And they wrote what they thought Sufism is in their books.
If you know what Sufism is, you would read those books and think,
‘What utter rubbish! What utter nonsense!’
People do not know what Sufism is,
people have no idea about Tariqah.
They say that Shariah is Sufism - just grow a long beard, apply attar
and wear a jubba and voila! You’re a Sufi…
What is Sufism?
Each sect [of Islam] is lacking something.
35 years ago, when we used to live in Pakistan,
the Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jamaat
still believed in the saints, but what we noticed was
that although they believed in the saints and spiritual knowledge,
they did not actually know what saints are.
They did not know what the knowledge of spirituality is.
And those who have written books on Sufism...
I’m not sure if you’re aware or not, but if you’re in the west;
America, Canada, Australia, etc.
and take a look at the kinds of books on spirituality that have been published.
Thousands of people have written books and earned a lot of money.
One [author] has a Master’s in Sufism from Berkeley University,
another from Harvard and yet another from Oxford.
Sufism is part of the comparative study of religions
and they give you a degree in this subject.
So, someone has a degree from Oxford, someone else from Cambridge,
another person from Oakland University in San Francisco and another from Berkeley, which is also in San Francisco.
And then they wrote books.
And they wrote what they thought Sufism is in their books.
If you know what Sufism is, you would read those books and think,
‘What utter rubbish! What utter nonsense!’
People do not know what Sufism is,
people have no idea about Tariqah.
They say that Shariah is Sufism - just grow a long beard, apply attar
and wear a jubba and voila! You’re a Sufi…
And what disheartened me was
why they called this Sufism.
For example, you are a human being
and this guy says, ‘He is a human being’,
but the other guy says, ‘No, he’s a dog’.
And now it is said that both are correct, so what are we supposed to think you are?
Human or dog?
Confused, right?
So when you gave this knowledge a name, ‘Sufism’
A person that wants to accept Islam wholeheartedly
would then think, ‘This is something which is not Islam.
It’s good but it’s not Islam’.
This would divide his mind.
Secondly, when you speak about Sufism,
people demand references.
‘Show us where it’s proven the Prophet (s) said to adopt Sufism’.
‘Did the companions ever talk about Sufism?’
That’s what people then say.
What is the bone of contention?
The esoteric knowledge which is the essence of the Qur’an,
why have you given it a new name?
And if you look for its references in the Ahadith with this new name then what are you expecting to find?
Do not call this tassawuf.
Do not call this Sufism.
This knowledge is called Qur’an e Maknoon.
God descended this doctrine unto the spiritual heart of Prophet Muhammad (s) through divine revelations.
Now, there are two types of knowledge.
One was uttered by the Prophet (s)
and the other was preserved in the spiritual heart.
One was uttered by the Prophet (s)
and you penned it
but the other was not uttered but preserved in the spiritual heart,
and that was spiritually transmitted to Maula Ali (a)
and the chain of transmission continued.
That is known as Qur’an e Maknoon.
You didn’t know what Qur’an e Maknoon was so you named it ‘Sufism’.
When you gave it a new name,
people began to ask for references from the Ahadith.
It’s neither in the Qur’an nor in the Ahadith
because you have changed its name!
Otherwise, what does Sufism say?
Purification of the spiritual heart,
and the Qur’an also instructs the purification of the spiritual heart.
Sufism talks about purifying the lower self
and the Qur’an states ‘qad aflaha man tazzaka’
which means ‘successful is the one who purifies the lower self’.
Sufism tells you to revive and enlighten your spiritual heart
and the Qur’an says the same thing:
'With divine light, open up and expand your chest, for the sake of Islam'.
The Qur’an says the same thing: ‘Believers are those whose hearts God guides’.
So, there is no difference but the problem began when you used a new terminology for it.
Do not call it Sufism,
call it the knowledge of the Qur’an, Qur’an e Maknoon.
Look at what is written in the Qur’an.
‘Alif Laam Meem’.
These are 'The Separated Letters.'
Then what was said?
‘Zalik al kitab la raib fee’.
‘Zalik’ in Arabic means ‘that’.
‘Haza’ means ‘this’.
Now, you’re reading the Qur’an:
zalik al kitab la raib fee, ‘that book is free of doubts’.
You’re reading it!
‘That’ book is free of doubts.
What about this book in my hands? Is this not free of doubts?
Where is ‘that’ book which is free of doubts?
‘Hudalil mutaqeen allazeena yu minoona bil ghaib '
'It guides the pious ones’.
But everyone has the Qur’an and yet it is not guiding everyone, is it?
But for ‘that’ book,
the one for which God said, ‘that book is free of doubts’,
‘hudalil mutaqeen’,
it renders guidance to those who have already become purified.
This gestures towards the blessed chest of Prophet Muhammad (s).
I said something once and the clergy issued fatwas against me,
although what I said was true.
What did I say?
The source of knowledge is not the Qur'an, rather, it is the Person of Muhammad (s).
Has Prophet Muhammad (s) ever declared the Qur’an a source of knowledge?
No.
The Prophet (s) declared, ‘Ana madinah tul ilm wa Aliun babuha’.
‘I am the City of Knowledge! You shall earn knowledge through me’,
because the Qur’an you have in your hands is the replica, it is not complete.
The Qur’an, furnished with its spiritual and ethereal functions,
was descended upon the spiritual heart of the Prophet (s) by Gabriel through divine revelations.
It is preserved in the spiritual heart of the Prophet (s).
This [Qur’an] will not render you benevolence,
you must gain access to the Qur’an preserved in the chest of the Prophet (s).
This is why the Prophet (s) said,
‘Ulema min sadri’.
Meaning, the true scholars shall be those connected to my chest.
‘Ulema min sadri, sadaat min sulabi…’
The Sadaat (progeny) are those that came from my back.
‘Fuqra min noor Allah Ta’ala’.
And a fakir is one who is made of God’s light.
This is specifically about the Sultan ul Fuqra (Kings of Spiritual Poverty),
as the Tifle Noori (Spirit of Light) is the light of God.
So, this is called Qur’an e Maknoon ,
but when you named it ‘Sufism’, it was distorted.
And then thousands of people began to come up with absolute rubbish.
Someone said ‘tassawuf’ comes from the word ‘sauf’.
Sauf means wool clothing.
What nonsense! Does wearing wool clothing make you a Sufi?
More than a billion people lawn in China,
do you think they’re all Sufis?
This is nonsensical.