by Muhammad Sajad Ali Webmaster
Part 1 A Contents
Introduction
And this where the journey begins
Note about Hadra as a somatic experience that heals trauma:
Five years ago
Part 1 B
Dreams also five years ago before baya’
Dream of being at Maqam of Imam Jazulil
Dream - of Morocco doing hadra on Hill
Dream in the week my old Shaykh passed away and I went into khalwa- seclusion in the dream
Dream of the different shaykhs
2007 was year that my Mother passed away and full ‘ijaza of Naqshbandi-Mujaddid Kareemi
‘Spiritual depression’
‘The good dream is a forty-sixth part of prophecy’
Salawat nariayh last dua I printed
Salawat naariyah below English with meaning;
Flight of the Phoenix
Spiritual stagnation
Two Scientific lessons about our bodies and the barakah of always being positive and increasing with dhikr and not being in the state of spiritual stagnation.
1. The human body is made up of more than 70% water
2. Scientifically positive words, prayers and thoughts over water affect our molecular structure.
Part 1 C
The search
Protection from the Seventy balah-problems we get a day
Five years later -The National gathering of the Fuqarah in Chesham Aylesbury
Spiritual attention (tawajjuh) of a pious person or Tasawwur-e- shaykh
How is tawajjuh Spiritual attention done
Dream of Sidi Jamal before the Baya
The Qutb of this Time and the mujjadid - the reviver of Sufism
Coming soon Part two - A Faqir travelling the path of Al-Qadiri-Budshishi order
Bismillah,
Introduction
where should I start, Alhamdulillah-(priase be to god) I started that well and just some Salawat ala Rasul-(sending blessings, peace and prayers on the prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam) to add or Durood shareef as called in Urdu.
(This is where you; the reader, recites salawat now; any will do, as commanded in the Quran, there are 89 such commands with "O you who believe [Ya ayyuha 'lladhina amanu]". Commentary on the 89 is given in the book; The Call to the Believers in the Clear Qur'an (Nida' al-Mu'minin fi 'l-Qur'an al-Mubin by Shaykh Ahmad Fathu'llah Jami,) ‘ O you who believe’… is a commanding verse for the only believers to do an action...) so now we have added some ruhani- spiritual and barakah-blessing to this journey. This is the key salawat ala Rasul and it is for his sake (Sayyiduna Rasulillah sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam) that this universe was created. See http://www.onlineislamicstore.com/b6150.html
As a tradition goes ‘if it was not for you (referring to Habibi Mustafa Sayyiduna Rasulillah sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam)’. I would have never created creation’. If Allah wasn’t pleased with the first of creation being the (Nuri Muhammadi-Light of Muhammad sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam), we and all creation would have never been created.
The very fact we are in creation and have borrowed existence from Allah and that everyday, all creation which was created from the Nuri Muhammadi sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam) is in celebration of the beloved, this is nothing less than Allah showing us al-Mawlid-(The birth and honour due to the best of creation). We need to recognise this as the purpose of our and all existence.
This can further be seen as, Allah and his Angels are always sending blessing to the best of creation with Salawat ala Rasul ( Allah is commanding us to read Salawat ala Rasul in the Quran Allah and His Angels send blessings on the Prophet O you who believe, Send upon him blessings and salute him fully well in abundance Al-Quran, 33:56). Again I want to emphasis this, as it is the real spiritual reason for the whole affair as why we are here on earth. Another tradition says ‘I was a hidden treasure and I was wanted to be known, so I created’. Looking from a sufi point of view is to understand love. The greatest love is with Allah and then Allah’s beloved. The method of achieving this love, has been mentioned already above; that is, Salawat ala Rasul.
