Initiation to Tariqah and Tasawwuf

1. TAWBA, ASKING FORGIVENESS FROM ALLAH (swt)

First, let us ask forgiveness from Allah subhanahu wa taala (swt):

Astaghfirullàh... Astaghfirullàh... Astaghfirullàh... Astaghfirullàh al'azîm alkarîm alledhî lâ ilâhe il-lâ hû... Al hayyal kayyûma wa atûbu ilayh... Allàhumma anta rabbî... Lâ ilâha il-lâ anta khalaqtanî... Wa ana abduka wa ana 'alâ ahdika wa wa'dika masta ta'tu aûdhu bika min sharri mâ sana'tu abû-u laka bini'matika alayya wa abû-u bizanbî faghfirlî fa innahû lâ yaghfiruz zunûba il-lâ anta...

Our Lord! With your mercy and grace, please forgive us all of our sins, mistakes, shortcomings and wrong-doings that we have committed until today. Help us live away from any sins, mistakes and wrong-doings until the end of our lives as beloved servants of Yours.

A person may have committed sins and mistakes in the past.  He must turn to Allah (swt), for He is The Forgiver and  The Merciful. Allah (swt) covers the mistakes and shortcomings.  Allah (swt) enjoys forgiving.  Allah (swt) does not consider sins and mistakes of His servants in detail; istead, He blesses small good works of His servants in excess so as to have His servants in His Jannah (Paradise) with Him.  His (swt) tradition is so, provided that servants realize their mistakes, turn to Him and ask for forgiveness from Him as soon as possible.

Turning to Allah (swt) and asking for forgiveness is called TAWBA (repentance).  Thus, it is understandable that Tawba is not mere utterance of the words "My Lord, please forgive me."  It is, indeed, to correct the way one is living, to change his wrong-doings into good work.  Hence, we ought to turn to Him and ask for forgiveness in a nice, humble and persistent manner.

It is reported that Hadrat Ali,¹ may Allah be pleased with him (mAbh), once entered the Masjid of Kufa,² and saw a man at corner of the Masjid asking for forgiveness from Allah (swt).

(¹  The Fourth Khalifah (spirutual and political leader of Muslims throughtout the world) after the death of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him (pbuh).

²  Kufa is a city in today's southern Iraq, once then was a cultural center.)

"You ask forgiveness from Allah (swt) (in a humble manner at this quite corner of this masjid).  However, remember that asking for forgiveness only by the mere utterance of the words 'Please forgive me my Lord!' is not sufficient, for only liars do it that way."

Such a repentance would be the repentance of liars because they may utter the words of repetance while their deeds and actions are not  changed.  Having repented, the person must change his behaviour into a good way, turn his actions into useful ones, and become a good person.

For instance, if he would indulge in gambling before his Tawba, he must quit gambling in order to complete his Tawba...  If he would drink alcohol, he must quit drinking after his asking forgiveness from Allah (swt).  He must quit all of his wrong doings if he had any!  This is the real Tawba and honest return to the path of Allah (swt).

It is called as Tawba-i Nasooh--an honest and sincere repentance--if a man returns entirely to Allah (swt)'s path by quiting all of his bad deeds and habits. With such a Tawba, Allah (swt) would forgive him all sins of the past no matter how much they were--even if he were a murderer or an oppressor.  There are examples of such occurrences in the Hadith.³

(³ sayings and manners of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) during his life time).

Thus, we must not fall into hopelessness from the mercy of Allah (swt).  We should ask His forgiveness and mercy.

2.  ASKING FORGIVENESS FROM OTHER PEOPLE WITH WHOM WE ASSOCIATED, WORKED, LIVED, ETC.

The very first action in initiation to the Tariqah is Tawba.  As a result of an earnest Tawba (as promised by Allah (swt) as reported by his Messsenger (pbuh)), a man would be cleaned off all his previous sins and mistakes. However, there are some other liabilities that a man carries on his shoulder.  They are the due rights of other people on us. It is possible that we might have mistreated them, taken advantage of them, made them upset without any legitimate reason, borrowed money or other things form them and never returned it.

Our Tawba, asking forgiveness from Allah (swt), would not guarantee that we would be cleaned off such due responsibilities.  Hence, we must go, find and ask those particular individuals (who may be our friends, our parents, our family, our co-workers, our shop keeper, or someone that we argued on the street due to a small thing) to forgive us first, before we can ask forgiveness from Allah (swt).  Even we may need to do whatever necessary to obtain their consent and blessings so that our Tawba could be accepted by Allah (swt).  Allah(swt) would not forgive us our wrong deeds that ınvolve other people unless those people forgive us voluntarily.

Who would have rights on a person? His mother would have the most rights on a person, then his father, then his brothers and sisters.  Then, his neighbours would have rights on a man, then his teachers, mentors. Every human being whom a man deals with may have rights on him. Hence, he should ask their please and forgiveness.

We should go to people whom we may have an unfair transaction and ask their forgiveness after offering them a compensation in this world so that they would not be demanding in the hereafter.  It is necessary to have their consent while they are alive.

Sometimes, unfair sharing of heritage is heard.  As you know, man-made laws may constitute a different methodology for sharing of heritage than that of the law prescribed by Allah (swt).  Islamic Law (Shariah based on Qur'an) defines principles for heritage which are different from the republic laws.  Occasionally, people go with republic laws either intentionally or unknowingly.  They share the heritage equally. However, according to the Islamic Law, heritage share of women and men are not equal.  Thus, men may have some rights on their sisters.

These brothers and sisters may get along with each other peacefully in this world, but in the hereafter when they are in trouble during the divine questioning, they would begin searching the ones whom they think they have some due rights.  They would, then, easily claim some rights on their sisters even though they were fine during their worldly life.  They, even, may complain about their parents.

