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| Ramadhan Gift Shaykh Tosun Bayrak al-Jerrahi al-Halveti In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful Blessings to the light of our Lord, the doctor of hearts, the intercessor of sinners, the mercy of Allah upon the universe, our Master Muhammad; and blessings to his enlightened family and companions and all his saints, including our Master Hadrat Nureddin Jerrahi. May Allah's blessings be upon all of them. May Allah's peace, blessings, mercy, compassion and love be upon the people of Muhammad, and upon my children in Americas. Allah Most High says: When you read or hear "O you who believe" (ya ayyuha-lladhina) be aware, because what follows are Allah's words to you. Whoever you are, and whatever state you are in, you must obey what Allah asks of you directly. In that word ya -- "O" -- is a holy sound coming from beyond the hidden realm; it is your name being called. And the ayyuha is a sign that the Almighty is addressing you, with whom He is familiar, with whom He has met and talked in the Universe of Souls. And when He addresses you with the greatest praise as mu'min - "you who believe" -- He is calling unto His beloved with whom He shares the secret, known both to Him and to you. It is as if Allah Most High calls unto you, saying, "O My pure and beloved servant, who keeps his heart and his essence cleansed and ready only for Me, and with whom I share My secrets and who shares his secrets with Me." In "fasting is prescribed for you" the word as-siyam, fasting, means a state of denial, withdrawal from things which one is used to: eating, drinking, lovemaking, and above all, from sinning. "As it was prescribed to those before you" means that fasting applies to all believers before from Adam {as} who, when he was sent from Paradise to this world, turned black from the harsh rays of the sun, to which he was unaccustomed. Gabriel {as} asked him if he would like to be relieved of this state, caused by the effects of the material world, and regain the whiteness of his holy body. To accomplish this, he had to fast the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth of the lunar month. On the thirteenth, one third of his body became white; on the fourteenth, two thirds of his body became white, and on the fifteenth, his whole body regained its purity. The thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth of the Arabic months are called ayyam-I bayd -- the white days -- because of this. Our Master, the Beloved of Allah {sas), told Hadrat `Ali {ra} that Gabriel {as} had brought him from Allah the great gift of fasting those three days every month, and that he would be rewarded by ten thousand years of fasting for the first day, thirty thousand years for the second day, and a hundred thousand for the third day. When Hadrat `Ali {ra} asked if that gift was only for him, the Messenger of Allah said, "O `Ali, this gift is for you and for those believers who will follow your path and your example," thus indicating to us the Sufis who follow the tariqah `Aliyyah. Our beloved Prophet {sas} says, "O my people, the holy month of Ramadan, which contains a night which has more good in it than one thousand nights, is close. Allah Most High made fasting during the day an obligation and made the worship in its night voluntary for us. When someone abides with one prescribed obligation during this month, it is as if he has fulfilled seventy obligations outside of this holy month. "The holy Ramadan is the month of patience. Patience is half of faith. The reward of patience is Paradise. During this month, worries leave the believers; their sustenance increases. The ones who feed the believers who fast are forgiven their sins, and are saved from the Fire, even if they are poor and cannot offer more than a date or a glass of milk, or a glass of water. "The beginning of Ramadan is the manifestation of Allah's mercy; the middle is His forgiveness; the end is safety from Hellfire". "Do four things during Ramadan: Remember Allah and recite the holy phrase la ilaha illaLLah as often as you can; remember yourself and repent for your sins as much as you can, and recite astaghfiru Llah; ask from Allah His Paradise, and take refuge in Allah from His Hellfire. "Whoever feeds someone who is fasting during Ramadan will be refreshed from the fountain of Kawthar on the Day of Judgment, and throughout eternity he will not thirst." In another hadith, our beloved Prophet {sas} says, "All the doors of Heaven and Paradise open on the first night of Ramadan, and stay open until the last night. "For each prostration of the Muslims who pray during the nights of Ramadan, Allah registers seventeen hundred rewards. For each one who prays He builds a palace out of red ruby in Paradise. That house has a thousand bejeweled doors, and there is a pair of golden wings hanging above each door. "When you fast on the first day of Ramadan, Allah forgives all the sins you may commit until the last day of Ramadan, and still forgives other past sins equal to those. For each day of fasting, seventy thousand angels will pray for your forgiveness from morning until night. "Allah will give you a tree in Paradise for each prostration in your prayers, such an immense tree that if you travelled a hundred years on horseback, you would not pass out of its shade." The Messenger of Allah {sas} says that on the first night of Ramadan Allah looks upon His deserving servants; when Allah's sight falls on His servant, that person will be saved from eternal punishment. Every single day in Ramadan, millions are released from Hell. Paradise is decorated every year in honor of the month of Ramadan. On the first night of Ramadan, under the throne of Allah, a gentle wind, called Masira, blows. T he