Remembrance of Allah

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Remembrance of Allah

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Remembrance of Allah An English rending of the Urdu book Dhikr-e-Il a h i A speech delivered during the Annual Convention of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community on 28 December 1916 Hadrat Mirza Bashir-ud-D e en Mah m ood Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih II (may Allah be pleased with him)

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ISLAM INTERNATIONAL PUBLICATIONS LTD Remembrance of Allah (Originally published in Urdu as Dhikr-e-Il a h i ) A speech delivered by Hadrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahmood Ahmad Khalifatul Masih II ra during the Annual Convention of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community on 28 December 1916 © Islam International Publications Ltd.First published in Urdu in Rabwah, Pakistan, 1982 First English translation published in the UK, 1993 Second English edition published in the UK, 2003 ISBN: (1 85372 509 9) Present (third) edition published in the UK, 2021 Published by Islam International Publications Ltd.Unit 3, Bourne Mill Business Park, Guildford Road, Farnham, Surrey, GU9 9PS, UK Printed in UK at Raqeem Press, Farnham, Surrey For further information, please visit www.alislam.org.Cover design: Usman Nasir Choudhary ISBN: 978-1-84880-577-4 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

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Contents About the Author..............................................................ix Foreword...........................................................................xi Remembrance of Allah Introductory Remarks..................................................1 Importance of the Subject............................................7 What is Dhikr-e-Il a h i......................................................7 Need of Greater Attention to Dhikr in Our Community..................................................12 Misunderstandings about Dhikr................................19 Misguided Forms of Dhikr.............................................19 Dhikr Versus Mesmerism................................................22 Pleasure from Dhikr.........................................................23 Difference between Dhikr and Mere Influence of Thoughts......................................................................24 Reciting Dhikr Aloud......................................................25 Poetry as Dhikr?...............................................................27 Characteristics of True Dhikr....................................29 Five States of a Person Engaged in Dhikr-e-Il a h i.......29 True Dhikr Rules out Dancing and Shouting............31 Unconsciousness is Not a True Result of Dhikr........32

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Remembrance of Allah vi Prohibitions Regarding Dhikr.......................................35 Four Kinds of Dhikr Enjoined by the Holy Quran...35 Methods of Performing Dhikr...................................41 Obligatory and Voluntary Dhikr..................................41 Other Forms of Remembrance of Allah......................43 Precautions & Proper Times for Dhikr......................49 Necessary Precautions for Dhikr...................................49 Proper Times for Dhikr..................................................53 Prayer—The Most Important Form of Dhikr...........................................59 S al a t as Dhikr....................................................................59 The Philosophy of Sunnah.............................................59 The Philosophy of Naw a fil.............................................60 Thirteen Methods of Waking up for Tahajjud............63 Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers....75 Dhikr in Gatherings.................................................103 Benefits of Dhikr.....................................................107 Endnotes........................................................................117 Publisher’s Note.............................................................131 Acknowledgements.........................................................134 Glossary..........................................................................135 Index..............................................................................141

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Hadrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahmood Ahmad Khalifatul Masih II ra

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About the Author Hadrat al- Ha j Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahmood Ahmad ra (1889–1965), was the second Khalifah of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.He was the son of the Promised Messiah and his birth was the fulfilment of the Mu s leh Mau‘ u d (Promised Reformer) prophecy.This prophecy was published by the Promised Messiah as as a Sign of the truth of Islam in reply to a challenge put forth by the Arya Samaj.From his early youth, he was gifted with knowledge—both, secular and spiritual—and a deep love for the Holy Quran.He was nineteen years old when the Promised Messiah as passed away on 26 May 1908, in Lahore.The next day, on 27 May 1908, he pledged allegiance to Hadrat Maul a n a Hakeem Noor-ud-Deen, Khalifatul Masih I, the first Khalifah of the Promised Messiah as.He visited Egypt and Arabia in September 1912 during the course of which he performed the Hajj pilgrimage.In June 1913, he started a newspaper, titled Al-Fazl.In 1914, at the age of 25, he was elected as Khalifatul Masih II.During his almost fifty-two years of Khilafat, he led the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community on an international level, expanding the Movement to forty-six countries, and building dozens of hospitals,

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x mosques, and schools.He consolidated and formalized the system of financial contributions of the Community, and initiated the annual campaigns of Ta h r i k-e-Jad i d in 1934 and Waqf-e-Jad i d in 1957, considerably expanding Ahmadi missionary activity globally.He was an active political figure especially in India prior to its independence.He was also one of the founding members and the first president of the All-India Kashmir Committee set up for the establishment of the civil rights of Kashmiri Muslims.Hadrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahmood Ahmad ra was an avid scholar and a prolific author, who spoke and wrote exten- sively in defence of Islam.A twenty-six volume compilation of his works called Anw a rul-‘Ul u m contains over 800 writings and lectures (excluding several thousand sermons).His Tafs i r-e- Kab i r —ten-volume commentary of the Holy Quran—is revered as a treasure trove to this very day.Likewise, he was an orator of unmatched eloquence, captivating his audiences for hours on end.Hadrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahmood Ahmad ra gave the Jam a ‘at its current organizational and administrative structure, for- mally establishing the Majlis ash-Shura (Consultative Council).He established the auxiliary organisations for men, women, and children.His many momentous achievements include the estab- lishment of the Electoral College for the election of Khal i fatul- Mas ih , and the establishment of the Community’s headquarters in Rabwah, Pakistan after the partition of British India in 1947.He passed away on 8 November 1965 in Rabwah, Pakistan, and was succeeded by Hadrat Mirza N as ir Ahmad as Khal i fatul- Mas ih III rta.

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Foreword Dhikr-e-Il a h i ( ) is an English rendering of a speech delivered by Hadrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahmood Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih II (may Allah be pleased with him) on 28 December 1916.This is a topic of vital importance, as Allah Himself explicitly states in the Holy Quran ُرَبْكَا ِهّٰللا ُرْكِذَل َو , ‘And the indeed is the greatest virtue ’ ( S u rah al-‘Ankab u t, 29:46).The revered speaker delivered a splendid presentation on the nature, importance, and benefits of Dhikr-e-Il a h i.He explained that Dhikr-e-Il a h i is of four types: 1) Prayer; 2) Recitation of the Holy Quran; 3) Narration of the attributes of Allah the Exalted in gatherings and acknowledging and making their verbal affirma- tion; and 4) Deliberating upon the attributes of Allah in solitude.He added the methods and timing of Dhikr-e-Il a h i for maximum benefit, and particularly emphasised the value of Tahajjud prayer as a means of attaining Maq a m-e-Ma h m u d —the praiseworthy station of nearness to Allah.He also suggested twenty-two means of fostering concentration in Prayer.Sadly, people these days question the utility of reciting the name of God.‘What’, they ask, ‘could be the benefit of someone

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xii sitting alone and repeatedly saying L a il a ha illall a h, ‘There is no one worthy of worship except Allah’ or that God is Holy, God is All-Knowing, God is All-Aware, God is All-Powerful, God is the Creator, etc.?’ The problem is compounded further because what is commonly understood to be Dhikr-e-Il a h i these days has little to do with the teachings found in the Holy Quran and the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.This book addresses these concerns beautifully, comprehen- sively, and concisely.It expounds the underlying philosophy and benefits of Dhikr-e-Il a h i.It teaches how to engage in it as pre- sented by the Holy Quran and practiced by the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.The types and methods of Dhikr-e-Il a h i are enumerated, as are the precautions for engag- ing in it.This book is a must read for everyone, but I especially recom- mend it to our young men and women, as it addresses their con- cerns about this topic in a manner that is forthright, complete, and easy to understand.al- Ha j Munir-ud-Din Shams Additional Wak i lut-Ta s n i f London, United Kingdom July 2021

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نَحْمَدُہ ٗ وَنُصَلِّی ْ عَلٰی رَسُوْلِہ ِ الْکَرِیْم.بِسْم ِ الل ِّٰ الرَّحْمٰن ِ الرَّحِيْمِ.In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.We praise Him and invoke blessings upon His Noble Messenger.

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Introductory Remarks ِّٰ أَشْھَد ُ أَن ْ ل َّ إِلٰہ َ اِل َّ الل ُّٰ وَحْدَہ ٗ ل َ شَرِیْک َ لَہ ٗ وَأَشْھَد ُ أَن َّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُہ ٗ و َ رَسُوْلُہ.أَمَّا بَعْد ُ فَأَعُوْذ ُ بِالل * ْمِ.ي ْطٰن ِ الرَّجِ ي مِن َ الشَّ َو ۰۰۪ۙ ىٰدَهَف َرَّدَق ْيِذَّلا َو ىّٰوَسَف۰۰ۙ َقَلَخ ْيِذَّلا ىَلْعَاْلا۰۰ۙ َكِّبَر َمْسا ِحِّبَس ِمْيِحَّرلا۰۰ ِنٰمْحَّرلا ِهّٰللا ِمْسِب َرْهَجْلا ُمَلْعَي ٗهَّنِا ُهّٰللا١ؕ َءٓاَش اَم اَّلِا ىٰۤسْنَت۰۰ۙ اَلَف َكُئِرْقُنَس ىٰوْحَا۰۰ؕ ًءٓاَثُغ ٗهَلَعَجَف ىٰعْرَمْلا۰۰ۙ َجَرْخَا ْۤيِذَّلا اَهُبَّنَجَتَي َو ۰۰ۙ ىٰشْخَّي ْنَم ُرَّكَّذَيَس ىٰرْكِّذلا۰۰ؕ ِتَعَفَّن ْنِا ْرِّكَذَف ۰۰ۚۖ ىٰرْسُيْلِل َكُرِّسَيُن َو ىٰفْخَي۰۰ؕ اَم َو َمْسا َرَكَذ َو ۰۰ۙ ىّٰكَزَت ْنَم َحَلْفَا ْدَق ۰۰ؕ ىٰيْحَي اَل َو اَهْيِف ُتْوُمَي اَل َّمُث ۰۰ۚ ىٰرْبُكْلا َراَّنلا ىَلْصَي ْيِذَّلا ىَقْشَاْلا۰۰ۙ ِفُحُص ۰۰ۙ ىٰلْوُاْلا ِفُحُّصلا يِفَل اَذٰه َّنِا ۰۰ؕ ىٰقْبَا َّو ٌرْيَخ ُةَرِخٰاْلا َو اَيْنُّدلا۰۰ٞۖ َةوٰيَحْلا َنْوُرِثْؤُت ْلَب ىّٰلَصَف۰۰ؕ ٖهِّبَر ** S u rah al-A‘l a , 87:1–20— ىٰسْوُم۰۰ؒ َو َمْيِهٰرْبِا * I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, the One who has no partner, and I bear witness that most certainly Muhammad is His servant and Messenger.After this I seek refuge with Allah from Satan the rejected.[Publisher] ** In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.Glorify the name of your Lord, the Most High, Who creates and perfects, And Who designs and guides, And Who brings forth the pasturage, Then turns it black, rotten rubbish.We shall teach you the Quran, and you shall forget it not, Except as Allah wills.Surely, He knows what is open and what is hidden.And We shall facilitate for you every facility.So go on reminding; surely, reminding is profitable.He who fears will soon heed; But the reprobate will turn aside from it, He who is to enter the great Fire.Then he will neither die therein nor live.Verily, he truly prospers who purifies him- self, And remembers the name of his Lord and offers Prayers.But you prefer the life of this world, Whereas the Hereafter is better and more lasting.This indeed is what is taught in the former Scriptures—The Scriptures of Abraham and Moses ( S u rah al-A‘l a , 87:1–20 ).[Publisher]

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2 As I had stated yesterday, my topic today relates to a matter con- cerning which I am certain that it is very important.And this is not based on mere speculation or conjecture.Quite the contrary, there is a decision and a decree of the Holy Quran concerning it also.Upon hearing this some people may perhaps say that this is just an ordinary matter and that, in fact, we know it already.Of course the condition of the hearts of people is known to none except Allah the Exalted, but in view of the current conditions I can say, and indeed do state , that many such things will be said concerning this topic which are not known by most people and which I have also not seen in any book.Since the topic is so general that most—upon seeing its head- ing—would dismiss it as ordinary and already understood prior to discussing it, I consider it necessary to inform you that this topic is extremely important and essential, so do listen to it with attention.Should Allah the Exalted grant me the ability, I shall convey in it many such things that if you take note and act upon them, God Almighty shall make them the means of much good and excellence for you.However, before I embark upon the actual topic, I wish to state one more thing and it is this.Some people who come to participate in the Jalsa [Annual Convention], spend all their time roaming about.This is highly objectionable.Allah the Exalted has not given them wealth to waste.If they had come here to simply wander around aimlessly, what was the need for them to come here at all? The people who come here after suffering hardships and spending their money, do so for the purpose of listening and benefiting.Nevertheless, the complaint has reached me that some people get up and leave when a speaker is presenting his topic, thinking that they have heard

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Introductory Remarks 3 these things already.I say to such people that if this statement of theirs is correct—that what has been heard before should not be listened to again—then they should also not read the Holy Quran again and again and abandon it after reciting it once.They should also do the same in regard to the five daily Prayers and Fasting, but this is not right.Thus, even if something that is being narrated has been heard before, it should still be listened to with full zeal and heartfelt attention; for, even this will beget great benefit, and that concept will become more deeply impressed upon the heart.Then, if one person gets up from a gathering, a second one also stands up upon seeing the first, and then a third, and so a number of people begin to leave and this is a very unpleasant situation.But yes, if someone has an urgent need to leave; for example, to go to the washroom, such a one may get up and leave.However, the individual should quickly return upon fulfilment of the need so that he may be able to attain the purpose and objective for which he has come and to acquire the gain and benefit for which he is participating in the Jalsa.The Holy Prophet s as has said that when a person sits in any gathering of virtuous people, he benefits even without listening to the things being said there or acting upon them.It is narrated in the hadith that some men were sitting in a gathering and God Almighty inquired from the angels as to what such and such of His servants were doing.(The Holy Prophet s as says that Allah the Exalted did not ask about them because He did not know; actually, God Almighty knew the whole story all too well.) They said that they were engaged in the.God Almighty replied that whatever they had asked for, He had bestowed it upon them.The angels said that there was also a man sitting with them

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4 who was not engaged in the ; he was just sitting with them.God Almighty said that the individual sitting with them cannot be unfortunate.He would reward and hon- our him as well ( S a hīh al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitāb ad-Da‘wāt, Bāb Fa d li Dhikrillāhi ’Azza wa Jall; Hadith 6408).1 This means that even though the one sitting in the company of the virtuous may not receive guidance at one time, he will certainly be blessed with it at some other time.It cannot be that despite sitting in such a gathering with sincerity of heart, such an individual should remain a disbeliever; albeit true, the one who sits just once or twice—never to return thereafter—remains a disbeliever.This statement does not apply to him.Therefore, one should try to the utmost to remain seated in the gathering and if someone is faced with some urgent need, he should go and quickly return after attending to it.Recently, I had delivered some sermons concerning the subject of prayers, and within them, such topics were mentioned, by the grace of Allah the Exalted, from which many people benefited.I have received many a letter in which it was written that much benefit was derived from these sermons.A person from Lahore wrote to me about these sermons, but his name was illegible.It appears God Almighty has employed His attribute of Satt a r [the Concealer] with respect to him.He expressed amazement at what I had done, that I had disclosed those methods which had been kept secret and hidden all along, and from amongst which the sufis [mystics] would disclose barely one such method after exact- ing years of service from people, whereas I had readily disclosed everything.In addition to this, he also wrote that I was indeed obliged

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Introductory Remarks 5 to do so, for I had much love for my Jam a ‘at and this is why I had informed them of those methods.Concerning this, I say that it is not only out of love for my Jam a ‘at that I had explained those techniques.There is no doubt in that I have love, and such a love that no one would have even for his own kith and kin, but I com- municated those ways for this reason as well, that I know the God who has informed me of those ways is such a God that as much as one spends from the wealth He has given, He causes it to increase that much more and it becomes the means for the bestowal of yet greater rewards.This is indeed why I did not empty my home by informing people to the extent that I did; rather, I filled it all the more.Then again, I was certain that by informing people of these, I would suffer no harm at all, for knowledge is not the kind of thing that diminishes upon being spent, but rather it increases upon being spent.But even if I had believed that [it diminishes upon being spent], then, as the Noble Companions ra said, if they had a sword placed upon their neck and they were to remember some- thing that the Holy Prophet s as had said, but which had not yet been communicated to anyone, then before the sword could sever their neck, they would convey that information ( S a hīh al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitābul ‘Ilm, Bābun al-‘Ilmu Qabl al-Qauli wal-‘Amal).2 Accordingly, I also affirm that even if all the ways that I was expressing were to come to an end as I was communicating them, I would still have set forth all of them.Thus, at that time I conveyed as many as I could, and the thought crossed my mind that I had expressed all the ways relating to prayer that I knew of.However, when I returned home after Prayer and started supplicating, God Almighty taught me so many ways as I had never imagined before.

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6 Even now, I had written down notes to the extent that I was capa- ble for the topic that I wish to speak on, but on my way here, God Almighty had made many more things clear to me.Thus, I had mentioned the ways of supplicating which were highly essential.Nonetheless, what I wish to say now is even more important than the way to make prayers.If one comes to understand this well, and acts upon it, then his prayers will naturally find acceptance.Last year I had intended to talk about this very topic, but since I had started another subject, this was left behind.The wisdom of God Almighty in this was that now when I began to write down notes about it, the notes of last year looked like those of a student as compared to those of a teacher, because I have been given to understand many more things than before.In short, I wish today to convey to you some things about the topic of , and I want to do it on this occasion because most people do not read the newspapers.Thus, things conveyed upon some other occasion reach only those people who are in the habit of reading the newspaper.3 The methods I had conveyed regarding how to make prayers have been published, but there are likely many among you who may have only come to learn today that I had related something about prayer as well.Thus, I have selected this occasion to talk about Dhikr-e-Il a h i so that in this way thousands of people will be able to hear it and through them, this matter will be disseminated further.

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Importance of the Subject What is Dhikr-e-Il a h i These are the things that I want to mention under this topic: What is meant by Dhikr-e-Il a h i or Dhikrullah []? What need is there for Dhikr-e-Il a h i ? How many types of Dhikr-e-Il a h i are there? What precautions need to be taken in Dhikr-e-Il a h i ? What mistakes have people made in understanding the subject of Dhikr-e-Il a h i ? For those individuals who complain that they cannot remain focused during Prayers and that Satan whispers into their hearts, what are the means and methods for such people to drive Satan away and retain focus? I shall relate something regarding these aspects of the topic today, should God Almighty grant me the ability to do so.Having heard these topics you may have realised that this is not the type of subject that pertains only to certain category of people.Rather, it pertains to every individual, be he lofty or low, rich or poor, young or old.Thus, if you hear something from me that appears

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8 ordinary, do not ignore it because when you put it into practice, you will be convinced that it was nothing ordinary, but rather, something capable of bringing about magnificent, beneficial results.Dhikr means to remember.Dhikrullah means remembering God Almighty.Thus, Dhikr or Dhikrullah refers to the way of remembering Allah the Exalted.In other words, it means keeping the attributes of Allah the Exalted in mind, uttering them repeat- edly, affirming them wholeheartedly, and reflecting upon His powers and capabilities.How important and essential this topic is! Concerning this I would say succinctly that it is of great import.Someone might pre- sume that I claim it to be of immense importance simply because I have started delivering a speech on it, but I don’t say it for that reason.I say this because God Almighty has called it great.Thus, Allah the Exalted says in the Holy Quran: S u rah al-‘Ankab u t, 29:46 — ُرَبْكَا ِهّٰللا ُرْكِذَل َو That is, is greater than all matters and loftier than all forms of worship.Thus, when God Almighty has decreed that the is greater than everything, this is not my statement, but that of God Almighty—that this topic is greater than all and important.Now, the question arises that if this subject is greater than all and important, then there should also be a command to pay atten- tion to it above all things.So when we turn to the Holy Quran, we learn that attention has been drawn to it with great frequency,

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Importance of the Subject 9 that people should turn their attention to the.Thus, God Almighty states: S u rah ad-Dahr, 76:26 — اًلْيِصَا َّو ًةَرْكُب َكِّبَر َمْسا ِرُكْذا َو O My servant! Remember your Lord morning and evening.Similarly, the Holy Prophet s as says that the angels surround all four sides of any gathering in which God Almighty is being remem- bered and rain down Allah’s mercy upon it.This is also why I had kept this subject to deliver during the Jalsa, when thousands of people gather together from great dis- tances, so that the angels would shower Allah’s mercy and bless- ings upon all.And then, when they return home and take these teachings with them, conveying them to those who did not come here, the blessings would spread throughout the Jam a ‘at in this very manner.So, for this purpose as well, I have chosen this day to discuss this topic.I have just mentioned that the Holy Prophet s as says that the angels gather around the meeting in which the is taking place and they bring the blessings and mercy of Allah and shower it upon those sitting there.Thus, when the is so lofty a deed that even angels congre- gate to hear it, and shower God’s mercy upon those listening to it, it should be appreciated how valuable a commodity it is! And then, how highly would they esteem the one who is the teacher of the angels; for, the angels gather around the one who engages in the , and the more dhikr he does, the more angels come and urge him to do good and virtuous deeds.

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10 The descent of angels is not a figment of human imagination; it is a certainty.I myself have seen angels and once, I actually con- versed with them with great informality.So, the angels do come to the one who engages in the and develop a friendship and bond with him.Then, God Almighty says: — ِهّٰللا ِرْكِذ ْنَع ْمُكُداَلْوَا ۤاَل َو ْمُكُلاَوْمَا ْمُكِهْلُت اَل اْوُنَمٰا َنْيِذَّلا اَهُّيَاٰۤي S u rah al-Mun a fiq u n, 63:10 O ye who believe! let not wealth and children divert you from the.You should not permit any obstacle to stop you from the and there should be no occupation of yours that causes you to abandon the while perform- ing it.— اًلْيِصَا۰۰ َّو ًةَرْكُب ُهْوُحِّبَس َّو اًرْيِثَك۰۰ اًرْكِذ َهّٰللا اوُرُكْذا اوُنَمٰا َنْيِذَّلا اَهُّيَاٰۤي S u rah al-A h z a b, 33:42–43 O ye who believe! remember Allah with much remem- brance.And glorify Him morning and evening.Similarly, the Holy Prophet s as has said, as narrated by Hadrat Abu Musa Ash‘ari ra : تِ.ِّ وَالمَي ِّ َذْكُر ُ مَثَل ُ الحَي ی َ َذْكُر ُ رَبَّه ُ وَالَّذِي ْ ل ی ْ مَثَل ُ الَّذِي ( S a hīh al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitāb ad-Da‘wāt, Bāb Fa d li Dhikrillāhi ’Azza wa Jall; Hadith 6407); َةُ.ک َذْكُرُوْن َ هللا َ عَز َّ وَجَل َّ اِل َّ حَفَّتْهُم ُ الْمَلَئِ ی ٌ َقْعُد ُ قَوْم ی َ ل ( S a hīh

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Importance of the Subject 11 Muslim, Kitāb ad-Da‘wāt, Bāb Fa d lil-Ijtimā‘ ‘Alā Tilāwatil- Qurān wa ‘Aladh-dhikr; Hadith 2700).* The comparison between a person who remembers his Lord and one who does not is akin to the living and the dead.4 That is, he who remembers Allah the Exalted is alive, while he who does not is dead.This clearly shows how important and essential the is.Then, there is a hadith reported in Tirmidh ī.ُم ْ وَاَرْفَعِهَا ک ِ ک ُم ْ وَاَزْكَاهَا عِنْد َ مَلِيْ ک ُم ْ بِخَيْر ِ اَعْمَالِ ک ُ ئ ِّ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ اَل َ اُنَب ی َّ قَال َ النَّبِي ُّ صَل ُم ْ مِن ْ اَن ْ تَلْقَوْا عَدُوَّكُم ْ فَتَضْرِبُوْا ک ُم ْ مِن ْ اِنْفَاق ِ الذَّهَب ِ وَالْوَرِق ِ وَخَيْر ٍ لَّ ک ُم ْ وَخَيْر ٍ لَّ ک ِ فِي ْ دَرَجَات.ی ٰ قَال َ ذِكْر ُ هللا ِ تَعَال ی ُمْ؟ قَالُوْا بَلٰ ک َضْرِبُوْا اَعْنَاقَ ی َ اَعْنَاقَهُم ْ و Hadrat Abi Dard a ra relates that while addressing the Companions ra , the Holy Prophet s as asked them whether he should tell them something that is the best of all and most desirable, even better than spending gold and sil- ver, and better than someone striving in the path of Allah and fighting the enemies and attaining martyrdom.The Companions ra replied in the affirmative and the Holy Prophet s as told them that it is the the Exalted ( Sunan at-Tirmidh ī , Abwābud-Da’wāti, Bābu ma jā’a fi Fa d lidh-Dhikr; Hadith 3377).In another hadith, it is narrated that the Holy Prophet s as said * Two hadith reports have been referred to here.We have provided the full text of these a ha d i th in the Publisher’s Endnotes.Please refer to Endnote no.4 on page 119.[Publisher]

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12 that the holds a very high rank.The Companions ra asked the Messenger of Allah whether its rank was even higher than striving in the cause of Allah? He replied in the affirmative, that it was even greater in rank than this [jihad] because the encourages one to undertake the striving.Need of Greater Attention to Dhikr in Our Community This, then, is the importance and necessity of dhikr.Yet there are some aspects of Dhikr-e-Il a h i towards which our Jam a ‘at is not paying attention, or if there is interest, it is very little.From my childhood, God Almighty has naturally inclined me to reflect and ponder.Since the very time of my maturity, I have been thinking about it and even now I am concerned that the deficiency regard- ing the which exists in our Jam a ‘at, must be removed.The Promised Messiah, peace be upon him, has laid great emphasis on prayer.And thanks are due to God Almighty that our Jam a ‘at makes much use of prayer.The Promised Messiah as has likewise laid great stress on the , but the attention that needs to be paid to this has not yet been given to it.One primary reason for this is that British education has somewhat changed the thinking of people and under the influ- ence of European education, people question what the utility of

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Importance of the Subject 13 reciting the names of God could be.And what could be the bene- fit of someone sitting in solitude, repeatedly reciting ّٰ الل ل الہ ا ل [ L a il a h a illall a h— There is no one worthy of worship except Allah] or God is Qudd u s [the Holy], God is ‘Al i m [the All-Knowing], God is Khab i r [the All-Aware], God is Q a dir [the All-Powerful], or God is Kh a liq [the Creator]? None whatsoever, so there is no need for this.In addition, because the members of our Jam a ‘at are enrolled in Western education, they too have come under its influence.Secondly, there are people in our Jam a ‘at who belong to the farm- ing community.These people had never truly understood what Dhikr-e-Il a h i is, and what its benefit is.Hence, until they are all fully informed, and unless they are made to understand in an excellent manner, they cannot pay heed to it.This is the reason why they are deficient in the.S al a t is also the which, by the grace of Allah, our Jam a ‘at observes very regularly.However, there are other forms of remembering Allah which are necessary and obligatory.Concerning these, although I cannot say that they are non-existent in our Jam a ‘at, I will definitely say that they are lack- ing.And some people do not put them into practice and this also is a very big flaw.Listen! If someone has beautiful facial features, but has deformed eyes, ears, or nose, will he be called handsome? Not at all! Everyone would call him unattractive.In the same way, if some people of our Jam a ‘at do not employ some methods of remember- ing Allah, then their example is akin to a person who is wearing a very expensive coat, shirt, jacket, and trousers, but fails to wear shoes or a turban over his head.Despite his attire being decent,

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14 the missing shoes or turban will make his appearance defective.And people of high status do not accept a defect in anything of theirs.Thus, when not engaging in the in all the ways is a defect, and on top of that, when we also prove that Allah the Exalted has commanded that methods of remember- ing Allah other than S al a t be adopted as well—whether anyone fully comprehends the underlying wisdom or not—and the Holy Prophet s as has also directed along these lines, then it is essential that in order to achieve excellence in spirituality, we should also act upon these ways of remembering Allah.The reason for proper attention not being given in our Jam a ‘at to the offering of Naw a fil [supererogatory worship] is also that these people have not understood the benefits of this way of remembering Allah.They think that by performing the obligatory worship they have done their duty, whereas the Holy Prophet s as says, and he does not say so himself, but rather says that Allah the Exalted told him that: ُ اُحِبَّه ُ فَاِذَا اَحْبَبْتُه ی َتَقَرَّب ُ اِلَي َّ بِالنَّوَافِل ِ حَتّٰ ی ْ َزَال ُ عَبْدِي ی وَمَا َمْشِي ْ بِهَا.ی ْ َبْطِش ُ بِهَا وَرِجْلَه ُ الَّتِي ی ْ َدَه ُ الَّتِي ی َ ُبْصِر ُ بِه ٖ و ی ْ كُنْت ُ سَمْعَه ُ الَّذِي ْ يَسْمَع ُ بِه ٖ وَبَصَرَه ُ الَّذِي —By offering Naw a fil, My servant gets so close to Me that I become the ears with which he hears, the eyes with which he sees, the hands with which he holds, and the feet with which he walks ( S a hih al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitābur-Riqāq, Bābut-Tawā d u’; Hadith 6502).From this you can understand the rank that God Almighty has accorded to Naw a fil , and how great a status has been given to the person who performs them.It is as if through them, God Almighty elevates a human being to such a degree that he begins to absorb His attributes within himself.Therefore, Naw a fil are not an ordinary matter.But alas, many people pay them no heed!

