Nineteen Letters of ‘Basmala’ Equal

the Nineteen Letters of

‘Muhammad’, ‘`Ali’, ‘Fatimah’, ‘Hassan’ and
‘Husayn’ (a)
Mawlana Shaykh Hisham Kabbani
24 June 2012 Los Angeles, CA
Suhbah before Maghrib Salaat
As-salaamu `alaykum wa rahmatullaahi ta`alaa wa barakaatuh. Alhamdulillahi ‘l-ladhee sharafanaa
bihi dayatihi al-azaaliya wa karamanaa bi ru`yati habeebi ‘l-Mustafa, `alayhi afdal as-salaatu wa ’s-
salaamu, fi azali `inda makaana fi yawma alastu bi rabbikum qaaloo balaa. Wa ‘l-hamdulillaahi
‘Lladhee sharaafanaa bi ‘l-Islaam, wa sharaafanaa bi deenihi al-hameed, wa sharaafanaa bi
rasoolihi ‘l-kareem, alladhee lam yakhluq mithlahu fi ’l-khalaa’iq, huwa an-nabiyy al-mustafa, huwa ‘l-
habeebu ‘l-murtadaa, huwa saahibu ahlu ‘l-bayt, huwa an-nabi karamahullah bi qaaba qawsayni aw
adnaa,... yaa sayyidee yaa rasoolullah yaa rahmatali ‘l-`aalameen yaa shafee`i ’l-mudhnibeen,
unzhur `alaynaa bi nazhrati mahabba yaa habeebullah, yaa rasoolullah!
O Muslims, believers, mu’min men and women! May Allah (swt) bless us all. It is an honor for me to
be here to be among you. Alhamdulillah and mashaa-Allah, the organizers were able to fill this place
within short notice although they received phone calls from different places and different
organizations to stop this event, but alhamdulillah, no one can stop the lovers of Rasoolullah (s)!
(Naray takbeer!) What are we going to say after this nice praising of Prophet (s)? I am an Arabic and
not an Urdu speaker, but now I have to speak in English, so if you hear any wrong words, never
mind, correct me.
Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem.
َ َ‫يَا أَيُّ َها ْال ُمدَّث ُِّرقُ ْم فَأَنذ ِّْر َو َربَّكَ فَك َِّب ْر َوثِّيَابَكَ ف‬
‫ط ِّه ْر‬
Yaa ayyuha ’l-muddaththir, qum fa-andhir, wa rabbuka fa-kabbir, wa thiyaabaka fa-tahhir.
O you wrapped up (in the mantle)! Arise and deliver your warning! And your Lord do magnify! And
your garments free from stain. (Surat al-Muddaththir, 74:1-4)
Allah (swt) said to Prophet (s), “Yaa ayyuha 'l-muddaththir,” and I am asking, did you not read that
verse hundreds of times in the past? What is the meaning of “al-muddaththir?” They say al-
muddaththir is the one they covered because he was shaking and trembling when the wahi came to
him. And I ask, how can the Prophet be worried, afraid and covering himself when he was able to
reach Qaaba Qawsayni and he was not afraid? It means the translation of this verse was wrong,
“Yaa ayyuha 'l-muddaththir,” means, “The one whom Allah (swt) covered with knowledge and
dressed with His Beautiful Names and Attributes,” not, “covered with blankets upon blankets,” as
they translate. That is not an honor for Prophet (s). Allah is honoring him, Allah is covering him with
lots of Beautiful Names and Attributes! “Yaa ayyuha 'l-muddaththir,” means, “Yaa Muhammad! After I
covered you with what I like of My Love and My Beautiful Names and Attributes, go now and call
people to the journey of Islam that leads you to Qaaba Qawsayni aw Adnaa!”
(Naray Takbeer! Allahu Akbar!) Allahu Akbar `alaa kullu man takabbar wa tajabbar! Allahu Akbar
`alaa kullu man takabbar wa tajabbar!
