SUFI SEMINARS AND WORKSHOPS IN POLAND
The Message of Traditional Sufism as developed in Poland and Europe by the Sufi Mystic Pir-ul-Mulkh Ahmad Ofiel Chishty. Sufi does not bring theories or doctrines to add to those already existing, which puzzle the human mind. What the world needs today is the message of truth, harmony, and beauty, the absence of which is the only tragedy of life. We can achieve illumination in life, and by combining spiritual practices and guidance from our dreams and a knowledge of the alchemical transformation process, we can significantly enhance the experience of awakening in everyday life. Retreats with Pir-ul-Mulkh will focus on sufi spiritual practices of awakening, teaching on the spiritual angelic planes (spheres) and how dreams reveal both the presence of the planes we are traversing, as well as the psychological struggles we have to go through, in order to progress…
Pir-ul-Mulkh Ahmad Ofiel Chishty has been a teacher in the Sufi Order of Ajmer and Din-i-Illahi, Akbariya, Rishiyya and Subudhiya Tariqah for many years and is the head general of the Sufi Tariqah for Poland from 1982. He also worked closely with His Pir from Ajmer, Kaszmir and with Pir Buzurg from Persia. Pir-ul-Mulkh presents in his seminars a broad range of themes that integrate psychological and spiritual dimensions with the intention of making the deepest teachings accessible and relevant. Pir Ahmad Ofiel Chishty is the founder of a minimum tree-year training in Spiritual Guidance and leads seminars and trainings in Sufi Psychology and Spirituality in Eastern Europe, particularly in Poland. His gift for the art of storytelling and good humor is woven through all his presentations. Pir-ul-Mulkh leads an esoteric school of the Sufism in the classical Indian tradition of the Chishtiyya and in addition to the interfaith mystical training, even as expert of pure Orphic spirituality…
The Rishi Order, Rishiyya Tariqa of Kashmir and Jammu or Silsila Rishian is a Sufi tradition associated with religious harmony. Many of the saints and masters held dear by Kashmiris to this day were Sufi Rishis. The candle of religion is lit by the Rishis, they are the pioneers of the path of belief. The heart-warming quality of humble souls emanates from the inner purity of the hearts of the Rishis. This vale of Kashmir, that you call a paradise, owes a lot of its charm to the traditions set in vogue by the Rishis. The original Rishi Sufis were focused on long term and deep seclusion and emphasis on meditation (muraqabah). Kashmiris use the Hindu epithets Rishi or Baba to describe Sufi saints (ValiRishi, ValeBaba). The original Rishis include Sheikh Noor-ud-din Wali also known as Nund Rishi, Resh Mir Sàeb or Baba Nasib-ud-din Ghazi. The shrine to Nund Rishi stands at Charar-e-Sharief, near Srinagar. The Rishi order evolved in the valley itself indigenously in the beginning of the fifteenth century based on Suharwardi, Kubravi, Naqshbandi and Quadri, arrived in Kashmir from Persia, Central Asia, and Central and North India.
Akbariyya is a branch of Sufi metaphysics based on Andalusian Sufi gnostic and philosopher Ibn Arabi's (1165–1240) teaching known as Shaykh al-Akbar, meaning "the greatest shaykh". There had and have been many Akbarian Sufis, metaphysicians and philosophers in history from all over the world. Declared and developed a Sufi metaphysics called Wahdat al-Wujud and those Sufis who are members of different orders but they accepted same metaphysical point of view which was Wahdat al-Wujud are traditional and informal Akbariya Tariqah. Wahdat al-Wajud the "Unity of Being" is a Sufi philosophy emphasizing that 'there is no true existence except the Ultimate Truth (God)'.
Also the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605, Shahinshah Jelaluddin Akbar I promulgated Din-i-Ilahi (The Uniwersal Worship or Religious Light Unity, lit. "Religion of God") or Tawhid-i-Ilāhī ("divine monotheism") as Akbariyya Tariqah centered on Akbar as a prophet. In 1575, he built a hall called the Ibadat Khana ("House of Worship") at Fatehpur Sikri for the religious unity. Akbar was succeeded as emperor by his son, Prince Salim, later known as Jahangir. Jelaluddin Akbar promoted tolerance of other faiths and ideal of spiritual unity of main religions like: Islam and Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity, Jainism, Sikhism. From the Ibādat Khāna, Shahinshah Akbar concluded that no single religion could claim the monopoly of truth. There were more than twenty initiated disciples of Dīn-i Ilāhī during emperor Akbar the Great's time who started this misterious and the most secret silsila (lineage), and among tham famous Sufi Ahmad.
The Rishi Order, Rishiyya Tariqa of Kashmir and Jammu or Silsila Rishian is a Sufi tradition associated with religious harmony. Many of the saints and masters held dear by Kashmiris to this day were Sufi Rishis. The candle of religion is lit by the Rishis, they are the pioneers of the path of belief. The heart-warming quality of humble souls emanates from the inner purity of the hearts of the Rishis. This vale of Kashmir, that you call a paradise, owes a lot of its charm to the traditions set in vogue by the Rishis. The original Rishi Sufis were focused on long term and deep seclusion and emphasis on meditation (muraqabah). Kashmiris use the Hindu epithets Rishi or Baba to describe Sufi saints (ValiRishi, ValeBaba). The original Rishis include Sheikh Noor-ud-din Wali also known as Nund Rishi, Resh Mir Sàeb or Baba Nasib-ud-din Ghazi. The shrine to Nund Rishi stands at Charar-e-Sharief, near Srinagar. The Rishi order evolved in the valley itself indigenously in the beginning of the fifteenth century based on Suharwardi, Kubravi, Naqshbandi and Quadri, arrived in Kashmir from Persia, Central Asia, and Central and North India.
Akbariyya is a branch of Sufi metaphysics based on Andalusian Sufi gnostic and philosopher Ibn Arabi's (1165–1240) teaching known as Shaykh al-Akbar, meaning "the greatest shaykh". There had and have been many Akbarian Sufis, metaphysicians and philosophers in history from all over the world. Declared and developed a Sufi metaphysics called Wahdat al-Wujud and those Sufis who are members of different orders but they accepted same metaphysical point of view which was Wahdat al-Wujud are traditional and informal Akbariya Tariqah. Wahdat al-Wajud the "Unity of Being" is a Sufi philosophy emphasizing that 'there is no true existence except the Ultimate Truth (God)'.
Also the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605, Shahinshah Jelaluddin Akbar I promulgated Din-i-Ilahi (The Uniwersal Worship or Religious Light Unity, lit. "Religion of God") or Tawhid-i-Ilāhī ("divine monotheism") as Akbariyya Tariqah centered on Akbar as a prophet. In 1575, he built a hall called the Ibadat Khana ("House of Worship") at Fatehpur Sikri for the religious unity. Akbar was succeeded as emperor by his son, Prince Salim, later known as Jahangir. Jelaluddin Akbar promoted tolerance of other faiths and ideal of spiritual unity of main religions like: Islam and Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity, Jainism, Sikhism. From the Ibādat Khāna, Shahinshah Akbar concluded that no single religion could claim the monopoly of truth. There were more than twenty initiated disciples of Dīn-i Ilāhī during emperor Akbar the Great's time who started this misterious and the most secret silsila (lineage), and among tham famous Sufi Ahmad.
In such training with Pir-ul-Mulkh Sufi Ahmad Ofiel we will explore different meditation techniques and their effect both on retreat and daily life. We will learn and practise ways of finding the right practices for the various attunements, states, and problems of life. More than anything else this requires intuition and our ability to communicate in a profound way. Therefore face-to-face practices will be the main part of Sufi training. Such nine days week’s work may help us to open and broaden our own access to the Spiritual World, to discover our own being in those planes, and learning to really use its potentials and capacities, to become more capable of helping all those who, like ourselves, walk the Path of the Great Liberation…
Transforming the personality is an art that can bring so much joy and fulfillment to each of us. In most people, the development of the personality is an unconscious reactive process, affected by childhood patterns, cultural norms, genealogy, and characteristics carried into this world. We as Sufi Murids have both the opportunity and the duty to mold and transform our personality to make it a vehicle for the expression of our soul, rather than just an expression of limited unconscious desires. We can initiate and enhance this process of transformation by using the tools of meditation, self-reflection, movement and sound, ceremony and prayer, and expanding our emotional awareness. By raising our consciousness to a state of ecstasy, the illumined and natural personality emerges, we feel comfort with our self, and our daily life is fundamentally changed…
Our beautiful space for group and individual retreats with wasifas, dhikr and fikr, with muraqabah in the magnificient nature of the Polish mountain. During the 4-9 days from weekend to weekend of the program you will be guided through a deep transformational process to discover a new who you truly are. Pir-ul-Mulkh humor, compassion, love and wisdom touch a deep place in his many students and friends…
We hope you will join us, participating in one of the weekend or ninedays workshops with Sufi alchemy, Sufi dreamwork, Sufi healing, Sufi psychotherapy, Sufi sacret chants, Sufi dances, Sufi esoterism and much more…
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Classical Sufis were characterised by their attachment to dhikr - a practice of repeating the names of God, often performed after prayers and asceticism. Sufis have spanned several continents and cultures over a millennium, originally expressing their beliefs in Arabic, before spreading into Persian, Turkish, Indian languages like Urdu and a dozen other languages. Sufis believe they are practicing ihsan (perfection of worship) as revealed by Gabriel to Muhammad: "Worship and serve Allah as you are seeing Him and while you see Him not yet truly He sees you". A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a ṣūfī (صُوفِيّ). They belong to different ṭuruq or "orders"—congregations formed around a master—which meet for spiritual sessions (majalis), in meeting places known as zawiyahs, khanqahs, or tekke. Classical Sufi scholars have defined Sufism as "a science whose objective is the reparation of the heart and turning it away from all else but God". Sufism is recntly very agressivly opposed by Wahhabi and Salafist Muslims, even in India.
Eminent Sufis such as Ali Hujwiri claim that the tradition first began with Ali ibn Abi Talib furthermore Junayd of Baghdad regarded Ali as the Sheikh of the principals and practices of Sufism. Sufism had a long history already before the subsequent institutionalization of Sufi teachings into devotional orders (tarîqât) in the early Middle Ages. According to late Medieval mystic Jami, Abd-Allah ibn Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah was the first person to be called a "Sufi." Sufism has contributed significantly to the elaboration of theoretical perspectives in many domains of intellectual endeavor. For instance, the doctrine of "subtle centers" or centers of subtle cognition (known as Lataif-e-sitta) addresses the matter of the awakening of spiritual intuition. Sufi psychology has influenced many areas of thinking both within and outside of Islam, drawing primarily upon three concepts. Ja'far al-Sadiq - both an imam in the Shia tradition and a respected scholar and link in chains of Sufi transmission in all eastern groups - held that human beings are dominated by a lower self called the nafs, a faculty of spiritual intuition called the qalb or spiritual heart, and a spirit or soul called ruh. These interact in various ways, producing the spiritual types of the tyrant (dominated by nafs), the person of faith and moderation (dominated by the spiritual heart), and the person lost in love for God (dominated by the ruh).
Divine Magic, White Magic has also been a part of Sufi practice, notably in India and Pakistani. This practice intensified during the declining years of Sufism in India when the Sufi orders grew steadily in wealth and in political influence while their spirituality gradually declined as they concentrated on Saint worship, miracle working, magic and superstition. The external religious practices were neglected, morals declined and learning was despised. The element of magic in Sufism in India possibly drew from the occult practices in the Atharvaveda. The most famous of all Sufis, Mansur Al-Hallaj (d. 922), visited Sindh in order to study "Indian Magic". He not only accepted Hindu ideas of cosmogony and of divine descent but he also seems to have believed in the Transmigration of the soul.
The Chishtī Order - in Persian: چشتی - Čištī, in Arabic: ششتى - Shishti, is a Sufi order within the mystic Sufi tradition of India. It began in Chisht, a small town near Herat, Afghanistan about 930 CE. The Chishti Order is known for its emphasis on love, tolerance, and openness. The Chishti Order is primarily followed in Afghanistan and South Asia. It was the first of the four main Sufi orders (Chishti, Qadiriyya, Suhrawardiyya and Naqshbandi) to be established in this region. Hazrat Moinuddin Chishti introduced the Chishti Order in Lahore (Punjab) and Ajmer (Rajasthan), sometime in the middle of the 12th century AD. He was eighth in the line of succession from the founder of the Chishti Order, Hazrat Abu Ishq Shami (d. 940, founder of the Chishti order proper).
There are now several branches of the order, which has been the most prominent South Asian Sufi brotherhood since the 12th century. In the last century, the order has spread outside Afghanistan and South Asia. Chishti teachers have established centers in the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, South Africa and in Poland (Europe). The Chishti are perhaps best known for the welcome extended to seekers who belong to other religions. Chishti shrines in South Asia are open to all faiths and attract great crowds to their festivals.
