Three Tales Of Sufi Wisdom

Don`t know anything about these men. They may even be genuinely respectable folks. But Asif Naqshbandi`s association with them is all the smoking gun I need to convince me that something is terribly wrong here. For Non Muslims, there cannot be anything good here. If wisdom and peace is what we need, we should look for it elsewhere.

Ralph:

With all due respect, I think you clearly underestimate Naqshbandi. Though I have had my fair share of disagreements with Mr. Naqshbandi, he is an individual with a multi-faceted personality and has the capability of surprising you.

Anyways, it is the article and not the author that is important. These stories are nicely written and visually appealing. Very nicely done.

Cheers.

``The servant was very cross and held him tightly. ``

This sentence is the one jarring note I read. Held him tightly seems to be a rather too literal translation of Urdu. ``Kas key pakar liya....`` can be translated into a better turn of phrase.

First Tale: shows that people who beleive in such things are biggest kafirs, even bigger than heeng-haldi smelling Stukas and Saxenas. (why the biggest miracles happen only when Saint and disciple are alone?)

Second Tale: is fabricated to show down Rumi. Was not Shamz killed by the Muslim Khalifa or to be one? What does that say about that pious Islamic king?

Third Tale: you can be the biggest chor in the world but as long as you agree to follow the Saints, saints will accpet you as a fellow saint.

Naqshbandi if this is Sufi`sm, welcome back to the fold of half-kuffar ummah of ours.:)

In a small town in the middle of nowhere there were two churches, a Southern Baptist one and a Catholic one. The Catholic one had been steadily losing parishners to the Southern Baptist one as the latter had a new and fiery young preacher who could give a truly inspired sermon.

In despair, the Catholic Bishop recalled the banished old reprobate of a priest (the proverbial Whiskey Priest) from exile and asked him to take on the Baptist preacher and reclaim the lost sheep, so to speak. For a couple of weeks, the two went head to head and honors were even. Finally the Catholic priest proposed a contest, the loser to leave town.

At the outskirts of town was a disgusting, smelly wetland/marsh and the bet was that whoever could cross it without sinking into the mud, their faith was stronger and the loser would leave town. The priest walks up to the edge, pulls out a bottle, takes a long swig, thinks for a long time, takes another swig, and sweating and trembling, hitches up his cassock and muttering, ``Mary and the Saints help me`` proceeds to walk across the stinking water without sinking.

The Preacher is amazed and says, ``If his false faith can do this, my oneness with Christ means that I can do it as well.`` He loudly proclaims his personal relationship with Christ and then then calmly and confidently steps forward and sinks up to his ankles. Undeterred, he continues on and rapidly sinks in quicksand up to his hips. Screaming in fear and begging the priest for help, he promises to leave as soon as the priest pulls him out. The priest grabs a rope, throws it and pulls the preacher out.

As he lies gasping for breath, the preacher asks him, ``I must know. How did you do it? You had to take a drink before and call on the Saints to help. You were also trembling and sweating.`` The priest looks at him and says, ``Faith is all very well as long as things are going fine, but it really helps to know where the stepping stones are located.``

The moral of this story is that brains are better than faith, and only the stupid put their faith in God without making sure they know what they are doing.

Not bad for five minutes. Maybe I`m a Sufi and don`t know it!

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Story number one proves that Imam Junaid is nauz o billah bigger than Allah ...wah bhai wah...I was always taught that Allah is the Alpha and Omega, Awwal and Akhir, Zahir and Batin...Mr. Naqshbandi please donot lead the awaam to hell.

Ralph,

tHat is the worst argument ever! if I like, e.g. Nabokov or fried chicken will you then stop reading Nabokov or eating chicken too just because I happen to recommend it! And yet he accuses me of narrow-mindedness!

(mewlana?) fuzair:

:)

recalled this old arabian saying: `have faith in Allah, but tie (down) your camel before sleeping`

These days opinions are considered knowledge. The first tale in no way shows that Allah is lesser than Junaid and it does not show Junaid`s spiritual power.

Many teachings cannot be taught to people because they do not have the pre requisites to learn them. And if taught then they do more harm then benefit. Its better that they not be not posted on forums, where every tom, dick, and harry would misinterpret them.

The first story elucidates the necessity of a guide or teacher on the path to Allah/God. It needs to be explained in depth. I am sure the person who narrated that story, narrated it to his students and not to lay men.

Second tale: Shams was not killed by any caliph, its totally absurd to say that he was killed by a caliph. This shows the readers ignorance about the subjet.

