A spiritual Ishmaelite

Category: Sufi spirituality

  • Friendship with non-Muslims and the forbidden wilayah

    Forbidding Wilayah is not forbidding simple neighbourly friendship. It is about being a religious mentor or political ally. Muslims should not take western guidance in spirituality nor should they join murderous alliances like NATO. Quran 60:8 teaches being kind and just towards non-violent non-Muslims.

  • Future of Islam and Hinduism in face of secularization

    Moderately pious scholars  have tried to refute in subtle ways the divisive currents in each faith , so there are still elements of sanity in the neglected traditional world. Hindu extremists are against westernization so they should ally with moderate pious Muslims against westernization.

    We need apolitical, ecumenical, conservative and intelligent spiritual leaders to create a spiritually progressive and peaceful future.

  • How both Reham Khan and Imran Khan are cultural dangers to Pakistani spirituality?

    Although I am happy that cultural threat of PTI is exposed, which should ideally be evidence-based, but her argument is contradictory. If PTI believes in sexual license, which it does due to westernized personality of it’s leader, then PTI does not follow orthodox Islam. The criticism of sexual license should have been leveled by orthodox Muslims, but she fills the vacuum of their criminal silence. She should be specific whether the sexual encounters were consensual or coercive. She might be conflating the two to satisfy her ego. PTI may believe in consensual sexuality which orthodox Islam hates, but she herself condones that so both Reham and PTI are cultural and spiritual threats to Pakistan. PTI is based on slogan of western justice, but they do not fulfill the ideals of both western and sacred justice, so Pakistan needs open-minded truth seekers to avoid Pakistan’s future to be ruined by a  personality cult, like PPP has already done. May God save land of the pure from both and all impure sides.

  • A sufi linguistic expression I came across provoking a mystic overflow

    Weep over the sin of not having wept enough over sins until tears become oceans

    إِنَّ كُلَّ حُزْنٍ يَبْلَى إِلَّا حُزْنُ الذُّنُوبِ
    Quran 20:120 uses the word yabla in context of everlasting kingdom. To cite it’s usage, an online Arabic dictionary quoted this expression: All types of sadness do not last except the sadness of sins.
    Ibn Ajrum threw his book in the sea and said: If it is not intended sincerely/ikhlas for God alone, it will not yabla/annihilate.
    IbnUthaymeen has written a commentary on his Ajrumiyyah.

  • Personification of evil actions as an ugly man with dirty clothes

    Quran 6:31 Tafsir Ibn Kathir (while they will bear their burdens on their backs; and evil indeed are the burdens that they will bear!) Asbat said that As-Suddi said, “Upon entering his grave, every unjust person will meet a man with an ugly face, dark skin, awful odor, wearing dirty clothes, who will enter his grave with him. When the unjust person sees him, he will say, `How ugly is your face!’ He will reply, `So was your work, it was ugly.’ The unjust person will say, `How foul is the odor coming from you!’ He will reply, `Such was the case with your work, it stunk.’ The unjust person will say, `How dirty are your clothes!’ He will reply, `And your work too was dirty.’ The unjust person will ask, `Who are you’ He will reply, `I am your deeds.’ So he will remain with the unjust person in his grave, and when he is resurrected on the Day of Resurrection, his companion will say to him, `In the life of the world, I used to carry you because you followed desire and lust. Today, you carry me.’ So he will ride on the unjust person’s back and lead him until he enters the Fire.

  • Problem of evil and Hadith: Tossing and turning in bed of a patient is jihad

    عن الحارث عن علي عن النبي ﷺ أنين المريض تسبيحه وصياحه تهليله ونومه عبادة ونفسه صدقة وتقلبه قتال لعدو

    The Prophet peace and blessings be upon him said: The pain and cries of a patient count as glorification and sanctification of God, his sleep is an act of worship, his breathing is an act of charity and his tossing and turning in bed is like fighting in the battlefield.

     

  • The longest stay of sinful Muslims in the Fire

    منهم من يمكث فيها شهراً ثم يخرج منها، ومنهم من يمكث فيها سنة ثم يخرج منها

    Some will stay for one month and then released from it, and some will stay for one year and then released from it

    أطولهم فيها مكثاً بقدر الدنيا منذ يوم خلقت إلى أن تفنى

    The longest stay of disobedient Muslims in the fire will be less than infinity and the equivalent of the time span between creation and annihilation of universe which is more than 13.8 billion years.

    Tafsir Ibn Kathir

    Surah Al-Hijr

    Ayah 2 ( Quran 15:2)

     

  • How both Saudi Arabia and Iran are evil/taghut according to a Prophetic descendant?

    Imam Jafar As-Sadiq peace be upon him said which means every flag-owner before the rise of Al-Qaim is Taghut(evil). So, both Saudi Arabia and Iran are Taghut.

     

    محمد بن يعقوب: عن محمد بن يحيى، عن أحمد بن محمد، عن الحسين بن سعيد، عن حماد بن عيسى، عن الحسين بن المختار، عن أبي بصير، عن أبي عبد الله (عليه السلام)، قال: ” كل راية ترفع قبل قيام القائم فصاحبها طاغوت، يعبد من دون الله عز و جل “.

  • Farhud and waiting for Messiah without supporting Goliath

    Ishmael Abraham Quran mentions synagogues with respect. So, if men of synagogues support Torah, Muslims should support them, but if they support Goliath, then they should re-read Torah.
    Alperovich Anatoly That one obviously support torah, not Goliath. Besides . Nice to have someone to share allegorical metaphors .
    Alperovich Anatoly Today is bikurim , the farhud day

    Ishmael Abraham Incidents like that make me think that orthodox people should avoid politics until Messiah comes.

    Alperovich Anatoly The problem, who rules us then?
    Ishmael Abraham Our Prophet(p) taught that when both sides of war are unholy, one should break his sword and go to wilderness and eat the roots of trees. Early Jewish sects went to caves to save themselves from Hellenistic paganism.

    Ishmael Abraham One can become a monk even within technology by focusing people towards God during daily conversations while visiting synagogue/mosque on daily basis.

  • A prayer for miracles and patience during suffering

    Allahumma’jurna fi musibatina wakhluf lana khairan minha.

    O God, make our suffering a source of divine reward and give us something better than our present state.