We Have Lots of Free Time
When you live in the present moment, you get barakah. You get blessing. And blessing has a timelessness quality to it. If Allah gives you barakah in your time, can do in your time amazing things that other people cannot do. And may Allah bless us with that. So you see someone like Imam Nawawi who teaches how many classes a day? I think 14 at least. And he’s also worshipping. He is also serving the community. He is doing all of these things. But it’s like for him time stands still because of where he is.
When you’re in the present moment, you’re in the moment of God. And then time is filled with blessing. When we turn away from God and we live in the world of our illusions, then time is not very blessed. Then it’s like you never have enough time. And a lot of us actually especially if we compare ourselves to our mothers and fathers and earlier generations, we have lots of free time. We’ve said that we don’t. We’re so busy. But what about your mother and father? They didn’t work from eight to five. A lot of them worked from sun-up until deep into the night. And yet they still had time.
(…)
We talk about doing things by God, and doing things for God and when you work by God then you get in the present moment. And then you get great blessings. And then you rely on Allah and insha’Allah He gives you success in what you do. When you rely on yourself and say I can do this, I have all these abilities and I’m so smart, then the barakah is maybe not there. You may succeed but in the end it may not produce the fruit that you want.
~Dr. Umar Abd-Allah On Spiritual Guidance: Commentary on Ibn Ata’illah’s Hikam – 03 Dec 2011, Seekers Hub
Be Aware of Your Breaths
This is what living in breaths is about. It’s about being present in yourself, being present in the time that you are, in the place that you are. And not to live in another world of what I’m going to do this evening, what I’m going to do tomorrow, the things I want to do next year, or worrying about the past.
The ordinary human being is torn between all sorts of you could say, illusionary considerations. Feeling regret about things in the past, worrying about things in the past, living in the past, (reliving the glories of the past) or more frequently, we live in terms of the future, of things that we want to do, places that want to go.
The spiritual path is one of getting in the present moment, being where you are. Being aware of the situation you are in, being aware of yourself, your breaths and everything else about you. But also being aware of people that are with you, the needs of people with you. Being conscious of your breaths, that in every breath you take, there is a special destiny just in that breathing. You didn’t create that, God created that for you, you acquired it. So that has the spiritual effect of anchoring you in the present moment. Living in the present moment. Not living in your dreams, or your ideas or your fears or your expectations or anything else. That is really really important. That means also to be thankful for what you have now, instead of when I get this, when I go there, when this time is up, things will be so good. No. Where are you right now?
~Dr. Umar Abd-Allah On Spiritual Guidance: Commentary on Ibn Ata’illah’s Hikam – 03 Dec 2011, Seekers Hub
Source:
The Beginning of Guidance (Class 1 at the SeekersHub)
This summer, I received a beautiful gift in the form of Imam Ghazali’s book The Beginning of Guidance. What I’ve read so far is beautiful, but the book is also very rich, and I’m only able to read a bit at a time. So when I discovered that the SeekersHub is offering a class on The Beginning of Guidance this winter, it seemed like the perfect way to get to know Imam Ghazali’s work a bit better. I was late logging into the class and mostly listened to what Shaykh Faraz was saying instead of taking notes, but below are few pieces from the lesson. (To hear it properly though, you can tune into the class live from the SeekersHub classroom, or attend in person at the Hub) Till next week insha’Allah..
Continue reading
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
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.
Learning History from Dr Umar (Notes from Qurba’s Witnesses over Mankind Course)
Every Qurba Academy course is beautiful. The small classes, the incredible teachers, the opportunity to ask lots of questions, the familiar faces; everything about Qurba creates a beautiful learning experience that leaves you waiting eagerly for the next course. And in proper Qurba tradition,this past weekend Dr Umar Faruq Abd-Allah taught a breathtaking one-day seminar on Islamic history. I was only able to come in the afternoon, but what I experienced was beautiful. We travelled all over the world through different time periods, and heard stories about Islam in places like Switzerland, West Africa, and Spain and Portuga. We also learnt about lthe seapower of Muslims, and indigenous cultures in North America among many other topics. Dr Umar is an amazing teacher, and his memory, ability to explain complex subjects with ease, and patience with our unfamiliarity of the subject matter was inspiring. It was a wake-up call to the richness of Islamic civilization, the importance of reading and learning more about history, and the necessity of having constant learning goals.
