  wings!"We are the companions of His BeautyWe
  are the guardiansOf Truth.Every man, plant and
  creature in Existence,Every woman, child, vein
  and noteIs a servant of our Beloved - A
  harbinger of joy, The harbinger of
  Light.

21
Yunus Emre 1240-1320

• the hill that Moses climbed, the Temple,and
  Israfil's trumpet, we observed in the
  body. Torah, Psalms, Gospel, Quran- what these
  books have to say, we found in the
  body. Everybody says these words of Yunus are
  true. Truth is wherever you want it.We found it
  all within the body.

• We entered the house of realization, we
  witnessed the body.The whirling skies, the
  many-layered earth,the seventy-thousand
  veils, we found in the body.The night and the
  day, the planets, the words inscribed on the
  Holy Tablets,

22
Sa'd al-din Mahmud Shabistari(1250 - 1320)

• 'One Light'
• What are "I" and "You"?Just latticesIn the
  niches of a lampThrough which the One Light
  radiates.
• "I" and "You" are the veilBetween heaven and
  earthLift this veil and you will see How all
  sects and religions are one.

• Lift this veil and you will ask---When "I" and
  "You" do not existWhat is mosque?What is
  synagogue?What is fire temple?

23
AMIR KHUSRO (Parrot of Hind) (1253 A.D. to
1325 A.D.)

• Amir Khusro was a great Sufi, a wealthy
  merchant who once exchanged all his wealth for a
  pair of Nizamuddins shoes,Liguist,artist,prolific
  author,musician,inventor(sitar),composer and a
  true devoted disciple.He was "All-in-One" mixture
  of Divine gifts.

24
Amir KhusroLove of Prophet

• I wonder what was the place where I was last
  night,All around me were half-slaughtered
  victims of love,tossing about in agony.There
  was a nymph-like beloved with cypress-like
  formand tulip-like face,Ruthlessly playing
  havoc with the hearts of the lovers.God himself
  was the master of ceremonies in that heavenly
  court,oh Khusro, where (the face of) the Prophet
  too was shedding lightlike a candle.

25
Amir Khusro-Bargain

• A poor man came to Nizamuddin Aulia asking for
  alms at a time when there was nothing left in the
  khaneqah to be given. The saint expressed his
  helplessness, but pointed to a torn and tattered
  pair of sandals that belonged to him, saying if
  those could be of any help to the poor man, he
  could take them. The faqir, having no choice,
  decided to take them any way, and left. When he
  was on his way to some other city, he met Amir
  Khusrau who was returning from his royal journey
  with camels and horses loaded with wealth.
  Khusrau sensed something odd as he met this man,
  and told him "Bu-e Shaikh mi aayad, Bu-e Shaikh
  mi aayad". (I smell my master, I smell my
  master). This man dejectedly told him the story
  about how he could only get these sandals from
  Nizamuddin Aulia.
• It is said that Khusrau after seeing his pir's
  belongings decided to trade his entire entourage
  of wealth for this pair of sandals, placed them
  on his head and came rushing to see Nizamuddin
  Aulia. His pir saw the sandals and asked Khusrau
  how he found them. When Khusrau told him about
  the price he has paid for them, Nizamuddin Aulia
  said, "Arzaan khareedi". (Well, you 've got them
  quite cheap).

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Amir Khusro-Risking Faith

• Sultan Jalaluddin Khilji once expressed to
  Khusro his desire to meet Nizamuddin Aulia but
  asked him not to disclose his plan to the saint.
  Khusro was perplexed in the beginning, but
  finally couldnt keep his promise and told
  Nizamuddin Aulia about Sultans desire. His pir
  who did not wish to meet the king left the
  Khanqah for a far away place on the fixed day.
  When the Sultan came to know about this, he asked
  Khusro why he betrayed him. Khusro replied that
  in betraying the king he risked only his life in
  this world, but in betraying his spiritual king
  he would be risking his Iman (faith), and his
  afterlife. The Sultan was left speechless.

27
Jami (1414-92)

• Whether your destiny is glory or disgrace,Purify
  yourself of hatred and love of self.Polish your
  mirror and that sublime BeautyFrom the regions
  of mysteryWill flame out in your heartAs it did
  for the saints and prophets.Then, with your
  heart on fire with that Splendor, The secret of
  the Beloved will no longer be hidden.

28
Jami

•   If Love manifests itself within you, it has
  its origins in beauty. You are nothing but a
  mirrorin which beauty is reflected. Because
  beauty and its reflection are both from that One
  Source,it is both treasure and
  treasure-house.                                 
                    Jami

29
KabirSufism

• O SERVANT, where dost thou seek Me?Lo! I am
  beside thee.I am neither in temple nor in
  mosque I am neither in Kaaba nor in
  KailashNeither am I in rites and ceremonies,
  nor in Yoga and renunciation.If thou art a true
  seeker, thou shalt at once see Me thou shalt
  meet Me in a moment of time.Kabîr says, "O
  Sadhu! God is the breath of all breath.

