Being harmed by close relatives is more painful

An Arab poet said: Being harmed by close relatives is more painful to the soul than being struck with a sharpened sword.

From the pain of all others by his own pain"

"A person, if he is wise and pious
Is busied from others faults by his own blame 
Just as the sick person is distracted 
From the pain of all others by his own pain"

الاشتغال بع ىًب اليفس ع ع ىًب الآخسيً
أشغمو عن عيوب غيره ورعو
المرء إن كان عاقلا ورعا
عن وجع الناس كميم وجعو
كما العميل السقيم أشغمو

-Imam ash Shafie (ra)

My dear beloved son!

My dear beloved son!

It has been told in the will of Luqman (Peace of Allah be upon him) that he, advising his son in his will, said:

“My son! Do not let the rooster be more intelligent than you are. It shouldn’t happen that he (i.e. the rooster) gets up at the last part of the night to make proclamations [for Tahajjud prayers and remembers his Lord] while you keep sleeping [in a deep sleep of heedlessness, carelessness, and ignorance].”

This reality is made clear in the following verses (of poetry):

“At night, the dove sitting on the branch [of a tree] is calling on [to its Lord]
While I am in a deep sleep

By the Lord of the House of Allah (Ka’aba)! I am a liar! If I had been a true lover [of Allah]
Then the doves would not have won over me in weeping [in the pain of separation from my Beloved (Allah)!

Alas! I do not even wet my eyes [with tears] while claiming to love [my Beloved Lord!]
While the animals keep weeping [in their love for their Creator].”

[Imam Ghazali - Ya bunaya]

Whilst drinking from the vessel of true love

Whilst drinking from the vessel of true love

Abū Bakr al-Kattānī said,

“A discussion about maḥabbah (love of Allāh, in this context) took place in Makkah during the Pilgrimage month. The Shaykhs who were present spoke about this matter, and al-Junayd was the youngest of them. They said to him, ‘O ʿIrāqī, what do you have to say?’ So he bowed his head and tears were flowing from his eyes, then he said,

‘A servant should overcome his soul;
And be continuous in the remembrance of his Lord;
Establishing the rights of his Lord;
Focusing upon Him with his heart;
The late of fear letting ablaze his heart;
Whilst drinking from the vessel of true love;
And certain realities become unveiled for him.
So when he talks, it is due to Allāh.
When he speaks, it is from Allāh.
When he moves, it is by the Command of Allāh.
And when he is serene, then it is from Allāh.
He belongs to Allāh, is for Allāh, and is with Allāh.’
So the Shaykhs started to weep and said, ‘How can that be increased upon. May Allāh reward you with good, O crown of the knowledgeable ones!’.”

(Madārij as-Sālikīn, 3/9)

Business with faults

الاشتغال بع ىًب اليفس ع ع ىًب الآخسيً
أشغمو عن عيوب غيره ورعو
المرء إن كان عاقلا ورعا
عن وجع الناس كميم وجعو
كما العميل السقيم أشغمو

Business with faults

A person, if he is wise and pious
Is busied from others faults by his own blame
Just as the sickly person is distracted
From the pain of all others by his own pain

-Imam ash Shafie (ra) translated by Ammar

'The lover loves that which his beloved loves,

'The lover loves that which his beloved loves, and hates what is hated by the beloved. He supports whomever is supported by his beloved and the enemy of the beloved is his enemy. The pleasure of the beloved is also his pleasure, and so too is their anger shared. What his beloved requires he also requires, he forbids what his beloved forbids, for they are, in all things, agreed.'

- Shaykh Muhammad Saeed Al-Qahtaani

“The intelligent and refined find no rest in dwelling in one place,

“The intelligent and refined find no rest in dwelling in one place,

So leave your homeland and travel far away!
Travel and you will meet new people replacing those left behind,
And tire yourself out, because it makes life worth living!
I have seen that water stagnates when it stands still,

Yet when it runs it is sweet and pure.
And if the lion left not its land,
it would not catch its prey
And if the arrow left not the bow,
it would not hit its aim
And if the sun moved not across the horizon,
People the world over would have tired of the sky.”

- Imam Shafi

Awake my beloved for the promised time draws nigh.

