Epistemology and Islamic Spirituality The Forgotten Path

Islamic Spirituality - The Forgotten Path

 

A lecture delivered by Maulana Imran Nazar Hosein

at the Maulana Abd al-Aleem  Siddiqui Masjid, Singapore

Knowledge that comes directly from Allah ﷻ

Ye will be able to see the Hell-fire!

Knowledge is possible, but it does not only come this way (learned by the brain), it also comes this way (revealed to the heart). Remember that in addition to knowledge externally derived, it is also internally, intuitively, spiritually acquired.

The companions were sitting; talking amongst themselves in the Masjid and the Holy Prophet ﷺ came and sat with them. This was after the farewell Hajj when they had returned to Madinah and so he has only 81 days left in his blessed life. This  is the  last  part  of his life. Suddenly  a stranger  entered  into the  Masjid dressed all in white spotlessly clean with no dust upon him, with black hair. He was  not a traveler,  yet  no-one  could recognize  who he was.  This  is mystery, suspense as to who is this man. He came  and sat  directly  opposite the  Holy Prophet ﷺ and asked  five  questions as if he is a school-master  and the  Holy Prophet ﷺ replies. Every time the Holy Prophet ﷺ would reply, this man would say, ‘Your  answer  is  correct.’  Thereafter  he  got  up  and  left  as  suddenly  and  as strangely as he had come. The Holy Prophet ﷺ then asked, ‘Do you know who he was?’ They answered, ‘We don’t! Allah ﷻ and His Messenger know best.’  The Holy Prophet ﷺ said, ‘This was Jibraeel عليه السلام.’ The Angel Jibraeel عليه السلام appeared in front of everybody  as a human being, for all to see. The first time, the only time, the last time in history that it happened. It never happened before and it will not happen  again.  This  is  history,  if you  forget  this  you  pay  a  price  for it.  The questions were:  What  is Islam?  What  is Imaan?  And  then came,  What  is al- Ihsaan? I wish that they had not invented the word Sufism. Really! There was no need for it. I wish that  the term Tasawwuf  had never  been invented.  My life would have been easier. Whoever did it, whatever  the reason why he did it, did something which should not have been done. Because Allah ﷻ has Himself given us the word and the Holy Qur’aan tells us [in the 29th  Sura, al-Ankabuut (The Spider): in Verse69]:

Those who strive and struggle and make Jihad in Us, to reach Us

We will guide them to the paths, which lead to Us

And Allah  is ever with those who struggle for al-Ihsaan

And the Holy Prophet ﷺ is asked as to what al-Ihsaan.  It is there in the hadith and it is there in the Holy Qur’aan. Al-Ihsaan is Tasawwuf.  There  is no difference between the two. Why then did we need the term tasawwuf?  So that people could accuse us of bid’ah and haraam?   I agree with Dr. Israar Ahmad of Pakistan, the ameer  of Tanzeem e Islami who has argued that we should use the terminology given by Allah ﷻ and His Messengerﷺ .

Source:  Islamic Spirituality - TheForgotten Path

 to be continued  . . . .