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Importance of the Subject 15 The truth of the matter is that there is immense weakness and laziness in man.Therefore, he puts in the least amount of labour.This is indeed the reason why God Almighty, who knows the weaknesses of His creatures, and who is Most Merciful towards them, has appointed some acts of worship as obligatory and oth- ers as voluntary.He appointed the obligatory acts of worship so that anyone who fulfils them will be above reproach.Thus, it is narrated in a hadith that a person came to the Holy Prophet s as and enquired about Islam: ی َّ ِخَمْس ُ صَلَوَات ٍ فِي الْيَوْم ِ وَاللَّيْلَة ِ فَقَال َ هَل ْ عَلَي َّ غَيْرُهَا؟ قَال َ ل َ اِل َّ اَن ْ تَطَوَّع َ قَال َ رَسُوْل ُ هللا ِ صَل َ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ وَصِيَام ُ رَمَضَان َ قَال َ هَل ْ عَلَي َّ غَيْرُهُ؟ قَال َ ل َ اِل َّ اَن ْ تَطَوَّع َ قَال َ وَذَكَر َ لَه ُ رَسُوْل ُ هللا هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ الزَّكَاة َ قَال َ هَل ْ عَلَي َّ غَيْرُهَا؟ قَال َ ل َ اِل َّ اَن ْ تَطَوَّع َ قَال َ فَاَدْبَر َ الرَّجُل ُ وَهُو ی صَلَّ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ اَفْلَح َ اِن ْ صَدَقَ.ی َّ هٰذَا وَل َ اَنْقُص ُ قَال َ رَسُوْل ُ هللا ِ صَل ی ٰ ْد ُ عَل ی ِ َقُول ُ وَهللا ِ ل َ اَز ی The Holy Prophet s as said to him, ‘Five Prayers during the day and night.’ He asked, ‘Are there any more other than these?’ The Holy Prophet s as said, ‘No, unless you offer by way of nafl [voluntarily].’ Then the Holy Prophet s as continued, ‘Fasting during the month of Ramadan.’ Again the man asked, ‘Are there any more fasts other than these?’ The Holy Prophet s as responded, ‘No, unless you per- form it by way of nafl.’ Then the Holy Prophet s as told him that in Islam there is also Zakat—the giving of alms.Upon hearing this the person left saying, ‘By God, I shall neither add anything to these, nor shall I subtract anything from them.’ The Holy Prophet s as said, ‘If he speaks the truth, he has

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16 attained success.’ ( S a hīh al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitābul-Īmān, Bāb az-Zakātu min al-Islām; Hadith 46) From this we learn that the person who fulfils the obligatory affairs properly, achieves success.However, the prudent and far- sighted person does not restrict himself to the discharge of only obligatory matters, but rather he enters the field of Naw a fil so that if there remained any shortcoming in the observance of the oblig- atory works, they may be compensated for in this way.For example, five daily Prayers have been prescribed for the day and night.A person who offers these Prayers but does not offer the Naw a fil [Prayers] may run into a situation possibly that due to some error on his part, one of his Prayers gets rejected.So, on the Day of Judgement he will have to face the penalty for this shortcoming.Thus, it is narrated in a hadith that once when the Holy Prophet s as was present in the mosque, a person came and offered his Prayer.He asked him to repeat his Prayer, so the man offered his Prayer again.The Holy Prophet s as asked him to repeat it again, and so the man offered his Prayer for a third time.When the Holy Prophet s as asked him to offer it for the fourth time, he said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, by God I do not know how to pray better than this; tell me how I should offer the Prayer.’ The Holy Prophet s as responded, ‘You were rushing with your Prayer and there fore it was not accepted.Pray slowly’ ( S a hīh al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitābul-Azān, Bāb Wujūbil-Qir’ati Lil-Imāmi wal-Ma’mūmi fi s- S alawāti Kullihā fil- H a d ari was-Safari wa mā Yujharu fīhā wa mā Yukhāfatu; Hadith 757).5 Thus, errors of this type sometimes occur, as a consequence

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Importance of the Subject 17 of which the Prayer is not accepted.However, for the person who also offers the Naw a fil together with the obligatory Prayers, if some Prayer of his is not accepted, then the Naw a fil can come in handy and may fulfil that deficiency.The example of this is just like the case of someone who goes to take a test for which he needs just fifty marks to pass, so he goes and solves just that many questions as are worth fifty marks, walking away believing that he has passed.This would be a mistake on his part because it is possible that some question that he attempted may have been answered incorrectly and, thus, he may be unable to secure the fifty marks and he may end up failing.It is for this very reason that the students who are smart and intelligent do not do this, but rather they attempt the questions that they know, and even the ones that they don’t.They try to solve all of them thinking that perhaps the marks combined may help them to pass.Similarly, if a traveller embarks upon a journey and takes just enough money with him as he expects will be needed, it some- times occurs that his estimate turns out to be wrong and he ends up enduring extraordinary hardship.It is for this reason that shrewd and intelligent people begin their journey taking with them more than what they think is needed so that if they end up facing any unexpected expenses, they won’t have to face any difficulties.So, Naw a fil are like the unexpected expenses and are most essential.Accordingly, special attention needs to be paid to offering them.The second reason for why the people of our Jam a ‘at do not pay full attention to Dhikr-e-Il a h i is the following.The Promised Messiah as has written a lot to refute the so-called sufis [mys- tics] born in this age, who spread many kinds of innovations.

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18 Addressing them, he said that their uttering of prayer-phrases repetitively—parrot-fashion—will produce no results: ‘What are you doing sitting on your prayer mats when Islam is being attacked from all four sides? Why don’t you get up and give a reply?’ The Promised Messiah as has denounced them in this way— and they indeed deserved denunciation.Nonetheless, by this, some people have mistakenly understood that perhaps the very act of sitting and engaging in the is friv- olous in itself, whereas remembering Allah in this way is not pointless.Rather, the very purpose of it is that God’s holiness and praise should be proclaimed in this way.Nevertheless, since those people merely engaged in the sitting in their homes and did nothing in the outside world where God Almighty was being condemned, it is for this reason that the Promised Messiah as reprimanded them and said that if those people actually love God Almighty and proclaim His holiness and praise, then just as they declare His purity and praise Him while sitting in their homes, they should do the same outside of their homes as well.Since they had abandoned performing their duty of calling people towards goodness and forbidding them from evil due to their laziness and negligence, they were reprimanded for being hypocritical; for, if they held true love and passion for God Almighty in their hearts, then what would be the reason withholding them from coming out and responding to the opponents when they were attacking God Almighty? And what was the reason for them not to glorify God Almighty on the public platform as they did in the quiet corners of their homes?

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Misunderstandings about Dhikr Misguided Forms of Dhikr Moreover, another reason for the Promised Messiah as reprimand- ing them was that according to the saying, ‘Whatever an ill man adopts becomes an illness’, these sufis and gadd i nash i ns [the cus- todians of shrines] exploited Dhikrullah in such ways and forms that they defaced it altogether.And no trace was left of the man- ner in which Islam had presented it.So what is understood by Dhikrullah nowadays? It is a heart-rending cry raised to a high pitch and shouted out so loudly that the peace of the whole neighbourhood and the worship of all those nearby is disturbed.This is what they call delivering a strike upon the heart—as if the heart, for them, is something into which

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20 ّٰ الل ل الہ ا ل [ L a il a ha illall a h— There is no one worthy of worship but Allah] can be thrust by force! Similarly, some others have invented the practice that they gather to listen to poetry or arrange for qaww a lis [sufi devotional songs employed as a form of worship], and female dancers come and perform—yet they contend that this a gathering getting warmed up for the.They then appease the heart so that the sounds of ‘Allah, Allah’ emanate from it.In short, strange and sundry things have been invented.At some places hearts are being enlivened; at others, blows are being struck upon hearts; while yet at others, attempts are made for sounds to emanate from the soul—and they have assigned these names themselves! At times they say that they raise the from the heart, which goes to prostrate at the very Throne of God before returning.And at other times they say that they cause the sound of ‘Allah, Allah’ to emanate from every limb of their body.These and many other such innovations have been invented by them.There are also others who recite some verse of the Holy Quran and dance.Some engage in the in the man- ner that one person recites some couplets of poetry etc.and others dance and say that they are in a state of ecstasy and have become unconscious.Then, while they are seated in the gathering, they burst out yelling, ‘Allah! Allah!’ and jump suddenly.So these are the strange and sundry types of dhikr that have been introduced, whereas they have absolutely nothing to do with the religion of Islam.Notwithstanding, on account of this, it cannot be said that

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Misunderstandings about Dhikr 21 Dhikr-e-Il a h i is a bad thing.Yes! It can be said that these innova- tions which these people have created are bad.These people, however, are not bothered in the least, despite the fact that the Holy Prophet s as has said: كُل ُّ بِدْعَة ٍ ضَلَلَة ٌ وَكُل ُّ ضَلَلَة ٍ فِي النَّار.‘Every innovation that is introduced into the Faith is misguidance and misguidance leads to Hell’ ( Sunan an-Nasa’ ī , Kitāb S alātul- Īdaini, Bāb Kaifal-Khu t bah; Hadith 1578).This indeed is why the forms of dhikr invented by these people are incapable of taking them closer to Allah; on the con- trary, they take them even further away from Him.Thus, ever since these types of dhikr have been introduced—precisely since then—the Muslims have been drifting farther and farther away from God Almighty.As all of these are innovations, and when people act contrary to the directives of Allah and the Holy Prophet s as , their spirituality will inevitably weaken, and it is for this reason that spirituality is being obliterated from among the Muslims.Secondly, these innovations have a particular quality that makes one feel pleasure and exhilaration on the surface, but because all that pleasure and exhilaration is artificial, for that rea- son—ignorant of true pleasures—a person chases the artificial ones and is thus destroyed.This is like a person suffering from a stomach ache who, instead of seeking proper treatment, takes opium and sleeps.The temporary result of this will be that the person will feel comfort due to the loss of consciousness but, in reality, he will be moving towards destruction and there will be a time when that very pain will kill him.

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22 Dhikr Versus Mesmerism The reality is that what people refer to as Dhikr these days is actu- ally a discipline that is called the science of al-Tarab and in English it is known as Mesmerism.And there is another science that is called Hypnotism which a doctor in France has invented.It has nothing to do with spirituality; rather, it is related to thought and God Almighty has placed such capability in thought that when it is especially drawn towards a particular direction, there develops in it a particular effect and through it, pleasure and exhilaration can be developed in the heart.However, this pleasure is just like the type attained by consuming opium, cocaine, or marijuana.In reality, however, that is not pleasure but a state of unconsciousness that is damaging for one’s health.In the same way when an effect is impressed on the nerves by focused attention, a state of drows- iness is induced which makes one feel pleasure, and these people think that this pleasure is due to saying ‘Allah, Allah’, whereas if they had been saying ‘R a m, R a m’ at the time, they would have experienced the same sort of pleasure.It is narrated that a revered Muslim was traveling in a boat when he started doing dhikr and did so with such power that the other people who were mainly Hindus also started saying, ‘Allah, Allah.’ However, there was a Hindu ascetic present who did not recite, ‘Allah, Allah.’ Thereupon the Muslim started especially focusing his thoughts upon the Hindu ascetic, but while he was still doing this, he himself started saying ‘R a m, R a m’ uncontrolla- bly.This was because the Hindu ascetic had started focusing his attention on him to have ‘R a m, R a m’ issue forth from his lips.

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Misunderstandings about Dhikr 23 Seeing this, he was utterly amazed and from that very day he abstained from doing dhikr in that way, as he came to understand that that was the result of a discipline and not the effect of dhikr ; for, had it been the result of saying ‘Allah’, the same would have issued forth involuntarily from the mouths of others as well.Then why would ‘R a m, R a m’ issue forth? The condition of those who perform such rituals is akin to a person travelling through a wilderness in a state of extreme hunger and discovering a bag filled with what he imagines to be grains, whereas in reality the bag contains only pebbles.This is verily the condition of that man who walks along such paths and imagines that he is attaining the nearness of God Almighty.He is actually in a state of intoxication in which he becomes inebri- ated.And this is indeed the reason why, despite his thinking that he has attained a special lofty station, his heart remains as impure and unholy as it ever was.Thus, this is an intoxication like that of opium etc.Pleasure from Dhikr A sincere member of our Jam a ‘at would always tell me that one derives great pleasure from following these methods.I would tell him as well, that just as one derives pleasure from opium and cocaine, similarly one derives pleasure from this and the proof is that no spiritual cleanliness results from such forms of remembrances of Allah.Indeed, even those who say that their

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24 dhikr reaches right up to the very Throne of Allah, are devoid of spiritual cleanliness.Upon this, he said that this is very true.He related that there was a person who used to say he had traversed all the stages, but in spite of that, he would go around begging grain and cereals from people and I used to think that if he had attained such a lofty station then why does he go begging from people? The Promised Messiah as narrated about a certain person who thought himself to have reached a very high spiritual status.However, once while visiting a follower, the p i r [a spiritual men- tor] demanded, ‘Bring my tax [tribute].’ There was a famine at the time.The follower, who could find nothing to offer, begged to be excused, but the p i r kept on fighting and disputing with him for a long time and in the end made the follower sell something and took the proceeds, finally leaving the follower in peace.In short, such weaknesses and impurities are found in those people who otherwise make grandiose claims.Difference between Dhikr and Mere Influence of Thoughts The fact is that God Almighty has also placed a special kind of effect in the human voice and thoughts.For example, if a person keeps thinking that something has happened, his mind will be inclined to believe accordingly.Similarly, if a person thinks that ‘Allah, Allah’ is emanating from his heart, then, sitting there, he

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Misunderstandings about Dhikr 25 starts hearing the same kind of sound as if his heart is speaking; whereas, if his heart was actually speaking, then what is the reason that he does not become purified? Then there are many more peo- ple among the Hindus as compared to the Muslims who not only can call upon their own hearts, but call the hearts of others as well.It is my intention to write a book to tell people the difference between Prophets and conjurers.This is a rather ordinary kind of knowledge but the result of it is that man becomes heedless of his own reformation because he begins to imagine that he has reached God Almighty, whereas in reality he has not.If someone wishes to attain a particular stage and, having actually arrived at some other station, thinks that he has arrived where he had intended, he will settle right there and, as a consequence, suffer great loss.Similarly, those who indulge in such practices imagine that they have reached their true destination while, in reality, they are miles away from it and, like an opium addict, remain in a state of intoxication.So these are the frivolous kinds of dhikr that the Promised Messiah as urged his followers to stay away from, and he criticized those who practiced these things; for, if even the Hindus and Christians can do the very same things, then how can it be called the ? Reciting Dhikr Aloud What then about reciting dhikr aloud or listening to songs and music? So, as I have already mentioned that the human nervous

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26 system has been endowed with a unique capability to influence as well as to be influenced.And the ear is one of the doors through which these influences are conveyed.They respond to pleasing sounds, and this not only applies to human beings, but to other creatures as well.Play a flute to a snake, for example, and it starts writhing, but can this be understood to be happening under some special spiritual influence? Not at all! Similarly, if someone starts to dance upon hearing a song, it cannot be said that his spiritual- ity has been affected thereby; on the contrary, it would be said that his senses have been influenced by something that has noth- ing to do with spirituality.Thus, anyone who understands singing etc.to be capable of having a spiritual effect, is mistaken and it is his folly because just as a snake sways to a flute, the sufis of today begin to dance to music and songs.Moreover, it is an innovation [in the faith of Islam] to perform any dhikr in such a loud and blaring manner.Once, the Holy Prophet s as was walking along with his com- panions when suddenly they said All a ho Akbar, All a ho Akbar loudly.On this the Holy Prophet s as said: َ ُم ْ ل َ تَدْعُوْن ک ُم ْ فَاِنَّ ک اَنْفُسِ ی اِرْبَعُوْا عَلٰ ْبٌ.ی ِ ُم ْ اِنَّه ٗ سَمِيْع ٌ قَر ک َ اَصَم َّ وَل َ غَائِبًا اِنَّه ٗ مَع Hadrat Abu Musa narrates that the Holy Prophet s as advised them, ‘Have mercy on yourselves.Why do you not speak softly? The One Whom you are calling is neither deaf nor absent; quite the contrary, He hears you well and is near you and with you ’ ( S a hih al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitābul-Jihādi was-Siyari, Bābu mā Yukrahu min Raf ‘i s-S auti fit-Takbīri; Hadith 2992).However, look at the sufis of today.Wherever they hold a gathering for the , that whole neighbour- hood begins to resound with noise.And they consider this to be a highly noble act, whereas it is in contravention of the Shariah.

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Misunderstandings about Dhikr 27 Their practice—poetry, dancing, screaming and shouting, falling, and swaying their heads—none of these are substantiated by the Holy Prophet s as.Poetry as Dhikr? It is said that the Holy Prophet s as also used to listen to poetry, but it has not been proven from any source that he used to hear poetry by way of.The manner in which he would listen to couplets being recited was that Hassan r a comes and submits to him that, ‘O Messenger of Allah, such and such opponent has composed cou- plets against you and I have prepared a reply.’ He would listen to the reply or it would happen that a person, against whom he had issued a death sentence, presented himself and after receiving permission, recited a few couplets asking for forgiveness by stating that when he was coming to see him, the people told him that the Messenger of Allah had issued an order for him to be killed and that he would have him killed.However, he did not consider these things credible and wondered that when he would go to him and seek his forgiveness, would he still be killed? Hearing this, the Noble Messenger s as spread his mantle upon him forbidding anyone from killing him.After that, he said, ‘It was not out of fear of my life that I sought forgiveness like this; rather, it was the fear that I might be killed in this very state of kufr [disbelief ], whereas I have come to realize that the religion of Islam is the true faith.’

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28 So these are the kinds of poetic couplets that the Holy Prophet s as used to listen to, but how does it become established from these that people used to sit in front of him and sing songs together or dance, or recite poetry about the love of God and that the Companions used to dance thereupon and lose conscious- ness? So all that is being perpetrated these days is an innovation which has become generally widespread.Then, the Holy Prophet s as used to listen to such poetry: For example, a battle is taking place against the disbelievers and to arouse fervour, a Companion recites, ‘This day we will either be victorious or lay down our lives, but we will not retreat! ’ Thus, this argument that since the Holy Prophet s as would listen to poetic verses, so do we listen to them as well, is totally wrong and frivolous.Then, upon listening to such poetic verses, all the behaviour that ensues is totally opposed to the Shariah.No trace of them is found in Islam.

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Characteristics of True Dhikr Five States of a Person Engaged in Dhikr-e-Il a h i Contrary to them, what is known from the Holy Quran about the condition of a person engaged in Dhikr-e-Il a h i , is that nowhere does the Holy Quran say that a swoon ensues or unconsciousness overtakes the person while doing Dhikr-e-Il a h i , or that the lis- teners sway their heads and start jumping.Quite contrary to this, Allah the Exalted says again about Dhikr-e-Il a h i : * S u rah al-Anf a l, 8:3 — ْمُهُبْوُلُق ْتَلِج َو ُهّٰللا َرِكُذ اَذِا َنْيِذَّلا َنْوُنِمْؤُمْلا اَمَّنِا * True believers are only those whose hearts tremble when the name of Allah is mentioned.[Publisher]

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30 Then He says: — ِهّٰللا١ؕ ِرْكِذ ىٰلِا ْمُهُبْوُلُق َو ْمُهُدْوُلُج ُنْيِلَت َّمُث ْمُهَّبَر١ۚ َنْوَشْخَي َنْيِذَّلا ُدْوُلُج ُهْنِم ُّرِعَشْقَت ۗ * S u rah az-Zumar, 39:24 Then He says: ** S u rah Maryam, 19:59 — اًّيِكُب َّو اًدَّجُس اْوُّرَخ ِنٰمْحَّرلا ُتٰيٰا ْمِهْيَلَع ىٰلْتُت اَذِا The states of those who remember Allah are the following: 1.When the believers remember Allah, their hearts become afraid and the fear of Allah develops in them because they understand that their Lord possesses great glory and majesty.2.Their skins creep; that is, their hair stands on end out of their state of fear.3.Their bodies become relaxed, and their hearts become tender.4.They fall down in prostration; that is, they become occupied in the worship of God.5.They begin to weep.These are the five states [of a person engaged in Dhikr-e-Il a h i , ] that God Almighty has mentioned.If dancing, jumping, falling unconscious, or shouting very loudly had been included, God * At which do creep the skins of those who fear their Lord; then their skins and their hearts soften to the.[Publisher] ** When the Signs of the Gracious God were recited unto them, they fell down, prostrating themselves before God and weeping.[Publisher]

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Characteristics of True Dhikr 31 Almighty would have spoken of them too.And He would have said that the believers are those who—when Allah is remembered in their presence—tear their clothes apart and throw them away and start jumping and making noise, or that they begin to hang upside down and wave their heads about and become thrown into ecstasy, but Allah the Exalted mentions none of these things.From this, we come to learn that such things have absolutely nothing to do with the.True Dhikr Rules out Dancing and Shouting How filled with wisdom is the Word of God Almighty that it has rejected all these types of actions from the very beginning! Someone can say it does not matter if the Holy Quran has not mentioned these types of actions—these are apart from the ones that have been mentioned.Firstly, it is absurd to even say such a thing.But when we look at the verses of the Holy Quran in which the state of a person at the time of his being engaged in the is mentioned, we learn that God Almighty has placed such words therein that refute all such things that are declared these days to be permissible and customary.Observe that the words used in these verses are: وَجْلٌ.اِقْشِعْرَار ٌ.تَلِيْن ٌ.جُلُوْد ٌ.[ wajl u n , iqsh i ‘r a run, tal i nun, and jul u dun ].And look- ing at the lexicons it is learnt that one of the meanings of wajl is gentleness and being worn down and that manifests a state of rest, but the sufis of today initiate movement which is opposed to it.Similarly, iqsh i ‘r a run is said of hairs standing on end suddenly due

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32 to fear and this too requires a state of rest, because in a state of fear one is stunned and left suddenly standing motionless and not that one starts moving.Similarly, ٌ تَلِيْن ُ جُلُوْد [ tal i nu jul u dun ] also attests to a state of rest.The word in Arabic to indicate movement is طرب [ t arb ] which is used for jumping and leaping because of happiness and this word has not been used anywhere in the Holy Quran for the remem- brance of Allah.Further, the lexicons say that t arb is the oppo- site of humility and lowliness while the Holy Quran tells us that the result of engaging in the is humility and lowliness.Thus, it becomes clear that on such occasions there can be no t arb, because t arb is situated on the opposite side of humility and lowliness; therefore, dancing, leaping, and jumping which are t arb cannot develop from the at all.On the contrary, the result should be humility, weeping, worshipping, and fearing God, and this is indeed what should be the result, because Islam establishes reason and sanity and guides one to the Straight Path and does not render one unconscious and unintelligent.However, jumping about, leaping, and shouting is the result of losing awareness and lack of intelligence so it cannot be the teaching of Islam.Unconsciousness is Not a True Result of Dhikr Similarly, fainting is nothing desirable and this is verily the rea- son that although Islam permits one to cry if a dear one passes away, it does not permit them to wail and weep and undergo

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Characteristics of True Dhikr 33 fainting fits.Once the Holy Prophet s as passed by a woman who was exhibiting such lack of patience on the grave of her child.He advised her to be patient.She replied, ‘If your child had died, you would have realized how difficult it is to show patience’ ( Sunan Ab ū D ā w ū d, Kitābul-Janā’iz, Bāb a s-S abru ‘Indal-Mu s ībah; Hadith 3124).6 She spoke out of ignorance.The truth is, the Holy Prophet s as had lost several of his children.In short, wailing and falling uncon- scious are caused by impatience and lack of hope, or are the result of a weak heart.And even if it is due to the weakness of heart it is still not a good thing.It is stated about a revered person from the time of Hadrat Junaid ra that he would fall into an unconscious state upon hear- ing Allah being remembered.When his disciples asked him the reason he stated it happened because he had grown old and weak.Note that he did not say that he swooned because he had attained a loftier station and reached a higher rank; instead, he attributed it to his advanced age—that is, weakness.As for falling unconscious due to despair or lack of hope, God Almighty says concerning this: — َنْوُرِفٰكْلا ُمْوَقْلا اَّلِا ِهّٰللا ِحْوَّر ْنِم ُسَٔـْياَي اَل ٗهَّنِا ِهّٰللا١ؕ ِحْوَّر ْنِم اْوُسَٔـْياَت اَل َو * S u rah Y u suf, 12:88 Thus, if a person faints and becomes unconscious due to lack of hope he commits an act of disbelief and if he does so due to * And despair not of the mercy of Allah; for none despairs of Allah’s mercy save the unbelieving people.[Publisher]

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34 weakness of the heart, he is ill.There is no wisdom involved in imitating such a person.This matter was discussed during the time of the compan- ions of the Holy Prophet s as.Hadrat Abdullah bin Zubair ra asked Asm a ra about fainting.She replied ْمِ.ي ِ ْطٰن ِ الرَّج ي أَعُوْذ ُ بِالل ِّٰ مِن َ الشَّ [‘I seek ref- uge with Allah from Satan the accursed’].Then it is narrated that the son of Hadrat Abdullah bin Zubair ra said to his grandmother that I had gone to a place where some people would read the Holy Quran and have fainting fits.Upon hearing this his paternal aunt, [ Hadrat] Asm a ra who was the daughter of Hadrat Abu Bakr ra and a companion of the Holy Prophet s as , responded, ‘If you saw this, you witnessed a satanic act.’ It is narrated concerning Ibn Sirin, author of the book on the interpretation of dreams, who was the son-in-law of Hadrat Abu Hurairah ra that he was once told about someone who would faint when he heard any verse of the Holy Quran.He replied that he would consider it to be true only if the individual was made to sit upon a high wall, and would then fall down not after just one verse being recited to him, but the entire Quran! Even now, when those who feign unconsciousness and lose control of their senses in such gatherings, it is observed that they fall where they see lots of people sitting, so that they don’t get hurt.It never transpires that they fall off a roof or that they fall where they might suffer a serious injury, although it may some- times occur by mistake.

