A Brief introduction on four madhab imams (ra)

 

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MAM MALIK, IMAM AHMED BIN HANBAL AND IMAM SHAFI.

 

The four Imam’s - Imam Abu Hanifa,  Imam Malik, Imam Ahmed bin Hanbal and Imam Shafi - are the figures who’s interpretation of the Hadith and Quran are followed by the majority of Sunni Muslims Worldwide. They are therefore of immense importance to the correct practice of Islam. These brief biographies do not do justice to the long and splendid lives of the Imams, but serve as a starting point in recognizing their importance. I urge you to learn more about them. Let us not forget that they were Tabieens - they had met some Sahaba and could directly relate Ahadith - and also that the great scholar Imam Bukhari was a follower of Imam Shafi’s school of thought.

Imam Abu Hanifah - Nu’man ibn Thabit 80-150 A.H.
Maida Malik

Better known as ‘Imam-e-Azam’ (The Greatest Imam), or by his kunyah ‘Abu Hanifah’, Nu’man ibn Thabit was born in the city of Kufa (modern day Iraq) in the year 80 A.H (689 A.D). Born into a family of tradesmen, the Imam’s family were of Persian origin as well as descending from the noble Prophets (saw) companion Salman al Farsi (RA). Imam Abu Hanifahs father Thabit had met in Kufa, Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib (AS) who made dua for him and his progeny, and some say that Abu Hanifah was a result of this dua.

A hadith given by al Bukhari and Muslim states that Abu Hurairah narrated Allah’s messenger (saw) as saying: “if the Din were at the Pleides , even then a person from Persia would have taken hold of it, or one amongst the Persian descent would surely have found it”. Abu Huraira also narrates: “We were sitting in the company of Allah’s Apostle (saw) when Surah al Juma was revealed to him and when he recited amongst them (those who were sitting there) said ‘Allah s Messenger?’ but Allah’s Apostle (saw) made no reply, until he was questioned once, twice or thrice, and there was amongst us Salman the Persian. Allah’s Apostle (saw) placed his hand on Salman and then said: “Even if faith were near the Pleides a man from amongst these would surely find it”.

Imam as-Suyuti a Shafi alim (rh) remarked “It has been communicated unanimously that this hadith refers to Imam Abu Hanifah”.

Kufa at the time of the Imams birth was a great centre of knowledge and learning , with many of the noble Prophets (saw) companions (ra) having taken residence there. Due to the presence of these venerable people who had engendered so much interest in hadith and riwayat that practically every house in Kufa had become a centre of these disciples and their disciplines. At first , Imam Abu Hanifah was not a student of knowledge. However, by coincidence, whilst one day passing by the house of Sha’bi (acclaimed “Great Scholar among the Successors”), Abu Hanifah was called in by the shaykh who mistook him for a student. “Where are you going young man?” asked Sha’bi. Abu Hanifah named the merchant he was going to see. “I meant to ask” asked Sha’bi. “Who’s classes you attend?”. “Nobody’s” replied the Imam regretfully. “I see signs of intelligence in you” began Sha’bi, “you should sit in the company of learned men”. It was after this encounter that the young Imam began his quest for knowledge. Imam Abu Hanifah acquired knowledge from over four thousand people. His teachers included many prestigious men of the time whose sanad went back to a number of companions (ra). He himself was blessed with the meeting of the companions: Anas ibn Malik, Abdullah ibn Afwa and Sahl ibn Sa’ad (ra), thus gaining him the rank of being a Tabi’i (successor to the companions).

Amongst Imam Abu Hanifah’s shayukh was Hammad ibn Sulayman, he joined his circle at the age of 22, having already become a well known debater and studied with this shaykh until the latter’s death, where upon he took over his majlis (circle) at the age of forty. Shu’ba, a leading muhaddith who knew by heart two thousand traditions was also a teacher of Imam Abu Hanifah. Shu’ba was greatly attached to Imam Abu Hanifah saying “Just as I know that the sun is bright I know that learning and Abu Hanifah are doubles of each other”.

The Imam’s quest for knowledge inevitably took him to the Holy Sanctuaries, at a time when Makkah was a busy centre for learning. A number of acknowledged masters of Hadith, who had had access to the Prophets (saw) companions (ra) had established their own schools there. Of these was ‘Ata bin Rabah’s school. ‘Ata was a famous Tabi’i who had associated with most of the companions and acquired from this association a status of authority. He himself claimed to have met two hundred men who had associated with the the Noble Prophet (saw). The leading companions all acknowledged his learning. Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (ra), son of the caliph ‘Umar often used to say: “Why do people come to me when ‘Ata ibn Abi Rabah is there for them to go to?”. Of the other Muhaddithin of Makkah whose classes the Imam attended was ‘Ikrimah. He was the slave and pupil of Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas, who educated him with great care and attention, making him so proficient that he, during his own lifetime gave Imam Abu Hanifah the authority to exercise personal judgement and rulings. ‘Imam Abu Hanifah was the first to analyse Islamic jurisprudence, divide it into subjects, distinguish its issues and determine the range and criteria for analytical reasoning (Qiyas)’.

Al Hafiz al-Kabir Abu Bakr Ahmad al- Harizmi wrote in his book (Musnad), ‘Saif al Aimma’ reports that when Imam Abu Hanifah derived a matter from the Qur’an and Hadith, he would not give the answer to the inquirer unless all of them (his students) confirmed it. One thousand of Abu Hanifah’s disciples attended all his classes when he taught in the mosque of Kufa city. Forty of them were mujtahids. When he would find an answer for a matter he would suggest to his students who would study it together, and when they reached an agreement of it being consistent with The Qur’an and Hadith, and with the words of the Sahabah, he would be delighted and say, “Al-hamdu li’llah wallahu Akbar”, and all those who were present would repeat his words. Then he would tell them to write it down.

Ibn ‘Abd al- Barr relates in al-Intiqa’, ‘Abd Allah ibn Ahmad al-Dawraqi said: “Ibn Ma’inn was asked about Abu Hanifah as I was listening, so he said “He is trustworthy (thiqatun), I never heard that anyone had weakened him” No less than Shu’ba wrote to him (for narrations), and ordered him to narrate hadith’. Ibn Hajar said in Kharija ibn al Salt’s notice in Tahdhib al-Tahdhib, Ibn Abi Khaythama said: “If al Shu’bi narrates from someone and names him, that man is trustworthy (thiqa) and his narration is used as proof (yuhtajju bi hadithihi)”.

Many well known shuyukh narrated from Imam Abu Hanifah, to name but a few: al Thawri, ibn al-Mubarak, Hammad ibn Zayd and ‘Abd al-Razzaq (one of Iman al-Bukhari’s shaykh) Al Mizzi in Tahdhib al-Kamal names about one hundred names of those who narrated from Imam Abu Hanifah.

Imam as-Shafi (rh) is recorded to have stated: “All men of fiqh are Abu Hanifah’s children”. “…I would not have acquired anything of knowledge had it not been for my teacher. All men of knowledge are children of the ulema of Iraq, who were the disciples of the ulema of Kufa, and they were the disciples of Abu Hanifah”.

The Hanafi madhab, entitled after the Imam, spread far and wide during the time of the Ottaman Empire. Today, more than half the muslims on the earth perform their ibabdah according to the Hanafi madhab. The Hanafi school has decided court cases in the majority of Islamic lands for the greater part of Islamic history, including the Abbasis and Ottaman periods.

Not only was Imam Abu Hanifah’s extraordinary mind and knowledge something to be admired but so too was his exemplary character and piety. Dhahabi writes “Accounts of his piety and devotion have reached a degree of tawatur” (i.e. an unbroken chain of uncontradicted narrations).

He was given the title of the ‘Peg’ by some, for his continuous standing in prayer, often reciting the entire Qur’an in his nightly rakahs. He performed the Fajr prayer with the ablution made for the Isha prayers for forty years, (due to him praying the whole night through). It is reported that he had recited the whole Qur’an seven thousand times in the place where he died.

He earnt his living through trade, sending goods to other places and with the earnings he met the needs of his students. He gave much to charity and every Friday he would distribute twenty gold coins to the poor for his parents’ souls.

In the year 146 A.H, Abu Hanifah was sent to prison by Mansur, the leader at the time, after the Imam’s refusal to state that Mansur was the rightful khalifa, as well as refusing the position of presidency of the supreme court in recompense. Whilst in prison Imam Abu Hanifah was thrashed with a stick. Mansur repented and sent the Imam money, only to be refused again. By now Imam Abu Hanifah had become well known and thousands flocked to meet and seek his opinion wherever he went. His imprisonment far from reduced his popularity, and Mansur realised that he would have to treat the Imam carefully, thus he allowed him to teach whilst still in prison. Mansur finally decided to do away with the great Imam and had him poisoned. Abu Hanifah feeling the effects of the poison, bent down in prayer and died in the month on Rajab. News of the Imam’s death reached far and wide, and thousands gathered at the prison. The city Qadi washed his body, and kept repeating “by God you were the greatest faqih and the most pious man of our time….”.

By the time the bathing was finished so many people had assembled that the funeral prayer was performed attended by fifty thousand people.

The Great Imam died in Baghdad in 150 A.H at the age of seventy. May Allah SWT be pleased with him. Ameen.

IMAM MALIK FAQIHABU ABDULLAH, Malik bin Anas, was born in Medina in the year 715 AD. His ancestral home was in Yemen, but his grandfather settled in Medina after embracing Islam. He received his education in Medina, which was the most important seat of Islamic learning, and where the immediate descendants of the Companions of the Holy Prophet lived. Imam Malik was highly attracted to the study of law, and devoted his entire interest to the study of Fiqh. It is said that he sought out over three hundred Sahaba (those who saw the Companions of the Holy Prophet). From them he acquired the knowledge of the Holy Prophet’s sayings, Hadith, (plural Ahadith) - and the Holy Prophet’s Deeds, - Sunnah. Imam Malik studied Fiqh under the guidance of nearly one hundred learned Shaikhs who were residing in the city of the Prophet at the time. Among Imam Malik’s writings is the great work entitled Kitab-al-Muwatta, which is the earliest surviving book of Islamic law and Hadith. It quotes Sayings as well as the practices according to the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet as observed by Muslims in Medina.

Although Imam Malik wrote many treatises dealing with religion and ethics, Kitab-al-Muwatta is acknowledged as the most important among his writings. It is said that Imam Malik had originally recorded ten thousand Ahadith in this book, but in a revised edition the Imam reduced the number to only one hundred and seventy-two. Imam Malik was famous for his piety and integrity and courageously stood up, and was prepared to suffer, for his convictions. For example, when the governor of Medina demanded and forced people to take the oath of allegiance to Khalifa al-Mansour, Imam Malik issued a Fatwa that such an

oath was not binding, because it was given under duress. This resulted in many people finding courage to express their opposition, but the Imam was arrested, found guilty of defiance and publicly flogged.

When al-Mansour, learnt of this outrage, he apologized to the Imam and dismissed the governor. Sometime later the Khalifa sent him three thousand Dinars for his travelling expenses and invited him to come and reside in Baghdad. Imam Malik refused the offer and indicated that he preferred to continue his residence in Medina where the Holy Prophet was buried.

When the Khalifa Haroun-al-Rasheed visited Medina when he came to perform Hajj, he summoned Imam Malik to visit him and deliver a lecture. The Imam politely refused to go to the ruler but invited him to attend the class of students to whom he delivered regular lectures. The Khalifa, accompanied by his two sons, accepted the invitation and sat among the students to hear the Imam’s lecture.

Imam Malik died in the year 795 AD at Medina and is buried in the famous al-Baqie cemetery in the city of the Prophet.

Imam Malik’s followers and disciples developed a Fiqh school based on his books which came to be known as the Maliki Madhhab. Malikis are mostly found in North and West Africa, - Tunis, Algeria, Morocco and Egypt.