The wife of Habib- Abu Muhammad al Farisi- would wake him at night time and say,

‘Awake O Habib for the path is long and our provision is paltry.
The caravan of the righteous has passed ahead of us and we have been left behind!’

O sleeper by night for how long will you lie?
Awake my beloved for the promised time draws nigh.
For a portion of the night your Lord deify-
For sleep begets neither rest nor equanimity.
Whoever in slumber deep spends the night,
will not have striven or arrived at the destination right”


Transcribed from ‘The journey to Allaah (pg59)
By Imaam ibn Rajab al Hanbali Rahimahullaah

Allah is your beautiful source of strength

Allah is your beautiful source of strength

“Turn away from your worries,
And entrust your affairs to the Decree.
Rejoice at the good which will soon be,
You will then forget what has gone by.
Perhaps an issue which upsets you,
Holds at its end what will gladden you.
Perhaps the tight road will constrict moreso,
And perhaps the universe will expand even more.
Indeed Allah does what He wishes,
So never be one who opposes (Him).
Allah is your beautiful source of strength,
So determine things by what has elapsed…”

كن عن همومك معرضا *** وكِل الأمور إلى القضا
وابشر بخير عاجلا *** تنسى به ماقد مضـــى
فلربَّ أمرٍ مُسخـط *** لك في عواقبه رضى
ولربما ضاق المضيق *** ولربما اتسع الفضا
الله يفعل ما يشاء *** فلا تكوننًّ معترضا
الله عودك الجميل *** فقس على ماقد مضى

Safi al-Din al-Hali (an Arab poet)

Do not abandon the Invocation (Dhikr)

Do not abandon the Invocation (Dhikr) 
because you do not feel the presence of Allah therein. 
For your forgetfulness of the invocation of Him is worse than
your forgetfulness in the invocation of Him."

{Ibn Ata'Allah rahimahullah}

And You restored me, covered me and aided me

"....And You restored me, covered me and aided me
And enveloped me in Grace and Goodness
You are the One who gave me refuge and awarded me
And guided me from the confusion of disappointment and loss
And You have planted love for me between hearts,

And the inclination from You is by way of mercy and affection
And You have spread goodness out for me amongst the people
And You have hid my sin from their eyes
And You have made my reputation amongst the people widespread
Until You made them all my brothers
By Allaah, had they known the ugliness of my inner self,
Whoever met me would have refused to greet me
And they would have shunned me and be disgusted with my friendship
And I would have drawn on myself disgrace after honour
But You covered my faults and defects,
And You bore my sin and my tyranny
So all Praise is to You, and all commendations
With my thoughts, my limbs and my tongue."

[Nooniya al-Qahtaani]

They abandoned the dunya

'Verily, Allah has intelligent slaves 

They abandoned the dunya, and were cautious of its tribulations; 

They looked to it, and when they realized

That it is not an abode for those who are truly alive;

They made it a transitory station, and took

Righteous actions as a vehicle' 

-Imam Al-Shafie rahimahullah

O my soul! It is not, except a few days of patience

Ibn Rajab – rahimahullaah – said: (1)


ولا بد للمؤمن من صبر قليل حتى يصل به إلى راحة طويلة…



…and it’s incumbent upon the believer to have a little patience in order to reach by way of it to a lengthy rest.



فإن جزع ولم يصبر فهو كما قال ابن المبارك

من صبر فما أقل ما يصبر ومن جزع فما أقل ما يتمتع



If he gets impatient then he is,
as has been said by Ibn al-Mubaarak:


Whoever exercises patience,
then how little is the patience he will have to exercise.
And whoever is impatient,
then how little is the enjoyment he will have.



:وكان الإمام الشافعي رحمه اللَه ينشد



يا نَـفـسُ مــا هِـــيَ إلاّ صَـــبـــرُ أَيّامِ

كَــأَنَّ مُـدَّتَــهـــا أَضــغــاثُ أَحــلامِ

يا نَـفْـسُ جـــوزي عَـنِ الـدُنــيا مُـبـادِرَةً

وَخَــلِّ عَـنـهـا فَـإِنَّ الـعَـيشَ قُــدامـــي


al-Imaam ash-Shaafi’ee – rahimahullaah -used to recite (the following verses of poetry):



“O my soul! It is not, except a few days of patience;
As if the extent were but a few dreams.
O my soul! Pass quickly on through this world;
And leave it, for indeed life lies ahead of it.” (2)

______________________

(1) From Ibn Rajab al-Hanbalee’s book “Fadl ‘ilm as-Salaf” - The Excellence of the Salaf’s Knowledge.

