The Singapore and Malaysia sufi students organizing retreats at Pulau Besar, Malacca, in Malaysia every year. Our beloved Spiritual Sufi Teacher, Shaykh Hamid Hassan leads the retreat. We are publishing our memories and students experiences here.
From: "Shaik Maideen" <maideenshaik@yahoo.com.sg>
Date: 31 May 2013 11:01
Subject: Re: P BESAR RETREAT: MY EXPERIENCE
To all my brother n sisters, for me it was a wonderful time at the retreat. To me God is love n love is god that's wat I saw in every one's eyes. The vibration from each n every one MASHA ALLAH could feel their love their courtesy their language their caring. As we approach Allah , get nearer to him he will manifest on with his love. Every thing we see n feel will b of love. The plants the trees the flowers the animals will emit the vibration of love. We cry more n laugh less. This wat I saw in my grand Shaikh. His smile has so many meanings as he see thru us. My heartiest thanks to my loving sisters from KL n also to my beloved sisters
From Singapore n also to my brothers I m not clean enough to advice anybody I can only beg pls continue the mediation (Muragaba ). May the blessing of our prophet SWA be showered on all of us. May he shower his Elmo secret knowledge to all our hearts.may our wonderful Shaikh shower his blessing n love ( which he has in abundunts ) on all of us
This article is dedicated to those who are interested to know about entire 5 times prayer system. Muslims use the human
voice to announce the times of prayer to the community. The adhanis the call to prayer itself, and the person who calls it is called themuadhan. Instead of using the bell,
drum or gong, the Muslims use the human voice to announce the point of entry of
the prayer period. This prayer call, calledadzan,
is made in Arabic throughout the world as taught by Prophet Muhammad.
God says, “O you who believe! When the
call is made for prayer… hasten to the remembrance of God.” (62:9)
The following is
the Arabic transliteration and the English translation of what you hear:
Allahu Akbar
God is Great
(said four times)
Ashhadu an la ilaha
illa Allah
I bear witness that there is no god except the One God.
(said two times)
Ashadu anna
Muhammadan Rasool Allah
I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of God.
(said two times)
Hayya 'ala-s-Salah
Hurry to the prayer (Rise up for prayer)
(said two times)
Hayya 'ala-l-Falah
Hurry to success (Rise up for Salvation)
(said two times)
Allahu Akbar
God is Great
[said two times]
La ilaha illa Allah
There is no god except the One God
For the
pre-dawn (fajr) prayer, the following phrase is inserted after
the fifth part above, towards the end:
As-salatu Khayrun
Minan-nawm
Prayer is better than sleep
(said two times)
SIGNIFICANCE
OF AZAAN
Let us begin with Indonesia right on the
eastern side of the earth's central land mass. Indonesia consists of numerous
small islands, the principle ones amongst them being Java, Sumatra, Borneo and
Saibil, all of which are well known. It is the largest Muslim country in the
world, with 180 million inhabitants. The number of non-Muslims here is
negligible.
As soon as dawn breaks on the eastern side of
Saibil, at approximately 5:30 am local time, Fajr Azaan begins. Thousands of
Muazzins in eastern Indonesia commence proclaiming the Oneness of the Almighty,
Omnipotent and Omniscient Allah and the universal apostleship of Prophet
Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam).
The process then continues and advances
towards the Western Islands of Indonesia. The time difference between the
eastern and western islands of Indonesia is one and a half hours. So, one and a
half hours after the Azaan has been completed in Saibil, it echoes in Jakarta
on Java Island. Sumatra then follows suit.
Before this auspicious process of calling
Azaan ends in Indonesia, it has already begun in Malaysia. Burma is next in
line, and within an hour of its commencement in Jakarta, it reaches Dhaka, the
capital city of Bangladesh. No sooner the calling of Azaan ends in Bangladesh,
it has already prevailed in western India, from Calcutta to Srinagar. It then
advances towards Bombay and the environment of entire India resounds with this
august proclamation.
Srinagar and Sialkot (a city in north
Pakistan) have the same timing for Azaan. The time difference between Sialkot,
Kota, Karachi and Gowadar (a city in Balochistan, Pakistan) is forty minutes,
and within this time, Fajr Azaan is heard throughout Pakistan. Before it ends
there, however, it has already begun in Afghanistan and Muscat.
The time difference between Muscat and Baghdad
is one hour. Azaan resounds during this one hour in the environments of
Hijaaz-e-Muqaddas (holy cities of Makkah and Madinah), Yemen, United Arab
Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq.