leaves and branches of the trees, the grass and the flowers of Paradise rustle with this wind, producing the most wonderful music. All the huris dress up and stand up on high podiums of Paradise and say, "Where are those who wish to have us? Where are those who will ask Allah for us?" The inhabitants of Paradise ask Ridwan, the Keeper of Paradise, "What night is this that all Heaven is celebrating?" Ridwan answers, "Tonight is the first night of Ramadan, when all the gates of Paradise are open to those who fast among the people of Muhammad {sas}." Then Allah Most High asks Ridwan to open all the gates of Paradise, and Malik to shut all the doors of Hell. And Allah sends Gabriel {as} to the world to gather and chain all the devils and imprison them deep under the seas so they do not bother the fasts of the Muslims. Every night during Ramadan, Allah Most High calls thrice to the believers: "Ask for something from Me so that I may give to you. Repent, so that I may readily forgive you. Wish for My Mercy so that I will cover you with My Mercy!" Every single time of break-fast, Allah forgives a thousand times a thousand sinners all over the world, and relieves them from Hellfire. Every Friday and every Friday night, at every hour, Allah saves a thousand times a thousand sinners from the tortures of Hell. On the last day of Ramadan, Allah forgives as many sinners as He has forgiven all during the month among the sinners who fasted. On the Night of Power, by the will of Allah, Gabriel {as}, leading an army of angels and holding a green flag, descends upon the earth. He erects the flag on top of the Ka`bah and opens his six hundred wings, which cover the East and the West. Then Gabriel {as} orders his angels to go and commune with the Muslims. The angels pass among the believers who are devout, who are fasting, who are praying, and who are busy in zikrullah. They bless them, hug and kiss them, and give them support so that their prayers are accepted. At sunrise, Gabriel calls them back. The angels ask Gabriel {as} what Allah is going to do to satisfy the believers among the people of Muhammad {sas}. Gabriel {as} answers that Allah has seen them and has sent His Mercy and His forgiveness upon all of them -- except for four kinds of people amongst them. The Messenger of Allah {sas} has identified these four groups who are not worthy of Allah's Mercy on the Night of Power: -- the drunkards who continue to drink; -- those who are unloving, disrespectful and disobedient to their parents; -- those who cut themselves off and do not visit or care about their relations and friends; -- those who dare to change Allah's religion, and separate themselves from the religion and orthodoxy. On the eve of the Feast of Ramadan, through the night and on into morning, Allah sends His angels to all corners of the world. They stand on each road, as criers of Allah announce in a voice that is heard by the ears of all creation except men and jinn, "O people of Muhammad {sas} come to your Lord, Who is All-merciful and All-generous!" When the believers leave their homes early in the morning to go to the mosques, the angels hear Allah say, "Be My witnesses, I have given My forgiveness and My love and pleasure as reward for their fasting and praying during the month of Ramadan!" And Allah addresses the believers, saying, "O My beloved servants, ask from Me this morning all that you wish. I promise on My Might and My Glory that I will hide your errors and your wrongs, and will not embarrass you before each other as long as you believe and preserve My codes and wishes. Return to your homes forgiven and cleansed, as you have pleased Me and I am pleased with you." The angels hear this and give each other with great joy the good news of the rewards to the believers.... The Messenger of Allah {sas} gives the good news: "Each good deed my followers do is increased ten to seven hundred-fold, and the reward follows accordingly. Only the reward for fasting is not calculated in this manner. Allah says, "My servant fasts for Me, he denies the pleasures of his flesh, he stops eating and drinking; fasting is a shield against sin, so Mine is the unlimited reward for him; I am his reward. "There are two joys for My servant who fasts: one is the time of break-fast, and the other is when he will see his Lord." Ramadan has five letters in Arabic. Ramadan is our intercessor. May Allah Almighty guide you well in it, bless you with it, and make you live that Night of Power which is worth "more than a thousand months" -- equal to a long life of 83 years and four months.... Our Master the Prophet {sas} says, "Everything has a beginning and the beginning of worship is fasting." For fasting is only for Allah's sake and it is secret and private. It is sincerity put into action. That is why Allah Most High says: The worship of fasting is between Me and My servant. When My servant does a good deed for My sake from which others benefit, I reward him tenfold. But when he fasts for My sake I am the judge of the extent of the rewards which I will pour upon him. Let us ask ourselves what is the value of an act of worship, even if it is the beginning of worship, for someone who has made his religion a farce, for someone who cannot say: And I call not myself sinless. (I do not claim that I am in control of my ego.) Surely (man's) self is wont to command evil... (Yusuf 53) and is in the hand of his all-commanding ego, how sincerely can he fast or pray or serve Allah? Our egos make clowns of us and a farce of our religion. ...those who take their religion for a farce and idle sport...(if they) offer every compensation it will not be accepted...(An`am 70) Who are the ones who call themselves
Muslims and dervishes but who "take their religion for a farce and
idle sport?"
