Thankfulness

Spiritual Advice Of Imam Ja'far Shadiq

Kitab Lantern Of The Path - Imam Ja'far Shadiq

(Translated By Shaykh Fadhlullah Haeri)

With every breath you take, a thanksgiving is incumbent upon you, indeed, a thousand thanks or more. The lowest level of gratitude is to see that the blessing comes from Allah (SWT) irrespective of the cause for it, and without the heart being attached to that cause. It consists of being satisfied with what is given; it means not disobeying Him with regard to His blessing, or opposing Him in any of His commands and prohibitions because of His blessing.

Be a grateful bondsman to Allah (SWT) in every way, and you will find that Allah (SWT) is a generous Lord in every way. If there were a way of worshipping Allah (SWT) for His sincerest bondsman to follow more excellent than giving thanks at every instance, He would have ascribed to them the name of this worship above the rest of creation. Since there is no form of worship better than that, He has singled out this kind of worship from other kinds of worship, and has singled out those who practise this kind of worship, saying,

Very few of my servants are grateful. (Q. 34:13)

Complete thankfulness is to sincerely repent your inability to convey the least amount of gratitude, and expressing this by means of your sincere glorification of Allah (SWT). This is because fitting thanks is itself a blessing bestowed upon the bondsman for which he must also give thanks; it is of greater merit and of a higher state than the original blessing which caused him to respond with thanks in the first place. Therefore, every time one gives thanks one is obliged to give yet greater thanks, and so on ad infinitum, and this while absorbed in His blessings and unable to achieve the ultimate state of gratitude.

For how can the bondsman match with gratitude the blessings of Allah (SWT), and when will he match his own action with Allah (SWT)'s while all along the bondsman is weak and has no power whatsoever, except from Allah (SWT)?

Allah (SWT) is not in need of the obedience of His bondsmen, for He has the power to increase blessings forever. Therefore be a grateful bondsman to Allah (SWT), and in this manner you will see wonders.

Guarding Oneself (ri'ayah)

Spiritual Advice Of Imam Ja'far Shadiq

Kitab Lantern Of The Path - Imam Ja'far Shadiq

(Translated By Shaykh Fadhlullah Haeri)

Whoever guards his heart from heedlessness, protects his self from appetites, and guards his intellect from ignorance, will be admitted into the company of the vigilant. Then he who guards his knowledge from fancies, his faith from innovation, and his property from the forbidden is among the righteous.

The Messenger of Allah said, 'It is a duty for every Muslim, man and woman, to seek knowledge,' that is, knowledge of the self. Therefore it is necessary for the self to be in all states either expressing his gratitude or proffering his excuse for lack of gratitude. If this is acceptable to Allah (SWT) it is a favor upon him, and if not it is justice upon him. For every self it is necessary to work that it may succeed in its acts of obedience, and for its protection in its efforts to abstain from doing harm.

The basis of all this is recognition of total need and dependence on Allah (SWT), caution and obedience. The key to it is in delegating your affair to Allah (SWT), cutting off expectation by always remembering death, and seeing that you are standing in the presence of the All compelling. This gives you rest from confinement, rescue from the enemy, and peace for the self. The means to sincerity in obedience is harmony, and the root of that rests upon considering life as being only as long as a day.

The Messenger of Allah said, 'This world lasts but an hour, so spend it in obedience to Allah (SWT).' The door to all of this is always to withdraw from the world by means of constant reflection. The means to this withdrawal is contentment, and abandoning such existential matters as do not concern you. The means to reflection is emptiness [desirelessness], and the buttress of emptiness is abstinence. The completion of abstinence is precaution, and the door to precaution is fear. The proof of fear is glorification of Allah (SWT), adherence to obeying His commands with sincerity, fear and caution, and holding back from the forbidden; and the guide to this is knowledge. Almighty Allah (SWT) said,

Those of His servants who are possessed of knowledge fear Allah. (Q. 35:28)

How the 'Alim (Men of Knowledge) are Ruined

Spiritual Advice Of Imam Ja'far Shadiq

Kitab Lantern Of The Path - Imam Ja'far Shadiq

(Translated By Shaykh Fadhlullah Haeri)

Caution and fear are the legacy of knowledge and its measure; knowledge is the ray of gnosis and the heart of belief. Whoever is denied caution is not a man of knowledge, even if he can split hairs in dealing with obscure items of knowledge. Allah (SWT) said,

Only those of His servants who are possessed of knowledge fear Allah. (Q. 35:28)

Men of knowledge are ruined by eight things: greed and miserliness, showing off and partisanship, love of praise, delving into things whose reality they cannot reach, affectation by taking excessive pains to beautify their speech with superfluous expressions, lack of modesty before Allah (SWT), boastfulness, and not acting upon what they know.