The time difference between Baghdad and Alexandria
in Egypt is again one hour. Azaan continues to resound in Syria, Egypt, Somalia
and Sudan during this hour. Alexandria and Istanbul are situated on the same
geographical longitude. The time difference between eastern and western Turkey
is one and a half hours, and during this time, it is echoed with the call to
prayer.
Alexandria and Tripoli (capital of Libya) are
located at an hour difference from one another. The process of
calling Azaan thus continues throughout the whole of Africa. Therefore, the
proclamation of the Oneness of Allah and the universal prophethood of Muhammad
(Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) that had begun in the eastern islands of
Indonesia, reaches the Eastern Shore of the Atlantic Ocean after nine and a
half hours.
Prior to the Azaan reaching the shores of the
Atlantic, the process of Zohr Azaan has already commenced in eastern Indonesia,
and before it reaches Dhaka, Asr Azaan has started. This has hardly reached
Jakarta one and half hours later. Then the time of Maghrib becomes due, and no
sooner has Maghrib time reached Sumatra, then the time for calling Isha Azaan
has commenced in Saibil!
When the Muazzins of Indonesia are calling out
Fajr Azaan, the Muazzins in Africa are calling out the Azaan for Isha.There is
not a single moment when few thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of
Muazzins around the world are not proclaiming the Oneness of Almighty Allah and the universal
apostleship of Noble Prophet Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam)
on the surface of this earth!
God Willing (Inshaa-Allah) this universal and
continuous calling of the Azaan shall not cease until the Day of the Judgment.
Iqamah (A
Short Call to Prayer)
A shorter “call to prayer” that is made immediately
prior to each of the five daily Islamic prayers, to let people know that the
prayer is about to begin.
The “azan” (call to
prayer) is usually called about 15-20 minutes before the prayer starts, to give
worshippers time to make ablutions and gather at the mosque. When everyone has
arrived and the prayer is about to begin, the “iqamah” is then called to bring
the worshippers to attention that the prayer is getting underway. At that
moment, the worshippers are to be ready and standing in rows, with their full
attention on the worship of Allah.
The words of the “iqamah” are similar to those of the azaan, but it is
said more quickly: “God is Great; God is Great; I bear witness that nothing is
worthy of worship except God; I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of God(Allah);
Come to Prayer; Come to Success; Prayer has begun; Prayer has begun; God is
Great; God is Great; There is nothing worthy of worship except God.”
Pronunciation: i-qa’-ma
Alternate
Spellings: Iqama
Examples:
When we heard the
iqama, we knew that the prayer was about to begin.
Salaat ( Prayer)
The Islamic prayer, calledsolat, is a formal way of
worshipping God. The prayer is performed five times a day, each at specified
period.
- before dawn (Subuh),
- afternoon (Zuhur)
- late afternoon (‘Asr)
- immediately after sunset (Maghrib)
- night (Isha’)
All prayers must be performed within the
stipulated period. While the prayer period for the afternoon, late afternoon
and night prayers are long, those for the pre-dawn and after sunset prayers are
short.
The entry point for each of the prayer
periods changes slightly in progressive paces (according to the pace of the
sun). For instance, in November and December of a recent year, the entry point
for the afternoon prayer progressively advanced from 1250 hours from the first
week of November to 1310 hours in the final week of December and then retreated
along the same path.
A Muslim begins his prayer any time
after the entry point of the prayer period and not before it. Hence, to hear
theazaanis essential. Nowadays, however,
copies of the prayer time-table are available and if one does not hear theazaanone can refer to the time-table to
ascertain the time for one’s prayer. Theazaanis particularly essential if one wants
to perform one’s prayer in the mosque in congregation because the
congregational prayer begins just after a few minutes of the call of theazaan. (However, a Muslim who
reaches the mosque late can still perform his prayer by joining the
congregation at any point during the prayer, and then finishing whichever part
he has missed. If the congregational prayer is over when he arrives, he can
still perform his prayers individually.)
Theazaan,
in a way, is Islam’s international anthem. Anywhere in the world, whether in
Britain, Canada, China, India, Indonesia, Morocco or Singapore, theadzanis made in exactly the same words as
used and taught by the Prophet Muhammad. This uniformity gives Muslims of any
race, colour or culture the sense of belonging, brotherhood and unity in their belief
and worship of the One God.