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Characteristics of True Dhikr 35 Prohibitions Regarding Dhikr In short, all these types [of dhikr ] are forbidden and illegitimate.They deserve as much condemnation as can be heaped upon them because they destroy spirituality and degrade men to the status of monkeys and bears.Islam came to make men into angels but in these ways men become monkeys.Thus, these things are frivolous and vain and they have no merit.Four Kinds of Dhikr Enjoined by the Holy Quran And those that are actually remembrances of Allah and those that are emphatically ordained in the Holy Quran, are different and are of four kinds.To not attend to these is to become deprived of very great spiritual rewards so these should never be abandoned.1) The first of these is S al a t ; 2) the recitation of the Holy Quran; 3) repeatedly making mention of the attributes of Allah, acknowl- edging their truthfulness and verbalizing their details; 4) to pro- claim the attributes of Allah in public just as one does in private.These are those four types of dhikr that are proven from the Holy Quran and the doing of which is not only highly essential but obligatory for spirituality.Now I will provide proof of the statement that the Holy Quran has presented these types of dhikr.Concerning S al a t God Almighty says: S u rah Ta H a , 20:15— ْيِرْكِذِل َةوٰلَّصلا ِمِقَا َو ْيِنْدُبْعاَف١ۙ اَنَا ۤاَّلِا َهٰلِا ۤاَل ُهّٰللا اَنَا ْۤيِنَّنِا

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36 O human being! Verily I am Allah; there is no God beside Me.So serve Me, and observe Prayer for My remembrance.From this it is learnt that where God Almighty has said that, ‘O ye Believers! Remember Me’, the meaning of it is that, ‘O ye Believers! Offer the S al a t.’ Then, Allah says: — َنْوُمَلْعَت اْوُنْوُكَت ْمَل اَّم ْمُكَمَّلَع اَمَك َهّٰللا اوُرُكْذاَف ْمُتْنِمَا ۤاَذِاَف اًناَبْكُر١ۚ ْوَا اًلاَجِرَف ْمُتْفِخ ْنِاَف * S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:240 After emphasizing the offering of S al a t, Allah says that if you have any type of fear regarding the enemies, then—whether you are on foot or on horseback—you should offer your S al a t in that very state and when you feel secure, then you should engage in the in the way that you have been taught by Him, which you did not know before.In this verse the obser- vance of S al a t has been called.There are many other verses concerning this, but here I will cease with the mention of these.The second dhikr is the Holy Quran.The proof of this is that God Almighty says: S u rah al- H ijr, 15:10— َنْوُظِفٰحَل ٗهَل اَّنِا َو َرْكِّذلا اَنْلَّزَن ُنْحَن اَّنِا Verily, We Ourself have sent down this Dhikr, and We are, most surely, its Guardian.* If you are in a state of fear, then say your Prayer on foot or riding; but when you are safe, remember Allah as He has taught you that which you did not know.[Publisher]

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Characteristics of True Dhikr 37 The sending down of the Holy Quran has been called the descent of the Dhikr.From this we learn that where God Almighty has given this commandment َّٰ اُذْكُرُوا الل [‘remember Allah’], one mean- ing of this is that you should recite the Holy Quran as well.Then, God Almighty says: * S u rah al-Anbiy a ’, 21:51— َنْوُرِكْنُم ٗهَل ْمُتْنَاَفَا ُهٰنْلَزْنَا١ؕ ٌكَرٰبُّم ٌرْكِذ اَذٰه َو In this verse also, after presenting the Holy Quran, it is stated that We have sent down this Dhikr for you; will you even then reject it? The third form of dhikr consists of stating and repeating the attributes of Allah, and acknowledging their truthfulness.Some people think that it is sufficient just to recite the attributes of Allah mentioned during S al a t, but this is wrong.There is remem- brance of Allah in addition to S al a t and we find evidence of this in the Holy Quran.God Almighty says: S u rah an-Nis a ’, 4:104— ْمُكِبْوُنُج ىٰلَع َّو اًدْوُعُق َّو اًمٰيِق َهّٰللا اوُرُكْذاَف َةوٰلَّصلا ُمُتْيَضَق اَذِاَف Meaning that when you have finished the Prayer, remember Allah even while you are standing and while you are sitting, and when you are lying on your sides as well.From this it is clear that dhikr is in addition to S al a t.Had the mention of Allah’s attributes in S al a t been sufficient, then why would God Almighty have said that: * And this is the blessed Reminder that We have sent down; will you then reject it? [Publisher]

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38 *.ْمُكِبْوُنُج ىٰلَع َّو اًدْوُعُق َّو اًمٰيِق َهّٰللا اوُرُكْذاَف َةوٰلَّصلا ُمُتْيَضَق اَذِاَف ‘When you are done offering the S al a t you should remember Allah in the state of standing, sitting, or lying on your side’? Then Allah says: اًمْوَي َنْوُفاَخَي ِةوٰكَّزلا١۪ۙ ِءٓاَتْيِا َو ِةوٰلَّصلا ِماَقِا َو ِهّٰللا ِرْكِذ ْنَع ٌعْيَب اَل َّو ٌةَراَجِت ْمِهْيِهْلُت اَّل ٌلاَجِر١ۙ S u rah an-N u r, 24:38 — ُراَصْبَاْلا َو ُبْوُلُقْلا ِهْيِف ُبَّلَقَتَت In this verse God Almighty says that the people who are the com- panions of Muhammad s as are such that their buying and selling does not stop them from the or from offer- ing their S al a t or from the payment of their Zakat, because they fear the day when the eyes and the hearts will be overcome.Here a form of the is mentioned that is distinct from S al a t.The fourth kind of dhikr God informs us of is that the attrib- utes of God Almighty should be proclaimed openly before the people.The proof of this is as follows: اَلْنُنْمَت َو ْرُجْهاَف۰۰ َزْجُّرلا َو ْرِّهَطَف۰۰ َكَباَيِث َو ْرِّبَكَف۰۰ َكَّبَر َو ْرِذْنَاَف۰۰ ْمُق ۰۰ ُرِّثَّدُمْلا اَهُّيَاٰۤي ** S u rah al-Muddaththir, 74:2–8 — ْرِبْصاَف۰۰ َكِّبَرِل َو ُرِثْكَتْسَت۰۰ * S u rah an-Nis a ’ , 4:104 [Publisher] ** O you who has wrapped yourself with your mantle! Arise and warn.And your Lord do extol.And your garments do purify.And uncleanliness do shun, And bestow not favours seeking to get more in return, And for the sake of your Lord do endure patiently.[Publisher]

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Characteristics of True Dhikr 39 In these verses, the Holy Prophet has been commanded to arise and warn all people and to express the grandeur of his Lord.In this we have been told to communicate the greatness of God Almighty before the people.So these are the forms of dhikr, the doing of which has been commanded by God Almighty.

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Methods of Performing Dhikr Obligatory and Voluntary Dhikr Now the question remains: ‘What are the methods of performing these forms of dhikr ?’ Concerning this it should be remembered that there are two categories of dhikr: those that are obligatory, and those that are voluntary.There is no need here to mention anything about the obligatory types of dhikr because, by the grace of God, the people of our Jam a ‘at do indeed carry these out.So what remains are the voluntary forms of dhikr and there is a need to say something about them.However, since this is a lengthy topic, I leave it for now and wish to explain how the Quran should be recited.Concerning this it should be remembered that one should establish a certain fixed amount that must be read every day.It should not be the case that the Holy Quran is picked up at some random time for some portion to be read from it.On the contrary, it should be read regularly and according to a fixed appointed measure.Irregular reading—that is, reading it sometimes—does

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42 not yield any benefit.Thus, with regard to the reading of the Holy Quran, a certain portion should be fixed and that should be com- pleted every day.Whether that portion is one part, or half of one part, or three or four parts, it must be recited daily and one should not fail in completing that.The Holy Prophet s as says, ‘Allah loves that worship the most which one adopts as a routine and doesn’t allow hiatus’ ( Mishk ā t al-Ma sā b īh , Kitābu s-S alāt, Bāb al-Qa s du fil ‘Amal; Hadith 1242)7 because a break discloses that he is not passionate about it, and the heart cannot be purified without enthusiasm and heartfelt love.I have observed that whenever the Holy Quran is not recited due to being preoccupied with some writing or for any other reason, the heart suffers on account of it and its effect is felt in other acts of worship as well.8 So, firstly, the Holy Quran should be recited daily, and secondly, the Holy Quran should be read with understanding and it should not be recited so hastily that its meanings are not understood at all.It should be recited with tart i l [slowly, clearly, and distinctly] so that its meaning is under- stood and the respect due to the Holy Quran is also kept in mind.Thirdly, as far as possible, wu du [ablution before offering Prayer] should be performed before the recitation of the Holy Quran, although reciting the Holy Quran without ablution is also per- missible in my opinion.It is true, however, that some scholars have disliked the recitation of the Holy Quran without first per- forming the ablution.In my view, recitation of the Holy Quran without ablution is not forbidden, but it is appropriate to perform ablution for greater effect and spiritual merit.A friend asks what should be done if one does not understand the meanings of the Holy Quran.Such people should try to read

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Methods of Performing Dhikr 43 the translation of the Holy Quran.Nevertheless, if one does not know the entire translation, the translation of some portion of the Holy Quran may be learnt and when the daily recitation is done, that portion of which the translation is known may be recited as well.Someone may ask: ‘What is the benefit of reciting the parts which we do not understand?’ Regarding this, remember that when something is done with sincerity and good intention, Allah definitely rewards it.If you recite for the sake of God without knowing the meanings, He will certainly bless you because of your sincerity.Moreover, it is also true that mere words have their effect as well.Note how the Holy Prophet s as has commanded that the Adh a n [Call for Prayer] be recited in the ears of a newborn child.Even though the child is unable to know or understand any- thing at that time, according to the saying, ‘What is given is put to use’, he is undoubtedly influenced by the words of the Adh a n.Other Forms of Apart from the recitation of the Holy Quran, other forms of dhikr consist of tasb ih [expressing glory of God by reciting Sub ha nall a h (Holy is Allah)] and ta h m i d [praising Allah by recit- ing Al h amdulill a h (All praise belongs to Allah)] that one can per- form while sitting alone or in company.One type of such dhikr is also obligatory, like saying the takb i r [reciting Allah u Akbar (Allah is the Greatest)] while slaughtering an animal.If the takb i r is not proclaimed at that time, eating that

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44 animal is forbidden.A second form of this dhikr is nafl [supererog- atory] which is repeated in a low voice at other times.The Holy Prophet s as has made this into something very vast; that is to say, he has prescribed some form of dhikr for every occasion.For exam- ple, when you sit down to eat he has taught us to say: ِنٰمْحَّرلا ِهّٰللا ِمْسِب ِمْيِحَّرلا [‘In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful’].This does not mean that if someone does not recite this, his belly will not get filled, but what it does mean is that the true pur- pose behind eating will be fully achieved in this way; that is, recit- ing the name of Allah will greatly benefit our spirituality.Then there is the command to recite ِمْيِحَّرلا ِنٰمْحَّرلا ِهّٰللا ِمْسِب at the commencement of every activity, so that there may be blessings in that work.And when that task is completed we are taught to say: * َنْيِمَلٰعْلا ِّبَر ِهّٰلِل ُدْمَحْلَا so that there may be blessings in that task.Similarly, if someone dons new clothes or begins the use of something new, he should say Al h amdulill a h [‘All praise belongs to Allah’] to express gratitude.On every occasion of sorrow and difficulty we are to say: ** َنْوُعِجٰر ِهْيَلِا ۤاَّنِا َو ِهّٰلِل اَّنِا When faced with a task beyond one’s power and capability, we * All Praise belongs to Allah, Lord of all the worlds.( S u rah al-F a ti h ah, 1:2) [Publisher] ** Surely, to Allah we belong and to Him shall we return.( S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:157) [Publisher]

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Methods of Performing Dhikr 45 should say: ِّٰ لَحَوْل َ وَلَقُوَّۃ َ اِلَّبِالل [‘There is no strength nor power except from Allah’].In short, these are the forms of dhikr that relate to aspects of life one faces daily.Every human being experiences either joy or sorrow during the day.Thus, when faced with joy, one says: ِهّٰلِل ُدْمَحْلَا َنْيِمَلٰعْلا ِّبَر [ Al h amdulill a hi Rabb-il- A lam i n—‘ All praise belongs to Allah, Lord of all the worlds’].And when confronting sorrow, one should says: َنْوُعِجٰر ِهْيَلِا ۤاَّنِا َو ِهّٰلِل اَّنِا [ Inn a Lill a hi wa inn a ilaihi r a ji‘ u n* ].Allah the Exalted says: * ْمُكِبْوُنُج ىٰلَع َّو اًدْوُعُق َّو اًمٰيِق َهّٰللا اوُرُكْذاَف The Holy Prophet s as has prescribed a particular kind of dhikr for every occasion, so that by doing them, man remains constantly engaged in the.For example, if a person is sitting in his office working and he hears some good news con- cerning himself, he should say Al h amdulill a h.If he should learn some such happy news while walking, then again, he should say Al h amdulill a h.If he receives a glad tiding while laying down, he should again say Al h amdulill a h.Thus, in this way he will be per- forming the while ْمُكِبْوُنُج ىٰلَع َّو اًدْوُعُق َّو اًمٰيِق [stand- ing, sitting, or lying on your sides].Then the Holy Prophet s as says,.ُ كْر ِ ل َ اِلٰه َ اِل َّ هللا ِّ اَفْضَل ُ الذ [The best remembrance (of Allah) is, ‘there is no one worthy of worship except Allah’] ( Sunan at-Tirmidh ī , Kitābud-Da‘wāt, Bāb ma jā’ anna Da‘watul-Muslimi Mustajābatun; Hadith 3383).* Remember Allah while standing, and sitting, and lying on your sides ( S u rah an-Nis a ’, 4:104).[Publisher]

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46 As narrated by Jabir in Tirmidh ī , the best and the foremost way of remembering Allah is that one should attest to the state- ment that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah.There are various merits of other forms of dhikr.Thus, the Holy Prophet s as has said concerning: ْم—ِ ي ِ ِ الْعَظ هللا َ ِ وَبِحَمْدِہ ٖ سُبْحَان هللا َ سُبْحَان [ Sub ha n-All a hi wa bi- h amdih i , Sub ha n-All a h-hil-‘A zi m— ‘Holy is Allah and worthy of all Praise; Holy is Allah, the Great’] that ِ الرَّحْمَن ی سَان ِ ثَقِيْلَتَان ِ فِي الْمِيْزَان ِ حَبِيْبَتَان ِ اِلَ ِّ الل ی َ كَلِمَتَان ِ خَفِيْفَتَان ِ عَل ‘There are two state- ments which are very light on the tongue to say, but when they will be weighed on the Day of Judgement, their weight will be so much that because of them the arm of the scale containing the good deeds will become very heavy.And they are so very dear to the Gracious God’ ( S a hīh al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitāb-ul-Īmāni wan-Nud- hūr, Bāb Idhā Qāla Wallāhi lā Atakallam-ul-Yauma fa S all a au Qara’ au Sabba h a au Kabbara au H amida aur Hallala fa-hua ‘Alā Niyyatihī; Hadith 6682; Sunan at-Tirmidh ī , Kitāb-ud-Da‘wāt, Bāb fī Fa d a’ili Sub h ān-Allāhi wa bi- H amdihī; Hadith 3467).This is also a dhikr of a very high order so much so that once, when the Promised Messiah as got up to offer Tahajjud [early morning supererogatory prayers] during a bout of severe illness and fell down due to fainting and could not offer the prayer, he received a revelation that in such a condition instead of getting up to offer the Tahajjud, he should just recite this while lying down.So this too is a dhikr that possesses immense merit.It is narrated in the sayings of the Holy Prophet s as that he used to recite it very often.The Holy Prophet s as has told us that these two forms of dhikr are superior.There is, however, another dhikr which is highly commendable.Although no hadith has been preserved about it,

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Methods of Performing Dhikr 47 reason guides us towards its very lofty merit.This dhikr consists of reciting the verses of the Holy Quran.If they are recited by way of , then it is twice as blessed because it yields a reward for reciting the Holy Quran as well as performing dhikr.Having stated the nature and the forms of dhikr, I will now describe the precautions about them.

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Precautions & Proper Times for Dhikr Necessary Precautions for Dhikr 1.The first precaution that Holy Prophet s as has stated is to never engage in dhikr to such an extreme that your heart becomes weary.2.Do not engage in dhikr when the heart is not at peace.For example, if a person sits down to perform dhikr in the midst of some important work that must be done, then his attention will not remain focused in the dhikr.Thus, disrespect would be shown to the words of God Almighty and the person would be deemed a sinner.Thus, the first precaution regarding the performance of dhikr is that one should not prolong dhikr to the extent that his heart becomes weary, and secondly, he

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50 should not engage in dhikr at such a time when his mind is distracted in some other thoughts so that, instead of earning merit, one is deemed to be a sinner.On the contrary, he should engage in dhikr with brevity and at such a time as he can main- tain his focus on the dhikr.Once, when the Holy Prophet s as came home, a lady was talking to Hadrat A‘ishah ra.He asked her what she was saying.Hadrat A‘ishah ra told the Holy Prophet s as that the lady was tell- ing her how much worship she does and the manner in which she does it.Having heard this, he said that it was not a mat- ter of virtue that she worshipped so much.Allah the Exalted likes the worship that is routinely done ( Mishk ā t al-Ma s āb īh, Kitābu s-S alāt, Bāb al-Qa s du fil ‘Amal; Hadith 1242).9 Allah the Exalted does not get tired on account of lengthy worship, but a person does grow weary of excessive worship and when he gets fatigued, his worship becomes unworthy.Thus, if someone exceeds the limit, he invites distress [upon himself ].It is said regarding Hadrat Abdullah bin Umar bin Aus ra that he was a strong man.He prayed all night, fasted during the day, and recited the entire Holy Quran in one day.When the Holy Prophet s as found out about it, he said, ‘This is not allowed.Pray for one-sixth, one-third, or—at the most—one- half of the night; and fast—at the most—on alternate days; and a complete recitation of the Holy Quran should not be done in less than three days’ ( S a hih al-Bukh ā r ī, Kitābu s-S aum, Bāb H aqqil-Jismi fi s-S aum; Hadith 1975).10 Abdullah bin Umar bin Aus ra tried very hard to be allowed to do more, but the Holy Prophet s as did not permit it.

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Precautions & Proper Times for Dhikr 51 Accordingly, he continued doing the maximum allowed, but in his old age he regretted that he had pledged to the Holy Prophet s as that he would go on doing so all his life, albeit no longer being able to [in his old age].Thus, going to extremes places one in a predicament.Dhikr is indeed a very good thing but, look, just like too much pilaf will upset the stomach, sim- ilarly, to go on increasing dhikr to the extent that it becomes such a burden upon the soul, will cause it to become averse to it.So, burden yourself gradually and only as much as can be tolerated.3.The third precaution that should be exercised is that if initially one is not inclined to attend to the — still steeling one’s heart—man should keep engaging in it and firmly resolve that he will indeed complete it and hold the intention that no matter how much force Satan brings to bear on the matter, he will never give in to his bidding.If a person resolves to carry things out this way, then he can persuade his own disposition to come around.It is said that Roy Tacon was a famous lawyer who once came to face an opposing lawyer who feared that Tacon would win the case.This lawyer employed a clever stratagem.While speaking with the magistrate, he said that it is the claim of Tacon that he can win over any magistrate no matter how clever he may be.Upon hearing this, the magistrate made up his mind that he would not accept whatever Roy Tacon would say.Thus, when the trial started, the magistrate would deny every submission that Tacon would make.Ultimately, he indeed gave a verdict in favour of the other lawyer.Thus, when

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52 a man makes up his mind that he will absolutely not accept the influence of a certain person, then that person cannot bring him under his control.In the initial stages, therefore, at the time of doing dhikr , one must cultivate this very state of mind.4.The fourth precaution is that at the time of doing dhikr, one should not be in an uncomfortable state.For example, if there is something jabbing you while you are sitting on the floor, or if there is some other similar type of pain, you should remove it and then engage in the.5.Fifthly, adopt a state of mind that you will accept cheerfully whatever you are granted.Even if there is lack of concentra- tion in the beginning, a time will come at some point when the habit of dhikr will become well established in you.6.Sixthly, perform dhikr with humility and fear of Allah.If a state of fearfulness of Allah does not develop, adopt an appearance that manifests a state of fear of Allah, because some things that are initially adopted artificially, gradually become reality.Thus, when someone attempts to develop humility and fabri- cates a state of crying and weeping, it happens that at a certain time, a state of supplication evolves in him.It is narrated that a professor was very kind-hearted, but later became very hard-hearted.The cause of this was that one day, due to his mild nature, he suffered some difficulty and so he resolved from that point on that he would be firm.So he adopted a firm demeanour, even though he still had the same kindness at heart.However, he appeared to be harsh and stern.

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Precautions & Proper Times for Dhikr 53 Gradually, what transpired is that he became hard-hearted.Although that professor inclined himself towards evil, if you act like this to move towards virtue, then you will see that, step by step, the fear of God will actually begin to develop in you such that if one day the true fear of God develops in you even for a second, then the second day it will last a bit longer and if you try to attain this you will certainly succeed.Proper Times for Dhikr Now that it has been proven that engaging in dhikr is very impor- tant as I have said, God Almighty says: * S u rah an-Nis a ’, 4:104 — ْمُكِبْوُنُج ىٰلَع َّو اًدْوُعُق َّو اًمٰيِق َهّٰللا اوُرُكْذاَف َةوٰلَّصلا ُمُتْيَضَق اَذِاَف So it is important to know at what times one should engage in the.Of course it is clear that one should be occupied in the doing of dhikr at all times.Thus, Hadrat ‘Aishah Siddiqah ra says about the Holy Prophet s as : اَحْيَانِهٖ.ِّ كُل ی ٰ َذْكُر ُ هللا َ عَل ی َ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم ی َّ كَان َ رَسُوْل ُ هللا ِ صَل The Holy Prophet used to be occupied in the remembrance of God Almighty at all times ( Sunan at-Tirmidh ī , Kitābud-Da‘wāt, Bāb mā jā’ anna Da‘watal-Muslimi Mustajābatun; Hadith 3384).* Remember Allah while standing, and sitting, and lying on your sides.[Publisher]

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54 However, there are some specific times mentioned by God Almighty in the Holy Quran and those are as follows: * S u rah al-A h z a b, 33:42–43 — اًلْيِصَا۰۰ َّو ًةَرْكُب ُهْوُحِّبَس َّو اًرْيِثَك۰۰ اًرْكِذ َهّٰللا اوُرُكْذا That is to say, remember Allah at the time of رة ک ب [ bukra ] and اصيل [ a si l ].Both these times are of a very high rank.In Arabic رة ک ب [ bukra ] describes the period from the first appearance of light in the sky until the sun rises.According to this, therefore, the mean- ing would be to engage in dhikr from the morning obligatory Prayer till the rise of the sun.So one time for the is this and the second time is that of اصيل [ a si l ].We learn from the lexicon that اصيل [ a si l ] describes the time from the ‘A s r obligatory Prayer till the time of the setting of the sun.The third, fourth, and fifth times are mentioned in this verse: ِلْيَّلا ِئٓاَنٰا ْنِم َو اَهِبْوُرُغ َلْبَق َو ِسْمَّشلا ِعْوُلُط َلْبَق َكِّبَر ِدْمَحِب ْحِّبَس َو َنْوُلْوُقَي اَم ىٰلَع ْرِبْصاَف S u rah Ta H a , 20:131— ىٰضْرَت َكَّلَعَل ِراَهَّنلا َفاَرْطَا َو ْحِّبَسَف Meaning, bear patiently what these people say, and glorify and praise your Lord before the rising of the sun and before its setting (both these times have been mentioned already); and in the hours of the night and at both sides of these, so that your wishes may be fulfilled.In this verse, apart from the two times previously men- tioned, the time after the rising of the sun and the early part of the * Remember Allah with much remembrance; And glorify Him morning and evening.[Publisher]