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IMAM AHMED BIN MUHAMMAD HANBAL

 

Ahmed bin Muhammad Hanbal known as ibn Hanbal was born in the city of Baghdad in the year 780 AD. He studied various subjects in his hometown and traveled extensively in quest of knowledge. He was chiefly interested in acquiring knowledge of Ahadith- traditions of the Holy Prophet - and traveled extensively through Iraq, Syria, Arabia and other countries of the Middle East studying religion and collecting traditions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad.

Returning home from his travels which occupied several years of his early life, he took lessons from Imam Shafiee in the subject of Islamic law (Fiqh). He was deeply devoted to the traditional views on religious subjects and opposed innovation of any kind.

The strength of his views was tested when under Khalifa al-Mamun and Khalifa al-Mu’tasim, a kind of ‘inquisition court’ was created to deal with people - among whom were many acknowledged theologians - who would not for instance profess the doctrine of “the creation of the Qur’an”.

Imam ibn Hanbal, too, suffered as a result when he was arrested and brought in chains before the court. But he patiently submitted to corporal punishment and imprisonment and resolutely refused to deviate from his beliefs.

Under the rule of Khalifa Mutawakkil however, the policy of the government changed and Imam ibn Hanbal’s trials came to an end. From then onwards the Imam was accorded honor befitting his greatness and on several occasions he was invited to the Court and granted a generous pension.

Imam ibn Hanbal’s fame spread far and wide. His learning, piety and unswerving faithfulness to traditions gathered a host of disciples and admirers around him.

He died in Baghdad in the year 855 (241 A.H.) at the age of 75 years.

Among the works of Imam ibn Hanbal is the great encyclopaedia of Traditions called Musnad, compiled by his son from his lectures and amplified by supplements - containing over twenty eight thousand traditions. His other works include Kitab-us-Salaat, on the Discipline of Prayer and Kitab-us-Sunnah, on the Traditions of the Prophet. The above books form in the main, the Hanbali school of law, although Imam ibn Hanbal too, did not establish a Fiqh system of his own. His decisions were so highly regarded by his disciples that they began to systematize his legal teachings during his lifetime and his ideas gained recognition by the Sunni sect as one of the four authoritative Madhahb the Hanbali.

In the world of Islam, the Hanbalites to-day represent the smallest group of the four Sunni Madhahb, mostly confined to the Middle East countries.

In the 18th century Christian-era, the Hanbali system received a vigorous support from the Wahhabi movement founded by Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab (1703-1787 AD) who followed the Hanbali school of thought. The leadership of the Wahhabi movement today is in the hands of the Saudi dynasty who are the autocratic rulers of Hijaz, in the Arabian Peninsula.

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IMAM SHAFI-EE

 

Abu Abdullah Muhammad Bin Idris descends from the Hashimi family of the Quaraish tribe to which Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) belongs. He was born in Gaza, Syria in 767 and became famous as Imam Shafi-ee. He lost his father early in life and was brought up by his mother in abject poverty in the city of Mecca. He spent much time among the Bedouins and acquired very great knowledge of Arabic poetry. At the age of twenty, he went to Medina and remained there as a student of Imam Malik till the later’s death in 796. He also came into contact with other learned men from whom he acquired knowledge of the Holy Qur’an and the Traditions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad.

Imam Shafi-ee possessed a very sharp memory and knew the whole of Imam Malik’s Muwatta by heart.

In 804 he visited Syria and from there proceeded to Egypt where he settled down. As a pupil of Imam Malik he was received with great honor and respect by the Egyptians. In 810 he went to Baghdad and there he was surrounded by a large number of students who were eager to acquire knowledge of the faith and practice of Islam from him.

The Shafi-ee school of law emerged from these students who practiced and propagated the views and rulings of Imam Shafi-ee through their writings and preaching.

Imam Shafi-ee wrote several books, the most well-known of which is called Kitab-al-Umm, which is a collection of writings and lectures of the Imam. A number of his students have also collected his writings, lectures and rulings in the form of books, or quoted him in their books.

Baghdad in Iraq and Cairo in Egypt were the chief centers of Imam Shafiee’s activities. It is from these two cities that teachings of the Shafi-ee school spread in the 9th century of the Christian era.

During the time of Sultan Salahuddeen (Saladin), the Shafi-ee doctrine was the most prominent in Egypt, and to this day the Imam of the Al-Azhar Musjid is always a Shafi-ee and the Shafi-ee Madhhab is industriously studied along with that of the other three schools of the Sunnis.

During his life Imam Shafi-ee also suffered from political intrigues. For instance, after studying under Imam Malik in Medina he was sent to fill an office in Yemen, where he was accused of political involvement which resulted in his arrest. He was taken as prisoner to Haroun al-Rasheed. The Khalifa however found him innocent and the Imam was honorably released.

Imam Shafiee died in the year 820 in Egypt.

The khatmiya of sayyuduna shiekh ahmad tijani(Ra)

The Khatmiya and Katmiya of Sidna Shaykh Tijani

The concept of “Sealness of Mohammedian Sainthood” (khatm al-wilaya al-Mohammediya) characterizes the unique standing of Shaykh Mawlana Abul Abbas Ahmed Tijani in Islamic sainthood. Sidna Shaykh announced himself the seal of the Sufi masters (Khatm al-Awliya) in the historical cycle inaugurated by the Holy Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him). He declared that the spiritual overflowings (al-fuyud) which came from the Mohammedian Essence (al-’Hadra al-Mohammediya, peace and blessing be upon him) were distributed through him over the whole span of the history of the world. Speaking of the undisclosed various stages of sealhood (al-khatmiya) in his Jawharul Manzum, the prolific Tijani penman Sidi Ahmed Skirej (d. 1366/1940) dismantles,

Appointed sainthood (al-wilaya al-ma’aduna) which is a special inheritance (wiratha) from the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) is divided to general (‘aam) and private (khass) as mentioned by the Sufis. The source of both emanates either from the inner prophethood (batin al-risala), inner messengerhood (batin al-nubuwwa), or from the Mohammedian Essence (ad-dhat al-Mohammediya). Each of these can be attained by the saints. The only difference, however, is in the degree of appearance and manifestation at the rank (maqam).

In Sufi literature the term khatm stands for the maqam of the ‘Seal of the Greatest Viceroy (khatm al-khilafa al-udhma) appeared first through Adam. Almighty Allah said: “And when the Lord said to the angels: Lo! I am about to place a viceroy (khalifa) in the earth [2:30]. The seal of this maqam is one person who is on the footsteps of Adam as well as Sidna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) for viceroyalty perfectly and absolutely manifested itself restrictively in him. Therefore no saint will ever reach the perfection (of Sidna Ali) when arriving to this type of khatmiya. The khatm, therefore, does not seal sainthood. In fact, others will attain the khatmiya after him except that no one will reach his degree. (In the framework of this typology) the khatmiya is termed al-mulk (reign) as well.

At times the term khatm characterizes the ‘Seal of Imams’ (khatm al-imama). This category typifies the full and perfect manifestation in the imama (leadership) of people. This is restricted to the sons of Sidna Ali ibn Abi Talib. Therefore no one else will be bestowed the perfect manifestation of this saintly category except them.

At times the term khatm characterises the maqam of the “Absolute General Authorization” (al-qutbaniya al-jami’a al-’udhma), that is graded one rank bellow that of the prophets (anbiya) and companions (sa’haba) of the Holy Prophet (peace an blessing be upon him). Only those very unique Mohammedian-Poles reach this khatmiya maqam. One person only occupies it at every age, resembling, on the other hand, the Reviver of Faith (al-mujaddid) that appears at every 100 years. The mujaddid is not restricted to one person and one person only.

Numerous poles claimed this khatmiya rank such as Sidi Mohammed Wafa (d. 765/1350), Imam Qashashi, and others (may Allah be pleased with all). Compliance with the Shari’a by heart and recollection (without having to resort to an aid) is a prerequisite of this khatmiya. Knowledge of the names of each animal, plant, mineral metal and other beings is another prerequisite. Sidi Ali ibn Mohammed Wafa (807/1404) said: “The most perfect saint in every age is the one who manifests his divine revelation and gnosis in a way people could never have guessed”. Therefore each khatm (in this typology) possesses special manifestation in accordance to his rank. Hence levels of variance exist (in every age).

The particularity of this khatmiya (in the historical cycle inaugurated by the prophethood of the Holy Prophet) was fastened and sealed by the Greatest Seal (al-khatm al-akbar), the Famous Gnostic (al-’arif shahir), the Sun of Gnosis (shams al-ma’arif), Mawlana Ahmed Tijani (radiya’Allah-u ‘anhu wa saqana minhu bi-a’adhami al-awani). Shaykh Tijani’s great sealness of the khatmiya maqam indicates that no one will ever appear in this maqam the way he appeared and manifested in it as he sealed the absolute appearance (ad-duhur at-tam) of the khatmiya maqam. This does not indicate that he sealed its appearance nor no one after him will attain the rank of sainthood (wilaya) as it is commonly misunderstood.

The khatmiya maqam’s absolute appearance was claimed before by Sidi Muhyiddin ibn Arabi al-‘Hatimi (d. 636/1221) when he said: “We no doubt sealed sainthood by inheriting the Hachimi and the Messiah”. However he retracted (taraja’a) later when aware that the full, complete and absolute appearance in that maqam is to be for some one else. He discover not who will attain such absolute appearance. That is why, like other saints, called such a khatm: the Concealed (al-Maktum).

At times the term khatm figures the ‘Seal of Prophetic Inheritance’ (khatm al-wiratha al-nabawiya). After this khatm appear no saints with power of governance (Awliya’-u tasreef). This seal will be the just Imam, the Awaited al-Mahdi (al-Mahdi al-Muntadhar). Sainthood (out of the power of tasreef) wont cease to exist after him, for it is the “Absolute Seal”, the one after which there will be no saints at all is the Prophet Sidna Aissa (“Jesus”; peace and blessings be upon our prophet and him).

At times the term khatm bodies the ‘Seal of the Existence of Birth’ (Khatm wujud al-wilada). Meaning that this khatm will be the last to be born from mankind. It is restricted to one person who is on the footsteps of Prophet Seth (peace be upon him) and holder of his secrets. After this seal there wont be any more children from the children of Adam for he is the ‘Seal of Children’. A sister of his will also be born at the same time. She will be born before him and he will follow. His head will be at her feet. His birthplace will be China and he will speak the language of his country. Sterility will be widespread in man and women and there will be no more children. He will call people to Allah but will not be heard. When Almighty Allah takes his soul and the souls of the believers in his time, those remaining will be at the level of animals where they don’t establish the ‘Halal (the authoritative) nor refrain from ‘Haram (the forbidden). Their conduct will be based on mindless and faithless vain-desires, this is when the last hour before Judgment will occur.

Granted, the ‘Concealed Pole’ (al-Qutb al-Maktum) gathers the ‘Seal of Special Mohammedian Sainthood’ (khatm al-wilaya al-Mohammediya al-khassa): the last and most perfect saint in the historical process of sainthood. With this person evolution of special sainthood has found its end, just as perfect prophethood had their seal; the Prophet Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him). As previously revealed by Sidi Hakim Tirmidhi in his work, Kitab Khatm al-Awliya, Shaykh al-Akbar Muhyiddin ibn Arabi al-Andalusi was the first Sufi to beautifully unwind the glory and prestige of Khatm al-Awliya. In the treatise of Anqa’ al-Maghreb fi-khatm al-awliya wa shams al-Maghreb (The Moroccan phoenix in the sealhood of sanctity and sun of the Maghreb), he went too far when he revealed the very-concealed originality of the khatm,

As the Holy Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) knew that he was a prophet when Adam was between water and clay, the khatm knew that he was a saint when Adam was between water and clay(…) (Verily) he is the saint, the heir, who imbibes from the original source (al- wali al-warith al-akhid ‘ani al-asl). He scrutinizes the divine standings (al-mushahid li’ maratib) and inspects its saints (al-‘arif bi istihqaqi as’habiha) to give each one what he deserves. He is truly a decency (hasana) from the decencies of the Lord of Messengers (peace and blessing be upon him).