The third tale has been misunderstood too by most readers, and its not really their fault. They have no idea of what is being taught in these tales.

Jesus said to the disciples, ``O disciples, do not cast pearls before
swine, for the swine can do nothing with them.``

``The moral of this story is that brains are better than faith, and only the stupid put their faith in God without making sure they know what they are doing.``

I do not agree.

Tabdeer first and taqdeer later.

Work hard and leave the result on Allah. Keep trying till you succeed. And if you still fail then maybe what you are trying to achieve is not good for you as Allah knows whats best for you.

Brain is simply a tool to analyze. It can not give you guidance.

Guidance comes from the Allah.

Cheers

Asfand Siddiqui
Sacramento CA

Salaam Asif,

With all due respect.

How can you explain the verse from Surah Al-Fatihah:

``Iyaka nabudu was iyaka nastain``
Loosely translated in urdu
Ay Allah hum teri hi ibadat karte hain aur tujh he se madad mangte hain.

So how can the concept of ya-junaid fits in the light of this verse??

-Asfand
Sacramento CA

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``Iyaka nabudu was iyaka nastain``

Verily all help comes from Allah we are but instruments of our Lord.

Mr Asfand and Mr Isphahani, are you two well versed in Arabic grammar? Have you studied Tafsir of the Quran? If you have`nt your interpretation of the Quran can be seriously flawed. Since, the quran can not be completely translated accurately in any other language you can not profoundly understand it in any language other than Arabic. The ayats that you two quote from the Quran; do you know when, why and under what circumstances were they revealed? Do you know to whom they were specifically addressed?

If your answer is negative to any one of the above questions your understanding of the Quran is very much flawed. To understand the Quran you need to have the pre-requistes. To understand a Quantum Physics book you need to have an understanding of physics 100. Likewise, religious knowledge requires education.

I am not saying you have no right to quote from the Holy Book. But, first educate yourself.

As far as asking for help from someone is concerned. Then Prophets themselves have done that. Because at all times they knew that it wasnt the person who helped them but in reality it was Allah. The person was only an instrument.

There are verses in the Quran that are only addressed to the unbelievers who ask help from idols. Such as the one Isphahni quoted ``29 :41. The likeness of those who take Auliyâ` (protectors and helpers)
other than Allâh is as the likeness of a spider, who builds (for itself) a house,
but verily, the frailest (weakest) of houses is the spider`s house; if they but knew`` This is addressed to polytheists. Isphahni mistakenly attributes this verse to muslims. A serious error.


Here are some incidents and proofs that permit asking humans for help.

The Prophet said to al-Farsi, concerning asking from people: ``If you absolutely must ask from people, then ask from the righteous ones`` (in kunta la budda sa`ilan fas`al al-salihin``

``Al-Bukhari narrates in his Sahih that our mother Hajar, when she was running in search of water between Safa and Marwa, heard a voice and called out: ``O you whose voice you have made me hear! If there is a ghawth (help/helper) with you (then help me)!`` and an angel appeared at the spot of the spring of Zamzam.``

`` Ibn Abi Shayba relates in his ``Musannaf`` (7:103) from Aban ibn Salih that the Prophet (saws) said: ``If one of you loses his animal or his camel in a deserted land where there is no-one in sight, let him say: ``O servants of Allah, help me! (yâ `ibâd Allâh a`înûnî), for verily he will be helped.``

``Umar (ra) sought help and relief from drought and famine in Madina by writing to `Amr ibn al-As and Abu Musa al-Ash`ari in Egypt and Basra respectively, each with the words, ``Yaa ghawthaah li Ummati Muhammad! = Help! Help! for the Community of Muhammad!``

Annas narrated: Whenever drought threatened them, `Umar ibn al-Khattab used to ask Allah for rain through the mediation of al-`Abbas ibn `Abd al-Muttalib. He [`Umar] used to say: ``O Allah! We used to ask you through the means of our Prophet and You would bless us with rain, and now we ask You through the means of our Prophet`s uncle, so bless us with rain.`` And it would rain.

These examples show that it is permissible to ask for help from the pious muslims/ awliya`Allah(Friends of Allah).

Peace!

Stuka

Multifaceted people are the most dangerous people. And `multifaceted` Asif Naqshbandi is the perfect face of Sufism.

Non Muslims need to take an independent, and real deep look into what Sufism is and is not, and what its relationship with Islam is. This is not an area in which a non Muslim like you or me should be flying blind.


Dear Naqshbandi

I agree with you that some of these stories may have something to say if they did not ultimately lead into your theology.

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