These failings are due to five other failings:
They are in that disastrous state initially because:
While they think they fool everyone, often including themselves, everyone knows them except themselves. For their ugly character is apparent:
We must come out of the darkness of heedlessness to see if we have the traces of these maleficent traits. There are seventy veils of heedlessness that we must identify and lift.
And blessed are those who after having suffered the tests of this life and this world, prove themselves worthy to be Allah's servants, the people of Muhammad {sas}, who are able:
And blessed are the saved who:
If one learns the way of Allah and acts upon that knowledge, Allah increases his knowledge. If one spends effort to do what is lawful and not to do what is unlawful, Allah protects him from all that is bad. The one who abandons that which is doubtful is led by Allah to the straight path. The one who serves for Allah's sake receives Allah's secrets. There are three joys of fasting during Ramadan: the time of fast-break, the 'Id at the end of Ramadan, and the greater celebration and feast when the faithful enter Paradise. May Allah Most High accord you all the joys and rewards of shahr-I Ramadan. On this occasion, when we have passed a month of intensive worship, exercising patience, resisting the desires of the flesh and ego, increasing prayers and meditation, fasting during the day and praying at night, all of which are obligations ordained by the religion, we may ask ourselves once again what is the difference between the ahl-I Shari`ah, the Muslim who fasted during the day and prayed during the night just as we did, and the ahl-I Tariqah, the dervish that we call ourselves. We believe that the religion of Islam is like a three-story building. The foundation of this building is Shari`ah, the first floor Tariqah, the second floor Haqiqah, the third floor Ma`rifah. There cannot be a building without a foundation, but there can be a foundation without a building, though it does not fulfill its purpose. The Shari`ah is an invitation to come from disbelief and the imagining of partners for Allah to belief, unification, and the oneness of Allah. The ahl-I Tariqah is ahl-I Shari`ah in the sense that he has answered that call. He is aware of multiplicity within and without himself and wishes to experience the true unity to which he bears witness in words. Haqiqah is the object of the Sufi's yearning. For if we stay in this world of visible things, of multiplicity, which appears to be full of contradictions and meaningless voids, we will be lost -- lost in the darkness of non-reality, imagination, lies, trying only to find relief in the opium of worldly riches, fame, arrogance, and amusement. The ones who are fortunate see that the darkness of ignorance and lies can only be eliminated by one light: the Nur Muhammadi, the source of wisdom, the example of perfection. That light and example teaches not in numbers and exact sciences, nor by the rules and minds of men, but by the causal mind, the first creation of Allah. It teaches by the names taught to Adam, by divine inspiration and revelations, by the soul eternal, by sincere feelings and thoughts of the heart, by the reality seen by the eye of the heart, by the Truth. Ma`rifah is the purpose of religion. It is the satisfaction of the yearning, the fire of love which the coal of Shari`ah lights in the heart. It is knowing Allah, finding the Beloved. It is the fruit of the effects of Haqiqah. The Sufi is the one who is aware of these stages, who believes that they can be attained, and who learns. He learns step by step through a knowledge which comes from the City of Knowledge (as the Beloved of Allah called himself), and from the gate of knowledge, Hadrat `Ali {ra}; and through a chain of beloveds and friends of Allah, saints and teachers, the inheritors of those of whom the Messenger of Allah {sas} said, "My Companions are like stars by which the seafarer finds his way; follow them and you will find the Truth." Thus Sufism is nothing but the practice of Islam with the understanding of its purpose, which is Ma`rifah. The Sufi, with this understanding, takes pleasure in the performance of religious requirements, knowing the meaning and the truth of the practice of religion. The result of this effort is the attainment of the inner secrets of the Holy Qur'an, reached not through interpretations made by logic or through philosophic similitudes and comparisons, but through inspiration. As an example and as a Ramadan gift, let us look at Sūrah al-Duha and its interpretations by the ahl-I Tariqah. Sūrah al-Duha BISMILLAH IR-RAHMAN IR-RAHIM wad-duha wal-layli idha saja ma wadda`uka rabbuka wa ma qala wa lal-akhiratu khayrun laka min al-ula. wa la-sawfa yu`tika rabbuka fa-tarda. a-lam yajiduka yatiman fa-awa wa wajadaka dallan fa-hada wa wajadaka `a'ilan fa-aghna. fa-ammal-yatima fa-la taqhar wa ammas-sa'ila fa-la tanhar wa amma bi-ni`mati rabbika fa-haddith. By the brightness of the day The words of the Qur'an revealed to the Messenger of Allah {sas} are in Arabic, but the meaning of the Holy Qur'an is in the language of Allah. When this surah is translated literally, these