Chishti practice is also notable for sama: evoking the divine presence through song or listening to music. The Chishti, as well as some other Sufi orders, believe that music can help devotees forget self in the love of Allah. The music usually heard at Chisti shrines and festivals is qawwali. The Chishtis follow five basic devotional practices (dhikr):
* Reciting the names of Allāh God loudly, sitting in the prescribed posture at prescribed times (jhikr-i djahr);
* Reciting the names of Allāh God silently (jhikr-i khafī);
* Regulating the breath (pās-i anfās);
* Absorption in mystic contemplation (murā-ḳāba);
* Forty days of spiritual confinement in a lonely corner or cell for prayer and contemplation (čilla).
Early Chishti shaykhs adopted concepts and doctrines outlined in two influential Sufi texts: the ʿAwārif al-Maʿārif of Shaykh Shihāb al-Dīn Suhrawardī and the Kashf al-Maḥdjūb of Hudjwīrī. These texts are still read and respected today. Chishti also read collections of the sayings, speeches, poems, and letters of the shaykhs. These collections, called malfūẓāt, were prepared by the shaykh's disciples.
The word Sufi is derived from the Arabic word Safa, or Saf, which means, literally, pure, i.e. pure from distinctions and differences. In Greek the word means wise. Sufism cannot be called deism, for the Sufi does not consider God as an entity separate from himself; neither can it be called pantheism, because the Sufi not only sees the immanence of God in nature, but also realizes His Essence in the infinite, naming Him Allah, the Formless, the Colorless. He is neither a believer in the unrealized God nor an unbeliever in the idealized Deity, and thus he is distinguished from godly and ungodly alike. The Sufi is not an atheist, for he denies neither God nor His Messengers.
To the question, "Are you a Christian?", "Are you a Muslim?", "Are you a Jew?", his answer would be yes rather than no, for he opposes no religion, but sympathizes with all. In fact Sufism cannot be called a religion, for it does not impose either belief or principle upon anybody, considering that each individual soul has his own principles best suited for himself, and a belief which changes with each grade of evolution. Sufism is not an intellectual philosophy, because it does not depend merely upon cold reasoning, but develops a devotional tendency in man. Sufism cannot be called occultism, for the Sufi does not give any importance to the investigation of phenomena; seeing the brevity of life he deems that a worthless pursuit; his aim is God alone.
The germ of Sufism is said to have existed from the beginning of the human creation, for wisdom is the heritage of man; therefore no one person can be said to be its propounder. It has been revealed more clearly and spread more widely as from time to time the world has evolved. Sufism as a brotherhood may be traced back as far as the period of Daniel. We find among the Zoroastrians Hatim, the best known Sufi of his time. The chosen ones of God, the salt of the earth, who responded without hesitation to the call of Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Mohammed, were Sufis, and were not only simple followers of a religion, but had insight into divine knowledge. They recognized God's every messenger and united with them all. Before the time of Mohammed they were called Ekuanul Safa, Brothers of Purity, but after his coming they were named by him Sahabi Safa, Knights of Purity. The world has called them Zoroastrian, Christian, Jewish, or Mohammedan mystics, and the followers of each religion have claimed them as their own. For instance, a Christian would claim that Saint Paul was a Christian and a Mohammedan that Shams Tabriz was a Mohammedan. In reality Christ was not a Christian nor was Mohammed a Mohammedan; they were Sufis.
Sufi and Dervish Dances
Sufi Dancing is an uplifting group spiritual practice to cultivate inner peace and harmony, which in turn fosters outer and world peace. The dances are simple circle dances. We set sacred phrases from the world's religions and spiritual traditions to music and we dance using basic folk dance movements. As a moving meditation, or body prayer, Sufi Dancing reveals the unity of all spiritual experience. We gather to embody Spirit, to praise and give thanks, and to offer our prayers for Peace, Love, Harmony and Beauty. From the beginning of time, sacred movement, song and story have brought people together at times of seasonal ceremony and celebration, as part of everyday life and life passages, and in daily renewal and meditation. Sufi Dancing is part of this timeless tradition of Sacred Dance. The Sufi Dances are taught by a sufi dance leader. They are easy to learn, meditative, joyous and open to all. No experience necessary! "Let us eat, dance and pray together." --- says Pir-ul-Mulkh Ofiel Chishty, the head master of Sufis in Poland.
Singing devotional songs, dhikrs or mantras could be truly a mystical and a mysterious experience. We sing devotional songs with deep feelings, and full faith, letting the transcendental beauty, and qualities represented within the words enter our souls. A Sufi’s way of life is to love and be of service to people, deserting the ego or false self and all illusion so that one can reach maturity and perfection, and finally reach Allah, the True, the Real. Through the Whirling Dervishes program we hope to bring to you a hint of one of the remarkable ways of achieving this: the way of Rumi, the great Sufi mystic and poet. The universal values of love and service shared by all Sufis are very much relevant to the social and political realities of today, and this ritual, which is only performed by the Order of the Sufis and Dervishes, has come to symbolize these values in the hearts and minds of millions throughout the world. These dances and walking practices are a form of moving meditation. We seek mystical unity and ecstasy. Come join us; breathe in harmony, chant the sacred phrases, move in rhythm and feel your connection with all of life.
Sufi Dancing or Dervishe Dance is a beautiful Spiritual Practice, a meditation, a mystical journey of spiritual ascent through mind to God’s Love. It originated amongst Sufis (an esoteric dimension of Islam) and it is a dance, done as a ritual and meditation. Rumi was a 13th century Persian Sufi poet and philosopher, who wrote 30.000 verses of poetry about divine love and spiritual bondage. Rumi passionately believed that music, poetry and dance are the path to reach God. It was from his teachings that the practice of Dervish’s dancing became a ritual. A Sufi spins around his centre for many minutes, letting go, abandoning the ego and surrendering to God. Spinning through the space, the dance takes the form of the cosmic rhythm – a spiral. When the Sufi’s arms are crossed he represents the number one, or God as Oness. While whirling, the Dervish’s arms are open: his right arm is directed to the sky ready to receive God's blessings, his left hand is turned toward the earth connecting with it. The dance is a way of training the Dervish's awareness.
For the Sufi, knowledge is metaphysical, and it can be attained only through practice and not through thinking. The Sufi symbolically turns towards the truth, abandons the ego, and arrives at the Perfect. Slowly, as the body sways consciousness also changes, the mind assumes a freedom from the earthly bondage. With this ecstatic dance the Sufi Dancer enters the trance forgetting his Self and becoming united with the Divine Lover. Their dance becomes ecstasy. The Sufi unites with the beloved, and they become the instrument for the admiration of creation. Their heart is filled with passion. Love is the only way to truly experience the beauty of the world. In the ritual dance where consciousness penetrates the body and the mind, the lover joins with the beloved, the dance becomes the dance of Divine Love.
No one knows exactly when Sufism began or who the first Sufi was, but tradition holds that Sufism can be traced back to the Egyptian mystery schools. There are many schools of Sufism; some have a universal approach (an honoring of the one Truth found in all religions), while others insist on adherence to the tenets of Islam. Regardless of differences, all Sufi orders share some common practices and beliefs. The belief in mystical unity is held by all, and all Sufis practice Zikr. Zikr is the sacred phrase "La Ilaha, El Allah Hu" spoken or sung aloud, and means "There is no reality, except God." Zikr, which means "Remembrance," is intended to take the practitioner beyond intellectual belief into spiritual experience.
Many Sufi schools use movement and dance as part of their spiritual endeavors. In fact, it appears that all indigenous cultures have used sacred dance to reverence the Divine and to facilitate ecstatic states. Recent research indicates that Jesus taught the Apostles to dance to the Aramaic phrases of the Lord's Prayer. The movie director Franco Zefferelli depicts this in his film "Jesus of Nazareth."
The Sufi poet Jelaluddin Rumi founded the Mevlevi Order of Sufis in Turkey in the 13th century. Rumi experienced a transmission of Divine Love through his teacher Shams of Tabriz. Spontaneously, he began to turn, and his heart united with the mystical axis of the Universe. The Sufis of the Mevlevi Order now practice the "Turn" as a spiritual discipline, and are popularly known as "Whirling Dervishes." Hazrat Inayat Khan brought Sufism to the West from his native India in 1910. He was a musician, mystic and saint who presented a Universal Message of Love, Harmony and Beauty among all peoples and religions. Sufi orders descending from Hazrat Inayat Khan are the International Sufi Movement, the Sufi Order International, and the Sufi Islamia Ruhaniat Society founded by Hazrat Inayat Khan's disciple Samuel Lewis. Samuel Lewis was also a student of the late Ruth St. Denis. In the 1920s, Miss Ruth changed the world of dance when she began to portray the divine deities on stage, reuniting dance and spirituality. Ruth St. Denis and Hazrat Inayat Khan profoundly influenced Samuel Lewis, the originator of the Dances of Universal Peace.
During the late 1960s in San Francisco, Samuel Lewis began to receive a series of dances in vision. He called these dances the Dances of Universal Peace -- because they were based on sacred phrases found in all of the world's spiritual traditions. One does not have to be a Sufi to join in the Dances of Universal Peace. A dance leader can be a Buddhist, Christian, or follower of any other spiritual tradition, but each leader is dedicated in service to the heart and intention of these teachings. Samuel Lewis founded the Sufi order now known as the Sufi Ruhaniat International.
The Ten Sufi Thoughts by Hazrat Inayat Khan
There is One God, the Eternal, the Only Being; none else exists save God.
There is One Master, the Guiding Spirit of all Souls, which constantly leads all followers towards the Light.
There is One Holy Book, the sacred manuscript of nature, which truly enlightens all readers.
There is One Religion, the unswerving progress in the right direction towards the ideal, which fulfills the life's purpose of every soul.
There is One Law, the law of Reciprocity, which can be observed by a selfless conscience together with a sense of awakened justice.
There is One Human Brotherhood/Sisterhood, which unites the children of earth indiscriminately in the Parenthood of God.
There is One Moral Principle, the love which springs forth from self-denial, and blooms in deeds of beneficence.
There is One Object of Praise, the beauty which uplifts the heart of its worshipper through all aspects from the seen to the unseen.
There is One Truth, the true knowledge of our being within and without which is the essence of al wisdom.
There is One Path, the annihilation of the false ego in the real, which raises the mortal to immortality, in which resides all perfection.
The Way of the Sufi
The Religion of the Sufi is the cry of the heart;
The Ideal of the Sufi is spiritual consciousness;
The Goal of the Sufi is self-realization;
The God of the Sufi is the Divine Presence within;
The Path of the Sufi is brotherhood and sisterhood;
The Manner of the Sufi is inner nobility;
The Art of the Sufi is personality;
The Charm of the Sufi is humility;
The Moral of the Sufi is beneficence;
The Attitude of the Sufi is forgiveness;
The Beloved of the Sufi is love itself.
Purposes of the Sufi Movements and Orders
- To realize and spread the knowledge of unity, the religion of love and wisdom, so that the bias of faiths and beliefs may of itself fall away, the human heart may overflow with love, and all hatred caused by distinctions and differences may be rooted out.
- To discover the light and power latent in mankind, the secret of all religion, the power of mysticism, and the essence of philosophy, without interfering with customs or beliefs.
- To help to bring the world’s two opposite poles, East and West, closer together by the interchange of thought and ideals, that the Universal Brotherhood/Sisterhood may form of itself, and each shall meet with each beyond narrow national and racial boundaries.
For a Sufi
WISDOM - is the art of being responsive to the opinions of others and tolerant of their pre-conceived ideas, while preserving one's own understanding from the limitations of dogma.
RELIGION - is the path of liberation from the captivity of that illusion which arises when one assumes a duality in the unity of love, human and divine.
SPIRITUALITY - is the process of clearing away all aspects of self-assertion while at the same time searching for the divine impulse within oneself, which is the source and goal of all creation.
MYSTICISM - is an inner awakening to the reality of the undefinable, which is experienced when the voice of the heart cries aloud "This is not my body. This is the temple of God."
Some Sufi Terms
Bayat - Fealty or homage but in Sufism, initiation, spiritual initiation from Pir.
Begum - Lady or queen; a term of respect, as, for example, 'Pirani Ameena Begum Ora-Ray Inayat-Khan,' the wife of Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan.
Dargah - A royal court, or in Sufi terms, the tomb of a saint or master. The Dargah of Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan is in the suburbs of New Delhi.
Fikar - Thought, reflection. In Sufism, the name of a spiritual exercise involving breath and concentration.
Gayan - 'Singing,' 'song' or 'chant.' The title of a collection of inspired sayings by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan. Often published together with two other books, Vadan ('instrumental music'), and Nirtan ('dance').
Hazrat - 'Presence' or 'dignity'; a title of respect given to the worldly great and to spiritual masters.
Khatum - 'Conclusion,' 'end,' the name of the third prayer of the Universal Worship.
Mureed, Murid - 'Willing,' therefore applied to a follower, student or disciple; an initiate in the Inner School.
Murshid - see Pir-o-Murshid, below.
Nabi - 'Prophet'; encountered in the prayer Salat, 'O Messenger, Christ, a Nabi, the Rasul of God...' [see Rasul, below.]
Nafs - Breath or essence, but if that should be coarse and unrefined, it may also refer to the false ego.
Pir-ul-Mulk, Pir-ul-Mulkh - the Master of the Earth, World and Humanity, Pir and Buzurg.
Pir-o-Murshid - Both Pir and Murshid mean a spiritual guide or master. The combined term denotes a teacher of teachers, or in other words the spiritual head of an order, and specifically of the Sufi Order, the inner school of the Sufi Movement.
