Discovering the treasure that is Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas

In one of our sessions with Shaykh Faraz at the University of Toronto studying Imam Haddad’s Poem of Counsel, we were recommended to read Syed Muhammad al-Attas’s book “Islam and Secularism.” The pdf I had was a little difficult to read, but during the break my brother showed me how easy it is to read on the iPad, and alhamidullah, that has helped me start the text. And subhanAllah, it’s a gorgeous read! Yesterday I was reading a section of the book where the author speaks about the different meanings of the word deen, and though the section needs to be read in its entirety, there are a few passages I wanted to keep handy that I’ve included below. (Note: the capitalization and italics are from the original text).

On the connection between deen and madinah.

“It is I think extremely important to discern both the intimate and profoundly significant connection between the concept of din and that of madinah which derives from it, and the role of the Believers individually in relation to the former, and collectively in relation to the latter.

Considerable relevance must be seen in the significance of the change of name of the town once known as Yathrib to al-Madinah: the City – or more precisely Madinatu’l-Nabiy: the City of the Prophet – which occurred soon after the Holy Prophet (may God bless and give him Peace!) made his historic Flight (hijrah) and settled there. The first Community of Believers was formed there at the time, and it was that Flight that marked the New Era in the history of mankind. We must see the fact that al-Madinah was so called and named because it was there that true din became realized for mankind. There the Believers enslaved themselves under the authority and jurisdiction of the Holy Prophet (may God bless and give him Peace!), its dayyan*, there the realization of the debt to God took definite form and the approved manner and method of its repayment began to unfold. The City of the Prophet became the Place where true din was enacted under his authority and jurisdiction. We may further see that the City became, for the Community, the epitome of the socio-political order of Islam; and for the individual Believer it became by analogy, the symbol of the Believer’s body and physical being in which the rational soul, in emulation of him who may God bless and grant Peace!, exercises authority and just government.

*dayyan: judge, ruler, governor

~Syed Muhammed al-Attas, Islam and Secularism, p.53, footnote 42

On the meaning of being in a state of debt

 The nature of the debt of creation and existence is so tremendously total that man, the moment he is created and given existence, is already in a state of utter loss, for he possesses really nothing himself, seeking that everything about him and in him and from him is what the Creator owns Who owns everything. And this is the purport of the words in the Holy Quran:

Verily, man is in loss (khusrin). (103:2)

Seeing that he owns absolutely nothing to ‘repay’ his debt except his own consciousness of the fact that he is himself the very substance of the debt, so must he ‘repay’ with himself, so must he ‘return’ himself to Him Who owns him absolutely. He is himself the debt to be returned to the Owner, and ‘returning the debt’ means to give himself up in service or khidmah to his Lord and Master; to abase himself before Him – and so the rightly guided man sincerely and consciously enslaves himself for the sake of God in order to fulfill his Commands and Prohibitions and Ordinances and thus to live out the dictates of His Law. The concept of ‘return’ alluded to above is also evident in the conceptual structure of din, for it can and does mean, as I will elaborate in due course, a ‘return to man’s inherent nature’, the concept ‘nature’ referring to the spiritual and not altogether the physical aspect of man’s being. It must also be pointed out that in the words of the Holy Qu’ran:

‘By the heaven that hath rain’ (86:2) 

the word interpreted as ‘rain’ is raj which means literally ‘return’. It is interpreted as rain because God returns it time and again, and it refers to good return in the sense of benefit, profit and gain. Raj is therefore used synonymously in this sense with rabah, meaning gain, which is the opposite of khusr, loss to which reference has already been made above. Now it is appropriate to mention here that one of the basic meanings of din which has not been explained above is recurrent rain, rain that returns again and again; and hence we perceive that din here, like such a rain, alludes to benefit and gain (rabah). When we say that in order to ‘repay’ his debt man must ‘return’ himself to God, his Owner, his ‘returning himself’ is like the returning rain, a gain onto him. And this is the meaning of the saying:

He who enslaves himself gains (rabiha whose infinitive noun is: rabah)

The expression ‘enslaves himself’ (dana nafsahu) means ‘gives himself up’ (in service) and hence also ‘returns himself’ (to his Owner) as explained. The same meaning is expressed in the words of the Holy Prophet may God bless him and grant him Peace!:

“The intelligent one is he who enslaves himself (dana nafsahu) and works for that which will be after death.

p.56-59, Islam and Secularism.