Sidi Ali al-Khawas, teacher of the noted Egyptian Shadhilite Sidi Abdelwahhab Shaarani (d. 905/1490) sparked conclusively,

“Almighty Allah Has Bestowed His Bounty on this [Islamic] Ummah when He allocated two Absolute Seals [i.e. the Khatm and awaited Mahdi]. These saints congregate the divine ranks, stages, bequests, and sanctities in every spiritual domain and sphere. Every saint there has ever been, or will ever be, can only receive from these two Seals, one of whom is the Seal of the sainthood of the elite (wilayat al-khusus), while the other is the one by whom the common sainthood (wilayat al-umum) is sealed, for there will be no saint after him until the advent of the Final Hour.”

Sidna Shaykh’s obsolete khatmiya is best understood in the concept of fayd (overflowing). The Shaykh reported that the spiritual overflowings of the khatm which descends from the presence of the ‘Hadra al-Mohammediya (peace and blessing be upon him) were distributed through him over the whole span of the history of the world. After he informed that the cosmos (al-barzakh) is filled by seven hierarchal divine presences (‘Hadarat): (1) the ‘Hadra Ahmediya, (2) the ‘Hadra Mohammediya, (3) the ‘Hadra of Anbiya (prophets), (4) the ‘Hadra of Khatm al-Awliya, (5) the ‘Hadra of Khatm al-Awliya’s disciples, (6) the ‘Hadra of Poles and Saints, (7) the ‘Hadra of their disciples,

Whatever descends from the ‘Hadra Mohammediya is received by the ‘Hadra of Anbiya. And whatever descends from the ‘Hadra of Anbiya is received by the ‘Hadra of Khatm al-Awliya. The Khatm distributes what he takes to the ‘Hadra of poles and saints who overflow their own disciples. Moreover I receive a special overflowing from the ‘Hadra Mohammediya (peace and blessing be upon) with no witness save Allah Almighty (wa li-minhu sallah’Allah-u ‘alayhi wa sallama mashraban khassan la ya’alamuhu illa’Allah-u Ta’ala)

The special concealed fayd of the khatm on the presences of poles and saints beneath him characterizes the distinctive feature of the katmiya (concealness) complex. Over his katmiya- katmiya throne, Sidna Shaykh is the cosmos of cosmoses (barzakh al-barazikh) through which the divine overflowings are distributed over the whole span of the history of the world. The katmiya- katmiya complex is expressed in Sidna Shaykh’s most famous maxims:

“My companions are the one meant in, ‘And few from the last’ (Wa qalilun mina-l akhirin)” [Quran 56:14]; “My feet are above the necks of all the saints” (Qadami ‘ala raqabati kuli Awliya’ Allah Ta’ala); ” I will ascend a panel made of light (minbar min nur) at the Trumpet when a speaker exclaims: ‘Here is the leader that supports you” (hada imam-ukum al-lladi kana yumiddukum); “I am the lord of saints as Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him) is the lord of prophets. His spirit supports (ru’huhu tumiddu) the prophets and my spirit (wa ru’hi) supports the poles over the whole span of the history of the world (mina al-azal ila al-abad)”; “No saint imbibes (yashrab) or is poured (yusqa) save from our sea from the creation of universe till the Trumpet”; “Poles (al-aqtab) are compared to me as common people (al-‘amma) are compared to them”; “My sword is hung on the sky. Whomever tries to ascend, I shall cut his head; “Almighty Allah bestowed on us a very elevated status that must not be revealed (inna lana martabatan ‘ta’alat fil ‘uluwi ‘inda Allah Ta’ala ila ‘haddin yuhramu dhikruhu). It is not what I have exposed to you (laysa huwa ma afshaytu lakum). No! It is behind it. If I declare (the nature of) it, the truthful Sufis would regard me a disbeliever let alone the common”.

Speaking on the greatness of Sidna Shaykh, the venerated Khalifa Sidi Ali Harazem ibn al-Arbi Berrada reports in Risalat al-fadhl wal imtinan (The Letter of Merit and Gratitude),

Almighty Allah has gathered and assembled for Sidna Shaykh poleness (al-qutbaniya) and concealness (al-katmiya), as well as the intercession (shafa’a) for the people of his time during the Shaykh’s lifetime until his death. Those who reaches the sublime gnosis (ma’arifa) within his presence a number of one million people multiplied by itself then fourfold (1.000.000*1.000.000*1.000.000*1.000.000). Close to this number are women and the Jinns. Thus this number will be reaching the perfect gnosis (ma’arifa) and reality (haqiqa), unicity (tawhid) and courtesy (adab), sciences (al-’ulum), rectitude (al-istiqama) and the role of lights (anwar) that was orally (mushafahatan) taught to him by the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him). It is crystal clear that no one has been honoured with such a rank in the past, present and future, save what has Allah bestowed on our Shaykh through the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him), who gave him to invoke the “Greatest Name of Allah” (al-Ism al-Kabir al-A’adham) especially reserved for the Prophet for supplication’s fulfillment.

(…) Almighty Allah has indeed bestowed His Grace upon Sidna Shaykh and made him the Educator (Shaykh Tarbiya) leading the disciple to the perfect knowledge, the reality, the courtesy, the unicity and rectitude. The Shaykh can lead him to Allah in an eye glance (bi-nadhra) as well as moving him from the obstacles of (the three ranks of Islamdom): Islam (submission), iman (faith) and ihsan (righteousness). He can also embellish him with that eye glance with the three above stances. He can also lead him in intoxication (sukr) or sobriety (sa’hw) states as well as in a state of death or of eternity; as the Shaykh sees every one with his heart though he is in a remote place and in spite of the fact he is an unbeliever (kafir) or a despot king. By his eye glance, the one will be a knowledgeable (’arif) and a God-fearing man (mu’min)! Moreover, all these attainments do not need companionship (suhba) or spiritual education (tarbiya). The Shaykh can only look at him (during his life and pass) through his heart whenever this disciple is based. Therefore he turns him to a perfect knowledgeable man. Importantly, Sidna Shaykh’s path on human beings (al-bashar) exceed the number of ten thousand. Each path is derived into other paths of gnosis until the Hereafter. The Jinn’s paths, on the other hand, exceed the number of ten thousand. Each of these paths is also derived into sections until the Hereafter.

(…) Let us mention a letter from our Shaykh in order to appreciate the genuine knowledge and merit, his higher divine position, as well as the great rewards that are reserved for his trustworthy companions (…),

In the Name of Allah the Compassionate the Merciful. All peace and Blessings be upon our Messenger, his household and his companions. From its writer Ahmed ibn Mohammed Tijani. May Allah bestow upon you all His gratitude and avoid you all the harsh obstacles of this life and that of the Hereafter. Know that the gratitude (fadl) of Allah is beyond borders and He gives it to whom He pleases. (Thus be informed that) there is no saint who can enter his disciples to Heaven without any deeds accountancy except me alone. This is guaranteed to me by the Blessed Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) (and this) cannot be told or known except in the hereafter. With all these assets, still, we cannot disregard the sanctity of the saints either alive or dead as truly speaking the one who glorifies their sanctity, Allah will glorify his sanctity and the one who disrespects them, surely he will be disrespected by Almighty Allah, so, again, do not underestimate the sanctity of the saints.

Another letter related to the importance of reciting the (Tijani) wird and the eventual spiritual benefits to those performing it:

In the Name of Allah the Compassionate the Merciful. All peace and Blessings be upon our Messenger, his household and his companions. Further to your enquiry, know that the Lord of the Universe the Holy Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) has informed me in the month of Rajab 1200 (1785) about the rank of Qutbania and all his news and information to us are in daylight not in dreams (yaqadatan la-manaman):

“You are a safe person and all who saw you are savers provided they have died on the faith (iman)”. He added then, “Any one who saw you on a Friday or Monday will enter Paradise without any deeds accountancy and he shall not see hell whether he is obedient or not”. Once I have seen what has been told to me by the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him), I did recall the close companions and those who were kind to me and those who had served me, as most of them were saying to me: “We will make you accountable the Day of Judgment if we are to enter hell while you are watching us”, I have replied to them: “I cannot do anything for you”. But after I have seen the love of the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) which was frankly conveyed to me, I have asked him mercy and forgiveness for all those who have been courteous to me, as well as those who fed me and those who did not harm me, for those all I sought for them both forgiveness of sins and safety, and that the gates of Heaven are to be opened for them the Day of Judgment and are to enjoy ‘Illiyyin (The highest rank of paradise) next to the Blessed Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) duly replied to me: “I have guaranteed such request to you and to your followers and you are to be my neighbours”. All what has been mentioned took place in a wakefulness state not in dreams. In another situation the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) has told me: “You are my dearest friend (anta ‘habibi) as well as the one who loved you (wa kullu man a’habbaka ‘habibi). Verily (you beloved) will not die until he becomes a saint”. Also, the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) said once to me: “I have made to you a lasting guarantee (dhamana) for all what you seek”, this I have to say to you and if you are to be consistent and coherent in your sincere love to us, so bear glad tidings for such good news as you will be meeting your Lord on the ever best finality and whoever loves us will only die as a saint, so grab to this rope. Wassalam (peace be upon you).

The letters above constitute the core jurisprudence of Tijaniya order (fiqh at-tariqa). Tijanis are ordered not to visit living saints or the tombs of dead ones. Tijanis are not bound to sin, but could rely on Sidna Shaykh’s own guarantee of salvation granted to him by his grandfather (peace and blessing be upon him). This includes anyone who saw him on Mondays and Fridays and did not become his enemy. Sufi brothers are safe from their masters if they leave other orders they are members of, as the Tijaniya in itself summed up all the other orders. Tijanis are ordered not cut themselves from the world and so live in society wearing fancy clothes and eating choice food following the path of blame (tariq al-malamatiya) designated by the Companion Sidna Abu Bakr Siddiq (may Allah be satisfied with him). Malamatiya live under one code: “Avoid impressing human beings at all times and avoid seeing their pleasure in any type of characteristic or behaviour. If you do not, you will soon be blamed for what God agency has caused you to possess.” Shaykh al-Azhar Sidi Mohammed al-Hafidh al-Misri (d. 1398/1983) articulates,

The highly venerable masters in this tariqa have stated that the Tijaniya has the highest standing amongst all, and every Sufi path of education is included in it. It is well-known to those who know the ways of the people of Allah that some of them educate by seclusion (khalwa), others educate without, some others educate through performance of dhikr in secret (sirran), and yet others educate through loud performance (jahran), and some people attain through recitation of prayers upon the Prophet. Likewise, promotion (tarqiya) could be by a glance, or an aim, or a Name, or ecstatic attraction, etc. Thus, every dhikr or particularity that is known in other tariqas does perfectly exist in this (Tijani) tariqa. In it gather all the good traits of other tariqas; and it does stand alone with what is specially endowed to its adherents. Allah said, “That is the bounty of Allah; which He gives unto whom He will. Allah is of infinite bounty” [62:4].

Sidi Ali ibn Harzihim (ra)

Sidi Ali ibn Harzihim (d. 544/1129)
Once Andalusian Malikism became states policy in Marrakech and Fez, as well as in Cordoba and Seville, Arab jurists acting under the authority of Almoravid governors set out to suppress dissenting opinions. As a part of this crackdown, all copies of al-Ghazali’s (d. 526/1111) I’hya’ ‘ulum ad-din were ordered confiscated and publicly burned. According to most historians, the banning of this work was due to al-Ghazali’s Shafi’i-inspired critiques of non-usuli legal traditions. Another reason, perhaps, was al-Ghazali’s belief, following his teacher Sidi Abul Ma’ali Abdelmalik Jawayni (d. 499/1105), that all knowledgeable Muslims—and not just the official ulama—could act as representatives of the Muslim community. According to this theory, all learned men had a right to be considered as “those who loosen and bind” (ahl al-hall wal ‘aqd) and could have a voice in the conformation or rejection of claimants to the throne. Since this wider group of ulama included both usuli dissidents and juridically-oriented Sufis, such views would not have been popular at the Almoravid court.