The person who calls out theazzanfrom the mosque is theMuezzin. The first person in
Islam to be given the honour of calling out theazaan was not an Arab but a
Negro, a freed slave, named Bilal. Any Muslim can be theMuezzin
Salaat is really a very blessed and auspicious
observance. Every word uttered in it is imbued with God's greatness and
sanctity.
1.Make sure your body and place of
prayer are clean. Perform ablution if necessary. Make the intention
to perform your obligatory prayer.
2.Standing, raise hands up and say
"Allahu Akbar" (God is Most Great).
3.Standing with hands folded over
chest, recite the first chapter of the Qur'an in Arabic. Then recite any other
verses of the Qur'an that you would like.
4.Raise hands up, saying "Allahu
Akbar." Bow, reciting three times, "Subhana rabbiyal adheem"
(Glory be to my Lord Almighty).
5.Rise to standing while reciting
"Sam'i Allahu liman hamidah, Rabbana wa lakal hamd" (God hears those
who call upon Him; Our Lord, praise be to You).
6.Raise hands up, saying "Allahu
Akbar." Prostrate on the ground, reciting three times "Subhana
Rabbiyal A'ala" (Glory be to my Lord, the Most High).
7.Rise to a sitting position, saying
"Allahu Akbar." Prostrate again in the same manner.
8.Rise to a standing position, saying
"Allahu Akbar."
9.This concludes one rak'a (cycle
or unit of prayer). Begin again from Step 3 for the second rak'a.
10.After two rak'as,
one remains sitting after the prostrations and recites the first part of the
Tashahhud in Arabic.
11.If the prayer is to
be longer than these two rak'as, one now stands up and begins again
to complete the prayer, sitting again after all rak'ashave been
completed.
12.Recite the second
part of the Tashahhud in Arabic.
13.Turn to the right
and say "Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullah" (Peace be upon you and
God's blessings).
14.Turn to the left
and repeat the greeting. This concludes the formal prayer.
Thanaa, the opening prayer of salaat, contains
extremely virtuous and devotional and
recited in silence :
(1) Subhaanakallaahumma: 0, Allah! I praise Thy
Sanctity. Thou art free from all blemishes. Thou art above
anything that is not the best.
(2) Wa bihamdika: I praise Thy Glory. All
virtues and beauties are admittedly for Thee and befit Thee.
(3) Wo tabaarakasmuka: Thy name is blessed: and
in fact so blessed that blesses everything over which it is
mentioned.
(4) Wo ta'aaJaa jadduka: Thy eminence is most
exalted. Thy magnificence is most sublime.
(5) Wo loa ilaaha ghairuk: There is no god save
Thee.
None has ever been and none shall ever be fit to
be worshipped save Thee.
Similarly in ruku we recite "Subhaana
rabbiyal azeem." which means:
"My Magnificent and Almighty Allah is free
from all blemishes. I express my humbleness and weakness before His Greatness
by bowing my head before Him (for the bowing of head is the symbol of
humbleness and submission, just as a stiff neck is the sign of haughtiness and
pride). I submit before all Thy commandments and I take upon me Thy service. I
am at Thy command. Thou art really very Great and I submit before Thy
greatness. "
Similarly in sajdah (Prostration) we express our
submission before Allah the Highest, and declare Him above all defects. Our
head, which is considered as the most superb part of our body along with our
eyes, ears, nose and tongue, is placed on- ground before Him in the hope that
He would show mercy and bestow His blessings on us. Standing with our hands
folded before Him this was the first expression of our humbleness and
submission. This was further augmented by the .bending of our head in ruku and
it reached its climax when we placed our head on the ground before Him. In fact
the whole salaat is an indication of humbleness and submission, and therefore a
means of advancement and success in the world and- in the hereafter.
I'm sorry it took me quite a while to send you
some thoughts as requested.
I actually wrote a long email to all of you
much earlier but fate has it that the email was wiped out as I was about to
attach some pictures.
But I feel it suffice to say that I treasured
my experience in Pulau Besar and all the encounters, albeit brief, that I had
with each of you.
I feel we all kind of cut through the chase,
skipped the small talks and zeroed in on the things that matter.
And I find that refreshing and pretty amazing.
Thank you for the shared experience and
further info- Omar series, pingshuai, neem trees, azan write-up, halal
cosmetics, Rumi and everything else :-)
One thing that I'd like to point out is how
special and important this group is to me.
