17 - SECOND VOLUME, 9th LETTER
This letter was written to Mulla Ârif Hutanî Badahshî by Hadrat Imâm-i Rabbânî Mujaddid-i Alf-i thânî ‘qaddasallâhu ta’âlâ asrârahul ’azîz’. It gives information about the superiorities of the word ‘lâ ilâha illallah,’ about the grade of tanzîh and about the Îmân-i ghaybî:
Thanks be to Allâhu ta’âlâ and salâm to those slaves of His whom He has chosen and loved! O Mawlânâ Ârif Hutanî! It is necessary first to annihilate the wrong and fabled gods and then to know the right ma’bûd. Everything that is known how and which can be measured should be annihilated, and then one should have îmân in one Allah, Who is not known how. What best expresses this annihilation in mind and heart and having îmân is the beautiful word “lâ ilâha illallah.” Our Prophet (sallallâhu alaihi wa sallam) declared:“The best dhikr is to say ‘lâ ilâha illallah.’ ” In another hadîth he declared: “If the seven layers of the heavens and their contents and the seven layers of the earth are all measured with the word lâ ilâha illallah, the thawâb in this word will weigh heavier.” It certainly will, since one part of the word annihilates everything other than Allah - the earth, the heavens, the Arsh, the Kursî, the Lawh, the Kalam, all the classes of beings, and men - while its latter part informs of the existence of the one and only one Creator of the earth and the heavens, one Who is rightfully worshipped. Everything other than Allah, whether in the âfâk (outside man) or in the anfus (inside man), can be understood and measured. So is everything which can be seen in the mirrors of âfâk and anfus. All such things should be known to be nonexistent. So are all the things which we know and learn, which we remember and imagine, and which affect our sense organs. They are all of recent occurrence, they are creatures. For everything which man knows and feels is his own work, what he himself has done. Our considering Allâhu ta’âlâ free from defect and saying that He is unlike anything means to liken Him (to something). The greatness which we realize means inferiority. The kashfs, tajallîs, mushâhadas which happen to men of tasawwuf are all things other than Allâhu ta’âlâ. Allâhu ta’âlâ is warâ-ul-warâ. That is, He is beyond everything beyond. He is unlike anything. Hadrat Ibrâhîm said to the disbelievers, “Why do you worship the idols which you yourselves have made? Allâhu ta’âlâ created you and all your deeds.” The Qur’ân relates this. All the things we do, whether we do them with our hands or we invent them with our mind and imagination, are Allah’s creatures. None of them is worthy of worship. Allâhu ta’âlâ, alone, is worthy of being worshipped. He is unlike any of the things which we know or which we find out by thinking. How He is cannot be understood. Mind and imagination cannot approach Him. Kashf and shuhûd collapse before His greatness. There is no other way than believing such a high creator who is bî-chûn and bî-chighûna [that is, who is unlike anything and who cannot be understood through mind] through ghayb (without seeing or understanding). For, it will not be belief in Him to believe Him by attempting to understand Him by seeing or thinking. It will be to believe something made by us. And that something is His creature. We will have made it a partner to Him. In fact, perhaps, we will have believed something besides Him. We trust ourselves to Allâhu ta’âlâ to protect us from falling into such a calamity. For having îmân in the ghayb, it is necessary to believe a creator beyond the reach of the imagination and fancy. Nothing from Him should have a place in the imagination. This meaning is obtained after the grade of closeness, which is outside fancy and imagination. For, the farther away something is, the easier will it become to comprehend through the imagination and the better will it be settled in a fancy. This blessing is only peculiar to prophets. Having îmân through the ghayb has devolved only upon these great people. And they bestow it upon whomever they like of those who obey and follow them. The îmân of all Believers through the way of the ghayb cannot rid the interference of the fancy. For, according to the ignorant ‘warâ-ul-warâ’ means remoteness. In such an understanding the fancy interferes with the matter. On the other hand, to those great people ‘alaihimussalawâtu wattaslîmât’ ‘warâ-ul-warâ’ is closeness. With this understanding the fancy cannot interfere with the matter. As long as the world survives and we live in a worldly life, there is no other way than believing through the ghayb. For, the îmân which happens by seeing here is invalid. When life in the Hereafter begins, fancy and imagination will no longer have any power and the îmân-i shuhûdî, which happens by seeing, will become valuable. Fancy and imagination will not be able to mix evil with this îmân. I think that because Rasûlullah Muhammad ‘alaihissalâm’ was honoured with seeing Allâhu ta’âlâ in the world it would be beautiful to say that his ‘sallallâhu alaihi wa sallam’ îmân is shuhûdî. Evil emanating from the fancy and imagination have not been mixed with this îmân. For, the blessing that will be bestowed upon other Believers in the Hereafter fell to the lot of that exalted Prophet in the world. This is such a great gift from Allâhu ta’âlâ. Allâhu ta’âlâ bestows His gifts upon whomever He chooses. Allâhu ta’âlâ is the giver of very many gifts.
