Index
Purification of the Mind (Jila’ Al-Khatir) – Third Edition: Sermons on Drawing Near to God (Al-Jilani, ‘Abd Al-Qadir)
Keep walking until your legs no longer obey you. So, when you become unable to walk, sit down with your outward, then with your inward, then with your heart, and then with your essence.
O Allah! Grant us the wakefulness of the vigilant.
“In every craft seek the expertise of its experts”.
endure with patience whatever destiny brings.
(prayer and peace be on our Prophet and on all prophets and angels)
him) about whom Allah (mighty and glorified is He) said, “And We prevented from him all wet-
His love has become true, and when love becomes true the barriers of formality vanish”.
occupy yourself with purifying your heart from everything.
The love of Allah (mighty and glorified is He) comes only after observing the commandments, refraining from the prohibitions, being satisfied with whatever one gets, and being content with the divine decree.
“When someone does not know his status, the decrees of destiny show him his status”.
Everyone who enters inside has something to surprise him. Allah (high is He) said, “And be pious to Allah and Allah will teach you”
The law refines the behaviour at the door, whereas knowledge refines the behaviour inside.
When the person looks at his faults, he accomplishes perfection, but when he looks at his perceived perfection, he reaps deficiency. Reverse your actions to succeed.
O Allah, correct our prayer of supplication to you
Practise renunciation, be content, offer thanks, be satisfied with your Lord (mighty and glorified is He), and do not be satisfied with yourself. Think well of others, abandon holding a poor opinion of others, and do not hold yourself in high esteem.
Endure with patience the rulings of the law so that knowledge will be unveiled to you.
“Patience to faith is like the head to the body”.
When someone comes to know Allah (mighty and glorified is He), his tongue will stop moving, his heart will start to speak, his innermost being will become pure and serene, and his status will raise in His sight. He will feel intimacy and find comfort with Him and he will find Him sufficient for all his needs, to the exclusion of everyone else.
You will not be able to perform righteous deeds with sincerity unless you practise the curtailment of hopes. You will be able to curtail hopes only by remembering death.
If He wants you for a certain purpose, He prepares you for it.
It is at times of dissatisfaction not at times of satisfaction that the lover becomes identifiable from the hater.
Do not be dissatisfied with what destiny brings. No one can turn it back or prevent it from taking place. Everything will come to pass regardless of who is satisfied and who is not. Your involvement in this world requires the right intention, otherwise, you will be hated.
Appoint one hour for this world, one hour for the hereafter, one hour for yourself, one hour for your family, and all of the remaining hours for your Lord.
Stand steadfast, for nothing that is destined for others will come your way.
You who have wishes, make every effort to come to have none! One of the people of Allah was once asked, “What do you long for?” He replied, “To long for nothing”. Everything depends on being satisfied with the divine decree, giving up the very act of wanting, and casting down the heart in the hands of its Transformer.
O You who have wishes, make every effort to come to have none! One of the people of Allah was once asked, “What do you long for?” He replied, “To long for nothing”. Everything depends on being satisfied with the divine decree, giving up the very act of wanting, and casting down the heart in the hands of its Transformer.
Turn to Him in all of your serious problems.
When the family of each of you has gone to sleep and the creatures’ voices have fallen silent, let him purify himself and place his forehead on the ground, draw near [to Allah], repent, apologise, confess his sins, beg for His favour, ask Him for his needs, and complain to Him about everything that is causing him grief.
O young man, do not occupy yourself with washing the clothes of your body while leaving the clothes of your heart dirty! Wash the heart first and then wash the clothes. Combine both acts of washing, both acts of purification. Wash your clothes clean of dirt and wash your heart clean of sins. Do not be overconfident about anything, for your Lord is a “doer of what He wills”.
He grants his lower self some of its needs so that it calms down and does not hurt him.
“A proper diet is the source of healing, while filling one’s stomach with food and leaving the body to eat what it is used to are the source of disease”.
Work on purifying your heart first, for this is an obligatory duty, and then move on to the acquisition of knowingness because if you miss the root your engrossment with the branch will not be accepted of you. What benefit would the purity of the limbs and senses have when combined with the impurity of the heart? Purify your limbs and senses with the Sunna and your heart by applying the Qur’an. Protect your heart so that your limbs and senses will be protected. Every vessel exudes its contents. Whatever is in your heart will ooze out to your limbs and senses.
If you have accustomed your lower self to eating oat bread but it asks you for honey, you must feed it barley bread until its only wish becomes that you return it to eating oat bread.