I'm only a beginner in this Order. And I felt
it was a solitary path that I've chosen for myself after searching from quite
young. It is after all, not necessarily accepted or joined by the closest
family and friends, even if you wanted it to.
So I felt really happy to share the retreat
with Hazrat Shaykh Hamid and all of you. And I feel a sense of belonging.
That when I retire from the world, in
seclusion at night, I know there are all of you, somewhere in another place,
doing the same thing as I am, turning our attention towards our hearts.
Which makes me realise, this journey is not
that solitary after all. We're joined by our hearts :-)
I was also pleasantly surprised to see Rumi
lovers here.
Here's something from the great Mawlana:
Your longing to Me
is My message to you
All your attempts to reach Me
are in reality My attempts to reach you.
...
And here's something to motivate us to keep to
our meditation:
Now, I would like to share with you all the biggest change that has occurred in my life ever since I met our Beloved Shaykh, and began the practices Alhamdulillah.
Firstly, here's what I believed in as a sinner... there would be two ends - one, I would live in my folly world as I was, to old-age and die repenting at the last minute (which is not excusable) or two, Allah SWT would have mercy on me and change me within through our blessed Shaykh's tawajjuh (transmission)... and I would get another chance NOW to make amends and live a conscious life to my end (though it could be near). I got this second chance at the Malacca retreat after two years of bigger struggles.
As an independent minded adult I had strong conviction in the argument "don't take advise from someone who hasn't lived your kind of life". This was but my ego at its best. It took me 40years to realize I was/am still ruled by it (in the most subtle ways). The small difference now is I sometimes become its master :)
Alhamdulillah through the practices and constant love and tawajjuh of my Beloved Shaykh, through my own experiences I was made aware of the 4 main objectives of Sufism (Tasawwuf):
- Purification of the Heart (qalb)
- Cleansing of the self or ego (nafs)
- Closeness to Allah SWT
- Developing moral qualities of character
Awareness alone of the above objectives is not enough. One hopes and prays to realize their full meaning, and then reach the final destination InshaAllah in Allah SWT. For all journeys are unto Him, transcendent is He. So understand.
Realizing the attached document contained my thoughts & words laced with ego (or self), I wrote to our Beloved Shaykh thus:
Salam Alaykum My Beloved Peer Saheb Hazrat,
Aadab-o-Qadam Bosi
InshaAllah your blessed person is well.
May Allah SWT give me knowledge, wisdom, and the sight to know how to truly address your blessed person.
Peer Saheb, even when a stranger does something natural like passing a cup or making place to sit, etc. we say thank you. When I was young sometimes my parents have asked me to say 'thank you' to Allah SWT and then to them, after receiving a sweet - to instill the sense of gratitude and thankfulness in me.
And when Allah SWT through your blessed person brought alive long-dead conscience in me, helped revive my dead heart through your love, tawajjuh and practices... I am not even thanking your blessed person?. In previous mail I mentioned that due to my egotistical explanations, I would like to refrain from sharing my experiences with other travelers on this chosen path.
Is this not a bigger egotistical mistake, is this not a bigger sin to knowingly not pay sincere gratitude to your blessed person (even if I may not know how?). I apologize for my error. The likes of me can never know how to truly show respect and gratitude towards your blessed person. May Allah SWT keep me in your qidmat and guidance to my end, aameen.
May Allah SWT sacrifice my life, happiness and health on your blessed footsteps, aameen.
I shall take your leave now
Seeking your prayers
With gratitude
Ma'assalam
Hopefully I have taken lesser of two egos in conveying my experiences to your hearts through this communication. There are times when my conscience bears heavily on me. Pray God Almighty lightens the burdens on our souls - aameen!
My heartiest thanks to Citi & her 'Satu Malaysia' team for putting together this memorable (second) retreat.
Take care of yourselves & pls convey my salam to your families.
Quda hafiz, Ahmed
p.s.: For the English equivalent of nafs, the Shaykh replied 'The English word for nafs is self. Since most people know ego better, we sometimes use it as the equivalent in informal communication."
Turning Toward The Heart
Experience on The Naqshbandi Mujaddidi sufi tariqat
...................................................................................................................................................
Where it all began? A meaningless life...
Alhamdulillah (praise be to God) I can only define my arduous journey and small
transformation of heart as ‘Turning toward the heart’. Intended to write a note in case I had
to present it at the end of the retreat (like the previous one).