So we need to being doing huge amounts of Salawat ala Rasul, in hundreds and thousands of turning the tasbih-(prayer beads) to turn the heart (tawba means turning thus we are making a U-turn to Allah from the state of being in sin to his mercy). This softens the hard heart so it can absorb light like sponge does water, but instead this water is spiritual lights that are pure lights from the lights of Nuri Muhammadi sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam. These lights are heavenly that are being transmitted to the heart. Just like radiotherapy that can cure cancerous cells. Salawat ala Rasul is from heaven and is pure heavenly radiotherapy of (barakah-blessings) it is for the body, heart, soul and more. One of the secrets of the barakah-(blessing) of salawat ala Rasul is, its 100% guaranteed accepted (Ibaadah-worship) that is never turned away by Allah. The key is having (‘idhn-permission) to recite it and the real power to unlock its keys is in the Sirr-secret which is found in having a living master such as our master Sidi Hamza.
Note: However today many shaykhs hold ‘idhn-permission but only a very few have the sirr- secret, what they have today is Tabarruk–blessings of relics; (Tabarruk means deriving blessing from something once owned or touched by a holy person) Their tabarruk is the fact their grandfather was a great man and they are living of his remnant (a remnant is a small part left after the greater part has been removed) , which some shaykhs we will even admit to, being a tabarruk shaykh means the shaykh isn’t carrying the sirr- secret anymore. This could have died with the original shaykh. This is a sign of the times we live in today. The tabarruk lineage shaykh are limited and some unfortunately are charlatans so beware. If you looking for a real complete-kamil sufi master to take you to Allah, do your research and perform (‘istakhara- pray for divine guidance), before you give your poor subtle soul to someone that cant even benefit you, except with a few sufi dua-pray manuals. Really the most you can call them is shaykhs of simple taribiya-education more then anything and some don’t even amount to that. –end note
There are also very complex powerful formula sufi manuals of Salawat ala Rasul such as the famous Dalail al Khayrat-(Proofs of Good Deeds) of Shaykh al-Jazuli, just like 10 to the power of 6, is a million, the Dalail al Khayrat, is a book that is beyond measure. It is said that a special light is placed into the heart of the reader that does Khatm-(complete reading) of the noble book. There is poetry too to increase this love of the beloved, such as the Burdah Shareef-(the Poem of the Scarf, or Mantle), a poem about love in 10 chapters with 160 verses. Each verse ends with the letter Mim out of honour and love of the name Muhammad sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam). The letter Mim has a spiritually numerical value of 40. There are other poems, which are sung about the beloved, many written by his noble ancestry, the Sadaat-(shareef /sayyids).
The most powerful I have heard, are the poems recited by the fuqarah of ‘Arif billah Sidi Hamza Qadiri Budshishi who is the Qutb-(pole,the pivot around which all else rotates) of this time and the Mujaddid - (the reviver of Sufism). I will touch more about Sidi Hamza being the Mujaddid - the reviver of Sufism, right at the end for the keen searcher or novice, who is interested in the path of sufism and in the school of Sidi Hamza. And this where the journey begins … [The Qutb -the Pole, the axis, his position among saints is that of the point at the center of the circle.see the meaning of Qutb-The pole, from 'Sufi Sage of Arabia', by Imam Haddad]
And this where the journey begins
You enter a gathering where the kings of kings gather, the fuqarah-(the ones in need)-referring to sufi brothers (faqir singular) they sing with Mahabba-(love) qaisdahs-poetry with high (himma-yearning) and this opens the doors to (Dhawq- taste experiencing), a real (Hadra-spiritual dance) for the soul that leads to Hal-(spiritual rapture or ecstasy).
The Hadra-(a spiritual dance of movement where by one jumps to their feet and in a state of rapture goes into a rocking movement while the heart is connecting to Allah thorough this shaykh and this leaves him intoxicated and in the moment) This encourages the soul to Qurb-(nearness) to Allah and is one of the fastest ways for Fath-(openings) to Allah. This is so needed for the sick heart in this modern day, our hearts are being plagued with dunya-worldly sickness, pains and trials from people, desires and our egos are overriding and destroying our spiritual heart to breath, taste and live.