“If Allah (mighty and glorified is He) enables me I will do!” He argues citing destiny where his repentance is concerned but he does not use destiny as an argument where his lustful desires and pleasures are concerned, while standing on the foot of procrastination, hesitating between “yes” and “no”.
“O tranquil soul! Return to your Lord well-pleased and well-pleasing”
O Allah, include us among those who renounced everything other than You! Make us seek You under all circumstances
In the beginning, when faith is still weak, [the person says], “There is no God save Allah (lā ilāha illā Allah)” (47.19), but at the end, when faith has become strong, [the person says], “There is no God save You (lā ilāha illā Anta)” (21.87), as he addresses One (mighty and glorified is He) who is present and seen.
Think of the Day of Resurrection and experience it before it takes place.
There will be no good in you until you come to know your lower self, prevent it from getting what it wants, and allow it only what it deserves. At this point it will feel secure with the heart, the heart will feel secure with the innermost being, and the innermost being will feel secure with the True One (mighty and glorified is He).
O young man, make sure that you have only one concern. This comes about only after renouncing the unlawful, then renouncing the permissible, and then renouncing the absolutely lawful.
remember Him with the tongue of your heart, innermost being, and essence, and then with the tongue of your outward.
Place the feet of your heart and your innermost being firmly in His presence and give up all preoccupations with this world and the hereafter.
This heart will not become sound and will not succeed until it gives up every beloved, cuts off every object of attachment, and renounces every creature. Give up and you will be rewarded with much better than what you abandoned.
“Renunciation is here, piety is here, sincerity is here”, and he pointed to his breast.
When anything poses a problem for you, ask the people of the law outwardly and your heart inwardly. The Prophet (Allah’s prayer and peace be on him) once said to a righteous man, “Consult your heart even if the legal experts have offered you advice”.
If the heart agreed, this is a welcome agreement, but if it disagreed, follow its ruling and ignore the ruling of anyone else.
If I am following the truth, erect my edifice, raise it high, and speed up the guidance of creatures through me. O Allah, raise our hearts to you! How long will this tiredness last? When will the cares of the heart end? When will we enjoy the banquet on the roof of the palace of nearness, looking from its balconies at Your creation? “And Allah presents parables for people”
The heart will speak to the innermost being, the innermost being to the private life, the private life to the essence, the essence to the kernel, the kernel to the consciousness. At this stage, its speech to the hearts will be like seeds that are sown in a land that is good, soft, and not saline, so they will grow into green plants.
“Even if a believer was on the top of a mountain, Allah (high is He) will appoint for him a knowledgeable scholar to teach him”.
When the knower renounces the hereafter he says to it, “Get out of my way for I am seeking the door of the True One (mighty and glorified is He). You and this world are one and the same in my eyes.
O Allah, open for us the door of Your nearness! Include us among the people who obey You. Include us among your few individuals and soldiers. Give us a seat at the mat where Your favour is served, give us a drink of Your intimacy, and “give us good in this world and good in the hereafter and protect us from the torment of the Fire”.
Be sound in your private life and then you will be eloquent in your public life. If you are sound in this world you, will
O Allah, grant us good behaviour with You under all circumstances and with the righteous of Your servants and “give us good in this world and good in the hereafter and protect us from the torment of the Fire”.
“Allah”. “Say ‘Allah’ then leave them alone” (6.91)! Say, “He who created me, so He guides me”
O Prophet, do talk to the creatures about the favours of your Lord (mighty and glorified is He) and His generosity to you!” It is an obligation of the walī to conceal and of the Prophet to disclose. The walī’s disclosure is an action of Allah (mighty and glorified is He). If he discloses his favours he gets afflicted and deprived of his spiritual state. But if his disclosure is caused by Allah’s (mighty and glorified is He) action, he does not get subjected to rebuke and reproach because that was not his action.
“Two favours that many people fail to appreciate: good health and free time”.
“Every truth that is not supported by the law is mere infidelity”, meaning that the law should be perfected first and this will be the foundations on which the edifice should be erected afterwards.
They are then promoted from one degree to another, from one book to another, from one abode to another, and from one form of remembrance to another.
Anyone who does not act with sincerity will not earn a single atom of the nearness to Allah (mighty and glorified is He).
They have renounced every created thing, so their hearts have been given the favour of “‘be,’ and it is”. As long as this outward thing is in your hand and your heart is embracing it, you will have nothing of the favour of “‘be,’ and it is”. One of the people of Allah was asked, “Where do you obtain your food from?” He replied, “From the big threshing floor”. It was asked, “What is the big threshing floor?” He replied, “‘be,’ and it is”.
They have renounced every created thing, so their hearts have been given the favour of “‘be,’ and it is”.