(2) Translation of ash-Shaafi’ee’s – rahimahullaah – poem is taken from an article titled “The Yearning of the Pious for Paradise” –
al-Istiqaamah Magazine, Issue #2, Safar 1417 A.H.

O’ places of sincerity, where are your residents?

Imaam Ibn Jawzee (rahimahullaah):

How excellent are the people who have abandoned sweet dreams, withdrawing from that for which they erected their feet for. 

Standing up to fatigue themselves in the dark, seeking a portion of the blessing. When the night comes they stand up, and when the day arrives they derive lessons from it. 

When they look at their faults they seek forgiveness, and when they think about their sins they cry and feel dejected. 

O’ dwelling of the beloved, where are your inhabitants?
O’ places of sincerity, where are your residents?
O’ spot of the pious, where are your people? 
O’ places of nightly prayer, where are your visitors?

I have, by Allaah, traveled around and found these people extinct. Those who used to stay awake at night have gone away and the lovers of sleep are left.

These times have sought eating the lust to replace fasting.

Be content with Allah’s will

Let the days pass as they will
Be content with Allah’s will.
Do not regret what this day’s cast,
For this world’s pains for sure won’t last.

Be a man against fears strong,
Be kind and loyal, all life long.
If in folk’s eyes your faults abound,
And you wish that they be gowned:
Then shelter seek beneath kind acts,
For kindness well all blame retracts.
From enemies hide your weakness
For gloating foes do bring distress.
From misers never seek favor:
In fire there is no water.
Patience won’t reduce income,
Nor fretfulness increase the sum.
Neither pain nor joy shall last,
Nor poverty, nor riches vast.
But if your heart is satisfied
Then you do own the whole world wide.
A man on whom his fate alights
No depths shall save, nor any heights.
Allah’s earth is wide, but know,
That destiny makes it narrow.
Face each day on even keel.
There’s no balm from death can heal.

[Imam al-Shafi`i]

The Dunyah is a traitor; a liar

Imam Al-Rifa described dunya :

The Dunyah is a traitor; a liar. It tricks its adherents.

Those who lean away from it are safe from it but,

Those who lean towards it will be inflicted with its calamities.

It is like a snake, with a smooth touch and a deadly poison.

Its moments of pleasure vanish quickly and,

Its days pass like a fragment of the imagination.

So occupy yourself with acts of obedience to Allah and,

Do not neglect to evaluate your deeds.

Despair not from your Lord's Mercy

Despair not from your Lord's Mercy,
If He had wished that you reach the Hell Fire eternally,
He would not have inspired your heart towards Him.'

- Imam Shafi'ee (ra)

You disobey Allah, and yet you still claim to love Him.

Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak recited:
You disobey Allah, and yet you still claim to love Him.
By Allah, such behaviour is disgusting, by any standard!
You would have obeyed Him had your love been true.
For the lover is always obedient to the Beloved!

A Contented Life

A Contented Life
Let the days pass as they will
Be content with Allah’s will.
Do not regret what this day’s cast,
For this world’s pains for sure won’t last.

Be a man against fears strong,
Be kind and loyal, all life long.
If in folk’s eyes your faults abound,
And you wish that they be gowned:
Then shelter seek beneath kind acts,
For kindness well all blame retracts.
From enemies hide your weakness
For gloating foes do bring distress.
From misers never seek favor:
In fire there is no water.
Patience won’t reduce income,
Nor fretfulness increase the sum.
Neither pain nor joy shall last,
Nor poverty, nor riches vast.
But if your heart is satisfied
Then you do own the whole world wide.
A man on whom his fate alights
No depths shall save, nor any heights.
Allah’s earth is wide, but know,
That destiny makes it narrow.
Face each day on even keel.
There’s no balm from death can heal.

[Imam al-Shafi`i]

What is destined will reach you

What is destined will reach you, even if it be underneath two mountains and what is not destined, will not reach you, even if it be between your two lips! [Arabic Proverb]