It should be understood well that Khalîlullah Ibrâhîm ‘alaihissalâm’ explained very well the fact that it is wrong to worship things other than Allâhu ta’âlâ. He thoroughly closed all the gates which would lead to disbelief. For this reason, he became the imâm of prophets. He surpassed them all ‘alaihi wa alaihimussalawâtu wattahiyyât’. For, the highest point of progress in worldly life is to realize well the fact that there is nothing to be worshipped other than Allâhu ta’âlâ. For, the exact meaning of the saying, “Allâhu ta’âlâ alone is worthy of being worshipped,” which is communicated by the second part of the beautiful word “lâ ilâha illallah,” will be understood only in the Hereafter. Nevertheless, because the last Prophet ‘alaihi wa alaihimussalawâtu wattaslîmât’ was honoured with seeing Allâhu ta’âlâ in this world, he attained many things of the exact meaning of that word in this world, too. It may be said that of that meaning what is possible in this world has been communicated with the coming of the exalted Prophet. We may say, again, that the tajallî of the Dhât-i Ilâhî in this world has only fallen to the lot of the exalted Prophet. Others were informed that they will be blessed with this lot in the Hereafter. Salâm to those who are on the right way and to those who follow Hadrat Muhammad Mustafâ ‘alaihi wa ’alâ âlihî minassalawâti afdaluhâ wa minattaslîmâti akmaluhâ’!
18 - THIRD VOLUME, 47th LETTER
This letter was written to the then Sultan [Salim Jihanghîr Khan ‘rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ aleyh’.] It explains the pieces of secret information in praying and praises savants and pious Muslims.
I, Ahmad ‘rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ aleyh’, the lowest of your humble servants who have been praying for you, present my humiliation and my benedictions to your exalted place of refuge and to the door of your superior servants. I offer my thanks for the promotion of slaves and for the blessings that everybody, ignorant and learned alike, whether near or far, has been living free from fear and in comfort. At times when I am hopeful of being accepted, and during the meetings of faqîrs, I have been praying to Allâhu ta’âlâ so that He will bless your courageous soldiers with aid, conquest and victory. Translation of a Persian line:
Everyone is created for some purpose!
Allâhu ta’âlâ does not create anything nonsensical or useless. The duty of the soldiers of the army is to strengthen the state. Promulgation of this brilliant Sharî’at is possible with the state’s help. It is declared: “The Sharî’at is under the shade of swords.” This valuable duty has been given to the soldiers of prayers, too. Those who pray are the poor, needy people who live in inconvenience.
There are two ways of helping to strengthen the state. Firstly, there are material means. This is done with soldiers, with the army [with technical, economic means]. All these are obvious, visible help. The second type of means is the real help and is done by the One Who creates the means. It is declared in the hundred and twenty-sixth âyat of’ Imrân Sûra and in Anfâl Sûra, “Help is only and only from Allâhu ta’âlâ.” This help is attained through the army of prayers. Because the soldiers of the army of prayers are lower than everybody else and are broken-hearted, they are ahead of the soldiers of the fighting army. Leaving the means behind, they have set up a connection with their Creator. Translation of a Persian line:
The broken-hearted kicked the ball forward!
