SIRAT-E-SULUK [PART 8]

CHAPTER 5

SELF-APPRAISAL (MUHAASABE) [1]

Imam al-Kazim (‘a) says: Whosoever does not appraise his actions daily, is not from us. That is, he should evaluate and see that if he has done a good deed, he should ask more of the same from Allah, and if he has done any sin, he should seek forgiveness from Allah and return to Him in penitence. [2]

Marhum Hasan bin Fadhl al-Tabrasi narrates that the Prophet (s) amidst his counsels to Abu Dharr, said:

O Aba Dharr, a human being would not be among the God-wary (muttaqin) until he appraises himself every day with greater [scrutiny and] accuracy than [one] appraising his financial partner, and he knows where his food has come from, the source of his drink, and from where has he procured his dress; He should know whether they are from lawful or unlawful means. [3]


NARRATION OF PRESENCE

15. From Self-Appraisal to Spiritual Victories

Hadhrat Ustaad (perpetual be his esteem) had extreme attention to self-appraisal and he would [also] emphasize the same. One day, in the gathering of his lesson, he said:

O dear ones, assess yourselves, so that you may be an example of “…such shall enter Paradise, provided therein, without any reckoning” (yadkhuluna al-Jannata yurzaqoona fiha bighayri hisaab). [4] Seek forgiveness from evil deeds, and express praise for your good actions, for self-appraisal (muhaasabe) brings about self-caution (muraaqabe), which in turn reaps [spiritual] presence, and presence reaps [spiritual] victories (futooh)!

16. The Last Advice of ‘Allama al-Tabataba’i

Ayatullah Haaj Sayyid Muhammad Hasan Murtadhawi Langrudi, the son of Marhum Ayatullah Haaj Sayyid Murtadha Murtadhawi Langroodi would attend the lessons of ‘Allama Tabataba’i on the Asfaar [of Mulla Sadra], the Shifaa of Avicenna, as well as the class of Qur’anic exegesis. He also attended the private lessons on Thursday and Friday nights which would be held in one of the houses of the attendants. In one of his speeches he says:

‘Allama Tabataba’i was among the people of self-caution (muraaqabe). Once we came in his presence so that he may give us an instruction to follow. He said: The spiritual wayfarer must from the start until the end of spiritual wayfaring adhere to the two states of self-caution (muraaqabe) and self-appraisal (muhaasabe). He said: At the end of the night, before sleeping, analyze the actions that you have performed during the day. For whatever good action you had performed, praise and thank God, and ask Him to bestow you with succor to perform the action even better the next day. And if God forbid, you had done something wrong or committed a mistake, repent immediately, and resolve not to perform it again. If you observe that you have performed a number of bad deeds, make a decision to lessen them the next day. In short, he said that the states of self-caution (muraaqabe) and self-appraisal (muhaasabe) must always be there. Lately also, when he (‘Allama Tabataba’i) could not speak properly, a friend asked him for counsels, and he once again said, “Self-caution (muraaqabe), and self-appraisal (muhaasabe)!” [5]

To be continued soon Insha Allah...

SIRAT-E-SULUK [PART 7]

[NARRATION OF PRESENCE contd.]

[Ali Muhiti says:]

13. A Prisoner in the World of Intuition

In this connection [i.e. abstaining loquacity], Hadhrat Ustaad (perpetual be his esteem) narrates a spiritual intuition (mukaashafa) that he had experienced:

During the predawn (sahar) moments of Saturday night, the 12th of Jamadi al-Awwal 1389 [AH lunar] (5/5/1348 AH solar), after having performed the supererogatory prayers of the night and dawn as well as the obligatory prayer of the dawn (subh), and having recited the dhikr of the exalted Name "Allah" for a particular number of times, [NB: This was part of a forty day spiritual program (arba’in), when Ayatullah Hasan Zadeh Amoli would recite the dhikr of the exalted Name "Allah" for a specific number of times after every subh prayer], I sat in concentration, when all of a sudden I was overtaken by a particular state of [spiritual] attraction, and my body trembled and sounded as if a tractor was passing through large stones and an uneven path. I saw that my spirit left my body and ascended; however, it was contained in a body that resembled the body of the realm of dreams. My spirit went a little higher when I saw it [entrapped] in a house. It resembled a bird that is entrapped in a closed cage, and starts flying from one side to another, but does not find a way out. I was entrapped for approximately fifteen minutes, and would hurriedly run from one side to another. I saw myself imprisoned in this house. I could not escape. [Then] I heard a speech of someone whom I did not see. He said to me: Your imprisonment is because of your excessive and unnecessary speech. Why don’t you be careful of your speech?

In that state I swore by the Prophet (s) before Allah a number of times, for my emancipation. And I entreated Allah and lamented before Him, when suddenly my eyes looked north of the house, where I saw a window open, through which only one person could escape. I escaped from it. After coming out, I flew eastwards for a little while, and once again I left for the direction of the qibla.

And when I was freed from the imprisonment, i.e. after coming out of the house, I saw it as a very huge and magnificent house, built in the midst of a garden, which had no limits. The garden contained trees filled with white flowers. I had never seen such scenery in my life.

And I saw myself moving in the air at the height of the trees, such that the front part of my body faced the sky, while my back was facing the earth. And it is by my own volition, aspiration, and command that I could move up and down. I was constantly swearing before Allah by the Seal of the Prophets (s) and all the other Prophets, to attain intuition of realities. In that very state I came back to myself. That imprisonment of a few minutes had so badly affected me, that my body was exhausted and worn out, and my head and shoulders were aching severely, and my heart was beating fast. [4]

14. The Dhikr of Silence!

One day Hadhrat Ustaad (perpetual be his esteem) said in the gathering of the class:

One of our friends would say: “In one of my spiritual observances, I had an inner vision (mukaashafa) that I came before the presence of the Greatest Messenger of Allah (s), and sought a recital of Divine remembrance (dhikr) from him. He said: “I give you the dhikr of silence” [5]

FOOTNOTES:

1- Shaykh Tusi, Al-Amaali, tr. 1
2- Al-Kulayni, Usul al-Kafi, v.2, p. 14. Marhum Allama Majlisi (sanctified be his spirit) in his book Mir’aat al-‘Uqool when expounding this tradition writes: This tradition means that if there is a lot of speech in permissible matters, it would cause the hardness of the heart. However, in wrong and illegal matters, even if there is less speech, it would result in the hardness of the heart!.
3- Khudshinaasi dar Tarbiyate Islami, v.2, pp. 178-179
4- Ayatullah Hasan Zadeh Amoli, Insan Dar Urfe ‘Irfaan, pp. 25-26, Incident no. 6. Incident no. 18 also speaks of the same but with slight variation.
5- The Ayatollah has expounded this incident in point no. 320 of his work 1001 points as well as p. 26 of his work Insan dar ‘Urfe ‘Irfaan, which has some variation with what has been narrated here.

To be continued soon Insha Allah.