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Precautions & Proper Times for Dhikr 55 night and its latter part are also mentioned as being beneficial for dhikr.The sixth time is the time after every obligatory Prayer.The Holy Prophet s as always used to continue this dhikr so much so that it was as if it had become his practice [ Sunnah ].Ibn Abbas ra relates that, ‘When we used to be at some distance we would learn that the S al a t had ended upon hearing the dhikr: َ َم ُ وَمِنْك ل َّ اللَّهُم َّ أَنْت َ الس ِ َل ِ وَالإ ِكْرَام ل َا ذَا الْجَ ی َ َم ُ تَبَارَكْت ل السَّ [ Allahumma antas-sal a mo wa minkas- sal a mo, tab a rakta y a Dhal-Jal a li wal-Ikr a m ].’ Translation: ‘O our Allah! You are the [Embodiment of ] Peace, and true peace comes from You.Blessed are You, O Lord of Majesty and Bounty! [ S a hih Muslim, Kit a bul-Masajid wa mawadhi‘us- S al a ta, B a b Istihbabu- dhikri ba‘das S al a t Hadith 591].So this is one dhikr to be recited after the completion of the S al a t ; that is to say, one should recite: َ َم ُ تَبَارَكْت ل َم ُ وَمِنْك َ السَّ ل أَنْت َ السَّ َّ ِ اللَّهُم َل ِ وَالإ ِكْرَام ل َ َا ذَا الْج ی.The second is that one should recite thirty-three times each سُـبْـحَـان َ ٱهلل [ Sub ha n-All a h, i.e.‘Holy is Allah’], الحمدهلل [ al h amdulil- l a h, i.e.‘All praise belongs to Allah’], and thirty-four times هللا أكبر [ All a ho Akbar, i.e.‘Allah is the Greatest’] ( Sunan at-Tirmidh ī , Kitābud-Da‘wāt, Bāb mā jā’ fit-Tasbī h i wat-Takbīri wat-Ta h m i di ‘Indal-Manām; Hadith 3412).11 There are many methods narrated for performing these remembrances of Allah, but the most authentic way is indeed that the first two sentences should each be said separately thirty-three times and the third should be said thirty-four times.12 The time after S al a t is a most highly esteemed period for dhikr and dhikr must be done at that time.Some people may think upon seeing me and Hadrat Maulaw i [N oo r-ud-Deen] Sahib, Khalifatul Masih I,

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56 and the Promised Messiah as that perhaps we do not do dhikr after S al a t.They should know that the Promised Messiah as and Hadrat Khalifatul Masih I also used to engage in dhikr, and I do it too.But yes, it was not done in a loud voice by them, nor do I do it out loud.I say it in my heart.Thus, dhikr must be performed after S al a t.There are also other precautions relating to dhikr and those are that apart from those occasions that are proven from the Hadith , dhikr should not be done loudly in gatherings.This can give rise to pretence on some occasions, and in some situations causes dif- ficulty for other people engaged in the or the performance of S al a t.Then, it should also be remembered that whatever new activ- ity is undertaken, it initially proves to be a heavy burden and the heart shrinks from its performance and this is the reason why some people say that their heart is not inclined to the perfor- mance of dhikr.But can one become perfectly proficient in a new skill in one day? Certainly not! On the contrary, it happens grad- ually and it takes some time for this to become the case.Therefore, if someone’s heart is not inclined to it in the beginning and he finds it to be a sort of burden, he should not become troubled.The heart will accept it gradually but the condition is that dhikr must be maintained ongoing.Then, some people say that they do come to relish dhikr but they should not seek pleasure for their self in the performance of dhikr, and their intent in the performance of dhikr must not be to derive pleasure from it, but rather they should do it considering it an act of worship, because pleasure is not the real issue.Worship

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Precautions & Proper Times for Dhikr 57 is the true objective, and worship is accepted only when it is per- formed with that understanding.Then, some people say that with regard to engaging in the , some days they feel costive and on other days they feel much inclined to doing it.Such people should not be troubled.This inhibition happens to every kind of peo- ple.Once a Companion came to the Holy Prophet s as and said, ‘ H u du r, I am a hypocrite.’ The Holy Prophet responded, ‘No, you are indeed a Muslim.’ The Companion submitted, ‘When I come in your presence, I behold Heaven and Hell before my very eyes, but when I go home, that condition dissipates.’ The Holy Prophet said, ‘If you remain in that same condi- tion all the time, you will die’ ( S a hīh Muslim, Kitābut-Taubah, Bāb Fadli Dawāmidh-Dhikri wal-Fikri fil Umūril-Ākhirati wal-Murāqabati wa Jawāzi Tarki Dhālika fī Ba‘dil-Auqāti wal- Ishtighāli bid-Dunyā; Hadith 2750).13 The fact of the matter is that if one remains at all times in the same condition, then the capacity to advance and make progress would be impaired.It is for this reason that, at times, God Almighty lowers a person from his true status to make him advance beyond his previous station by leaping ahead; and simi- larly, He sometimes raises him to a higher station.One particular thing should, however, be remembered regard- ing costiveness, and that is that one kind of it is good and another kind is bad.The difference between the two can be recognized by setting a standard of deriving pleasure.For example, there is a stage one and above it are stages two, three, four, and five.Now, if some person is at stage two, and diffidence takes him to stage

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58 one, then it should be understood that it is a rewarding kind of costiveness.However, if he is at stage three and experiences cos- tiveness, then it should be ascertained whether it has taken him to stage two, one, or absolute zero.If he is at stage two, it should be deemed to be the one (costiveness) that will bring progress; but, if it is at stage one or zero, then it is a dangerous level and a special struggle and effort should be employed toward it.

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Prayer—The Most Important Form of Dhikr S al a t as Dhikr Now I will inform you about S al a t.This is the most essential and important form of dhikr, because in it man sometimes engages in dhikr while standing [ qiy a m ], and sometimes while in a state of ruk u ‘ [bowing down] and sometimes while prostrating in sajdah [prostration], and sometimes while sitting [ qa‘dah ].Then, one also recites the Holy Quran in S al a t and then, apart from this, one also engages in repeating other sentences in the.Thus, S al a t is a compendium of all forms of dhikr.I had refrained from mentioning these in the beginning because it requires a great deal of detail but I mention them now.The Philosophy of Sunnah There are three parts of S al a t : (1) Far d [obligatory Prayers], (2) Sunnah [the Holy Prophet’s practice], and (3) Nafl [supereroga- tory Prayers].All people offer Far d and Sunnah.What remain are

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60 Naw a fil [pl.of Nafl— supererogatory Prayers].Most show indo- lence in offering them.What must be remembered concerning the Sunnan [plural of Sunnah ] is that they have been prescribed so that whatever shortcomings may have been left in the offering of the Far d may thereby be made up because Allah the Exalted does not accept an imperfect S al a t, but rather accepts only the S al a t that is perfect.Thus, if there are deficiencies, then the Sunnan may make up for them.For example, if someone offered S al a t but he failed to main- tain his attention in one of the rak‘ a t [units of Prayer] and various and sundry types of whisperings kept on developing so that that rak‘ a t was not accepted, the Sunnah will replace them so that the S al a t may be completed.As the Holy Prophet s as was very aware of the state of man’s heart and understood these things, it was for this reason that he attached the Sunnah with the obligatory Prayers from himself so that they may compensate for the defi- ciencies in the offering of the obligatory Prayers.And this was a very great favour of the Holy Prophet s as on his Ummah.The Philosophy of Naw a fil Then there are Naw a fil.These are means of attaining nearness to God Almighty.In other words, they take a person beyond just Nij a t [deliverance from sin] and become the means for attaining loftier stations.Thus, anyone desiring nearness of Allah should give special attention to Naw a fil.Then Naw a fil are also of many types.Some are offered during the day; others during the night.

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Prayer—The Most Important Form of Dhikr 61 Those performed at night are called Tahajjud and these are more important and so lofty that God Almighty has expressed their excellence in the Holy Quran in the following manner: S u rah al-Muzzammil, 73:7— اًلْيِق ُمَوْقَا َّو ًاْطَو ُّدَشَا َيِه ِلْيَّلا َةَئِشاَن َّنِا Meaning that getting up at night is a great means to set right the human self.Thus, if a person observes after experimenting, he would know that how, in this way, a tremendously broad improve- ment of the self takes place and a special energy and strength is attained.The companions of the Holy Prophet s as were very regular about them.And the Holy Prophet s as was so mindful of these Naw a fil that despite the fact that these were voluntary, he used to walk around at night to see who was offering them and who was not.Once, in the gathering of the Holy Prophet s as mention was made of Hadrat Abdullah bin Umar ra that he was very good in that he possesses this beauty and this quality.Upon hearing this, the Holy Prophet s as said, ‘Yes, he is very good, provided that he offers Tahajjud [supererogatory nightly Prayers]’ ( S a hīh al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitābut-Tahajjud, Bābu Fadli Qiyāmil-Lail; Hadith 1122].14 Since Abdullah bin Umar ra was a young man and was slack in offering Tahajjud Prayers, the Holy Prophet s as drew his attention to it in this way.Then the Holy Prophet s as has said that, may Allah have mercy on the husband and the wife who, if the husband wakes up at night, should get up and offer Tahajjud and awaken the wife so that she should also get up and offer the Tahajjud.And if she does

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62 not wake up, sprinkles water on her face to awaken her.And simi- larly if it is the wife who awakens, let her do the same; that is, offer Tahajjud and awaken her husband and if he does not wake up she sprinkles some water on his face ( Mishk ā t al-Ma sā b īh , Kitābu s- S alāt, Bābut-Ta h rī d ‘Alā Qiyāmil-Lail; Hadith 1230).15 Look, how on the one hand the Holy Prophet s as has declared it to be highly essential for the wife to respect her husband, and yet he has permitted her to even sprinkle some water, if neces- sary, to awaken him for Tahajjud.So, that is how important the Holy Prophet s as deemed Tahajjud to be! This is all from the Holy Prophet s as.Then the Holy Quran tells us that getting up [for Naw a fil ] at night reforms the self.This is indeed the reason why the Holy Prophet s as used to say to the Companions ra that they must per- form Tahajjud, even if it is of only two rak‘ a t [units of Prayer].Then it is also proven from the Hadith that God Almighty comes very close in the latter part of the night and accepts prayers in abundance.Offering Tahajjud, therefore, is very important and very beneficial.

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Thirteen Methods of Waking up for Tahajjud Now, the question is that Tahajjud should indeed be offered but how should one get up at night? Let me mention one of the less important ways first.Although there is a detriment in it, it could be beneficial as well.And that is that these days one can get alarm clocks and one can wake up using these.However, my experience is that this is not a very beneficial method.The reason is that because a person begins to rely upon it, that it will wake me up at the right time, so he does not pay attention and thought to the need to get up at night for the doing of a virtuous deed that should have been there.If he had had the idea in mind of getting up at night and had he fallen asleep with that thought in mind, then it would have been as if he had spent the entire night in worship.Apart from this, it also happens sometimes that if one does not feel like getting up, then he switches the alarm off even while it is ringing.But if the person goes to sleep with the intention and resolve, then he will certainly get up at the right time.Then

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64 the people who wake up using the alarm clock complain that they feel sleepy during Prayers.The reason for this is also the very same that they get up by the alarm clock and not due to their own will.So for this reason this method is not of much benefit.But yes, in the initial stages or at the time of some special need, it can be of benefit.In my view there are thirteen methods that can help in get- ting up at night.If anyone acts upon them, then I believe that, by the grace of Allah the Exalted, he will certainly encounter suc- cess.There are difficulties in the beginning of every endeavour, but in the end these methods will certainly lead to success.All these things that I will say have been extracted from the Quran and Hadith alone and are not from me myself.Nevertheless, this is the special grace of God Almighty upon me that these points, which remained hidden from others, have been manifested upon me.If time had not been limited I would have also mentioned the verses of the Holy Quran and the [specific] hadith from which I have extracted these methods, but right now I will simply state the results alone.1.THE FIRST OF THESE METHODS is that Allah the Exalted has embedded this rule in nature that a phenomenon that arises at a particular time, when that same time reappears, that phenomenon again comes into a state of excitement.Its examples can be found in abundance.For example, the illness that a person may have suffered from during his childhood, that same illness returns in his old age when the condition of the person again reverts to that same childlike condition.The same phenomenon is found among birds and trees.Based on

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Thirteen Methods of Waking up for Tahajjud 65 this rule, one can get help in getting up at night in the fol- lowing way.Perform dhikr for a while after offering the ‘Ish a’ Prayers [night Prayer before going to bed].The benefit of this will be that the amount of time spent by one doing dhikr his eyes will open that much time before morning.2.THE SECOND METHOD is that one should not talk to any- body after having performed the ‘Ish a’ Prayers.16 The Holy Prophet s as has also prohibited speaking after the offering of ‘Ish a’ Prayers.Although it is also established that at some times he did continue talking, as a general rule he had forbidden it.The reason for this is that if you start talking after the ‘Ish a’ Prayers, you will stay awake longer and, thus, will get up later in the morning.And secondly, if such talk is not about faith or religion, then your attention will be diverted away from faith on account of them.This is why the Holy Prophet s as said that one should go right to sleep after offering ‘Ish a’ Prayers with- out talking to anyone so that you should go to sleep while your thoughts hover on matters of faith and you get up early in the morning.It is not forbidden to carry out office work or other important assignments after ‘Ish a’ Prayers, but it is necessary that one should engage in the before going to sleep.So this is the second method.3.THE THIRD METHOD is that when one comes home after offering the ‘Ish a’ Prayers and is about to go to sleep then regardless of whether one’s wu du [ablution for Prayer] is intact or not, one should still perform ablution afresh before going to bed.This affects the heart and creates a special kind

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66 of freshness.And when someone goes to sleep in that state of freshness after having performed the ablution, he will also get up in the same state of freshness.This is a common observa- tion that a person who goes to sleep crying wakes up scream- ing, and if he goes to sleep smiling then he will also get up with a cheerful countenance.Similarly, a person who goes to sleep fresh having done ablution will also wake up fresh.And in this way he will be helped in waking up.4.THE FOURTH METHOD is to recite some dhikr before going to sleep; the result of this will be that you will wake up again for dhikr during the night.This is indeed the reason why the Holy Prophet s as also used to perform the following dhikr before going to sleep: First he would recite A yatul-Kurs i.17 Then he would recite the last three chapters of the Holy Quran18 and, having done this, he would gently blow upon his hands and lightly pass them over his entire body.He would do this three times.Then he would turn his face to his right and say: َ اَللّٰهُم َّ أَسْلَمْت ُ وَجْهِي إِلَيْك َ وَفَوَّضْت ُ أَمْرِي إِلَيْك َ وَأَلْجَأْت ُ ظَهْرِي إِلَيْك َ رَغْبَة ً وَرَهْبَة ً إِلَيْك ك َ الَّذِي أَرْسَلْتَ.ِّ ِتَابِك َ الَّذِي أَنْزَلْت َ وَبِنَبِي ک ِ ل َ مَلْجَأ َ وَل َ مَنْجَا مِنْك َ إِل َّ إِلَيْك َ آمَنْت ُ ب [ Allahumma aslamto waj hi ilaika wa fawwadtu amri ilaik raghbatan wa rahbatan ilaik.La malja’a wa la man- ja’a minka illa ilaik.Allahumma a manto bikitabikalladhi anzalta wa nabiyyikalladhi arsalta—‘ O our Allah, I put myself in Your protection, and turn my face towards You and assign all my affairs to You, with complete inclination and fear of You.There is no refuge or protection from You except towards Yourself.I believe in Your Book which You

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Thirteen Methods of Waking up for Tahajjud 67 have revealed, and Your Prophet whom You have sent’] ( Sunan at-Tirmidh ī , Kitābud-Da‘wāt, Bābu ad-Du‘āu’ ‘indan-Naum; Hadith 3574).All believers should do likewise and then, when lying down in bed, recite this dhikr in their heart: ٖ ِ وَبِحَمْدِہ هللا َ سُبْحَان ْمِ.ي ِ ِ الْعَظ هللا َ سُبْحَان [ Sub ha n-All a hi wa bi- h amdih i , Sub ha n-Allah- hil-A zi m— ‘Holy is Allah and worthy of all Praise; Holy is Allah, the Great’, or continue with some other dhikr until one falls asleep because the condition in which a person goes to sleep generally stays with him all night.Thus, the person who goes to sleep while performing tasb ih [glorifying Allah] and ta h m i d [praising Allah] will be as if he had been occupied in doing that very act the entire night.Look, if women or children go to sleep suffering in some grief or pain, then—even while they are asleep, turning over onto their sides—they utter painful and sorrowful sounds, because the effect of the sorrow or grief that they were involved in at the time of going to sleep, stays with them.But if someone goes to sleep reciting tasb ih he will indeed be heard reciting tasb ih when he will turn on his side.This is indeed the reason why God Almighty says in the Holy Quran that the believers are those who: — َنْوُقِفْنُي ْمُهٰنْقَزَر اَّمِم َّو اًعَمَط١ٞ َّو اًفْوَخ ْمُهَّبَر َنْوُعْدَي ِعِجاَضَمْلا ِنَع ْمُهُبْوُنُج ىٰفاَجَتَت S u rah as-Sajdah, 32:17 Meaning that their sides keep away from their beds, and they call on their Lord in fear and hope, and spend out of what We have bestowed on them.

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68 From all appearances this may not seem to be true because the Holy Prophet s as would also go to sleep as did all the other believers as well.But the reality is that because they go to sleep while performing tasb ih, their sleep is not sleep; it is, in fact, a form of tasb ih.They appear to be sleeping, but in reality they are not asleep.Their sides keep away from their beds; and they are busy in the remembrance of God.5.THE FIFTH METHOD is that at the time of going to sleep resolve firmly that one will certainly get up for Tahajjud.God Almighty has placed this ability in man that when he gives his self some command forcefully, it obeys him.And this is one of those things that all wise people have been accepting.So at the time of going to sleep make a resolve firmly that you will definitely get up for Tahajjud.By doing this, although you will have gone to sleep, your soul will stay awake, for it has been given a command to awaken at such and such a time and exactly at that time you will awaken on your own.6.THE SIXTH METHOD is something I only permit to be employed by a person who sees that his faith is really strong and it is that instead of performing Vitr [three rak‘ a t prescribed as essential] after ‘Ish a’ , leave Vitr for Tahajjud time.In general, people are strict in performing the obligatory worship, but show slackness in the voluntary.* Thus, when a W a jib [essen- tial] is combined with the Naw a fil, the soul of the person will * Vitr are W a jib — an essential act of worship, not Far d but more impor- tant than the voluntary.[Publisher]

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Thirteen Methods of Waking up for Tahajjud 69 not rest until it has been observed.Its result will be that the self will not show indolence.However, if the Vitr have already been offered, and even if one awakens for Tahajjud, one’s self says that well, I have offered the Vitr already and if the Naw a fil remain unfulfilled, let them remain so.Nevertheless, when the mindset will be that the Vitr must also be offered, he will defi- nitely get up, and when he wakes up, then he will offer the Nafl as well, but as I have said before, the condition for this is that the person’s faith be very strong.When faith is strong, he will certainly get up to offer the Vitr; otherwise, the person will deprive himself from the offering of Vitr as well.7.THE SEVENTH METHOD is also only for those who are far advanced in spirituality, and that is, they should start offer- ing Naw a fil after ‘Ish a’ Prayer and continue doing so for so long that they begin to fall asleep in the Prayer itself and sleep overpowers them so much that it becomes unbearable.That is when they should go to sleep.Even though this will take a lot more time, they will get up in the morning.This is a spiritual exercise.8.THE EIGHTH METHOD is the one that has been practiced by many of our sufis.I have not felt the need for it, but it is bene- ficial.This method is that in the days when one is overpowered by sleep and one does not awaken on time, then soft bedding should be removed.9.THE NINTH METHOD involves taking dinner several hours before going to bed.In other words, eat before Maghrib Prayer

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70 [evening Prayer, immediately after sunset]or immediately after it.It happens sometimes that while the spirit is willing and alert, the body makes it lazy.The body acts like a yoke that is clinging to the spirit and when the yoke becomes heavy, it suppresses the spirit.For this reason the stomach should not be full at the time of going to sleep, because it affects the heart greatly and it makes a person lazy.10.THE TENTH METHOD is that when a man goes to sleep at night, he should not be in the post-sex state of uncleanliness or have some filth attached to him.The fact is that the angels have a strong affinity with cleanliness and they do not come close to a man who is unclean; instead, they distance themselves from him.This is why when something with a strong odour was brought to the Holy Prophet s as to eat, he told his compan- ions that they could eat it, but he would not.The Companions said that they, too, would not eat it.He explained to them that they could eat it but the angels come to converse with him, which was why he would not eat it since they have a strong dislike for such things.In short, the angels abhor filth.Hadrat Khalifatul Masih I ra used to narrate that once he went to bed without washing his hands after eating.He saw in a vision that his older brother came and wanted to give him the Holy Quran, but when he was about to touch it, his brother forbade him from doing so as his hands were not clean.So cleanliness of the body has a great effect upon the heart.One who goes to sleep clean, will have the angels come to wake him up, but should there be

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Thirteen Methods of Waking up for Tahajjud 71 any shortcoming in the state of cleanliness, they do not come close.This method has to do with the cleanliness of the body.11.THE ELEVENTH METHOD is that the bedding should be clean.Many people do not take the proper care regarding this matter, but it must be remembered that the purity of the bed- ding has a very special relationship with spirituality—so spe- cial care must be exercised in this regard.12.THE TWELFTH METHOD is such that if ordinary people act on it they may suffer harm from it.Yes, it is not harmful for special people and it is that husband and wife should not sleep in the same bed.The Holy Prophet s as used to do so, but his excellence is lofty and paramount.This could have no effect upon him, but other people need to exercise caution.The fact is that the degree to which one is overcome by carnal passions, is the very degree to which spirituality is shut down.This is the very reason why the Islamic Shariah says to eat and drink but not to exceed the limits.Why not exceed the limits? Because when carnal passions grow excessively they harm spirituality.Thus, for those people who maintain their selves under con- trol, should they sleep together there would be no harm, but ordinary people should refrain from doing this.And those people who do not have full and complete control over their thoughts should not sleep together.If they do, they will con- tinue to have their carnal passions aroused and sometimes it even happens that they begin to have sex or engage in love- making as they sleep.That has a bad effect on spirituality and causes laziness in waking up.

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72 13.THE THIRTEENTH METHOD has such excellence that not only does it greatly assist and help in getting up for Tahajjud, but by acting upon it, man is also saved from many sins and evils.And that is, before going to sleep, we should observe whether there is any malice or rancour in our hearts against anyone.And if there is, we should banish it from our heart.The result of this will be that the purification of the soul achieved in this way will grant you the ability to get up for Tahajjud.Even though these kinds of thoughts may again overpower the person, they must be expelled from the heart before going to sleep at night and the heart must be cleared completely.What harm is there in doing this? If one considers that there is some worldly benefit in these thoughts, then he should tell his heart to remember them again during the day.There is no fighting to do while sleeping at night for which they should be kept in the heart.Firstly, what will happen is that once a thought is uprooted from the heart, it will not even come again.Secondly, one is safeguarded from the damage that a person could suffer from harbouring such thoughts.It is a proven fact that the longer something stays with another, the greater is the effect that it leaves.For example, if you wipe something with a wet sponge quickly, it will become moistened just a little, but if you leave the wet sponge upon it for quite some time, it will become fully soaked.Similarly, the thoughts that linger with a person for a long time will become deeply absorbed in his heart, and the thoughts that one keeps in his heart while sleeping, his spirit will continue to repeat them throughout the night.Such thoughts cannot do as much harm during the day as

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Thirteen Methods of Waking up for Tahajjud 73 they can at night because the mind is absorbed in other activ- ities and one forgets, but during the night they visit again and again.Thus, if there is any bad thought at the time of going to sleep, it should be expelled so that it does not become embed- ded in the heart; for, if it becomes embedded, then it will be very difficult for it to go away.And then, what if one were to pass away during the night? One would lose the opportunity to seek repentance for that evil thought.So one should make one’s self fearful in this way.And once the thought is expelled, one is granted deliverance from it.In short, at the time of going to sleep, evil thoughts must not be permitted to stay in one’s self.When one goes to sleep with a heart purified and cleansed, then he will certainly be granted the ability to wake up at the time of Tahajjud.

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers I will now describe how to maintain concentration in S al a t —a lot of people always ask about this and today I shall relate its meth- ods.Some of them will be such that you do employ, but don’t really make use of them, and those who do make use of them must surely be benefiting from them.The fact of the matter is that the Shariah has already estab- lished some rules in S al a t itself in order to maintain concentra- tion, but due to unawareness, most people derive no benefit from them.Apart from these, I will also describe such ways that people are generally not aware of and are not practicing them, although by making use of them, their attention can be maintained in S al a t.Before I start to mention the first type of techniques, I wish to state this much that God Almighty has placed in man a capac- ity that when he is making use of something, and simultaneously he continues to imagine its benefits and believes in it, then he achieves much greater benefit.

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76 [Eugen] Sandow was a champion bodybuilder in Europe.He writes that you should exercise for health and vigour but at the same time as you do it, you should also be thinking that your arms are becoming stronger and muscles are becoming hardened.It is indeed true that the arms get stronger with exercise, but when this is done thinking it to be an exercise and what effect it is having on the body, then the body becomes even more ready to accept this impact upon it.And if this is not kept in mind, then much of the impact is lost and the benefit is relatively reduced to a great extent.The Islamic Shariah has also established some rules for main- taining concentration: 1.The first METHOD is the performance of wu du [ablution for Prayer] which everyone who is to offer S al a t must carry out.The wisdom in this is that Allah the Exalted has created certain means for communicating thoughts and feelings to others.One of them is the nervous system.Through them the thoughts and feelings of man effect other things and the nervous system serves as a path.This is indeed why the Holy Prophet s as used to recite the A yatul-Kurs i and then blow upon his body.Was this just a frivolous act? Certainly not! On the contrary, the truth is that the effect of thoughts is transferred using the nerves, the voice, and the breath.Thus, the Holy Prophet s as would combine all three of these ways.He would recite A yatul-Kurs i, then blow upon his hands, and then pass his hands all over his body.In short, the voice, the nerves, the sight, and the breath etc.are all ways for the thoughts to disperse; that is why the practice of رنا ك دم — insufflation [blow- ing on someone after reciting some words of prayer etc.] by

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 77 righteous Muslims is proven and, in fact, it is reported from the Holy Prophet s as as well.Thus, since thoughts emanate through the nerves and scatter, in order to keep them under control, the Holy Prophet s as has instructed us to perform ablu- tion.And because the main points of their emanating are the arms, feet, and mouth; and it has been experienced that when water is poured over them, the stream of thoughts—which had hitherto been emanating from them—comes to a halt and thoughts cease to emerge.This is a proven phenomenon, and this is also one of the objectives for the doing of ablution.There are many other points of wisdom in performing ablu- tion, but this is also one of them that in this way the stream of thoughts comes to a halt and when this stream stops, a tranquil- lity is attained and when tranquillity is achieved, then atten- tion can remain established.Thus, ablution is a high-ranking means for maintaining concentration.When you begin to do ablution you should also be thinking that you are doing this to stop scattered thoughts.When you do this, then you will achieve tranquillity in your S al a t and thoughts will not be able to dissipate your attention.2.The second method of achieving concentration is the one that the Islamic Shariah has prescribed—that S al a t be offered at the mosque.It is a human characteristic that when one sees something, he conceives a thought about something else.For example, a person meets person X and also asks him about his son, person Y.Even though person Y is not in front of him, upon seeing person X, he remembers person Y as well.Thus, the design of the human brain is such that when something

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78 comes before it, then it also recalls those other things that are associated with it.Thus, if a man offers his S al a t at a place which has no special connection with S al a t, then he will not recall anything in particular.However, when he offers his S al a t at such a place where S al a t is offered morning and evening, he will certainly think that he is standing in the house of that God for whose worship that place had been built and it was incumbent upon him that he should follow and obey Him with full sincerity of heart.This is indeed the reason why the Holy Prophet s as has instructed that Muslims should reserve a specific place for Prayer in their homes and they should not do anything else there except offering Prayers so that while they are praying there, they should think that that is the place for the worship of God Almighty ( Mishk ā t al-Ma sā b īh , Kitābus- S alāt, Bābul- Masājid wa Mawad‘i s-S alāt; Hadith 717).19 It is possible that some of you may have never had this thought pass through your mind even when you went to the mosque, but now that the wisdom behind going to offer Prayers in the mosque has become known to you and with this thought when you go to the mosque to offer your Prayers, your thoughts will immediately stop and you will attain tranquillity.3.The third method is the instruction to face towards the Qiblah [direction of the Ka‘bah in Makkah] also helps in main- taining concentration.The holy city of Makkah holds many distinctions.By the command of God, a man had abandoned his wife and child in this place with no provisions, no popu- lation, and no protection.And because he had done this for

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 79 the sake of God, God Almighty caused his progeny to grow so much that it is innumerable like the stars in the sky.Thereafter, many a Prophet were born in his progeny and finally, that man who came as a Prophet to the whole of mankind was from his progeny as well.Thus, when someone stands up to pray turning his face towards Makkah, and he understands the wisdom behind the injunction to face in this direction to offer the S al a t, the inci- dent regarding Hadrat Ishmael as immediately impacts him.There develops in his mind attention to the fact that God, for whose worship he is now standing, is the Lord of Great Honour and Immense Power.As this realization dawns, his scattered thoughts are removed and go down under the effect of the grandeur and glory of God Almighty.4.The fourth method the Holy Prophet s as has enjoined the calling of the Adh a n [Call to Prayer].When it is proclaimed loudly, All a ho Akbar, All a ho Akbar [‘Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest’], then although S al a t does not start immediately at that time, those who are to offer S al a t are informed thereby that they should come to the mosque to offer the S al a t, thoroughly reflecting and realizing that they are presenting themselves before the Glorious God of Great Honour.Thus, when anyone hears the Adh a n, the grandeur and eminence of God Almighty will have a special effect upon him and, as a result of this, his attention will remain focused upon his S al a t.The Holy Prophet s as has said that the Adh a n is called to put Satan to flight.It is narrated in a hadith that when the Adh a n is called, Satan runs far away.