'Isa (peace be upon him) said, 'The most wretched of all people is he who is known for his knowledge, not for his actions.'

The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said, 'Do not sit with every presumptuous caller who summons you from certainty to doubt, from sincerity to showing off, from humility to pride, from good counsel to enmity, and from abstinence to desire. Draw near to the person with knowledge, who summons you from pride to humility, from showing off to sincerity, from doubt to certainty, from desire to abstinence, from enmity to good counsel.' None are fit to preach to creation except that person who has gone beyond these evils by his truthfulness. He sees the faults of speech and knows what is sound from what is unsound, the defectiveness of thoughts, and the temptations of the self and his fancies.

Imam 'Ali (peace be upon him) said, 'Be like the kind, compassionate doctor who places the remedy where it will be of benefit.' They asked 'Isa (peace be upon him), 'With whom shall we sit, O Spirit of Allah (SWT)?' 'With one the sight of whom reminds you of Allah (SWT),' he replied, 'and whose speech increases you in knowledge and whose actions make you desire the next world.'

Dhikr - Remembrance Of Allah

Spiritual Advice Of Imam Ja'far Shadiq

Kitab Lantern Of The Path - Imam Ja'far Shadiq

(Translated By Shaykh Fadhlullah Haeri)

He who truly remembers Allah (SWT) is the one who obeys Him: whoever forgets is disobedient. Obedience is the mark of guidance, disobedience the sign of misguidance. The root of both states lies in remembrance (dhikr) and forgetfulness. Make your heart the focal point of your tongue, which should not move unless the heart indicates, the intellect agrees and your tongue accords with belief. Almighty Allah (SWT) knows what you conceal and what you reveal.

Be like someone who has shed his soul from his body, or like someone who is attending the great parade on the Day of Reckoning, not distracting yourself from the obligations which your Lord has laid on you in His commands and prohibitions, His promise and His threat. Do not be occupied with yourself rather than with the duties laid down for you by your Lord. Wash your heart clean with the water of sorrow and fear; make remembrance of Allah (SWT) part of His most glorious remembrance of you. He remembers you, but He does not need you. His remembrance of you is more glorious, more desirable, more praiseworthy, A more complete and more ancient than your remembrance of Him.

The knowledge you obtain by His remembrance of you will beget you humility, modesty and contrition, which will in turn be the cause of your witnessing His nobility and previous, overflowing favor. The latter will then belittle your obedience in your own eyes, however copious it may be as a result of His favors; and you will be sincerely devoted to Him. But your consciousness and esteem of your own remembrance of Him will lead to showing off, pride, foolishness and coarseness in your character, for it means attaching too much importance to your obedience while forgetting His overflowing favor and generosity.

It will only make you more distant from Him, and all that you will acquire with the passing of the days is alienation. There are two sorts of remembrance: sincere remembrance with which the heart is in harmony, and remembrance which arises through banishing any remembrance of other than Allah (SWT).

As the Messenger of Allah said, 'I cannot do justice in properly praising You as You praise Yourself.' The Messenger of Allah did not set any limit on remembering Allah (SWT), since he knew the truth that Allah (SWT)'s remembrance of His bondsman was greater than the bondsman's remembrance of Him. Thus it is even more fitting that whoever comes after the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) should not set any limits, and whoever wants to remember Allah (SWT) should know that as long as Allah (SWT) does not remember the bondsman by granting him success in remembering Him, that bondsman will not be able to remember Him.

Thankfulness

Spiritual Advice Of Imam Ja'far Shadiq

Kitab Lantern Of The Path - Imam Ja'far Shadiq

(Translated By Shaykh Fadhlullah Haeri)

With every breath you take, a thanksgiving is incumbent upon you, indeed, a thousand thanks or more. The lowest level of gratitude is to see that the blessing comes from Allah (SWT) irrespective of the cause for it, and without the heart being attached to that cause. It consists of being satisfied with what is given; it means not disobeying Him with regard to His blessing, or opposing Him in any of His commands and prohibitions because of His blessing.

