Rabia al-Adawiyya

Rabia al-Adawiyya is an Islamic saint. She is believed to have lived from 717 to 801 AD in what is now Ira . !hile a "oor or"han she was ca"t#red by a slave trader who "roceeded to sell her into slavery. As a slave she was $e"t b#sy with her ho#sehold d#ties #ntil ni%ht& b#t once ni%ht time released her from her chores she devoted herself to "rayer& %oin% witho#t slee" to do so. 'ne ni%ht her master ca#%ht si%ht of her absorbed in "rayer( he was astonished to see a li%ht mirac#lo#sly a""ear over her head which ill#minated the entire ho#se. )errified he went bac$ to his room& where he sat in wonder till daybrea$. At dawn he a""roached Rabia& told her what he had seen& and %ave her her freedom. 'nce free she moved to the desert where she devoted herself to "rayer. As her holiness became more widely $nown& n#mero#s individ#als beat a "ath to her door see$in% her s"irit#al direction. 'nce she became renowned& she received n#mero#s offers of marria%e. In re"ly to the marria%e "ro"osal of the Amir of *asra& she said+ I,m not interested& really& in -"ossessin% all yo# own&.or in -ma$in% yo# my slave&.or in havin% my attention distracted from /od even for a s"lit second. Islam has embraced Rabia even tho#%h it ty"ically frowns #"on #nmarried life and withdrawal from society as a "ath to /od. http://www.adishakti.org/pdf_files/sufism_mysticism_(digiserve.com).pdf
Rabi`a al `Adawiyya

)he first of the stories of the holy "eo"le of Allah is that of Rabi0a al-Adawiyya& or Rabi0a al-1aysiyya who was born in *asra& Ira between the years 23 A.4. and 22 A.4. 5abo#t 717 6.7.8. In those t#rb#lent years of the first cent#ry after the death of the 9ro"het :#hammad& may "rayers and "eace be #"on him& records of the lives of the early S#fis were not always acc#rate and were sometimes even based on s#""osition. )his led to certain variations in the details of the events in their lives and in the case of Rabi0a al-Adawiyya& a conf#sion on occasion between her story and that of the Rabi0a bint Isma0il of Syria.

It is %enerally a%reed& however& that her father,s name was& nevertheless& Isma0il who was a very "oor and holy man. )he acco#nt which has been #sed for the main events of Rabi0a,s life is as follows+ Isma0il married and went to live with his wife on the ed%e of the desert not far from the town of *asr . After a while Allah& the All-:i%hty& %ave them a da#%hter whom the father named Rabi0a. )hen they had another da#%hter whom the father named Rabi0a ath-thani& and a third da#%hter he named Rabi0a ath-thalata& and yet a%ain another da#%hter whom he named Rabi0a ar-rabi0a who was to become the beloved Saint of Allah. It is said that on the ni%ht that Rabi0a was born there was not even a dro" of oil in their ho#se with which to anoint the navel of the new-born da#%hter and no cloth in which to swaddle her. So in des"air& Rabi0a,s mother told her h#sband to %o to their nei%hbor,s ho#se and to be% them for some oil so that she co#ld li%ht their lam". )he father Isma0il had made a "romise never to as$ a h#man bein% for anythin%. So he went o#t and "#t his hand on the nei%hbors, door and witho#t sayin% anythin% to them& ret#rned to his own ho#se. -)hey will not o"en the door&- he said. ;"on hearin% this& Rabi0a,s mother we"t bitterly. <#ll of an=iety and feelin% hel"less in the matter& Rabi0a,s father "#t his head on his $nees and fell aslee". !hile he was slee"in% he dreamed that the 9ro"het :#hammad& "rayers and "eace be #"on him& came to him and said& -Do not be sad. )he %irl child which has >#st been born is a #een amon%st women who shall be the mediator for seventy tho#sand of my 6omm#nity. )omorrow yo# m#st %o to 0Isa ?adan& the /overnor of *asra. !rite this messa%e on a "iece of "a"er which yo# will ta$e to him+ 7very ni%ht yo# send #"on me a h#ndred blessin%s and on <riday ni%ht fo#r h#ndred. @ast ni%ht was <riday ni%ht and yo# for%ot me. )o set ri%ht yo#r for%etf#lness& %ive this man fo#r h#ndred dinar& which he has lawf#lly earned.!hen he awo$e and remembered his dream Rabi0a,s father b#rst into tears& b#t he %ot #" strai%ht away and wrote e=actly what the 9ro"het had told him to write& then too$ his letter and "resented it to one of the /overnor,s chamberlains.