Making Space for Goodness

During Shaykh Hamza’s classes on the 2008 Rihla, Shaykh Hamza taught us about the Sirah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). And during those beautiful sessions, we learnt that the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not have many things, but what he had, he cared for. He named his possessions because each thing he had was meaningful.

And I’ve been reflecting on this aspect of the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) life while at home during the December break. Packing to go home, I realized that I don’t actually need that much to function on a day to day basis. My favourite dua book, a few outfits, scarves, paper, a good pen, a few books, and basic essentials are all I really needed for a few weeks away. Part of the reason I didn’t need to take very much with me was because I was going home instead of somewhere else entirely (I didn’t need to pack a Qur’an for instance) but still, the experience made me wonder: though I don’t think I have much stuff, what are all the other things in my apartment and room at home? What is unnecessary? What are essentials? Is my love of books weighing me down?

Because though I love the books I presently own, my life would become a lot lighter if I exclusively got books at the local library, and made a decision to only get e-versions of texts that were really important/unavailable. I’m a residence advisor at one of the colleges at the University of Toronto, and when we hold events for our students and need a fondue set or specific board games or pots and pans to cook something special, we borrow the needed item from the residence office instead of all of the advisors having the same equipment on every floor. In a way, it’s a good model for daily living.  To only own that which is most necessary and most precious, and to borrow/share the things you don’t use/need everyday as and when you need them (renting a car, a bicycle, camping equipment etc). If life was focused on only a few things I would never need a large space to live in because I wouldn’t have many things to fill it, and I wouldn’t cringe at moving because there wouldn’t be much to transport.

The new Gregorian year seems like the right time to think about and implement downsizing one’s belongings. Yesterday I visited one of my favourite people in the world, an old friend who radiates light and joy and goodness masha’Allah, and while the kettle was boiling for our first cup of tea I chatted with her Mum about new year resolutions, and how deep cleaning is a beneficial practice to prepare for 2012. She mentioned that to make room for new energy, new positivity, new goodness and new things in your life it was important to get rid of what was no longer useful, and so towards that end she had sorted out different cupboards, donated old things, and done a thorough updating, clearing and cleaning of the house over a few days.

The conversation reminded me so much of my own mum, and inspired me to apply that thinking to my own life. Not only to my physical belongings, but to one’s mental belongings as well. Old arguments, old mistakes, difficult moments, really anything that is not serving me well to remember, (because it’s blocking productive learning/living or has the danger of decreasing my contentment with God) is something to clear out of my mental cupboards with the passing of the old year. Of course the lessons that experiences teach us we should remember, but the actual details of events (such as a falling out with a friend or something thoughtless we said) is something that we could probably do without.

Instead the new year insha’Allah should begin with a light heart and mind, hope and contentment with God, gratitude for blessings, reflections of character traits that require polishing, and hopes and duas for goodness and beneficial living  in the months ahead.

Have a Job to Take Care of Ourselves

We have to look at how we spend free time in those times between salaat. We have to be vigilant in those moments. So yes you prayed Dhuhr, but between Dhuhr and Asr, what did you do? Between that time of prayers, you instant messaged, went on Facebook, watched tv, gossiped, and spent three hours.  It bears saying:  we must get our cultural act together and develop activities to fill activities between prayers. Otherwise that time is filled by those with cultural authority. Not saying you have to be Mr Muslim and Ms Muslim, but need to understand what we have to do.   We think we’ve prayed, what’s wrong with instant messenger? What’s wrong with going to mall to hang out? To watch tv? Nothing in and of itself about activities that is haraam, but between dhuhr and asr, you’re still on the job!

If you understand what job is , you can be in slightly better position every year. But we go twenty years without growing an inch because we haven’t been on the job between salaat. We don’t realize we’re still on the job. So at the drop of hat, we’re still angry, still stingy. We have a job to take care of ourselves. (..). On an everyday basis  no such thing as standing still. Because if standing still and doing nothing to combat self, you may make it from salaat to salaat but can stay the same. So you always have to be on the job.

