What is the practical understanding of Kalima in Sufi way?

  

 Rohtas Fort (via Wikimedia Commons)

The method of the Sufi teaching is different from the conventional academia, as it involves not just the mathematical meaning of an idea, but the experiential conceptualization of an idea and its grooming into belief. We are discussing how a Sufi disciple deciphered the meaning of Kalima by the metaphor of world.

A Sufi master assigned the recitation of Kalima to his disciple who was worldly man. The disciple could not continue the incantation, and forgot the lesson. But, the lesson has never stopped, and beads kept on falling along the thread of his life, as the master’s glance of benediction (Urdu: Nazr-e-Karam) continuously remained upon the disciple’s heart. The day to day experiences in the life of disciple molded his heart into a bowl to be filled with the realization of the meaning of Kalima. In his ordinary course of business, he faced some crises, forcing him to take a right decision on each such occasion of conflict and agony. In the initial phase, he got disappointed to see the world full of injustices, which took him to realize “La Ilaha” (i.e., first part of Kalima: “there is no god”) that the unjust practices and people of this world are not God, therefore, God is not responsible for these injustices, but the man himself is all cause of this all injustice. The order of this unjust world is inferior and defective. In the second phase, he realized the meaning of “Illallah” (i.e., second part of Kalima: “But the God”) that the true and rightful order is that of Allah, who is above the heavens and pure from all defections of this unjust world. The two parts “there is no god” and “but Allah” jointly mean to differentiate the just from the unjust, and the right from the wrong. This is the spirit of Tawheed (the Shehada or testimony that Allah is the exclusive Lord), who is pure and right. The third phase, enlightened the meaning of “Muhammadur Rasoolallah” (i.e., third part of Kalima: “Muhammad PBUH is Allah’s prophet”) that the Order of Allah is the prime solution of all injustices of this world, and it will have to be brought through the Islamic way of life and governance (“Shariah”).

 

Why I am sometimes happiest and other times gloomiest in love?

Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai's house in Bhit Shah (via Wikimedia Commons) 

Why I am sometimes happiest and other times gloomiest in love? The mind is entangled in the puzzles of emotions.

 

In psychology, and other sciences studying the human behavior, the emotion of being in love is described in different angles. But, in Sufism, the love is seen in different terms. 

 

Since Sufism is meant for channelizing our attentions towards God, therefore, the love for our humanly beloved is also seen an essential ladder to the God’s love. In order to distill this idea further, we will have to zoom in the concept of love and its connected ideas.

 

Sufism is the esoteric understanding of religion. It is more concerned with love, connection and subservience of the Divine, than the outward formal religious practices. Therefore, it elucidates the beautifully delicate but difficult aspects of religion which are often ignored by hardliners, like the good conduct as per the way of Prophet Muhammad PBUH (Urdu/Persian: Uswa-e-Hasna), beauty of behavior (Urdu/Persian: Husn-e-Ikhlaq), perfect belief (Urdu/Persian: Yaqeen-e-Kamil), the way or conduct (Urdu/Persian: Rah-e-Sulook) of grand master or Shuyukh. The poetry of Sufi Shuyukh, like Bulleh Shah (link), Abu Said Ibn e Abil Khair, Ibn Al-Fariz (link), Waris Shah is abundant with such ideas, especially that of love.

 

In Islamic ideology, Allah cannot be depicted in any idol or picture form. Despite being Omnipresent & Omniscience (Urdu/Persian: Hazir-o-Nazir) and omnipotent (Urdu/Persian: Qadir-e-Mutlak), he cannot be seen directly with our material eyes, therefore, the inner essence (Arabic: Batin) of religion is faith (Arabic: Iman) on the Divine truth, with verbal profession (Arabic: Iqrar bil-lisan), and heart-felt conviction (Arabic: tasdeeq bil-qalb). This recognition of Divine differentiates the faith from Kufr and Shirk. However, there come a question: how to love the One we have never seen or met?

 

As an oriental proverb goes, “Woman is the teacher of love”. People fall in love with people in this world and learn the emotions and etiquette of love. The experience of love and heart-break softens the human heart enabling to feel delicate aspects of conduct and life. This shift from love for one to love for all and then love for God is an important phase. The poetry recognizes it, by acknowledging the idea that the love for worldly beloved is in fact a form of love for God. In the poetry of Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai (link) and Waris Shah (link), the love tragedies in fact decode the states of our souls desperate to meet the Divine Lord. (Qawwali link, poetry link)