When it comes to worldly matters, look to those who are inferior to you, whereas with matters of the hereafter look up to those who are superior to you.
Give up your illusion. This business [of spiritual attainment] cannot be achieved by pretence, wishful thinking, and tongue-wagging. If you are sitting in front of this plate and at this spring, then eat and drink, and feed and offer drinks to others. But if you have only heard of it, then keep silent. Do not talk about something you have not seen. Do not invite people to someone else’s party.
O Allah, grant us the goodness of this day and protect us from its evil, and grant us the same for all nights and days! Amen.
When Allah (high is He) wants you to do something, He prepares you for it.
O Allah, make us satisfied with Your decree, grant us patience with Your affliction, and enable us to thank You for Your favour! We ask You to give us Your full favour, the permanence of well-being, and steadfastness in love.
Be careful when you ask for something if you really have to ask.
Jesus, the son of Mary, and John, the son of Zechariah, (prayer and peace be on our Prophet and them) used to glorify the Lord in the wilderness.
Make sure that your heart, not your clothes, is the abode of your righteousness. Dress as common people do but do not do what they do.
As for those who are sincere in their belief in the oneness of God, their cells are their hearts. Their austerity is imposed on their lower selves, passions, and natural inclination
O servant of God, stand firm in your places and do not rush! Come on the foot of truthfulness to knock at the door of the True One (mighty and glorified is He) and do not leave until the door is opened for you and processions have come out to welcome you.
Remind us of Your remembrance, be kind to us in Your actions, draw us close to your nearness, and make our hearts feel Your intimacy. Protect us from the evil of Your countries and Your servants, and from the evil of every moving creature that You hold by the forelock.21 Protect us from the evil of the evildoers and the scheming of the infidels. Include us among Your party who is travelling to You, seeking the way to You, calling others to You, submitting with humility to You, and treating with arrogance those who are arrogant with You and with the believers of Your creatures. Amen.
He put on shepherds’ clothes and spent the night and day with the sheep, with those that do not speak. In the wilderness, he learned renunciation and solitude, so his heart was purified, and he matured in those years.
“And whoever is pious to Allah, He will appoint for him a way out, and He will provide for him from where he does not expect. And whoever puts his trust in Allah, He is sufficient for him” (65.2-3).
“So woe to those who pray but are unmindful of their prayer” (107.4-5)?
Observe the five daily prayers at their prescribed times. Perform them with total adherence to their conditions and requirements. Do not perform them while you are absent-minded.
Put their sayings into practice first and then speak so that your speech will be a chick of your deeds and the fruit of the tree of your works. This business is not achieved by merely visiting righteous people and memorizing their words, but by putting what they say into practice, behaving with ultimate politeness in their company, and thinking well of them, in all circumstances. The layperson is rewarded in proportion to the steps he takes with his feet, whereas one of the elite is rewarded in proportion to his spiritual aspiration.
O hearts, listen! O eloquent ones, listen! O sensible ones, listen!
Acquire knowledge outwardly and work sincerely inwardly.
Knowledge is like the sword, and action is like the hand.
“O Allah, I thank You through my inability to thank You!”
O learners, knowledge is not in itself the goal, but the aim is its fruit!
I see Allah (mighty and glorified is He) as the Giver, not myself. You are given gifts in proportion to your aspiration, and gifts are withheld from you also in proportion to your spiritual aspiration.
Be content with as little food as you need for survival and as little clothing as you need to cover your private parts. If anything else was destined for you, it will certainly come your way at the appointed time.
who worships Allah with ignorance causes more damage than good”.
Be content with whatever has been allotted to you by your Lord (mighty and glorified is He); be satisfied with it. The person who endures with patience will achieve spiritual attainment. When the person endures with patience, his heart will become rich and his poverty will be removed. You have to resort to solitude so that you can worship with sincerity, for loneliness is better than bad companions.
This business cannot be achieved by fasting by day, keeping vigil to worship by night, and practising austerity in diet and dress, yet with the existence of the lower self, vagaries, natural inclination, wretchedness, ignorance, and interests in creatures. This business cannot be done without His guidance. Woe to you! Act with sincerity and detach yourself, for there may be some hidden things that you are not aware of. Be truthful and then you will arrive and become near to Him. Raise your aspiration and then you will rise high. Surrender and then you will be saved. Comply and then you will be granted success. Be satisfied and then you will be satisfied with [by Him]. Hurry up and act and then the True One (mighty and glorified is He) will complete for you what you set out to do. O Allah, take charge of our affairs in this world and the hereafter, do not assign us to ourselves or any of your creatures, and “give us good in this world and good in the hereafter and protect us from the torment of the Fire”.
