GLOSSARY
Entries related to Tasawwuf can be learned best from Hadrat Ahmad al-Fârûqî as-Sirhindî’s Maktûbât.
adhân: the Muslim call to prayer.
adilla (ash-Shar’iyya): the sources from which Islamic rules were derived: the Book, (i.e. the Qur’ân al-kerîm,) the Sunna, qiyâs al-fuqahâ’ and ijmâ’ al-Umma.
ahl: people
Ahl al-Bayt: immediate relatives of the Prophet.
Ahl as-Sunna (wa’l-Jamâ’a): the true pious Muslims who follow as-Sahâbat al-kirâm. These are called Sunnî Muslims. A Sunnî Muslim adapts himself to one of the four Madhhabs. These madhhabs are Hanafî, Mâlikî, Shâfi’î and Hanbalî.
Ahd-i atîk: the Old Testament.
Ahd-i jadîd: the New Testament.
ahkâm: rules, conclusions.
Ahkâm ash- Shar’iyya: the rules of Islam.
Allâhu ta’âlâ: Allah the Most High.
amru bi’l-ma’rûf (wa ’n-nahyu ’ani’l-munkar): duty to teach Allâhu ta’âlâ’s commands and prohibitions.
Arsh: the end of matter bordering the seven skies and the Kursî, which is outside the seventh sky and inside the ’Arsh.
As’hâb-i kirâm: (as-Sahâbat al-kirâm); the Companions of Rasûlullah.
Awliyâ: pl. of Walî which means a person loved by Allâhu ta’âlâ.
Awâmir-i ashara: the ten commandments which Allâhu ta’âlâ gave Mûsâ (alaihi ’s-salâm) on the Mount Tur.
âyat: a verse of al-Qur’ân al-kerîm; al-âyat al-kerîma.
Azrâ’îl: one of the four archangels, who takes the souls of human beings.
Basmala: the Arabic phrase “Bismi’ Ilâhi ’r-Rahmâni ’r-Rahîm” (In the name of Allah the Compassionate, the Merciful).
Bani Israil: Sons of Israel; Israelites; Jews.
bid’a: (pl. bida’) heresy; false, disliked belief or practice that did not exist in the four sources of Islam but which has been introduced later as an Islamic belief or ’ibâda in expectation of thawâb (blessings).
Bi’that: the year in which Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allâhu alaihi wa sallam) was informed that he was the Prophet.
Burâq: the animal of Paradise which took Rasûlullah from Mecca to Jerusalem during the Mi’râj event. It was white, very fast, sexless, smaller than a mule and bigger than an ass.
dalâla: deviation from the true path of Ahl as-Sunna.
dirham: weight unit of three grams.
effendi: title given by the Ottoman state to a statesmen and especially to religious scholars; a form of address, meaning “Your Great Personage.”
emân: pardon; protection; guarantee.
fard: an act or thing that is commanded by Allâhu ta’âlâ in the Qur’ân al-kerîm.
Fard ’ain: obligation for every Muslim.
Fard kifâya: fard that must be done at least by one Muslim in a community.
fatwâ: ijtihâd (of a mujtahid); conclusion (of a muftî) from books of fiqh whether something not shown in them is permitted or not; answer to religious questions by Islamic scholars; rukhsa.
farmân: command, especially given by the Ottoman Sultans.
fiqh: knowledge dealing with what Muslims should do and should not do; actions, ’ibâdât.
ghazâ: battle against non-Muslims.
hamd: gratitude and praise.
hadîth: a saying of the Prophet (’alaihi ’s-salâm) al-Hadîth ash-sherîf: all the hadîths collectively.
hadrat: title of respect used before the names of great people like prophets and Islamic scholars.
hajj: fard pilgrimage to Mecca.
harâm: not permitted in Islam.
Hegira: the emigration of the Prophet (’alaihi ’s-salâm) from mecca to Medina.
’ilm al-hâl: books of Islamic teachings (of one madhhab) used to teach Muslims their religion.
’ibâda: worship, rite; act for which blessings will be given in the next world.
’ibâdât: (pl. of ’ibâda).
îmân: faith, beliefs of Islam; kalâm, i’tiqâd.
ijtihâd: (meaning or conclusion drawn by a mujtahid by) endeavouring to understand the hidden meaning in an âyat or a hadîth.
irshâd: enlightenment; guiding; inspiring.
iqâmat: the words recited while standing just before beginning one of the five daily fard prayers.
i’tikâf: retreat, religious seclusion during Ramadân.
Jannat: Paradise.
jâriya: non-Muslim female slave captured in war.
jihâd: war against non-Muslims (or the nafs) to convert them (it) to Islam.
jizya: tax imposed on the non-Muslim citizens living in an Islamic country (Dâr al-Islâm).
