The Secrets of Spiritual Success: Worship, Divine Friendship, and the Awliya

Do This at Least Once in Your Life

Perform ghusl, wear clean clothes, and offer four rak‘ahs in such a manner as they deserve to be offered. Then place your face upon the ground in a place where no one besides Allah Almighty can see you. Then place dust upon your head and cover your face, the most honored of all your limbs, with soil. Do so in such a way that tears Flow from your eyes, your heart is immersed in grief, your voice is raised while your call remains soft, and as much as possible, remember each sin individually while reproaching and shaming yourself. Scold your nafs and say: “O Self Ego or Soul (Nafs)! Are you not ashamed? Can y ou not repent? Do you have the strength to bear the punishment of Allah Almighty? Do you wish to displease Allah Almighty?” Continue crying in this way, then stretch your hands in the court of your Most Merciful Lord and say: “O, my Lord! Your runaway slave has presented himself at your door. Your disobedient servant has returned seeking reconciliation. Your sinful servant seeks forgiveness from You. O, my Lord! Forgive me through Your generosity and accept me through Your grace. Shower me with Your merciful gaze. O, my Lord! Forgive my previous sins and protect me from sins in the life ahead. Indeed, all goodness is in Your control, and You are the Most Merciful and Kind toward us.

How the Heart Becomes Attached to Worship

Hazrat Sayyiduna Salman al Farsi (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) said: “When a servant becomes detached from the world, his heart becomes illuminated with wisdom, and his limbs become helpers in worship.” Hold firmly onto this statement.

The Enemy of a Friend

The world is the enemy of Allah Almighty, while you are among those who love Allah Almighty; and the one who loves someone hates his enemy.

The Status of the Awliya-e-Kiram رَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ

As for becoming detached even from halal things, this is the quality of the Abdal (the Awliya Kiram رَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ ). Even from halal things, they take only what is necessary. As for haram, in their sight it is like fire, let alone taking it, even the thought of it does not enter their hearts.

Avoid Sin, Repent Quickly: The Blessings of Sincere Tawbah

It Is Possible to Avoid Every Sin If you say:

“How is it possible for a person to reach a state where he does not commit even a single minor or major sin?” Then you should know that not only is this possible, it is easy as well, and Allah Almighty specially grants this through His mercy to whomever He wills.

The Blessings of Repentance

By repenting, one of two great blessings will definitely be granted to you:

(1) You will be blessed with the ability to remain steadfast upon true and sincere repentance, or

(2) Your previous sins will be forgiven.

How Great a Blessing True Repentance Is

Hazrat Sayyiduna Ustadh Abu Ishaq Isfarayini رَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ was a scholar who practiced upon his knowledge. He said: “For thirty years I prayed to Allah Almighty that He grant me the ability to make true and sincere repentance.” Then I became amazed at myself and said:(سُبْحَانَ ٱللَّٰهِ)! For thirty years, I have been asking Allah Almighty for one need, yet it has still not been fulfilled.” Then I saw in a dream someone saying to me, “Are you surprised by this? Do you know what you are asking from Allah Almighty? You are asking that Allah chosen servants. Almighty make you among His beloved and

Do Not Sin; If a Sin Occurs, Repent Immediately

You must never forget the matter of Shaytan and Bal‘am bin Ba‘ura (the hidden decree of Allah Almighty concerning them). Their affair began with sin and ended in disbelief, and both perished forever among the destroyed.

A Sign of the Heart Becoming Darkened

Do not become fearless because of the hardness of the heart; rather, continue reflecting upon your condition. A pious elder رَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ said: “The heart becomes darkened because of sins, and the sign of the darkness of the heart is that sins no longer disturb you, opportunities for righteous deeds are not found, and admonition and advice no longer benefit you.”

Beware! Never consider any sin insignificant, and do not think of yourself as repentant while persisting in major sins. Reflect upon the words of this poet:

“Never consider even a small sin insignificant, because continuous repetition causes ‘a little’ to become a lot"

The Status of Allah Almighty’s Righteous Servants

“The one who repents still fears for himself, so what do you think should be the condition of the one who does not repent"

The Evil Effects of Sins and the Way Back to Allah

Although the valley of knowledge is extremely difficult, it is the very path that leads to the intended goal, namely, worship and salvation.

Those Deprived of Knowledge

The Beloved Prophet (صَلَّى ٱللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ) said:

“On the night of Mi‘raj, I looked into Hell and saw that the majority within it were the poor.”

The noble Sahabah (عليهم الرضوان) asked: “Ya RasulAllah (صَلَّى ٱللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ)! Poor in terms of wealth?”

He (صَلَّى ٱللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ) replied:

“No, poor in terms of knowledge.”