Be a grateful bondsman to Allah (SWT) in every way, and you will find that Allah (SWT) is a generous Lord in every way. If there were a way of worshipping Allah (SWT) for His sincerest bondsman to follow more excellent than giving thanks at every instance, He would have ascribed to them the name of this worship above the rest of creation. Since there is no form of worship better than that, He has singled out this kind of worship from other kinds of worship, and has singled out those who practise this kind of worship, saying,

Very few of my servants are grateful. (Q. 34:13)

Complete thankfulness is to sincerely repent your inability to convey the least amount of gratitude, and expressing this by means of your sincere glorification of Allah (SWT). This is because fitting thanks is itself a blessing bestowed upon the bondsman for which he must also give thanks; it is of greater merit and of a higher state than the original blessing which caused him to respond with thanks in the first place. Therefore, every time one gives thanks one is obliged to give yet greater thanks, and so on ad infinitum, and this while absorbed in His blessings and unable to achieve the ultimate state of gratitude.

For how can the bondsman match with gratitude the blessings of Allah (SWT), and when will he match his own action with Allah (SWT)'s while all along the bondsman is weak and has no power whatsoever, except from Allah (SWT)?

Allah (SWT) is not in need of the obedience of His bondsmen, for He has the power to increase blessings forever. Therefore be a grateful bondsman to Allah (SWT), and in this manner you will see wonders.

On Knowledge

Spiritual Advice Of Imam Ja'far Shadiq

Kitab Lantern Of The Path - Imam Ja'far Shadiq

(Translated By Shaykh Fadhlullah Haeri)

Knowledge is the basis of every sublime state and the culmination of every high station. That is why the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said, 'It is the duty of every Muslim, man and woman, to seek knowledge,' that is, the knowledge of precaution (taqwa) and certainty. Imam 'Ali (peace be upon him) said, "Seek knowledge, though it be in China,' meaning the knowledge of gnosis of the self, in it is contained knowledge of the Lord. The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said, 'Whoever knows his own self knows his Lord; more over, you should acquire that knowledge without which no action is correct, and that is sincerity ... We seek refuge with Allah (SWT) from knowledge which has no benefit', that is, from knowledge which is contrary to actions performed with sincerity.

Know that a small amount of knowledge requires a great deal of action, because knowledge of the Hour' requires the person who has such knowledge to act accordingly during his entire life. 'Isa (peace be upon him) said, 'I saw a stone on which was written, "Turn me over", so I turned it over. Written on the other side was "Whoever does not act by what he knows will be doomed by seeking what he does not know, and his own knowledge will be turned against him." '

Allah (SWT) revealed to David, 'The least that I shall do to someone with knowledge who does not act by his knowledge is worse than the seventy inner punishments which result in My removing from his heart the sweetness of My remembrance.' There is no way to Allah (SWT) except via knowledge. And knowledge is the adornment of man in this world and the next, his driver to Paradise, and by means of it he attains Allah (SWT)'s contentment with him.

He who truly knows is the one in whom sound actions, pure supplications, truthfulness and precaution speak out; not his tongue, his debates, his comparisons, assertions or claims. In times other than these, those who sought knowledge were those who had intellect, piety, wisdom, modesty and caution; but nowadays we see that those who seek it do not have any of these qualities. The man of knowledge needs intellect, kindness, compassion, good counsel, forbearance, patience, contentment and generosity; while anyone wishing to learn needs a desire for knowledge, will, devotion (of his time and energy), piety, caution, memory and resolution.

On Walking

Spiritual Advice Of Imam Ja'far Shadiq

Kitab Lantern Of The Path - Imam Ja'far Shadiq

(Translated By Shaykh Fadhlullah Haeri)

If you are intelligent, then you should be of firm resolution and sincere intention before you set out for any place, for surely the self's nature is to overstep the bounds and encroach on the forbidden. You should reflect when you walk, and take note of the wonders of Allah (SWT)'s work wherever you go. Do not be mocking, or strut when you walk; Allah (SWT) said,

Do not go about in the land exulting overmuch. (Q. 31:18)

Lower your gaze from whatever is inappropriate to faith, and remember Allah (SWT) frequently. There is a tradition which savs that those places where, and in connection with which, Allah (SWT) is mentioned will testify to that before Allah (SWT) on the Day of Judgement and will ask forgiveness for those people so that Allah (SWT) will let them enter the Garden.