No one tried to overtake this religion except that this religion overtook them. We see people trying to be Mr Muslim and it lasts a limited time period. You will avoid that by being honest with your self and knowing the problems of your self. If I deal with my problems, then I won’t be overwhelmed. Deal with your problems honestly, courageously and consistently. It doesn’t stop and neither can we. We have all these traits to deal with, do we have time to waste? Constantly have to be on the job.

Dr Sherman Jackson, Knowledge Retreat 2009/2010 Day 4, Class 17,  Taj al’ Arus by Ibn Ata’illah 

Being in places of rain

One of the loveliest things about being home is being reacquainted with my notebooks. As I open books randomly and find gems, will post here.

Greatest pitfall in religious life is complacency. Thinking one is special because a seeker. And if find a teacher and are guided to a few elementary practices, often become stuffed with complacency and rely on practices learnt, and never take another step, and become blocked. Side effect of religious path are pitfalls. Everything that represents progression from dark wavering state to Adamic state, every step along the path is difficult. In Islam, we don’t talk of spiritual experiences. We are warid, something that comes to us. (like rain). Can’t make rain fall, but can try to be in places where likely to be rain.

~Shaykh Abdul Hakim Murad, 17 Rajab/July 20th 2008, Class in Madinah.

The definition of shyness (haya)

If it were not for God’s beautiful veiling, if it were not for God covering you beautifully, no deed you do would be worthy of acceptance.~Hikam 131 of Ibn Ata’illah.

Dr Umar’ commentary:

There is a huge spiritual truth in this Hikam. We don’t let anything we do go to our heads. We cannot make a claim to God based on the good that we do. When have we ever done anything really?

Haya (shyness) is the earnest desire to do what is right. For example, we are ashamed not to do what is right by our parents. Haya is the shame of failure to fulfill obligations. Haya is the light of the heart.

Muslims when covered, feel beautiful. Beauty is not in the physical body, in covering of the body. Marriage is important because it’s so difficult. When know someone intimately, you see their humanness. Marital relationship is one of uncovering in different senses. You are living together, therefore have to be very merciful. Marriage is a sign of God. You will not know someone more intimately than you know your spouse, except a mother and child. In that relationship humanness and human defects are revealed. Which is why spouses are garments for one another. They cover one another, they forgive one another.

In our lives, it is foolish to remove covering, and to hear and see things shouldn’t hear and see. The next Hikam, Hikam 133 is about keeping away from things that will pollute your heart. Eye, ear, food all are channels to pollute your heart. That means we shouldn’t have arrogance when we see other people, should have an attitude of “there but for the grace of God go I.” Don’t look down at homeless people, if you saw the things that broke them, maybe you’d be in same state.

~Dr Umar, Dec 15th 2011, Post mawlid class at the SeekersHub

If Understand Death, Will Value Life

Third characteristic of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is his attitude towards others. Today we think about the hereafter, and detach from the world to extent where people literally manifest a kind of depression. But death is the greatest motivator for living. If understand death, will value life. Sometimes you ask people how they are doing, and they will say oh alhamidullah, in a way to indicate things are so tough, and the alhamidullah is just the polish at the end. The Prophet (peace be upon him) understood the reality of death, but he was very positive towards people. Attitude is extremely important. We all know the hadith of a smile being a form of charity. The difficulties that come upon us are opportunities as well.

 

The fourth characteristic of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is that he responded to the good of others with good, or even better. If someone does good for you, not about expectations and it’s not about saying “thanks bro”, it’s about reciprocating. Fifth characteristic of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is that he would respond to the wrong of others with nothing but good. It doesn’t mean being gullible, it means responding with good for person and for context. Look at the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) life from start of mission, from Taif, and how he responds, and how it ends when entering Makkah, it ends with mercy. Literally. Prophet went to battle and stood firm against those who said lies, but entirely in all of those actions, all good.

 

Power is that when you have power to do whatever you want, that you would show mercy and forgive people. Have to understand that whatever ni’ma (blessing) Allah gives us in the world, not ours per se, all to be utilized in service of Allah. Our uprightness and orientation and all that manifests from us is good. For the believer all things are good, if only could experience it and see it and observe it.