Sayyidina Muhammad (s) cannot be described; forget that! No one can give him a title after Allah
(swt) dressed him with titles: Allah gave him titles and not only titles, He ordered angels to make
salawaat on him, and to make sajda to him when he was a Light in the forehead of Adam (a), to the
one whom Allah (swt) made to be in His Presence when He said:
َ ‫صلُّوا َعلَ ْي ِّه َو‬
‫س ِّل ُموا تَ ْسلِّي ًما‬ َ ‫علَى النَّبِّي ِّ يَا أَيُّ َها الَّذِّينَ آ َمنُوا‬
َ َ‫صلُّون‬
َ ُ‫َّللا َو َم ََلئِّ َكتَهُ ي‬
َ َّ ‫إِّ َّن‬
Inna-Llaaha wa malaa'ikatahu yusalloona `ala 'n-nabiyy, yaa ayyuhal-ladheena aamanoo salloo
`alayhi was sallimoo tasleema.
Verily, Allah and His angels send praise on the Prophet. O Believers! Pray upon him and greet him.
(Surat al-Ahzaab, 33:56)
Do you think when Allah (swt) addressed angels to make salawaat on Prophet, that Prophet was not
present in front of them? To whom were they going to make salawaat? Sayyidina Muhammad,
`alayhi afdalu ’s-salaatu wa ’s-salaam, as Allah (swt) created his Light before creation and angels
looked at that Light and praised Prophet (s)! When angels make salawaat, Allah is giving His
Prophet greatness, so when He said, “inna-Llaaha wa malaa'ikatahu,” it means not only a group of
angels, but every angel Allah created before and will create in the future, all of them are in salawaat
of the Prophet (s)!
How many angels are there making salawaat? Are they like us, that you can count them? There are
infinite numbers! You cannot count them; you can count humans, but not angels. And all of them are
making salawaat on Prophet (s) at the same time in a different way!
We make salawaat if you count in books 5,000 or 6,000 then we stop all these na`at shareef, how
many are there? A million or a hundred-million: it is limited, but when angels are doing salawaat it is
unlimited and every angel has a different salawaat than the other, every salawaat the angel does,
the second and third has to be different, until Prophet (s) is pleased and then asks, “Yaa Rabbee!
Give me more, give me more.”
That is why Allah (swt) says:
َ َ‫ط ْينَاكَ ْالك َْوث َ َر ف‬
‫ص ِّل ل َِّربِّكَ َوا ْن َح ْر ِّإ َّن شَانِّئَكَ ه َُو ْاْل َ ْبت َُر‬ َ ‫ِّإنَّا أ َ ْع‬
Inna a`taynaaka ‘l-kawthar fa salli li rabbika wanhar inna shaani’aka huwa ‘l-abtar.
To you We granted the Fount (of Abundance); therefore, to your Lord turn in prayer and sacrifice, as
he who hates you will be cut off (from future hope). (Surat al-Kawthar, 108: 1-3)
“We have given you a lot, the Abundance, yaa Muhammad! Go be happy for you and your ummah,
as they all say salawaat!”
O Muslims! Allah (swt) gave value to His Prophet (s) and we cannot describe that Light from which
Allah made His Prophet! When Prophet was asked by Jaabir (r), “What did Allah create first?”
Prophet (s) said to Jabir (r), “What Allah created first is the Light of Muhammad, and then from that
Light the Pen, then from that Light the `Arsh, then from that Light the Kursiyy, then from that Light
the angels, then from that Light He created creation.” It means that everything is created from the
Light of Sayyidina Muhammad (s)!