Rasul - 'Messenger,' a prophet of the highest rank; encountered in the prayer of Salat, 'O Messenger, Christ, Nabi, the Rasul of God...' [see Nabi, above.]
Salat - The name of the second prayer of the Universal Worship, meaning, 'prayer,' 'benediction,' or 'blessing.'
Saum - The name of the first prayer of the Universal Worship, also found in the Gayatri, in the book, Gayan. ln Arabic and Urdu, it means 'fasting,' and therefore evokes religious duty, but Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan may have also used the term because it is a homophone to the western word, 'psalm.'
Sufi - According to Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan, it means wisdom, from the same root as the Greek sophia. Other sources connect it with words meaning purity, and even wool.
Sura - In Arabic, a verse of the Qu'ran. In Sanskrit, a deity, the sun, a melody, breath, sound, or an angel.
Universal Worship - A devotional service given to the world by Hazrat Inayat Khan, in which lights are kindled and scriptures read for major religions as well as for the light of the Spirit of Guidance present in all names and forms.
Wazifa - A spiritual exercise involving the repetition of sacred names or phrases, similar to jap or mantra yoga.
Zikar, Dhikar - 'Remembrance'; specifically, a spiritual exercise central to Sufism, the repetition of a phrase meaning, 'There is no God but God; God alone is.'
Ibn Arabi - Akbariyya
Muhyiddin Muhammad b. 'Ali Ibn 'Arabi (or Ibn al-'Arabi) AH 561- AH 638 (July 28, 1165 – November 10, 1240) is considered to be one of the most important Sufi masters, although he never founded any official order (tariqa) - althought there is secret order of Ali Ibn Arabi folowers. His writings, especially al-Futuhat al-Makkiyya and Fusus al-hikam, have been studied within all the Sufi orders as the clearest expression of tawhid (Divine Unity), though because of their recondite nature they were often only given to initiates. Later those who followed his teaching became known as the school of wahdat al-wujud (the Oneness of Being). He himself considered his writings to have been divinely inspired. As he expressed the Way to one of his close disciples, his legacy is that 'you should never ever abandon your servanthood ('ubudiyya), and that there may never be in your soul a longing for any existing thing'. He is renowned by some practitioners of Sufism as "the greatest master" and also as a genuine saint. He went by the names al-Shaykh al-Akbar, Muḥyiddin ibn Arabi, and was also later nicknamed the Great Shaykh. Akbariyya - a secret Sufi society with Ibn Arabi teachings, even was founded in Paris in 1911 by the wandering Swedish Sufi 'Abdu l-Hadi Aguéli. Among its first members was René Guénon. Its purpose was to promote the teachings of Muhyeddin Ibn al-Arabi among the "scholarly, educated and freethinking classes..." through the practice of the Shadhili and Malamati Sufi paths.
The traditional silsila (spiritual lineage) of the Chishti order is as follows:
'Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib (Ali, the cousin of Muhammad)
Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī (d. 728, an early Persian Muslim theologian)
'Abdul Wāḥid Bin Zaid Abul Faḍl (d. 793, an early Sufi saint)
Fuḍayll ibn 'Iyāḍ Bin Mas'ūd Bin Bishr al-Tamīmī
Ibrāhīm bin Adham (a legendarly early Sufi ascetic)
Ḥudhayfah al-Mar'ashī
Amīnuddīn Abū Ḥubayrah al-Baṣrī
Mumshād Dīnwarī
Abu Ishaq Shamī (d. 940, founder of the Chishti order proper)
Abu Ahmad Chishtī
Abu Muhammad Chishtī
Abu Yusuf Nasar-ud-Din Chishtī (d. 1067)
Qutab-ud-Din Maudood Chishtī (Abu Yusuf's son, d. 1139)
Haji Sharif Zindani (d. 1215)
Usman Harooni (d. 1220)
Mu'īnuddīn Chishtī (1141-1230)
Qutab-ud-Din Bakhtyar Kaki (1173-1235)
Farīduddīn Mas'ūd ("Baba Farid", 1173 or 1175 - 1266)
After Farīduddīn Mas'ūd, the Chishti order divided into two branches:
* Chishtī Sabri, who follow Alauddin Sabir Kaliyari.
* Chishtī Nizami who follow Nizāmuddīn Auliyā (from this we have Hazrat Inayat Khan).
The Chishty Sufi Order was founded by Abu Ishaq Shami ("the Syrian") who taught Sufism in the town of Chisht, some 95 miles east of Herat in present-day western Afghanistan. Before returning to Syria, where he is now buried next to Ibn Arabi at Jabal Qasioun Shami initiated, trained and deputized the son of the local emir, Abu Ahmad Abdal. Under the leadership of Abu Ahmad’s descendants, the Chishtiya as they are also known, flourished as a regional mystical order. The founder of the Chishti Order in South Asia was Moinuddin Chishti. He was born in the province of Silistan in eastern Persia around 536 AH (1141 CE), into a sayyid family claiming descent from Muhammad. When he was only nine, he memorized the Qur'an, thus becoming a hafiz. His father died when he was a teenager; Moinuddin inherited the family grinding mill and orchard. He sold everything and gave the proceeds to the poor. He traveled to Balkh and Samarkand, where he studied the Qur'an, hadith, and fiqh. He looked for something beyond scholarship and law and studied under the Chishti shaykh Usman Harooni. He moved to Lahore and then to Ajmer, where he died. His tomb, in Ajmer, is the Dargah Sharif, a popular shrine and pilgrimage site.
Moinuddin Chishty was followed by Qutab-ud-Din Bakhtyar Kaki and Farīduddīn Mas'ūd. After Fariduddin, the Chishti Order of South Asia split into two branches. Each branch was named after one of Fariduddin's successors:
* Nizamuddin Auliya - This branch became the Chishti Nizami branch. Nizamuddin Auliya taught Nasiruddin Chiragh Dehlavi who in turn taught Khwaja Bande Nawaz.
* Alauddin Sabir Kaliyari - This branch became the Chishti-Sabiri branch.
Later, yet other traditions branched from the Chisti lineage; in many cases they merged with other popular Sufi orders in South Asia. Founders of such new branches of the lineage include:
* Ashraf Jahangir Semnani - trained in the Nizami tradition; his followers became the Chishti Nizami Ashrafiya branch.
* Haji Imdadullah Muhaajir Makki - trained in the Sabari tradition; his followers became the Chishtiya Sabaria Imdadiya branch.
* Shah Niyaz Ahmad- united the Chishti Nizami order with the Qadriya order to form the Chishtiya Qadriya Nizamia Niyazia branch.
As a result of this merging of the Chishti order with other branches, most Sufi masters now initiate their disciples in all the four major orders of South Asia: Chishti, Suhrawadi, Qadri, and Naqshbandi. They do however, teach devotional practices typical of the order with which they are primarily associated. The Chishti order has also absorbed influences and merged at times with various antinomian fakir Sufi groups, especially the Qalandar. Some Chishtis both past and present have lived as renunciants or as wandering dervish.
Several rulers of the Mughal dynasty of South Asia were Chisti devotees. The emperor Akbar was perhaps the most fervent of them. It is said to be by the blessing of Sheikh Salim Chishti that Akbar's first surviving child, the future Jahangir, was born. The child was named Salim after the sheikh and was affectionately addressed by Akbar as Sheikhu Baba. Akbar also credited the Chisti sheikhs with his victory at the Siege of Chittorgarh. Akbar had vowed to visit the Chisti dargah, the tomb of Moinuddin Chishti, at Ajmer if he were victorious. He fulfilled his vow by visiting the dargah with his musicians, who played in honor of the sheikh. Akbar's descendant, Jahanara Begum Sahib, was also a devout follower of the Chisti Order. The Mughal Emperor Akbar was a great patron of the Chishti Order.
Abu Ishaq Shami - The Chishtiyya Founder
Abu Ishaq Shami (died 940 CE) - (Russian: Абу Исхак аш-Шами) - was a Muslim scholar who is remebered and regarded as the founder of the Sufi Chishti Order (Persian: چشتی - Čištī, Arabic: ششتى - Shishti). He was the first in the Chishti lineage (silsila) to live in Chisht and so to adopt the name "Chishti", so that, if the Chishti order itself dates back to him, it is one of the oldest recorded Sufi orders. His original name, Shami, implies he came from Syria (ash-Sham). He died in Damascus and lies buried on Mount Qasiyun (many mazars are supposedly on this hill outside of Damascus where Cain slew Able), where later on also Ibn Arabi was buried. Abu Ishaq Shami's teacher was Shaikh Ilw Dinwari, whose own teacher was Abu Hubairah Basri, a disciple of Huzaifah Al-Mar'ashi who was in turn a disciple of Ibrahim ibn Adham. The Chishtiyyah silsila continued through Abu Ishaq Shami's disciple Abu Ahmad Abdal. In south Asia Moinuddin Chishti was the founding father and most revered saint of the Chishti order.
When Hazrat Abu Ishaq Chishti (RA) arrived at the Khanqah of Hazrat Mumshad Ali Dinwari (RA), the Sheikh asked him of his name. He replied “Abu Ishaq SHAMI”, and the Sheikh then said to him, “From this day people will refer to you as Abu Ishaq CHISHTI”, and that he should go to Chist in Afghanistan and spread the mystic order so that people in and around Chisht could receive spiritual guidance from him. Furthermore, the Sheikh said that all those people that would enter his (Khwaja Abu Ishaq Chisti) silsila, would be known as CHISHTI untill the day of Qiyamah. Looking at the date of ABu Ishaq Shami death it is considered that the Chishti Order is one of the oldest, if not the oldest now still existing sufi order. However according to most of the Sufi orders it is considered that their originations are directly from the time period of the Prophet Mohammad and the Prophet himself. His Masters and Students Shaikh Ilw Mumshad Dinwari was his Master. He may had many Khalifa's but Abu Ahmad Abdal carries the Chisti Chain to South Asia.
In Tabqaat, Imaam Sha’rani says that Khwaja Mumshad (rahmatullah alayh) died in the year 297 Hijri - 910 CE. However, according to the author of Khazeenah 298 Hijri is the unanimous claim of the historians. The author of Anwar records the date as 14th Muharram 299 Hijri (912 CE) which was the era of the reign of the Abbasi Khalifah, Muqtadir Bil-lah. His grave is in Dinwar. Dinwar is a city between the cities of Hamdaan and Baghdaad. His title was Karimud Deen Mun’im. Khwaja Mumshad Dinwari and Khwaja Ilw Dinwari are the same person but Suhrawardi likes the first nema and Chishti the second one. Khwaja Abu Muhammad, Khwaja Abu Ahmad Bagdaadi, Khwaja Abu Ishaq and Khwaja Isti’dad Ahmad Dinwari are his khulafaa (succesors). Among them Khwaja Abu Ishaq is a Founder of Chishtiyya, founding the Sufi Order in Chesht much before 910-912 CE - just before His murshid death.
Khwaja Mumshad Dilwari was a perpetual faster. It is said that even during infancy he would sometimes abstain from drinking his mother’s milk. He is therefore called a born Wali (Vali). Before becoming bay’t, he was in the suhbat (company) of Hazrat Khidhr (A.S) who instructed him to attach himself to a Shaikh. Immediately on becoming bay’t, he was given Ijaazat (appointed Khalifah). His Shaikh cast Tawajjuh on him and made a special dua for him. Simultaneously with the dua Hazrat Ilw Mumshad became unconscious. He regained conscious only to become unconscious again. After this state (consciousness and unconsciousness) occurred forty times, his Shaikh applied his saliva to Hadhrat Mumshad’s mouth. This completely stabilised him. The Shaikh asked: “Ilw, what did you see?” He said: “In thirty years of mujaahadah I did not acquire what I gained in a little tawajjuh of the Shaikh.”
Khwaja Mumshad Uluw Dilwari (R.A) was very fond of Sama (Sema, Semzen), and used to celebrate the Urs of his elders with they mystical musical assembly as the Holy Prophet Muhammad guide. He explained that Sama aroused the love of Allah in the heart, leading to closeness and eventual wasul with the Lord - which was the ultimate goal of all seekers of the Truth (al-Haqq). He was the murshid of Khwaja Abu Ishaq Chishti (R.A) after whom the Chishtiya Silsila was founded, and it was he who blessed it and prophesied the impact it would wield on the course of Sufi Islam history.
Although Khwaja MoinudDin Chishti (R.A) the great sufi saint of India, is widely regarded as the pivotal figure in the Chishtiya silsilah, the actual founder of the mighty order lived over two hundered years before him. Khwaja Abu Ishaq Chishti (R.A) is called Taj al-Auliya, or “the Crown of the Saints”. He was born in Chisht, a small village in todays Afghanistan, and mostly acquired his religious knowledge from Damascus (al-Sham) in Syria. Seeking a spiritual teacher to perfect himself, he performed salat al-istikhara (the prayer of seeking guidance). After forty consecutive days, he received his response: “if you seek to reach the destination, go to Mumshad al-Dinawari.” When he arrived in Baghadad, Khwaja Mumshad asked him for his name. He replied: “I am Abu Ishaq al-Shami,” (referring to the place he had acquired his religious instruction). His murshid, however, diving through spiritual intuition, replied: “No; you are Abu Ishaq al-Chishti! From you the peole of Chisht and all the surrounding areas will receive guidance; and the spiritual order (silsilah) you found will be known as al-Chishtiya until the Day of Qiyamah.