Furthermore, prayers repel accidents and calamities. The ever truthful ‘sallallâhu alaihi wa sallam’ declared: “Accidents can be stopped with prayers only.” Swords, jihâd [and all kinds of means of war] cannot stop an accident. As it is seen, soldiers of the army of prayers, weak and broken-hearted as they are, are more important than soldiers of the fighting army. Soldiers of the army of prayers are sort of the souls of the soldiers of the fighting army. Soldiers of the fighting army are their bodies. Then, soldiers of the fighting army can manage nothing without the army of prayers. For, no help or force will be useful for a body without a soul. Therefore, during times of trouble in his ghazâs, Rasûlullah ‘sallallâhu alaihi wa sallam’ used to ask for help from Allâhu ta’âlâ for the sake of the poor ones of the muhâjirs. Though he had an army and soldiers, he would pray by making the poor ones of the muhâjirs intermediaries. We faqîrs, soldiers of the army of prayers, are wretched, humiliated before everybody, and heart-broken. For, it has been said, “Poverty is a disgrace in this world and the next.” So as we are, we are made valuable ahead of the men of action. Muhkbîr-i Sâdiq (he who always says the truth: the Prophet) declared: “On the Day of Resurrection, the martyrs’ blood will be weighed against the savants’ ink. The ink will weigh heavier.” This darkness, this disgrace causes them to be cherished, honoured. It promotes them from the lowest to the highest. Yes, translation of a Persian line:
The water of life exists in darkness!
This low person who prays for you is not worthy enough to deem himself as one of the soldiers of the army of prayers; yet only in the name of poverty and with the hope of probable acceptance of a prayer, he has been counting himself among the praying soldiers of your powerful state and has been praying with his spirit and tongue and saying the Fâtiha for your salvation. O our Allah! Accept our prayers! You hear every word and know everything.
19 - THIRD VOLUME, 13th LETTER
This letter was written to Sayyid Mir Muhibbullah Manqpûrî. It encourages one to obey the owner of this brilliant Sharî’at and to love one’s master from whom one has learned one’s dîn:
Bismillâhirrahmânirrahîm. My Brother Sayyid Mîr Muhibullah’s honourable letter has arrived here. Your writing, which begins by saying that you are hopeless because of hardships, has been understood. It is disbelief to give up hope of Allâhu ta’âlâ. Be hopeful. If two things exist in you, do not worry! The first one is to obey the Owner of this brilliant Sharî’at ‘sallallâhu alaihi wa sallam’, and the second one is to believe in the greatness of the exalted person from whom you have learned the dîn and to love him. Trust yourself to Allâhu ta’âlâ and entreat Him so that there will not be slackness in these two blessings. When these two exist, it is easy to correct the other things. As I wrote to you before, if you feel uncomfortable in Manqpûr go to the place called Ilâh-âbâd and settle there. It is expected that the place will be found blessed. You understood the other way round. Even the word “blessed” did not help you understand our purpose. And now I say so again. Tonight it came to my heart that your belongings were sort of taken from Manqpûr to Ilâh-âbâd. Go there and settle at a remote place and illuminate the place with the dhikr of Allâhu ta’âlâ! Do not be friends with anybody! Perform the dhikr of nafy and ithbât very much! When repeating that beautiful word, expel all your wishes and thoughts from your heart! Let your purpose, your beloved, and your wish not be more than one! If you cannot perform the dhikr with your heart do it with your tongue! But you should do it silently. For, it is prohibited in this path to do the dhikr aloud. You know the other things to be done on this path. Do your best to follow them! It makes one attain many things to follow the teaching master. It is so dangerous to deviate from his path. What more should I write? Salâm to those who are on the right way and who obey Hadrat Muhammad Mustafâ ‘alaihi wa alâ Âlihi wa as’hâbihissalawâtu wattaslîmâtu atammuhâ wa akmaluhâ’!
20 - THIRD VOLUME, 54th LETTER
This letter was written to Khân-i Jihân. It enjoins holding fast to the Sharî’at, which is firm, and informs that to be careful about observing the Sharî’at in one’s worldly businesses is to earn the dîn and the world together:
May Allâhu ta’âlâ bless you with doing the things which He likes! May He bestow safety upon you and bless you with being valuable and cherished! For the sake of His high Prophet and his close relatives ‘alaihi wa alaihimussalawâtu wattaslîmât’, may He accept this prayer of mine! Translation of a Persian couplet:
The ball of prosperity and
happiness is thrown onto the field.
There is none in sight, where are the polomen?
