Against the Awliya'

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

Certainly Allah (s.w.t.) Protects His friends.  Whosoever has hatred for them, has incurred the Wrath of Allah (s.w.t.).  And whosoever honours the friends of Allah (s.w.t.), Allah (s.w.t.) Honours them.  As recorded in Rawnaq al-Majalis, it is said that one day, while Shaykh Bayazid Thayfur ibn ‘Isa al-Bisthami (q.s.) was lying down with his feet outstretched, a man came by and deliberately put his foot on that of Shaykh Bayazid (q.s.) and went away.  Another man who saw it, objected and informed the offender that it was the foot of Shaykh Bayazid al-Bisthami (q.s.) that he had trampled.  The man said, ”So what?” and went on his way.  When that man was about to die, both his feet turned black. 

As recorded in Dala’il al-‘Arifin, Khwaja Mu’in ad-Din Hasan Shishty (q.s.) narrated, “There was a man who hated the awliya’.  When he died and was placed in the grave, the people tried to turn his face towards the qiblah but it would turn away from that direction.  The people were astonished.  There was a voice from nowhere announcing that it was an exercise in futility to try to turn his face towards the qiblah because he used to turn his face away on seeing the awliya’ and that, ‘He who would turn his face in disgust from My friends, I will turn My Face on him.  He is a Condemned soul and on the Day of Judgment, such people will appear with faces of donkeys.’” 

A preacher in an Amritsar mosque claimed that he was more learned than Imam Abu Hanifah Nu’man ibn Tsabit (r.a.) because he remembered more ahadits.  This fact was brought to the attention of Mawlana ‘Abd al-Jabbar (r.a.), who was his teacher.  Mawlana ‘Abd al-Jabbar (r.a.) rusticated the offender from his school and predicted that he would become an apostate.  After a week, he became a follower of the deviant, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad.  Someone later asked Mawlana ‘Abd al-Jabbar (r.a.), how he knew that that this man, called ‘Abd al-‘Ali would apostatise, he replied. “I was reminded of a hadits from Swahih al-Bukhari which Allah (s.w.t.) states, ‘I Declare war on the enemies of my friends.’” 

In another incident, a wali was once walking.  As his foot landed in a puddle of mud, the mud splashed on a passing couple.  The husband was instructed by the wife, “Look what that stupid old man has done to my clothes!  Aren’t you going to do anything about it?” 

The husband went to the wali and slapped him really hard in the face.  The man returned to his wife proud, his wife was smiling while the wali lay on the ground.  The wali got up and carried on.  However, the man who had just slapped the wali walked a few steps and he instantly fell down, and died for no apparent reason.  There was a shopkeeper who had witnessed the whole incident.  He ran to the wali and he said, “That man that slapped you just died?” 

The wali turned around and said, “The man slapped me for his friend, but my Friend Who Sees all and Knows all, Saw this and Slapped him back.” 

There lived a man in Sanjar who used to ridicule the awliya’.  When he was about to die, he was able to talk but unable to recite the shahadah.  His attendants were worried and they went to Shaykh Sawa’id as-Sanjiri (q.s.).  The shaykh came, sat near the dying man and did the silent dzikr.  When the shaykh raised his head, the man recited the shahadah several times.  Then the wali explained that because of his insolence towards the awliya’. Allah (s.w.t.) had Rendered his tongue unable to recite the shahadah.  When this was revealed to Shaykh Sawa’id as-Sanjiri (q.s.), he implored to Allah (s.w.t.) and Allah (s.w.t.) would Grant his du’a provided the awliya’ he used to ridicule forgave him.  Shaykh Sawa’id as-Sanjiri (q.s.) then contacted Shaykh Abu Mahfuzh Ma’ruf ibn Firuz al-Karkhi (q.s.), Shaykh Abu al-Hasan Sirri ibn Mughallis as-Saqathi (q.s.), Imam Abu al-Qasim al-Junayd ibn Muhammad al-Baghdadi (q.s.), Shaykh Bayazid al-Bisthami (q.s.), and others. 

Shaykh Sawa’id as-Sanjiri (q.s.) presented the unfortunate man’s case and sought his forgiveness, and these awliya’ forgave him.  The man himself told that when he wanted to recite the shahadah, a black thing would grip his tongue and would say. “I am your blasphemy.”  When he was forgiven, a bright thing came and removed that black fiend and said, “I am the consent of the awliya’.” 

Then he said, “I am seeing illuminated horses between the earth and sky.  Their riders too are illuminated and they are bowing their heads in utter humility and reciting, ‘Subbuhun Quddusun Rabbana wa Rabb al-Mala’ikatihi wa ar-Ruh.’”  The man read the shahadah until his last breath. 

It is recorded in Khulaswat al-‘Arifin, that Shaykh Baba Farid Ghanj (q.s.) narrated, “A sinful young man died in Multan.  Someone asked him in a dream about his state.  He replied that Allah (s.w.t.) had Pardoned him.  He explained that one day, when Shaykh Baha’ ad-Din Baha’ al-Haqq Zakariyya al-Multani as-Suharwardi was passing by, he kissed the shaykh’s hand with reverence and because of this, he had been Pardoned.” 

It is recorded in Dzikr al-Khayr, that a sinful person went to the river Tigris to wash himself.  Incidentally, Imam Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Hanbal (r.a.) was performing wudhu’ downstream.  On seeing this, the man got up and out of the reverence for the imam washed himself on a spot further down the river.  After his death, the great imam inquired as to his state.  He performed dzikr and supplicated to Allah (s.w.t.) at this man’s grave. He was told that he was Granted Salvation for showing a momentary reverence for Imam Ahmad (r.a.).