The Holy Quran says: "wallatheena amanoo ashaddu hubbanlillah" [2:165]
"But those of Faith are overflowing in their love for Allah."
The First Principle
The human body is composed of limbs and organs, each with a unique trait: seeing is the trait of the eye; listening is the trait of the ear; and smelling is the trait of the nose. Similarly, loving is the trait of the heart; the heart is always in love with someone.
Be it with a stone, God, or anyone else, There comes not tranquility without loving.
The heart is the ocean of love; love is its act, Guard it a thousand ways; it will still fall in love.
The Second Principle
A person usually falls in love for two reasons. The first is when the beloved’s essential being [dhat] and attributes [sifat] are distinct and superior to all others. Such is Allah, who is perfect in every way and beyond any comparison. How beautiful and magnificent must the Creator of all the world’s beauty be! It is only natural that a person is attracted to his Lord.
The second reason is when the beloved has authority and is involved in every aspect of one’s life. Such is Allah , who at any moment can relieve one’s grief or sorrow. This is the reason why everyone instinctively turns to Allah in times of distress.
At every instance of grief,
comfort was found in Thee,
At every turn, bewildered,
I took Thy name.
The Third Principle
There is such sweetness and pleasure in the name of Allah that by repeatedly invoking His name every sorrow is turned into joy.
He who is distressed turns his attention in that direction,
Certainly there must be something in the name of Allah.
The Fourth Principle
A person should remain unaffected by the ever-changing conditions of life and remember Allah at every moment.
Although trapped daily to earn a livelihood,
Never did I neglect thinking of You.
The Fifth Principle
The heart that is not imprinted with love for Allah finds no pleasure in living.
Whatever one’s state, never should the court of the True Beloved be abandoned.
The Sixth Principle
The person whose heart experiences the sweetness of love for Allah attains focus and tranquility in life.
Seeking neither means nor objects,
my needs I myself fulfill,
By thanking You, thinking of You,
and taking Your name.
The Seventh Principle
No veils remain on the perception of what exists between the Throne [’Arsh] of Allah and the ground for he whose eyes are adorned with the antimony [kuhl] of the love of Allah. When the one who loves Allah [‘ashiq] gazes introspectively, he perceives himself full of sin and defects. And when he directs his gaze upon the Beloved, he finds Him to be the endower and bestower of all things. Consequently, he places all hope in Him and waits expectantly at His door.
O Allah, how may I call unto You,
when I am but a sinner,
Yet how may I not call unto You,
when You are the Most Gracious?
The Eighth Principle
The ‘ashiq is never heedless of the True Beloved ; not even for a moment. He remains waiting in vigil, knowing not when the doors of his Beloved might open.
Be not heedless of the Lord
for even the blink of an eye,
Lest He direct His attention toward you,
and find you unaware.
It is for this reason that the scholars of Spirituality have said:
"The person who diverts his attention from Allah for even the blink of an eye will not attain his goal".
The Ninth Principle
There is no place in the heart of an ‘ashiq for anyone other than his Beloved. Although he is unable to see the True Beloved with his physical eyes, he is able to perceive Him with the eyes of his heart.
My Beloved is such that there is no beloved besides Him,
Nor is there place in my heart for any other.
My Beloved may be hidden from my sight,
But He is not absent from my heart.
The Tenth Principle
The sole objective of a sincere ‘ashiq is to meet his Beloved. He passes his entire life in anticipation of this meeting. His heart refuses to be attracted toward anything else.
You are my dear, my motivation, my happiness,
My heart refuses to love any other besides You.
Oh my dear, my motivation, my desire,
Long have I been yearning, when will I finally meet You?
I seek not the comforts of Heaven,
my desire is only to meet You.
The Eleventh Principle
An ‘ashiq always yearns to join his Beloved. This is the sole thought occupying his mind.
You are the true innermost desire of my heart, Love of You is the deepest thought in my mind.
Whenever I glance at the world around me,
I find that today there was naught but You,
And that tomorrow holds naught but You.
The Twelfth Principle
When an ‘ashiq looks around, he finds the heedless people of the world [ghafil al-dunya] trapped in their desires. To him the world seems like a cage.
The Thirteenth Principle
Love for Allah removes everything except Allah from the heart of the sincere ‘ashiq. Indeed, his heart has no place for anything other than Allah.
The Fourteenth Principle
The heart of the ‘ashiq desires to sacrifice everything for the sake of his Beloved.
May I forget everything in Your remembrance, And may I remember not anyone else.
May I forsake unto Thee all dear to my heart,
And may my heart be filled by You.
May I set fire to my joys and happiness,
And may my heart ache for Thee alone.
May I be blinded to all I know,
And may I turn only to Thee and none other.
The Fifteenth Principle
In the material world [dunya], a person receives many things, while many other things remain out of reach. Whatever a person lacks, its substitute exists somewhere in the world. However, if someone is distant from Allah, no substitute exists anywhere.
For everything that you part from,
there is a replacement,
But if you disassociate from Allah,
there is no replacement for Him.
Hadrat Abu Hurairah reported that the blessed Prophet [SAWS] said that the best saying in the Arabic language is the poem of Labid:
"Verily, everything except Allah is false and spurious And every blessing is undeniably fleeting and short-lived."
Wonderful post Jazakallah for sharing.
ReplyDeleteWould you please add a link to my blog from here?
Jazakallah