Why would a person complain about his parents?  For instance, they may say this:

"Oh Allah! My parents did not educate me in accordance with Islam.  They did not teach me the true knowledge; hence, I complain to you about them."

He will be in trouble during questioning.  It may appear to him that he will end up in hellfire. It can become real serious.  As a consequence of this trouble, he will be even more complaintfull from his parents to clear himself.

Allah (swt) tells us in a verse in Qur'an:

(Yawma yafirrul mar'a min akhîh) "On that day (The Day of Judgment), brothers will escape from each other" thinking that they may come and ask about their rights.

(Wa ummihî wa abîh) "... Sons and daughters will hide from their parents" thinking "what if they come and ask their rights from me since I did not do my duties as a son, as a daughter." 

(Wa sàhibatihî wa banîh) "... Man will hide from his wife and children ..."

(Likullimri-in minhum yawma idhin sha'nun yu'nîh) "... On that day, everyone will be in big trouble, so big trouble that they will not have a momentarily chance to look around what their loved ones are doing ..."

A person who wants to enter Tariqah (tasawwuf) intends to acquire the true and eternal happiness in the hereafter. He also desires to be a beloved servant of Allah (swt) to gain Jannah (Paradise), so he should take care of other people's due rights on him, which are a barrier to achive this ultimate goal... He should pay a visit to them, make apologies and peace with them, and if necessary, pay their rights back to them respectfully.

Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was so much appreciative and loyal to those people who helped him even with a small thing.  For instance, he would visit people who offered him a cup of milk during his great and eventful journey (immigration from Mecca to Medina in 632, known as Hegira in the Muslim world, which marks the beginning of Muslim calendar).  He would always be in touch with them, give presents, help them through their difficult days until his death. Thus, we ought to have the same kind of beautiful character and moralities he had.
 
 

3. MAKE-UPS FOR PRAYERS AND FASTING

What else are there other than our past mistakes, sins and due rights of others on us?... Daily prayers (Salat or Namaz is the name of a special praying held five times a day at different intervals throughtout the day and night such as before sunrise, at noon, etc.) and fasting. We should make up for the daily prayers that we neglected in the past.  Similarly, we should make up for the fasting (Sawm or Oruch is another important pillar in Islam.  Every Muslim man and women are obliged to fast for the month of Ramadan, provided that they are healthy and eligible to do that).  These are very important issues need to be taken seriously.  There are ahadith of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) about it.  There is one that is very impressive and frightening.  It is in the Riyazus Salihin (one of the vastly known Hadith collection books with high respect and credibility among the scholars):

[During the Night Journey--Miraj--Prophet Mohammed had a glimpse of Paradise and Hell.] While he was observing Hell with angel Jabrâil (Gabriel), they pass by a man whose head was hit by a massy stone and broken apart.  His head is then gathered together back to its original condition, and then it was hit again, and again.  It was a continuous and endless pain... Messenger of Allah (pbuh) asked Jabrâil:
 
 

"My brother Jabrâil, why is this man being hit at his head?  What is the reason behind this, what was his sin?"

Angel Jabrail answers:

"Oh Mesenger of Allah, this man learned the importance of daily prayers in his wordly life, but did not performed them.  That is why his head is being hit and broken again and again..."

It is a strong blow on the head, real strong.

If that is the punishment for not performing daily prayers, we should pray promptly so as to avoid such a situation.  In addition, we should make up for the prayers that we missed in the past...

As you know, we have to make up for those so that we do not owe any.  Besides, we should ask forgiveness from Allah (swt) for not performing them on time.  It is just like a debt.  We should pay it back.

You are mostly young people.  I hope you did not miss any daily prayers.  If there are any, begin making them up, so that you do not fall into trouble in the hereafter.
 
 

4. KEEPING THE WUDU'U ALL THE TIME

Always be with wudu'u (abulushment: preparation for prayers, such that Muslims wash their hands, face, arms and feet prior to any prayer.  It is also suggested to do that at other times).  This is one of the traditions of our tariqah.  So you should stay with wudu'u at all times.

Why do you think a Muslim keeps his wudu'u all day? There should be a reason for this.  Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was so careful to keep his wudu that he used to have tayammum (tayammum is another and short form of abulushment where people could use clean soil whenever and wherever they can not access to water) between the time his wudu'u expired until he renewed it. In ancient times, there were no restrooms in the house; people would use an out-house to respond to the call of nature. There were no running water--not to mention that water was extremely scarce. People would return from the out-house and make wudu'u at home. Our beloved Prophet (pbuh) used to make tayammum by the out-house before returning home, so he would not be without wudu'u even for a short while.

Scholars of Islam thought that there had to be a good reason for his (pbuh) being so careful about wudu'u while he was the Messenger of Allah (pbuh), a beloved servant of Allah (swt) and a perfect humanbeing.  As we read through lives of these scholars and mashayikh of our path, we see that they have done the same during their life time.  I personally witnessed the same in the life of many individuals.  They always keep their wudu'u and take tayammum when they can not access water.

What is the benefit of wudu'u?...Shaytan (Satan) is not able to influence a person with wudu'u.  The wudu'u acts as an invisible armor to protect that person from Shaytan and his evil acts.
 
 

Being protected from Shaytan, it would be very easy for him to do good deeds whereas it would be hard to do or say bad things.  His good deeds would increase; his gains, flourish.

Angles of Allah pray for such a person as he keeps his wudu'u during day and as he goes to sleep at night.

Then, it is a nice state to have wudu'u. One should try to make wudu'u as soon as it expires throughtout the day!... Elderly in our tariqah practiced this.  So, you hold tight to this principle of being in a state of wudu'u at all times, too.
 