The world’s sweet things and transient blessings are useful and halâl only when they help one to obey the brilliant Sharî’at. A worldly advantage is good when it is together with the advantage pertaining to the Hereafter. Those worldly blessings which do not help earn the Hereafter are like poisons covered with sugar. Idiots are deceived by them. Shame on those who do not use the theriac prescribed by Allâhu ta’âlâ as a curative against these poisons! So wretched are those who do not cure these sugary, sweet poisons by enduring the difficulty of obeying the commandments and prohibitions of the Sharî’at. A person who makes only a small effort, who makes a little attempt at following the Sharî’at, will attain endless advantages. It is so easy to follow the commandments and prohibitions of the Sharî’at. And with only a little unawareness and slackness these endless blessings will be lost. A person with a far-sighted, accurate mind should follow this briliant Sharî’at. He should not be like a child who misses useful things by being absorbed in playing with walnuts and cypress cones. If you observe and obey the Sharî’at during your worldly occupations you will have followed the Prophet’s ‘alaihimussalâwâtu wattaslîmât’ way and clung to your faith. Even if we worship sincerely for many years, we incapable people cannot approach the grade of a hero like you, who have earned the dîn and the world together. O our Allah! Bless us with the lot of doing the deeds which You like! Let me say also that dear Khwâja Muhammad Sa’îd and Khwâja Muhammad Ashraf, who have taken up to you this piece of paper written by your humble servant who prays for you, are among those who are beloved by us and close to us. The gifts which you will bestow upon them will please this faqîr. May Allâhu ta’âlâ bless you with the lot of doing valuable deeds, and may He exalt your honour!
21 - THIRD VOLUME, 59th LETTER
This letter was written to Sharafuddîn Husayn. It informs that all the things which happen to man every day come through Allah’s will and so one should find pleasure in them all:
May Allâhu ta’âlâ bless you with the lot of making progress in Hadrat Muhammad’s Sharî’at and His attaching you to Himself in every respect! My dear and understanding son! Everything which man encounters each day comes to being with Allah’s willing and creating. So we should adapt our wills to His Will! We should deem all the things we encounter as the things we have been looking for, and should be pleased with having attained them! This is how a slave should be. We should be so if we are slaves. Not to be so would mean to refuse being a slave and to oppose our Owner. Allâhu ta’âlâ declares in a Hadîth-i qudsî: “If anyone is not content with My qadâ and qadar and disapproves of them and is not patient with the disasters which I send, let him look for another Rabb (Owner) besides Me. Let him not stay on earth as a born slave of Mine!” Yes, the faqîrs, the destitude, and many people who lived under your protection were comfortable because you were taking care of them and protecting them. They did not know what sorrow was. Their real Owner will go on protecting them. And you will always be remembered for your kindness. May Allâhu ta’âlâ reward you abundantly for your benevolence both in this world and in the next! I send my salâm.
22 - THIRD VOLUME, 7th LETTER
This letter was written to Muhibbullah Manqpûrî. It informs that it is necessary to endure the troubles caused by people:
May hamd be to Allâhu ta’âlâ and prayers be upon His beloved Prophet! I pronounce my benedictions over you and over all Muslims. My brother Muhibbullah’s honourable letter has arrived here to please us very much. It is necessary to endure people’s bothering you. There is nothing to do but to be patient with your relatives’ hurting you. Allâhu ta’âlâ commands His Beloved Prophet and declares in Ahkâf Sûra, “As the Ulul’azm ones of the Prophets were patient, you, too, be patient! Do not hurry to pray that they be tormented!” The most useful thing to those being there is the annoyance and trouble given to them by others there. You do not wish this blessing and abstain from it. Yes, he who is used to always eating sweet things will abstain from the healing, bitter medicine. I am at a loss as to what to say about this. Translation of a Persian couplet:
Though they may be coy, those who
have fallen in love
Should get used not to coyness but to adversity!
You ask for permission to move to a place called Ilâhâbâd. “... Or recommend some other place. The hardships caused by the people here have become unbearable. I will go there and breathe freely for a while,” you say. Rukhsat, permission, can be given for this.But azîmat, that is, the better way, is to remain there and to be patient with and endure the difficulties. As you know, this season makes me feel enervated. That is why I write briefly. I send my salâm.
23 - SECOND VOLUME, 29th LETTER
This letter was written for the virtuous Shaikh Abdulhaq-i Dahlawî. It informs that the most valuable capital in this world is (formed by) sorrows and hardships and that the sweetest blessings are adversity and sufferings:
Hamd be to Allâhu ta’âlâ and salâm to those slaves of His whom He has chosen and loved! My Dear Sir. The coming of disasters may be unpleasant outwardly, but it is expected that they will be blessings. The world’s most valuable stock is (collected from) sorrows and afflictions. The most delicious food on the world’s meal table is (made up of) problems and calamities. These sweet blessings are covered with bitter medicine. Therefore, calamities and disasters are showered on the beloved ones. Those who are fortunate and wise see the sweets placed in them. They chew the bitter covers on them as if they were sweet. They take flavour from the bitter. Why shouldn’t they, since everything coming from the Beloved will be sweet. Those who are sick do not feel their taste. The heart’s sickness means its having fallen in love with somebody other than He. The fortunate ones take so much flavour from the troubles coming from the Beloved One that they do not taste the same flavour in His favours. Though both are coming from the Beloved One, the lover’s nafs does not get a share from the hardships. But His favours are wished by the nafs, too. Translation of an Arabic line:
May it do good to those who get the blessing!