~Imam Afroz Ali, Seekers Hub class “The Prophet Described: Living the Greatness of the Prophet of God” on Dec 19th 2011

Imam Nawawi Hadith #19-Divine Destiny

I came across some old notes of mine (on an old blog) about a special SunniPath lecture a few years ago on the 19th Hadith from Imam Nawawi’s Forty Hadith collection. In the spirit of the hadith of the Prophet  (may peace be upon him) “Let him among you who (was present and) saw, inform him who was absent”, and because I’d like to remember these notes in my “virtual notebook” here are some gems from this mubarak event.

Firstly, a bit about Imam Nawawi:

Imam Nawawi is from Syria, and is called Nawawi because he was from the village of Nawa. He was born in 1233 C.E and is an Imam of the later Shafi’i school. He was the scholar of his time, and a master of the hadith sciences in particular. He is known especially for his book Riyad as-saliheen (Gardens of the Righteous), and his Kitab Adkar (a book of invocations). He compiled his collection of Forty Hadith however, because he wanted Muslims to have access to the foundational hadiths of Islam.

The narrator of this hadith is ibn Abbas, a cousin of the Prophet and the son of the Prophet’s paternal uncle. He was born 3 years before the  Hijrah, during the difficult time when the nascent Muslim community was being boycotted.  It was a source of hope for Muslim community to have children born in this time, and the Prophet made dua for ibn Abbas and asked Allah for knowledge and understanding of the deen for him.

The text of Hadith #19 is as follows. (translation from the SP event)

Abu al-Abbas ‘Abdullah bin Abbas (radiyallahu anhuma) reported: I was behind the Prophet  (sallallahu alayhi wasalaam) when he said: Oh young man, I will teach you some words (of wisdom). Be mindful of Allah, and Allah will protect you. Be mindful of Allah, and you will find Him in front of you. If you ask, ask of Allah; if you seek help, seek help of Allah. Know that if the whole community were to gather together to benefit you with anything, it would benefit you only with something that Allah had already prescribed for you, and that if they gather together to harm you with anything, they would harm you only with something Allah had already prescribed for you. The pens have been lifted and the pages have dried.”

According to a line of transmission of other than that of al-Tirmidhi, it reads:

Keep Allah in mind and you will find Him in front of you. Get acquainted with Allah in times of ease and He will know you in days of distress. Know that what missed you could not have hit you, and what hit you could not have missed you. Know that victory comes with patience, relief follows distress, ease follows hardship.

We see in this hadith the Prophet in the role of a father figure, as ibn Abbas is very young when this incident occurs.  There are so many images in the media of the Prophet that are not favourable, and with representations it is important to be conversant with the hadith collections of the Prophet so we are able to counter these images with knowledge.

There are two different versions of this hadith, and it is important to reflect on the meanings of these two different narrations.

We brainstormed as a class about these differences, but one key difference is in the manner that the hadith talks about divine destiny. Each hadith gives us a different understanding of destiny. This is noteworthy because qada and qadr are fascinating topics that have fascinated Muslim theologians for centuries, and in this hadith we have a couple of different glimpses of this concept.

(Refer back to the hadith of Jibril to get an explanation of Qada and Qadr)

This hadith explains divine decree as knowing that what has passed you by was not going to benefit you. In other words, Allah is in control of our affairs and creates means and outcomes. This does not mean that Muslims are fatalists, but that with complete and total trust in Allah, whenever difficulties/sadness occurs, we have trust in Allah although we take the means available to us.

This hadith offers encouragement, something that is a common feature of the hadiths of the Prophet. We have many examples of hadiths where the Prophet lays out appropriate behaviour and encourages believers. Rarely do you find statements where the Prophet prohibits actions and does not offer alternatives. Here for example, we see the Prophet saying be mindful, and mindfulness has its own reward.

In this hadith we are taught about proper adab (etiquette) which is that as Muslims we rely on Allah in all affairs. This means that we take the best means possible, but we leave the outcome to Allah. Supplication is a powerful tool however, and it is possible that through supplication Allah will cause our destiny to unfold in different ways. Through supplication it is possible that Allah may ward off harm or cause some benefit.  Which is why when we ask, we ask Allah.

Book recommendation: Reflections of Pearls.

What is Mindfulness?

