General / Miscellaneous - Beliefs | |||
Normal 0 false false false EN-ZA X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:3.7pt; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; text-align:right; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-ansi-language:EN-ZA;} Q: 172 ? Title: My question is regarding sufism, i have all the love and respect for the science of tassawuf, but ive been a bit confused, i just want to know why do they whirl and dance and do other unusual things?? is this allowed? Question My question is regarding sufism, i have all the love and respect for the science of tassawuf, but ive been a bit confused, i just want to know why do they whirl and dance and do other unusual things?? is this allowed? and what is a tariqa?? and why do they have them? and what is a hadra? and are there any deviencies in some sufi tariqa's? what about the naqshbandi?? and if one were to study tassawuf how would i know if what there doing devient? my biggest fear is doing something that puts me out of the fold of islam. Answer In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful Assalaamu `alaykum waRahmatullahi Wabarakatuh Alhamdulillah, we are pleased to receive your question regarding Tasawwuf and delighted to learn of your enthusiasm to learn about this blessed discipline. The word Tar?qah linguistically means ?manner? or ?method? and in reference to the field of Tasawwuf, it refers to a school or order, e.g. the Chisht? Tar?qah, Naqshband? Tar?qah, Sh?dhil? Tar?qah etc. Tariqah in relation to Tasawwuf is analogous to the word ?madhhab? in relation to the schools of Fiqh. The science of Fiqh concerns itself with the external injunctions and regulations pertaining to things such as sal?h, fasting, stealing, interest etc., and the science of Tasawwuf concerns itself with the internal injunctions and regulations pertaining to things such as praiseworthy qualities, e.g. gratefulness, patience, sincerity etc. and reprehensible qualities, e.g. pride, ostentation and greed etc. In essence, the goal of all the Tar?qahs is one and the same, namely to cure spiritual maladies of the heart, elevate the spiritual status and ultimately gain closeness to Allah; the dissimilarities of the various Tar?qahs mainly revolve around the difference of approach towards achieving this objective. Some Tar?qahs implement one set of spiritual exercises whilst other Tar?qahs implement a different set of exercises. Some differences in spiritual exercises stem from the differences of the Madh?hib of the Shuy?kh of each Tar?qah. Considering the fact that the Shuy?kh of Tasawwuf adhere strictly to the letter of the law, each Tar?qah will differ in exercises of dhikr as well. This will be discussed later. At present, it should suffice to understand that this science pertains to the abstract metaphysical internal element of the soul, thus there exists many seemingly unusual practices and exercises prescribed by the Shuy?kh to address such matters. These exercises were implemented to kindle the burning love of Allah in the heart cleansing it from the rust caused by the passions of the ephemeral Dunya and all that towards which the lower self calls. Dhikr is the nourishment and sustenance of the soul. Just as there are various types of food with varying nutritional benefits, similarly, the various types of dhikr prescribed by the Shuy?kh affect the spirit of a person in diverse ways. The field of Tasawwuf is usually likened to the field of medicine. Throughout history, man has discovered cures to various physical maladies, so to have the Shuy?kh, the spiritual doctors, discovered cures for spiritual maladies. Some of the practices and cures are mentioned in the Qur'?n, some in the Ahad?th, and others have been discovered through the institution of tajrubah (personal experience). Generation after generation, the Shuy?kh of Tasawwuf have dedicated their lives to this field, therefore, they know the effects of various adhk?r upon the heart and soul. To those unfamiliar with Tasawwuf, such exercises may seem extremely peculiar and unusual. It is understandable for people to feel uncomfortable and queasy during their first experience with such exercises. However, to repel this discomfort, one should bear in mind that the Shuy?kh don?t claim that these adhk?r and spiritual exercises are new forms of worship where it would be classified as an innovation (bid?ah) in D?n. Only those bereft of the understanding of Fiqh and the subtleties of D?n make such professions. These spiritual prescriptions should be seen and regarded as a form of treatment (tad?w?) for the sicknesses of the heart. Just as the physical body must be put through certain therapeutic exercises for the benefit and rejuvenation of the body, so to do the Shuy?kh put the spiritual patient under various exercises to strengthen and treat the soul. To give you some examples of such exercises, the famous Had?th of Ras?lullah ??? ???? ???? ? ??? describes the various stages of a believer, from Islam, to Im?n to Ihsan.
???? : ?????????? ??? ?????????? ? ??? : (( ??? ??????? ????? ??????? ?????? ? ???? ???? ?????? ?????? ??????? ????? )) .