 

5. DHIKR (REMEMBRANCE) OF ALLAH (swt)
 
 

Then, there will be daily duties of dhikr (remembrance of Allah (swt) either by tongue or heart) as you join the tariqa. You will fulfill these duties. What is dhikr? The dhikr is the easiest and the most convenient form of prayer as it can be carried out by anybody even if the person is ill, extremely old, bedridden or paralized severely as long as he is able to think.

As long as the person is able to think, he can conduct this form of prayer (dhikr).  It is very easy and rewarding.  Its reward is not limited because it is easy.  Contrary to its easiness, it results in abundance of rewards from Allah (swt).  As you know, [Sulayman Chalabi said in a poem]:

Once the tongue utters the word "Allah" with great zeal,
All the sins fall down like leaves in the Fall!

There is plenty of rewards for saying Allah (swt), even one time. There also come rewards with saying "La ilaha illallah (There is no deity but Allah)." Same is the case with "Astaghfirullah (I seek pardon of Allah)." Same goes with "Allahumma salli ala sayyidina Muhammad (O Allah, peace be upon our master Muhammad)." There are hundreds of ahadith about this. It is certain that the dhikr is has plenty of rewards.  You will learn and see this from the very first hand if you read books of Hadith like Riyazus Salihîn. It has English and Turkish translations along with the Arabic text and explanations. If you read this book, you will see the truth abouth the rewards of dhikr.  You will learn how keen Rasulullah (pbuh) was on dhikr.   Here is the ayah (verse from Qur'an) that is given as the main evidence regarding the dhikr: Bismillâhir-Rahmanir-Rahîm (with the name of Allah, the Mercifull, the Compassionate)

(Yâ ayyuhalladhîna âmanudhkurullàha dhikran kathîrâ wa sabbihûhu bukratan wa asîlâ) "O believers, remember Allah often and do tasbih of Him (glorify Him) morning and evening!"

Tasbih is also a form of dhikr; it is the utterance of "Subhanallah."  The verse above urges us to do dhikr and tasbih.

Then, in another ayah (verse), Allah (swt) mentions his beloved servants whom He will reward in plenty. The verse begins with these words:

(Innel muslimîna wal muslimât) "Muslim men and women..." In the end of the verse are these words: (Wadh-dhâkirînallàha kathîran wadh-dhakirât) "Men who remember Allah (swt) much and women who remember Allah (swt) much. (A'addallàhu lahum maghfiratan wa ajran azîmâ) Allah (swt)  has prepared great rewards for them.  He (swt) will include them among the ones who are forgiven."
 
 

The dhikr is a kind of prayer mentioned in Qur'an more than 80 times.  It is an easy one with plenty of rewards.  It is a highly esteemed prayer because as you mention his name and remember Him, He (swt) mentions you.  Can you imagine it? The Creator of this  universe, and the Lord of worlds mentions your name. It is a great honor for a person to be mentioned by Almighty Allah. Who knows what kind of rewards the servant would obtain from such a remembrance by his Creator (swt).  What a special and great treatment! Hence, you will have some duties of dhikr to carry out regularly.

The dhikr is something that every Muslim should conduct.  However, not everyone is serious, careful and hardworking about every issue.  Some fall short in doing their prayers and duties.

As we want to perform the requirements of our belief completely, we do not neglect the duties regarding the dhikr.  In addition, as the dhikr brings the rewards in abundance, the dhâkir (a person who conducts dhikr) obtains a lot of gains in a short period of time.  He advances fast in becoming a beloved servant of Allah (swt).

What would a person do to become a beloved servant of Allah (swt)?  In a hadith-qudsi, Almighty Allah informs us: "As my servant fulfills his obligatory prayers, I count  him as a good one.  As my servant conducts extra prayers, he keeps approaching Me closer and closer.  (Hattâ uhibbahû) Finally, I love him ."  Then, that servant may become one of the awliyâullah (friends of Allah), and almighty Allah provides him with extraordinary abilities and powers.

The dhikr is the shortest and the most rewarding way of achieving the love and consent of Allah.  Hence, as you are initiated to the tariqah, you will fulfill the dhikr duties.

Some may say "other people are not doing and bothering about such things; they drink wine, they neglect the prayers. They do this, they do that."

We should look at the example of our beloved Messenger Muhammad Mustafa (pbuh)--not at the example of ordinary people.  We should take the writings, remarks and news of great scholars and awliyâullah into account.  Disobedient and bad people can not be our examples.  Good, honest and loved people should be our role models.

Even, there is a rule in Majalla (name given to the collection of rules, laws and orders taken from Qur'an, Hadith and scholar's explanations, prepared during Ottomans' time around 1800s): "Wrong, bad or unjust can not be taken as example to justify anything."

"I was told that a popular person had done this way; hence, I am doing it that way."

Well, whatever he had done was wrong. Why do you take him as your role model?  He and his doings can not be taken as examples to follow. Wrong doings are not acceptable for taking examples, and bad people can not be our models.  Only good deeds and rightful doings are acceptable. If you say "Our prophet (pbuh) did this way, so I am following it," then that is an acceptable example.
 
 

If Messenger of Allah (pbuh) did so, you do it, too. However, if Satan did so, keep yourself away from it, do not do it. Satan�s doings are not examples of good. Referring to Adam (pbuh), Satan said, "I am better than him," and he did not respect him.  And, Allah dismissed him from His Paradise.  It was the result of the pride of Satan. In order to stay away from the path of Satan, you should not see yourself better than everybody else. Haughtiness is a character of Satan.

You will have daily duties of dhikr.  It is daily because the dhikr is the main nourishment for a righteous believer.  It is the spiritual nourishment for the dervish (novice). moral supply.   As a person gets stronger and feel good physically when he takes the necessary meal, a dervish becomes stronger spiritually with the remembrance of Allah (swt).

