Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani (rh)

Bismillah ... As Salaamu Alaikoom wa Rahmatullah

Last Sunday on the 18th of June I had the tremendously beneficial priviledge of attending a class taught by the well-known and highly respected Mufti Abdurrahman ibn Yusuf (may Allah protect him). You may know of the dear, young shaykh from SunniPath fame or from his other endeavors such as Zam Zam Academy, White Thread Press, or Al-Rahman Books. If you don't, and if you're interested about Islam and increasing your own faith, I definitely recommend that you become familiar with any of those organizations inshaAllah.

The mufti's class was held at MSI in Glendale Heights and was filled with many students of knowledge and, notably, Shaykh Husain Sattar, too. Other than a "semi-personal" relationship with Shaykh Abdurrahman (hereforth Shaykh AR), I was mainly interested in the class based on the topic: Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani (rh).

Many a sufi tariqa/silsila is connected to this giant (rh) and thereby to the Prophet (sw) and ultimately to Allah (swt). It is a distinct honor for any mureed (student) to have such a connection and one that we are largely unappreciative and unworthy to have. In this blog entry, I will try to jot down some of the notes I took from the class with intention of inshaAllah benefitting myself and others. I pray to Allah that He accepts it and forgives me of any errors that I may have incorrectly interpreted and save me from any harm.

When Shaykh Jilani would speak people in the thousands would come to see him; so much that it would make the kings of those times jealous. So majestic and critical were his words that 400 ink pots would be used during his talks from students taking notes. Keep in mind that not everyone in these gathering would take notes either, telling you just how many would in fact attend his gatherings.

Shaykh Jilani had a great sense of responsibility and love towards humanity. It was this feeling that stopped him from living a reclusive life spent in worship of Allah. Had it not been for Allah wanting others to benefit from him, he would've readily led such a life.

Notable contemporaries of his time would say that Shaykh Jilani's duas (prayers) were readily (i.e. immediately) answered and that he was a person of karamat (miracles). But his greatest karamt was to fill the desparate's heart with iman. Actually, there would be hardly a sermon in which a non-Muslim would not convert. He was also given firasa, which is a deep, penetrating knowledge. This led Shaykh AR to relate the following beautiful story about Shaykh Jilani:

A bright light came to the shaykh one day and said to him, I am your Lord. I have made the unlawful lawful for you.

The shaykh replied, You are the devil.

The bright light then became dark and the shaytan then addressed Shaykh Jilani saying, The same ploy I used against you has worked on 70 mystics. God saved you because of you knowledge and piety.

SubhanAllah! I was blown away by that statement, but then I was speechless upon hearing the rest of the story:

Shaykh Jilani replied, It was the favor of Allah, not my knowledge or piety, that saved me.

What can you say about such a man (rh) that did in fact have such a level of firasa where he always knew his position in relation to that of our Creator? Let's just fool ourselves temporarily to think that we could reach a high level where the shaytan would say that Allah saved you because of your religiousness! Would you not have been quiet at that point and been content thinking that you just kicked the devil's butt in?! Shaykh Jilani's reply clearly showed what it means to submit yourself to Allah. May we all gain such hikmah and understanding. Ameen!

Shaykh AR then mentions how Shaykh Jilani once spoke about 5 types of men that enter a marketplace. When describing the 5th man, Shaykh Jilani said (of course, these are not quotes!): There is a 5th man whoe enters the marketplace with awe and perseverence of Allah. While making duas of repentence for the people in the market, his tongue remains in gratitude of Allah. He is not eluded by or tempted by the marketplace.

Umm...wow. Like, imagine yourself going to downtown to the Mag Mile on a summer afternoon. It's busy, there are thousands upon thousands of people buying and selling (and desis returning) items from stores, half naked and beautiful women walking about, refreshing (Jamba Juice), delicious (Grand Lux, Bandera, Cheesecake etc.), dessert (Ghiradelli, Australia)places to eat -- or binge -- at. I mean, I'm telling you that it's impossible that there would be someone like this 5th person who would be walking around making dua, doing dhikr, and yet being respectful towards Allah's creation in the middle of all that without thinking, That Foghorn at Ghiradellis would be pretty nice right now. Anyway, some say that this 5th person Shaykh Jilani described was a station that he himself had reached (thus the ability to describe such a person). Allahu akbar!