O Muslims! Allah said in the Holy Qur’an:
ْ ِّ‫ور ِّه َكمِّ ْشكَاةٍ فِّي َها م‬
‫صبَاح‬ ِّ ‫ت َو ْاْل َ ْر‬
ِّ ُ‫ض َمث َ ُل ن‬ ِّ ‫اوا‬
َ ‫س َم‬ ُ ُ‫َّللاُ ن‬
َّ ‫ور ال‬ َّ
Allaahu nooru 's-samaawaati wa 'l-ardi mathala noorihi ka-mishkaatin feehaa misbaah.
Allah is the Light of the Heavens and Earth. The parable of His Light is as if there were a niche and
within it a Lamp. (Surat an-Noor, 24:35)
Allah (swt) is the Light of heavens and earth, and Allah created Sayyidina Muhammad (s) from His
Light, which means that Light is coming from the Light of heavens to earth that has been created
from the Light of Muhammad (s). The example of His Light, mathala noorihi kamishkaatin feehaa
misbah, is like a bundle full of Light and in the middle there is a Lamp, al-misbah al-muhammadi,
“the Muhammadan Lamp.” This Lamp is the reality of Sayyidina Muhammad (s) among all the
different Lights of Allah (swt) in heavens and earth!
Also, they say Allah looked at that Lamp for 70,000 heavenly years until that Light was moving in
Bahr al-Qudrah, in the Ocean of Power. And when you move an engine very quickly, then an
aeroplane can take-off, and just as that Light of Muhammad (s) was turning in that Ocean of Power it
generated other small lights, lights, lights. The Lamp was generated from the engine of Prophet (s)
in Bahr al-Qudrah when he was turning and praising Allah (swt), and it formed condensation inside
the Lamp (small dharraat, atoms, covering the inside of the Lamp), and from those small drops Allah
(swt) created the Prophets. Prophet 's Light was still turning and generating more drops of water,
then Allah (swt) created Ahlu ‘l-Bayt, and from more drops He created the Sahaabah, and from more
drops He created Ummat an-Nabi (s)!
Ahlu ‘l-Islam, the Reality of Creation, is still there in that Lamp with Prophet (s) in an innocent state,
without sins! That is why Allah (swt) said:
‫إِّنَّا فَتَحْ نَا لَكَ فَتْ ًحا ُّمبِّينًا‬
Inna fatahnaa laka fathaan mubeena.
We have opened to you a distinguished, distinct opening. (Surat al-Fath, 48:1)
“We have opened for you a great opening, yaa Muhammad, so don't worry as We have already
forgiven you and your ummah!”
Because we are praising Allah (swt), do you think this is your reality? No, this is your image. If it was
your reality your heart would be on the right side, not the left. But you are reflected, as Abu Hamid
al-Ghazali (r) and many saints have said, that whatever Allah (swt) created is in His Presence and it
never comes out. Prophet (s) is the Mirror and the Divine Presence can reflect everything through
that Mirror and you see yourself here! It is only an image of our reality that is in the Divine Presence,
whatever Allah (swt) created on alastu bi rabbikum, the Day of Promises.
The previous speaker, Mawlana Mursawi, spoke about Sayyidna `Ali, karam Allaha wajhahu `alayh
afdal as-salaatu wa ’s-salaam, and he mentioned the love of Ahlu ’l-Bayt, “Ahlu ‘l-Abaa,” which is
Prophet (s), Sayyidina `Ali (r), Sayyida Fatima (r), Sayyidina al-Hasan (r) and Sayyidina al-Husayn (r
). If you add the letters of their names it totals nineteen letters, and “Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem”
is comprised of nineteen letters! “Laa ilaha ila Allah Muhammadan Rasoolullah” is a little bit more,
but around nineteen letters. Allah (swt) wants to show the nineteen letters of “Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani
'r-Raheem” are equal to the nineteen letters of Ahlu ’l-Bayt, that “Bismillah” represents “Ahlu ‘l-`Aba!”
which means any `amal you do, as the Prophet (s) said:
‫كل عمل لم يبدأ باسم هللا فهو أبتر‬
Kullu `amalim lam yabdaa bismillahi fa huwa abtar.