When can we perform the dhikr?

Any time. There is no specific time to remember Allah (swt), and there is no prohibited time to do it either. All day, all night.  Whenever you like.  Whenever you finish your work and say,"Finally, I finished my chores. I am going to sit down and take some rest," you can do your dhikr duty.
 
 

You may say, "There is no time for me to take a rest. I have elderly parents and three small children to take care. There is housework to do. I have to work all day. By the end of the day, I get exhausted." Then, you can do your dhikr while you are working. If you cannot take a rest, do your dhikr while you are doing your chores.

"I can not do it in the dining room or living room."

Then, do it in the kitchen while peeling potato, slicing tomato.

We were somewhere few days ago.  A group of painters came in, and started working while singing.  If they can paint and sing at the same time, then you should be able to do your work and dhikr at the same time.

You will cook and do housework while remembering Allah (swt) just as Muslim warriors remembered Allah (swt) while they attack their enemy!  Moreover, there would be a lot of side benefits of such a meal that you cook while remembering Allah (swt).  In conclusion, you can do your chores with dhikr.

Remembrance of Allah (swt) is always possible, there should not be any excuse not to do it.  "Well, I have five kids."  Even if you had nine kids, it is possible.  "Well, I have tonnes of work."  It does not matter even if you have to work 24 hours a day.   You can still do your dhikr.

If you want to do your dhikr duty freely and properly, you can sit in a quite and clean place as you sit in the salat. You can close your eyes and enjoy your dhikr.

First of all, you say "Astaghfirullàh" 25 times.

"Why?"

Even when we finish our salat, we say "Astaghfirullàh." That is why! When you end your prayer with selâm to the right and to the left, you say "Astaghfirullàh... Astaghfirullàh... Astaghfirullàh" (three times) and continue, "Allahumma antas-salâmu wa minkas-salâm, tabârakta yâ dhaljalâli wal ikrâm."

In fact, the prayer is a worship, a god deed. If we say "Astaghfirullàh" after the prayer, imagine what we must do after other times that we do things other than prayers. It is a good thing to start with "Astaghfirullàh" for the wrongdoings and mistakes we make.

We all are clean physically--Alhamdu lillâh, a Muslim is a clean person. Cleanliness is half of the religion. We wash our hands before we eat food. When we wash our hands, the dirt on our hands makes the water almost tar-black. We express our confusion: "O my God! I did not mess with anything dirty; I did not chop firewood or carry coal in my hands. Look at the dirt that is running down with water!" The hands of a person gets dirty without the person being aware of it. Likewise, the spiritual heart of the person gets dirty.

For the spiritual cleanliness, you will start with saying "Astaghfirullàh" 25 times.

Then, you will recite one Fâtiha and three Qulhuwallah [sura Ikhlâs]. You wil present the rewards of these to our beloved Prophet (pbuh), and to the our pîrs, shaykhs and awliyâullah who came after our beloved prophet before us.

This is how the duty of guidance came to us: Our beloved Prophet (pbuh) invited people to the path of truth during his lifetime. After he died, Hadrat Abûbakr-i Siddîq and Khulafâ-i Râshidîn assumed the duty of guidance. Then came awliyâullah, murshid-i kamils, great scholars, and beloved and blessed servants of Allah (swt). They all carried out the duty of guidance. We call this "Tariqa." Then the guidance duty is given to our late master Mehmed Zahid Kotku (RhA). He told me, "Son, you are going to carry out this duty after me!" Now we are carrying out the duty of guidance.

Our masters since the time of our beloved Prophet fulfilled this duty and turn in the flag hand to hand before us. We received the flag this way. Those who carried the flag are all our elderly.

Who are our elderly in the tariqa? Hadrat Bahâaddin Naqshiband, Hadrat Imâm Rabbânî, Hadrat Abdulqàdir-i Geylânî, Hadrat Shahâbaddin Suhrawardi... We published their works and gave them along with our magazines.

Hadrat Khàlid-i Baghdâdî is our elderly, Hadrat Mawlana Jalaladdin Rûmî is our elderly from a tariqa related to ours. I have dreamed about it few days ago the Shâzalî Tariqa elderlies are our elderly. When we sit down to do our dhikr duty, we send them a Fâtiha and three Qulhuwallah. Almighty Allah informs them as you recite. They would know about you. They will love you for that.

The spirits of awliyâullah have freedom, powers and duties in the hereafter. They appear in the dreams of people, guide them to the truth and advice them. Awliyâullah have such abilities.

In the beginning of your daily dhikr, recite one Fatiha and three Ikhlâs-i Sharif as a gift for them.

Then, you will close your eyes and do three rabitas. Here, rabita means pondering (tafakkur) and imagination (tahayyul).

The first one is rabita-i mawt. We know that this life is transitory and that we all will die some day. There will be a day of resurrection: we will all rise from dead and gather in an open area. Almighty Allah will interrogate and judge everybody. The rewards earned from good deeds and the sins due to wrongdoings will be compared for each person. Good people will be separated from the evil ones. The good will cross the bridge of Sirat, arrive in Paradise and attain eternal bliss whereas the evil will be thrown into the hellfire for punishment. Imagining all of this is called rabita-i mawt.

When a person imagines all of this, how good people are happy in Paradise and how evil people suffer in fire, scream and regret for their wrongdoings, he will tell his nafs: "O my nafs! Come to your senses! Do not be insane! Appreciate the value of this life and take all necessary precautions to avoid the hellfire in the hereafter. Do the good deeds that will take you to Paradise and abandon the bad deeds that would lead you to hellfire. Save yourself from hellfire and try not to lose Paradise. Do not waste even a second of your life in vain!"