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80 Thus, when someone keeps in view that the pur- pose of the theme related in the Adh a n is to draw the attention of everyone to the grandeur and glory of Allah the Exalted, he will come to remember its underlying wisdom as well.The people who have heard this wisdom today will recall this aspect when they hear the Adh a n, and when remembered, it will have its effect as well.This is the rule that when one thought arises, then other thoughts are removed.Thus, when thoughts of the greatness and glory of God Almighty develop, other thoughts will vanish and con- centration will be achieved.5.The fifth method is Iq a mat [an abridged version of the Adh a n called out just before beginning the congregational S al a t ].This also draws attention to the greatness and majesty of God and the wisdom mentioned concerning Adh a n is indeed found in it as well.The Holy Prophet s as has also said about the Iq a mat that Satan runs away at its sound ( S a hih Muslim , Kitābu s-S alāt, Bāb Fa d lil-Adhān wa Harab-ish-Shai t ān ‘inda Samā‘ihī; Hadith 388).20 The meaning of this is indeed that evil whisperings are removed by it and attention towards God Almighty develops.6.The sixth method is the formation of lines [in congre- gational Prayer].Order in physical formation fosters order in thoughts as well, and safeguards them against scattering.And when the rows are physically formed, the inner zeal is also threaded into a string.And what an awe-inspiring spectacle it

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 81 is when all the people are silently and quietly standing before the King of kings! The Holy Prophet s as has said, ‘Straighten your rows; otherwise, your hearts will become crooked’ ( S a hīh Muslim, Kitābu s-S alāt, Bāb Taswiyati s-S ufūfi wa Iqāmatihā wa Fa d lil-Awwali fal-Awwali minhā wal-Izdi h āmi ‘Ala s-S affil- Awwali wal-Musābaqati ilaihā wat-Taqdīmi Aulal-Fa d li wa Taqrībihim min-al-Imām; Hadith 432).21 What is the impact of a straight row? The same—that since the seen has an impact upon the unseen; for that rea- son, if there is no order externally, then internal regularity is also affected.7.The seventh method is the Niyyat [Declaration of Intention for Prayer], because when man tells his soul that he is about to stand up for a task, then his attention focuses upon it.And Niyyat does not mean that you say that behind that Imam, so many rak‘ a t of S al a t, facing the Holy Ka‘bah, etc., but rather one should make the intention in his own mind that he is going to offer the S al a t.It is said about a certain man that he had developed an insane passion for offering the Niyyat.And if he was standing in a row other than the one immediately behind the imam and would say his Niyyat that, ‘Behind this imam’ , the thought would come to him that he was not standing behind the imam and that there was some other person in front of him.He would, therefore, move forward and say, ‘Behind this imam’.But he would again entertain the doubt that even then he was not behind the imam, so he would go and stand right behind the imam and, touching the imam , he would say, ‘Behind this

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82 imam.’ The people who suffer from such irrational doubts also commit a mistake and its result is very destructive, turning the Niyyat into an affliction.The Niyyat is actually related to the heart, but as they stand up, some people do not have the slightest idea as to what they are about to do.Thus, when you are about to offer S al a t, bring S al a t to mind also and conceptualize what you are about to do.When you will come to understand this, you will begin to develop reverence from that very moment within you, and when reverence comes into being, then concentration can also be maintained.8.The eighth method is congregational S al a t because when offering S al a t in this way, the words drawing your attention to the grandeur of God Almighty are made to fall upon your ears from the imam.And the person who may be heedless and falls into other thoughts is nudged.For example, when All a ho Akbar is called out, he is, as if, being alerted that—‘Beware! Stand with full attention, for the One in whose presence you are about to stand is Immensely Great.’ Then, when some time has been spent in the standing pos- ture, and all manner of thoughts begin to arise within one’s heart, the imam again says in a loud voice, All a ho Akbar, that ‘Allah is indeed the Greatest.’ Again, after a while, when heed- lessness rears its head, the sound of ُ سَمِع َ الل َُّ لِمَن ْ حَمِدَه [ Sami-‘All a ho li-man H amidah—‘ God listens to him who praises Him’]—is made to fall upon the ears reminding the person that Allah the Exalted hears and accepts the sayings of the person who praises Him.And in this way his attention is drawn that if he

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 83 wants to gain some benefit, then he should engage in the prais- ing of Allah the Exalted; otherwise, he will simply be wasting time.In short, the imam continuously goes on reminding and alerting those offering their S al a t behind him.This is indeed the reason why the imam has a rank above that of the followers because he goes on drawing their attention again and again that they are standing in the presence of the Greatest of all Kings—keep standing alert.9.The ninth method of maintaining attention is that Islam has not adopted a single posture for S al a t, but has kept it in dif- ferent configurations.If someone becomes neglectful or gets absorbed in other thoughts while offering his S al a t, his going into ruk u ‘ [bowing] and sajdah [prostration] draws his atten- tion towards the S al a t even if someone moves to these pos- tures out of habit.However, movement is such a thing that it alerts a neglectful person.Worship in other religions does not have this characteristic; this excellence is possessed by Islam alone.10.The tenth method— Performance of the Sunnah before and after obligatory Prayers is the tenth method.It is a law of nature that when something is about to hap- pen, some of its effect manifests beforehand, and some after it appears.For example, when the sun is about to rise—albeit not yet risen—the light still begins to diffuse.Similarly, even after it sets, the light lingers on for some time.An activity that is in accord with one’s wishes, from which pleasure is derived,

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84 or not doing which may lead to loss, dominates [the mind over] another task that has less impact in comparison.For example, if someone is engaged in a task in which he does not see any significant benefit, and he has something to do afterwards from which he is hopeful of substantial benefits, or there is a danger of some harm if it is not carried out, or that task is in accordance with his desires, then, thoughts about the other task will be dominating the matter he is engaged in and his attention will remain occupied with it.Take, for exam- ple, a worker in an office.If he has to carry out a personal task after office hours, he will start thinking about it an hour or two before he leaves his office.And if an important task in the office business has triggered to attract his attention, then— even after finishing official duty—his attention will remain focused on it during the way [home] and for some time even at home.Only after some time will he attend to the matters he is busy with currently.It is due to this very wisdom that the Holy Prophet s as has prescribed Sunnahs before and after the Far d [Obligatory] Prayers so that if the mind is occupied in any thoughts before starting the S al a t they should not impact the Far d negatively and make them defective.Instead, burying them in the offer- ing of Sunnah, a man should set his mind to rest content and be able to pay full attention to the Far d s.Similarly, the Sunnah have also been appointed after the Far d Prayers, so that if there are other important chores to be done after the S al a t, its thoughts should not find their way into the heart of the person and spoil his S al a t before he completes the offering of the Far d.Thus, the person can attend to his S al a t peacefully,

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 85 because—as I have already stated—stray thoughts generally arise and disturb one when the task at hand is about to be completed and he is intending to start another.When a per- son thinks that he is not yet done—that the Sunnahs are yet to be offered—his thoughts will remain suppressed.And this is one great point of wisdom from among the many, that under- lie the enjoining of the Sunnahs.So, the Holy Prophet s as has designated the Sunnah in accordance with the different timings.Since the time of Z uhr Prayer [early afternoon] is a time of great involvement in other tasks, he has therefore appointed four or two Sunnah before, and two or four Sunnah after.It is as if he has appointed two sentries to safeguard the Far d , so that they stop the thoughts that may infiltrate them.There are no Sunnah before ‘A s r [late afternoon Prayer] but there are Naw a fil —one may observe them or skip them—the reason is that at the time of ‘A s r, one is, in a way, done with other activities.Secondly, because this is the time to finish doing all things, the Prayer for this time is therefore very brief, but there is dhikr after ‘A s r till Maghrib.As I have stated before, there are no Sunnah before Maghrib Prayer because the time is very short, but there are two Sunnah after Maghrib.Generally, people eat after Maghrib and engage in other such activities, so these two Sunnah protect the Far a’ i d [pl.Far d , obligatory part of the S al a t ] from such thoughts.There are no Sunnah before ‘Ish a’ Prayer [night Prayer before going to bed] because the chores a person usually does before this Prayer are not the kind that their effect will stay after.However, there are Naw a fil ; if one wishes and feels the

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86 need, he can offer them.But after ‘Ish a’ , since it is the time to go to sleep and temperament is inclined towards rest after a whole day’s work, two Sunnah and three Vitr [three rak‘ a t prescribed as essential] are appointed afterwards from which the Vitr may also be performed at a later time.There are two Sunnah appointed before Fajr [morning Prayer] so that there should not be any negligence in the S al a t due to just having woken up from sleep.Those Sunnahs stop the carelessness and the thoughts resulting from sleep.There are no Sunnah afterwards because generally no particular work may be done thereafter until the time of sunrise.However, dhikr has been prescribed.These are the ones that have been attached with the S al a t by the Shariah to maintain concentration in the S al a t, but bene- fit can be drawn from them only when man makes an effort to understand them as well.This is verily why I have mentioned them so that you may become acquainted with them and ben- efit from them, and—God willing—those people who act upon them, keeping in mind the underlying wisdom, will cer- tainly derive benefit.It should, however, be remembered well that just as the human body has joints, in the same way the words that are recited during standing, bowing, prostrating, etc.are the joints of S al a t.Special attention must be paid to the words that are recited at these joints.If this is done, then the S al a t will become very strong; otherwise, it will fall.Now I will explain those methods for maintaining attention in S al a t which are not included in the conditions of S al a t, nor has

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 87 the Shariah prescribed them as components of S al a t, but if one follows these techniques, then concentration can be maintained during S al a t.11.The eleventh method— If you are unable to maintain attention while offering S al a t, recite the words slower and slower.The structure of the human brain is designed in such a way that it instantly brings to the forefront the idea that is repeatedley introduced to it.And the one that comes before it occasionally, it can bring it forth only with difficulty.For example, if person X is seen daily, then, while thinking of him, his image will come to mind immediately, but if seen seldom, his image will appear only after a little while when his name is heard or spoken and even that will not be completely clear.Then, look at the language that is learnt in childhood.If man speaks or hears any passage in that language, the mean- ings come to his mind along with its words.For example, if the word for water comes to mind, then—without any pause— the reality of water will also come to his mind.Or if the word for bread is heard from anyone, then—without any delay—the meaning of bread will show up in his mind.However, this is not the case with a foreign language over which one has not acquired full mastery.Instead, the mean- ing comes to mind a long time after hearing the words.For example, children learning English: until they become fully proficient in English, when they read the word cat in a book, the reality of the word will come to their mind only after quite some time, but after uttering bill i [the word for cat in Urdu], the image of that animal will come to their minds immediately.

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88 This is indeed the reason why—apart from the people who speak Arabic—Muslims who are generally not familiar with Arabic cannot maintain their attention in S al a t, because atten- tion can be maintained only when the meanings of the words being said are also present in one’s mind.But due to the lack of familiarity with Arabic, when they are reciting the Arabic pas- sages, the meanings of those words do not come along in their mind; instead, the meanings and the words get jumbled up.For example, when a person says ُدُبْعَن َکاَّیِا [ Iyy a ka na‘budu — You alone do we worship], not the meaning of this sentence, but the meaning of ِمْيِحَّرلا ِنٰمْحَّرلا [ Ar-Ra h m a n-ir-Ra hi m— the Gracious, the Merciful], or maybe of ن ی وم الد ی مٰلك [ M a liku- Yaumid-D i n —Master of the Day of Judgment] are transpiring in his brain.So for that reason, full attention cannot be main- tained nor can the benefit of S al a t be attained fully.Accordingly, the people who are not well versed in Arabic and do not possess much command over it, so that—like the mother tongue—its words and their meanings occur simul- taneously in the mind; they should not move forward when offering S al a t, until the meaning of the sentence they are reciting appears in their mind.For example, when they recite ِمْيِحَّرلا ِنٰمْحَّرلا ِهّٰللا ِمْسِب [ Bismill a h-ir-Rahm a n-ir-Rah i m —‘ In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful’], then, until its meaning comes to their minds very clear, they should not say Al h amdulill a hi Rabb-il- A lam i n [‘All Praise belongs to Allah, Lord of all the worlds’], and until the meanings of this verse do not come to mind, they should not proceed to Ar-Rahm a n- ir-Rah i m [‘the Gracious, the Merciful’] , and they should do likewise with all the verses; because, if they do not do this, the

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 89 words that they will be reciting with their tongue will be dif- ferent from the meaning appearing in their minds, the con- sequence being that thoughts become dispersed.And when dispersion ensues, concentration cannot take hold.The peo- ple who know Arabic, even if they recite rapidly; though the meaning would come to their minds immediately, they [the meanings] will not get a chance to be absorbed into the heart.For this reason, they should also recite the Quran slowly and move forward with frequent pauses.This is not important just for the Quran.Rather, the same should be done during counselling and advising.Once Hadrat Abu Hurairah ra , was narrating a hadith quickly and forcefully.Hadrat ‘Aishah ra asked who he was and what he was doing.He told her his name and said that he was narrating a saying of the Holy Prophet s as.She asked, ‘Is this the manner in which the Holy Prophet s as used to speak?’ Upon hearing this he became silent.In short, this is a sunnah [practice] of the Holy Prophet s as that not only in the recitation of the Holy Quran but also in general counselling or advising he would speak slowly.Thus, in order to maintain attention you should also act upon this command and sunnah.In this way, concentration will be excel- lently maintained because there will be no confusion where the tongue has one thing upon it while the mind perceives something different within it.12.The twelfth method is the one that has been enjoined by the Holy Prophet s as , but many people are negligent towards it.This method is that the Holy Prophet s as has said that when

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90 one stands up to offer the S al a t, he should fix his sight toward the place of prostration.There are many people who shut their eyes after standing up and think that in that way their atten- tion will take hold, whereas attention can be maintained by keeping the eyes open.This is indeed the reason why the Holy Prophet s as has advised us that upon standing up for S al a t, we should fix our gaze upon the place of prostration.In his book Aw a rif-il-Ma‘ a rif, Hadrat Shih a b-ud-Deen Suhrawardi rta writes that during ruk u ‘ [bowing posture in Prayer], the eyes should be focused between the two feet and in my view this is correct ( ‘Aw ā rifil-Ma‘ ā rif, al-Bāb as-Sābi‘ wath-Thalāthūn fī Wasfi S alāti Ahlil-Qurb.vol.2, p.340, pub- lished by Maktabat ath-Thaqāfah ad-Dīniyyah, Cairo 2006).22 This is also beneficial for the eyes and causes greater reverence to develop as well.There is a very great wisdom in limiting the scope of view and it is that God Almighty has placed this feature in the creation of man that when one of his senses is functioning, the other senses become senseless.For example, when the eyes concentrate perfectly, the ears become disengaged.Thus, when the eyes are busy looking at something with full power, if someone hollers, it will not be heard.And, when the ears are so totally occupied in listening to something, the nose’s ability to smell is suspended.And when the nose is fully occu- pied in smelling something with all its ability, the ears and eyes suspend the execution of their tasks.Thus, when one sense is engaged in operation and reaches its optimal performance, the other senses do not function, but when all the senses are

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 91 idle and none of them is engaged in doing its work, the defect develops that various and sundry thoughts become excited.The reason for this is that when one sense is functioning, then the thoughts related to the other senses do not arise.This is indeed the reason why that sense stops other thoughts from transpiring.Thus, when the eyes are occupied in performing their task during S al a t and are involved in seeing, then vari- ous and sundry thoughts will not arise in the mind.This fact has come to light these days through an actual physical exper- iment, but look, keeping this natural wisdom in mind, 1,300 years beforehand the Holy Prophet s as had given the instruc- tions to keep the eyes open during S al a t.Moreover, he realized that when that particular sense is engaged in operation, the individual will escape assorted thoughts.Had the sense of smell been employed, it would have been necessary first to arrange for scents, but then the sensing abil- ity of the nose cannot be delimited.If different people who would be present together offering the S al a t or passing by, were users of different scents, then, the attention, instead of being focused, would be wandering from one side to the other.Just like the sense of the nose, the sense that the ear possesses also cannot be delimited.It is not in the power of man that he should only hear what he wishes to hear and refuse to hear what he does not wish to hear.Whatever number of sounds that arise at any given time, man is forced to hear them all.Rather, if many sounds ascend at once, a man can hear nothing at all.Thus, if ears are allowed to work, they will either hear all the sounds or nothing at all.However, in contrast to these senses, eyes are under man’s

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92 control.He can keep them at one place and keep them away from what he doesn’t want to see without any fuss.He can focus his eyes on the thing that he wants to see without diffi- culty.Thus, under the commandment of God Almighty, the Holy Prophet s as selected this sense for achieving concentration in S al a t and directed that we keep our eyes focused toward the place of prostration during the S al a t.Nevertheless, he simultaneously directed there should be no beautiful thing at the place of prostration, but rather there should be a uniformity of view; meaning, of the same kind.When a Muslim focuses his sight upon the place of prostration, then, first, the thought of prostration prevail- ing over his mind will keep him occupied in the thought of worship.Second, in this way his other senses, which as a rule must either be left totally free or be totally shut down, will shut down.The third benefit will be that since thoughts are in fact prompted by external influences—which, in turn, are perceived through the senses—but because the eyes have been put to work, the other senses become non-operational to an extent, and because there will be nothing before the eyes that could raise any thoughts other than S al a t, the person engaged in S al a t will have his attention remain focused on S al a t alone.It is proven from the Holy Prophet s as that once, a deco- rated sheet was placed in front of the place where the Holy Prophet s as offered his Prayer.He instructed it to be removed, pointing out that due to it, attention cannot be maintained in the S al a t ( S a hih al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitābu s-S alāt, Bābu in S alla fī Thaubin Mu s allibin au Ta s āwīr hal Tafsudu S alātuhū wa mā

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 93 Yunhā min Dhālik; Hadith 374).23 He gave this instruction for the benefit of his Ummah.13.The thirteenth Method— As I have already men- tioned, when someone stands to offer S al a t, he should do so having made the Niyyat and Qa s ad [Declaration of Resolve].Similarly, he should also make the determination that he will not let any thought enter S al a t.Of course, everybody knows that he should not permit thoughts to come, but old matters become forgotten.So for this reason when one stands up to offer S al a t he should remind himself at that time that he will not permit any other thought to come to mind during the S al a t.14.The Fourteenth Method— When a believer stands behind the imam to offer the S al a t, the recitation of the imam keeps him awake and alert.It is as if the imam is safeguarding him.(From this, one can learn how essential it is to offer the S al a t behind the imam.) But when offering Prayer alone, one should follow this excellent method employed by the Holy Prophet s as , his companions ra , and many great sufis, and that is to repeatedly recite those special verses of the Holy Quran that inculcate the fear of Allah.For instance, when reciting S u rah al-F a ti h ah, repeat the following verse often: * ُنْيِعَتْسَن َکاَّیِا َو ُدُبْعَن َکاَّیِا * You alone do we worship and You alone do we implore for help ( S u rah al-F a ti h ah, 1:5).[Publisher]

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94 So much so that if one’s soul is involved in scattered thoughts it should feel remorse and think that with his mouth he is claiming to be a slave and servant of Allah the Exalted, but practically he is running here and there.15.The Fifteenth Method— I tell this method for those people who cannot hold their resolve for very long.Just like an infant needs to be nursed at short intervals because he cannot bear hunger for very long and cannot digest all food together, similarly some people are in need of being provided support every so often.They should follow this method that when they stand up in qiy a m they should resolve to not let any thoughts come until the ruk u ‘ and when they go into the ruk u‘ they should say that they will not let thoughts intervene till they stand up.In this way, at each stage they should make a new resolve.This will give them such a power by which their scattered thoughts will go away.16.The sixteenth Method— If a man falls prey to scat- tered thoughts, they will not stop chasing him, but if he con- fronts them and resolves not to let them in at all, they will stop.Therefore, they should be fought well, and whenever any thought encroaches, it should be stopped immediately.For example, if the thought begins to take hold that one’s child is lying ill—‘What will become of him?’—one should immedi- ately stop this thought by saying that the child is not going to get any better by him raising this thought in his mind nor is he going to get any worse if he does not raise this thought.So, he doesn’t bring up the thought at all.Continue this practice

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 95 about every matter until you achieve a command over such thoughts.17.The seventeenth Method— When you offer Naw a fil at home, recite loud enough so that the voice continues reach- ing the ears.Its benefit is that since the ears are not plugged with anything, they continue to be functional to some degree.When is done with the voice as well, then attention gets a better hold, because the ears also begin to pay attention to the dhikr.This method should mostly be practiced during the Prayer at night.If you put the ears to use during the day, instead of benefiting, there is a dan- ger of attention being divided by all kinds of noise prevalent in the surroundings during those times.18.The eighteenth Method— This method is under the wisdom that a new thought always develops due to a new movement.The movements that are made during the Prayer— this very thought develops in them that worship be done; so, there is no harm in them, but the result of other movements is that the attention goes to the other direction.That is why the Holy Prophet s as has instructed that apart from the necessary movements no other movements should be made in the state of offering S al a t.Certainly, thoughts scatter because of mak- ing unnecessary movements.For example, someone touches his coat for no reason.While touching it, a thought arose in his mind that this coat is really old and he should have a new one made.Upon this, the thought arises that where will the money for the coat come

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96 from—the salary is so meagre.Then, that it has been a long time since the salary was paid.Again, if the delay in the salary had been due to the fault of the officer, then he will curse out the officer.Then he will get lost in the thoughts that he will do such and such with him.While doing that, the voice will be heard, Assal a mu ‘alaikum wa ra h matull a h and he will also finish his Prayer.Thus, because a new movement produces a new thought, the Holy Prophet s as has commanded that no new movements should be made during the Prayer.He has gone so far as to declare that even if there are pebbles at the place of prostra- tion, they should not be removed and if they cause too much pain they may be removed once.Therefore, while praying, such movements should be avoided altogether.19.The nineteenth Method— Perform qiy a m, ruk u ‘ [bow- ing], and sajdah [prostration] energetically.That is to say, when standing for qiy a m, do so with vigour and alertness and not in the manner of putting all of the weight on one leg, leav- ing the other leg hanging loose, because when you are slack, the enemy overpowers you.Then, outer alertness affects the inner alertness.This is why the Holy Prophet s as has commanded that all movements must be performed with alertness.20.The twentieth Method— Some sufis have used excess in it.Though I do not like excess, a believer can benefit from it.[ Hadrat] Junaid rta of Baghdad was a great saintly man.One of his followers was Shibli rta , who possessed great sincerity and fear of Allah.He was the governor of a province.Once, when

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 97 he was present in the court of the king, he witnessed a major chief being bestowed a royal mantle as a reward for some very great service that he had performed.This chief was suffering from a cold; his nose was running.The chief had forgotten to bring a handkerchief.When he thought the king was not looking, the chief wiped his nose with the same royal mantle.The king noticed it and said very angrily, ‘Is this the value of our royal mantle in your sight!’ As Shibli rta had the fear of Allah in his heart, he was so overwhelmed by this incident that he fell unconscious.When he regained consciousness, he said, ‘I wish to resign from the governorship.’ When the king asked him for the reason, Shibli rta told the king, ‘You gave this chief a royal mantle which he did not value appropriately, and you became so furious with him, whereas I have been granted innumerable bounties by God.How great will be His punishment if I do not value them properly and do not render thanks for them?’ After this he went to Junaid rta and asked to be accepted as his pupil.He said, ‘I cannot accept you as a student; you have been a governor and in that capacity you must have commit- ted many types of excesses against the creatures of God.’ He asked, ‘Is there any cure for this ?’ Junaid rta told him that he should go to every house in the area that he had been the governor of, and say that if he had committed any excess against anyone, they should take revenge for it.Accordingly, he did exactly that.It is written about him that when he offered the Naw a fil and would find any kind of slackness in his body or if any

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98 thoughts would come into his mind which would try to dis- tract his attention towards any other direction, he would take a stick and start hitting his body with it until the stick would break and then he would recommence offering (his Naw a fil ).In the beginning he used to keep a bundle of sticks with him.What he did was excessive and in my view Islam does not look favourably upon it.However, since the matter is related entirely to his personal self, I do not level any criticism upon him.There is, however, a way of disciplining the self in my view.If in any rak‘ a t a distracting thought develops, you should iden- tify the portion which you were reciting when this happened.When you determine this, you should again start offering the Prayer from that very point.By doing this when the self will see that this man is actually inclining to God Almighty and is not listening to me, it will cease creating dispersion [of thoughts] and calm will be attained.21.The twenty-first Method— This is, in a way, a very great and very highly useful method.And that is: S u rah al-Mu’min u n, 23:4 َنْوُضِرْعُم— ِوْغَّللا ِنَع Believers do not do anything vain.Those people who are used to vain thoughts are the very people in whose hearts the other thoughts arise during Prayer, but if they act to prevent such thoughts from arising on the very first day, the condition of dispersion will not arise.Nonetheless, most people remain engrossed in vain thoughts like [the proverbial] Shaikh Chilli,

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 99 even though there is no benefit from them.The mind should never be permitted to indulge in thoughts that are only spec- ulative and conjectural.Yes, there is no harm in thinking of useful and beneficial things.Particularly, it is the height of ignorance to be bothered by thinking about the incidents that have already occurred and it could be of no use to think about them now.It is an obvious matter that in whatever direction human capabilities and powers are employed, they become attentive to those very things.Thus, when someone turns his mind towards unreasonable thoughts, he loses the ability to attend to reasonable things.Accordingly, preventing one’s mind from engaging in vain thoughts, one should employ it to work on lofty and beneficial ideas.When this effort is made, you will always become disposed towards deliberating on beneficial matters.And to think of other things while being involved with one task is vain and not beneficial, except what God wills.Thus, the mind of a person who has trained it to focus on ben- eficial matters will not wander here and there at the time of offering Prayer.22.The twenty-second Method— This is also a method of great magnificence and takes one to the pinnacle of spirit- uality.The Holy Prophet s as was asked, ‘What is i h s a n [good- ness]?’ He responded, َ َرَاك ی ٗ ُن ْ تَرَاه ُ فَإِنَّه ک أَن ْ تَعْبُد َ هللا َ كَأَنَّك َ تَرَاه ُ فَإِن ْ لَم ْ تَ [‘To worship Allah as if you are seeing Him, but as a minimum be aware that He is seeing you’] ( S a hīh al-Bukhārī, Kitābul-Īmān, Bāb Su’āli Jibrīl an-Nabiyya ‘anil-Īmān wal-Isl a m wal-I h sān wa ‘Ilmis-Sā‘ah; Hadith 50).