The Evil Effects of Sins

The one who is covered in various forms of filth and impurity, how can he attain closeness with Allah Almighty? Certainly, the person who persists in sins is rarely granted the ability to perform righteous deeds, nor are his limbs prepared for worship. The n even if he does receive the tawfiq to worship, he performs it with great difficulty, worship that contains neither sweetness nor delight, neither purity nor beauty. All of this is due to the evil effects of sin and the abandonment of repentance.

Sincere Repentance Will Be Granted

The one who cannot bear the heat of the sun, the slap of a soldier, or the sting of an ant, how will he bear the heat of the Fire of Hell, the blows of the angels of punishment, and the bites of snakes with necks like Bakhti camels and scorpions like mules , creatures created from fire in the abode of wrath and destruction (Hell)? Again and again, we seek Allah’s protection from His anger and punishment.

If you continuously remember these terrifying matters and keep their remembrance fresh morning and evening and during the hours of the night, then soon sincere repentance from sins will be granted to you. May Allah Almighty grant ability and grace to do good (tawfiq) through His grace.

The Cure for Sins: Learning, Practicing, and Avoiding Disputes

A Prescription for Staying Away from Sins

The fear is that when a person fears the painful punishment prepared by Allah Almighty, along with the various punishments and warnings of disgrace from His side, then this fear will frighten the Self Ego or Soul (nafs) away from sins and restrain it. Thus, at this stage, the servant faces the path of those things which encourage him toward worship, and in order to cross it, both fear and hope are needed. Therefore, with the ability and grace to do good (tawfiq) of Allah Almighty, the servant should begin traversing this path.

The Example of Knowledge and Actions

Knowledge is like a tree, and worship is like its fruit. The greatness belongs to the tree because it is the foundation, but its benefit is attained through its fruit. For this reason, the Beloved Prophet (صَلَّى ٱللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ) said:

Knowledge is the leader of actions, and actions are its followers.

Learning Religious Knowledge Is Necessary

Sometimes you become involved in pure showing off,yet think of it as praising Allah Almighty and calling people toward goodness. In this way, you begin considering sins as virtues and actions worthy of punishment as tremendous rewards. Thus, you become trapped in severe deception and terrible heedlessness. By Allah! For those who act without knowledge, this is indeed a tremendous and terrible calamity.

Stay Away from Arguments

It is necessary for you to avoid debates, arguments, and tugging back and forth, because this is a disease for which there is no cure. Therefore, make every effort to protect yourself from it, because whoever becomes afflicted with this illness neve succeeds, except the one whom Allah Almighty covers with His grace, mercy, kindness, and favor.

To Control the Self Ego or Soul (Nafs)

To remove the obstacles that stand in the path of worship, four things are required:

• Withdrawing from worldly attachment,
• Seclusion from creation,
• Battling Shaytan,
• Opposing the Self Ego or Soul (nafs).

Among these, dealing with the Self Ego or Soul (nafs) is the most difficult, because separation from it is impossible. Nor can it be completely subdued through extreme harshness, as Shaytan can, because the Self Ego or Soul (nafs) is the mount and means through which worship is carried out. Whenever a person intends to perform worship and turn toward it, he cannot expect cooperation from the Self Ego or Soul (nafs), because opposition to goodness and following desires are part of its nature. 

In such a situation, it becomes necessary to place the reins of God-consciousness Piety or Fear of God (taqwa) upon the Self Ego or Soul (nafs) so that it does not rebel and become defiant. Rather, it should remain obedient and submissive to the servant, enabling him to use it in righteous and beneficial deeds while preventing it from places of destruction and corruption. In this way, one should prepare to cross this difficult pass and seek help from Allah Almighty for it.

Repent Before Worship

When a person begins engaging in worship, he should look at himself and realize:

 

“I am covered in faults and sins,” And this is the condition of most people. 

He should then say to himself: “How can I proceed upon the path of worship while I am immersed in sins and still persisting in them? Therefore, it is necessary that I first repent from my sins, so that Allah Almighty may forgive me, free me from the imprisonment of sins, and cleanse me from their filth and impurity. Then, after becoming purified, I may become worthy of worship and closeness to Allah Almighty.

Successful People

 

By Allah! This path (the path toward Paradise) is extremely difficult and filled with dangers. Because of this, very few people walk upon it. There is a saying:

When the objective is great, those striving for it are few.

Minhaj al ‘Abidin, p. 17

Then, among those who walk this path, very few remain steadfast, and among them, only a small number succeed in reaching the intended goal. In reality, these are the honored ones whom All ah Almighty selected for His recognition and love, protected through His divine aid, and through His grace granted them His pleasure and Paradise. We pray that Allah Almighty, through His mercy, includes both you and us among these successful people