This visualization is called rabita-i mawt. It is a recommendation by our beloved Prophet. He recommends us remember death often.

The death is a bitter and terrifying phenomea, yet the nafs is not corrected by anthing other than the fear of death. It must be the most effective way to correct the nafs because our beloved Prophet recommends thinking about death.

There are ahadith written on the walls of mosques:

(Ajjilû bit tawbati qablal mawt) "Hurry in turning to Allah in repentance before death!"

It does not happen according to the age or order. Sometimes the youngest of five brothers dies. Sometimes the grandchild dies and the grandfather lives. Sometimes the nurse dies while the patient in death bed survives. That is what happened to one of our relatives about a month ago. We have a bedridden relative whom her husband and her daughter have taken care of her for the last 16 years. She lives in her daughters house. Her daughter died, and she is still alive. We cannot tell when the death is coming, so we must be prepared and ready for death.

The next visualization is Rabita-i murshid. The first one is the imagination of death, and the second one is the imagination of the murshid (shaikh, spiritual guide, master).

Your geographical location does not matter. For instance, we will return to Turkey, and you will stay here in the U.S. You may go to some other country while we may go to a different one. No matter where we are, you are going to get in touch with us spiritually when you sit down to do your dhikr duty. You will close your eyes, imagine that we are sitting across you, and establish a spiritual link [from our hearts to your heart].

This is like turning the knobs of the radio to tune in to a specific station or turning the knobs of a television to get the picture. You will establish this link.

What happens when a person establishes this link? When this link is established, the spiritual state, power and enlightenment of our masters reaches the person. Then the person enjoys the worship better, becomes illuminated spiritually, and advances in the Tariqa. This advancement is called seyr-i sulûk. It is the progress a person makes when he takes a path. If the person establishes the link properly, his advancement can lead him to the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). When he reaches Prophet Muhammad it can lead him to Almighty Allah (swt). These stages of the progress are called fenâ fish-shaykh, fenâ fir-rasûl, fenâ fillah, beqà billâh. Here fenâ means annihilation, i.e., reaching and becoming one.

For this reason, you shall do the Rabita-i murshid properly. When you do it, your fayz and the spiritual feeling you will get when you do your dhikr will be stronger, and your progress in the Tariqa will be better.

The third one is the Rabita-i Huzur. It is the imagination that you are in the presence of Almighty Allah. It is stated in the Qur'an:

(Wa huwa ma'akum, ayna mâ kuntum) "No matter where you are, Allah is with you."

"But, we cannot see Him."

True, you cannot see Him.

(Lâ tudrikuhul absâr wa huwa yudrikuhul absâr) "The servants cannot se Him, but He sees them." Our eyes have limits, that is why we do not see Him. For instance we cannot look at the Sun; if we did, we would get blind. Almighty Allah sees us, knows everthing about us, and aware of our deeds. That is why we must visualize that we are in the presence of Almighty Allah.

When you close your eyes, you will imagine that you are in the presence of Allah. "My Lord! You see me and hear what I say. Even if I do not say them You know what is i y heart. You are the Lord of the universe, and I am your servant. You have the power for everything, and I need Your grace. I am poor, in need and powerless. If You bless me, I will be better off. I want to be a better servant of Yours. I need Your help. Help me so that I do good deeds and become a beloved servant of Yours. Help me so I live my life in accordance with Your orders and pleasure." You will say prayers like these ones.

Why [do we need prayers]? It is because Almighty Allah informed us that He will grant whatever we want from Him. Our Lord said in the Qu'an:

(Wa qàla rabbukum ud'ûnî astajib lakum) "You make dua, and I will respond to your prayers and grant you what you want."

That is why you need to ask from Almighty Allah. But, you should not say "I asked; He did not give me." He may not give you as soon as you asked for it. Sometimes, you will not realize that He already granted what you wanted.

I will give you one example from my own life so that you will remember better: Soon after I got married [in Istanbul], I was appointed as an assistant in the College of Theology in Ankara University. I searched for a house to move into for all day. I could only find a one-bedroom house: one room and a kitchen. I wanted to live close to the campus because I wanted to be in touch with my wife at all times, for we were newly-weds in a new neighborhood away from our parents for the fırst time. I wanted her to feel secure. We moved into that house.

In that small house the neigbours got to know us well. There was a widow in the neighborhood who had a three-bedroom house for rent. When the house was vacated, she told us that she would rent the house to us. So we moved there.

We had gotten married in Istanbul. We had all our belongings loaded on a truck to move to Ankara. On the road, the temperature was below freezing, and all of our flower pots got frozen in Gerede. Some of the furniture got damaged during the trip. It was quite hard to move to Ankara first then to another house. I raised my hands and prayed: "My Lord! Save us from the trouble of moving from one house to another. Let the next house we move be our own house."

Some time in the following years, we saw some houses being constructed in a neighborhood where a friend of ours lived. They were duplex houses with a nice view which were quite attractive. Our Haji Khanim--we were not haji then--said: "Let us move into one of these new houses!"

I objected: "Come on now! These are expensive houses; we cannot afford the rent!" Nevertheless, we moved into one of these houses on a winter day. The house was fine, and I liked it, too. The rent was ninety liras with the value of that time.

When we moved there, I tought "Allah did not accept my prayer, for we are moving to another place that we rented. It is not our own place." We had moved to a new place, with a nice view and a large balcony, yet we had to pay rent for it.

A year passed after we moved into that house, and the house became ours. The house we rented became ours. Our prayer was accepted. We were the first residents of the house. We did not know that we had moved into our own house. The house was ours. We paid some rent for our own house, then it became ours. In conclusion, never say, "I prayed to Allah, and He did not accept it!"