• Kabir(1440-1518) a medieval mystic poet and
  religious synthesist, Kabir was the link between
  Hindu Bhakti and Islamic Sufism (mysticism),
  which had gained a large following among Indian
  Muslims. Sufis (mystics) also believed in singing
  hymns and in meditation under guidance of a
  leader. They welcomed non-Muslims in their
  hospices. Sikhism drew inspiration from both
  Bhaktas and Sufis.

30
Sufi Princess-Jahanara

• Jahanara ( 1614-1681) daughter of the
  Emperor Shahjahan, wrote a biography of her Sufi
  mentor  Mulla Shah , biographical  account of the
  famous  Sufi of  Ajmer,  Moin al-Din Chishty (d.
  1236). In The Confidant of Spirits the
  Princess  uses the word faqiraSufi
  woman.            

• Praise  be to God as I attained the happiness of
  pilgrimage to the illuminated and perfumed tomb
  of the revered saving master. I went to the holy
  sanctuary and rubbed my pale face on the dust of
  the threshold. From the door-way to the blessed
  tomb I went barefoot, kissing the ground. Having
  entered the dome, I went around the light-filled
  tomb of my master seven times, sweeping it with
  my eyelashes, and making the sweet-smelling dust
  of that place the mascara of my eyes.

31
Sufi Prince-Dara Shikoh

• I was enamoured of studying books on the ways of
  the men of the Path and had in my mind nothing
  save the understanding of the Unity of God and
  before this, in a state of ecstasy and
  enthusiasm, I had uttered some words pertaining
  to sublime knowledge, because of which certain
  bigoted and narrow-minded people accused me of
  heresy and apostasy. It was then that I realised
  the importance of compiling the aphorisms of
  great believers in the Unity of God and the
  sayings of saints who have, hitherto,
  acquiredknowledge of Reality, so that these may
  serve as an argument against those who are really
  imposters

• Dara Shikoh(1615-1659), eldest son of the Shah
  Jahan .Hebecame disciple of Mian Mir(d.1635),a
  Qadiriya Sufi of Lahore who laid foundation stone
  of Golden Temple,holiest shrine of sikhs. Dara
  called Qadri Sufi Orderthe best path of reaching
  DivinityHe established bridges of understanding
  between IslamHinduism.
• BooksSirr ul Akbar(the great secret)Persian
  Translation of Upanishad, Sakinat
  ul-Aulia,Safinat ul-Aulia Risala-i Haq Numa, the
  Tariqat ul-Haqiqat, the Hasanat ul-'Arifin ,
  Iksir-i 'Azam. Majma ul-Bahrain,Mukalama-i Baba
  Lal Das wa Dara Shikoh, the Sirr-i Akbar and his
  Persiantranslations of the Yoga Vashishta and
  the Gita.

32
KHWAJA NIZAMUDDIN AULIA RA (d.725 /1323)

• Sultan-ul-Mashaikh (Leader of Sufi
  Sanits)Mehboob-e-Elahi (Beloved of Allah).most
  distinguished scholar imparting lessons in
  Humanity, Truth,Love,Charityand Piety.His
  Khanqahis revered by all faiths,Hindus,SikhsMusli
  ms.
• Three essential elements for the Sufi dervish
  Love, Wisdom, and GnosisNizam
• Baba Farid, said to him "Be like a big tree, so
  that Allah's creation, the human beings in their
  vast multitudes, may find rest and solace under
  your shadow."

33
Hasan Kaimi-Bosnian Mystic (d.1691)

• O seeker of truth, it is your heart's eye you
  must open. Know the Divine Unity today, through
  the path of love for Him. If you object 'I am
  waiting for my mind to grasp His nature', Know
  the Divine Unity today, through the path of love
  for Him.  
• Should you wish to behold the visage of
  God, Surrender to Him, and invoke His
  names, When your soul is clear a light of true
  joy shall shine. Know the Divine Unity today,
  through the path of love for Him. 

34
Bulleh Shah

• Baba Bulleh Shah (1680-1758) was the great
  humanist, philosopher, rebel, internationalist,
  teacher and Sufi poet of all times,was the
  disciple of Enayat Shah Lahori, who himself was a
  great Sufi of his time

35
Bulleh Shah-
Tere Ishq Nachaya

• Mother do not bar me from this love.Whoever
  turns back unloaded boats that have left?How
  foolish I was, not going with the
  boatman.Compelled by love I dance, I dance.
• Peacocks sing in the groves of love.My
  beautiful beloved is my Kaba, my Qibla.He
  injured me, then turned away.Compelled by love I
  dance, I dance.
• Bullhe Shah, I sit at Inayats door,He
  clothed me in robes of green and red.When I
  stamped my heel, I found him.Compelled by love I
  dance, I dance.

• O Physician, come back! my life is ebbing
  away.Compelled by love, I dance, I dance.
• This love has set up camp inside me.It is
  I, who filled the cup with this poison and drank
  it.Come back right away, else, I will surely
  die.Compelled by love, I dance, I dance.
• The sun has set, its glow remains.Grant me
  a sight of you again! I would die for it!What a
  mistake I made, not going with you.Compelled by
  love I dance, I dance.