After these glad tidings, he was trained in the tariqah — the path of Tasawwuf. He became known as a great zahid (ascetic) because true Sufi always is zahid. Among his extraordinary mujahadahs was the seven day fast without even drop of water (it is uneasy in tropical Iraq or Syria climate), and he used to declare, “the miraaj of the fuqara is hunger”. It is said that such was the power of his companionship that those who sat with him thereafter refrained from sin, and the sick were miraculously cured. Once a king came to him complaining that his lands were undergoing a drought. Through the grace of Allah, it immediately began to rain. The next day the king returned with some other problem, and Khwaja Abu Ishaq began to wep. When asked why, he replied, “I fear that I have committed a sin. Why else would Allah punish me with the company of rich and deprive me of the company of the poor?”
Upon perfection of his suluk, he was granted khilafat (sucession) in a total of fourteen spiritual orders. Suluk is the science of all the internal elements of the Way and the salik is the one who cements himself in the knowledge necessary to prevent madness. Thereafter, he returned to his home town, where he founded the Chishtiya silsilah, about which mention has been made. Its foundations and practices, which today are almost emblematic of the Chishtiya , were laid by Khwaja Abu Ishaq r.a, who lived out the rest of his life in Chisht and spread the order from there. Many people accepted Islam and became muridin at the hands of Khwaja Abu Ishaq, including Khwaja Abu Ahmad al-CHishti who eventually became his foremost khalifa. He attained unity on the 14th Rabi al-Akhir 329 AH (941 CE) and lies buried in Acer, on the border of Syria.
Taj-ul-Awliya, Khwaja-e-Khwajegaan, Hazrat Khwaja Abu Is`Haaq Chishty Shaami (Radi Allahu Anhu) lived in the era of the following Mashaa`ikh, who were his contemporaries, viz. Hazrat Abu Bakr Shibli (Radi Allahu Anhu), Khwaja Hasan bin Mansur Hallaj (Radi Allahu Anhu), Khwaja Abul Abbas ibn `Ata (Radi Allahu Anhu).
I now have no fear, nor am I in danger,
In this love I have become entirely absorbed;
Oh God, take me at last unto his door.
Salutations to you, O head of the Chishti!
Khwaja Abu Ishaq Chishti... the celebrated.
Some of Abu Ishaq Shami's or His teacher sayings are:
* Starvation (fasting) excels all in bliss.
* The worldly people are impure while the dervishes are pure in their souls. These two different natures cannot therefore mingle.
* A man who considers himself significant even while in the company of a buzrug will gain nothing from the advices of that buzrug.
* Sitting in the suhbat of the people of rectitude (i.e. the Auliya) produces rectitude in the heart while the company of the people of corruption produces corruption in the heart.
* Abandonment of futility is called Tasawwuf. Abandoning things to which the heart inclines is called tawakkul.
* When a man goes to a shaykh (guide) with his own spiritual states, he is deprived of the benefit of that company, because he is engrossed in his own knowledge.
* Until I had left behind all my knowledge and conditions (spiritual states), I did not go into the company of a buzrug. After I had left my Uloom and Haalaat (spiritual states), I entered into the service of a buzrug and waited in expectation of the barakaat (spiritual blessings and benefits) which are obtainable from his ziyaarat (looking at him) and his discourse. When a man goes with his own spiritual states to a buzrug, then he is deprived of the fuyoodh (spiritual benefits) of that buzrug because of engrossment in his own knowledge.
* If you accumulate the wisdom of former and later times and if you claim to possess the spiritual states of the Auliya, you will not reach the rank of the Aarifeen as long as your baatin (spiritual heart) is not at peace with Allah and as long as you lack complete reliance on what has been predestined for you.
* The changing conditions (of life on earth) do not influence a man whose goal is Allah Ta’ala.
* In thirty years of mujaahadah I did not acquire what I gained in a little tawajjuh of the Shaikh.
Silsila - The chain of masters of Abu Ishaq Chishti
1. Muhammad ibn Abdullah
2. ‘Ameerul Mo’mineen Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib
3. Shaikh Khawaja Ḥasan Baṣrī
4. Shaikh Abdul Wāḥid Bin Zaid
5. Fuḍayl ibn Iyāḍ
6. Ibrāhīm bin Adham
7. Ḥudhayfah al-Mar’ashī
8. Amīnuddīn Abū Ḥubayrah al-Baṣrī
9. Khwaja Mumshād Dīnwarī or Hazrat Ilw/Uluw Mumshad, Karim-ud-deen Mun’im
10. Abū Isḥāq al-Shāmī - the First Chishty
Hazrat Ali Ibn Abu Talib
We read the following words of Holy Prophet (s): “Whoever wants to live and die like me and abide in eternal heaven which Allah promised me, should acknowledge Ali Ibn Abi Talib as WALI, he will never lead you out of guidance and never lead you astray. ” The Isnad of this hadith are Sahih.
The Holy Prophet (s) said of Imam Ali (as): “Ali is a guide (Hadi), a guided one (Mahdi) and shall take you to the right path [Siratul Mustaqim]” - Kanz al Ummal, page 612.
The Holy Prophet (BUH & HF) mentioned:
1. “Whomever I am his master, this Ali is his master (Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad Hanbal, Chapter 39, Pg 297, Hadith 18497.)
2. The position of Ali (A.S) amongst the people is like Surat Qul Hu Allahu Ahad in the Qur’an.(Sunni Reference: Muslim, 1/48; Musnad Ahmad, 6/299;)
3. Ali (A.S) holds a right over this nation like the right of a father over his son.(Sunni Reference: Muslim, 2/361; Musnad Ahmad, 3/198;)
4. I am the warner, and the guide after me is Ali (A.S). Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad, 1/151;
5. Ali (A.S) is the distinguisher between truth and falsehood. Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad, 1/331;
6. Ali (A.S) holds the position of the Kaaba. Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad, 3/82;
7. Embellish your gatherings by mentioning Ali (A.S). Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad, 4/368, 5/419;
8. My Lord commanded me to close all the doors except the door of Ali (A.S).Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad, 4/369;
9. There is a tree in Paradise called Tuba. Its roots are in the house of Ali, and its branch is Ali (A.S).Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad, 4/370;
10. The one who wants to live my life and die my death will attach himself to Ali (A.S).Sunni Reference: Musnad of Ahmad, 5/94;
11. Ali (A.S) is to me what Haroun was to Musa. Sunni Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Chapter 13, Hadith 4064
12. Ali (A.S) is the door of my knowledge, and the one who will clarifies for my nation that which I was sent with. Sunni Reference: Shawahid Al-Tanzil, 2/356;
13. For the one who believes and trusts in me, I recommend the wilayat of Ali (A.S).Sunni Reference: Tarikh Baghdad of Al-Khateeb Al-Baghdadi, 1/316;
14. Ali (A.S) stands in relation to me as my head to my body. Sunni Reference: Tarikh Baghdad of Al-Khateeb Al-Baghdadi, 1/51;
15. Every prophet has an executor and inheritor, and my executor and inheritor is Ali (A.S).Sunni Reference: Tarikh Baghdad of Al-Khateeb Al-Baghdadi, 11/173; Shawahid Al-Tanzil, 2/223;
16. Ali (A.S) is the best of humanity, and the one who denies it has blasphemed.Sunni Reference: Tarikh Baghdad of Al-Khateeb Al-Baghdadi, 5/37;
18. The title of the believer’s book is love for Ali (A.S). Sunni Reference: Tarikh Baghdad of Al-Khatib Al-Baghdadi, 4/410;
Man Kunto Mawlahu fa `Aliyyun mawlahu i.e. For whosoever I am Mawla then Ali is his Mawla [Sunnan Tirimdhi, Hadith # 3713, where Imam Tirimdhi called it “Hasan Sahih” and Albani proved it to be Sahih too]
(The Prophet – Peace be upon him said): For whosoever I am Mawla then Ali is his Mawla, O Allah befriend those who befriend Ali and be enemy of those who are enemy to Ali (Albani Says): This hadith has come from Zayd ibn Arqam, Syad bin Abi Waqqas, Buraida bin Husayb, Ali bin Abi Talib, Abu Ayyub al Ansari, Bara bin Azib, Abdullah Ibn Abbas, Anas bin Malik, Abu Sayeed and Abu Hurraira (Ridhwan Allahu Ajmain), The Hadith of Zayd bin Arqam comes with 5 (different) ways!… [Albani in: Silsilat ul ahadith as-Sahiha, Volume No. 4, Page No. 330, Hadith Number 1750
Sufi Practices
On the initial stages of psycho-energetic practice, the sheik suggests to murids many different exercises for development of the ability of concentration, for stopping the flow of thoughts and achieving the “mental rest; they also work with images. After that, various psycho-physical exercises are used: rhythmic movements to music, Sufi whirling, etc. The psycho-energetic teaching in Sufism is performed so that all students receive special tasks from the sheikh, according to their individual peculiarities and capability of comprehending. At the same time, the sheik gives psycho-energetic training for groups of students. The use of the whole spectrum of these means creates a remarkable purifying effect, develops the energy structures of the organism (heart latifa in particular). Some of these exercises cause “subtle attunement” of the body, mind, and consciousness, and bring the participants to the ecstatic state which the Sufis call hal. There are different kinds of hal. Most often the student gains the following kinds of this state: qurb - feeling of the nearness of God, mahabba - felling of the fervent love for God, khauf - deep remorse, shauq - passionate longing for God, etc.
Dances of dervishes, for example, require absolute relaxation of the body and achievement of the full mental pause. Against such background of relaxation and meditative attunement of the consciousness to the Creator, harmonious spontaneous movements of the body occur. They are not planned; they do not originate from the mind, but as if occur spontaneously, Usually, the dances of dervishes are performed with use of meditative music or meditative singing. This ensures proper attunement of all dancers and brings all ready participants to the state of hal. Another interesting technique is Sufi whirling. It allows one, in particular, to move the consciousness out from the head chakras, what facilitates entering the state of hal. There are various modifications of this technique. Whirling can be performed to music or without it, with use of mantras, with concentration in certain energy structures of the organism. In the latter case, whirling contributes to the development of the chakras.
Moulana Zakariyah says: “Hazrat Nizamuddin al-Umri was instructed by his Shaikh to recite ‘Allahu’ 90 times in a single breathe gradually increasing the number in accordance with his ability. Ultimately, he developed his ability to the extent of up to 400 times with a single breath.” The practice of heavy breathing, as in the Sufi Dhikr of inhaling whilst saying “La-ilaha” and then exhaling to create a loud and sharp voice saying ‘ill-lal-lah’ is seen in various oriental and eastern religions. The Sufis consider their Shaikhs in the graves to be alive and in their senses. They consider them able to benefit their followers. Moulana Zakariyah quotes Haji Imdadullah Muhajir Makki in his book Mashaikh-e-Chist saying, “…The Faqir does not die. He is simply transformed from one abode to another. The same benefit which was received from the Faqir’s physical life will be acquired from his grave.”
The general rules of performing whirling exercise are the following:
1) one can start whirling not sooner than three hours after meat meal;
2) whirling is performed to any convenient side, against the background of full relaxation of the body;
3) the eyes are opened and fixed on one of the raised hands or not fixed on anything at all;
4) whirling is performed in individual rhythm, with as smooth beginning and end of the exercise as possible;
5) in case of falling during whirling, one has to turn on the stomach and relax;
6) after performing the exercise, it is necessary to relax;
7) also one needs to be fully confident in the technique, fully “open” when performing the exercise. The duration of the exercise is individual and can vary from several minutes to several hours.
On the “mature” stages of tariqa, one performs intensive work on developing, perfecting the energy structures of the organism. In Hindu terms, this concerns, in particular, the chakras and nadi (meridians). In this work, a special emphasis is put on developing the heart latifa (chakra) responsible for producing the emotions of cordial love. One of the techniques of this kind is the meditation of laugh. Its participants lay on the back and completely relax. After meditative attunement, they place one hand on the region of heart latifa, and another hand - on the region of qalabiya (earth latifa), to activate these latifas. Then they begin to move through the organism waves of soft light-laugh (from qalabiya - to the head latifa). The meditation of laugh creates a purifying effect and contributes to the development of the latifas, the middle meridian, if it is performed on the due level of subtlety.
Another important technique used in Sufism is zikr (dhikr). There are many variations, modifications of zikr - according to the traditions of the brotherhood or order, the sheik’s mastery. Zikr is performed in the following way:
All participants stand or sit in a circle. The sheik or mushid, or pir gives meditative attunement and then, by his instruction, the participants begin to perform a series of consecutive exercises. These exercises are rhythmic movements performed in ever-increasing tempo (for example, bows, turns, sways of the body). With movements, the participants chant praying formulas. In some orders, murshids attach a great importance to music, to singing in meditation classes. They believe that music - the food of the soul (ghiza-i-ruh) - is one of the very powerful means contributing to spiritual progress. They widely use music that makes the body move spontaneously (tarab), facilitates entering deep meditative states (saut), etc. In some sufi orders and brotherhoods, they have everyday listening to music, collective classes with singing of mystic verses (sama), ecstatic dances to music, etc.