As soon as the letter reached the /overnor and he had read it& he said to his :inister& -/ive two tho#sand dinar to the "oor "eo"le immediately beca#se I than$ the :aster for remindin% me of my for%etf#lness. Also %ive fo#r h#ndred dinar to the old man and say to him+ I wo#ld li$e yo# to come to me so that I may see yo#. *#t I do not hold it "ro"er for a man li$e yo# to come to me. I wo#ld rather come to yo# and r#b my beard on the floor of yo#r threshold. *#t I swear by Allah that whatever yo# need yo# may let me $now abo#t it.Rabi0a,s father was over>oyed and too$ the money& than$in% Allah and his 9ro"het& and he bo#%ht all that was necessary for his holy da#%hter. )he story contin#es+ As the fo#r %irls %rew #"& their father Isma0il wor$ed& as he co#ld& to ma$e a livin% for his family in the desert. !hen the eldest da#%hter was abo#t twenty years old and Rabi0a ar-rabi0a was abo#t eleven& their father died& leavin% behind him his wife and fo#r da#%hters& all of whom were very "oor. )he mother& now findin% herself alone and the life of the desert bein% very hard for them& decided to ta$e her fo#r da#%hters and set o#t for *asra where she ho"ed to ma$e a better livin% for herself and her children. 4owever& on their way they were set #"on by bandits and in the res#ltin% fray the mother was $illed& and each of the da#%hters was ta$en as a slave by the robbers. Rabi0a,s master too$ her to *a%hdad where he immediately set abo#t #sin% her in the way that was most "rofitable for himself. She was very bea#tif#l and she also had a lovely voice& so her master ta#%ht her how to sin% and "lay the 0o#d& made her dance and entertain "eo"le& and above all& to ma$e money in this way for himself. 4e sent her to weddin%s and celebrations where she wo#ld dance and sin%& and the "eo"le wo#ld %ive her money for whatever they wanted from her. In this way she came to have many bad habits and ways& livin% a very low life amon%st all sorts of "eo"le and not carin% abo#t anythin% that she did. )his contin#ed #ntil she was abo#t thirty-si= years old& when one day as she was sin%in% at a weddin% she fo#nd herself sin%in% in a different way. Son%s were comin% from her heart for her *eloved !ho was her tr#e @ove beca#se now Allah& the All-:i%hty& had awa$ened Rabi0a. A<rom that moment she left everythin% that she had been doin% before& and

she ref#sed either to sin% or to dance& or to "lay any m#sic for anyone e=ce"t for her *eloved /od. )his made her master very an%ry beca#se he co#ld no lon%er #se her to ma$e money for himself. 4e be%an to ill-treat her& to beat her& and even to "#t b#rns on her body ho"in% that this wo#ld fri%hten her into ret#rnin% to her former ways. *#t she ref#sed everythin% that her master tried to do to her. She had be%#n to "ray all thro#%h the ni%ht& cryin% to her *eloved /od to hel" her in her des"erate state. After a time her master& seein% that he co#ld not infl#ence her in any way& and beca#se she was no lon%er of any #se to him& decided to sell her. So he "#t a cord aro#nd her nec$ and too$ her to the slave mar$et of *a%hdad. )here a holy man too$ Rabi0a to his home& %ave her food and sim"le clothes& and told her that he did not want anythin% from her& e=ce"t that she co#ld "ray and be free in his ho#se. Rabi0a than$ed him with all her heart and said& -If yo# want anythin% from me for the <ace of Allah& 4e will %ive yo# yo#r reward& b#t if yo# want anythin% from me for yo#rself only& I have nothin% to %ive yo#. I have everythin% that I need from my *eloved /od and I do not need anythin% from any h#man bein%.)he holy man re"lied that he wo#ld li$e to marry her& and to free her from bein% a slave& b#t that he did not as$ anythin% from her e=ce"t what she wanted to %ive. Rabi0a than$ed him for his $indness and consideration& and she said that she did not want to marry anyone& b#t was %ratef#l for the way that he cared for her in her dee" need. http://sufimaster.org/teachings/adawiyya.htm

Abbasids

Mosque at Samarra ( !" #$)

In 750 AD, the Umayyad caliphs were replaced by the Abbasid caliphs, who murdered all of the surviving Umayyad men but one. he Abbasids were less interested in the !editerranean coast than the Umayyads had been, and the Abbasids therefore tended to concentrate more on the plains of Ira" and Iran, and less on the coast# Israel, $yria, and %ebanon, and &gypt. In 7'( AD the capital was moved from Damascus in $yria to the new city of )aghdad *the h is silent+ in Ira" *which is still the capital of Ira" today+. his shift can be seen as another e,ample of the -est Asian conflict between an orientation toward the land and an orientation toward the sea. )aghdad was soon a big international city, where people spo.e Aramaic, Arabic, and /ersian. !any different groups of people lived there# Arabs, /ersians, 0ews, and 1ree.s. !any different gods were worshipped# there were 2hristians, 0ews, and 3oroastrians, in addition to the Islamic ma4ority. )y the 5006s )aghdad probably had nearly half a million people *that is half as big as 7ome during the 7oman &mpire+, and was the largest city in the world outside of 2hina. he one surviving Umayyad man fled from Damascus around the !editerranean to $pain, where he founded the Umayyad 2aliphate of $pain, and he and his successors ruled $pain for many years. he Abbasids ruled all of -est Asia and 8orth Africa from 750 AD until

about 9000, when they began to wea.en. :irst 8orth Africa bro.e away and formed independent .ingdoms under the :atimids. hen gradually the governors of each province began to act more and more independently, and the ur.ish generals of the armies became less and less under the control of the 2aliphs. he successes of the :irst 2rusade in 90;' in ta.ing over 0erusalem and much of Israel and %ebanon are due largely to the gradual decline of Abbasid power. In 9(55 AD the Abbasid dynasty ended.