An immediate result of the suppression of al-Ghazali’s works was the spread of the usuli dissidence throughout Morocco. The most significant exponent of this movement was the Masmuda Shaykh Sidi al-Mahdi ibn Toumart (d. 524/1130) himself who were to become the founder of Almohad (al-muwahhidun—”unitarian”) movement. The Imam and Shaykh Ibn Toumart was joined to his opposition to the Almoravids by a number of Andalusian and Moroccan Sufis, whose journeys to the Muslim East had brought them into contact with Shafi’i jurists, Ash’ari theologians and other representatives of Sunni internationalism. Among these Sufis were Sidi Qadi Abul Fadl Iyyad (d. 544/1129), Sidi Abul Fadl ibn an-Nahwi (d. 513/1098), and Sidi Abu Abdellah Daqqaq. As had earlier been the case in the days of Sidi Darras ibn Ismail (d. 357/942), scholars from the city of Fez were instrumental in furthering this latest attempt of reform.

A major centre of the dissemination of usuli doctrines in Fez was the rabita, Sufi hermitage, of Sidi Abu Mohammed Salih ibn Harzihim (d. after. 526/1111). The Ibn Harzihim (Harazem) family, who traced their ancestry to Sidna Uthman ibn ‘Affan (may Allah be satisfied with him), the third caliph in Islam, had been prominent in Fasi scholarly circles for more than a century. As the scion of this family of religious notables, Abu Mohammed Salih had the financial means to travel as far away as Jerusalem for education where he studied I’hya’ ‘ulum ad-din under Shaykh al-Ghazali himself and Baghdad where he was initiated into the Sahrawardiya tradition under the order’s founder Sidi Abu Najib as-Sahrawardi (d. 563/1148). Shaykh Sidi Abu Hamid al-Ghazali, on the one hand, took the patched cloak (khirqa) from Sidi Haramayn Juwayni, who had it from Sidi Mohamed Juwayni, from Sidi Abu Talib al-Makki (d. 386/971), from Sidi Abu Mohamed Jariri, from Imam Sidi Abul Qacem al-Junaid (d. 297/882). As for Sidi Abu Najib, he was also connected to Imam al-Junaid through Sidi Omar Bickri, Sidi al-Qadi Wajduddin, Sidi Mohamed Bickri and Sidi Mohammed Dinnuri.

Upon Sidi Abu Mohammed Salih’s death and burial outside Bab al-Futuh in Fez, he was succeeded as head of the Ibn Harzihim rabita by his nephew Sidi Abul Hassan Ali (d. 544/1129), the famous “Sidi ibn Harzihim” of Fez. Shaykh Sidi Ali ibn Harzihim in genealogically connected to Sidna Uthman ibn Affan through his father Sidi Ismail, ibn Mohammed, ibn Abdellah, ibn Harzihim (may Allah be satisfied with him), ibn Zayyan, ibn Yusuf, ibn Sumaran, ibn Hafs, ibn al-Hassan, ibn Mohammed, ibn Abdellah, ibn Omar, ibn Uthman ibn Affan (may Allah be satisfied with him). Despite his uncle’s passionate adherence of al-Ghazali’s teaching, however, the younger ibn Harzihim initially disproved of I’hya’ ‘ulum ad-din and even agreed with its banning, until his opinions were changed by a dream in which the Prophet Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him) wiped him for his mistaken beliefs. Henceforward, and especially after he affiliated to the path of al-Ghazali through his disciple Sidi Abu Bakr ibn al-Arabi (d. 543/1128, buried outside Bab al-Mahrouq in Fez), Sidi Ali ibn Harzihim became one of the most outspoken defenders of al-Ghazali in Morocco and devoted the rest of his life to teaching the I’hya’ to his students, who had to copy the full text of the book every year.

Shrine of al-Qutb Abul Hassan Sidi Ali ibn Harzihim, Bab al-Futuh, north-eastern modern Fez
(Emir al-Muminin Sultan Moulay Rachid has endowed the shrine income to the Debbarh sharifs)

Largely because of his role in disseminating the works of al-Ghazali, Sidi Ali ibn Harzihim was one of the most influential Moroccan Sufis of the formative period. Biographical sources reveal him to have been a highly complex individual whose teaching represented the work of the giant masters of the Maghrib: Sidi Salih ibn Harzihim, Sidi Abu Bakr ibn al-Arabi, and Sidi Ali Boughaleb (d. 568/1153, buried inside Bab al-Futuh in Fez). He was an accomplished legal scholar and well-versed in the sciences of hadith and Quranic exegeses and had a fondness for Kitab ar-ri’aya li huquq Allah, al-Muhasibi’s treaties on Sufi psychology and ethics. This work, along with al-Ghazali’s of I’hya’, was a required text for Ibn Harzihim’s disciples. In his personal comportment, he was the quintessential ’abd salih: pious and ascetic, modest in dress, morally virtuous, of an open demeanour, and pleasant in nature. All who met him were moved to affection for him. Upon inheriting a considerable sum of money from his father, he gave all of it to the poor. He also respected learning of all kinds and stove to improve the quality of education in Fez, where he was born, and in Marrakech, where he was eventually exiled.

Despite his reputation as a salih, Ibn Harzihim was also the founder of Moroccan Path of Blame (tariq al-malama). In Ibn Harzihim’s case, however, malamati behaviour did not imply the open contravention of the Shari’a that earned antinomian extremists the censure ulama throughout the Muslim world. What prompted the Almoravid elite to disapprove of him were rather his politically motivated disregard for the prerogatives of rank, his apparent pretentiousness in referring to himself as the Axis of the Maghribis (Qutb al-maghariba), and his outspoken criticism of the Almoravides for their ethnoclassicism and prejudice. Apart from seeing the role of the salih as one of political activism, Ibn Harzihim did little more than heed the advice of Sidi Hamdun al-Qassar Nisaburi (d.271/884), the reputed father of the Malammatiya: “Avoid impressing human beings at all times and avoid seeing their pleasure in any type of characteristic or behaviour. If you do not, you will soon be blamed for what God agency has caused you to possess.”

Even the forced closing of Ibn Harzihim’s rabita and his exile to Marrakech could not silent this saint’s bitter tongue. The most detailed account of his sojourn in Marrakech appears in at-Tadili’s at-Tashawwuf and forms a postscript to the arrest and execution of the Andalusian Sufi Sidi Abu Hakam ibn Barrajan in 536/1121. No anecdote more clearly illustrates Ibn Harzihim’s opposition to the Almoravid regime and his contempt for its policies. In the following passage, the saint’s success in occupying the moral high ground causes Sultan Ali ibn Yusuf to back down from a confrontation over the burial of Ibn Barrajan (whose recently restored tomb can still be seen in Marrakech). It is easy to imagine how the Sultan equivocal response to Ibn Harzihim’s challenge played into the hands of the opponents of the Almoravids in their ongoing attempt to undermine the legitimacy of Sanhaja rule:

When Abul Hakam ibn Barrajan was ordered to be brought from Cordoba to Marrakech, he was asked about the matters causing his censure and brought them forth, commenting on their implications and differentiating [his beliefs] from those for which he was accused. Abul Hakam said: “By God, I will not live, and the one who brought me here [i.e. the Sultan] will not live after my death!” Then Abul Hakam died [i.e. was executed] and the Sultan commended that he be thrown onto the city garbage heap and that no one make the funeral prayer for him. This command was authorised by the jurists who were their accusers.

A black man who worked for Ali ibn Harzihim and attended his lessons went to [the Shaykh] and told him what the Sultan had ordered concerning Abul Hakam. Then Ibn Harzihim said to him, “If you wish to sell your soul to God, do what I tell you.” “Command what you wish and I will do it,” the man replied. [The Shaykh] said, “Proclaim in the streets and markets of Marrakech: ‘Ibn Harzihim orders you to be present at the funeral of the Shaykh, the legist, the exalted ascetic Abu Hakam ibn Barrajan. May the curse of God be upon him who is able to come and does not!’” The Man did as he was commanded and when [Ibn Harzihim's challenge] was made know to the Sultan, he said, “He who is aware of Ibn Barrajan’s excellence and is not present will be cursed by God.”

At the time of Shaykh Ibn Harzihim’s exile in Marrakech, some of his disciples had already established new rabitas of their own in Fez and beyond. Of these we mention the Shaykh of Shaykhs Sidi Abu Madyan (d. 594/1179) and the Fez figures Sidi Ahmed ibn Ali Barnousi [whose tomb is still visited on Mount Zalagh], Sidi Abu Abdellah Mohammed ibn Yaala Tawdi (d. 580/1165) [buried in Rawdat Sidi Tawdi, Zqaq Labghal]; and Sidi Abu Amr Salaji al-Usuli (d. 564/1149). This latter was praised by later generation as “the saviour of the people of Fez from anthropomorphism” (munqidh ahl Fas mina tajsim) and he rose under the Almohads to become the foremost expert on philosophical theology in all of Morocco. His best known work is a creedal manifesto (’aqida) entitled Al-’Aqida al-Burhaniyya. This he dedicated to a female Sufi named Lalla Khayruna al-Andalusiyya. Also allied with the Ibn Harzihim rabita of Fez were a heterogeneous group of Sufis from Sijilmasa on the edge of Sahara desert. However, unlike Shaykhs Abul Fadl ibn Ahmed Sijilmasi (d. 542/1127) and Sidi Mohammed ibn Omar al-Asamm, who were freed after imprisonment and exile in Fez, an important advocate of usul during the same period and a representative of Ibn Harzihim’s rabita in the pre-Saharan oases named Sidi Abu Mohammed Salih u-Imlil al-Munshi (The Polemicist) was assassinated by the Almoravids, like Ibn Barrajan, near the caravan centre of Zagora in the Dar’a valley.

An Approach To Study By Al-Imam Sufiyan Ath-Thawri (r)

Stages of acquiring Knowledge

Allah Ta`ala had ordered Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam to make this Du’aa:

وَقُلْ رَّبِّ زِدْنِىْ عِلْمًا
“Oh My Rabb! Increase me in knowledge.”

Despite being granted the great rank of Nubuwwat and appointed as leader of all the Ambiyaa, yet Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam was ordered to make Du’aa for an increase in knowledge. Knowledge is a Noor (light) through which one identifies truth from falsehood. Ignorance, on the other hand, is darkness, which conceals the hazards of this path. Thus, we must acquire ‘Ilm (knowledge) to safeguard ourselves.

Hadhrat Sufiyaan Thawri (rahmatullah alayhi) has outlined five stages to acquire knowledge.

First stage is Istimaa’ (Listening Attentively)
:

When Wahi (revelation) would descend upon Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam, he would listen to the revelation attentively observing total concentration. The Qur’aan has recorded two orders of Istimaa`:
وَإِذَا قُرِئَ الْقُرْآنُ فَاسْتَمِعُوْا لَهُ -
“And when the Qur-aan is being recited, then pay careful attention to its recitation” and
فَاسْتَمِعْ لِمَا يُوْحى-
“Listen attentively to what is being revealed“.

Paying special attention is imperative. If there is no Istimaa` then there is no guarantee that the ‘Ilm acquired is that of ‘Ilm e Nubuwwat. (Knowledge of Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam)

The angel Jibraeel descended with Wahi (revelation) to Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam. After listening to it, he would relate it to the Sahaabah . Allah Ta`ala, in describing the qualities of Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam says:
يَتْلُوْ عَلَيْهِمْ آياتِهِ
“He will recite to them the verses of the Qur’an”.

