ADVICE FROM THE FRIENDS OF GOD
Osman Nûri Topbaş
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"Behold! Verily on the friends of God there is no fear, nor shall they grieve" (Yunus 62).
"Be mindful of yourself and listen to the advice of the saints with outmost care. Listen so that you can be saved from sorrow and fear and attain peace and assurance!"
The great master Mawlana Jalaluddin Rumi, may God please his soul, warns in his Mathnawi that the advice of the friends of God should be heeded most sincerely:
"God sent the Prophets and saints to this world out of His mercy. For this reason, they give good advice to people without impatience. Furthermore, they passionately pray to God for those who do not heed their advice, as follows: "O Lord! Have mercy on them! Do not close the gates of your mercy to them!
"Be mindful of yourself and listen to the advice of the saints with outmost care. Listen so that you can be saved from sorrow and fear and attain peace and assurance!"
"Follow the Perfect Human (insan kamil), who completely submits himself to God and stays away from the illusions of this transient world, so that you can be saved from the trials of this corrupt world in its later age.
"The words of the saints are like a pure river, full of elixir. While you still have the opportunity, drink from it until you are quenched, so that spiritual flowers and roses blossom in your heart."
"Gentlemen! Be sure to learn that etiquette is like the soul in a body. As a matter of fact, etiquette is the eye and light of the heart for the friends of God. If you want to destroy evil, open your eye and see that what kills evil is good etiquette.
"Open your eyes and look at the Qur'an, which is the word of God from the beginning to the end. All the verses of the Qur'an teach and instruct etiquette.
"Spend your wealth and all of what you possess to make a heart happy. If you make a heart happy it will enlighten you and bring you light in the grave, the inside of which is like a dark night…
"Spending time in the company of a friend of God, even for a brief period of time, is equal to an entire lifespan. A single hair that falls from such a person is equal to precious metal. However, there are people who are the antithesis of the friends of God; rather than accompanying them and conversing with them, the act of evading them and staying away from them is equal to the wealth of the world.
"I told my heart: "Do not desire to be ahead of people, instead, be the medicine of a cure. Do not be a disturbing thorn; if you do not want to be harmed by anyone, refrain from being someone whose words are evil, who teaches evil and who thinks evil. In all your states, perform good deeds."
FROM ABD AL-QADIR AL-JILANI (1077-1166), may God be pleased with him:
"Guiding people can only be done when there is sincere faith in the heart and when there is passion; it cannot be performed through talk. It can only be the outcome of seclusion, worship, the remembrance of God, abstention and self-control."
"O son! You need piety. Therefore try to fulfill the prerequisites so that your heart can be saved from internal adversaries and manners that are despised. Follow the direction of benevolence.
"O son! When you earn your living, do not act like the one who collects wood in the dark without actually knowing what he is gathering. Be careful about your income; pay attention to whether it is legal or illegal, halal or haram. In all your actions, stay under the sun of piety and faith in the Unity of God.
"O son! Practicing the injunctions of the Qur'an elevates you to the level of the Qur'an; it secures there a place for you. Practicing the Sunnah brings you closer to the Messenger of God. With the spiritual support of the Prophet, you will never be separated from the fellowship of the hearts of God's friends. The Prophet is the one who makes the hearts of the God's friends beautiful.
"O son! Eating unlawfully gained food extinguishes your heart, while eating lawfully gained food revives it. There are mouthfuls that keep your heart preoccupied with this world; there are mouthfuls that keep it busy with the Hereafter. Likewise, there are mouthfuls that direct you to the Lord of this world and the world to come.
"O son! Befriend the one who helps you in your struggle against your ego. Befriend him. However, do not befriend the one who causes your ego to lose control. First, concentrate on yourself; do good for yourself and righten yourself. Then you can spend time on others. Refrain from being like the candle which illuminates others but, at the same time, burns itself out. O the one who wants to perform good deeds in the path of God! You have to be sincere. Otherwise, you will become exhausted, all in vain.
"Guiding people can only be done when there is sincere faith in the heart and when there is passion; it cannot be performed through talk. It can only be the outcome of seclusion, worship, the remembrance of God, abstention and self-control. These qualities cannot be obtained by actions that go beyond formalism and mere display; these do not penetrate the heart."
FROM AHMAD AL-RIFA'I (1118-1182), may God be pleased with him:
"Gentlemen! The gate is open to those who knock upon it in humility and tranquility. He will be taken inside. The one who humbly enters will receive grand treatment."
"Gentlemen! Try to gain closeness to the friends of God. Because those who love God's friends do in fact love God; while those who show adversity to them do in fact show adversity to God.
"Continue remembering God, for this is a magnet for union with God and a sturdy rope for intimacy with God. Those who continue remembering God are on good terms with Him. Those who are on good terms with God are the ones who acheive a union with Him. To establish the rememberance of God in the heart is possible through the blessing of conversation and friendship, as one is on the same path as that of his friend.
"Contemplation is the practice of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and greetings be upon him. His practice, prior to the other forms of obligatory worship, consisted only of contemplation on the creation and the bounties of God. Therefore, you should also ardently practice contemplation and make it a way of gaining wisdom.
"Be careful! Do not be like a sieve, which allows the flour to go through, retaining the chaff for itself. Let there be no corruption or dishonesty in your heart, while wisdom spreads from your mouth. Otherwise you will be accountable, according to the following verse from the Qur'an: "Do you forget yourselves while commending good deeds to others?" (al-Baqara 44).
"Purify your heart completely; the cleaning of hearts is more important than the cleaning of clothes. In fact, God cares only about the hearts, not about the clothes. Follow the straight path and do not seek to please anyone other than God.
"Gentlemen! The gate is open to those who knock upon it in humility and tranquility. He will be taken inside. The one who humbly enters will receive grand treatment."
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