To be truly mindful, one is cognizant and conscious. It means to respect Allah’s limits, and adhere to the sacred law and have taqwa. At the highest levels, it is to have scrupulousness, (wara’a).

Mindfulness is a covenant between us and Allah. If we remember Allah, Allah will remember us. Deeply reflected upon, this hadith acts as a balm for troubled hearts.

Verse for contemplation: Ali Imran: Verse 186 (3:186)

This is your struggle

Your mental imprisonment is so great the only thing you can think of is fighting halfway across the world. You can’t conceptualise any positive work here where Allah has placed you. This is escapism, truncated worldview, cowardice. Do something where Allah has placed you. Otherwise all your college education, your writing, your technical skills, everything you have, are all to waste. Allah did not put you here in vain. If Allah wanted you to be halfway across world,  He would have put you there. So this place this is your battle. It is a battle of ideas, ethics, decency, and you can choose to wage that struggle or run away.

~Imam Zaid, Knowledge Retreat 1432 (speaking after several questions about the appropriate response to oppression/occupation in other parts of the world)

There was a Mother Who Knew How To Be a Mother

Last year, on the fourth day of the Knowledge Retreat Shaykh Yahya spoke about Tarim (a city in Yemen) and told us that before children go out, their mothers help them prepare for different scenarios they might encounter by asking questions like, “what will you do if you see an old man by the road? And “what will you do if you see the masjid door open?” And the children respond by saying, I will help the man and see if he needs anything, I will close the door of the mosque and so on and so forth. And through this process the mothers of Tarim help these critical meanings and intentions to grow in the hearts of their children in order for them to meet what they may encounter in the best way possible

The same morning during Dr Umar’s class, he said hearing Shaykh Yahya’s story made him think of when he moved to Georgia from Nebraska as a child and how his mother helped him prepare for what he would encounter on the first day of school, because Georgia at that time was a very different world; it was the deep South. His mother explained to him the questions that the other children would likely ask him, and the best way to respond. And sure enough, the same questions were asked, Dr Umar responded in the way his mother advised him, and everything worked out just like she said it would. And Dr Umar stopped for a moment and said:

There was a mother who knew how to be a mother.

The moment touched me deeply. Then on the last day of the retreat, Dr Umar spoke to us about his mother again, and about her passing, may Allah be pleased with her, and said said “everything I am, I am because of her.” And from his voice and expressions, we all had tears in our eyes, and prayed for own families and mothers as well as Dr Umar’s in that moment. 

What I thought about afterwards was how true that statement is. What we are, and the gifts and personalities we develop are very much a product of our families. To give something to your own family in turn and be a positive influence, it is necessary to be a strong person on your own and someone who has actively worked on purifying their heart. It takes struggle to prevent your own fluctuations in faith impact the consistency of your routines.

I’m at home right now for a visit, and in the past few days I’ve been thinking about the things here I’ve always taken for granted. Whether it is the day beginning before dawn with sounds of people getting out of bed and getting ready for prayer and Qur’an, or quiet dhikr being the accompaniment to meals and snack preparation, or people getting up for prayer as soon as the time comes in, or structured sleep routines, or the many other ways I see the sacred in the mundane, I’ve always just thought of home being “like that.” I’ve assumed everywhere was a place of reading, and seeking development and growth as a shared endeavour. But of course nothing is naturally a particular way, it requires effort and striving and active intention on a daily basis to create a beautiful home. To be someone to anyone, to be mothers and sisters and friends and daughters who know the reality of their roles, it is necessary to be firstly full people ourselves.

This Is Not A Religion Where We Just Talk

   This is not a religion where we just talk.  It is not about philosophizing or intellectualizing, or lofty conceptualizations, it is about actions. It is not just wagging your tongue.  The simple person who is busy with cleaning masjid, shoveling snow, maybe can’t tell you about Rumi and the 25 benefits of isolation and solitude but he is a bigger Sufi than person who is just asking about these benefits. Faith has to give fruit of action  Not about philosophizing and saying the light went on when the shaykh talked about 20 benefits of such and such and  I memorized 18 and didn’t implement a single one. If faith doesn’t take root in action, faith should be questioned.

~ Imam Zaid, Knowledge Retreat 2010/1432