The effectiveness of these techniques consists, in particular, in the fact that meditations are performed not only in motionless positions of the body but also against the background of movements. Thanks to the complex use of different methods, one activates several “centers” of the organism: emotional, moving, and intellectual one. Coordinated, harmonious work of these centers makes possible a quick change in the student’s psychoenergetic state. Apart from ordinary methods, in Sufism there are “accelerated” techniques of spiritual development. By means of these secret techniques, murids can make very fast advancement. These techniques are given only to those who possess very high psycho-energetic readiness. The Sufi meditation tradition is very rich and multifarious. It accumulated vast experience of work with the body, mind, and consciousness. The Sufis developed the ways of cognizing Wajd (Samadhi, in Hindu terms), the techniques for accomplishing correct crystallization of consciousness in the higher spatial dimensions, and methods for mastering Fana-fi-Allah (Nirvana in the Creator).
In Sufism, there are many original things. However, one can see its remarkable similarity to the spiritual traditions of other best religious schools and directions - the similarity of goals, the ways of their realization, and even of the methods. This indicates an important thing: that Sufism, Hesychasm, Taoism, Buddhist mysticism, classic Hindu yoga, the way of the Mexican school of Juan Matus, and some other directions are based on the same laws of spiritual development. It is only the realization of these laws that can be different in different cultural and historical conditions. And always there are people who - independent of their spiritual traditions - can successfully walk the Sufi Path, Tariqat.
Dhikr (Zikr) - Remembrance of God
Dhikr - means “remembrance”, “recollection” but also “mentioning”. Distinctive forms and practices of dhikr identify specific Sufi Orders. Beyond the practice itself, dhikr and the condition of being a “dhakir” can be interpreted in terms of a state of consciousness or spiritual experience. Dhakir (zakir) is one who expirience dhikr (zikr) deeply! The term “dhikr” appears 75 times in the Qur’an (another 84 as verb) which itself is called a “dhikr” (reminder).
“O you who believe remember Allah with a great remembrance (dhikr/an kathir/an) and glorify him in the morning and evening” (Q.33:41).
“Remember Allah deep in your soul (nafs) humbly and with fear (khawf) without loudness in words...” (Q.7:205).
“Remember Me and I will remember you” – (Q.2:152).
“Remember Allah standing, sitting, and laying down” (Q.3:191; 4:10).
Hadith:
• Dhikr is the polish for the Heart!
• A breath without the remembrance of Allah is wasted!
Chishti Dhikr – is an obligatory practice (farz):
• Can be group or individual;
• Can be silent (khafi) or performed aloud;
• Focuses on the shahada and nafi/ithbat;
• Dhikr of 1200 (bara soo);
• Uses head movements (strikes/ “zarb”);
• Has various techniques “pas-e anfas”;
• and shughl/ashghal “concentrations” “didar-e ilahi”;
Sufi tariqas begin with loud “dhikr lisani” and move toward khafi and akhfa (silent). Dhikr khafi ends with the divine vision (experience of God)”.
Performed silently (khafi) without any special movements “dhikr-e khafi iman ast”.
– Importance of the breath (“a breath without remembrance is wasted”/ the spirit (ruh) permeates the entirebody);
– Ideal is perpetual dhikr - “dhikr dawwam, da’imi” (Har ja ke bashid ba yad e khuda bashid);
– Goal is vision of the divine - “didar-e ilahi”;
“Only due to dhikr can you achieve the vision of God, Whatever I say - doexactly that”.
Perform the dhikr of Allah may He be exalted, so that you can achieve the vision of Allah”.
Levels of Dhikr/Kalima (Insaf Nama):
1. TASDIQ - affirmation
2. TA’ZIM - glorification – Ayn al-yaqin;
3. HALAWAT - sweetness – Ilm al-yaqin;
4. HURMAT - reverence – Haqq al-yaqin;
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Sufism and Sufi
Classical Sufis were characterised by their attachment to dhikr - a practice of repeating the names of God, often performed after prayers and asceticism. Sufis have spanned several continents and cultures over a millennium, originally expressing their beliefs in Arabic, before spreading into Persian, Turkish, Indian languages like Urdu and a dozen other languages. Sufis believe they are practicing ihsan (perfection of worship) as revealed by Gabriel to Muhammad: "Worship and serve Allah as you are seeing Him and while you see Him not yet truly He sees you". A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a ṣūfī (صُوفِيّ). They belong to different ṭuruq or "orders"—congregations formed around a master—which meet for spiritual sessions (majalis), in meeting places known as zawiyahs, khanqahs, or tekke. Classical Sufi scholars have defined Sufism as "a science whose objective is the reparation of the heart and turning it away from all else but God". Sufism is recntly very agressivly opposed by Wahhabi and Salafist Muslims, even in India.
Eminent Sufis such as Ali Hujwiri claim that the tradition first began with Ali ibn Abi Talib furthermore Junayd of Baghdad regarded Ali as the Sheikh of the principals and practices of Sufism. Sufism had a long history already before the subsequent institutionalization of Sufi teachings into devotional orders (tarîqât) in the early Middle Ages. According to late Medieval mystic Jami, Abd-Allah ibn Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah was the first person to be called a "Sufi." Sufism has contributed significantly to the elaboration of theoretical perspectives in many domains of intellectual endeavor. For instance, the doctrine of "subtle centers" or centers of subtle cognition (known as Lataif-e-sitta) addresses the matter of the awakening of spiritual intuition. Sufi psychology has influenced many areas of thinking both within and outside of Islam, drawing primarily upon three concepts. Ja'far al-Sadiq - both an imam in the Shia tradition and a respected scholar and link in chains of Sufi transmission in all eastern groups - held that human beings are dominated by a lower self called the nafs, a faculty of spiritual intuition called the qalb or spiritual heart, and a spirit or soul called ruh. These interact in various ways, producing the spiritual types of the tyrant (dominated by nafs), the person of faith and moderation (dominated by the spiritual heart), and the person lost in love for God (dominated by the ruh).
Divine Magic, White Magic has also been a part of Sufi practice, notably in India and Pakistani. This practice intensified during the declining years of Sufism in India when the Sufi orders grew steadily in wealth and in political influence while their spirituality gradually declined as they concentrated on Saint worship, miracle working, magic and superstition. The external religious practices were neglected, morals declined and learning was despised. The element of magic in Sufism in India possibly drew from the occult practices in the Atharvaveda. The most famous of all Sufis, Mansur Al-Hallaj (d. 922), visited Sindh in order to study "Indian Magic". He not only accepted Hindu ideas of cosmogony and of divine descent but he also seems to have believed in the Transmigration of the soul.
The Chishtī Order - in Persian: چشتی - Čištī, in Arabic: ششتى - Shishti, is a Sufi order within the mystic Sufi tradition of India. It began in Chisht, a small town near Herat, Afghanistan about 930 CE. The Chishti Order is known for its emphasis on love, tolerance, and openness. The Chishti Order is primarily followed in Afghanistan and South Asia. It was the first of the four main Sufi orders (Chishti, Qadiriyya, Suhrawardiyya and Naqshbandi) to be established in this region. Hazrat Moinuddin Chishti introduced the Chishti Order in Lahore (Punjab) and Ajmer (Rajasthan), sometime in the middle of the 12th century AD. He was eighth in the line of succession from the founder of the Chishti Order, Hazrat Abu Ishq Shami (d. 940, founder of the Chishti order proper).
There are now several branches of the order, which has been the most prominent South Asian Sufi brotherhood since the 12th century. In the last century, the order has spread outside Afghanistan and South Asia. Chishti teachers have established centers in the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, South Africa and in Poland (Europe). The Chishti are perhaps best known for the welcome extended to seekers who belong to other religions. Chishti shrines in South Asia are open to all faiths and attract great crowds to their festivals.
Chishti practice is also notable for sama: evoking the divine presence through song or listening to music. The Chishti, as well as some other Sufi orders, believe that music can help devotees forget self in the love of Allah. The music usually heard at Chisti shrines and festivals is qawwali. The Chishtis follow five basic devotional practices (dhikr):
* Reciting the names of Allāh God loudly, sitting in the prescribed posture at prescribed times (jhikr-i djahr);
* Reciting the names of Allāh God silently (jhikr-i khafī);
* Regulating the breath (pās-i anfās);
* Absorption in mystic contemplation (murā-ḳāba);
* Forty days of spiritual confinement in a lonely corner or cell for prayer and contemplation (čilla).
Early Chishti shaykhs adopted concepts and doctrines outlined in two influential Sufi texts: the ʿAwārif al-Maʿārif of Shaykh Shihāb al-Dīn Suhrawardī and the Kashf al-Maḥdjūb of Hudjwīrī. These texts are still read and respected today. Chishti also read collections of the sayings, speeches, poems, and letters of the shaykhs. These collections, called malfūẓāt, were prepared by the shaykh's disciples.
The word Sufi is derived from the Arabic word Safa, or Saf, which means, literally, pure, i.e. pure from distinctions and differences. In Greek the word means wise. Sufism cannot be called deism, for the Sufi does not consider God as an entity separate from himself; neither can it be called pantheism, because the Sufi not only sees the immanence of God in nature, but also realizes His Essence in the infinite, naming Him Allah, the Formless, the Colorless. He is neither a believer in the unrealized God nor an unbeliever in the idealized Deity, and thus he is distinguished from godly and ungodly alike. The Sufi is not an atheist, for he denies neither God nor His Messengers.
To the question, "Are you a Christian?", "Are you a Muslim?", "Are you a Jew?", his answer would be yes rather than no, for he opposes no religion, but sympathizes with all. In fact Sufism cannot be called a religion, for it does not impose either belief or principle upon anybody, considering that each individual soul has his own principles best suited for himself, and a belief which changes with each grade of evolution. Sufism is not an intellectual philosophy, because it does not depend merely upon cold reasoning, but develops a devotional tendency in man. Sufism cannot be called occultism, for the Sufi does not give any importance to the investigation of phenomena; seeing the brevity of life he deems that a worthless pursuit; his aim is God alone.
The germ of Sufism is said to have existed from the beginning of the human creation, for wisdom is the heritage of man; therefore no one person can be said to be its propounder. It has been revealed more clearly and spread more widely as from time to time the world has evolved. Sufism as a brotherhood may be traced back as far as the period of Daniel. We find among the Zoroastrians Hatim, the best known Sufi of his time. The chosen ones of God, the salt of the earth, who responded without hesitation to the call of Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Mohammed, were Sufis, and were not only simple followers of a religion, but had insight into divine knowledge. They recognized God's every messenger and united with them all. Before the time of Mohammed they were called Ekuanul Safa, Brothers of Purity, but after his coming they were named by him Sahabi Safa, Knights of Purity. The world has called them Zoroastrian, Christian, Jewish, or Mohammedan mystics, and the followers of each religion have claimed them as their own. For instance, a Christian would claim that Saint Paul was a Christian and a Mohammedan that Shams Tabriz was a Mohammedan. In reality Christ was not a Christian nor was Mohammed a Mohammedan; they were Sufis.
Sufi and Dervish Dances
Sufi Dancing is an uplifting group spiritual practice to cultivate inner peace and harmony, which in turn fosters outer and world peace. The dances are simple circle dances. We set sacred phrases from the world's religions and spiritual traditions to music and we dance using basic folk dance movements. As a moving meditation, or body prayer, Sufi Dancing reveals the unity of all spiritual experience. We gather to embody Spirit, to praise and give thanks, and to offer our prayers for Peace, Love, Harmony and Beauty. From the beginning of time, sacred movement, song and story have brought people together at times of seasonal ceremony and celebration, as part of everyday life and life passages, and in daily renewal and meditation. Sufi Dancing is part of this timeless tradition of Sacred Dance. The Sufi Dances are taught by a sufi dance leader. They are easy to learn, meditative, joyous and open to all. No experience necessary! "Let us eat, dance and pray together." --- says Pir-ul-Mulkh Ofiel Chishty, the head master of Sufis in Poland.
Singing devotional songs, dhikrs or mantras could be truly a mystical and a mysterious experience. We sing devotional songs with deep feelings, and full faith, letting the transcendental beauty, and qualities represented within the words enter our souls. A Sufi’s way of life is to love and be of service to people, deserting the ego or false self and all illusion so that one can reach maturity and perfection, and finally reach Allah, the True, the Real. Through the Whirling Dervishes program we hope to bring to you a hint of one of the remarkable ways of achieving this: the way of Rumi, the great Sufi mystic and poet. The universal values of love and service shared by all Sufis are very much relevant to the social and political realities of today, and this ritual, which is only performed by the Order of the Sufis and Dervishes, has come to symbolize these values in the hearts and minds of millions throughout the world. These dances and walking practices are a form of moving meditation. We seek mystical unity and ecstasy. Come join us; breathe in harmony, chant the sacred phrases, move in rhythm and feel your connection with all of life.