Below is a small (!) selection of my notes from that day. I’ve left out the actual stories Dr Umar was telling us because his lessons were amazing, and posting little sections of notes is an injustice to the class. But I am interested in continuing the learning process, and for those who are game, it would be neat to have a reading/learning circle of some of the books and topics that Dr Umar mentioned during the course.
Continue reading
The SeekersHub is a Societal Obligation to Support (And Other Gems from Dr Umar)
Dr Umar has been here in Toronto for the past month, but because of school and other commitments, it was only at the end of his trip that I was blessed to see him. On Thursday night I went to the Hub for a beautiful mawlid led by Dr Umar, followed by Dr Umar explaining two Hikams of Ibn Ata’illah. That would have been enough gifts for the month, but the next evening the Hub hosted an incredible discussion about the paper “Living Islam with Purpose” with Dr Umar, Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, Imam Afroz Ali and the Hub in general. It is difficult to summarize the event because there was so much wisdom said that night, but below are some selections from my notes.
Imam Afroz Ali
- Why do you do what you do? The critical answer is Allah, but the question is, how do you do that? Service is an honour. Sadaqa (charity) is not simply about wealth, but we’ve reduced it to an experience with credit cards. Our focus should be on efforts not results. Results are aspirational, but it is in our efforts that we experience themercy and justice of Allah. We are supposed to be people of sacrifice not expectation. We shouldn’t just check things off a list, we should have presence of mind when we act. We should avoid ABC (Activist Burnout Syndrome). We need to walk the walk rather than talk the talk. Don’t be people who are donkeys with a bunch of books on their back. Don’t be mediocre Muslims. It is important to have a certitude of abundance rather than an attitude of poverty.
- Important to have attitude of sustainability. In Sydney there are mosques very close together because of ethnic divisions and this is a breakdown of the imperative of sustainability. Need to have paradigm shift of organizations that are not for profit to organizations that are for benefit.
- The maxims of Islamic law are not mechanical thinking, they are ways to higher purpose.
Dr Umar
- Reason I wrote this paper is that there is a need for communities where reason is cultivated and respected. Because sometimes it may be that someone is citing the hadith and other sources but it just may not make sense. Islamic law has polysemic teachings, which means that they are open to many interpretations. Dissent hones the legal mind.
- Societal obligations are important because they cannot be made up. In Islam, water has rights. I’m sorry if that cramps your style.
- When we do things it’s about tapping into the religion of the Beloved (may peace and blessings be upon him) The Prophet (may peace and blessings be upon him) changed tribal society. Our civilization is like the peacock’s tail. Unity in diversity, not unity in conformity. Societal obligations are like a fire in the neighbourhood, you can’t just walk by because you have an appointment. Same thing if you see someone being mugged. We need to help people. But we don’t think about priorities, we think about do and don’t do, do and don’t do, do and don’t do.
- If you’ve memorized the Qu’ran and don’t learn the meaning. you’ve missed the boat Youu have to live by what you’ve learnt. Aql is the first ethical principle. We’ve got to empower our reason.
- The core maxims of Islamic law are an incredible bridge to other cultures and traditions. Europeans used to be impressed with Muslims because they worked so hard.
- When mosques are so unwelcoming, then at least create sacred space where we can grow. In some mosques they just go “PRRRRRR” to get through the Qur’an in Ramadan. You think you’re going to get rewarded for speed reading?
- Often in the Muslim world, it’s not the brilliant students who are becoming scholars.
- We need indigenous scholars, from this culture. Some brothers are here for 20 years, but they haven’t studied the language. Imams need english intensive courses. We import imams because they don’t cost too much, but then we ask them to do things of ten imams. We ultimately need to develop curriculum and we need the best teachers and best minds.
- Part of adab is knowing whether anything I have to say will be listened to or not. It’s a whole science to correct people. Have to know, when, how, and whether you have knowledge to do so.
- Shariah is vast but you would not believe this because of the way some fuqaha (jurists) try to make it. Whatever problem you have, be very clear shariah is not a problem. Because the shariah has solutions to everything. Fuqaha should not be memorizers of rules. Law is there to solve problems, not alleviate them. You have to learn about how you translate being in blessed lands to your own context (talking about people who have difficulty adjusting after studying overseas).