The Sahaabah listened to the recitation of Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam with utmost devotion and concentration.

Once, whilst speaking to a Sahaabi , Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam grasped his shoulder and shook it. Why did Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam shake this Sahaabi? To ensure that he was not inattentive and paid careful attention to the words of Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam.

Sahaabah listened to Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam with complete attention. In turn, the Taabi’een heard from the Sahaabah and this sequence of narration has continued, in this manner, over the centuries until ‘Ilm e Nubuwwat has reached us today.

Knowledge acquired without observing Istimaa` cannot be regarded as ‘Ilm e Nubuwwat. ‘Ilm e Nubuwwat is that knowledge which has been attained through Istimaa`. Therefore, the Muhadditheen have placed great importance on Istimaa`.

Second stage is Insaat (silence, pondering):

Insaat refers to paying attention, pondering or being observant. Not to have a wandering mind. This means, if a student listened to the lesson inattentively, he will not grasp the intended meaning. Subsequently, there can be no guarantee that he has understood the lesson correctly. Distortions that are apparent, nowadays, are a result of not practicing upon Insaat (not paying attention or pondering over what is being said or having a wandering mind).

It has been recorded regarding a certain Muhaddith (scholar of hadith), that someone owned a strip of land close to his well but he would not grant that farmer permission to draw water from it. They were always arguing and quarrelling over this matter.

This Muhaddith had the quality of Istimaa` but he did not possess the quality of Insaat.

Someone asked him: “Why are you quarrelling so much? Everybody has the right to draw water from the well”.

He replied, “It appears in the Hadith:
لاَ يَسْقِىْ أَحَدُكُمْ مَاءَهُ زَرْعَ غَيْرِه ِ
No person should use his water to irrigate the land of another.

This does appear in the Hadith. He had acquired Istimaa` but he did not possess Insaat. He did not fully understand the Hadith and he did not pay attention to its explanation.

This person then explained. “This is not the explanation of the Hadith. The correct explanation of this Hadith is, that one who has purchased a pregnant slave girl should not share the bed with her until she does not give birth to her child. The reason being, that it is the land of someone else. Therefore, one should not irrigate it.”

On hearing the explanation the Muhaddith said: “May Allah reward you. Up to now I had understood the Hadith incorrectly.”

It is recorded regarding yet another Muhaddith that he used to perform Witr Salaah whenever he relieved himself from the call of nature, be it during the day or at night. When asked why he did this, he replied:

“It is reported in the Hadith
اسْتَجْمَرَ فَلْيُوْتِرْ مَنِ
Whosoever relieves himself should perform Witr
The questioner told him: “This is not the actual meaning of the Hadith”. He then explained the Hadith to him, “Use uneven clots of soil to clean yourself after answering the call of nature.” (’Witr’ mean ‘uneven’ and does not refer to the ‘Witr Salaah’)

In short, Istimaa` must be followed by Insaat.

Third stage is Hifz (remembering or memorizing):
One should remember whatever one has read, heard or understood. If the information leaves the mind then how will one be able to practise upon it and how will the chain of narration, for that part of knowledge, continue? What then will remain of ‘Ilm if one heard the lesson, paid attention but did not remember it?

Fourth stage is ‘Amal (practice):

One should practice on whatever one has heard attentively and remembered. If one does not practice on the ‘Ilm acquired, it will be void of any benefit and blessing. An Urdu poem translates as follows:

The world will never listen to the statement of the one who does not put his own advice into practice.

Fifth stage is Nashr (preaching and imparting):
‘Ilm cannot be transferred or protected without Nashr. It will remain in the confines of a closet or trunk and after a few days, it will be buried. However, embarking on preaching, without acquiring the first four stages, is of no significance.

This is why Hadhrat Sufyaan Thawri r.a. clearly explained the five stages of knowledge so that all the stages may be adhered to.

The Biography of Sidi Ahmed Et-Tidjani

His Noble Genealogy (R.A.A)

He is the Sheikh of the Tariqa, the Concealed Magnate (El-Qutb El-Maktoom), and the Known Mohammedan Seal, the noble & virtuous, Abul-Abbas, Sidi Ahmed the son of the famous saint & renowned scholar, imam Abu-Abdullah, Sidi Mohammed - who was called Ibn-Omer for his strict observance of religious duties - ibn El-Mukhtar ibn Ahmed ibn Mohammed ibn Salim ibn Abul-Eid ibn Salim ibn Ahmed, who was called “El-Alawani”, ibn Ahmed ibn Ali ibn Abdullah ibn Abbas ibn Abdujjabbar ibn Idriss ibn Is’haq ibn Ali Zein El-Abideen ibn Ahmed ibn Mohammed En-Nafs Ez-Zakiyah ibn Abdullah El-Kamil ibn El-Hassan El-Muthanna ibn El-Hassan El-Sibt ibn Ali ibn Abu-Talib (R.A.A.), from our reverent & noble mother Fatimah Ez-Zahara’a (R.A.A.) daughter of the Master-of-the-universe; the Messenger of Allah Seidna Mohammed صلى الله عليه وسلم.

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Birth & Education in a Religious Environment

Sidi Ahmed El-Tidjani was born in 1737G (1150H) in the town of Ain Madhi, the home of his late ancestors. His fourth grandfather, Sidi Mohammed ibn Salim had moved, with his family, from the outskirts of Asfi, in Morocco, and settled in Ain Madhi, amongst the tribe of Bani-tojeen or Tidjanah, and got married from them. Thus, his descendents are known as the “Tidjanis”; called after the tribal name of their maternal-uncles. However, his real ancestry traces back to Seidna El-Hassan El-Sibt ibn Seidna Ali ibn Abu Talib (R.A.A.).

Ain Madhi was a town of great scientific importance, with an environment full of devoutness and piety, as it was a centre of knowledge and righteousness since inception. Most of the family members of Sidi Ahmed Tidjani, who constitute part of this town, had possessed a high degree of knowledge in both shari’a (Islamic jurisprudence) and sophism. His grandfathers were amongst the finest religious scholars and were well established in sainthood; like his two grandfathers Sidi Ahmed ibn Mohammed, and Sidi Mohammed ibn Salim who migrated to Ain Madhi. The father of Sidi Ahmed Tidjani was a pious scholar, very devout to the Sunnah (the Prophet’s Tradition), a teacher and adherer to Allah, and to the truth who would never concede to a blamer. He had a room in his house where no one was admissible but for remembrance of Allah (dhikr).

Sidi Ahmed Tidjani grew up under righteous parents, who raised, educated and cultivated him, as their peers would do. Wherever he moved in Ain Madhi, he would find himself among religious scholars, and under the care of religious jurists, and teachers, in the mosque or zawiyah, dedicated to teach their students useful Islamic sciences. Thus, he grew up in an environment full of virtuousness, religiousness and preservation.

Sidi Ahmed Tidjani possessed a high degree of aspiration, spiritual energy, and noble character; guarded by divine providence and auspice. He was never accustomed to the habitude and excessiveness of people. He (R.A.A.) was very determinant and resolute; he would never give up what he had started, and had never left an unfinished business. His aspiration had always been supreme, and never inclined to the petty and insignificant.

Under this exemplary care, amidst a family of knowledge and righteousness, Sidi Ahmed Tidjani grew up with noble manners, perseverance and diligence, holding fast to the religion and the path of the rightly-guided, venerated by both the commons and the elites. Within this environment, which is naturally disposed for special care and guidance, he memorized the Qur’an, by age seven, as narrated by imam Warsh the student of imam Nafie, under the renowned righteous jurist & scholar sheikh Mohammed ibn Hammu Et-Tidjani El-Madhawi (of Ain Madhi & Tidjana tribe), who in turn studied and memorized the Qur’an under the saint Sidi Eissa Bu-Ukkaz Et-Tidjani El-Madhawi. Then, Sidi Ahmed Tidjani concentrated his efforts in studying the fundamentals and branches of religious and artistic sciences. He mastered them and conceived their intricacies and fine points. He continued his education until he qualified for teaching and ifta’a before he made his first trip to Fez. During this time, and while in Ain Madhi, he inclined to solitude, meditation and asceticism, and attracted to devout worshiping and night prayers.

As soon as he attained puberty his father got him married without delay, in order to preserve and safeguard him, and in observance of, and compliance with Sunna. He (R.A.A) started to guide people to Allah and exhort them to the righteous path, support Sunnah and revive the religion in the hearts of the believers. He and his family were renowned as examples in reviving the Sunnah and in commanding what is good & prohibiting what is evil. He had well deserved the name of religious revivalist.

Despite his young age, these qualities convinced the people of Ain Madhi to, unanimously, appoint him as a successor to his father in the zawiyah; he was, then, 16 years old. He carried this mission for five years teaching Qur’an & Sunnah and other religious sciences.

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His First Trip to Fez and His Departure to the desert (RA)

Sidi Ahmed Tidjani was never content with the treasure of knowledge he attained in Qur’an, jurisprudence and sophism at his birthplace. He decided to move to Fez, in 1758G (1171H). Fez, the Idrissi city, was of great scientific significant, holiness, historical symbolism, and strong spirituality. In his early twenties, he (R.A.A) departed Ain Madhi, heading towards Fez.

During his stay in Fez he had been attending scientific assemblies, debating and reasoning with its prominent scholars. However, his real interest was more oriented towards the spiritual side, as evidenced by the quality of persons he met inside and outside the city:

1. He met, in the city of Wazan, the saint Mawlana Et-Tayeb ibn Sidi Mohammed ibn Mawlay Abdullah ibn Ibrahim El-Yamlahi El-Wazzani, who was in charge of the wazzani tariqa and its zawiyah, succeeding his brother sheikh Mawlana Et-Tuhami El-Wazzani. Sidi Et-Tayeb was a very famous man; people used to pack up and set off to see him. He authorized Sidi Ahmed Tidjani to give permission to people in the Wazzaniyah tariqa, but he abstained, as he was busy with himself (R.A.A).

2. He had got acquainted, in Ezzabeeb Mount in Bani Wanjal, with the saint Sidi Mohammed ibn El-Hassan El-Wanjali. He said to Sidi Ahmed Tidjani, when he first saw him and before Sidi Ahmed Tidjani talked to him: you will attain the standing of the Great Magnate (El-Qutb) Abul-Hassan El-Shazily. And, he asked him to return back to his hometown. Sidi Ahmed Tidjani was content with having his blessings without taking from him.

3. He met in Fez with the righteous saint Sidi Abdullah ibn Sidi El-Arabi ibn Ahmed ibn Mohammed El-Ma’ani El-Andalusi, from the sons of Ma’an. He discussed with him various matters. He prayed three times that Allah takes care of Sidi Ahmed Tidjani.

4. He embraced the Nasiriyah tariqa from the reverent saint Abu Abdullah Sidi Mohammed ibn Abdullah Et-Tazzani, but he declined it soon thereafter.

5. From the authorized muqddam at the time, he embraced the Siddiqiyah tariqa, which was attributed to the famous qutb Abul-Abbas Sidi Ahmed El-Habeeb ibn Mohammed, who was surnamed by El-Ghumari Es-Sajlamasi Es-Siddiqi; He then declined it soon thereafter.

6. He met with the righteous saint Sidi Ahmed Et-Tawwash, who had been residing in Taza. Sidi Et-Tawwash taught him a Name and asked him to stay in seclusion and keep patience until Allah bestows him with revelation. However, Sidi Ahmed Tidjani did not help him with what he asked of him, so he requested him to recite the Name without seclusion. Sidi Ahmed had recited it for only a short while. Sidi Et-Tawwash foretold him that he will attain a very significant standing.