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100 Thus, when you stand for Prayer, fix this scene before your eyes that you are as if standing in the presence of God Almighty and He is visible right in front of you—not in any physical form but in His glory and majesty.In this way, the grandeur and omnipotence of God Almighty is impressed upon the heart, and the soul comes to understand that at such time it should not perpetrate any frivolous act.If you cannot visualize God, believe with certainty, as a minimum, that God is watching you and that He is reading all thoughts that are passing through your mind.One should see that if, while he is uttering Al h amdulill a h [‘All praise belongs to Allah’] with his tongue, whether his heart is also saying Al h amdulill a h or is it occupied with some other thought? And if the heart is otherwise engaged, he should censure it and make it join his tongue.The Holy Prophet s as says that that servant of God who offers even two rak‘ a t in such a way that he does not communicate with his self, shall have all his sins forgiven.Now, ponder con- cerning that man who avails this condition always—how much of excellence would he be able to attain! Therefore, maintain- ing attention fixed towards God Almighty in the S al a t is no ordinary matter.So these methods which I have informed you about, purely by the grace and beneficence of God Almighty, should not be considered to be ordinary, but they should be put to full use, and remember that if you will put them to use you will receive immense blessings.The saying of Assal a mu ‘alaikum wa ra h matull a h at the con- clusion of the Prayer, also contains a wondrous indication.In it, man’s attention has been drawn to the need to maintain his

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Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 101 attention.You see, you say Assal a mu ‘alaikum when you come from somewhere.When a believer says Assal a mu ‘alaikum wa ra h matull a h at the conclusion of his S al a t, he is stating as if he had gone to express his servitude in the presence of God Almighty and has now returned from there and he has brought us peace and mercy; but since he was always physically present there, the only meaning that could be drawn from this is that it was his spirit that had been prostrating at the threshold of Allah the Exalted—and he was so engrossed in worship that it was as if he was absent from this world.Thus, saying Assal a mu ‘alaikum at the conclusion of Prayer testifies to the fact that it is essential for a believer to be alert in safeguarding his S al a t, because he is, at that time, present in the Court of God Almighty.This is indeed why God Almighty has also said: S u rah al-An‘ a m, 6:93— َنْوُظِفاَحُي ْمِهِتاَلَص ىٰلَع ْمُه َو It is the great quality of believers that they keep a watch over their Prayers very well; that is, Satan wants to spoil their Prayers but they safeguard it from his attacks very well.Therefore, everyone should guard his S al a t and when he stands up to offer his S al a t he should understand that he has gone into the pres- ence of God and when he concludes his S al a t he should convey the good news to the people on his right and on his left that he has brought back peace for you.However, if some person does not go into the presence of God, and remains engrossed in his own thoughts, he should consider how egregious a lie he utters when he says Assal a mu ‘alaikum wa ra h matull a h.He wishes to

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102 tell the people that he is returning from the presence of God, whereas he had never gone there.Therefore, you should all strive to fully safeguard your S al a t and continue battling with Satan fiercely who tries to move you away from the presence of God.And remember that even if you keep battling with him during the entire S al a t and do not fall before him, God Almighty will indeed consider you to have been present in His Court, but if you fall, then He too will leave your hand.So for this reason you have to keep battling.If you do this, then in the end, indeed, you will be successful.

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Dhikr in Gatherings Up to this time, I have mentioned three types of dhikr : firstly, S al a t; secondly, the Holy Quran; and thirdly, those remem- brances of Allah that are done in addition to S al a t, but done pri- vately.Now, one type of dhikr remains and that is the dhikr which is done in gatherings.There are two ways of performing this dhikr as well.1.THE FIRST METHOD is that whenever we get a chance to meet our co-religionists, instead of vain and vulgar talk, we should talk about the powers of Allah the Exalted, His glory, His favours, and mention His Signs.In this way the heart is purified and a most holy influence is exerted upon the soul.It is narrated from the Holy Prophet s as that once he came out of his home and saw that some people were engaged in Prayer in the mosque while some others were sitting in a circle discussing matters of faith.The Holy Prophet s as went and sat

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104 with the group that was sitting in the circle and said that that was better than what the other people were doing.From this it is learnt that sometimes proclaiming the is better than His remembrance in private.I said some- times because that form of remembrance too is essential at its own time, but yes, when people are gathered together, at that time, proclamation of Allah’s remembrance is beneficial because through it, by listening to the experiences of other people and by communicating one’s own experiences to them, much opportunity is availed to profit oneself and to be of ben- efit to others.And at such times to engage in dhikr by oneself may become the cause at times for sanctimony.Exposition of the meanings of the Holy Quran is also included in these types of dhikr.Similarly, to give sermons and addresses to one’s co-religionists about the Faith is also included in this.2.THE SECOND TYPE of this dhikr is the one that is done in the gatherings of the opponents.All religions other than Islam are guilty by way of adding somewhat to, or subtracting some- what from, the attributes of Allah the Exalted.Thus, to man- ifest before them the true eminence and majesty of Allah the Exalted, is also a form of dhikr.Allah the Exalted says in S u rah al-Muddaththir: * Surah al-Muddaththir, 74:2–4— ْرِّبَكَف۰۰ َكَّبَر َو ْرِذْنَاَف۰۰ ْمُق ُرِّثَّدُمْلا۰۰ اَهُّيَاٰۤي * O you who has wrapped yourself with your mantle! Arise and warn.And your Lord do extol.[Publisher]

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Dhikr in Gatherings 105 Apart from warning the people about Divine chastisement, the command has been given to convey the greatness of Allah the Exalted to them and takb i r [reciting Allah u Akbar —‘Allah is the Greatest’] is a part of dhikr.So, expressing the attributes of Allah the Exalted before the people belonging to other faiths and presenting arguments in their support is also included in the.In S u rah al-A ‘l a , a reference to this very dhikr is also indicated, and in very clear words: * S u rah al-A‘l a , 87:10— ىٰرْكِّذلا ِتَعَفَّن ْنِا ْرِّكَذَف Dhikr is the name clearly given to it.* So go on reminding; surely, reminding is profitable.[Publisher]

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Benefits of Dhikr I will now mention some benefits of engaging in dhikr.1.The greatest benefit that one attains by engaging in dhikr is that the pleasure of Allah the Exalted is achieved.This does not mean that this is a virtuous act and so, like other deeds, God can be pleased by its performance, but rather by doing this, God is especially pleased, and the greater the value of the deed, the greater the value of the reward.God Almighty says about dhikr at one place in the Holy Quran: S u rah al-‘Ankab u t, 29:46 — ُرَبْكَا ِهّٰللا ُرْكِذَل َو Meaning that the is the greatest.At another place He says:

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108 ًةَبِّيَط َنِكٰسَم َو اَهْيِف َنْيِدِلٰخ ُرٰهْنَاْلا اَهِتْحَت ْنِم ْيِرْجَت ٍتّٰنَج ِتٰنِمْؤُمْلا َو َنْيِنِمْؤُمْلا ُهّٰللا َدَعَو * S u rah at-Taubah, 9:72— ُرَبْكَا١ؕ ِهّٰللا َنِّم ٌناَوْضِر َو ٍنْدَع١ؕ ِتّٰنَج ْيِف That the greatest reward is the pleasure of Allah; for, the reward of the greatest can only be the greatest, not the small- est.Thus, both these ‘greatests’ have informed us in exchange of what the pleasure of Allah can be had.In this verse, God Almighty, by mentioning other things that are a reward of the : ُرَبْكَا ِهّٰللا َنِّم ٌناَوْضِر َو has told us that the ٌناَوْضِر [‘pleasure of Allah’] is another new thing and is the greatest of all.And, in reality, for the servant of God, the greatest of rewards is that Allah be pleased with him.To achieve this great reward God Almighty says that if one engages in the , then this other akbar [greatest], which is the pleasure of Allah, will be granted to you.2.The second benefit is that through it, one attains com- fort of the heart.Thus, Allah the Exalted says: — ُبْوُلُقْلا ُّنِٕىَمْطَت ِهّٰللا ِرْكِذِب اَلَا ِهّٰللا١ؕ ِرْكِذِب ْمُهُبْوُلُق ُّنِٕىَمْطَت َو اْوُنَمٰا َنْيِذَّلَا ** S u rah ar-Ra‘d, 13:29 * Allah has promised to believers, men and women, Gardens beneath which rivers flow, wherein they will abide, and delightful dwelling-plac- es in Gardens of Eternity.And the pleasure of Allah is greatest of all.That is the supreme triumph.[Publisher] ** Those who believe, and whose hearts find comfort in the.Aye! it is in the that hearts can find comfort.[Publisher]

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Benefits of Dhikr 109 Hearts find comfort in dhikr.Why? This is so because anxiety develops when man thinks that he is about to be destroyed by some calamity and if he believes with certainty that there is a remedy for every calamity and ailment, then he will not become anxious.Thus, when someone remembers Allah and understands that Allah possesses unlimited powers and can remove all types of ailments, his heart tells him that when he has such a God, then what is the need for him to become anx- ious about any difficulty? He will Himself remove it.In this way he finds comfort.3.The third benefit is that Allah becomes the Friend of His servant who remembers Him, and He remembers him in His Court even while he remains yet in this world: S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:153— ِنْوُرُفْكَت اَل َو ْيِل اْوُرُكْشا َو ْمُكْرُكْذَا ْۤيِنْوُرُكْذاَف۠ O My servants! You should remember Me; I will remember you.And remembering by God Almighty is simply that He grants one an audience in His presence.Just as for a worldly king’s remembering someone means exactly this—that such a one is called into the king’s court—so does God Almighty do the same.4.The fourth benefit is that the saves man from evils.Thus, God Almighty says in the Holy Quran:

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110 ُرْكِذَل َو ِرَكْنُمْلا١ؕ َو ِءٓاَشْحَفْلا ِنَع ىٰهْنَت َةوٰلَّصلا َّنِا َةوٰلَّصلا١ؕ ِمِقَا َو ِبٰتِكْلا َنِم َكْيَلِا َيِحْوُا ۤاَم ُلْتُا S u rah al-‘Ankab u t, 29:46— َنْوُعَنْصَت اَم ُمَلْعَي ُهّٰللا َو ُرَبْكَا١ؕ ِهّٰللا God Almighty says to the Holy Prophet s as that the Book that God has given to him, he should recite it unto the people and establish S al a t.S al a t saves one from indecency and manifest evil.And to engage in the is [a] very great [virtue] and Allah is well aware of what one does.As I have stated earlier, S al a t is also a form of.Hence, from this it becomes established that the guards against indecency and evils.Why? For the reason that the is a weighty weapon and when struck upon the head of Satan, he dies and cannot incite one towards evil.5.The fifth benefit of the is that through it the heart is strengthened, and the power to battle evil develops.Man does not lose, he rather stands firmly in combat, as Allah the Exalted says: — َنْوُحِلْفُت ْمُكَّلَعَّل اًرْيِثَك َهّٰللا اوُرُكْذا َو اْوُتُبْثاَف ًةَئِف ْمُتْيِقَل اَذِا اْۤوُنَمٰا َنْيِذَّلا اَهُّيَاٰۤي S u rah al-Anf a l, 8:46 O Muslims, when you go to contest a power and it is mighty, what you should do is commence engagement in the remem- brance of Allah in abundance.The result of this will be that your enemy will be uprooted and you will prevail over him.

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Benefits of Dhikr 111 6.The sixth [benefit] is that the person who remembers Allah attains success in all of his undertakings, provided that he remembers Allah with sincerity of heart.The proof for this is also found from this very verse which I have cited in connec- tion with the fifth benefit where Allah the Exalted says: * َنْوُحِلْفُت ْمُكَّلَعَّل اًرْيِثَك َهّٰللا اوُرُكْذا َو 7.The seventh benefit is that the Holy Prophet s as says that on the Day of Judgement, seven people will be under the shade of Allah and among them will be the one who remem- bers Allah ( Sunan at-Tirmidh ī , Kitābuz-Zuhd, Bāb mā jā’ fil- H ubbi fillāh; Hadith 2391).24 The Holy Prophet s as says that it will be such a dangerous day that all Prophets will be fearful and God Almighty will, on that Day, be Wrathful as never before because all the mischief-makers will be presented before Him.The sun will draw very close.So given this situation, it can only be imagined how fortunate would be the one who is provided the shade of Allah on that Day! 8.The eighth benefit is that the prayer of one who remem- bers Allah is accepted.The prayers that are mentioned in the Holy Quran are preceded with dhikr, viz.tasb ih [glorifying Allah] and ta h m i d [praising Allah].The first prayer is indeed S u rah al-F a ti h ah.It starts with : * S u rah al-Anf a l, 8:46 [Publisher]

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112 ِمْوَي ِكِلٰم ِمْيِحَّرلا۰۰ ِنٰمْحَّرلا ۰۰ َنْيِمَلٰعْلا ِّبَر ِهّٰلِل ُدْمَحْلَا ِمْيِحَّرلا۰۰ ِنٰمْحَّرلا ِهّٰللا ِمْسِب * ِنْيِّدلا۰۰ Then comes the part in the middle, which is half for God Almighty and half for man: ** — ُنْيِعَتْسَن َکاَّیِا َو ُدُبْعَن َکاَّیِا then is said: اَل َو ْمِهْيَلَع ِبْوُضْغَمْلا ِرْيَغ ْمِهْيَلَع َتْمَعْنَا َنْيِذَّلا َطاَرِص ۰۰ َمْيِقَتْسُمْلا َطاَرِّصلا اَنِدْهِا *** َنْيِّلٓاَّضلا۰۰ This is a prayer.So, Allah the Exalted put dhikr first and then prayer.We observe in this world as well that when a needy person comes to anyone, he first praises that person and then submits his request.Thus, when a man goes into the presence of Allah he should first acknowledge the power and authority of God Almighty * In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.All Praise belongs to Allah, Lord of all the worlds, The Gracious, the Merciful, Master of the Day of Judgement ( S u rah al-F a ti h ah, 1:1–4).[Publisher] ** You alone do we worship and You alone do we implore for help ( S u rah al-F a ti h ah, 1:5).[Publisher] *** Guide us in the right path—The path of those on whom You have bestowed Your blessings, those who not have incurred Your displeas- ure, and those who have not gone astray ( S u rah al-F a ti h ah, 1:6–7).[Publisher]

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Benefits of Dhikr 113 and admit his own humility.The Prophet Hadrat Jonah, peace be upon him, also prayed to God for himself in the same way: * S u rah al-Anbiy a ’, 21:88— َنْيِمِلّٰظلا َنِم ُتْنُك ْيِّنِا َكَنٰحْبُس َتْنَا ۤاَّلِا َهٰلِا ۤاَّل He first expressed the glory of God, and then he laid out his own condition.Then, the Holy Prophet s as says: َ مَن ْ شَغَلَه ُ ذِكْرِي عَن ْ مَسْأَلَتِي أَعْطَيْتُه ُ أَفْضَل مَا أُعْطِي السَّائِلِينَ.; meaning, God Almighty says that, ‘He who remains busy in My remembrance, receives more from Me than the one who keeps asking.’ [ Ash-Shu‘abul- I m a n, B a b 10 f i Ma h abbatill a h, Fa s l f i Id a mati Dhikrill a h, vol.1.p.413, Hadith 572, edition 2000 Beirut] This hadith does not mean that we should not pray, because S u rah al-F a ti h ah —which is the Mother of the Book—con- tains prayer along with dhikr.And prayers have been taught in abundance in the Holy Quran and the Hadith.The mean- ing, rather, is only that—compared to the person who does not engage in the and only prays—that individual receives more, who also engages in the remem- brance of Allah apart from praying, and saves time from the time he devotes to prayer and spends it in the.9.The ninth benefit is that sins are forgiven.The Holy Prophet s as has said that the sins of the person who performs * There is no God but You, Holy are You.I have indeed been of the wrong- doers.[Publisher]

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114 takb i r [reciting Allah u Akbar —‘Allah is the Greatest’], ta h- m i d [praising Allah by reciting Al h amdulill a h —‘All praise belongs to Allah’], and tasb ih are forgiven even if these sins are innumerable like the foam in the sea ( Sunan at-Tirmidhī, Kitābud-Da‘wāt, Bāb mā jā’ fid-Du‘ā’ idhā awā ilā firāshih; Hadith 3397).25 10.The tenth benefit of dhikr is that it sharpens the intel- lect.One who remembers Allah discovers such verities and points of wisdom that leave the person himself amazed.Allah the Exalted says: َنْيِذَّلا ِباَبْلَاْلا۰۰ يِلوُاِّل ٍتٰيٰاَل ِراَهَّنلا َو ِلْيَّلا ِفاَلِتْخا َو ِضْرَاْلا َو ِتٰوٰمَّسلا ِقْلَخ ْيِف َّنِا اَم اَنَّبَر ِضْرَاْلا َو ِتٰوٰمَّسلا ِقْلَخ ْيِف َنْوُرَّكَفَتَي َو ْمِهِبْوُنُج ىٰلَع َّو اًدْوُعُق َّو اًمٰيِق َهّٰللا َنْوُرُكْذَي S u rah A l-e-‘Imr a n, 3:191–192— ِراَّنلا۰۰ َباَذَع اَنِقَف َكَنٰحْبُس اًلِطاَب اَذٰه َتْقَلَخ Meaning that there are many Signs in the creation of the heavens and the earth and in the alternation of night and day, but only for those people who possess intelligence.Then, it is stated that the people who possess intelligence are those who remain engaged in the and in ponder- ing on the works of God.11.The eleventh benefit is that righteousness emanates from it.We find in the hadith: ْ فَإِن ْ ذَكَرَنِي ْ فِي ْ نَفْسِه ٖ ذَكَرْتُه ُ فِي ْ نَفْسِي ْ وَإِن ْ ذَكَرَنِي فِي ْ مَل َإ ٍ ذَكَرْتُه ُ فِي ْ مَل َإ ٍ خَيْر ٍ مِنْهُم ْ وَإِن ْ تَقَرَّب َ إِلَي َّ بِشِبْر ٍ تَقَرَّبْت ُ إِلَيْه ِ ذِرَاعًا وَإِن ْ تَقَرَّب َ إِلَي َّ ذِرَاعًا َمْشِي ْ أَتَيْتُه ُ هَرْوَلَةً.ی ْ تَقَرَّبْت ُ إِلَيْه ِ بَاعًا وَإِن ْ أَتَانِي The Holy Prophet s as says that God Almighty says, ‘When a servant of Mine remembers Me in his heart, I too remember him in My heart.’ For example,

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Benefits of Dhikr 115 when man says Sub ha nall a h, meaning, ‘Holy are You, O Allah!’ then God Almighty also says concerning that servant of His that may he also be bestowed with purity.And when God Almighty utters it, then that person certainly attains it.Then He says, ‘When My servant remembers Me among the people, I remember him among those people who are better than those among whom he mentioned Me’; meaning, among those who are righteous and virtuous, and the world acknowl- edges that he is righteous ( S a hīh al-Bukh a r ī , Kitābut-Tau h īd, Bāb Qaulillāh Ta’ālā wa Yuhadh-dhirukum-Allāh Nafsah; Hadith 7405).12.The twelfth benefit is that love grows because it is a rule for man that the object that he constantly remains in touch with, he cultivates a love for it, so much so that he even begins to espouse a love for the village or town that he lives in.Thus, when a servant of Allah remembers Allah morning and evening, and in fact, at all times, and mentions His name, then gradually, the love of Allah the Exalted goes on growing in his heart.These, then, are the benefits of the that I have mentioned briefly and I pray that may God Almighty make me and all of you benefit from them.A m i n.

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Endnotes 1 َطُوْفُوْن َ فِي ی ً َة ک َّ هلِلِ مَلَئِ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ اِن ی َّ ْرَة َ قَال َ قَال َ رَسُوْل ُ هللا ِ صَل ی َ ْ عَن ْ اَبِي ْ هُر ُم ک حَاجَتِ ی َذْكُرُوْن َ هللا َ تَنَادَوْا هَلُمُّوْا اِلَ ی كْر ِ فَاِذَا وَجَدُوْا قَوْمًا ِّ َلْتَمِسُوْن َ اَهْل َ الذ ی ِ الطُّرُق السَّمَاء ِ الدُّنْيَا قَال َ فَيَسْاَلُهُم ْ رَبُّهُم ْ وَهُو َ اَعْلَم ُ مِنْهُم ْ مَا ی َ ُ قَال َ فَيَحُفُّونَهُم ْ بِاَجْنِحَتِهِم ْ اِل دُوْنَك َ قَال َ فَيَقُول ِّ ُمَج ی َ َحْمَدُوْنَك َ و ی َ رُوْنَك َ و ِّ َب ک ُ ی َ حُوْنَك َ و ِّ َقُوْلُوْن َ يُسَب ی َقُوْل ُ عِبَادِيْ؟ قَالُوْا ی َ َقُوْلُوْن ی َ هَل ْ رَأَوْنِيْ؟ قَال َ فَيَقُوْلُوْن َ ل َ وَهللا ِ مَا رَاَوْكَ؟ قَال َ فَيَقُول ُ وَكَيْف َ لَو ْ رَاَوْنِي؟ قَال َقُوْل ُ فَمَا ی َ لَو ْ رَاَوْك َ كَانُوْا اَشَد َّ لَك َ عِبَادَة ً وَاَشَد َّ لَك َ تَمْجِيْدًا وَاَكْثَر َ لَك َ تَسْبِيْحًا.قَال مَا ِّ َا رَب ی ِ َقُوْلُوْن َ ل َ وَهللا ی َ َقُوْل ُ وَهَل ْ رَأَوْهَا؟ قَال ی َ يَسْأَلُوْنِيْ؟ قَال َ يَسْأَلُوْنَك َ الْجَنَّة َ قَال َقُوْلُوْن َ لَو ْ اَنَّهُم ْ رَأَوْهَا كَانُوا أَشَد َّ عَلَيْهَا ی َ َيْف َ لَو ْ اَنَّهُم ْ رَأَوْهَا؟ قَال ک َقُول ُ فَ ی َ َ رَأَوْهَا قَال َقُوْلُوْن َ مِن َ النَّار ِ قَال ی َ َتَعَوَّذُوْنَ؟ قَال ی َّ َ حِرْصًا وَاَشَد َّ لَهَا طَلَبًا وَاَعْظَم َ فِيْهَا رَغْبَة ً قَال َ فَمِم َيْف َ لَو ْ رَأَوْهَا؟ قَال ک َقُول ُ فَ ی َ َقُوْلُوْن َ ل َ وَهللا ِ مَا رَأَوْهَا قَال ی َ َقُوْل ُ وَهَل ْ رَأَوْهَا؟ قَال ی ْ ي قَد ِّ َقُوْلُوْن َ لَو ْ رَأَوْهَا كَانُوْا أَشَد َّ مِنْهَا فِرَارًا وَأَشَد َّ لَهَا مَخَافَة ً قَال َ فَيَقُول ُ فَأُشْهِدُكُم ْ اَن ی َ َة ِ فِيْهِم ْ فُلَن ٌ لَيْس َ مِنْهُم ْ اِنَّمَا جَاء َ لِحَاجَة ٍ قَال ک َئِ ل َقُوْل ُ مَلَك ٌ مِن َ الْمَ ی َ غَفَرْت ُ لَهُم ْ قَال بِهِم ْ جَلِيسُهُمْ.ی َ هُم ُ الْجُلَسَاء ُ ل َ يَشْق Abu Hurairah narrates the Messenger of Allah s as said: Allah has some angels who look for those who celebrate the praises of Allah on the roads and paths.And when they find a people celebrating the praises of Allah, they

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118 call each other, saying, ‘Come to the object of your pur- suit.’ He added, ‘Then the angels encircle them with their wings up to the sky of the world.’ He added, ‘[After those people have celebrated the praises of Allah, and the angels return], their Lord, asks them [the angels] though He knows better than them, “What do My servants say?” The angels reply, “They extol Your Holiness, they proclaim Your greatness, they praise You, and they glorify You.” Allah then says, “Have they seen Me?” The angels reply, “No! By Allah, they have not seen You.” Allah says, “How would it have been if they had seen Me?” The angels reply, “If they had seen You, they would have worshipped You more, glorified You more, and praised You more often.” Allah says [to the angels], “What do they ask Me for?” The angels reply, “They ask You for Paradise.” Allah says [to the angels], “Have they seen it?” The angels say, “No! By Allah, O Lord! They have not seen it.” Allah says, “How would it have been if they had seen it?” The angels say, “If they had seen it, they would have desired it more, sought it with greater zeal and developed a greater yearning for it.” Allah says, “From what do they seek refuge?” The angels reply, “They seek refuge from the Fire.” Allah says, “Have they seen it?” The angels say, “No, By Allah, O Lord! They have not seen it.” Allah says, “How would it have been if they had seen it?” The angels say, “If they had seen it, they would have fled from it hastily and would have had extreme fear of it.” Then Allah says, “I make you witnesses of how I have forgiven them.”’ The Holy Prophet s as said, ‘One of the angels would

