From: nabeel@sce.carleton.ca (N. M. Ghuzlaan)
Subject: Re: Sufism and Islam
Originator: zeeshan@occs.cs.oberlin.edu (Zeeshan Hasan -Moderator)
Organization: Oberlin College Computer Science
Date: Sat, 12 Dec 1992 03:53:44 GMT
X-Posted-From: occs.cs.oberlin.edu
NNTP-Posting-Host: sol.ctr.columbia.edu


In <ZEESHAN.92Dec10191342@occs.cs.oberlin.edu> RBNXHS%ROHVM1.bitnet@cunyvm.cuny.edu writes:

" know the Creator. Another difference is that while ordinary
" believers worship God in the expectation of reward, Sufis do so
" solely for the sake of the Beloved. The difference between an
" ordinary Muslim and a Sufi is thus one of degree, not of kind.
" While an ordinary Muslim avoids the unlawful, the Sufi avoids
" even the doubtful. In the words of the great woman Sufi saint
" Rabia al-Adawiya:

" O Lord|
"      If I worship You from fear of hell, cast me into hell.
"      If I worship You from desire for paradise, deny me paradise.
"      But if I worship You for Your sake only, deny me not Your
" Face.

   This is very misleading about Islam. We, Muslims, worship God
in part to thank Him and because He deserves to be worshipped. As
human beings, we, ordinary Muslims, like to be rewarded and hate
to be punished (and that is why God created/promised Heaven and Hell)
but this is not the reason we worship God. Fact is, if Rabi'a, 
challenging God, claimed she did not give a damn about Hell, if
she tried it for a second, she would change her mind, I give the
Nabeelsome Merit Guarantee for it.

   The second misleading fact is that "ordinary Muslims" do not avoid
the doubtful (implicitly inferred), this is not true, as Muslims we
are bound by the true Hadith, "Who left the doubtful, ensured his
religion and honour."

   Sufism beyond Islam is not acceptable as a form of Islam. We are
bound by Koran, Hadith and true tradition, not the secret so-called
ways that the Prophet passed to some special Companions. This means
the Prophet violated his duties in disclosing religion to the Islamic
Nation.

" In another context, she says, "I will not serve God like a
" laborer, in expectation of wages."

Neither do we. But we are not lovers to God in the sense that we are
equals and doing things for the beloved. We also are not in a single-
sided love affair to God. Submission and humility to God is not a
disgrace. We are zero compared with God, and we are not shy about it.

" Mansur al-Hallaj similarly said:
"    If Thou (God) wert to offer to sell me Paradise for a moment of
"    my time with Thee, or for one moment of the least of my spiritual
"    state, I would not buy it. If Thou wert to place before me Hell-
"    fire, with all it contains of torment, I would think lightly of
"    it in comparison with my state when Thou art hidden from me.
"    Forgive the people and do not forgive me. I do not intercede
"    with Thee for myself nor beseech Thee for what is due to me.
"    Do with me what Thou wilt.

What arrogance! The Prophet did not challenge God this way. The Prophet
asked God for Paradise and the special status in the Hereafter. Is this
guy doing God a favour by worshipping him? His favour to himself!

" Yahya bin Muadh al-Razi said:
"    My God, of Thy Mercy forgive my sins. O my Lord, though my sinful
"    deeds make me fear Thy Justice, yet the greatness of Thy Compassion
"    makes me hope in Thee. O Lord, I have not merited Paradise by my
"    deeds and I cannot endure the pains of Hell, so I entrust myself
"    simply to Thy Grace. If on the Day of Resurrection, I am asked:
"    "What hast thou brought unto Me?" I shall reply: "What can one
"    straight from prison, with unkempt hair and tattered garment,
"    burdened with worldly cares and full of shame, bring unto Thee?
"    Wash me from my sins, give unto me the robe of the redeemed, and
"    in Thy Mercy cast me not away from Thy Presence."

That sounds more realistic.

" Hassan al-Basri advised:
"    Sell this present world of yours for the next world and you will
"    gain both in entirety, but do not sell the next world for this
"    world, for so shall you lose the two together. Act towards this
"    as if it were not, and towards the world to come as if it would
"    never cease to be.

You made him a Sufist?

"      That is why Islam makes it incumbent on believers to believe
" in all prophets. Muslims in general and Sufis in particular
                                                   ^^^^^^^^^^
" respect and venerate all prophets including Abraham (AS), Jesus
" (AS), Moses (AS) and Muhammad (SAW). This may be the reason that

   What do they do (about it) that Muslims don't?


" (i) "Sufism means that God makes thee to die to thyself and to
" become alive in Himself. It is to purify the heart from the
" recurrence of creaturely temptations, to bid farewell to all
" natural inclinations, to subdue the qualities which belong to
" human nature, to keep far from the claims of the senses, to
" adhere to spiritual qualities, to ascend by means of Divine
" knowledge, to be occupied with that which is eternally the best,
" to give wise counsel to all people, faithfully to observe the
" Truth, and to follow the Prophet in respect of the religious
" Law." -al-Junaid

" (ii) "The way of salvation consists in cleaving to the fear of
" God, and the fulfillment of what He has ordained (fara'id), and
" scrupulous observation (wara') of what He has made lawful and
" unlawful, and all His canonical sanctions (hudud) and the service
" of God for His own sake alone (ikhlas), and in taking His Apostle
" (i.e., Muhammad(SAW)) as a model." -al-Muhasibi

   It seems as a modification of priesthood.

" There are, however, some Sufis who trace their chain of command
" through Abu Bakr (RA), Umar (RA) and Uwais al-Qarani (RA). There
" is no Sufi who does not trace his/her chain to the Prophet (SAW).

"      Let me end this section with what Junaid defines as the
" eight qualities of a Sufi:

"      Liberality such as that of Abraham;
"      Acceptance of his lot, as Ishmael accepted;
"      Patience, as possessed by Job;
"      Capacity to communicate by symbolism, as in the case of
" Zacharias;
"      Estrangement from his own people, which was the case of
" John;
"      Woolen garb like the shepherd's mantle of Moses;
"      Journeying, like the travelling of Jesus;
"      Humility, as Muhammad had humility of spirit.

   This betrays ignorance of religion. Zacharaya talked symbolically
because he was denyed the ability of speech as a sign to his son's
birth, not for the heck of it or a worshipping means.

"      Salih of Qazwin taught his disciples: "Whoever knocks at the
" door continually, it will be opened to him."

   This is already in the Bible!

"      Rabia, hearing him one day, said: "How long will you say:
" "It will be opened'? The door has never shut."

"      May the Almighty lead us all to the true path and keep us
" there. May He give us the means to avail of His overflowing Grace
" at all times.

Amen

**


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