Almighty Allah accepts the prayers in three ways:

1. He grants you what you want as you want.

2. He grants you something better ad more suitable than what you asked for. For instance, you may ask, "I need a car--it could be a beaten-up old car as long as it works," yet almighty Allah could give you a Mercedes. Isn't it a better deal? Do not say that you did not get what you wanted; you were given something better.

3. If you wanted someting that is not to be given in this world, He will give you the reward in the hereafter.

For instance, I remember how sad we felt when our Master [Mehmed Zahid Kotku] was about to pass away. We did not want him to leave this world. Some people who were present, including my father, prayed: "My Lord! Take my life and give it to him. Let me die and him stay."

Isn't Almighty Allah able to give him more life without taking yours? Of course He is! He does not need to take from somebody to give it to somebody else. If He wills, He can extend his life as well as other person's. We all prayed so much, yet our Master died. Why? It is the destiny. The destiny does not change; his life was that much. There is no escape.

When Prophet Muhammad died, it was similar. Nobody wanted him to leave this world. They could not believe he was dead. Hadrat Omar ibn-i Khattab pulled his sword and said: "Whoever says that the Prophet is dead, I will chop off his head. He is not dead." He could not believe it. As the body of the Prophet was lying there, he kept saying "Whoever says he is dead, I will kill that person!"

Then Hadrat Abû Bakr-i Siddîq recited a verse from the Qur'an:

(Wamâ muhammadun illâ rasûl) "Muhammad is a Messenger, a Prophet. (Qad khalat min qablihir rusul) Many Messengers lived and died before him; he is a messenger,too, so he will die! (Afa in mâta aw qutilanqalabtum alâ a'qàbikum?) If he dies or gets martyred, will you turn on your heels and return to your old beliefs? Wold you turn your backs to Islam? Islâm will continue!"

Upon hearing this verse, Hadrat Omar calmed down. He said, "I knew this verse, yet I never tought of interpreting this way." He then realized the bitter fact of life. They started preparations for the funeral.

The Messengers died, so will everybody else. You keep praying for a person not to die and to live longer, yet is the destiny [the person dies on the due time]. What happens to your prayer, then? If what you want is something almighty Allah would not give in this life, then He will reward you in the hereafter.

Hadrat Abdulqàdir-i Geylanî describes in his book an event which was based on a hadith. When a person is judged on the Day of Judgement, he will realize that he has so much rewards. He will be confused and ask: "My Lord! I do not know how I earned these rewards. What are they from?

Almighty Allah will respond: "O My servant! These are the rewards for the prayers, du'as, that you made during your life. What you asked for then was not proper to be granted; today you receive the rewards. This is the response for your prayer."

Hearing this, everybody will say, "I wish all of my prayers were like this, and I would get great rewards here."

Then, while keeping the state that your in the presense of Almighty Allah, take your rosary and start your dhikr.

1. Say "Astaghfirullah" for one hundred times. There are ahadith about this; it is the recommendation of our beloved Prophet SAS.

2. Say "Lâ ilâha illallah" for one hundred times.

3. Say "Allah" for one thousand times. Once for every one hundred, say "Ilahî anta maqsûdî wa ridàka matlûbî." This is from a Hadith Qudsi. It means "My Lord! You are my purpose and Your consent is what I desire."

4. Say Salawât-i Sharifa for one hundred times. This is also recommended by the Prophet.

5. Recite Surah Ikhlas (Qul huwallàhu ahad ...) for one hundred times. This is also recommended by the Prophet. As you do your dhikr, you will be following the ahadith of the Prophet.

Upon completing your dhikr, you shall make du'a for yourself, for the betterment of your life in this world and for the hereafter. This is not selfishness; it is natural. You can ask for things.

You shall not skip your parents inyour prayers, for Almighty Allah does not like a person who does not make du'a for is parents. However, the Shaykh of a person comes before the parents for he is the viceroy of the Prophet. You should not skip him in your prayers, either.

Then you pray for all Muslims. You pray for your neighbors, relatives, friends and beloved ones. Almighty allah will reward you for that.

Of course the dhikr is not limited to what I have described. It can be done at other times. You can do it as dhikr-i qalbî.

I am going to dictate you some dhikr, so listen to me:

"Lâ ilâha illallah... Lâ ilâha illallah... Lâ ilâha illallah..."

Now you say it all together as Almighty Allah witnesses:

"Lâ ilâha illallah... Lâ ilâha illallah... Lâ ilâha illallah..."

"Allah..."

"Allah..."

"Allah..."

"Allah..."

"Allah..."

"Allah..."

Now, close your mouth and eyes! Continue saying "Allah" in your heart without moving your mouth. .................

May Almighty Allah bless your initiation. The dhikr carried out like this without moving the tongoue or lips, without anybody else noticing is called dhikr-i qalbî. It is called qalbî because it is done in the heart. This has very high rewards. Nobody would know that you are doing dhikr; it does not attract attention, so it would be free of show off. Even the angels would not notice it. Only Almighty Allah would know about it.

If a person says "Allah" by heart, its reward exceeds four million nine hundred thousand times that of the regular dhikr. It is stated in the ahadith sharif. You say once and get the rewards of almost five million times.

That is why you should keep doing this dhikr. While going somewhere, at work, in the car, as you sit or walk, even when yo go to bed to sleep, let your heart do dhikr "Allah... Allah... Allah..."

We used to travel with our Master [M. Z. Kotku Rh.A] and be guests to our ikhwan. Once we were sleeping in the living room of a house in Ankara. He was in deep sleep and snoring, yet I could hear the words "Allah... Allah..." from him regularly. I was amazed.

