26 Friday Oct 2007
Posted in Abdur Rahman's Poetry
Peace, one and all…
This is Not Your Way
I wish these train journeys would last forever,
that I might spill forth
this heart of mine
onto Eternity’s waiting page.
I wish these nights of ours would never end,
that we might always
be alone, together,
and that naught might come between us.
But, this is not Your way.
You send me forth into day,
and bring me home into night,
so that I might grow to love’s true estate.
(Abdur Rahman, 23rd October 2007)
26 Friday Oct 2007
Peace, one and all…
‘Do not be like slaves who serve their master only in order to receive their allowance, but be like slaves who serve their master with no thought of receiving an allowance; and let the reverence of heaven be upon you’
(Rabbi Antigonus of Sokho)
Ma’as salama,
Abdur Rahman
26 Friday Oct 2007
Posted in Education, Moments from My Life, Sufism/Tasawwuf, Teaching
Peace, one and all…
Today marked the new students’ first assessed assignment, a presentation on an aspect of the course we’ve been covering. In this case, we’ve been looking at women in Judaism. Some very interesting presentations, and some very nervous students!
It’s always a nerve-wracking time of year for new students. So, may Allah help them all.
Ma’as salama,
Abdur Rahman
25 Thursday Oct 2007
Peace, one and all…
In the shortest chapter (surah) in the entire Quran, God says:
‘To thee have We granted the Fount (of Abundance); therefore to thy Lord turn in Prayer and Sacrifice; for he who hateth thee, he will be cut off (from Future Hope)’ (108:1-3)
I have always loved this particular chapter. Though short, it has a pleasant sound in the original Arabic, and as with all Quranic verses, it has a lot of meaning within it. The Fount (al-Kauthar) is said to be a heavenly fountain, which has been given to Muhammad in paradise, and from which he will offer his close companions a drink in the blessed afterlife. It is said to have been revealed amidst repeated attacks by the Meccan aristocracy and their taunts that, owing to the deaths of his sons, his heritage had been cut off. That is, they took the death of his sons as a sign that he was cut off, that his name and lineage would die with him.
This passage, therefore, demonstrates God’s definitive answer: Muhammad has not been cut off. Rather, those who hate him have been cut off. In the midst of this restorative blessing, Muhammad is instructed to turn to God in prayer and sacrifice.
On a deeper level, contained within the Quran’s shortest surah is a crucial idea: the love of Muhammad. That is, to grow as a Muslim, I must grow in my love of Muhammad, who has been granted an overflowing abundance. In other words, love of God’s beloved (Habibullah) is an essential pre-requisite for understanding even the smallest passage of the Quran, or symbolically, the smallest lesson of God.
Ya Allah! Send Your blessings upon Muhammad, His family, His companions and those who follow him till the day of Judgement.
Ma’as salama,
Abdur Rahman
25 Thursday Oct 2007
Questions. There are always questions. Here are some that have been occupying me of late:
Indeed, these questions have occupied me ever since I first became openly, publicly Muslim, some 9 years ago. These questions are still unanswered. That is, my answers are still provisional, still being worked out. I am a work in progress, and so too are any conclusions that I may have come to. Indeed, how could one as passing and limited as I ever truly reach certainty, as though I could ever hope to truly conclude something? At any rate, I’ve been trying to write this post for a long time now. In fact, it has been brewing ever since the Threshold Society Retreat in August.
It also seems that others have been asking similar questions lately, from both within and beyond the Islamic tradition:
Prayer is many things, it seems. To pray is to ask God for something. It is to plea for aid, for understanding, for grace. To pray is to commune with the Almighty. It is to stand before God and struggle to open one’s self to Him. To pray is to express need, to express desire, to express hope. Prayer is a formal act, it is a spontaneous reaction to life. Prayer is conversation and belonging. Prayer is intention and meaning. Prayer is gratitude and prayer is struggle. Indeed, prayer is a way of life and an orientation to the world.
Subhan Allah! God is indeed subtle beyond all understanding! I didn’t realise I had been pondering these issues quite so intensively until I attended the summer retreat. Shaykh Kabir touched on the symbolism of the ritual prayer (salah, namaz). I’d read such things before, but it wasn’t until he explained and demonstrated it that I felt a door opening within me: ‘Yes! That’s what it means!’ Because I believe in sharing what I learn and experience, I wanted to share Shaykh Kabir’s comments with the wider world.