Note about Hadra as a somatic experience that heals trauma:
(Also the hadra cures and ‘heals traumatic states’ that the modern world and its people have given our poor souls as Sidi Hakim Archuletta-(who has worked within the healing arts profession for over 30 years). talks about using the hadra as a cure. We are all traumatized in some degree or another and are victims of violence, abuse; physical or verbal and so need a ‘sufic somatic experience’ to help. Soma refers to the body and somatic refers to the body experienced ‘from the inside’ and includes thoughts, emotions, and sensations, its about being ‘in the moment’ and by focusing on sensations, tensions, finding relaxation, using breath, movement, inner wisdom can come to the surface.(all this and more is experienced in the Hadra).
Sidi Hakim Archuletta uses some of the methods from the book ‘Walking the Tiger healing Trauma’ by Dr. Peter A. Levine.For more details, about this book see link below http://www.traumahealing.com).
which is nothing more that the technique of using Hadra as a somatic experience to heal sickness. And the book explains that wild animals shake the experience of being traumatized out of there bodies and minds to regain sanity when they survive the attack. So from a somatic experience point of view the Hadra will re-connect the senses of your body, and help you to become consciously aware of your inner and outer spiritual well being that also strengthens your health on all levels. Through the practice of hadra it helps and lessens the impact of mental, emotional and physical traumas.
Back to the gathering, the soul is intoxicated and becomes more and more nourished by listening to the Moroccan style Quran recited in Warsh and then the Wazeefa followed by reciting the Ism-(The Name of Allah) or saying Allah, but prolonging the name with some emphasis, aloud, long and with added energetic enthusiasm; Al—laaaah, Al—laaaah, Al—laaaah, then later saying or repeating one of the attribute of Allah's Name; Ya Lateef-(Oh Subtle) several hundred times too followed by other powerful du’as to strengthen the call to Allah. Then later, the singing starts… (see link ya Lateef -99 Names of Allah)
hadra with hal-(spiritual rapture) is unique key in the Qadiri-Budshishi that it happens all of a sudden, one is in spiritual rapture and is tuned to this presence, that is ‘in moment’, which is overwhelming and transforms the soul to connect to the shaykh and makes the soul dance. The power of energy surges through the soul which feels like electric power energizing the soul to re-awaken, this makes the person to suddenly jump up and go into a dance with rocking movement that moves the soul and heart.
It is this unique key that makes the Budshishi Hadra-(is a form of group dhikr-meditation where the attendees most often stand in a circle) something completely different from any other modern day Shadhili way (the sufi school of spiritual meditation started from Shaykh Abu’l-Hassan ash-Shadhili), in that the Budshishiyyah Hadra has a Hal with it which excel the aspirant, beginner, to travel the path at great speed to Allah and this is by the Sirr-(Secret) of Sidi Hamza who’s ocean of divine power is such that he teaches with just a simple vision/gaze-(Nadra) and opens your secrets and what he gives in the Hadra is something beyond words and must be experienced with dhawq-tasting, which simply is to join the tariqah and one will soon know that the Qadiri-Budshishi is the Tariqah for the western Muslims and the Tariqah of this time. For what he the 'Arif billah-(knower of god) Sidi Hamza is giving, other Shaykhs of Tariqah-(the path,the way) are holding back. And Sid Hamza is giving without condition for he knows the times we live in are difficult so he has by the ‘Idhn-(permission) of this beloved grand father the Noble Prophet peace be upon opening Sufism through the door of Jamal-(beauty) which is ease, were all other tariqahs are still going through the difficult door of Jalal-(Majestic) which is heavy and difficult.
Five years ago
But now is time to go back five years, for this is where the story starts, I was with some friends and they invited me to a sufi gathering in Chesham, Aylesbury. We started our journey in Birmingham and this is where, later it continues again in five years when I joined the Tariqah-(way).