Mufti AR continued and spoke on the nature of wealth: So great is pure wealth in the hands of pious person. Otherwise, that money would be squandered. Today there seems to be a lack of taqwa, not a lack of money. Money causes you to become attracted to the world. That is its greatest temptation, I'd say. Mufti AR mentioned that Shaykh Jilani spoke to two groups: the affluent and the poor.

Think about being in a state of poverty for a second. I mean, I know it's hard to, but if you think of it, extreme poverty could relate to disbelief as a person may start to question things asking, "Why me?" Shaykh Jilani, however, would tell the poor that Don't say that Allah didn't give you wealth, fame, etc. You are like a fertile land upon which Allah sends seeds of knowledge and faith. It then develops into a tree bearing fruits with strong roots. Allah has instead made you a lord in the Hereafter as a reward for your sabr now. And those that are wealthy are like a barren land, not containing the same roots as you do because life has been easier for them; unless of course Allah provides spiritual light to them.

Shaykh Jilani didn't advocate to be poor, but to use wealth properly. The Prophet (Sw) said that the duniya (world) has been created for you; you have not been created for the duniya. In fact, the duniya is like a shadow. No matter how much you chase it, it will still be there. The wealth-poverty issue was then summarized by Mufti AR (through the teachings of Shaykh Jilani) in a very beautiful way:

Money can stand at the door of your heart, but should never enter.

SubhanAllah. "Spiritual" Muslims aren't saying that you should condemn your money, but that it should be used in the proper way (i.e., helping others) and that you should essentially control your money, not let your money/the duniya control you.

MashaAllah, Shaykh Jilani was given a long life and went through several Abassid caliphs. In fact, he lived for 90 years mashaAllah! As Shaykh AR said, if you read Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani's khutbahs today, you still feel the electricity contained within it. The fiqh he followed was Hanbali.

Mufti AR concluded by saying that we should take inspiration from people like Shaykh Abdal Qadir Jilani. In fact, we should encourage our children to get into the deen instead of constantly reinforcing a doctor/lawyer society. Nothing wrong with that, of course. And Shaykh AR didn't say that all of your kids should necessarily go that way, but consider this: If we problems with our health, there will always be a non-mumin doctor that will be there to see you. But if we have problems with our iman and our scholarship, we should not be seeing a non-mumin; otherwise we have bigger problems to deal with.

Shaykh AR book recommendation: Saviors of Islamic Spirit (author = Nadwi). It's a book that talks about Islamic figures after the time of the Sahaba (rh), where so many lessons were learned.

Final remarks by Shaykh AR: There is Islam and then Muslims. This is Allah's deen. He (swt) is NOT in need of any of us. Allah always brings someone up for reviving the Islamic spirit. It's important to note that it's not our ability that accomplishes things. Look at Pharaoh. He had tremendous ability such that he convinced a nation of people that he was God. But, in the end, his ability was not accepted by Allah. You have an ability. Use that ability to be blessed. Ask Allah for baraqa and baraqa in your abilities.

My notes on Shaykh Aburrahman ibn Yusuf:
As a mufti, he of course mashaAllah has a great memory. He actually remembered me, despite only meeting me once (maybe twice) a few years ago. Granted, on a very infrequent occassion, i do email him, but regardless of that, I saw him 'in action' as he would approach others and say, "Didn't you once ask me about such-and-such?" The one questioned would reply, "Umm, yeah, but that was a looong time ago." MashaAllah! He completely followed the sunnah in making the person he spoke to feel as though he was his closest student and friend; at least this is how I felt when he talked to me. He also has a look much like Owais Qadri has in my opinion; one who is simply in love with Allah and His Messenger (sw) and through that love embodies it in a feverishly contagious manner. May Allah protect these amazing people. Allah huma salay Allah Muhammad. Ameen.

Fi Aman Allah.