Sufi Dancing or Dervishe Dance is a beautiful Spiritual Practice, a meditation, a mystical journey of spiritual ascent through mind to God’s Love. It originated amongst Sufis (an esoteric dimension of Islam) and it is a dance, done as a ritual and meditation. Rumi was a 13th century Persian Sufi poet and philosopher, who wrote 30.000 verses of poetry about divine love and spiritual bondage. Rumi passionately believed that music, poetry and dance are the path to reach God. It was from his teachings that the practice of Dervish’s dancing became a ritual. A Sufi spins around his centre for many minutes, letting go, abandoning the ego and surrendering to God. Spinning through the space, the dance takes the form of the cosmic rhythm – a spiral. When the Sufi’s arms are crossed he represents the number one, or God as Oness. While whirling, the Dervish’s arms are open: his right arm is directed to the sky ready to receive God's blessings, his left hand is turned toward the earth connecting with it. The dance is a way of training the Dervish's awareness.
For the Sufi, knowledge is metaphysical, and it can be attained only through practice and not through thinking. The Sufi symbolically turns towards the truth, abandons the ego, and arrives at the Perfect. Slowly, as the body sways consciousness also changes, the mind assumes a freedom from the earthly bondage. With this ecstatic dance the Sufi Dancer enters the trance forgetting his Self and becoming united with the Divine Lover. Their dance becomes ecstasy. The Sufi unites with the beloved, and they become the instrument for the admiration of creation. Their heart is filled with passion. Love is the only way to truly experience the beauty of the world. In the ritual dance where consciousness penetrates the body and the mind, the lover joins with the beloved, the dance becomes the dance of Divine Love.
No one knows exactly when Sufism began or who the first Sufi was, but tradition holds that Sufism can be traced back to the Egyptian mystery schools. There are many schools of Sufism; some have a universal approach (an honoring of the one Truth found in all religions), while others insist on adherence to the tenets of Islam. Regardless of differences, all Sufi orders share some common practices and beliefs. The belief in mystical unity is held by all, and all Sufis practice Zikr. Zikr is the sacred phrase "La Ilaha, El Allah Hu" spoken or sung aloud, and means "There is no reality, except God." Zikr, which means "Remembrance," is intended to take the practitioner beyond intellectual belief into spiritual experience.
Many Sufi schools use movement and dance as part of their spiritual endeavors. In fact, it appears that all indigenous cultures have used sacred dance to reverence the Divine and to facilitate ecstatic states. Recent research indicates that Jesus taught the Apostles to dance to the Aramaic phrases of the Lord's Prayer. The movie director Franco Zefferelli depicts this in his film "Jesus of Nazareth."
The Sufi poet Jelaluddin Rumi founded the Mevlevi Order of Sufis in Turkey in the 13th century. Rumi experienced a transmission of Divine Love through his teacher Shams of Tabriz. Spontaneously, he began to turn, and his heart united with the mystical axis of the Universe. The Sufis of the Mevlevi Order now practice the "Turn" as a spiritual discipline, and are popularly known as "Whirling Dervishes." Hazrat Inayat Khan brought Sufism to the West from his native India in 1910. He was a musician, mystic and saint who presented a Universal Message of Love, Harmony and Beauty among all peoples and religions. Sufi orders descending from Hazrat Inayat Khan are the International Sufi Movement, the Sufi Order International, and the Sufi Islamia Ruhaniat Society founded by Hazrat Inayat Khan's disciple Samuel Lewis. Samuel Lewis was also a student of the late Ruth St. Denis. In the 1920s, Miss Ruth changed the world of dance when she began to portray the divine deities on stage, reuniting dance and spirituality. Ruth St. Denis and Hazrat Inayat Khan profoundly influenced Samuel Lewis, the originator of the Dances of Universal Peace.
During the late 1960s in San Francisco, Samuel Lewis began to receive a series of dances in vision. He called these dances the Dances of Universal Peace -- because they were based on sacred phrases found in all of the world's spiritual traditions. One does not have to be a Sufi to join in the Dances of Universal Peace. A dance leader can be a Buddhist, Christian, or follower of any other spiritual tradition, but each leader is dedicated in service to the heart and intention of these teachings. Samuel Lewis founded the Sufi order now known as the Sufi Ruhaniat International.
The Ten Sufi Thoughts by Hazrat Inayat Khan
There is One God, the Eternal, the Only Being; none else exists save God.
There is One Master, the Guiding Spirit of all Souls, which constantly leads all followers towards the Light.
There is One Holy Book, the sacred manuscript of nature, which truly enlightens all readers.
There is One Religion, the unswerving progress in the right direction towards the ideal, which fulfills the life's purpose of every soul.
There is One Law, the law of Reciprocity, which can be observed by a selfless conscience together with a sense of awakened justice.
There is One Human Brotherhood/Sisterhood, which unites the children of earth indiscriminately in the Parenthood of God.
There is One Moral Principle, the love which springs forth from self-denial, and blooms in deeds of beneficence.
There is One Object of Praise, the beauty which uplifts the heart of its worshipper through all aspects from the seen to the unseen.
There is One Truth, the true knowledge of our being within and without which is the essence of al wisdom.
There is One Path, the annihilation of the false ego in the real, which raises the mortal to immortality, in which resides all perfection.
The Way of the Sufi
The Religion of the Sufi is the cry of the heart;
The Ideal of the Sufi is spiritual consciousness;
The Goal of the Sufi is self-realization;
The God of the Sufi is the Divine Presence within;
The Path of the Sufi is brotherhood and sisterhood;
The Manner of the Sufi is inner nobility;
The Art of the Sufi is personality;
The Charm of the Sufi is humility;
The Moral of the Sufi is beneficence;
The Attitude of the Sufi is forgiveness;
The Beloved of the Sufi is love itself.
Purposes of the Sufi Movements and Orders
- To realize and spread the knowledge of unity, the religion of love and wisdom, so that the bias of faiths and beliefs may of itself fall away, the human heart may overflow with love, and all hatred caused by distinctions and differences may be rooted out.
- To discover the light and power latent in mankind, the secret of all religion, the power of mysticism, and the essence of philosophy, without interfering with customs or beliefs.
- To help to bring the world’s two opposite poles, East and West, closer together by the interchange of thought and ideals, that the Universal Brotherhood/Sisterhood may form of itself, and each shall meet with each beyond narrow national and racial boundaries.
For a Sufi
WISDOM - is the art of being responsive to the opinions of others and tolerant of their pre-conceived ideas, while preserving one's own understanding from the limitations of dogma.
RELIGION - is the path of liberation from the captivity of that illusion which arises when one assumes a duality in the unity of love, human and divine.
SPIRITUALITY - is the process of clearing away all aspects of self-assertion while at the same time searching for the divine impulse within oneself, which is the source and goal of all creation.
MYSTICISM - is an inner awakening to the reality of the undefinable, which is experienced when the voice of the heart cries aloud "This is not my body. This is the temple of God."
Some Sufi Terms
Bayat - Fealty or homage but in Sufism, initiation, spiritual initiation from Pir.
Begum - Lady or queen; a term of respect, as, for example, 'Pirani Ameena Begum Ora-Ray Inayat-Khan,' the wife of Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan.
Dargah - A royal court, or in Sufi terms, the tomb of a saint or master. The Dargah of Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan is in the suburbs of New Delhi.
Fikar - Thought, reflection. In Sufism, the name of a spiritual exercise involving breath and concentration.
Gayan - 'Singing,' 'song' or 'chant.' The title of a collection of inspired sayings by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan. Often published together with two other books, Vadan ('instrumental music'), and Nirtan ('dance').
Hazrat - 'Presence' or 'dignity'; a title of respect given to the worldly great and to spiritual masters.
Khatum - 'Conclusion,' 'end,' the name of the third prayer of the Universal Worship.
Mureed, Murid - 'Willing,' therefore applied to a follower, student or disciple; an initiate in the Inner School.
Murshid - see Pir-o-Murshid, below.
Nabi - 'Prophet'; encountered in the prayer Salat, 'O Messenger, Christ, a Nabi, the Rasul of God...' [see Rasul, below.]
Nafs - Breath or essence, but if that should be coarse and unrefined, it may also refer to the false ego.
Pir-ul-Mulk, Pir-ul-Mulkh - the Master of the Earth, World and Humanity, Pir and Buzurg.
Pir-o-Murshid - Both Pir and Murshid mean a spiritual guide or master. The combined term denotes a teacher of teachers, or in other words the spiritual head of an order, and specifically of the Sufi Order, the inner school of the Sufi Movement.
Rasul - 'Messenger,' a prophet of the highest rank; encountered in the prayer of Salat, 'O Messenger, Christ, Nabi, the Rasul of God...' [see Nabi, above.]
Salat - The name of the second prayer of the Universal Worship, meaning, 'prayer,' 'benediction,' or 'blessing.'
Saum - The name of the first prayer of the Universal Worship, also found in the Gayatri, in the book, Gayan. ln Arabic and Urdu, it means 'fasting,' and therefore evokes religious duty, but Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan may have also used the term because it is a homophone to the western word, 'psalm.'
Sufi - According to Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan, it means wisdom, from the same root as the Greek sophia. Other sources connect it with words meaning purity, and even wool.
Sura - In Arabic, a verse of the Qu'ran. In Sanskrit, a deity, the sun, a melody, breath, sound, or an angel.
Universal Worship - A devotional service given to the world by Hazrat Inayat Khan, in which lights are kindled and scriptures read for major religions as well as for the light of the Spirit of Guidance present in all names and forms.
Wazifa - A spiritual exercise involving the repetition of sacred names or phrases, similar to jap or mantra yoga.
Zikar, Dhikar - 'Remembrance'; specifically, a spiritual exercise central to Sufism, the repetition of a phrase meaning, 'There is no God but God; God alone is.'
Ibn Arabi - Akbariyya
Muhyiddin Muhammad b. 'Ali Ibn 'Arabi (or Ibn al-'Arabi) AH 561- AH 638 (July 28, 1165 – November 10, 1240) is considered to be one of the most important Sufi masters, although he never founded any official order (tariqa) - althought there is secret order of Ali Ibn Arabi folowers. His writings, especially al-Futuhat al-Makkiyya and Fusus al-hikam, have been studied within all the Sufi orders as the clearest expression of tawhid (Divine Unity), though because of their recondite nature they were often only given to initiates. Later those who followed his teaching became known as the school of wahdat al-wujud (the Oneness of Being). He himself considered his writings to have been divinely inspired. As he expressed the Way to one of his close disciples, his legacy is that 'you should never ever abandon your servanthood ('ubudiyya), and that there may never be in your soul a longing for any existing thing'. He is renowned by some practitioners of Sufism as "the greatest master" and also as a genuine saint. He went by the names al-Shaykh al-Akbar, Muḥyiddin ibn Arabi, and was also later nicknamed the Great Shaykh. Akbariyya - a secret Sufi society with Ibn Arabi teachings, even was founded in Paris in 1911 by the wandering Swedish Sufi 'Abdu l-Hadi Aguéli. Among its first members was René Guénon. Its purpose was to promote the teachings of Muhyeddin Ibn al-Arabi among the "scholarly, educated and freethinking classes..." through the practice of the Shadhili and Malamati Sufi paths.
The traditional silsila (spiritual lineage) of the Chishti order is as follows:
'Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib (Ali, the cousin of Muhammad)
Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī (d. 728, an early Persian Muslim theologian)
'Abdul Wāḥid Bin Zaid Abul Faḍl (d. 793, an early Sufi saint)
Fuḍayll ibn 'Iyāḍ Bin Mas'ūd Bin Bishr al-Tamīmī
Ibrāhīm bin Adham (a legendarly early Sufi ascetic)
Ḥudhayfah al-Mar'ashī
Amīnuddīn Abū Ḥubayrah al-Baṣrī
Mumshād Dīnwarī
Abu Ishaq Shamī (d. 940, founder of the Chishti order proper)
Abu Ahmad Chishtī
Abu Muhammad Chishtī
Abu Yusuf Nasar-ud-Din Chishtī (d. 1067)
Qutab-ud-Din Maudood Chishtī (Abu Yusuf's son, d. 1139)
Haji Sharif Zindani (d. 1215)
Usman Harooni (d. 1220)
Mu'īnuddīn Chishtī (1141-1230)
Qutab-ud-Din Bakhtyar Kaki (1173-1235)
Farīduddīn Mas'ūd ("Baba Farid", 1173 or 1175 - 1266)
After Farīduddīn Mas'ūd, the Chishti order divided into two branches:
* Chishtī Sabri, who follow Alauddin Sabir Kaliyari.
* Chishtī Nizami who follow Nizāmuddīn Auliyā (from this we have Hazrat Inayat Khan).
The Chishty Sufi Order was founded by Abu Ishaq Shami ("the Syrian") who taught Sufism in the town of Chisht, some 95 miles east of Herat in present-day western Afghanistan. Before returning to Syria, where he is now buried next to Ibn Arabi at Jabal Qasioun Shami initiated, trained and deputized the son of the local emir, Abu Ahmad Abdal. Under the leadership of Abu Ahmad’s descendants, the Chishtiya as they are also known, flourished as a regional mystical order. The founder of the Chishti Order in South Asia was Moinuddin Chishti. He was born in the province of Silistan in eastern Persia around 536 AH (1141 CE), into a sayyid family claiming descent from Muhammad. When he was only nine, he memorized the Qur'an, thus becoming a hafiz. His father died when he was a teenager; Moinuddin inherited the family grinding mill and orchard. He sold everything and gave the proceeds to the poor. He traveled to Balkh and Samarkand, where he studied the Qur'an, hadith, and fiqh. He looked for something beyond scholarship and law and studied under the Chishti shaykh Usman Harooni. He moved to Lahore and then to Ajmer, where he died. His tomb, in Ajmer, is the Dargah Sharif, a popular shrine and pilgrimage site.