To understand something is to know its meaning. To learn more about the meaning of prayer is to learn how to commune with God more fully, and that is a beautiful thing.
The opening act of the prayer (known as the takbir, or magnification – that is, to say ‘Allahu Ackbar’) involves raising the hands, palm outwards. There are differences in practice between Muslims, though the Hanafi school of law (which I follow) raises the hands to the ears. At any rate, by doing this you are symbolically sweeping away the outside world, as you remind yourself and others that only God possesses true greatness. It is also a symbol of throwing everything else behind you, putting it to one side, as you face the Almighty.
Next comes the standing posture (during which portions of the Quran are recited). Shaykh Kabir referred to this as the ‘posture of human dignity’, as we stand upright, calmly, with hands folded in front of us. This is the natural position for a human being and as such, this is how we should approach God, in a dignified manner, in full adult awareness of what we are attempting to do.
Once this part has been completed, we then bow (ruku’), whispering ‘Glory to my Sustainer, the Almighty’. This is the ‘posture of service’, which flows naturally from a true orientation to our innate human dignity. It is from this position, willingly entered into, that we are reminded that God requires us to act, to serve. Indeed, the word for worship (`ibadah) is also the same for service. It is to say: ‘here I am God, ready to serve You’ (labbayk Allahumma labbayk).
After rising from this position, the Imam then says ‘God hears the one who praises Him’ (Sami` Allahu liman hamida), and the congregation respond with ‘Our Sustainer, for You is our praise’ (Rabbana wa lakal hamd). That is, on a symbolic level, we are reminded that our service is for God’s praise, and not for our own whims and desires.
From here we move to the most crucial moment of the prayer, the prostration (or sajda), in which the face is placed upon the ground. As we do this, we utter ‘Glory to my Sustainer, the Most High’ (subhana Rabbi al-`Ala). This is the ‘posture of submission’, where all that we are, all that we think, all that we do, is laid before God. It is said that the closest we come to God in this life is in this moment. This is the place and time where our most intimate prayers can be whispered into the Beloved’s all-hearing ear.
We then rise to a sitting position, where God’s forgiveness is traditionally sought through a number of prayers. Then a second prostration follows. This is particularly important. Shaykh Kabir referred to it as the ‘surrendering of our surrendering’. In other words, we surrender all of our misconceptions, all of our misunderstandings, all of our surrenders to God. It is as though it offers us a chance to surrender our human limitations. And it is in this space that I ask Allah to forgive all my dry, agnostic prayers, all my self-wrought delusions, all my weak and faulty service to Him. This moment of intimacy concludes one unit of prayer (or rakat).
I still have questions to explore, for example: why does each prayer have a particular number of rakat? What is the symbolic meaning behind this? I still have much to put into practice, because a description is not a reality.
And may Allah draw us all closer to Him in humble prayer.
Ma’as salama,
Abdur Rahman
24 Wednesday Oct 2007
Posted in Abdur Rahman's Poetry
Peace, one and all…
Tender Meetings
Moonlight caresses the swaying branches,
like a lover returned,
and made eager
by long separation.
Trees perfume themselves,
reaching forth into the night,
with hands
slender and beautiful.
This is love,
the tender night-enfolded meetings
of lover
and loved one.
(Abdur Rahman, 23rd October 2007)
24 Wednesday Oct 2007
Posted in Abdur Rahman's Poetry
Peace, one and all…
You Are Not
You are not a thing
I could hold
and You are not a place
I could reach.
You are not a time
that I could pass
and You are not an absence
that I could fill.
You are the shining moon
in a vale of darkness,
and You are the gift of rain
in life’s burning desert.
You are the Source
and there is no other.
You are my Beloved,
and my heart is lost in You.
(Abdur Rahman, 23rd October 2007)
24 Wednesday Oct 2007
Posted in Abdur Rahman's Poetry
Peace, one and all…
O Wine Giver!
Amidst all my tears,
give me more to drink*.
Amidst all my failures,
give me more to drink.
Amidst all my sorrows,
give me more to drink.
Amidst all my sadnesses,
give me more to drink.