Do not speak excessively with people along the way, for that is bad manners. Most of the roads are the traps and markets of Satan, so do not feel safe from his tricks. Make your coming and your going in obedience to Allah (SWT), striving for His pleasure, for all your movements will be recorded in your book,' as Allah (SWT) said,

On the day when their tongues and their hands and their feet shall bear witness against them regarding what they did, (Q. 24:24)

We have made every man's actions to cling to his neck. (Q. 17:13)

On Lowering the Gaze

Spiritual Advice Of Imam Ja'far Shadiq

Kitab Lantern Of The Path - Imam Ja'far Shadiq

(Translated By Shaykh Fadhlullah Haeri)

There is nothing more gainful than lowering one's gaze, for the sight is not lowered from things, which Allah (SWT) has forbidden unless the witnessing of majesty and glory has already come to the heart. The Commander of the Faithful was asked what could help in lowering one's gaze. He said, 'Submission to the power of Him Who is aware of your secret. The eye is the spy of the hearts and the messenger of the intellect; therefore lower your gaze from whatever is not appropriate to your faith, from whatever your heart dislikes and from whatever your intellect finds repugnant.'

The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said, 'Lower your eyes and you will see wonders.' Allah (SWT) said,

Say to the believing men that they cast down their looks and guard their private parts. (Q. 24:30)

'Isa (peace be upon him) said to the disciples, 'Beware of looking at forbidden things, for that is the seed of desire and leads to deviant behaviour.'

John the Baptist (peace be upon him) said, 'I would prefer death to a glance which is unnecessary.'

'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud said to a man who had visited a woman while she was ill, 'It would have been better for you to lose your eyes than to have visited your sick person.'

Whenever the eye looks at something forbidden, a knot of desire is tied in the person's heart, and that knot will only be united by one of two conditions: either by weeping out of grief and regret in true repentance, or by taking possession of what one desired and looked at. And if a person takes possession unjustly, without repentance, then that will take him to the Fire.

As for the one who repents of it with grief and regret, his abode is the Garden and his destiny is Allah (SWT)'s favor.

Bondage ('ubudiyah)

Spiritual Advice Of Imam Ja'far Shadiq

Kitab Lantern Of The Path - Imam Ja'far Shadiq

(Translated By Shaykh Fadhlullah Haeri)

The roots of conduct have four aspects: conduct with Allah (SWT), conduct with the self, conduct with creation (i.e. people), and conduct with this world. Each of these aspects is based upon seven principles, just as there are seven principles of conduct with Allah (SWT): giving Him His due, keeping His limits, being thankful for His gift, being content with His decree, being patient with His trials, glorifying His sanctity, and yearning for Him.

The seven principles of conduct with the self are fear, striving, enduring harm, spiritual discipline, seeking truthfulness and sincerity, withdrawing the self from what it loves, and binding it in poverty (faqr).

The seven principles of conduct with creation are forbearance, forgiveness, humility, generosity, compassion, good counsel, justice and fairness.

The seven principles of conduct with this world are being content with what is at hand, preferring what is available to what is not, abandoning the quest for the elusive, hating overabundance, choosing abstinence (zuhd), knowing the evils of this world and abandoning any desire for it, and negating its dominance.

When all these qualities are found in one person, he is then one of Allah (SWT)'s elite, one of His close bondsman and friends (awliya').

Spiritual Advice. 2

More on Bondage

Bondage is an essence, the inner nature of which is lordship (rububiyah). Whatever is missing in bondage is found in lordship, and whatever is veiled from lordship is found in bondage. As Allah (SWT) said,

We will soon show them Our signs in the universe and in their own souls, until it will become quite clear to them that it is the truth. Is it not suffilcient as regards your Lord that He is a witness over all things? (Q. 41:53)

This means He exists both in your absence and in your presence. Bondage means ridding oneself of everything, and the way to obtain this is to deny the self what it desires and to make it bear what it dislikes. The key to this is abandoning rest, loving seclusion and following the path of recognition of the need for Allah (SWT).

The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said, 'Worship Allah (SWT) as if you see Him. Even if you do not see Him, He sees you.'

The letters of the Arabic word for 'bondsman'('abd) are three; 'ayn, ba' and dal. The 'ayn is one's knowledsge ('ilm) of Allah (SWT). The ba' is one's distance (bawn) from other than Him, and the dal is one's nearness (dunuw) to Allah (SWT) with the restriction of neither contingent qualities nor veil.

The principles of conduct have four aspects, as we mentioned at the beginning of the first chapter.