Ka’ba (t-al-mu’azzama): in the great mosque of Mecca.
kalâm: the knowledge of îmân (belief).
kâfir: disbeliever, non-Muslim.
karâma: miracle worked by Allâhu ta’âlâ through a Walî.
karâmât: (pl. of karâma).
Khutba: the homily delivered at the pulpit by the imâm at the prayers of Friday and of Islamic festivals, which must be read in Arabic all over the world (it is sinful to read it in another language).
Karîm: Gracious.
kufr: being in disbelief. (Intention, statement or action) causing disbelief.
lâ-madhhabî: a person without a madhhab.
madhhab: all of what a profound ’âlim of (especially) Fiqh (usually one of the four —Hanafî, Shafi’î, Mâlikî, Hanbalî) or îmân (one of the two, namely Ash-arî, Mâturidî) communicated.
Madrasa: School where Islamic knowledge is taught.
Masjid: mosque.
makrûh: (an act) improper, disliked or abstained by the Prophet.
makrûh-tahrîma: prohibited with much stress.
makrûh-tanzîhî: makrûh of a lesser degree.
mawlid: the Prophet’s birthday; writings that tell of the superiorities and excellences of the Prophet.
mimbar: the high pulpit in a mosque climbed with stairs, where the Khutba is read.
Mi’râj: the Prophet’s ascension from Jerusalem to heaven.
masah: rubbing one’s wet hands (on one’s mests, which are soft, soleless, waterproof shoes, covering the feet) while performing ablution.
mu’jiza: miracle peculiar to prophets alone.
murshid: guide, director.
murshid al-kâmil: great guide who has attained to perfection and is able to assist others.
munâfiq: hypocrite; one who disguises himself as a Muslim though he believes in another religion.
mustahab: (an act) for which there is thawâb and not sinful if omitted.
mubâh: an act neither ordered nor prohibited.
nâfila: the supererogatory, additional; in the sharî’at non-fard and non-wâjib ’ibâdât; the sunnat salâts accompanying the daily five salâts or any ’ibâdât one can perform whenever one wishes.
nafs: a negative force within man prompting him to do evil.
nass: (general term form) an âyat or a hadîth; an âyat or a hadîth that openly states whether something is ordered or prohibited.
nisâb: minimum quantity of specified wealth making one liable to do certain duties.
pasha: title given by the Ottoman State to a statesmen, governor and especially officers of high rank (now general or admiral).
qâdi: Muslim judge.
Qur’ân al-kerîm: the Holy Koran.
Ramadân: a Sacred Month in the Muslim Calendar.
Rasûlullah: (Rasûl-Allah); Muhammad (’alaihi ’s-salâm), the Messenger of Allâhu ta’âlâ.
Sahâbî: (pl.as-Sahâbat al-kirâm; a Muslim who saw the Prophet (’alaihi ’s-salâm) at least once; one of the companions.
Salaf (as-Sâlihîn): as-Sahâba and the distinguished ones among the Tabi’ûn and Taba’ at-Tâbi’în.
Shafâ’at: intercession.
Shaikh: an âlim of high rank; expert in zâhirî or bâtinî knowledge; master, murshid; amîr, head.
Shaikh al-Islâm: Head of the Religious Affairs Office in an Islamic State.
Sunna: act, thing, though not commanded by Allâhu ta’âlâ, done and liked by the Prophet (’alaihi ’s-salâm) as an ’ibâda; there is thawâb if done, but not sinful to omit, yet it is a sin İf continually omitted and disbelief if disliked.
sûra: a chapter of the Qur’ân al-kerîm.
suhba: companionship.
Sirât: the bridge in the hereafter.
tafsîr: a book of the science of interpretating the Qur’ân.
taqwâ: fearing Allâhu ta’âlâ; abstention from harâms; practising azîmas.
Tasawwuf: Islamic mysticism or sufism as defined by Islam; [See the book Maktûbât by Ahmad al-Farûqî as-Sirhindî (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’alaih)].
tawakkul: trust in, expectation of everything from Allâhu ta’âlâ exclusively; expecting from Allâhu ta’âlâ the effectiveness of the cause (sabab) after working or holding on to the cause —before which tawakkul is unadvised.
tawhîd: (belief in) the Oneness, unity, of Allâhu ta’âlâ.
tekke: (Turkish) a place, building, where a murshid trains his murîds or sâliks; dergâh or khânagâh (Persian), zâwiya (Arabic).
thawâb: the (unit of) reward which has been promised and will be given in the next world by Allâhu ta’âlâ as a recompense for doing and saying what He likes.
umma: the community, the body of Believers, of a Prophet.
Umma (al-Muhammadiyya): the Muslim umma; followers of Muhammad (’alaihi ’s-salâm).