O Wine Giver!
Keep pouring, and do not stop!
O Wine Giver!
May Your giving never end!
With each drop,
this drunken ego moves towards sobriety.
With each drop,
this heart of mine readies itself for flight.
* – a reference to the Sabri Brothers song, Saqia Aur Pila
(Abdur Rahman, 24th October 2007)
24 Wednesday Oct 2007
Posted in Our Spiritual Heritage, Sufism/Tasawwuf
Peace, one and all…
Baba Dervish (aka Irving bhai) has recently posted an excellent and moving account of the out of body experience that launched him onto the path of love. Please spare a few minutes to read his heart-felt and profound account.
Allah bless our worthy brother. Amin.
Ma’as salama,
Abdur Rahman
24 Wednesday Oct 2007
Posted in Abdur Rahman's Poetry
Peace, one and all…
Sometimes
Sometimes it comes upon me so strongly,
that I am swept off of my feet
and I find myself rushing
headlong into life.
Sometimes I can almost taste it,
and I feel as though light
will burst forth
from my mouth.
Sometimes I feel myself longing,
so that my heart sheds tears of blood,
and all else but You
is as ash upon the tongue
(Abdur Rahman, 22nd October 2007)
24 Wednesday Oct 2007
‘Creative powers can just as easily turn out to be destructive. It rests solely with the moral personality whether they apply themselves to good things or to bad. And if this is lacking, no teacher can supply it or take its place’.
(Carl Jung, 1875-1961, Swiss Psychiatrist)
Ma’as salama,
Abdur Rahman
23 Tuesday Oct 2007
Posted in Abdur Rahman's Poetry
This Is How Lovers Are
Sunlight leaping through the trees,
birds dancing in the sky,
winter berries bursting forth into exuberance,
this is how lovers are.
Each moment of life
should enliven us,
each fleeting miracle
should lead us to our quickening.
Otherwise, what purpose does life serve?
Beloved, I see a truth:
a life that is not lived
is merely a death slow and lingering.
(Abdur Rahman, 23rd october 2007)
23 Tuesday Oct 2007
Posted in Abdur Rahman's Poetry
I Am Done
I am done with earthly wine,
all I crave,
love of my heart,
is the wine of Your presence.
Earthly wine brings naught
but morning regrets;
the wine of the spirit
brings naught but joy.
Earthly wine is a passing illusion,
bringing ruin in its wake;
a single drop of Your wine, Beloved,
keeps the sun ablaze and the moon aglow.
(Abdur Rahman, 23rd October 2007)
23 Tuesday Oct 2007
Posted in Abdur Rahman's Poetry
Will You Not
Beloved, I have come to Your fountain,
will You not fill me?
Beloved, I have come to Your door,
will You not bid me enter?
Beloved, I have come to Your table,
will You not give me to eat?
Beloved, I have come seeking Your face,
will You not draw aside the veil?
All I know is need,
so lead me, Beloved, beyond the threshold of me.
(Abdur Rahman, 22nd October 2007)
23 Tuesday Oct 2007
Posted in Abdur Rahman's Poetry
The Heart’s Peace
The heart’s peace
is the only peace;
all else is illusion,
a cheap trick of smoke and mirrors.
The heart’s truth
is the only truth;
all else is error,
the ephemeral delusions of ego.
The heart’s love
is the only love;
all else is but play and diversion,
and Beloved, I have time for neither.
(Abdur Rahman, 22nd October 2007)
22 Monday Oct 2007
Peace, one and all…
Ya Latif! You are the One we all seek.
Ya Latif! Draw us closer to You.
Ya Latif! Lower Your gentleness over us
Ma’as salama,
Abdur Rahman
22 Monday Oct 2007
Posted in Abdur Rahman's Poetry
22 Monday Oct 2007
Posted in Abdur Rahman's Poetry
The World Yearns
The blue sky urges me to poetry,
as the warm sun
bids me put pen to paper.
The world yearns for our response,
desiring the gentle caress of our eyes
in all the passing moments of life.
Great beauty should not remain unspoken,
as great love
should not remain undeclared.
Break the seal upon my lips, Beloved,
and let this fleeting realm
hear the sigh of my heart.
(Abdur Rahman, 19th October 2007)