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Endnotes 119 say, “There was so-and-so amongst them, and he was not one of them, but he had just come for some need.” Allah would say, “These are those whose companions even will not be left deprived”’ ( S a hīh al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitāb ad-Da‘wāt, Bāb Fa d li Dhikrillāhi ’Azza wa Jall; Hadith 6408).2 ً ي ْ اُنْفِذ ُ كَلِمَة ِّ قَفَاه ُ ثُم َّ ظَنَنْت ُ اَن ی َ هَذِه ِ وَأَشَار َ اِل ی قَال َ اَبُو ْ ذَر ٍّ لَو ْ وَضَعْتُم ُ الصَّمْصَامَة َ عَلَ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ قَبْل َ اَن ْ تُجِيْزُوْا عَلَي َّ لََنْفَذْتُهَا.ی صَلَّ ِّ سَمِعْتُهَا مِن َ النَّبِي Abu Dharr narrates: ‘If you were to place a sharp steel sword on this (and he pointed to the nape of his neck) then I felt that I was carrying out a word (command) which I heard from the Holy Prophet s as , I would do it before you proceeded ( S a hīh al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitābul ‘Ilm, Bābun al-‘Ilmu Qabl al-Qauli wal-‘Amal).3 And especially the Al-Fazl newspaper because the Friday sermons etc.of Hadrat Khalifatul Masih II ra are published in this regularly, in sequence, after they are prepared with great effort and diligence.4 ْ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ مَثَل ُ الَّذِي ی َّ رَضِي َ هللا ُ عَنْه ُ قَال َ قَال َ النَّبِي ُّ صَل ی ٰ عَن ْ أَبِي ْ مُوْس تِ.ِّ وَالمَي ِّ َذْكُر ُ مَثَل ُ الحَي ی َ َذْكُر ُ رَبَّه ُ وَالَّذِي ْ ل ی S a hīh al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitāb ad-Da‘wāt, Bāb Fa d li Dhikrillāhi ’Azza wa Jall; Hadith 6407; َةُ.ک َذْكُرُوْن َ هللا َ عَز َّ وَجَل َّ اِل َّ حَفَّتْهُم ُ ا لْمَلَئِ ی ٌ َقْعُد ُ قَوْم ی َ ل ( S a hīh Muslim, Kitāb ad-Da‘wāt, Bāb Fa d lil-Ijtimā‘ ‘Alā Tilāwatil- Qurān wa ‘Aladh-dhikr; Hadith 2700).5 ی هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ دَخَل َ الْمَسْجِد َ فَدَخَل َ رَجُل ٌ فَصَلَّ ی َّ ْرَة َ اَن َّ رَسُوْل َ هللا ِ صَل ی َ َ عَن ْ اَبِي ْ هُر فَرَجَع ِّ فَاِنَّك َ لَم ْ تُصَل ِّ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ فَرَد َّ وَقَال َ اِرْجِع ْ فَصَل ی َّ صَل ِّ النَّبِي ی َ فَسَلَّم َ عَل

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120 َ فَاِنَّك ِّ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ فَقَال َ اِرْجِع ْ فَصَل ی َّ صَل ِّ النَّبِي ی َ ثُم َّ جَاء َ فَسَلَّم َ عَل ی َّ ي كَمَا صَل ِّ ُصَل ی ی َ مْنِي ْ فَقَال َ اِذَا قُمْت َ اِل ِّ مَا اُحْسِن ُ غَيْرَه ُ فَعَل ِّ ثَلَثًا فَقَال َ وَالَّذِي ْ بَعَثَك َ بِالْحَق ِّ ْ لَم ْ تُصَل تَطْمَئِن َّ رَاكِعًا ثُم َّ ارْفَع ی ّٰ ر ْ ثُم َّ اقْرَأ ْ مَا تَيَسَّر َ مَعَك َ مِن َ الْقُرْآن ِ ثُم َّ ارْكَع ْ حَت ِّ َب ک َ ْ الصَّلَة ِ ف تَطْمَئِن َّ جَالِسًا وَافْعَل ی تَطْمَئِن َّ سَاجِدًا ثُم َّ ارْفَع ْ حَتّٰ ی تَعْتَدِل َ قَائِمًا ثُم َّ اسْجُد ْ حَتّٰ ی حَتّٰ هَا.ِّ ذٰلِك َ فِي ْ صَلَتِك َ كُل Abu Hurairah ra narrates: The Prophet s as entered the mosque and then a man came in, offered the Prayer and greeted the Prophet s as.The Prophet s as returned his greet- ing and said to him, ‘Go back and pray again for you have not prayed.’ The man offered the Prayer again in the same way as before, came back and greeted the Prophet s as.He said to him thrice, ‘Go back and pray again for you have not prayed.’ The man said, ‘By Him Who has sent you with the truth! I do not know a better way of praying.Teach me how to pray.’ He said, ‘When you stand for the prayer, say takb i r and then recite from the Quran what you know and then bow till you feel at ease, then rise from bowing till you stand straight.Afterwards prostrate till you feel at ease and then raise (your head) and sit till you feel at ease and do the same in the whole of your Pprayer’ ( S a hīh al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitābul-Azān, Bāb Wujūbul-Qir’ati Lil-Imāmi wal-Ma’mūmi fi s-S alawāti Kullihā fil- H a d ari was-Safari wa mā Yujharu fīhā wa mā Yukhāfatu; Hadith 757).6 صَبِي ٍّ لَهَا فَقَال َ لَهَا اتَّقِي ی َ ِي ْ عَل ک امْرَأَة ٍ تَبْ ی َ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ عَل ی َّ نَبِي ُّ هللا ِ صَل ی َ اَت هللا َ وَاصْبِرِي ْ فَقَالَت ْ وَمَا تُبَالِي ْ اَنْت َ بِمُصِيْبَتِيْ.The Prophet s as came to a woman who was weeping for her (deceased) child.He said to her: ‘Fear Allah and have patience.’ She said:

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Endnotes 121 ‘You have not been afflicted as I have been’ ( Sunan Ab ū D ā w ū d, Kitābul-Janā’iz, Bāb a s-S abru ‘Indal-Mu s ībah; Hadith 3124).7 هللا ِ اَدْوَمُهَا وَاِن ْ قَلَّ.ی هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ اَحَب ُّ الَْعْمَال ِ اِلَ ی َّ قَال َ رَسُوْل ُ هللا ِ صَل The Holy Prophet s as said that: The most beloved deeds to Allah are those which are done constantly, even if they were few ( Mishk ā t al-Ma sā b īh , Kitābu s-S alāt, Bāb al-Qa- s du fil ‘Amal; Hadith 1242).8 Hadrat Khalifatul Masih II ra had stated things to this point when someone had raised the question of what the appearance was of the angels that he had seen.Concerning this Hadrat Khalifatul Masih II ra said that angels have dif- ferent appearances and he had seen them in various col- ours and some of them were of such colours that do not exist in the world.The truth is that angels cannot be seen in their true form by human beings.Thus, they appear sometimes in the form of human beings and at other times in some other forms.9 هللا ِ اَدْوَمُهَا ی َ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ اَحَب ُّ الَْعْمَال ِ اِل ی َّ عَن ْ عَائِشَة َ قَالَت ْ قَال َ رَسُوْل ُ هللا ِ صَل وَاِن ْ قَلَّ.A‘ishah ra narrates that the Holy Prophet s as said: The most beloved deeds to Allah are those which are done constantly, even if they are few ( Mishk ā t al-Ma s āb īh, Kitāb-u s-S alāt, Bāb-ul-Qa s du fil ‘Amal; Hadith 1242).10 ُ هللا ی َّ َ حَدَّثَنِي ْ عَبْد ُ هللا ِ بْن ُ عَمْرِو بْن ِ العَاص ِ رَضِي َ هللا ُ عَنْهُمَا قَال َ لِي ْ رَسُول ُ هللا ِ صَل َا رَسُوْل ی ی ٰ َا عَبْد َ هللا ِ اَلَم ْ اُخْبَر ْ اَنَّك َ تَصُوم ُ النَّهَار َ وَتَقُوم ُ اللَّيْلَ؟ فَقُلْت ُ بَل ی َ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم

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122 َ َّ هللا ِ قَال َ فَل َ تَفْعَل ْ صُم ْ وَاَفْطِر ْ وَقُم ْ وَنَم ْ فَاِن َّ لِجَسَدِك َ عَلَيْك َ حَقًّا وَاِن َّ لِعَيْنِك َ عَلَيْك ُ حَقًّا وَاِن َّ لِزَوْجِك َ عَلَيْك َ حَقًّا وَاِن َّ لِزَوْرِك َ عَلَيْك َ حَقًّا وَاِن َّ بِحَسْبِك َ اَن ْ تَصُوْم َ كُل ه ٖ فَشَدَّدْت ِّ حَسَنَة ٍ عَشْر َ اَمْثَالِهَا فَاِن َّ ذٰلِك َ صِيَام ُ الدَّهْر ِ كُل ِّ ُل ک ِ َّام ٍ فَاِن َّ لَك َ ب ی ُ شَهْر ٍ ثَلَثَة َ اَ هللا ِ دَاوُد ُ عَلَيْه ِ السَّلَم ِّ ي ْ اَجِد ُ قُوَّة ً قَال َ فَصُم ْ صِيَام َ نَبِي ِّ َا رَسُوْل َ هللا ِ اِن ی ُ د َ عَلَي َّ قُلْت ِّ ِ فَشُد َمُ؟ قَال َ نِصْف َ الدَّهْر ل َّ هللا ِ دَاوُد َ عَلَيْه ِ الس ِّ وَل َ تَزِد ْ عَلَيْه ِ قُلْت ُ وَمَا كَان َ صِيَام ُ نَبِي هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّمَ.ی َّ صَل ِّ َا لَيْتَنِي ْ قَبِلْت ُ رُخْصَة َ النَّبِي ی َ َقُوْل ُ بَعْد َ مَا كَبِر ی ِ َان َ عَبْد ُ هللا ک فَ ‘Abdullah bin ‘Amr bin Al-Asra narrates: The Messenger of Allah s as said to me, ‘O ‘Abdullah! Have I not been informed that you fast during the day and offer prayers during the night?’ Abdullah replied, ‘Yes, O Messenger of Allah!’ The Prophet s as said, ‘Do not do that; fast and give it up (fast for a few days and then give it up for few days), offer prayers and also sleep at night, as your body has a right on you, and your eye has a right on you, and your wife has a right on you, and your guest has a right on you.And it is sufficient for you to fast three days in a month, as the reward of a good deed is multiplied ten times, so it will be like fasting throughout the year.’ I insisted (on fasting) and so I was given a hard instruction.I said, ‘O Messenger of Allah! I have the strength.’ The Prophet s as said, ‘Then fast how David, the Prophet of Allah, would fast, and do not fast more than that.’ I said, ‘How did David, the Prophet of Allah, fast?’ He said, ‘Half of the year,’ [every alternate day].Afterwards, when ‘Abdullah became old, he used to say, ‘It would have been better for me if I had accepted the permission of the Prophet s as (i.e.to fast only three days a month)’ ( S a hih al-Bukh ā r ī, Kitābu s-S aum, Bāb H aqqil-Jismi fi s-S aum; Hadith 1975).

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Endnotes 123 ْ َفْقَه ْ مَن ْ قَرَأ َ الْقُرْآن َ فِي ی ْ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ قَال َ لَم ی َّ عَن ْ عَبْد ِ هللا ِ بْن ِ عَمْرٍو أَن َّ النَّبِي َّ صَل أَقَل َّ مِن ْ ثَلَثٍ.Abdullah bin Umar relates: The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: ‘He who recites the [entire] Quran in less than three days has not under- stood what he has read’ ( Sunan at-Tirmadhī, Abwābul- Qirā’āt, Bāb fī kam Aqra’ul-Qur’ān Hadith 2949).Hadrat Khalifatul Masih II ra had spoken to this point when someone inquired whether the Quran should be recited on Fridays as well, and if it should be recited on Fridays, why is there no dars on Fridays (In Qadian there is no dars conducted on Fridays).Concerning this H u du r ra said, ‘The Holy Quran should be recited on Fridays as well, but there is no dars because it is also a form of education and since Friday is established as somewhat of a holiday for Muslims, educational activities are not performed on Friday.Secondly, another act of worship has been added for this day and that is the Friday sermon and that takes the place of the dars.’ 11 ِ ح ُ هللا َ فِي ْ دُبُر ِّ َخِيْب ُ قَائِلُهُن َّ تُسَب ی َّ بَات ٌ ل ِّ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ قَال َ مُعَق ی َّ صَل ِّ عَن ِ النَّبِي رُه ُ اَرْبَعًا وَّثَلَثِيْنَ.ِّ َب ک ُ صَلَة ٍ ثَلَثًا وَّثَلَثِين َ وَتَحْمَدُه ُ ثَلَثًا وَّثَلَثِيْن َ وَت ِّ كُل The Holy Prophet s as said: There are certain prayers right after every prescribed Prayer that will protect the reciter from disap- pointment: ‘Holy is Allah’ thirty-three times, ‘Praise be to Allah’ thirty-three times, and ‘Allah is most Great’ thir- ty-four times ( Sunan at-Tirmidh ī , Abwābud-Da‘wāt, Bāb mā jā’ fit-Tasbī h i wat-Takbīri wat-Ta h m i di ‘Indal-Manām; Hadith 3412).

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124 12 Someone asked whether one should make use of a tasb ih [prayer beads used to keep count] in order to recite like this.Concerning this Hadrat Khalifatul Masih II ra said that this is an innovation.13 ْ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ قَال َ لَقِيَنِي ی َّ قَال َ وَكَان َ مِن ْ كُتَّاب ِ رَسُوْل ِ هللا ِ صَل ِّ دِي ِّ ُسَي ْأ عَن ْ حَنْظَلَة َ ال َا حَنْظَلَةُ؟ قَال َ قُلْت ُ نَافَق َ حَنْظَلَة ُ قَال َ سُبْحَان َ هللا ِ مَا تَقُولُ؟ ی ْر ٍ فَقَال َ كَيْف َ أَنْتَ؟ ک أَبُو بَ كَأَنَّا ی َّ رُنَا بِالنَّار ِ وَالْجَنَّة ِ حَت ِّ ُذَك ی َ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم ی َّ ُون ُ عِنْد َ رَسُوْل ِ هللا ِ صَل ک َ َ قَال َ قُلْت ُ ن َوْلَد ْأ َزْوَاج َ وَال ْأ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ عَافَسْنَا ال ی َّ ٍ رَأْي ُ عَيْن ٍ فَإِذَا خَرَجْنَا مِن ْ عِنْد ِ رَسُوْل ِ هللا ِ صَل ْر ک مِثْل َ هٰذَا فَانْطَلَقْت ُ أَنَا وَأَبُو بَ ی َ ْر ٍ فَوَهللا ِ إِنَّا لَنَلْق ک َ وَالضَّيْعَات ِ فَنَسِيْنَا كَثِيْرًا قَال َ أَبُو بَ َا رَسُوْل َ هللا ِ فَقَال ی ُ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ قُلْت ُ نَافَق َ حَنْظَلَة ی َّ رَسُوْل ِ هللا ِ صَل ی دَخَلْنَا عَلٰ ی حَتَّ رُنَا ِّ ُون ُ عِنْدَك َ تُذَك ک َ َا رَسُول َ هللا ِ ن ی ُ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ وَمَا ذَاكَ؟ قُلْت ی َّ َ رَسُوْل ُ هللا ِ صَل َوْلَد ْأ َزْوَاج َ وَال ْأ كَأَنَّا رَأْي ُ عَيْن ٍ فَإِذَا خَرَجْنَا مِن ْ عِنْدِك َ عَافَسْنَا ال ی ْ بِالنَّار ِ وَالْجَنَّة ِ حَتَّ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ وَالَّذِي ْ نَفْسِي ْ بِيَدِه ِ إِن ی وَالضَّيْعَات ِ نَسِيْنَا كَثِيْرًا فَقَال َ رَسُوْل ُ هللا ِ صَلَّ ُم ْ وَفِي ک فُرُشِ ی ٰ َة ُ عَل ک ِ ُم ُ الْمَلَئ ک كْر ِ لَصَافَحَتْ ِّ ُوْنُوْن َ عِنْدِي ْ وَفِي الذ ک َ مَا ت ی َ لَو ْ تَدُوْمُوْن َ عَل َا حَنْظَلَة ُ سَاعَة ً وَسَاعَة ً ثَلَث َ مَرَّاتٍ.ی ْ ِن ک ُم ْ وَلٰ ک طُرُقِ Hanzala Al-Usayyidi, who was amongst the scribes of the Holy Prophet s as , said that: I met Abu Bakr.He said: ‘How are you Hanzala?’ He (Hanzala) said: ‘Hanzala has become a hypocrite.’ He (Abu Bakr) said: ‘Holy is Allah, what are you saying?’ Thereupon, he said: ‘When we are in the company of the Holy Prophet s as we ponder over the Hellfire and Paradise as if we are seeing them with our very eyes and when we are away from the Holy Prophet s as , we attend to our wives, our children, our business; most of these things (pertain- ing to the afterlife) slip out of our minds.’ Abu Bakr said: ‘By Allah, I also experience the same.’ So, Abu Bakr and I went to the Holy Prophet s as and said to him: ‘O Messenger of Allah! Hanzala has become a hypocrite.’ Thereupon the

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Endnotes 125 Holy Prophet s as said: ‘What has happened to you?’ I said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, when we are in your company, we are reminded of the Hellfire and Paradise as if we are see- ing them with our own eyes, but whenever we go away from you and attend to our wives, children, and business, much of these things slip out of our minds.’ Thereupon, the Holy Prophet s as said: ‘By Him in whose hand is my life, if your state were to remain the same as it is in my presence and you are always busy in the remembrance (of Allah), the angels would shake hands with you in your beds and in your paths but, Hanzala, time should be devoted (to worldly affairs) and time (should be devoted to prayer and meditation).’ He (the Holy Prophet) said this thrice ( S a hīh Muslim, Kitābut-Taubah, Bāb Fadli Dawāmidh- Dhikri wal-Fikri fil Umūril-Ākhirati wal-Murāqabati wa Jawāzi Tarki Dhālika fī Ba‘dil-Auqāti wal-Ishtighāli bid- Dunyā; Hadith 2750).14 َ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ فَقَال ی رَسُوْل ِ هللا ِ صَلَّ ی حَفْصَة َ فَقَصَّتْهَا حَفْصَة ُ عَلَ ی َ فَقَصَصْتُهَا عَل َنَام ُ مِن َ اللَّيْل ِ اِل َّ قَلِيْلً.ی َ َان َ بَعْد ُ ل ک ي ْ مِن َ اللَّيْل ِ فَ ِّ ُصَل ی َ نِعْم َ الرَّجُل ُ عَبْد ُ هللا ِ لَو ْ كَان I narrated the dream to Hafsa who told it to the Holy Prophet s as.The Prophet said, ‘Abdullah is the best of men, if only he could pray at night.’ After that Abdullah (i.e.Salim’s father) used to sleep but a little at night ( S a hīh al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitābut-Tahajjud, Bābu Fa d li Qiyāmil-Lail; Hadith 1122).15 َ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ رَحِم َ هللا ُ رَجُل ً قَام َ مِن ی ْرَة َ قَال َ قَال َ رَسُوْل ُ هللا ِ صَلَّ ی َ ً عَن ْ أَبِي ْ هُر ْقَظ َ امْرَأَتَه ُ فَصَلَّت ْ فَإِن ْ أَبَت ْ نَضَح َ فِي وَجْهِهَا الْمَاء َ رَحِم َ هللا ُ امْرَأَة ی وَأَ ی َّ اللَّيْل ِ فَصَل

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126 نَضَحَت ْ فِي وَجْهِه ِ الْمَاءَ.ی َ فَإِن ْ أَب ی َّ ْقَظَت ْ زَوْجَهَا فَصَل ی َ قَامَت ْ مِن َ اللَّيْل ِ فَصَلَّت ْ وَأ Abu Hurairah narrated: The Messenger of Allah s as said: ‘May Allah show mercy to the man who gets up during the night and prays, who awakens his wife and she prays; if she refuses, he sprinkles water on her face.May Allah show mercy to the woman who gets up during the night and prays, who awakens her husband, and he prays; if he refuses, she sprinkles water on his face’ ( Mishk ā t al-Ma sā b īh , Kitābu s-S alāt, Bābut-Ta h rī d ‘Alā Qiyāmil- Lail; Hadith 1230).16 Someone asked the question whether one should not talk even with one’s wife? Hadrat Khalifatul Masih II ra said that without there being some special need, he should not talk with anyone, even one’s wife.17 ِضْرَاْلا١ؕ يِف اَم َو ِتٰوٰمَّسلا يِف اَم ٗهَل ٌمْوَن١ؕ اَل َّو ٌةَنِس ٗهُذُخْاَت اَل ُمْوُّيَقْلا١ۚ۬ ُّيَحْلَا َوُه١ۚ اَّلِا َهٰلِا ۤاَل ُهّٰللَا َنْوُطْيِحُي اَل َو ْمُهَفْلَخ١ۚ اَم َو ْمِهْيِدْيَا َنْيَب اَم ُمَلْعَي ٖهِنْذِاِب١ؕ اَّلِا ۤٗهَدْنِع ُعَفْشَي ْيِذَّلا اَذ ْنَم َوُه َو اَمُهُظْفِح١ۚ ٗهُدْؤُـَي اَل َو َضْرَاْلا١ۚ َو ِتٰوٰمَّسلا ُهُّيِسْرُك َعِسَو َءٓاَش١ۚ اَمِب اَّلِا ٖۤهِمْلِع ْنِّم ٍءْيَشِب ُمْيِظَعْلا ُّيِلَعْلا (S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:256) 18 The last three chapters of the Holy Quran are: ْمَل َو ْدَلْوُي۰۰ۙ ْمَل َو ْدِلَي١ۙ۬ ْمَل ُدَمَّصلا۰۰ۚ ُهّٰللَا ٌدَحَا۰۰ۚ ُهّٰللا َوُه ْلُق ِمْيِحَّرلا۰۰ ِنٰمْحَّرلا ِهّٰللا ِمْسِب ٌدَحَا۰۰ؒ اًوُفُك ٗهَّل ْنُكَي ٍقِساَغ ِّرَش ْنِم َو َقَلَخ۰۰ۙ اَم ِّرَش ْنِم ِقَلَفْلا۰۰ۙ ِّبَرِب ُذْوُعَا ْلُق ِمْيِحَّرلا۰۰ ِنٰمْحَّرلا ِهّٰللا ِمْسِب َدَسَح۰۰ؒ اَذِا ٍدِساَح ِّرَش ْنِم َو ِدَقُعْلا۰۰ۙ يِف ِتٰثّٰفَّنلا ِّرَش ْنِم َو َبَقَو۰۰ۙ اَذِا

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Endnotes 127 ِّرَش ْنِم ِساَّنلا۰۰ۙ ِهٰلِا ِساَّنلا۰۰ۙ ِكِلَم ِساَّنلا۰۰ۙ ِّبَرِب ُذْوُعَا ْلُق ِمْيِحَّرلا۰۰ ِنٰمْحَّرلا ِهّٰللا ِمْسِب ِساَّنلا۰۰ؒ َو ِةَّنِجْلا َنِم ِساَّنلا۰۰ۙ ِرْوُدُص ْيِف ُسِوْسَوُي ْيِذَّلا ِساَّنَخْلا۰۰۪ۙ ِساَوْسَوْلا١ۙ۬ 19 هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ بِبِنَاء ِ الْمَسْجِد ِ فِي ی َّ ُ عَنْھَا قَالَت ْ أَمَر َ رَسُوْل ُ هللا ِ صَل هللا َ عَن عَائِشَة َ رَضِی ُطَيَّبَ.ی َ ُنَظَّف َ و ی ْ الدُّوْر ِ وَأَن A‘ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, narrates: The Messenger of Allah s as ordered a mosque to be built in the residential area, and for it to be cleaned and perfumed ( Mishk ā t al-Ma sā b īh , Kitābus- S alāt, Bābul- Masājid wa Mawad‘i s-S alāt; Hadith 717).20 َ َقُول ُ إِن َّ الشَّيْطَان ی َ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم ی عَن ْ أَبِي ْ سُفْيَان َ عَن ْ جَابِر ٍ قَال َ سَمِعْت ُ النَّبِي َّ صَلَّ َان َ الرَّوْحَاءِ.ک ُون َ مَ ک َ ی ی َّ دَاء َ بِالصَّلَة ِ ذَهَب َ حَت ِّ إِذَا سَمِع َ الن Abu Sufyan nar- rates that Jabir had heard the Messenger of Allah s as say- ing: When Satan hears the call to prayer, he runs away to a distance like that of Rauha [a distance of thirty-six miles from Madinah] ( S a hih Muslim , Kitābu s-S alāt, Bāb Fa d lil- Adhān wa Harab-ish-Shai t ān ‘inda Samā‘ihī; Hadith 388).21 ِ َمْسَح ُ مَنَاكِبَنَا فِي الصَّلَة ی َ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم ی َّ عَن ْ أَبِي ْ مَسْعُوْد ٍ قَال َ كَان َ رَسُوْل ُ هللا ِ صَل ُمْ.ک َقُول ُ اسْتَوُوْا وَل َ تَخْتَلِفُوْا فَتَخْتَلِف َ قُلُوْبُ ی َ و Abu Mas‘ud narrates that: The Messenger of Allah s as used to place his hand upon our shoulders in Prayer and say: Keep (the rows) straight, do not be irregular, for it will cause dissension in your hearts ( S a hīh Muslim, Kitāb-u s-S alāt, Bāb Taswiyati s- S ufūfi wa Iqāmatihā wa Fa d lil-Awwali fal-Awwali minhā wal-Izdi h āmi ‘Ala s-S affil-Awwali wal-Musābaqati ilaihā wat-Taqdīmi Aulal-Fa d li wa Taqrībihim min-al-Imām; Hadith 432).