Moinuddin Chishty was followed by Qutab-ud-Din Bakhtyar Kaki and Farīduddīn Mas'ūd. After Fariduddin, the Chishti Order of South Asia split into two branches. Each branch was named after one of Fariduddin's successors:
* Nizamuddin Auliya - This branch became the Chishti Nizami branch. Nizamuddin Auliya taught Nasiruddin Chiragh Dehlavi who in turn taught Khwaja Bande Nawaz.
* Alauddin Sabir Kaliyari - This branch became the Chishti-Sabiri branch.
Later, yet other traditions branched from the Chisti lineage; in many cases they merged with other popular Sufi orders in South Asia. Founders of such new branches of the lineage include:
* Ashraf Jahangir Semnani - trained in the Nizami tradition; his followers became the Chishti Nizami Ashrafiya branch.
* Haji Imdadullah Muhaajir Makki - trained in the Sabari tradition; his followers became the Chishtiya Sabaria Imdadiya branch.
* Shah Niyaz Ahmad- united the Chishti Nizami order with the Qadriya order to form the Chishtiya Qadriya Nizamia Niyazia branch.
As a result of this merging of the Chishti order with other branches, most Sufi masters now initiate their disciples in all the four major orders of South Asia: Chishti, Suhrawadi, Qadri, and Naqshbandi. They do however, teach devotional practices typical of the order with which they are primarily associated. The Chishti order has also absorbed influences and merged at times with various antinomian fakir Sufi groups, especially the Qalandar. Some Chishtis both past and present have lived as renunciants or as wandering dervish.
Several rulers of the Mughal dynasty of South Asia were Chisti devotees. The emperor Akbar was perhaps the most fervent of them. It is said to be by the blessing of Sheikh Salim Chishti that Akbar's first surviving child, the future Jahangir, was born. The child was named Salim after the sheikh and was affectionately addressed by Akbar as Sheikhu Baba. Akbar also credited the Chisti sheikhs with his victory at the Siege of Chittorgarh. Akbar had vowed to visit the Chisti dargah, the tomb of Moinuddin Chishti, at Ajmer if he were victorious. He fulfilled his vow by visiting the dargah with his musicians, who played in honor of the sheikh. Akbar's descendant, Jahanara Begum Sahib, was also a devout follower of the Chisti Order. The Mughal Emperor Akbar was a great patron of the Chishti Order.
Abu Ishaq Shami - The Chishtiyya Founder
Abu Ishaq Shami (died 940 CE) - (Russian: Абу Исхак аш-Шами) - was a Muslim scholar who is remebered and regarded as the founder of the Sufi Chishti Order (Persian: چشتی - Čištī, Arabic: ششتى - Shishti). He was the first in the Chishti lineage (silsila) to live in Chisht and so to adopt the name "Chishti", so that, if the Chishti order itself dates back to him, it is one of the oldest recorded Sufi orders. His original name, Shami, implies he came from Syria (ash-Sham). He died in Damascus and lies buried on Mount Qasiyun (many mazars are supposedly on this hill outside of Damascus where Cain slew Able), where later on also Ibn Arabi was buried. Abu Ishaq Shami's teacher was Shaikh Ilw Dinwari, whose own teacher was Abu Hubairah Basri, a disciple of Huzaifah Al-Mar'ashi who was in turn a disciple of Ibrahim ibn Adham. The Chishtiyyah silsila continued through Abu Ishaq Shami's disciple Abu Ahmad Abdal. In south Asia Moinuddin Chishti was the founding father and most revered saint of the Chishti order.
When Hazrat Abu Ishaq Chishti (RA) arrived at the Khanqah of Hazrat Mumshad Ali Dinwari (RA), the Sheikh asked him of his name. He replied “Abu Ishaq SHAMI”, and the Sheikh then said to him, “From this day people will refer to you as Abu Ishaq CHISHTI”, and that he should go to Chist in Afghanistan and spread the mystic order so that people in and around Chisht could receive spiritual guidance from him. Furthermore, the Sheikh said that all those people that would enter his (Khwaja Abu Ishaq Chisti) silsila, would be known as CHISHTI untill the day of Qiyamah. Looking at the date of ABu Ishaq Shami death it is considered that the Chishti Order is one of the oldest, if not the oldest now still existing sufi order. However according to most of the Sufi orders it is considered that their originations are directly from the time period of the Prophet Mohammad and the Prophet himself. His Masters and Students Shaikh Ilw Mumshad Dinwari was his Master. He may had many Khalifa's but Abu Ahmad Abdal carries the Chisti Chain to South Asia.
In Tabqaat, Imaam Sha’rani says that Khwaja Mumshad (rahmatullah alayh) died in the year 297 Hijri - 910 CE. However, according to the author of Khazeenah 298 Hijri is the unanimous claim of the historians. The author of Anwar records the date as 14th Muharram 299 Hijri (912 CE) which was the era of the reign of the Abbasi Khalifah, Muqtadir Bil-lah. His grave is in Dinwar. Dinwar is a city between the cities of Hamdaan and Baghdaad. His title was Karimud Deen Mun’im. Khwaja Mumshad Dinwari and Khwaja Ilw Dinwari are the same person but Suhrawardi likes the first nema and Chishti the second one. Khwaja Abu Muhammad, Khwaja Abu Ahmad Bagdaadi, Khwaja Abu Ishaq and Khwaja Isti’dad Ahmad Dinwari are his khulafaa (succesors). Among them Khwaja Abu Ishaq is a Founder of Chishtiyya, founding the Sufi Order in Chesht much before 910-912 CE - just before His murshid death.
Khwaja Mumshad Dilwari was a perpetual faster. It is said that even during infancy he would sometimes abstain from drinking his mother’s milk. He is therefore called a born Wali (Vali). Before becoming bay’t, he was in the suhbat (company) of Hazrat Khidhr (A.S) who instructed him to attach himself to a Shaikh. Immediately on becoming bay’t, he was given Ijaazat (appointed Khalifah). His Shaikh cast Tawajjuh on him and made a special dua for him. Simultaneously with the dua Hazrat Ilw Mumshad became unconscious. He regained conscious only to become unconscious again. After this state (consciousness and unconsciousness) occurred forty times, his Shaikh applied his saliva to Hadhrat Mumshad’s mouth. This completely stabilised him. The Shaikh asked: “Ilw, what did you see?” He said: “In thirty years of mujaahadah I did not acquire what I gained in a little tawajjuh of the Shaikh.”
Khwaja Mumshad Uluw Dilwari (R.A) was very fond of Sama (Sema, Semzen), and used to celebrate the Urs of his elders with they mystical musical assembly as the Holy Prophet Muhammad guide. He explained that Sama aroused the love of Allah in the heart, leading to closeness and eventual wasul with the Lord - which was the ultimate goal of all seekers of the Truth (al-Haqq). He was the murshid of Khwaja Abu Ishaq Chishti (R.A) after whom the Chishtiya Silsila was founded, and it was he who blessed it and prophesied the impact it would wield on the course of Sufi Islam history.
Although Khwaja MoinudDin Chishti (R.A) the great sufi saint of India, is widely regarded as the pivotal figure in the Chishtiya silsilah, the actual founder of the mighty order lived over two hundered years before him. Khwaja Abu Ishaq Chishti (R.A) is called Taj al-Auliya, or “the Crown of the Saints”. He was born in Chisht, a small village in todays Afghanistan, and mostly acquired his religious knowledge from Damascus (al-Sham) in Syria. Seeking a spiritual teacher to perfect himself, he performed salat al-istikhara (the prayer of seeking guidance). After forty consecutive days, he received his response: “if you seek to reach the destination, go to Mumshad al-Dinawari.” When he arrived in Baghadad, Khwaja Mumshad asked him for his name. He replied: “I am Abu Ishaq al-Shami,” (referring to the place he had acquired his religious instruction). His murshid, however, diving through spiritual intuition, replied: “No; you are Abu Ishaq al-Chishti! From you the peole of Chisht and all the surrounding areas will receive guidance; and the spiritual order (silsilah) you found will be known as al-Chishtiya until the Day of Qiyamah.
After these glad tidings, he was trained in the tariqah — the path of Tasawwuf. He became known as a great zahid (ascetic) because true Sufi always is zahid. Among his extraordinary mujahadahs was the seven day fast without even drop of water (it is uneasy in tropical Iraq or Syria climate), and he used to declare, “the miraaj of the fuqara is hunger”. It is said that such was the power of his companionship that those who sat with him thereafter refrained from sin, and the sick were miraculously cured. Once a king came to him complaining that his lands were undergoing a drought. Through the grace of Allah, it immediately began to rain. The next day the king returned with some other problem, and Khwaja Abu Ishaq began to wep. When asked why, he replied, “I fear that I have committed a sin. Why else would Allah punish me with the company of rich and deprive me of the company of the poor?”
Upon perfection of his suluk, he was granted khilafat (sucession) in a total of fourteen spiritual orders. Suluk is the science of all the internal elements of the Way and the salik is the one who cements himself in the knowledge necessary to prevent madness. Thereafter, he returned to his home town, where he founded the Chishtiya silsilah, about which mention has been made. Its foundations and practices, which today are almost emblematic of the Chishtiya , were laid by Khwaja Abu Ishaq r.a, who lived out the rest of his life in Chisht and spread the order from there. Many people accepted Islam and became muridin at the hands of Khwaja Abu Ishaq, including Khwaja Abu Ahmad al-CHishti who eventually became his foremost khalifa. He attained unity on the 14th Rabi al-Akhir 329 AH (941 CE) and lies buried in Acer, on the border of Syria.
Taj-ul-Awliya, Khwaja-e-Khwajegaan, Hazrat Khwaja Abu Is`Haaq Chishty Shaami (Radi Allahu Anhu) lived in the era of the following Mashaa`ikh, who were his contemporaries, viz. Hazrat Abu Bakr Shibli (Radi Allahu Anhu), Khwaja Hasan bin Mansur Hallaj (Radi Allahu Anhu), Khwaja Abul Abbas ibn `Ata (Radi Allahu Anhu).
I now have no fear, nor am I in danger,
In this love I have become entirely absorbed;
Oh God, take me at last unto his door.
Salutations to you, O head of the Chishti!
Khwaja Abu Ishaq Chishti... the celebrated.
Some of Abu Ishaq Shami's or His teacher sayings are:
* Starvation (fasting) excels all in bliss.
* The worldly people are impure while the dervishes are pure in their souls. These two different natures cannot therefore mingle.
* A man who considers himself significant even while in the company of a buzrug will gain nothing from the advices of that buzrug.
* Sitting in the suhbat of the people of rectitude (i.e. the Auliya) produces rectitude in the heart while the company of the people of corruption produces corruption in the heart.
* Abandonment of futility is called Tasawwuf. Abandoning things to which the heart inclines is called tawakkul.
* When a man goes to a shaykh (guide) with his own spiritual states, he is deprived of the benefit of that company, because he is engrossed in his own knowledge.
* Until I had left behind all my knowledge and conditions (spiritual states), I did not go into the company of a buzrug. After I had left my Uloom and Haalaat (spiritual states), I entered into the service of a buzrug and waited in expectation of the barakaat (spiritual blessings and benefits) which are obtainable from his ziyaarat (looking at him) and his discourse. When a man goes with his own spiritual states to a buzrug, then he is deprived of the fuyoodh (spiritual benefits) of that buzrug because of engrossment in his own knowledge.
* If you accumulate the wisdom of former and later times and if you claim to possess the spiritual states of the Auliya, you will not reach the rank of the Aarifeen as long as your baatin (spiritual heart) is not at peace with Allah and as long as you lack complete reliance on what has been predestined for you.
* The changing conditions (of life on earth) do not influence a man whose goal is Allah Ta’ala.
* In thirty years of mujaahadah I did not acquire what I gained in a little tawajjuh of the Shaikh.
Silsila - The chain of masters of Abu Ishaq Chishti
1. Muhammad ibn Abdullah
2. ‘Ameerul Mo’mineen Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib
3. Shaikh Khawaja Ḥasan Baṣrī
4. Shaikh Abdul Wāḥid Bin Zaid
5. Fuḍayl ibn Iyāḍ
6. Ibrāhīm bin Adham
7. Ḥudhayfah al-Mar’ashī
8. Amīnuddīn Abū Ḥubayrah al-Baṣrī
9. Khwaja Mumshād Dīnwarī or Hazrat Ilw/Uluw Mumshad, Karim-ud-deen Mun’im
10. Abū Isḥāq al-Shāmī - the First Chishty
Hazrat Ali Ibn Abu Talib
We read the following words of Holy Prophet (s): “Whoever wants to live and die like me and abide in eternal heaven which Allah promised me, should acknowledge Ali Ibn Abi Talib as WALI, he will never lead you out of guidance and never lead you astray. ” The Isnad of this hadith are Sahih.