7. He embraced the Qadiriyah tariqa, in Fez, for a short period and then gave it up.

This is a very short summary of the scientific and spiritual meetings and contacts he had in Fez and around it, in his first trip, before he return to the desert.

Sidi Ahmed Tidjani had moved to a town called El-Abiad, in the desert, where the zawiyah of ‘Sidi El-sheikh’ was located. Sidi El-sheikh is the well-known sheikh Sidi Abdul-Qadir ibn Mohammed El-Abiad. He had chosen it as an inhabitance and domicile; where he devoted himself to worshiping and teaching for five years, from the beginnings of 1181H. During those years, he dissociated himself from all hindrances and obstacles, and fully concentrated on dhikr (remembrance of Allah) and meditation until the lightening of revelation started to sparkle in him. People started visiting him in order to take from him. Nevertheless, he had been refusing, saying that ‘All of us are equal in benefiting from each other, and there is no advantage of one over another in claiming sheikhdom but for bad heresy. During this period, he visited his hometown and birthplace: Ain Madhi.

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His Pilgrimage (R.A.A) and His Visit to the Prophet (SAW)

Sidi Ahmed Tidjani started his trip, from the zawiyah of Sidi El-Sheikh, to Tlemcen, and then began his pilgrimage journey from there, heading towards Mecca, in 1772G (1186H). When he reached the town of Zawawa or Azwawi, he heard of the renowned imam and sheikh Sidi Mohammed ibn Abdur-Rahman El-Azhari. He visited him and got, from him, permission in the khalwatiyah tariqa. He arrived at Tunisia, in the same year. There he met with some more saints; one of those is the famous wali Sidi Abdus-Samad. The sheikh of this wali told him, through special envoy, that he is beloved. Sidi Ahmed Tidjani stayed in Tunisia for one year, moving between the Capital and the city of Sousa, delivering formal opinions in Islamic jurisprudence and answering many questions, and studying, as well, number of books, such as the ‘Book of Wisdoms’. He soon became very reputable, and the news reached the ruler, who invited him to stay in Tunisia for teaching and benefiting people by his knowledge. He offered him a house and a good remuneration. However, Sidi Ahmed Tidjani, whose affection was strongly attracted towards the supreme and holy, kept silent when he received the letter of the ruler, and sailed off to Egypt next day. As soon as he reached Cairo, he visited its grand sheikh, at the time: Sidi Mohammed El-Kurdi, the Egyptian by residence and Iraqi by origin & birth. They held various deliberations among themselves. Then sheikh El-Kurdi asked him, after a few days, about his demand (aspiration). Sidi Ahmed Tidjani answered him by saying that his demand is to attain the status of the Grand Magnate. Sheikh El-Kurdi said, “You will get more than that”.

From Egypt, he (R.A.A.) left to Makkah, which he arrived at in Shawwal 1187H (1773G). There he heard of sheikh Abul-Abbas Sidi Ahmed ibn Abdullah, the Indian, who had no permission to meet anybody. In spite of that, Sidi Ahmed Tidjani received from him special knowledge, through a special envoy, without meeting with him. He foretold Sidi Ahmed Tidjani about what he was destined to, and gave him glad tiding that he will inherit all his secrets, endowments, cognition, and illuminations. And, before his death on 20^th Dhul-hajja 1187H he gave Sidi Ahmed Tidjani a very special Name, and asked him to recite it for seven days in seclusion until Allah endows him with revelation, but Sidi Ahmed Tidjani did not do it. He also told him that he would meet the Qutb El-Samman in Medinah, and gave him glad tiding that he would attain the status of Sidi Abul-Hassan El-Shazily, as he had been foretold before by Sidi Mohammed ibn El-Hassan El-Wanjali.

After he performed hajj and visited his grandfather, the Prophet Seidna Mohammed صلى الله عليه وسلم, in Medinah, he went to see Sidi Mohammed ibn Abdul-Kareem El-Samman. During this meeting, he asked Sidi Ahmed Tidjani to stay in seclusion with him for three days, but Sidi Ahmed Tidjani politely excused himself. He gave permission to Sidi Ahmed Tidjani in all the ‘Names’, and told him that he is the Grand Magnate (El-Qutb El-Jami’). He gave him the glad tiding that he will realize his aspiration and obtain the “Absolute General Authorization”.

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His Return Home (R.A.A.) and His Second Trip to Fez.

Sidi Ahmed Tidjani returned back to Cairo, with the pilgrims. As soon as he arrived, he visited sheikh El-Kurdi, to greet him, out of respect and good conduct. Sheikh El-Kurdi warmly welcomed him, and asked him to visit him on a daily basis. He complied with his wish. Those daily meetings had evolved into scientific assemblies, and dialogues. In those meetings, he answered with great competence and mastery questions on legal issues of jurisprudence. He quickly became widely known in Egypt; many scholars visited him and benefited from his profound knowledge.

Sheikh El-Kurdi, then, authorized him in the Khalwatiyah tariqa and tarbiyah (spiritual training), but Sidi Ahmed Tidjani was hesitant to accept. Sheikh El-Kurdi, then, asked him to authorize people under his guarantee. So he accepted. Sheikh El-Kurdi, wrote him the “Authorization and the Chain of Authority”.

Sidi Ahmed Tidjani traveled back to Tunisia, where he did not stay for long. He left to Tlemcen in 1774G (1188H). He stayed there for three years in devout worshiping and guidance of people to Allah. In 1777G (1191H) he (R.A.A) made his second trip to Fez from Tlemcen, with the intention of visiting Mawlay Idriss El-Azhar. He met, during this trip, with his scribe & trustworthy Sidi Mohammed ibn El-Mishry El-Hassani El-Subaa’ie El-Sa’ihi of Takrat. Since then, Sidi El-Mishry, lead the prayers for Sidi Ahmed Tidjani and his family, and wrote the answers on his behalf until 1794G (1208H); the year that Sidi Ahmed Tidjani started himself to lead the prayers, in compliance with the instruction of his grandfather Prophet Mohammed صلى الله عليه وسلم. And, in the city of Wajdah (Oujdah), while returning back to Fez, he met, for the first time, Sidi Ali Harazim Baradah El-Fezi (from Fez), who accompanied him to Fez. Sidi Ali Harazim said, about this meeting, “I saw a vision, two years before this time, that showed my companionship with, and guidance by him. Then, two or three days, after he revealed himself to me, he reminded me of my vision, which I had forgotten.” During this meeting, he authorized him in khalwatiyah tariqa and confided him with special knowledge and foretold him of what would be of him in revelation and strengthening. Thus, the first persons whom Sidi Ahmed Tidjani had authorized in the khalwatiyah tariqa were Sidi El-Mishry and Sidi Ali Harazim Baradah. These two companions lived up to the expectations, through the dedication and effort they had shown in servicing, and spreading of, the tariqa.

After visiting the maqam of Mawlay Idriss, he told his caliph Sidi Ali Harazim of his decision to go back to Tlemcen. He (R.A.A) bid him farewell, the same year he came to Fez, and asked him to hold fast to the vow, belovedness, and truthfulness & devotion in his endeavor to Allah.

Sidi Ahmed Tidjani stayed in Tlemcen for a while and, then, departed to Qasr El-Shallalah & Abu-Samghun.

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His Attainment of the Status of the Grand Magnate (Qutbaniyyah)

Sidi Ahmed Tidjani dismounted in Abu-Samghun in 1781/2G (1196H). There he attained the Grand Magnate status (Qutbaniyyah) and the great revelation, which he had endeavored to with great patience and endurance. Before this great attainment he (R.A.A) left Abu-Samghun twice for a short while: in the first time, he visited Saint Sidi Mohammed ibn El-Fadeel, of Takwarin, in the western Tawat. They took from each other some of the secrets of the tariqa. In the second time, he (R.A.A) met with his companion and student saint Sidi Mohammed ibn El-Arabi Ed-Damrawi of Taza, who, then, used to mediate in carrying the answers from the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم to him, in the beginnings. That was because he (R.A.A) could not ask the Prophet directly out of deep respect and politeness before the holy presence of the prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم.

Sidi Ahmed had attained the grand revelation in Abu-Samghun, the same year he arrived there, after he left Tlemcen in 1196H. Thereon, the prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم gave him a full and absolute permission, while he was fully awake, to breed and educate all the beings, in their generality without exception. The prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم specified to him the Wird: a hundred times of Istighfar and a hundred times of prayers upon the Prophet. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم authorized him to give permission in the Wird to any Muslim who asks for it and accepts to abide by its conditions. By 1200H the Prophet, صلى الله عليه وسلم completed to him the Wird, by adding a hundred times of the holy word “La Ilaha Illa Allah” (There is no God but Allah).

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم told him (R.A.A) that he is his educator and guarantor; and that nothing will reach him from Allah but by his holy hands, and through him صلى الله عليه وسلم; and said, “No sheikh has favor on you; as I am your true intermediary and supporter…so abandon all that you have taken from all other tariqas, and hold fast to this tariqa without seclusion, or retirement from people, until you reach your promised status, and you are as you are, without hardship, difficulty, or strive, and relinquish all saints.” In compliance with this Mohammedan instruction he (R.A.A) left all tariqas, and ceased asking anything from other saints. This indicates the significance of the status of Sheikh Ahmed Tidjani before Allah and before The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, as the Prophet told him that his ‘Revelation and Arrival’ would be attained through his holy hands صلى الله عليه وسلم. And, he whose revelation and arrival were attained through his holy hands is superior in status and supreme in stature, as is well known amongst the sophists. After the attainment of this grand revelation, holy secrets, illuminations, elevations and promotions had started to outpour into him in Abu-Samghun and Shallalah. He soon became so reputed that great masses of people started visiting him to take his Wird, to be affiliated with him, and get more of what he (R.A.A) gives them in sense and meaning.

He (R.A.A) moved from Abu-Samghun in the Sahara, on 17 Rabi Awal 1213H, and entered Fez in 6^th Rabi Thani of the same year.

He (R.A.A) established the foundations of the zawiyah, and continued spreading the tariqa. The tariqa took off to pervade the whole far west (Morocco), the Sahara, and the west Sudan. And Sidi Ahmed Tidjani emerged as an established saint, dedicated his whole life for spiritual education, training, guidance, and promotion of the endeavourers to the divine proximity; especially in the period following his permanent settlement in Fez until the day he met his Lord on Thursday morning, 17^th Shawwal 1230H, at 80 years of age. He was buried in Fez (R.A.A).

Sidi Ahmed Tidjani possessed high spiritual energy, determination, perseverance of Allah’s sacred rights, and firmness of resolution. He labored in his beginnings on perfection of repentance with its conditions, and on adherence to shari’a bounds. He also neglected his will, and cut himself off his desires and other hindrances, and totally devoted himself to Allah by preserving His rights. Thus, truth was unveiled to him. He never resorted to the allowances and far-reaching interpretations, and set himself to diligence and sedulity. He (R.A.A) minded his own business, and held fast to the Qur’an and Sunnah and the footsteps of the righteous ancestors. He totally turned himself to his Lord, so Allah sufficed him. He (R.A.A) reinforced his foundations first by preoccupying himself with the study of the Qur’an and Sunnah, and deep & thorough comprehension of the fine and subtle sciences and abstruse issues.

Sidi Ahmed Tidjani was one of the greatest scholars and men of knowledge. He was highly regarded, revered, and admired by all the scholars, without exception. To him, indisputably, has ended the leadership of this matter of education & guidance of the worshipers and cultivation of the followers; uncontested by the masters of this knowledge. There was no saint who had ever reached his heights, and none will be. He (R.A.A) was of high morality, fine proprieties, good manners, sublime prestige and dignity. He (R.A.A.) was judicious, always cheerful, and of great modesty and decency, bound by the ordinances of shari’a and Sunnah etiquettes, loving to the righteous, generous and respectful of the people of knowledge.