Only with my beloved Shaykh’s tawajjuh (transmission) and blessings of the practices am I
able to begin on this true path of transformation. With limited knowledge, I understand why
the grand Shaykh Hazrat Azad Rasool Saheb (r.a.) named his monumental book ‘Turning
Toward The Heart’ because it is the heart which is the locus of truth and all manifestations.
Truth be told, as I read in the book – compared to reviving a dead heart, bringing alive a
dead human being is comparatively easier. Alhamdulillah now I understand the meaning of
those beautiful words of wisdom.
In sombre moments of my youth, I believed those heartfelt words of agony & despair
penned by the last mughal emperor of India – Bahadur Shah Zafar, was in effect addressed
to me and / or summarized my plight.
“Na kisi ki aankh ka noor hoon,
Na kisi ke dil ka qaraar hoon
Jo kisi ke kaam na aa sake,
mein vo ek musht-e-ghubaar hoon”
Translation in English:
Not the light of anyone's eyes,
nor the solace for anyone's heart
of no use to anyone,
I am that one fistful of dust*
It was not enough to realize my weakness and obedient servitude to my nafs (ego) since
young – the real battle is how to overcome it? There was a constant fight within – though
after every act of disobedience to Allah SWT there was (momentary) remorse, I would
succumb to lower desires and appetites again. Truly I wronged my own soul, I was in
manifest error.
Years passed this way, youth withered away and then God Almighty had mercy upon me out
of His boundless compassion – there appeared my beloved Shaykh Hamid Hasan Saheb in
the form of His mercy, to help, to guide and take me out of my misery.
I prayed to Allah SWT that if nothing good were to come out of me, let my life be at least an
ibrah (moral lesson) to someone. And hopefully the prayer is answered InshaAllah (God
willing).
Realization through my Beloved Shaykh’s tawajjuh and blessings of the practices (2011-13)
Alhamdulillah (praise be to God) with my beloved Shaykh’s selfless love, patience, tawajjuh
(transmission) and the blessings of the practices, now there was a subtle subconscious
realization that ‘ones’ life should be more than a collection of complaints, aches & pains,
appetites and desires’.
Realization of this truth happened only after I started the practices regularly. Perhaps, the
most profound blessing of the practices & our beloved Shaykh’s tawajjuh is to regain the
desire to go back to ones’ fitrah (original state or primordial state), inherent in all human
beings irrespective of race or religion.
I also accepted the fact that ‘if there’s anything good in my life, it is attributed to Him;
transcendent is He the Almighty God. All wrongs and shortcomings are only attributable to
me”.
Only for the sake of His love for my Shaykh, Allah SWT gave me numerous chances to get up
every time I fell deeper into the abyss. Just like a (patient & loving) parent with an unruly
child, my beloved Shaykh would show kindness towards me.
With the help of blessings gained through the practices, the inner courage and struggle
against my nafs was slowly gaining strength. I have started on the path to find myself...
however, the journey is long and the struggle must go on.
The Malacca retreat (May 2013)
The retreat was a culmination of the effect of the practices since 2011. It is the high point of
my lowly life. ShukrAllah (thanks be to God) our beloved Shaykh lit a spark in my heart... one
hopes the flame burns bright so long as I reach the destination – aameen.
Having led a life as I pleased and in folly, how could the changes ever come of my own
choosing and contriving? Yet God Almighty out of His immense mercy and compassion has
given me a blessing in the form of our Beloved Shaykh. So understand.
A few prayers
May Allah SWT for the sake of His love for my Beloved Shaykh, take my last breath on his
blessed footsteps, aameen.
There’s good and bad in all things. ‘Ya Allah SWT for the sake of your love for my Beloved
Shaykh, give me the wisdom to know the good in all things and provide me the power to
receive good from all things divine’ aameen.
May Allah SWT out of His bounty and love for my Beloved Shaykh, bless this low life with ‘al
ilm al-yaqini’ (sure and certain knowledge), and ‘ilm al-daruri’ (necessary knowledge),
aameen.
Lastly, to quote the Urdu poet Allama Mohammad Iqbal
‘meri zaban-o-qalm se kisi ka dil na dukhe,
kisi ko shikwa na ho zere aasman mujh se’
‘let not my word or pen hurt anyone,
may no being under the sky hold a grudge towards me**’ aameen.
Wassalam
Ahmed
Singapore
*translated by Russian student of Urdu poetry - Philip Nikolayev
**translated by self with due apologies to Allama Iqbal
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