From this Had?th we come to know that there is an extremely high spiritual position known as Ihs?n. The question that arises is that how does a person reach such a status. The next question that arises is to whom should one go in order to learn how to attain it. If a person goes to a Muhaddith, his field and preoccupation is to merely to tell the questioner whether the Had?th is Sah?h, Hasan, Dha??f, how many chains of narration exist for the Had?th, and which narrators transmitted the Had?th etc. In regards to the meaning of the Had?th, at best, they could offer only a literal translation. If a person goes to a Faq?h, he would only explain the various rulings that could be extracted from the Had?th as it pertains to the external injunctions of the Shar??ah. The Faq?h too could not advise the questioner how to attain such a status nor the reality of such a position because such a question does not pertain to his field of expertise. If a person wants to learn the reality of this spiritual position and experience it, he will have to go to a person who has himself reached it. He will have to go to such a person who has dedicated his life in perfecting his internal attributes and character. Only that person who has already reached the destination can direct the lost seeker to it. To acquire this state, some of the Shuy?kh advise the Mur?d to sit in solitude and absolute silence with full concentration and in a state of wudh?, whilst closing his eyes, constantly repeating and deeply pondering over the verse, ] ?????? ???????? ??????? ??????? ????? [ ?Does he not know that Allah is watching?
After continual practice, the M?r?d will ultimately establish the understanding and perception that Allah is watching him at all times, whether he is walking, talking, eating, praying etc. Only after exercising great patience and perseverance in acting upon the prescription of his Shaykh and continuously informing the Shaykh of his conditions and states will he understand and experience the quality of Ihs?n. Other peculiar forms of spiritual exercises include making loud dhikr with bodily motion whether standing, as in the case of hadrah as performed by the Shadhil?s, or sitting, as performed by the Chisht?s. Other exercises include certain breathing exercises like p?s anf?s as performed by the Chisht?s and various forms of mur?qabah (meditation) as done by the Naqshband?s etc. The inherent permissibility or impermissibility of some of these exercises will rest upon the differences of the various Madh?hib since some of these practices cross the boundary of a mere internal metaphysical sphere to the externally physical; thus, falling under the jurisdiction of the Fuqah??. To present a brief example, the practice of hadrah, a type of spiritual bodily movement similar to swaying that some refer to dancing coupled with loud dhikr, is permissible for the followers of the Sh?fi?? Madhhab since according to their ?Ulam? and Madhhab dancing is permissible with certain conditions. ?????? ??? ???? ???? ???? ???????? ??? ??? ???? ???? ???? ??? ?????? ?????? ??? ???? ??? ?????? ??? ?????? ??????? ?????? ????? ???? ???? ????? ??? ??????? ?? ?????? ???? ??????? ???? ??? ??? ?????? ???????? ???????? ?? ????? ??? ????? ???? ?????? ???? ?????? ???????? ?????? ????? ?????? ??? ??? ??? ? ????????? ??? ????????? ???????????????? ??????? ?????? ?? ?????????? ????????? ???????? ????????? ??????????????? (???? ??????? ?? ??? ??? ?????? ? 4 ? 346? ???????) ( ???? ????? ????? ??? ???? ????? ?????? ????? ????? ???????? ?? ?? ??? ??? ???? ????? ?????? ????? ?? ???????? ??? ??? ?? ????? ??????? ??????? ????? ?? ?? ????? ?????? ) ? ??? ????? ?? ?? ????? ??? ???????? ??????? ?? ???? ??????? ( ????? ) ??? ??????? ( ???? ???? ) ????? ????? ( ??? ??????? ?????? ????? ) ??? ??? ?? ??? ??? ???? ( ????? ???? ) ????? ????? ????? ??? ??????? ?????? ??????? ( ????? ) ?????? ?????? ( ???? ??????? ) ?????? ??? ???? ????? ?????? ??????? ??? ????? ( ????? ) ?????? ???? ( ??? ??????? ?? ?????? ?? ?????? ??? ???? ?? ?? ??? ??? ???? ? ??? ??? ?? ????? ??? ???? ????? ???? ???? ?? ) ???????? ( ?????? ?? ?? ?????? ???? ???? ????? ??? ??? ???? ???????? ) ???? ????? . (????? ??????? ?? ??? ????? ?????? ?????? ????? ? 4 ? 139 ????? ?????? ??????)
And Allah knows best Wassalam u Alaikum Darul Iftaa, Madrassah In'aamiyyah
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