Shaikh Abdul Aziz ad Dabbagh(ra) introduce the concept and why the real name of the Tariqa Tijaniyya is Tariqa Ahmadiyya Muhammadiyya Ibrahimiyya Hanifiyya at Tijaniyya

Shaikh Abdul Aziz ad Dabbagh is one of he first of the great Shuyukh to introduce the Tariqa Muhammadiyya concept. I am posting this about this great gawth to introduce the concept and why the real name of the Tariqa Tijaniyya is Tariqa Ahmadiyya Muhammadiyya Ibrahimiyya Hanifiyya at Tijaniyya. Perhaps, no Sufi treaty had excelled in portraying the Mohammedian Image and Mohammedian Essence than Kitab Ad-Dahab al-ibriz min kalam sayyidi Abdellaziz. This work, commonly known as the “Ibriz”, is the chief source for teachings of the great Moroccan gnostic Moulay Abdellaziz in Masoud Debbarh (”Ghawt Zaman Sayyidi Abd al-’Aziz ibn Mas’oud al-Dabbagh”; d. 1132/1719); it was written in 1717 by Shaykh al-Islam, Sidi Ahmed ibn Moubarak al-Lamti Sijilmasi (d. 1156/1741). The Ibriz remains an important text for the Shadhilite, Khalwatite, Naqshabandite, Uwaysite and Tijanite Sufis, being placed third on their list of all-time Sufi classics by most contemporary Moroccan, Egyptian and Syrian Sufis, after only Sidi Ahmed Ibn Ata’Allah Sakandari’s (d. 709/1294) Hikam (Spiritual Aphorisms) and Abu Hamid al-Ghazali’s (d. 526/1111) Ihya ulum ad-din. Sidi Ahmed ibn Idriss al-Fasi (d. 1252/1837) took the Ibriz from Sidi Abdelwahhab Tazi (d. 1198/1783), one of the great successors of Moulay Abdellaziz, and transmitted it to Sidi Mohammed Sanusi (1274/1859), Sidi Uthman al-Emir Ghani and Sidi Ibrahim al-Rashid; it has since remained an important work for their branches in Lybia, Arabia, Somalia, the Sudan, Malay and many parts of Asia. Khadirite interest in this work, then, may indicate that Shaykh Abdellaziz Debbarh is especially important for his paradigm conjectures on ad-Dat al-Mohammediya. The esoteric emphasis on the Prophet: the ‘wakening vision’ of the Prophet was of great importance to Moulay Abdellaziz and his successors that the Idrissite sharif Sidi Mohammed ibn Ali Sanusi (d. 1274/1859), head of the Libyan Sanusiya Sufi Order, articulated in his Manahil: “All three teachers in this silsila (Debbarh, Tazi and al-Fasi) took from and met the Prophet, awake and asleep and after their death, and in the last instance none of them had any other support in any thing save the Prophet, and no other point of return. This is one of the characteristics of the people of Tariqa Mohammediya and a reason for it being so called, even though all [other] tariqas [also] return to the Prophet Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him)”. The Khadirite Mohammediya Sufi School, founded by Moulay Abdellaziz Debbarh in Fez in the beginning of the eleventh/eighteenth century was internally and externally based on the lasting vision of Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him). The origin of this Mohammedian Spring (al-manba’a al-Mohammedi) appears in the litany (wird) that Moulay Abdellaziz Debbarh received from his Master Abul Abbas Sidna al-Khader (peace be upon him) outside the sanctuary of the Patron Saint of Fez Abul Hassan Sidi Ali ibn Harzihim (d. 559/1116, teacher of Sidi Abu Madyan Shuayb al-Ghawt) in 1121/1706: O God, by the honour of our Master Sidna Mohammed ibn Abdellah (peace and blessing be upon him) bring me and our Master Sidna Mohammed ibn Abdellah (peace and blessing be upon him) together in this world before you do so in the next. (Allah-umma bijahi Sayyida Mohammed-in ibn Abdellah, salla Allah-u alayhi wa sallam, ijma’ baynii wa bayna Sayyida Mohammed-in ibn Abdellah, salla Allah-u alayhi wa sallam, fi d-dunya qabla al-akhira). Three years following this dikhr, Sidi Abdellaziz Debbarh met the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) . When Allah Almighty wanted this to happen, he forwarded and oriented his heart and eyes to the Prophetic Light that is between the tomb of Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him) in the Medina and the Isthmus (barzakh). The theophanous Prophetic Light kept approaching and approaching Sidi Abdellaziz Debbarh in Fez until the Prophet Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him) went out from it. At that time the Prophet Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him) became the Shaykh of Sidi Abdellaziz Debbarh. Contrasting the Shadhili, Khalwati, Naqshabandi and Qadiri Sufi orders which possess a doctrinal transmission (silsila) or spiritual pedigree tracing the succession of shaykhs back to the Prophet, a condition that is indispensable for the transmission of the initiatic divine secret, Moulay Abdellaziz Debbarh’s silsila went directly to the Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him) through Sidna al-Khadir, bypassing the early Sufi masters. Khadirian Sufism was the Maghribi equivalent of the ‘Uwaysi’ in the Mashriq. Despite the fact that Moulay Abdellaziz Debbarh inherited the Sirr of his contemporary Shadhilite master Sidi Ahmed ibn Abdellah al-Fasi (d. 1129/1723; indirect master of Moulay al-Arbi Darqawi who died in 1115/1239 in Bu Brih), his teaching formed a spiritual concentration on the “power of light” of the ‘Dat’ of Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him). On the one hand, the divine lights pour down on the Mohammedian Dat continuously, while on the other hand his Dat transmits them to God’s creatures through the Succour Saint (Ghawt az-Zaman). Moulay Abdellaziz Debbarh said: “The goal of the mystic path is illumination (fath)… Two kinds are distinguished: the normal fath and the ultimate, all-inclusive, al-fath Lakbir… Certainty (tahqiq) are real enlightenment only occur if the mystic passes through all the material and spiritual worlds and is honoured with the wakening vision of the Prophet (ru’yat an-nabiyyi yaqadhatan / mushahadatu ad-Dat sharifa). After this experience he is omniscient and permanently protected against error (ma’asum). His knowledge is far superior to that of all others, in particular to that of the theologians and the fuqaha… Attaining fath signifies that the partition between Dat and Ruh has been removed: the enlightened individual has reached a state like that of the prophet. ” This is as Sidi Ahmed ibn Moubarak al-Lamti (d. 1156/1741), may Allah sanctify his secret, says, “Indeed this Way is based upon an inner immersion, which is accompanied by modelling oneself on the Prophet in word and deed, thus seeing him (peace and blessing be upon him) as he is in the flesh and blood, and engaging one’s tongue in the tasliya (asking prayer upon the Prophet) and busying oneself with saying this in all one’s time in private and in public, so that it overwhelms one’s heart and that glorifying him, permeates one’s inmost being, so that one trembles ay hearing him mentioned, and witnessing the Prophet takes position of his heart and his outward figure appears before his inner eye. ” However, in order to experience a vision of the Prophet while a awake, a person must be in a special mental state. Shaykh Moulay Abdellaziz Debbarh describes the state in the following terms: His mind is constantly occupied with the noble Prophet, such that the Prophet never leaves his thoughts. Other matters he is busy with, do not cause him to stop thinking of the Prophet. People see him eating, but his thoughts are with the Prophet; people see him drinking, but his thoughts are with the Prophet. Even when his is asleep, his thoughts are with the Prophet.” As for seeing Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him) in a dream (ru’aya), Moulay Abdellaziz Debbarh said: “Whoever sees the Lord of being (sayyidu al-wujud) in a dream can do so in two ways… Usually what is seen is the image of the Dat (suratu datihi), not the Dat itself (’aynu datihi), since the Dat of the Prophet can take on various forms…because the Dat of the Prophet possesses light which emanates from it and fills the entire world…If an enlightened person (al-maftuhu alayhi) beholds the image (sura) of the prophet before him, he then follows it with his spiritual deeper-sight (basira) and penetrates through light of the image of the Dat of the Prophet himself.” The reformed version of Moulay Abdellaziz’ Mohammediyan doctrine by his indirect student Sidi Ahmed ibn Idriss al-Fasi (died in Yemen in 1252/1837) was notable for its rejection on the madhabs and consequent modification of some details of the ritual prayer, and for its emphasis on the authority on the saint (wali) rather than the scholar (’alim) as an interpreter of the law (Shari’a). At the same time, it rejected the extraordinary devotion of the disciple to the Shaykh commonly found in other brotherhoods, referring to its Shaykh only as ustad (teacher), and emphasising the direct relationship of the individual with the Prophet, rather the normal intermediary role of the Shaykh. The Mohammediya of al-Fasi is most notable for a prayer of extraordinary force and beauty, the A’adhamiya, which speaks of the waking vision of the Prophet. His most prominent disciple Sidi Mohammed Sanusi reported in Kitab al-Manhal rawi rai’q fi asannid al-`ulum wa usul tarai’q: “In regards to this line of transmission Sidi Abu al-Abbas al-Mursi is reported to have said: “our Way is from Pole to Pole back to the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him)”, this Way being known as the Way of Poles. As for the shorter line of transmission back to the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him), that would be the line of transmission taken by Sidna Ahmed ibn Idriss from his first master the pole Sidna Tazi from his master the pole Sidna Debbarh, who took the Way from Sidna al-Khader, who took the Way from the master of Allah’s creatures Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him). Yet one even closer is when Sidna Ahmed Ibn Idriss had a vision in his sleeping state of his forefather Sidna Mohammed (peace and blessing be upon him) with Sidna al- Khader in which the Prophet instructed al- Khader, to invest him with all the litanies of the Shadhiliya as well as the litanies unique to him and his followers, leaving only one mediator between him and forefather (peace and blessing be upon him) that mediator being al- Khader, yet one even shorter line of transmission is the one reported to me by one of those who’s veracity is vouched for, who said the master Ahmed Ibn Idriss may Allah benefit us by him took the Way straight from his forefather the Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him), so that he transmitted all his litanies and forms of remembrance as they where dictated to him by his forefather (peace and blessing be upon him).”

sayyid shiekh habib umar hafiz al balawi replying on question regarding our duty towards rabiyul awwal

Someone asked:Q: What is our duty towards Rabbia-Al-Awwal?
A: Allah chose the birth of Sayidna Muhammad (salallahu alayhi wa salem) to be in this month and this is enough for the believer to know that it is upon him to renew his iman and his relationship with Sayidna Muhammad (salallahu alayhi wa salem).He should express his happiness with the birth of the Nabi and the emerging of the Prophet to the world.The first connection we should have towards him is when he was born. It is the beginning of a life that Allah has sworn in the Quran with. Allah swore by saying: “By the life of Muhammad…”Allah esteems things he swears by so every Believer should remember that this is the month in which he was delivered.Renew the relationship with him with iman, tasdeeq, loving him, and following him. And one has to prove all this by getting together for thikr, the people of the house reciting the seerah, reciting the mawlid, giving food, all of what one can do…….showing that you are following Sayidna Muhammad and that you are happy with him.The best of the sahabba praised him and in this way got closer to Allah. Allah gave him praise so you have to know from this that every Believer should (especially in this month) remember the blessing that Allah has given us in the Rasool.Every Monday, review this relationship between you and the Prophet and wish and desire to meet him and be with him.Send a lot of salawat.Look into your home and family and tie them to the Rasool with love and esteem.Read the Mawlid in the middle of the house.Find out what was against his way, and rid your house of such. Keep only what Sayidna Muhammad would look at from tapes, magazines, books, and t.v shows in order to CLEANSE the house.Cleanse Yourself from using bad language, backbiting, envy, and resentment.Allah will assist the honest and the one trying to turn to Him.In this month, we find a great reminder.Sayidna Abbas said to Sayidna Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa salem):”And when you were born….the earth shined……And the horizons became illuminated by your light……And we, in this light of yours………..travel down the right path.”
**************************************May Allah fill our hearts with the delight of our Beloved Prophet’s birth and may those around us FEEL the joy from within ourselves for this Great Blessing we have!Ameen
(and may Allah bless you and your family,)

Genesis and Growth of the Mappila Community - by dr hussain randathani

The long-standing Arab contact with the coastal areas of India has left its permanent mark in the form of several communities. These communities came into existence through the marriage of local women to Arab sailors and traders. The native rulers extended all facilities and protection to them because their presence was needed for the economic prosperity of the rajas. Malabar was the most important state on the western coast of India where the Arabs found a fertile soil for their trade activities. The community, which arose in Malabar as a result of the Arab contact, is termed as Mappilas.1

It is clear that the Arab contact with Malabar existed long before and became predominant in the post Roman period. Therefore the history of the Mappilas goes back to the Pre-Islamic period. In the Gazetteer of Bombay Presidency, Khan Bahadur Fazlullah Faridi, mentions the settlement of pre-Islamic Arabs in Chaul, Kalyan Supara and Malabar Coast2 Arab merchants passed along the Coromandel Coast on their way to China.