It was Saturday night in Chesham, Aylesbury. As I was from Slough which is close to Aylesbury and so had to lead the ‘Isha salah-(the late ritual pray) in Jammat-(congregation) as my friends were all from Birmingham and Slough is close to Aylesbury, the Iqamah-(the call for standing for the pray) started. There was around five of us to start with, when I finished and turned there was about two rows of fuqarah that had seemed to appear from nowhere.
Some in old Moroccan garbs sitting and smiling, I too was dressed in my Moroccan cloths. Listening to the Qasidahs-(poetry) being sung in the other room (some which I knew) it bought back the nostalgic days when I was with the Murabitun in the early in 1990s.
(The name Murabitun means “People of the Ribat”. The term Ribat is defined as "holding fast to outposts of the Islamic lands in order to protect the Muslims therein," and also refers to the outposts themselves. Its root appears in the Qur’an as the command Rabitu) they follow the Sufi teachings of Shaykh Muhammad ibn al- Habib’s tariqah Darqawiyyah-Shadhiliyyah, The founder of the modern Murabitun movement, which was sent up by Shaykh Muhammad ibn al- Habib’s Muqadam-(representative) Sidi Abdalqadir as-Sufi. After the passing of Shaykh Muhammad ibn al- Habib, Shaykh Muhammad al-Fayturi Hamudah ordered Sidi Abdalqadir as-Sufi, into Khalwa (retreat). Some time after this Sidi Abdalqadir as-Sufi announced his leadership of the Darqawa. Sidi Abdalqadir as-Sufi much later was given the honour doctorate and thus is Muqadam Dr. Abdalqadir as-Sufi or other will say Shaykh Dr. Abdalqadir as-Sufi Al Murabit).
I entered the room and it was full of fuqarah and Shaykhs. There was Shaykh Babikir Ahmed Babikr of London who follows tariqah Sammaniyah of Sudan who I recognized and knew. A Yemeni Sayyid From Birmingham and Sidi Munir al-Qadiri Budshishi the grand son of Shaykh Sidi Hamza al-Qadiri Budshishi. And other Fuqarah from France also came and others from other tariqahs were there too which I knew.
The songs were very intense there was a spirit of joy and love in the air and some fuqarah were in Hal. More spontaneously leaped into the air and went into a hadra Hal then the majestic Sidi Munir rose like a king and all the fuqarah went into frenzy. Now we were all in the hadra, the qasidas by this time had been sung for some time. It was like the dead were rising from the graves. Our hearts were in union and we were dancing the dance of lovers and this was the hadra. The Hal experience had made many of the Fuqarah scream with ecstasy as they went into trances. The cry of excitement was spreading across the room; we were all now getting into a fervent burning hadra. We came closer and closer and sometimes touching each other as we danced the hadra our souls seemed to have weaved into unison as the hadra became stronger and powerful, the energy surged through the gathering.
Now somewhere, maybe at the peak of the hadra, I had a strange experience my face changed I felt some spiritual energy come across my face, it touched me and my face was tingling and moving. I no longer had the face I walked into the room with; I could feel burning across my face. Then I started shivering after I broke into a sweat. The hadra was now calming down, then shortly it stop.
After the talk I had the honour of sitting with Sidi Munir to eat. It was a Moroccan setup we all sat on the floor there were very big dishes placed on the floor with rice and curry we all ate from those dishes, there was about seven people to a dish. It was a long night and now time for Fajr-(the early dawn pray before sunrise)we prayed and left. Went I got outside there were some brothers that looked at me and said please help us our car wont start because the battery is dead, we have been trying to start the car for more then ten minutes please read a dua so I touch the car’s bonnet and read a dua, the car started by the time I had just finished the dua. I said I’m no shaykh it’s the barakah of that gathering that is very powerful, not me.
To find out more about the tariqah contact me: islam2jannat@yahoo.co.uk
0753 5654 125 - UK or outside UK +44753 5654 125
Yours Muhammad Sajad Ali - UK Webmaster