The Prophet (s) said, “Any `amal which doesn't begin with Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem is cut off,
it has no continuity.” (Ahmad, al-Musnad)
Every `amal that does not begin with “Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem” is cut, there is no meaning to
it, which means any `amal you do without mentioning the names of Sayyidina Muhammad (s) and
Ahlu ‘l-Bayt which equal nineteen letters, like Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem equals nineteen
letters, your `amal is not accepted! It has to be salawaaat on Prophet (s) and Ahlu ’l-Bayt after every
`amal you do. After every salaah that you do, your du`a has to be wrapped by salawaat on Prophet
(s) and Ahlu ’l-Bayt, because it’s equal to “Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem.”
Sayyidina `Ali (r) is teaching us and that is what is important. Yes, we love Prophet (s), but no one
can love Prophet (s) like Allah (swt) and the angels do! So what do we say? “O Allah! Dress us with
the salawaat and love You have for Your Prophet (s)! Dress us with the salawaat and love of Your
angels for Prophet (s),” because we cannot do it or come out of it, but from what they do is for Allah
(swt) and His Prophet (s) we can learn adab, as they don’t do anything for themselves!
Sayyidina `Ali (r) had a problem with his eye and they were waged in battle and one of the
opponents called him bad names, “You are this, you are that!” It wasn’t like today when you shoot
and you don’t know who you are shooting; then you could see your enemy. So he asked Prophet (s),
“Yaa Rasoolullah! Let me go to him,” and the Prophet said, “No, you are sick, you cannot go.”
However, the wrestler kept throwing insulting remarks and Sayyidina `Ali (r) said, “Yaa Rasoolullah,
for your sake and for Allah’s sake, let me go!” Then Prophet (s) put his saliva in Sayyidina `Ali’s eye
and thereafter that eye could not see only in dunya, but also far away, even to heavens, and
knowledge that no one else can see! That’s why the Prophet (s) said:
‫أنا مدينة العلم و علي بابه‬
Anaa madinatu 'l-`ilmi wa `Aliyyun baabuhaa.
I am the City of Knowledge and `Ali is it's door. (al-Haakim, Tirmidhi)
Sayyidina `Ali (r) faced that big, tough wrestler. Before I continue, in Madinatu 'l-Munawwara, from
adab of the Ahlu ’l-Bayt, if they saw someone elderly in the street, to show respect they did not
overtake (pass) them, whereas now we just pass in front of them (thinking they are too slow). One
day Sayyidina `Ali (r) was walking to Masjid an-Nabawi and in front of him he saw a crippled old lady
who looked tired, and she was carrying a basket.
He said, “O my mother! Can I help you?”
She said, “Yes, what would you like to do?”
He said, “Can I carry that basket for you?”
Sayyidina `Ali (r) could not carry it above his knees as it was very heavy, but he walked until he gave
it to the lady and she disappeared. He came to Prophet (s), who said, “Allah tested you today! What
you carried, Allah put the whole world inside that basket.” By himself he was able to carry the whole
earth and all its inhabitants because Allah (swt) gave “Asadullah,” Sayyidina `Ali (r) that power. So
what about Prophet’s power? Still he said:
َ ‫اللَّ ُه َّم ََل تَك ِّْلنِّي ِّإلَى نَ ْفسِّي‬
َ َ‫ط ْرفَة‬
‫عي ٍْن‬
Allahumma laa takilnee ila nafsee tarfata `aynin.
O Allah! Don’t leave me to my ego for the blink of an eye (or my ego will take me down)!
If Prophet (s) is saying that, what about us? O Muslims! Be humble as our Prophet (s) was the most
humble although Allah gave him everything!
Sayyidina `Ali (r) fought the wrestler, overpowered him, put him on the ground and sat on his chest.
The wrestler surrendered. According to the terms of battle at that time, Sayyidina `Ali (r) was
required to cut the defeated one’s neck (kill him), but the wrestler spat in his face to make Sayyidina
`Ali angry.