Usually our Master [M. Z. Kotku Rh.A] and I would sleep in separate rooms. Due to our travel, we had to sleep in the same room side by side. He was in one side, sleeping and snoring, for he was old and tired. I could hear the words "Allah... Allah... Allah..." from him continuously. He was keeping the dhikr while he slept. It was very interesting.

You, too, do this dhikr all the time; every time you will get five million, five million, five million ... rewards. If it were five million [Turkish] Liras, it would be a significant amount. No doubt, the rewards of Allah is much more valuable than the money. If you earn the rewards like that, you would advance fast and attein the consent of Allah sooner.

We ought to know the main line and the main frame of the tariqa. Our path is the path of becoming a good Muslim; it is the path of Prophet Muhammad, the path of the companions of the Prophet, the path of the Glorious Qur'an. We have to be aware of this fact and stay within this frame. We see many people getting outside of this frame in the name of religion, doing things, committing sins and getting into the prohibitions. They ruin their lives in this life and in the hereafter. That is why we must observe the main frame carefully.

That is why I recommend you read the book Riyâzus Sàlihîn. So you would learn about the recommendations of our beloved Prophet. It has English and Turkish translations and explanations. It is a common book found in bookstores, libraries and perhaps in your personal library. Reading this, you will learn about the character of Prophet Muhammad and his recommendations.

Perform your salat early within its time period! Salat is a very precious act of worship; do not delay performing it.

Perhaps Hadji Khanim, my wife, can be a good example to remember. She gets up and starts the prayer before the muadh-dhin gets out of the minaret. Sometimes I call her for something, "Hadji Khanım, there is ...," then I look at her and see that she has already started her prayer saying "Allahu akbar!"

Prophet Muhammad was asked, "What is the most rewarding form of worship?" He responded: "(Assalâtü li awwali waqtihâ) It is the salat that is performed early within its time period."

If the prayer is performed early within its time period, it will be illuminated very much. If it is performed in the middle of its time period, its light and reward will be reduced. If it is delayed to the latter part of the period, its light will be reduced even more. If it is perfıormed in the last minutes, it will be like a candle that is almost totally consumed: its reward will be diminutive.

We shall perform the obligatory prayers early within its time period.

We shall perform nonobligatory prayers, virtue prayers, supererogotary prayers. When we perform the nonobligatory prayers, we earn the love of Allah. Almighty Allah loves us: "My servant has performed the nonobligatory prayers eagerly."

Our elderly in the tariqa have recommended some of the nonobligatory prayers. Their recommendation is based on the ahadith of Prophet Muhammad. These voluntary prayers are the recommendation of our beloved Prophet. Besides, Prophet Muhammad (SAS) is the greatest of our elderly in the tariqa.

1. Stay up after the fajr prayer, read Qur'an, the Ewrad and prayers until half an hour passes after the sunrise, then perform ishraq prayer. This is a very rewarding prayer.

When is this prayer performed? Half an hour or forty-five minutes after the sunrise. vWhat is its reward?

(Ka-ajri hajjatin wa umratin tâmmatin tâmmatin tâmmatin) Its reward is like the reward of a complete hajj and umra on that day. The Prophet SAS repeated it three times to make sure that it is not misunderstood. This is an authentic hadith among the collection of Imam Tirmidhî.

Perform the Ishraq prayer so that you will earn the rewards of a hajj and umra in that morning.

What kinds of worships are the hajj and umra?

(Al hajjul mabrûru laysa lahû jazâun illal jannah) "A properly performed hajj has no rewards but the Paradise." The hajj leads a person to Paradise. That is why earning the rewards of a complete hajj and umra in the morning is a great reward. Try not to miss it!

"But, I am sleepy."

You sleep later on. Earn your rewards first, then go to sleep.

2. There is plenty of time, six to seven hours, between the sunrise and the noon. During this time there is duha prayer. It can be performed until 45 minutes before noon. Perform this prayer four rak'at, two rak'at or more.

If a person continues performing the duha prayer, Almighty Allah places him among the group of muhsinîn and muhsinât. These are the beloved servants of Allah. A person joins them through the duha prayer.

3. After the sunnah of the magrib prayer, there is the awwâbîn prayer which was recommended as one of the rewarding prayers by our beloved Prophet. How is it rewarded? Performing the awwâbîn prayer leads a person to forgiveness even if the person has sins as much as the "foam in the oceans."

Once in a town, a young woman approached me: "Sir, I would like to ask you somethig. I have committed grave sins. Would Allah forgive me my sins?" She was in tears. I remembered this hadith. I said, "Continue praying awwâbîn oh my daughter! Perform awwâbîn prayer in the evenings; Almighty Allah forgives you."

4. After we pray ish'a, we visit the neighbors or study or read at home. We have some conversation with all family members or help the children with their homework. Then it will be the time to go to bed.

When it is time to go to bed, you are going to refresh your wudu'u and perform four units of prayer. Then, you will go to bed.

What is the reward for going to bed with wudu'u?

1) Angels would record good deeds for the person as though he spend the night in worship. He will get rewards as if he prayed whole night instead of sleeping.

2) If a person dies at night, he will die as a believer.

3) The angels in heavens would see his body as light and descent around him in large numbers.

4) These angels pray until the morning: "Our Lord! This servant of Yours went to bed with wudu'u; forgive him his sins!"

5) Satan stays away from him.

For that reason you pay attention and try your best to go to bed with fresh wudu'u.

5. Try performing the tahajjud prayer at night after you seleep for some time. It could be the cry of a child, knock at the door, thunder storm, a loud noise outside or alike to wake you up. Sometimes a mosquito would make a person up. I say "oh, no!" and scratch it, then I realize that it is time for tahajjud. I do not get angry at the mosquito, then. It woke me up when I was sleeping like a log. I should be grateful for that.

