Submitting to the Choices of the Shaykh

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ 

Imam Mahmud ibn ‘Ali al-Qashani (q.s.) wrote, in Miswbah al-Hidayah wa Miftah al-Kifayah, “The Lamp of Right Guidance & the Key to What is Sufficient,” that the murid should submit himself to the choices of his shaykh.  As a murid, we should accept every decision of our shaykh dealing with our person or with our possessions and we should obey every decision being submitted and content.  This is the only way that we can win the jewel of his attention and his love.  Only by this measuring rod the quality of our sincerity can be determined according to the advice present in the following Words: 

سُوۡرَةُ النِّسَاء

فَلَا وَرَبِّكَ لَا يُؤۡمِنُونَ حَتَّىٰ يُحَكِّمُوكَ فِيمَا شَجَرَ بَيۡنَهُمۡ ثُمَّ لَا يَجِدُواْ فِىٓ أَنفُسِہِمۡ حَرَجً۬ا مِّمَّا قَضَيۡتَ وَيُسَلِّمُواْ تَسۡلِيمً۬ا (٦٥) 

But no, by your Lord, they can have no (real) faith, until they make you judge in all disputes between them, and find, in their souls, no resistance against your decisions, but accept them with the fullest conviction. (Surah an-Nisa’:65) 

How do we know that we can trust our shaykh or shaykh-to-be if we are not yet his murid?  As we know, there are many charlatans around who are only interested in our money or are eager to increase their power over other persons.



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