O our Allah! Do not deprive us of the rewards of these hardships! After these, do not let us fall into faction! During these days when Islam is weak, your valuable being is a great blessing for Muslims. May Allâhu ta’âlâ give you safety and bless you with a long life! Wassalâm.
24 - SECOND VOLUME, 32nd LETTER
This letter was written to Mirzâ Kilinjullah. It answers his letter saying that he cannot concentrate his heart, and intimates the prayers to be said during times of fear:
I express my gratitude to Allâhu ta’âlâ, pronounce benedictions over His beloved Prophet and over you. Your cherished letter of azâ, that is, letter of condolence due to bereavement, has arrived. We all are under Allah’s command and will, and we all will enter His presence! With His aid, we have been acquiescent in His qadâ. You, too, must acquiesce to it! Ask for help by saying prayers and the Fâtiha! The news informing that you are already free of that problem has pleased us very much. So we have gotten rid of one of the two problems. Thank Allâhu ta’âlâ for this! You write that you cannot rid your heart of worldly thoughts. Yes, the outward deed’s being disorderly and disorganized causes the heart to become untidy, too. When there is sorrow or melancholy in your heart say tawba and istighfâr to remove it! During times of fear [and against the harm of genies] say the prayer of Kalima-i tamjîd, that is, “Lâ hawla walâ quwwata illâ billâhil ’aliyyil ’azîm.” [It is written in the 174th letter that this prayer is said against the haunting of genies. Muhammad Ma’thûm ‘rahmatullâhi alaih’ writes in his third letter of the second volume, “One should recite Lâ hawla walâ quwwata illâ billâh five hundred times with the salawât-i sherîfa a hundred times before and after it and make a du’â in order to get rid of problems and attain one’s wishes.”] At such times of trouble it is very useful to recite the two sûras of Mu’awwizatayn, that is, the two sûras beginning with Qul-a’ûdhu. We have been well and comfortable, may hamd be to Allâhu ta’âlâ always! “Alhamdu-li ’l-lâhi dâiman wa alâ kulli hâl wa A’ûdhu bi’l-lâhi min hâl-i ahl-in-nâr.” Being weak, I cannot write any longer. May Allâhu ta’âlâ not separate us and you from Muhammad Mustafâ’s Sharî’at! Wassalâm.
[It is written in Tafsîr-i Mazharî in the explanation of the eighty-eighth âyat of the Sûrat-ul-Anbiyâ that a hadîth-i sherîf says, “During the time of sorrows and hardships recite the prayer of the Prophet Yûnus. Surely Allah will rescue you. The prayer is: Lâ ilâha illâ anta subhânaka innî kuntu minaz-zâlimîn.” A hadîth-i-sherîf quoted in the fifty-third chapter of the book Terghîb us-Salât reads as follows: “If a person, after getting up every morning, says the following prayer three times, no trouble or disaster will come upon him until evening: Bismillâh-illezî lâ yedhurru ma’asmihi shey’un fi-l-ardi wa lâ fi-s-semâ’ wahuwa-s-samî’ ul-’alîm.”