- Remember: if you are not at the table, you are at the menu.
- Turkish people have roots in traditional Islam and they have their heads on their shoulders.
- Key to transformative education is a transformative teacher.
- If you read something that disturbs you, important to first affirm something as true, whatever is true with Allah. Then take means to knowledge.
- Also remember, there is no such thing as “fard ulema” There are societal obligations, and we all need to support the scholars.
- The sunna teaches us that most dichotomies are false. Sunni path is both. We uphold what is right with due consideration of people and circumstance. Be aware of where Allah has placed you. Prophet didn’t just listen to what people said, but listened to people’s hearts. Listen to what people are really concerned with, and allay concerns. Don’t explain your motives, explain what you want to do in the light of their concerns.
- Prophet (may peace and blessings be upon him) taught us to always consult. For example, the Prophet (may peace and blessings be upon him) consulted his wife when he first received revelation. Fiqh means understanding, not that you memorize and pull right book of the shelf.
- What is imperative in this religion is to teach the unknown religion.
- Theology is the first obligation but we don’t study it anymore.
- Community is essential to religion and we need dynamic communities. This (the SeekersHub) is community, and with this, religion becomes powerful. With strong communities, don’t have identity crisis. Hub is a societal obligation to support.
- Need talented people to work and sacrifice. People have a right to the deen.
What is Beneficial Knowledge? Notes from Dr Umar’s Qurba Lecture at the Seekers Hub
Dr Umar’s lecture about beneficial knowledge began by Dr Umar noting that the SeekersHub is the fruit of Habib Umar’s visit to Toronto in March, because Habib Umar came with great hopes and a vision of things that should happen in Toronto. The Seekers Hub is our attempt Dr Umar said, “to realize this vision of Habib Umar, and it is a seed that will insha’Allah become a beautiful tree that bears fruit for a long time to come.”
And with that beautiful beginning, Dr Umar began the lecture. Though all mistakes in notetaking are my own, here are some of the gems Dr Umar mentioned that night.
Sincere Teachers Transform Hearts (An Evening with Dr Umar at the SeekersHub)
During Dr Umar’s Qurba lecture about beneficial knowledge, he told us that when the words a teacher says comes from the heart, those words transform hearts. And this describes Dr Umar’s speech perfectly. Dr Umar’s words shake you, they show you your mistakes, and they point you in the right direction.
And though it takes me a long time to process Dr Umar’s words, what struck me the most about the lecture was Dr Umar’s emphasis that knowledge is meant to transform your character to be like the character of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. The Prophet peace and blessings be upon him, was someone who loved people, and as we gain more knowledge we too should be developing into people who are helpful, approachable, friendly and kind. The more we learn, the more we should exemplify these qualities.
And as I listened to Dr Umar, I was reminded of my Dad’s emphasis throughout university that the purpose of education is to impact your state. There should be a difference between someone who is educated and someone who isn’t, and the difference should be that your education gives you the ability to adapt easily to any environment. If it becomes more difficult for you to mix with all kinds of people, to socialize, to be a source of joy, and to learn from people from all walks of life as you become more educated in an outward sense, than you are doing something wrong.
Dr Umar’s lesson echoed those words, and was a much-needed reminder that I have a long long way to go, and in much need of duas that despite being very introverted, my personality grows in the right direction.
The second thing that struck me about the lecture was Dr Umar’s remark that we are not meant to cling to our deeds and remember our good. Our good deeds are a gift from Allah that are taken to Allah, and are not things that we are meant to remember or become proud of. Remembering our own good means our deeds are still with us.
Dr Umar’s words reminded me of a workshop on conflict and communication I attended a few months ago where the facilitator mentioned that when we view ourselves as the protagonist of a story in which we are always right, we collect grievances about other people by noticing everything we do and noting the “injustices” that are done to us. All of this builds resentment within us, and instigates conflict. Dr Umar’s words deepened that lesson, and were a reminder of how easy it is to remember one’s own good in worship or social relations while forgetting the good of others. Dr Umar’s lesson taught us that instead of clinging to our actions it is critical to do as much good as possible without caring about how our actions compare to the actions of others.
In the next post insha’Allah, I’ll try to post actual notes (not the entire thing though!) of Dr Umar’s lecture at the Hub.
Immersing in the Sea 