“And those who strive in Our cause, We will certainly guide them to Our ways”
The real light is the light of the hearts and the real cleanness is the cleanness of the hearts, innermost beings, and private lives. If your heart and private life are unclean, what would the cleanness of your outward benefit you? Even if you bathed yourself a thousand times each day, nothing of the dirt of your heart would disappear.
Strive and then guidance will come to you. It will not come to you because of you, yet you have to be involved. It will not come about through you alone. Make a start and others will then come and complete your work for you. Everything is in the hand of Allah (mighty and glorified is He), so do not ask for anything from anyone else.
They demand outwardly but have mercy inwardly.
Prevent your tongues from talking about things that do not concern you.
Remembering death is a remedy for the disease of the lower selves and food and benefits for the hearts.
Your words reveal what is in your heart. The tongue is the speaker of the heart.
There is plenty of water all around me and I am like a frog, so I cannot speak of what I know. I wait for the water to seep away and then I speak.
Use the little that you have to get the great amount that you lack. Do something, since the rope is still in your hand.
real poverty is the fear of poverty, and the real affluence is being satisfied with Allah (mighty and glorified is He),
Fast for the sake of Allah
Lord (mighty and glorified is He), but be deaf
Be satisfied with what He gives and occupy yourself with offering thanks for it. Do not ask Him for more, for you do not know where your best interest lies.
“None of you should sleep in the night unless your will is written and placed under your head”.
O Allah, grant us the pleasure of Your nearness, the delight of Your private conversation, and feeling happy with You, and “give us good in this world and good in the hereafter and protect us from the torment of the Fire”.
Focus on yourselves and do not pay attention to others. Do not speak a lot about things that are of no concern to you, for the Prophet (Allah’s prayer and peace be on him) said, “One result of the excellence of the person’s practice of Islam is neglecting what does not concern him”. Your faults are your business, but the faults of others are of no concern to you.
O Allah, awaken our hearts from their forgetfulness, awaken us so that we heed You, put us at Your service,
Listen, for you are able to hear if you do not take the initiative it will be too late. Eat as you like and live in ease, the end of all of this will be death.
Take full advantage of your life before your death. Learn a lesson from death, for the Prophet (Allah’s prayer and peace be on him) used to say, “Death is sufficient a preacher”.
O people, die before you die.
Remember death frequently and prepare for it before its arrival, and then you will have died before you die.
“And whoever puts his trust in Allah, He is sufficient for him” (65.3)?
“And Allah warns you of Himself” (3.28)? As much as you have fearfulness and caution, you will have safety. Put your trust in your Lord; have you not heard His following saying, “And whoever puts his trust in Allah, He is sufficient for him” (65.3)?
Grant us knowledge of Your outward law and knowledge of the inward. Grant us patience and satisfaction. Sweeten for us the bitterness of Your affliction, which You foreknow will come our way. Cause the flesh of our hearts to die so that we do not feel the pain of the shears of Your power, and thus Your companionship will last for us forever. Amen.
Listen to the verses of the Qur’an with the ears of your hearts. Rush to Him from every door, bid farewell to every door, and cling to the door of your Lord (mighty and glorified is He).
Courage is an hour of patience.
He will take what His lord (mighty and glorified is He) has given him. This is the real gift, while everything else is worthless.
How much you fear hunger and poverty! If you had certitude you would not have thought of these things. Comply with your Lord’s (mighty and glorified is He) will. If He subjects you to hunger, endure it with patience, with a good feeling in your hearts. If He satisfies your hunger, offer thanks to Him. He knows your best interests better than you do.
Follow the young servant and he will take you to the master. Law is a young servant, whereas knowledge is a master. Follow it, see where it enters, and enter after it. Seek the door of your Lord (mighty and glorified is He) and behave well in the company of the law, which is the young servant that stands at the door.
the law is common, whereas knowledge is special. The law is faith, whereas knowledge is direct seeing.
O Allah, make us work and be sincere in our works, grant us acquaintance with Your knowledge, steadfastness in our acquaintance and “give us good in this world and good in the hereafter and protect us from the torment of the Fire”. Praise be to Allah Lord of the worlds. “Our Lord, perfect our light for us and forgive us. You are capable of everything” (66.8). “My Lord, enable me to be thankful for Your favour that You have conferred on me and my parents, and to do righteousness that is pleasing to You, and do good to me in my offspring. I repent to You and I am one of the Muslims” (46.15). “Glory be to your Lord, the Lord of might, above what they describe. And peace be on the messengers, and praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds” (37.180-182). Praise be to Allah, with whose favour all good works are completed.