A Muslim Convert Once More

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ   The following was translated by Dr. Alan A. Godlas.   Imam ‘Ali ibn Thahir as-Sulami ( q.s. ) reported, in his Mahasin at-Taswawwuf , that Shaykh Abu Musa ad-Dili ( q.s. ) said that he asked Shaykh Bayazid Thayfur ibn ‘Isa al-Bisthami, ( q.s. ), “What is taswawwuf ?”   He replied, “Do you want the answer in the language of shari’ah , the language of al-haqiqah or the language of al-Haqq?”   Shaykh Abu Musa ( q.s. ) responded, “In all three.”   Shaykh Abu Yazid ( q.s. ) answered, “In the language of the law, taswawwuf is purification of hearts from impurities, using the Creation together with created nature, and following the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) in shari’ah .  In the language of al-haqiqah , taswawwuf is the absence of exertions, departing from the requirements of the qualities, and contentment with the Creator of the heavens.  In the Language of the al-Haqq, the foundation is that al-Haqq has Purified them of their qualities by means

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ   The following was originally translated by Dr. Alan A. Godlas.   Imam ‘Ali ibn Thahir as-Sulami ( q.s. ) commented, in Haqa’iq at-Tafsir , on gratitude in the following verse:   سُوۡرَةُ لقمَان وَلَقَدۡ ءَاتَيۡنَا لُقۡمَـٰنَ ٱلۡحِكۡمَةَ أَنِ ٱشۡكُرۡ لِلَّهِ‌ۚ وَمَن يَشۡڪُرۡ فَإِنَّمَا يَشۡكُرُ لِنَفۡسِهِۦ‌ۖ وَمَن كَفَرَ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَنِىٌّ حَمِيدٌ۬ (١٢)   We Bestowed (in the past), wisdom on Luqman: “Show (your) Gratitude to Allah.”   Any who is (so) grateful does so to the profit of his own soul: but if any is ungrateful verily Allah is Free of all wants, Worthy of all praise. (Surah Luqman:12)   Shaykh Abu ‘Utsman Isma’il ibn ‘Abd ar-Rahman as-Sabuni ( q.s. ), in his kitab to Shaykh Muhammad ibn al-Fadhl ( q.s. ) wrote, “Gratitude consists of the maʿrifah of one’s incapacity to be grateful truly, because of one’s awareness of the Grandeur of God and out of the humble acknowledgment of His Awesomeness.   Subsequently, the establ

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ The following was posted on The Sharing Group, by Brother Colin Turner, on the 05 th February 2014: “ When we say we ‘believe’ in ‘aqidah , a creed, what do we mean?   Is our belief imitative or is it the result of investigation and deliberation?”   Sister Lynn Allen Cione : Would that not depend on the person, their investment in the creed and their understanding of the transmission of faith?   Brother Jak Kilby : Coming to Islam, I found, and I know for many others, it was a similar experience, that for the most part, it was what I believed all along, although did not know exactly what it was, and was always a certain amount out of step with what had been presented to me from  “outside” .   Brother Marquis Dawkins : Yep. I think it is always a mix of both.   But oft times the investigation confirms the intuition.   Like Brother Jak said, it is as if I was a Muslim all along but learning the faith confirmed what I felt inside.   At the sa