The Holy Prophet (s) said of Imam Ali (as): “Ali is a guide (Hadi), a guided one (Mahdi) and shall take you to the right path [Siratul Mustaqim]” - Kanz al Ummal, page 612.
The Holy Prophet (BUH & HF) mentioned:
1. “Whomever I am his master, this Ali is his master (Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad Hanbal, Chapter 39, Pg 297, Hadith 18497.)
2. The position of Ali (A.S) amongst the people is like Surat Qul Hu Allahu Ahad in the Qur’an.(Sunni Reference: Muslim, 1/48; Musnad Ahmad, 6/299;)
3. Ali (A.S) holds a right over this nation like the right of a father over his son.(Sunni Reference: Muslim, 2/361; Musnad Ahmad, 3/198;)
4. I am the warner, and the guide after me is Ali (A.S). Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad, 1/151;
5. Ali (A.S) is the distinguisher between truth and falsehood. Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad, 1/331;
6. Ali (A.S) holds the position of the Kaaba. Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad, 3/82;
7. Embellish your gatherings by mentioning Ali (A.S). Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad, 4/368, 5/419;
8. My Lord commanded me to close all the doors except the door of Ali (A.S).Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad, 4/369;
9. There is a tree in Paradise called Tuba. Its roots are in the house of Ali, and its branch is Ali (A.S).Sunni Reference: Musnad Ahmad, 4/370;
10. The one who wants to live my life and die my death will attach himself to Ali (A.S).Sunni Reference: Musnad of Ahmad, 5/94;
11. Ali (A.S) is to me what Haroun was to Musa. Sunni Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Chapter 13, Hadith 4064
12. Ali (A.S) is the door of my knowledge, and the one who will clarifies for my nation that which I was sent with. Sunni Reference: Shawahid Al-Tanzil, 2/356;
13. For the one who believes and trusts in me, I recommend the wilayat of Ali (A.S).Sunni Reference: Tarikh Baghdad of Al-Khateeb Al-Baghdadi, 1/316;
14. Ali (A.S) stands in relation to me as my head to my body. Sunni Reference: Tarikh Baghdad of Al-Khateeb Al-Baghdadi, 1/51;
15. Every prophet has an executor and inheritor, and my executor and inheritor is Ali (A.S).Sunni Reference: Tarikh Baghdad of Al-Khateeb Al-Baghdadi, 11/173; Shawahid Al-Tanzil, 2/223;
16. Ali (A.S) is the best of humanity, and the one who denies it has blasphemed.Sunni Reference: Tarikh Baghdad of Al-Khateeb Al-Baghdadi, 5/37;
18. The title of the believer’s book is love for Ali (A.S). Sunni Reference: Tarikh Baghdad of Al-Khatib Al-Baghdadi, 4/410;
Man Kunto Mawlahu fa `Aliyyun mawlahu i.e. For whosoever I am Mawla then Ali is his Mawla [Sunnan Tirimdhi, Hadith # 3713, where Imam Tirimdhi called it “Hasan Sahih” and Albani proved it to be Sahih too]
(The Prophet – Peace be upon him said): For whosoever I am Mawla then Ali is his Mawla, O Allah befriend those who befriend Ali and be enemy of those who are enemy to Ali (Albani Says): This hadith has come from Zayd ibn Arqam, Syad bin Abi Waqqas, Buraida bin Husayb, Ali bin Abi Talib, Abu Ayyub al Ansari, Bara bin Azib, Abdullah Ibn Abbas, Anas bin Malik, Abu Sayeed and Abu Hurraira (Ridhwan Allahu Ajmain), The Hadith of Zayd bin Arqam comes with 5 (different) ways!… [Albani in: Silsilat ul ahadith as-Sahiha, Volume No. 4, Page No. 330, Hadith Number 1750
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Sufi Practices
On the initial stages of psycho-energetic practice, the sheik suggests to murids many different exercises for development of the ability of concentration, for stopping the flow of thoughts and achieving the “mental rest; they also work with images. After that, various psycho-physical exercises are used: rhythmic movements to music, Sufi whirling, etc. The psycho-energetic teaching in Sufism is performed so that all students receive special tasks from the sheikh, according to their individual peculiarities and capability of comprehending. At the same time, the sheik gives psycho-energetic training for groups of students. The use of the whole spectrum of these means creates a remarkable purifying effect, develops the energy structures of the organism (heart latifa in particular). Some of these exercises cause “subtle attunement” of the body, mind, and consciousness, and bring the participants to the ecstatic state which the Sufis call hal. There are different kinds of hal. Most often the student gains the following kinds of this state: qurb - feeling of the nearness of God, mahabba - felling of the fervent love for God, khauf - deep remorse, shauq - passionate longing for God, etc.
Dances of dervishes, for example, require absolute relaxation of the body and achievement of the full mental pause. Against such background of relaxation and meditative attunement of the consciousness to the Creator, harmonious spontaneous movements of the body occur. They are not planned; they do not originate from the mind, but as if occur spontaneously, Usually, the dances of dervishes are performed with use of meditative music or meditative singing. This ensures proper attunement of all dancers and brings all ready participants to the state of hal. Another interesting technique is Sufi whirling. It allows one, in particular, to move the consciousness out from the head chakras, what facilitates entering the state of hal. There are various modifications of this technique. Whirling can be performed to music or without it, with use of mantras, with concentration in certain energy structures of the organism. In the latter case, whirling contributes to the development of the chakras.
Moulana Zakariyah says: “Hazrat Nizamuddin al-Umri was instructed by his Shaikh to recite ‘Allahu’ 90 times in a single breathe gradually increasing the number in accordance with his ability. Ultimately, he developed his ability to the extent of up to 400 times with a single breath.” The practice of heavy breathing, as in the Sufi Dhikr of inhaling whilst saying “La-ilaha” and then exhaling to create a loud and sharp voice saying ‘ill-lal-lah’ is seen in various oriental and eastern religions. The Sufis consider their Shaikhs in the graves to be alive and in their senses. They consider them able to benefit their followers. Moulana Zakariyah quotes Haji Imdadullah Muhajir Makki in his book Mashaikh-e-Chist saying, “…The Faqir does not die. He is simply transformed from one abode to another. The same benefit which was received from the Faqir’s physical life will be acquired from his grave.”
The general rules of performing whirling exercise are the following:
1) one can start whirling not sooner than three hours after meat meal;
2) whirling is performed to any convenient side, against the background of full relaxation of the body;
3) the eyes are opened and fixed on one of the raised hands or not fixed on anything at all;
4) whirling is performed in individual rhythm, with as smooth beginning and end of the exercise as possible;
5) in case of falling during whirling, one has to turn on the stomach and relax;
6) after performing the exercise, it is necessary to relax;
7) also one needs to be fully confident in the technique, fully “open” when performing the exercise. The duration of the exercise is individual and can vary from several minutes to several hours.
On the “mature” stages of tariqa, one performs intensive work on developing, perfecting the energy structures of the organism. In Hindu terms, this concerns, in particular, the chakras and nadi (meridians). In this work, a special emphasis is put on developing the heart latifa (chakra) responsible for producing the emotions of cordial love. One of the techniques of this kind is the meditation of laugh. Its participants lay on the back and completely relax. After meditative attunement, they place one hand on the region of heart latifa, and another hand - on the region of qalabiya (earth latifa), to activate these latifas. Then they begin to move through the organism waves of soft light-laugh (from qalabiya - to the head latifa). The meditation of laugh creates a purifying effect and contributes to the development of the latifas, the middle meridian, if it is performed on the due level of subtlety.
Another important technique used in Sufism is zikr (dhikr). There are many variations, modifications of zikr - according to the traditions of the brotherhood or order, the sheik’s mastery. Zikr is performed in the following way:
All participants stand or sit in a circle. The sheik or mushid, or pir gives meditative attunement and then, by his instruction, the participants begin to perform a series of consecutive exercises. These exercises are rhythmic movements performed in ever-increasing tempo (for example, bows, turns, sways of the body). With movements, the participants chant praying formulas. In some orders, murshids attach a great importance to music, to singing in meditation classes. They believe that music - the food of the soul (ghiza-i-ruh) - is one of the very powerful means contributing to spiritual progress. They widely use music that makes the body move spontaneously (tarab), facilitates entering deep meditative states (saut), etc. In some sufi orders and brotherhoods, they have everyday listening to music, collective classes with singing of mystic verses (sama), ecstatic dances to music, etc.
The effectiveness of these techniques consists, in particular, in the fact that meditations are performed not only in motionless positions of the body but also against the background of movements. Thanks to the complex use of different methods, one activates several “centers” of the organism: emotional, moving, and intellectual one. Coordinated, harmonious work of these centers makes possible a quick change in the student’s psychoenergetic state. Apart from ordinary methods, in Sufism there are “accelerated” techniques of spiritual development. By means of these secret techniques, murids can make very fast advancement. These techniques are given only to those who possess very high psycho-energetic readiness. The Sufi meditation tradition is very rich and multifarious. It accumulated vast experience of work with the body, mind, and consciousness. The Sufis developed the ways of cognizing Wajd (Samadhi, in Hindu terms), the techniques for accomplishing correct crystallization of consciousness in the higher spatial dimensions, and methods for mastering Fana-fi-Allah (Nirvana in the Creator).
In Sufism, there are many original things. However, one can see its remarkable similarity to the spiritual traditions of other best religious schools and directions - the similarity of goals, the ways of their realization, and even of the methods. This indicates an important thing: that Sufism, Hesychasm, Taoism, Buddhist mysticism, classic Hindu yoga, the way of the Mexican school of Juan Matus, and some other directions are based on the same laws of spiritual development. It is only the realization of these laws that can be different in different cultural and historical conditions. And always there are people who - independent of their spiritual traditions - can successfully walk the Sufi Path, Tariqat.
Dhikr (Zikr) - Remembrance of God
Dhikr - means “remembrance”, “recollection” but also “mentioning”. Distinctive forms and practices of dhikr identify specific Sufi Orders. Beyond the practice itself, dhikr and the condition of being a “dhakir” can be interpreted in terms of a state of consciousness or spiritual experience. Dhakir (zakir) is one who expirience dhikr (zikr) deeply! The term “dhikr” appears 75 times in the Qur’an (another 84 as verb) which itself is called a “dhikr” (reminder).
“O you who believe remember Allah with a great remembrance (dhikr/an kathir/an) and glorify him in the morning and evening” (Q.33:41).
“Remember Allah deep in your soul (nafs) humbly and with fear (khawf) without loudness in words...” (Q.7:205).
“Remember Me and I will remember you” – (Q.2:152).
“Remember Allah standing, sitting, and laying down” (Q.3:191; 4:10).
Hadith:
• Dhikr is the polish for the Heart!
• A breath without the remembrance of Allah is wasted!
Chishti Dhikr – is an obligatory practice (farz):
• Can be group or individual;
• Can be silent (khafi) or performed aloud;
• Focuses on the shahada and nafi/ithbat;
• Dhikr of 1200 (bara soo);
• Uses head movements (strikes/ “zarb”);
• Has various techniques “pas-e anfas”;
• and shughl/ashghal “concentrations” “didar-e ilahi”;
Sufi tariqas begin with loud “dhikr lisani” and move toward khafi and akhfa (silent). Dhikr khafi ends with the divine vision (experience of God)”.
Performed silently (khafi) without any special movements “dhikr-e khafi iman ast”.
– Importance of the breath (“a breath without remembrance is wasted”/ the spirit (ruh) permeates the entirebody);
– Ideal is perpetual dhikr - “dhikr dawwam, da’imi” (Har ja ke bashid ba yad e khuda bashid);
– Goal is vision of the divine - “didar-e ilahi”;
“Only due to dhikr can you achieve the vision of God, Whatever I say - doexactly that”.
Perform the dhikr of Allah may He be exalted, so that you can achieve the vision of Allah”.
Levels of Dhikr/Kalima (Insaf Nama):
1. TASDIQ - affirmation
2. TA’ZIM - glorification – Ayn al-yaqin;
3. HALAWAT - sweetness – Ilm al-yaqin;
4. HURMAT - reverence – Haqq al-yaqin;
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CONTACT IN POLAND (English-Polish):
mobile: +48 518 300 138
email: sufi.ofiel@gmail.com
or to the Chishtiyya representative in Poland:
email: chishtiyya99@gmail.com
or to the Chishtiyya representative in Poland:
email: chishtiyya99@gmail.com
SUFI WORKSHOPS - MEETINGS IN POLAND (POLISH LANGUAGE) INFO:
https://zakon-sufi.blogspot.com/p/zajecia.html
Pir-o-Murshid Ofiel A. Chishty is the greatest sufi master and the best spiritual lider in all Europe!
OdpowiedzUsuńJalila
Great article thanks for sharing the great information by this article.in this article is the very great point for the every person.
OdpowiedzUsuńDeveloping Punjab
Every latifa is associated with an activity like tawakkul taslim rid kanayat etc. Could u elucidate? What are the stages maqamat like jabrut nasrut malkut? Pl. Explain.
OdpowiedzUsuń