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128 22 ْہِ.ي َ ُوْعِہ ٖ نَا ظِرًا نَحْو َ قَدَم ك ُ وَیَکُوْن ُ فِی ْ ر And while he is in his ruk u‘ , he should be looking towards his feet ( Aw ā rif-il-Ma‘ ā rif, al-Bāb as-Sābi‘ wath-Thalāthūn fī Wasfi S alāti Ahlil-Qurb.vol.2 p.15; Published by Maktabat ath-Thaqāfah ad-Dīni- yyah, Cairo 2006).23 َ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم ی َّ عَن ْ أَنَس ٍ كَان َ قِرَام ٌ لِعَائِشَة َ سَتَرَت ْ بِه ِ جَانِب َ بَيْتِهَا فَقَال َ النَّبِي ُّ صَل ْرُه ُ تَعْرِض ُ فِي ْ صَلَتِيْ.ی ِ أَمِيْطِي ْ عَنَّا قِرَامَك ِ هٰذَا فَإِنَّه ُ ل َ تَزَال ُ تَصَاو Anas nar- rates that A‘ishah ra had a qir a m [a thin marked woollen curtain] with which she had screened one side of her home.The Holy Prophet s as said: Take away this qir a m of yours, as its pictures are displayed in front of me during my Prayer ( S a hih al-Bukh ā r ī , Kitābu s-S alāt, Bābu in S alla fī Thaubin Mu s allibin au Ta s āwīr hal Tafsudu S alātuhū wa mā Yunhā min Dhālik; Hadith 374).24 ٌ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ قَال َ سَبْعَة ی َّ ْرَة َ أَو ْ عَن ْ أَبِي سَعِيْد ٍ أَن َّ رَسُوْل َ هللا ِ صَل ی َ َ عَن ْ أَبِي ْ هُر َوْم َ ل َ ظِل َّ إِل َّ ظِلُّه ُ إِمَام ٌ عَادِل ٌ وَشَاب ٌّ نَشَأ َ بِعِبَادَة ِ هللا ِ وَرَجُل ٌ كَان ی ِ ه ِّ ُظِلُّهُم ُ هللا ُ فِي ْ ظِل ی َعُوْد َ إِلَيْه ِ وَرَجُلَن ِ تَحَابَّا فِي هللا ِ فَاجْتَمَعَا ی ی ّٰ ُ قَلْبُه ُ مُعَلَّقًا بِالْمَسْجِد ِ إِذَا خَرَج َ مِنْه ُ حَت ذٰلِك َ وَتَفَرَّقَا وَرَجُل ٌ ذَكَر َ هللا َ خَالِيًا فَفَاضَت ْ عَيْنَاه ُ وَرَجُل ٌ دَعَتْه ُ (امْرَأَةٌ) ذَات ی ٰ َ عَل ل ی ّٰ ي ْ أَخَاف ُ هللا َ عَزَّوَجَل َّ وَرَجُل ٌ تَصَدَّق َ بِصَدَقَة ٍ فَأَخْفَاهَا حَت ِّ حَسَب ٍ وَجَمَال ٍ فَقَال َ إِن َمِيْنُهُ.ی ُ تَعْلَم َ شِمَالُه ُ مَا تُنْفِق Abu Hurairah narrates or Abu Sa‘eed narrated, the Messenger of Allah s as said: Seven people will be shaded by Allah under His shade on the day when there will be no shade except His.They are: a just leader; a young man who has been brought up in the worship of Allah; a man whose heart is attached to the mosque from the moment he leaves the mosque until he returns to it; two persons who love each other only for Allah’s sake and

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Endnotes 129 meet and part in Allah’s cause only; a person who remem- bers Allah in seclusion and his eyes are filled with tears; a man who refuses the call of a charming woman of noble birth and says, ‘I fear Allah’; a person who gives charity so secretly that his left hand does not know what his right hand has given ( Sunan at-Tirmidh ī , Abwābuz-Zuhd, Bāb mā jā’ fil- H ubbi fillāh; Hadith 2391).25 َ فِرَاشِه ِ أَسْتَغْفِر ُ هللا ی ٰ َأْوِي ْ إِل ی َ هللا ُ عَلَيْه ِ وَسَلَّم َ قَالَ: مَن ْ قَال َ حِيْن ی َّ صَل ِّ ُ عَن ِ النَّبِي ْمَ) الَّذِي ْ ل َ إِلَه َ إِل َّ هُو َ الْحَي ُّ الْقَيُّوْم ُ وَأَتُوْب ُ إِلَيْه ِ ثَلَث َ مَرَّات ٍ غَفَر َ هللا ُ لَہ ٗ ذُنُوْبَه ي ِ (الْعَظ وَإِن ْ كَانَت ْ مِثْل َ زَبَد ِ الْبَحْرِ.It is narrated that the Holy Prophet s as said: One who goes to his bed and recites the following prayer three times, his sins will be forgiven even if they are like the foam of the sea: I seek forgiveness from Allah the Great who is One, the Living and All-Sustaining, and I turn to Him in repentance ( Sunan at-Tirmidhī, Abwābud- Da‘wāt, Bāb mā jā’ fid-Du‘ā’ idhā awā ilā firāshih; Hadith 3397).

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Publisher’s Note Please note that within the text of the translation, words given in parentheses ( ) are generally the words of the author or compiler.If any explanatory words or phrases are added by the translator for the purpose of clarification, they are put in square brackets [ ].Footnotes given by the publisher are marked ‘[Publisher]’.References to the Holy Quran contain the name of the s u rah [i.e.chapter] followed by a chapter: verse citation, e.g.S u rah al-Jumu‘ah, 62:4, and count Bismill a hir-Ra h m a nir-Ra hi m [‘In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful’] as the first verse in every chapter that begins with it.The following abbreviations have been used: s as s allall a hu ‘alaihi wa sallam, meaning ‘peace and blessings of Allah be upon him’, is written after the name of the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as.as ‘alaihis-sal a m, meaning ‘peace be upon him’, is written after the names of Prophets other than the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as.ra ra d iyall a hu ‘anhu/‘anh a /‘anhum, meaning ‘may Allah be pleased with him/her/them’, is written after the names of the companions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as or the companions of the Promised Messiah as.

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132 rta ra h matull a h ‘alaihi/‘alaih a /‘alaihim, meaning ‘may Allah shower His mercy upon him/her/them’, is written after the names of those deceased pious Muslims who are not com- panions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as or companions of the Promised Messiah as.aba ayyadahull a hu Ta‘ a la bina s rihil-‘Az i z, meaning ‘may Allah the Almighty help him with His powerful support’, is written after the name of the present head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, Hadrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad aba , Khal i fatul- Mas ih V.Readers are urged to recite the full salutations when reading the book.In general, we have adopted the following system estab- lished by the Royal Asiatic Society for our transliteration.ا at the beginning of a word, pronounced as a, i, u preceded by a very slight aspiration, like h in the English word honour.ث th – pronounced like th in the English word thing.ح h – a guttural aspirate, stronger than h.خ kh – pronounced like the Scottish ch in loch.ذ dh – pronounced like the English th in that.ص s – strongly articulated s.ض d – similar to the English th in this.ط t – strongly articulated palatal t.ظ z – strongly articulated z.ع ‘ – a strong guttural, the pronunciation of which must be learnt by the ear.

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Publisher’s Note 133 غ gh – a sound similar to the French r in grasseye, and to the German r.It requires the muscles of the throat to be in the ‘gargling’ position to pronounce it.ق q – a deep guttural k sound.ء ’ – a sort of catch in the voice.Short vowels are represented by: a for __ َ ___ (like u in bud ).i for __ ِ ___ (like i in bid ).u for __ ُ ___ (like oo in wood ).Long vowels by: a for __ ٰ ___ or آ (like a in father ).i for ی __ ِ ___ or __ ٖ ___ (like ee in deep ).u for و __ ُ ___ (like oo in root ).Other vowels by: ai for ی __ َ ___ (like i in site ).au for و __ َ ___ (resembling ou in sound ).The consonants not included in the above list have the same phonetic value as in the principal languages of Europe.As noted above, the single quotation mark [ ‘ ] is used for transliterating ع which is distinct from the apostrophe [ ’ ] used for ء.We have not transliterated some Arabic words which have become part of English language, e.g.Islam, Quran, Mahdi, jihad, Ramadan, and ummah.The Royal Asiatic Society’s rules of

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134 transliteration for names of persons, places, and other terms, are not followed throughout the book as many of the names contain non-Arabic characters and carry a local transliteration and pro- nunciation style.Acknowledgements The publisher would like to acknowledge Munawar Ahmed Saeed who originally translated the book.The present translation was carried out by Waseem Ahmad Sayed.There is additional text given in Anw a rul-‘Ul u m, vol.30, p.481–485, which was not added in the 1982 edition, that has been added in the present edition.We are grateful to the Research Cell for providing the full references for all quoted a ha d i th.The relevant Arabic with refer- ences is added to the endnotes.The following individuals made important contributions towards the finalization of the book: Sabahat Ahmad Cheema, Reem Shraiky, Mubashar Ahmad, Bushra Shahid, Rawan Malas, Kashifa Wahab Mirza, Fareha Hamid, Fouzan Mansoor Pal and Abdul-Wahab Mirza.May Allah the Almighty reward them all for their efforts.( A m i n )

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Glossary For the benefit of readers, some important Islamic terms are explained below.Adh a n Call for formal Islamic Prayer.A ha di t h Plural of hadith.Sayings of the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as.Ahmadiyya Muslim Commu- nity Community of Muslims who have accepted the claims of Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad as of Qadian as the Promised Mes- siah.The Community was estab- lished by the Promised Messiah as in 1889, and is now under the lead- ership of his fifth Khalifah , H a d- rat Mirza Masroor Ahmad (may Allah strengthen him).The Com- munity is also known as Jam a ‘at Ahmadiyya.A member of the Community is called an Ahmadi Muslim or an Ahmadi.‘Al i m An attribute of Allah, which means the All-Knowing.Allah Allah is the personal name of God in Islam.To show proper rev- erence for Him, the Muslims often add Ta‘ a l a , the Exalted, when say- ing His Holy name.A m i n A term which literally means, ‘so let it be’ and is used at the end of a supplication to pray that God may accept it.It is similar in mean- ing to ‘amen’.

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136 Annual Convention (Jalsa Salana) A conference held annually and attended by Ahmadi and non-Ah- madi Muslims and other peo- ple throughout the world in large numbers.The annual conference was initiated by the Promised Mes- siah as in 1891.It is known by its original Urdu name, Jalsa Salana.A yatul-Kurs i The Throne Verse of the Holy Quran, Chapter 2, verse 256.Dhikr and Dhikr-e-Il a h i Dhikr is an Arabic word meaning remem- brance.Dhikr-e-Il a h i means the.See also Prayer and Prayers.Far d Lit.compulsory or obligatory.Refers to the units of the five daily Prayers that must be performed, shortened while traveling.Con- trast with sunnah, nafl, etc.Hadith A saying of the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as.The plural is a ha d i th.Hadrat A term of respect used to show honour and reverence for a person of established righteous- ness and piety.The literal mean- ing is: His/Her Holiness, Worship, Eminence, etc.It is also used for God in the superlative sense.Holy Prophet s as A term used exclu- sively for Hadrat Muhammad, the Holy Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).Holy Quran The Book sent by Al- lah for the guidance of all man- kind.It was revealed to the Holy Prophet s as , over a period of twen- ty-three years.H u du r Your Honour/Holiness, His Honour/Holiness.‘Ish a ’ Lit.evening.Refers to the night Prayer before going to bed (one of the five daily Prayers in Is- lam).Jalsa Salana Annual Convention, Conference, or gathering.See An- nual Convention.Jam a ‘at Jam a ‘at means community.Although the word Jam a ‘at itself may refer to any community, in this book, Jam a ‘at specifically re- fers to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jam a ‘at.Khab i r An attribute of Allah, which means the All-Aware.Khalifah Caliph is derived from the Arabic word Khalifah, which means ‘successor’.(Pl.Khulaf a ’.) In many divine revelations someone commissioned by God Almighty is referred to as His Khalifah.

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Glossary 137 In Islamic terminology, the title ‘Khal i fa-e-R a shid’ [righteous Khal- ifah ] is applied to each of the first four Khulaf a ’ who continued the mission of the Holy Prophet Mu- hammad s as.Ahmadi Muslims refer to each successor of the Promised Messiah as as Khalifatul Masih.Khalifatul Masih see Khalifah.Kh a liq An attribute of Allah, which means the Creator.Maghrib Refers to the evening Prayer, immediately after sunset (one of the five daily Prayers in Islam).Makkah The ancient Arabian city, birthplace of the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as , settled by Prophet Abraham as , and home to the Ka‘bah, the holiest site in Islam.Maulaw i A Muslim religious cleric.Muhammad s as Founder of Islam.see Holy Prophet s as.Mu s le h Mau‘ u d A term, mean- ing Promised Reformer, applied to Hadrat Khalifatul Masih II, Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahmood Ahmad ra.He is called Mu s le h Mau‘ u d because he was born in ac- cordance with a prophecy made by the Promised Messiah as in 1886 about the birth of a righteous son who would be endowed with spe- cial abilities, attributes and pow- ers.The life and works of Hadrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahmood Ahmad ra are a testimony to the ful- fillment of the prophecy.Nafl/Naw a fil See Prayer and Prayers.P i r(s) Literally, ‘old’ (in Persian).Generally refers to a spiritual leader at whose hands students have taken an oath of allegiance.Title is commonly used for leaders of Sufi orders.Prayer and Prayers Three Islamic terms, all sometimes translated as prayer, should be distinguished.The first term is Du’ a prayers or supplications made to God Al- mighty.Du’ a can be made at any time and in any language.It does not require any formal prescribed posture.Du’ a is translated in the text as ‘prayer’ or ‘supplications’.Secondly, S al a t refers to the five daily Prayer services prescribed for all Muslims.Unlike Du’ a , S al a t has fixed timings and modes of perfor- mance.We have retained the term S al a t in the translation or have used the term ‘prescribed Prayer’, or ‘Prayer’.Each Prayer is divided into Rak‘a.Each rak‘ a t includes several postures—standing Qiy a m , bowing Ruk u ‘ , sitting Qa’dah , and

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138 prostration Sajdah.The prescribed Prayers have three components: Far d , those enjoined by Allah; Sunnah , those offered regularly by the Holy Prophet s as and enjoined by him; and Nafl , the voluntary components (discussed below).Nafl means to do more than is required by duty or obligation i.e.voluntary.Naw a fil is the plural of Nafl.Naw a fil , which are similar in form to S al a t, may be offered independently or in conjunction with a prescribed Prayer.Perfor- mance of Naw a fil , though not obligatory, is highly meritorious.One Nafl Prayer of great merit is Tahajjud , the late night Prayer.See also Sunnah.Promised Messiah This term re- fers to the founder of the Ahmadi- yya Muslim Community, Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad as of Qa- dian.He claimed that he had been sent by Allah in accordance with prophecies of the Holy Prophet s as about the coming, in latter days of a Mahdi (the Guided One) and Messiah from among the Muslims.Q a dir An attribute of Allah, which means the All Powerful.Qiblah Direction of the Ka‘bah in Makkah, toward which Mus- lims face to offer formal Prayers.The first Qiblah in Islam was Baitul-Muqaddas in Jerusalem.Qudd u s An attribute of Allah, which means the Holy.Ruk u ‘ The bowing down position in the Prayer.Sahib A title of respect similar to diverse English terms like Mister, Honourable, and Reverend.Sajdah The prostration position in the Prayer.Shariah Religious law of Islam.The term is also used in the general sense for any revealed law.Sunnah In the context of the formal Prayer, refers to those rak‘ a t that the Holy Prophet s as offered but are not prescribed as obligatory and are dropped while travelling.Sun- nah rak‘ a t are offered regularly by practicing Muslims.S u rah A chapter of the Holy Quran.Ta h m i d Praising Allah by reciting Al h amdulill a h (All praise belongs to Allah).Takb i r Proclaiming the Greatness of Allah by reciting, All a huAkbar (Allah is the Greatest).

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Glossary 139 Tirmidh i A book which contains collections of a ha d i th.Zakat The fourth pillar in Islam known as obligatory almsgiving, which constitutes the social sup- port system in Islam for the dis- tribution of wealth.The poor and needy are provided for by the con- tributions of the rich and affluent.Literally means, ‘increase’ or ‘puri- fication.’ Zuhr Lit.midday, noon.Refers to the early afternoon Prayer (one of the five daily Prayers in Islam).

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Index

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Index of the Verses of the Holy Quran Chapter 1, al-F « a »ti « h » ah verse 2......................................44 verse 5.............................93, 112 verses 1–4.............................112 verses 6–7.............................112 Chapter 2, al-Baqarah verse 153...............................109 verse 157..................................44 verse 240..................................36 Chapter 3, « A »l ‘Imr « a »n verses 191–192...................114 Chapter 4, an-Nis « a »’ verse 104...........................37, 53 Chapter 6, al-An‘ « a »m verse 93.................................101 Chapter 8, al-Anf « a »l verse 3......................................29 verse 46........................110, 111 Chapter 9, at-Taubah verse 72.................................108 Chapter 12, Y « u »suf verse 88....................................33 Chapter 13, ar-Ra‘d verse 29.................................108 Chapter 15, al- « H »ijr verse 10....................................36 Chapter 19, Maryam verse 59....................................30 Chapter 20, « T »« a » H « a » verse 15....................................35 verse 131..................................54 Chapter 21, al-Anbiy « a »’ verse 51....................................37 verse 88.................................113 Chapter 23, al-Mu’min « u »n verse 4......................................98 Chapter 24, an-N « u »r verse 38....................................38 Chapter 29, al-‘Ankab « u »t verse 46....................8, 107, 110 Chapter 32, as-Sajdah verse 17....................................67 Chapter 33, al-A « h »z« a »b verses 42–43....................10, 54 Chapter 39, az-Zumar verse 24....................................30 Chapter 63, al-Mun « a »fiq « u »n verse 10....................................10 Chapter 73, al-Muzzammil verse 7......................................61 Chapter 74, al-Muddaththir verses 2–4.............................104 verses 2–8................................38 Chapter 76, ad-Dahr verse 26......................................9 Chapter 87, al-A‘l « a » verse 10.................................105 verses 1–20...............................1

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Index of Topics Ablution performed before recitation of Holy Quran 42 Adh « a »n defined 135 objective of, 79 recited in ears of newborn child 43 Ahmadiyya Muslim Commu- nity defined 135 need for dhikr in, 12 Allah Attribute of Kh « a »liq 137 Attribute of Q « a »dir 138 Attribute of Qudd « u »s 138 importance of remembrance of, 9 likes worship that is routinely done 50 love of, 115 remembers those who remem- ber Him 114 remembrances of, 6 shade of, on Day of Judgement 111 states of those who remember, 30 Angels existence of, 10 have strong affinity to cleanli- ness 70 surround gatherings of dhikr 9 Animal dhikr while slaughtering, 43 Annual Conference defined 136 ‘A « s »r no sunnahs before, 85 Assal « a »mu ‘Alaikum saying at conclusion of prayer 101 Attributes of God proclaimed openly 38 Attributes of Allah mention of, as 35 Believers do not do anything vain 98 Brain workings of human, 87 Carnal passions excessive, harm spirituality 71 Child adh « a » n recited in ears of new- born, 43

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146 Cleanliness angels have strong affinity with, 70 Company of the virtuous 4 Concentration facing Qiblah helps maintain, 78 how to maintain, in « s » al« a »t 75 wud « u » is a high ranking means of maintaining, 77 Congregational « S »alat 82 Dancing not a true characteristic of dhikr-e-il « a » h « i » 27 Day of Judgement seven people will be under shade of Allah 111 Dhikr attributes of God proclaimed openly 38 before going to sleep 66 consisting of reciting Holy Quran 47 done in gatherings 103 done in gatherings of oppo- nents 104 do not engage in, when heart not at peace 49 forms of, invented by people 21 frivolous kinds of, 25 hearts find comfort in, 109 one should not be uncomfort- able while doing, 52 performing, as means of get- ting up at night 65 perform with humility and fear of Allah 52 recited after completion of « s »al « a »t 55 « s »al « a »t as most important form of, 59 sending down of Holy Quran, as descent of, 37 sharpens intellect 114 that relate to aspects of life 45 two types of, 41 types of, proven from Holy Quran 35 Dhikr-e-Il « a »h « i » and Mesmerism and Hypno- tism 22 attention of Jam « a »‘at towards, 12, 17 benefits of, 107 importance of, 9 is in addition to « s »al« a »t 37 meaning of, 8 misconceptions about, 19 precautions regarding, 26, 49 proclamation of, 104 reciting the names of God as, 13 states of, according to Holy Quran 29 times for, 54 Dinner taking, several hours before going to bed 69 Disciplining the self in « s »al « a »t 98 Ear one of doors through which influences are conveyed 26

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Index 147 European education influence of, 12 Evil « s »al « a »t saves one from indecency and manifest, 110 Extremes going to, is a predicament 51 Far « d » definition of, 138 obligation prescribed by God 59 safeguarding of, 84 Gathering of virtuous people 3 Gatherings dhikr done in, 103 God acknowledge power and authority of, 112 attributes of, proclaimed openly 38 remembering, 109 standing in the presence of, 100 Hadith on consistent worship 42 definition of, 136 fluctuation being essential in dhikr 57 gatherings for the remem- brance of Allah 3 i « h »s« a »n 99 imporatnce of Praying slowly 16 importance of dhikr 113 importance of Naw « a »fil 14 importance of Tahajjud 61 innovation 21 Iq « a »mat 80 passing down words of Holy Prophet 5 patience 33 prohibition of exceeding the limits on dhikr 50 being most desirable 11 removal of decorations from place of Prayer 92 reserving specific place for Prayer in homes 78 speaking softly 26 straight rows 81 times of dhikr 53 Heart banish malice or rancour from, 72 cleanliness of body has effect upon, 70 do not engage in dhikr when, not at peace 49 is strengthened through re- membrance of Allah 110 people say, not inclined to performance of dhikr 56 Hearts find comfort in dhikr 109 Holy Prophet defined 136 prescribed a particular dhikr for every occasion 45 Holy Quran ablution before recitation of, 42 defined as 136 on condition when doing dhikr-e-il « a »h « i » 29

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148 on 8, 35 on Tahajjud 61 reading translation of, 43 recitation of, 41, 47, 89 recitation of, as 35 sending down of, is descent of dhikr 37 Humility a characteristic of true dhikr 32, 52 Husband waking up wife for Tahajjud 61 Imam offering « s »al « a »t behind, 93 Indecency « s »al« a » t saves one from, and man- ifest evil 110 Intellect dhikr sharpens, 114 Iq « a » mat a means of developing atten- tion towards God 80 ‘Ish « a »’ dhikr after offering, prayers 65 no sunnahs before, 85 Jalsah purpose for participating in, 3 Jam « a »‘at does not pay full attention to dhikr-e-il « a » h « i » 17 love for, 5 Joy dhikr when faced with, 45 Junaid of Baghdad 96 Ka‘bah reasons for commandments to face towards 78 Khalifah defined as 136 Khal « i »fatul-Mas « i »« h » I and performance of dhikr 55 on relationship between clean- liness and purity 70 Knowledge increases when spent 5 Language that is learnt in childhood 87 Laziness weakness and, in man 15 Love for Jam « a »‘at 5 of Allah 115 Maghrib no sunnahs before, 85 Malice banish from heart 72 Man weakness and laziness in, 15 Mesmerism contrasted with Dhikr 22 Mind prevent from engaging in vain thoughts 99 Mosque offering « s »al« a » t at, 77 Movements no new, should be made dur- ing Prayer 96

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Index 149 Muslims spirituality being obliterated among Muslims 21 Nafal form of dhikr 44 Naw « a »fil continue offering, after ‘Ish « a » ’ until sleep overpowers 69 defined 138 means of achieving nearness of Allah 14, 60 philosophy of prescribing, 17 reciting aloud when offering, 95 Night performing dhikr as means of getting up at, 65 thirteen methods that help getting up at, 64 Niyyat for « s » al « a » t 93 helps in concentration in Prayer 81 Opponents dhikr done in gatherings of, 104 Pillars of Islam Hadith about 15 Poetry not a form of dhikr 27 Prayer definition of, 137 no new movements should be made during, 96 reserving special place for, in homes 78 saying Assal « a » mu ‘Alaikum at conclusion of, 101 when you stand for, 100 Prayers defined 137 mentioned in Holy Quran 111 sermons on subject of, 4 Promised Messiah critiques of innovations intro- duced into dhikr 17 defined 138 emphasis on prayer and re- membrance of Allah 12 Prophets difference between, and con- jurers 25 Prostration fixing sight towards place of, during « s »al « a »t 90 uniformity of view in place of, 92 Qa‘dah defined 59, 137 Qiblah facing towards, helps maintain concentration 78 Qiy « a »m defined 59, 137.see Dhikr-e-Il « a »h « i » before going to sleep 65 guards against indecency and evils 110 hadith regarding, 11 if initially one is not inclined to, 51 kinds of, 35 through it heart is strength- ened 110

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150 what times one should engage in, 53 Righteousness emanates from dhikr 114 Rituals condition of those who per- form such, 23 Ruk « u »‘ defined 59, 137 eyes should be focused be- tween two feet during, 90 Safeguard fully, your « s » al « a »t 102 Sajdah defined 138 « S »al « a » t as 13, 35 congregational, 82 defined 137 dhikr in addition to, 37 dhikr recited after completion of, 55 fixing sight towards place of prostration 90 fully safeguard your, 102 how to maintain concentra- tion in, 75 maintaining attention in, 86, 100 most important form of dhikr 59 offering at mosque 77 offering, behind imam 93 posture for 83 reciting the words slow 87 saves one from indecency and manifest evil 110 sunnahs before, 84 Satan when « a »dhan is called, runs far away 79 Sense when on, reaches perfection others do not function 90 Sermons on subject of prayers 4 Shibli 96 Sleep bad thought should be ex- pelled at time of, 73 dhikr before going to sleep 66 performing wud « u » before going to, 65 Sorrow dhikr when confronting, 45 Speaking Holy Prophet prohibited, after offering ‘Ish « a » ’ prayers 65 Spirituality harmed by excessive carnal passions 71 obliterated from Muslims 21 Success person who remembers Allah attains, 111 Sufis innovation introduced by 17 Sunnah as dhikr 55, 83 defined as 59 number in accordance with different timings of « S »al « a »t 85 on speaking slowly 89 protect obligatory Prayers 60, 84

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Index 151 Tahajjud alarm clocks not preferred for 63 defined as 61, 138 importance of, 62 methods for waking up for, 64 offering, 46 Ta « h » m « i »d as dhikr 43 a source of forgiveness of sins 114 importance of, 67 Takb « i »r as dhikr 43, 105 a source of forgiveness of sins 114 defined as 138 Talk should not, after performing ‘Ish « a »’ prayers 65 Tasb « i »« h » as dhikr 67, 111 a source of forgiveness of sins 114 form of dhikr 43 importance of, 67 Thoughts effect in human, 24 effect of, 76 speculative and conjectural, 99 Unconsciousness not true dhikr 20 Vain believers do not do anything, 98 Virtuous gathering of, people 3 Vitr leaving, for Tahajjud time 68 Voice effect in human, 24 Weakness and laziness in man 15 Wife waking up husband for Ta- hajjud 61 Worship Allah likes, that is routinely done 50 dhikr should be done as act of, 56 Wud « u » benefits of, 42, 65, 76 performed before recitation of Holy Quran 42 Zakat defined 15, 139 « Z »uhr sunnah at time of, 85

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