Wahhâbî: people in Arabia whose beliefs originate from the heresies of Ibn Taymiyya. (See the books Endless Bliss and Advice for the Muslim.)
wâjib: (a belief or act) almost as compulsory as a fard and not to be omitted; something never omitted by the Prophet (’alaihi ’s-salâm).
Walî: (pl. Awliyâ’) one who is loved and protected (by Allâhu ta’âlâ).
wara’: (after avoiding harâms) abstention from doubtful things (mushtabihât).
zakât: (fard duty of giving annually) certain amount of certain kinds of property given to certain kinds of people by which the remaining property becomes purified and blessed, and the Muslim who gives it protects himself against being (called) a miser.
zindîq: an enemy of Islam who pretends to be a Muslim.
Bi-s-m-illâh-ir-Rahmân-ir-rahîm
There are very many books teaching Islam. The book Maktûbât, written by Imâm Rabbânî and consisting of three volumes, is the most valuable. Next after that book is another book with the same title, Maktûbât, and consisting of three volumes, yet written by Muhammad Ma’thûm (Imâm Rabbânî’s third son and one of his most notable disciples). Hadrat Muhammad Ma’thûm states as follows in the sixteenth letter of the third volume of his Maktûbât: “Imân means to believe both of the facts stated in the (special expression of belief called) Kalima-i-tawhîd, which reads: Lâ ilâha il-l-Allah, Muhammadun Rasûlullah.” In other words, being a Muslim requires also belief in the fact that Muhammad ‘alaihis-salâm’ is the Prophet. Allâhu ta’âlâ sent him the Qur’ân al-kerîm through the angel named Jebrâ’îl (Gabriel). This book, the Qur’ân al-kerîm, is the Word of Allah. It is not a compilation of Hadrat Muhammad’s ‘alaihis-salâm’ personal views or of statements made by philosophers or historians. Muhammad ‘alaihis-salâm’ made a tafsîr of the Qur’ân al-kerîm. In other words, he expounded it. His expoundings are called hadîth-i-sherîfs. Islam consists of the Qur’ân al-kerîm and hadîth-i-sherîfs. The millions of Islamic books worldover are the expoundings of the Qur’ân al-kerîm and hadîth-i-sherîfs. A statement not coming from the Qur’ân al-kerîm cannot be Islamic. The meaning of Îmân and Islam is to believe the Qur’ân al-kerîm and hadîth-i-sherîfs. A person who denies the facts stated in the Qur’ân al-kerîm has not had belief in the Word of Allah. Muhammad ‘alaihis-salâm’ conveyed to his Sahâba the facts which Allâhu ta’âlâ had stated to him. And the Sahâba, in their turn, conveyed those facts to their disciples, who in their turn wrote them in their books. People who wrote those books are called scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat. Belief in those books of Ahl as-Sunnat, therefore, means belief in the Word of Allah, and a person who holds that belief is a Muslim. Al-hamd-u-lillah, we are learning our faith, (Islam,) from books written by the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat, and not from fallacious books fabricated by reformers and freemasons.
Rasûlullah ‘sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam’ stated: “When fitna and fesâd become rife among my Ummat (Muslims), a person who adheres to my Sunnat will attain thawâb (blessings, rewards in the Hereafter) equal to the total sum of the thawâb that will be given to a hundred people who have attained martyrdom.” Adherence to the Sunnat is possible only by learning the books of the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat. The scholars affiliated in any one of the four Madhhabs of Muslims are scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat. Imâm a’zam Abû Hanîfa Nu’mân bin Thâbit was the leader of the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat. The anti-Islamic campaigns which the British had been carrying on for centuries for the purpose of Christianizing at least one Muslim ended in outright failure. In their search for new methods to achieve their goal, they established the masonic lodges. Masons deny Hadrat Muhammad’s ‘alaihis-salâm’ words as well as all heavenly religions, and such basic religious facts as Rising after death, and existence of Paradise and Hell.
Our Prophet ‘sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam’ stated, “A person whom Allâhu ta’âlâ loves very much is one who learns his religion and teaches it to others. Learn your religion from the mouths of Islamic scholars!”
A person who cannot find a true scholar must learn by reading books written by the scholars of Ahl as-sunna, and try hard to spread these books. A Muslim who has ’ilm (knowledge), ’amal (practising what one knows; obeying Islam’s commandments and prohibitions), and ikhlâs (doing everything only to please Allâhu ta’âlâ) is called an Islamic scholar. A person who represents himself as an Islamic scholar though he lacks any one of these qualifications is called an ‘evil religious scholar’, or an ‘impostor’. The Islamic scholar will guide you to causes which in turn will open the gates to happiness; he is the protector of faith. The impostor will mislead you into such causes as will make you end up in perdition; he is the Satan’s accomplice.[122] (There is a certain) prayer (called) Istighfâr (which), whenever you say, (recite or read) it, will make you attain causes which will shield you against afflictions and troubles.