There is the story of one Uppukutan Mappila in the legend of Parayi Petta Pandiru Kulam, (The Twelve Tribes Born to a Paryai) and he is said to have lived in 378 BC3. According to another legend Ouwayi, who through extreme devotion, made the goddess of Kozhikode to appear before him, was a Jonaka Mappila.4 Since the pre- Islamic Arabs were idolaters many of their practices might have crept into Malabar.

It was with the advent of Islam that the Arabs became a prominent cultural race in the world. The Arab merchants and traders now became the carriers of the new religion and they propagated it wherever they went. When Islam spread among the Arabs, the Arab traders brought it to Malabar during the time of Prophet Muhammad itself. Francis Day’s assumption that the first settlement of the Muslims on the western coast took place sometime in the seventh century strengthens this view5. George Sarton says in his, Introduction to the History of Science, that the most outstanding event of the seventh century was, of course, the brith and explosive development of Islam spread through out Arabia, in parts of Africa and might have reached Malabar coast during those early days.6 In Malabar the Mappilas may be the first community to come to the fold of Islam because they were more closely connected with the Arabs than others. Intensive missionary activities went on the coast and a number of natives also embraced Islam. These new converts were now added to the pile of the Mappila community. Thus among the Mapilas, we find, both the descendants of the Arabs through local women and the converts from among the local people.7

The Mappilas has spread on the southern part of the western coast, in the contiguous tract from Cape Comorin in the south to about Managlore in the north. But it is in Malabar these people are called as Mappilas and for practical purpose the name is applied for the entire community. They are also found in the Laccadive islands, where the population consists of Mappilas alone.

Unlike Brahmanical Hinduism and like Christianity, Islam is a missionary religion. The Qur-an denounces and discourages forcible conversions and the Qur-anic injunctions like “let there will be no compulsion in religion”8 and “will thou then compel mankind against their will be believe!”9 etc., clearly show that conversion has to be made by persuasion and preaching and it has been left to the people’s conviction. The underlying emphasis behind this tolerance is the Qur-anic concept of equal power of God over good and evil and it is by His will that evil and unbelief exist as the antithesis of goodness and faith. 10

Proselytization to Islam on the coast of Malabar was done in conjunction with the letter and spirit of the Quar-an. The egalitarian ideals of Islam, the existence of Arab colonies, the social and economic systems in the region and the positive attitude of the native rulers were the main factors which made Malabar a fertile region for Islam. The Majority of the people had become fed up with religious exploitation and land lordism of feudal jenmis and they found refuge in a new system which provided them relief and emancipation. With the decline of Buddhism and later its gradual absorption by Brahmanism, a vacuum was developed where the oppressed people suffered without a philosophy to depend on. Islam filled the vacuum and offered them an alternative. Thus the statement that “Islam spread more rapidly in those areas where Buddhism had lingered on until the time of its arrival”11 was true in the case of Malabar. And also the social, economic, political and religious factors made easy the spread of the new faith in Malabar.

1. Social and Economic Factors

Malabar was indeed the most caste preservative part of southern India and there the untouchability was very rigid and extreme. Even in the nineteenth century it was this abhorrent system which compelled Swami Vivekananda to call Malabar a “mad house”.

He said: Is there anywhere in the world a folly which I have witnessed in Malabar? A poor Paraya cannot walk through the streets where the caste Hindus walk…. The people of Malabar are mad and their houses are mad houses. What judgement will you reach, other than that the different races of India will treat them with abhorrence and aversion until they reformed themselves and enriched their knowledge. Those people who observe such satanic and obnoxious customs are shameless.12

To assert their obnoxious practices, the Brahmins had the support of the scriptures, Rigveda, for example, syas that Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vyshya and Sudra were created respectively from the face, the hands, the thighs and the feet of the Brahma and since Brahmins are created from. His face, they are entitled for the highest status in the society and others come below him.13 Rules and regulations were strictly followed to maintain this supremacy. They were based on (i) keeping prescribed distance in order not to pollute the superior person (ii) removing the cloth if any covering the shoulders and the head, (iii) using in conversation self denouncing form of speech with pthe special standardised servile expressions 14 and (iv) asserting bodily poses 15 which have been culturally standardised.16.

The distance prescribed to avoid pollution is different according to the position of the castes. Thus a Nair shouldn’t come nearer than six paces to a Namboodiri, a man of the Barber caste nearer than twelve paces, a Tiyyan than thirty six paces and a Pulayan than ninety six paces.17 For Kammalan and artisan the distance is twenty four feet and for the Nayadis, seventy four 18 C.A. Innes records in the first decade of the twentieth century that, “at present day higher caste men when walking along the road utters a warning grunt or hoot to person of any lower castes who there up on retire to the necessary distance.” 19 This hoot called ochar differs from cast to caste.20 The Nayadis who were interviewed by Thurston in 1901 at Shornur, had by the reason of pollution which they traditionally carry with them. to avoid walking along the long bridge which spans the Bharatha Puzha(Ponnani river) and follow a circuitous route of many miles. 21 Gilbert Slater reports. “Uptill 1916 no man….. other than the …. jenmis was allowed to tile his house, to build an upstair building or a gateway. Even now it is rash for a ryot to ask for such permission….22 No man should approach him with more than a single cloth around his waist which shouldn’t fall below his knees.23

The minimum panalty to those who violated the law was excommunication or often death. ‘Under the native rajas, Nairs thought nothing of cutting down on the spot a number of lower castes who had approached with polluting distance of his person.24 If a man of lower caste were by misfortune to touch a Nair lady her relatives would immediately kill her and like wise the man who touched her and all his relatives 25 This shows that even blood relations were undermined to maintain the caste laws.

The author of Cochin State Manual observes that, “the tradition fostered by the Brahmins ascribes to the mandate of Parasurama which ordained that Sudra women would put of chastity and devote themselves to satisfy the desire of Brahmins.26 We have interesting accounts of the social customs like sambandham by which a Namboodiri can cohibit with any Nair lady be likes without bothering of future obligations or liability.27 Writing in the year 1900. T.K. Gopala Panikkar describes that, at present day there are families, especially in the interiour of the district (Malabar) who look up on it as a honour to be thus united by Brahmins.”28 Giving evidence before the Malabar Marriage Commission of 1891, the District Munsiff of Badagara said; “ Polyandry seems to have been largely prevalent in its worst form in South Malabar in the earliest times.

Instances in which a woman has 27 and 12 husbands who visited her by rotation are even now mentioned by some old men.”29

Another social custom imposed by the aristocracy was that except the Namboodiris no men and women should cover the upper half of their body.

Shaikh Zainuddin gives interesting details of this mode of dress; only a single loin cloth is girdled round the waist leaving the upper part exposed. In this respect males and females, rajas and nobles, rich and poor are equal.”30 None of the Hindu ladies except Brahmins thought that the breast was to cover; and to them to cover the breast was an act of immodesty. “The caste law prohibits a Nair lady to cover her breast.”31 There are instances of cruelties inflicted upon the ladies for violating these laws. An Ezhava lady who happened to travel abroad and returned well dressed was summoned by the Queen of Attingal and her breast was cut off for covering them.32 In Travancore a riot occurred when a group of upper caste men assaulted a lady of Ezhava caste for wearing cloth below her knees.33 In 1859 another riot took place in Travancore and continued for several days, when the ladies of Channar caste started to cover the breast. The revolt was called chela kalapam (cloth revolt). It became very important that later scholars regarded it as a part of the struggle for independence.34

Besides the above social taboos and cruelties, the low castes were forbidden access tro temples and bazaars. They wer enot permitted to drink from the well used by the upper castes. Education was forbidden to them. The prohibition was so stringent that they couldn’t go even to a post-office to buy postal articles.”35
The Brahmins were not only the religious heads but they also stood at the apex of the economic system as well. As owners of the land they exploited the lower castes who were their tenants. “ The smallest show of independence by the tenant was resented as an affront. The Hindu tenants were the worst sufferers.”36 The tenants were required to contribute to the expenses of wedding and other ceremonies in their jenmi’s house and to make presents for asking permission to celebrate wedding in his own family. Excommunication was the most painful punishment meted out to those tenants who violated the traditions, that all the kith and kins kept “the culprit” off. He could’t escape even if he changes his residence to another village.37 He would also be evicted from his land. Thus the punishments ruined the tenant for ever. His last resort was to change his religion and thus claim a new identity in Society beyond the reach of jenmis and Brahmins.

The Brahmins maintained their authority with the weapon of religion to exploit the low castes. Temples and gods were the symbols of their landlordism. Revolt against a land lord meant the curse of gods which the tenant feared more than excommunication or eviction. So a Hindu tenant never dared to become a rebel and at the same time he was bound to protect the social and economic privileges of upper class, that in all walks of his life he took utmost care not to pollute a Brahmin or a Nair for the pollution meant a sin.38 Temples became the centres of the feudal structure which no tenant was allowed to enter and at the same time he had to contribute to the festivals and ceremonies at the temples to please the land lord and his gods as well.

To escape the disabilities and discriminations of upper castes, the only way opened before the tenant was to convert either to Islam or to Christianity. “Conversion”, says the author of Islam in India.” Certainly occur in the Musalman community, but they are largely due to social causes. The out caste groups of Hindus popularly known as untouchables have begun to realise that as the object of contempt to all who follow the strict rule of Brahmanism, their position is intolerable. To such people Islam offers full franchise after conversion…39

In the words of Prof. Humayun Kabir, there was a willing aceptance of new faith by large numbers on whom the existing social order pressed heavily.40 The lower class welcomed Islam as a chance to win some degree of social freedom denied to them by Brahmanism through its cruel and rigid caste system.

Since the Muslims had no problem of pollution, they made close contact with the low castes who were employed in vrious professions. At the same time the low castes worked more freely under their Mappila masters than under Brahmins or Nairs. This induced them to accept the religion of their masters. The sixteenth century Portuguese writer, Gaspar Correa reports that,”by becoming Moors they could (the lower class) go wherever they liked and eat as they pleased. When they became Moors, the Moors gave them clothes and robes with which to cloth themselves.”41 In many cases the low caste Hindus who had been brought up by Muslims, ultimately embraced Islam.

Secondly, the Muslim traders were wealthy and maintained a higher standard of life and culture and this might have induced, the upper and lower classes alike, to accept Islamic faith. Al Biruni, an eleventh century scholar, confirmas this fact when the visited India. He says that “ their (Muslims) style of living and working aroused curiosity even among Hindu elites who stayed in the urban centres and got into contact with them in consequence. As regards the artisans and the daily wage earners, they didn’t enjoy a good position in the traditional Hindu system. The Hindu law and customs had already dehumanised them.”42 The at