25 - SECOND VOLUME, 75th LETTER
This letter was written to Mirzâ Muzaffar Khân. It informs that the problems and disasters sent upon the beloved ones are atonements for their sins and that it is necessary to ask earnestly for forgiveness and good health:
May Allâhu ta’âlâ make you safe against unbecoming things! The coming of disasters and troubles upon the beloved is an atonement for the forgiveness of their sins. Begging, weeping, taking refuge, and with a broken heart, you should ask for forgiveness and good health from Allâhu ta’âlâ. Until it is understood that the prayer has been accepted and the fitna has come to an end, you should pray so. Your friends and those who wish goodness for you are praying for you, yet it is better for the aggrieved person himself to supplicate. To take medicine and diet are necessary for the sick person himself. What others will do, at the very most, is to help him. To tell the truth, everything coming from the Beloved should be encountered with smiles, with pleasure. Everything coming from there should be found sweet. The Beloved’s treating harshly and humiliating should be like a kindness, a gift, an exalting. In fact, they should be sweeter than such desires of one’s own nafs. If a lover is not so, his love will be incomplete. In fact, his saying that he loves will be a lie. Your highness, protector of the Sharî’at, upon coming back from the service, wrote about the happenings during the journey and the hardships your company had encountered. The Fâtiha was recited for your safety and good health. O our Allah! Do not call us to account for what we have forgotten or what we have done by mistake! Do not burden us with difficult jobs as You did with past ummats. Do not command us to do what we cannot do. Forgive us! Pity us! Thou art our Owner! Help us so that we can overcome our enemies! Subhâna Rabbika Rabbi’l-izzati ammâ yasifûn wa salâmun alalmursalîn walhamdu-lillâhi Rabbil ’âlamîn. Wassalâm.
26 - THIRD VOLUME, 27th LETTER
This letter was written to Mulla Alî Kashmî. It says that a slave should give up his own wishes and adapt himself to his Owner’s wishes. Also, it informs with diseases that are inherent in man and those which come from outside:
What a slave wishes should only be his Owner and his Owner’s wish. He should have no wishes besides his Owner’s wishes. If not so, he has cast off the shackles of slavery and escaped from being a slave. A slave who always pursues his own wishes is a slave of his own wishes. He is a slave of his nafs. He always does the commands of the accursed Devil. The blessing of being a slave to Allâhu ta’âlâ is attained only after reaching the grade of Wilâyat-i khâssa. Becoming such a Walî falls to one’s lot only after a complete fanâ and a perfect baqâ.
Question: The Walîs who are so have wishes, desires, too. For, they want various things. Also, the leader of Prophets, the Sultan of Walîs, Hadrat Muhammad, liked cool, sweet sherbets. The Qur’ân informs of the fact that he used to toil for the good of his Ummat. What is the reason for the existence of such wishes in the great?
Answer: Many wishes are the requirements of natural laws. So long as man is alive he cannot get rid of these wishes. When it is hot the body wants to get cool. And in cold weather appears the desire to get warm. The body’s desire for the things indispensable to live is not contrary to being a slave. Such desires are not the desires of the nafs. They have nothing to do with the nafs. The Sharî’at has not prohibited these desires which are the outcomes of natural laws. Having these desires does not mean following the nafs. It is mubâh to satisfy such desires. The nafs wants the mubâhs more than needed. The mubâhs more than indispensably needed are called fudûl. Or, the nafs wants dubious things and things that are harâm. Those things that are indispensably necessary for living do not have anything to do with the nafs. As it is seen, to follow the nafs, to do evil things, means to desire and do those things that are fudûl. For, the mubâhs more than necessary are close to the harâms. If one, deceived by the Devil, goes a little further, one will fall down into the harâms. For this reason, mubâhs should be done as much as necessary. A little over-indulgence in doing so will cause you to slip and fall down into the fudûls. And if you slip as you enjoy the fudûls, you will end up in the harâms.
Many inclinations do not exist in man. They come to man from without. Allâhu ta’âlâ, who is very compassionate, sends man the useful ones of them. It is declared (in a long hadîth): “Allâhu ta’âlâ keeps a preacher in every man’s heart.” The harmful ones are sent by the Devil. The Devil always incites men to do evil and enmity. The hundred and twentieth âyat of Nisâ Sûra purports, “The Devil promises man many things and reminds him of many things. All the things which the Devil promises are lies.” One day during my imprisonment in the fortress of Ghuwalyar, this faqîr (Hadrat Imâm-i Rabbânî means himself) sat down silently after the morning prayer as it was customary on this path. Useless thoughts suffused me, so much so that I felt very uneasy. I could not collect my heart in any way. After some time, I managed to control myself with the help of Allâhu ta’âlâ. I saw that the thoughts were gone like the dispersing of clouds. What had brought them to my heart went away together with them, leaving my heart free and pure. It was realized that those thoughts and wishes had come from the outside, that they had not originated from the inside. If they had originated from the inside, the case would have been incompatible with being a slave. In brief, the evil issuing from the nafs-i ammâra are man’s own diseases. They are fatal poisons and are incompatible with being a slave. Those diseases coming from the outside are among the transient diseases, though they are caused by the Devil. They can be cur