English words appear. That is reading the Qur'an from the surface, even if it is accompanied by absolute belief in what one has read. In this particular case, is the absolute belief in the superficial understanding of the surface meaning of this wonderful surah beneficial? The occasion of the revelation of this verse was the time when there was a long pause in the revelations and the enemies of Islam insulted and ridiculed the Beloved of Allah, saying, "Muhammad's Allah is cross with Muhammad: he does not talk about revelations anymore!" Astaghfirullah. This hurt the gentle heart of the Beloved of Allah, upon which this Sūrah was sent to soothe and give solace. Allah Most High vows upon the brightness of the day and the descent of night. What is the meaning of the word duha? Some say that it is the time of the morning when the Prophet {sas} was born. Then what is the meaning of "the night"? Is it the night following the day, or dark after light, or ignorance after knowledge, or blindness after seeing? Or is it simply the passing of time upon which Allah vows that his (the Prophet's) Lord has not left him nor is He cross with him, and that his latter days will be better than his former? Does it mean that the Hereafter is better for him than the life of this world? Allah Most High promises that He will continue to bestow His gifts upon him until he is fully pleased (one presumes in this world because what follows relates to this world). Up to here the language is soothing, loving, and consoling. But what comes after it, read on the surface, may appear strange. How could Allah, repairing the broken heart of His Beloved whom He tells that He can never abandon and will give everything, say, "You were an orphan, so I found you a home: you were groping, so I brought you to Islam; you were poor, so I gave you a rich wife. Do not be mean to the orphans and the orphan child of your wife. While you keep company with the rich, do not send the poor away when they ask for something, and do not forget all I have given you: you must tell others what you have received"? If taken in this manner it appears to add insult to injury. Even a polite man who has given something to someone and then says, "I did this for you and that for you so you had better behave this way and that way" would be considered impolite! How could Allah, the Rahman, the Rahim, the Ra'uf, the Karim, the Latif, the Wadud, who said wa kafa bi-Llahi shahidan Muhammadun rasulu Llah to His Beloved, say this? How could He say, "Do not tyrannize the orphan; do not hurt the poor" to the one about whom He says wa ma arsalnaka illa rahmatan lil-`alamin -- "I have not sent you save as a mercy to the worlds"? People who are affected by the temptations of the accursed one find doors to enter and so cause mischief with statements like, "the wars waged by Islam were really for the benefit of war booty," and so forth. Yet the Prophet {sas} was saying, "O Lord, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing," while his enemies tried to kill him, and when he was victorious over them he forgave them all. So how could such a heart take pleasure from words of Allah Most High if they were given like this, even though the faithful bow their heads in acceptance of it? It is something of a mystery, a secret in one's understanding of the Qur'an, that one hears what one is destined to hear. As Allah Himself says faqra'u ma tayassara min al-qur'an -- take what is meant for you from the Qur'an. Even that ayat is interpreted by the ones who read on the surface as, "read whatever is easy for you from the Qur'an." The Sufis do not measure the words of Allah with the yardstick of the mind, but rather with the inspiration which is the manifestation of their love for the Beloved of Allah and Allah Most High. By the brightness of the day And the night
when it is still. Thy Lord has not forsaken thee nor is He
displeased. And surely the latter state is better for
thee than the former. And soon will thy Lord give thee so that
thou wilt be well pleased. Did He not find thee an orphan and give
thee shelter? And find thee groping, so He showed the
way? And find thee in want so He enriched thee. Therefore the orphans oppress not And he who asks, chide not And the favor of thy Lord proclaim. This is neither the only nor the truest interpretation. But it is an example and a warning to those who think that the literal translation or the surface meaning of the Qur'an is the only one. May Allah forgive our sins of misunderstanding for the sake of the blessed shahr-I Ramadan. O Lord, give us the strength of the Shari`ah and the joy of the Tariqah and the secret of the Haqiqah and the selflessness of the Ma`rifah, for the sake of all and everything, and may the Truth show us the reality of things and the reality and the unreality of ourselves. We repent of our having tyrannized ourselves. O Lord, do not make our selves our master, and replace the love for this world in our hearts with love for You, and cure our hearts, ya Tabib al-Qulub, ya Latif, ya Wadud. Amin, bi-hurmati sayyid al-mursalin Ta Ha wa Ya Sin. Shaykh Tosun Bayrak al-Jerrahi al-Halveti
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