These are rewarding prayers. Let us remember once more. Ishraq is after the fajr prayer. Duhâ is between the fajr and noon prayers. Awwâbîn is after the maghrib prayer. Night prayer is before going to bed at night. Tahajjud is in the middle of the night after sleeping for sometime.

Our beloved Prophet SAS recommended these prayers, so do we.

There are also rewarding fasting for you to observe. What are they?

1. There is the weekly fasting on Mondays and Thursdays. Our beloved Prophet used to fast on these days. He recommeded: "I like to be fastinf on Mondays and Thursdays because the deeds of the servants are presented to Almighty Allah on Mondays and Thursdays." Fast on these days if you can.

2. There are Arabic months: Muharram, Safar, Rabi'ul Awwal, Rabi'ul Âkhir, Jumâd'al Ûlâ, Jumâd'al Âkhira, Rajab, Sha'ban, Ramadhan, Shawwal, Dhilqàda, and Dhilhijja. It is recommended to fast in the beginning, middle and at the end of these months.

3. Our beloved Prophet also recommended fasting in the middle of every Arabic month i.e., on the 13th, 14th and 15th days which have full moon at night. He never skipped. These nights are pleasant and the days must be rewarding.

You shall look at the calendar, and find out what day of the Arabic month it is. Do you know a shortcut to figure it out? Every day you read the juz' of the Qur'an which has the same number as the day of the month. If you do this, you will be reading a ju' af the Qur'an and and know the day of the month.

Are there anything else that is rewarding? Seeking knowledge and teaching it is rewarding. You learn and teach. You read and have others read, too. You learn the Qur'an, teach, and memorize. You work to spread the message of Islam. You can have religious meeting in your house. All of these are rewarding deeds. Try to do them.

If you have the money, spend on charitable causes, built a mosque, make a fountain for people to drink water, build a bridge, make a road.

I admire Bezm-i Âlem Vâlide Sultan Hazretleri for her charitable deeds. May Almighty Allah bless her and make her abode paradise in the hereafter.

She had the Guraba Hospital built for the poor to get medical care for free. She also brought Terkos water to Istanbul for people to drink. What is interesting is that Bezm-i Âlem Vâlide Sultan brought the drinking water for Istanbul, and the city administration cut off the water for the Guraba Hospital for the unpaid water bill. The point the destiny brings a person to is very interesting.

This blessed lady had so many works in Istanbul. Hospitals, water ways, mosques. She is everywhere in Istanbul. It is very pleasing.

There is also a waterway in Hijaz carrying water to the pilgrims in Arafat. It follows the skirt of the mountain. It is called Zubayda Khanim water. This Zubayda Khanim is likely to be the wife of Hârun al-Rashid. I admire her, too because the pilgrims were in need of water then.

A person can spend on charity as much as he can, and leave behind works that would continue earning rewards for him.

In general, you shall try to do rewarding deeds.

In general you shell avoid sinful deeds and offenses; you shall stay away from haram and doubtful things. You can find in books what is haram, what is halal, what is rewarding and what is sinful. Muhammed Zahid Kotku Rh has a book on this; you may find other books. You shall learn them and do what is halal and avoid the haram. You do the good deeds and stay away from the sins. You try to be a godconscious Muslim.

What is our third principle? Improving our character. Each person has some good temper and some bad dispoition. A person may be a Muslim, yet the bad temper could be with him.

Having a grudge is a bad character. Envy is a bad temper; self admiration is a bad disposition. Pride and stinginess are bad. A good Muslim must get rid of all these bad dispositions and get good dispositions. He should be soft-spoken, generous, kind and like an angel. You shall pay attention to this.

The Tasawwuf is mainly a path to improve the character and conduct of the person. Once a person has good character, Almighty Allah rewards him in plenty due to his good character. His good character earns him rewards of a person who fasts daytime and prays whole night. Most people who enters paradise will deserve it because of their godconsciousness and good cahracter. Bad character would bring spiritual bankruptcy and lead to punishment in the hereafter. That is why we have to get rid of the bad dispositions and improve our character.

In fact the tariqa is a form of character and conduct training. It leads a person to perfection. May Almighty Allah provide all you need to achive this goal. vNow, each of you read one Fâtiha and three Qulhuwallah, then we should present it to our beloved Prophet and other pîrs and perfect guides. Then I will do a prayer for you:

.......................

Bismillâhir rahmânir rahîm:

(Innalladhîna yubâyi'ùnaka innamâ yubâyi'ùnallàh... Yadullàhi favqa aydîhim... Waman nakasa wa innemâ yanqusu alâ nafsihî... Wa man awfâ bimâ àhada alayhullàha fasayu'tîhi eajran azîmâ.) Sadaqallàhul azîm.

[Oh Prophet! Those who were swearing allegiance to you were indeed swearing allegiance to Allah. Allah's hand was over their hands. Now whosoever breaks this pledge breaks it at his own peril, and whosoever keeps this pledge that he has made with Allah, Allah will soon grant him a great reward. (Qur'an 48:10)]

Keep your pledge, be loyal to the path of Allah, do not deviate from the staight path. May Almighty Allah give you strenth to overcome Satan. May He keep you on His path and busy with His remembrance. May He grant you opportunities to learn about the principles and manners of the tariqa and let you become a perfect, righteous and beloved servant who is equipped with the manners of the takka.

May He illuminate your hearts, clear your vision, and open your heart. May He let you attain the ma'rifatullah and love of Allah. Serve in the path of Allah with great love and zeal. May He take you to Himself as servants with whom He is pleased and reward you with His buity in His Paradise. May He elevate you to the highest ranks in Paradise.

Bihurmati esrâr-ı sûratil fâtiha!..

With the secrets of the surah fatiha!

July 22, 1995 / Pennsylvania - U. S. A.