A Muslim Convert Once More

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ   The following is extracted from “The Purification of the Soul”, compiled from the works of Imam Zayn ad-Din Abu al-Faraj ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Ahmad ibn Rajab al-Hanbali ( r.a. ), Imam Shams ad-Din Abu ‘Abdullah Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah ( r.a. ), and Imam Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Ghazali ( r.a. ).   The servant may experience one of two states as regards what he dislikes: the state of being content, or that of being patient.   Being content is a praiseworthy quality, while being patient is a duty which the believer must fulfill.   At some times, the people of contentment witness the Wisdom and Beauty of the One Who Tests when He Tests His servant, and they see that He is always Right in whatever He Decrees.   At other times, they witness the Might and Majesty and Perfection of the One Who Tests, to such an extent that they become completely immersed in these Attributes of Allah ( s.w.t. )...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ   Imam Abu ‘Abdullah Muhammad ibn Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn ‘Abbad ar-Rundi ( r.a. ) wrote Sharh al-Hikam ‘Atha’illah , a commentary on Shaykh Taj ad-Din Abu al-Fadhl Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn ‘Atha’illah as-Sakandari’s ( q.s. ) Hikam .   On Shaykh ibn ‘Atha’illah as-Sakandari’s ( q.s. ) statement, “No action is more likely to be accepted than that which you become absent from and whose presence you deem insignificant,” Imam ibn ‘Abbad ar-Rundi ( r.a. ) commented that the manuscripts he read had, “No action is more likely to benefit hearts than that which you become absent from and whose presence you deem insignificant.”   He said that the meaning of this version is that the heart does not turn towards nor consider significant the action described by what Shaykh ibn ‘Atha’illah as-Sakandari ( q.s. ) mentioned.   In not turning towards it and disregarding it, the heart remains proper and is free the slavery of seeing the action. ...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Shaykh Muhyi ad-Din Abu ‘Abdullah Muhammad ibn ‘Ali ibn ‘Arabi ( q.s. ) wrote, in his Tarjuman al-Ashwaq , a masterpiece of Arabic poetry translated in many languages, the following poem to the Ka’bah.   This is taken from the Futuhat al-Makiyyah as well.   “In the place of refuge my heart sought refuge, shot with enmity’s arrows. O Mercy of Allah for His slaves, Allah Placed His Trust in you among all inanimate forms. O House of my Lord, O light of my heart, O coolness of my eyes, O my heart within, O true secret of the heart of existence, my sacred trust, my purest love! O direction from which I turn from every quarter and valley, From subsistence in the Real, then from the height, from self-extinction, then from the depths! O Ka’bah of Allah, O my life, O path of good fortune, O my guidance, In you has Allah Placed every safety from the fear of disaster upon the Return. In you does the noble Station flourish, in ...