And Sayyidina `Ali (r) got angry, then he put his sword to the side and said, “I am not going to kill
you.”
The wrestler asked, “Why not? I am your enemy, I spit in your face!”
Sayyidina `Ali said, “No, you go free.” The wrestler insisted to know the reason why. Sayyidina `Ali
(r) said, “My Prophet has taught us adab and if I kill you now it will make my ego happy, and I cannot
make my ego happy. I fought you for Allah’s Pleasure, so now should I kill you to satisfy myself? No
way!”
The wrestler said, “If that is Islam, I want to become Muslim. If that’s the case, take me to the
Prophet (s),” and he became Muslim!
O Muslims! Islam is adab, discipline, as Prophet (s) explained to Sayyidina Jibreel (a) when he
asked about Maqaam al-Ihsaan, the highest level: first there is Islam, then Imaan, and then Ihsaan,
to worship Allah as if you see Him, and if you are not seeing Him then know He is seeing you. How
can you say, “Allahu Akbar,” and in your heart you are making all kinds of conspiracies against your
Muslim brothers and sisters, making phone calls, saying, “Don't let this one make a speech.” What is
the importance of that? It is important that these people would love you, and that love goes to
Prophet (s)!
O Muslims! As Abu Hamid al-Ghazali (r) said, he read the hadith:
‫ فإن لم تكن تراه فإنه يراك‬،‫أن تعبد هللا كأنك تراه‬
An ta`bud Allaha ka'annaka taraahu, fa in lam takun taraahu fa innahu yaraak.
That you worship Allah as if you see Him, for, if you don't see Him, truly He sees you. (Bukhari)
To worship Allah as if you see Him, for even if you are not seeing Him, He is seeing you. So when
you read it in this way now and stop in a place, it changes the meaning: an ta`bud Allaha ka'annaka
taraahu, “to worship Allah as if you see Him,” and “tara” is “seeing,” while fa in lam takun taraa, is
connected, “if you were not seeing.” He didn’t read it like that, he read it “fa in lam takun,” he stopped
then continued, “taraahu,” which means “if you make yourself absent;” “in lam takun,” means you
don’t exist in any form, as when your existence disappears, annihilates in Allah’s Love and His
Prophet (s), at that time you will see Him!
It is only a comma that changed the meaning in Arabic. It means whenever you are not seeing
yourself, you submit to Allah’s Will and you will see His Signs everywhere and at that time you are
muwahhid, at that time Prophet (s) is the only Muwahid, not like the Wahhabis, they are going to tell
us what is tawheed and shirk, haraam and bid`a! “Tawheed” is when you reach the Maqaam ul-
`Uboodiyya, the Level of Servanthood. No one reached that level, Maqaam at-Tawheed, except
Prophet (s)! If he says, “I am Muwahid,” yes, but i we say we are, no, we are not there yet. We are
still saying, Laa ilaaha ilaa anaa, “There is no god except Me! I am preoccupied with my ego.”
Allah (swt) tells us not to follow Shaytan, but we follow Shaytan full-time, which means our religion is
not perfect. So we cannot say we are muwahid, we can only say we are trying and struggling to
become that. But what we can do is very simple, so easy. I don’t understand Urdu, but Shaykh
Musavi mentioned the word “love,” and Prophet (s) said:
‫يحشر المرء مع من أحب‬
Yuhshar al-maruw ma` man ahab.
Each person will be resurrected with the one he loves.
If you love Prophet (s) you’ll be with him; if you love Wahhabis you’ll be with them; you chose what
you want! We love Prophet (s) and anyone who loves him will be with him on the Day of Judgment.
Our ticket to Paradise is so cheap, we don’t pay too much, because we are lovers of Prophet (s),
and so according to that hadith, which is authentic and agreed upon, we are safe. So be happy!
Don't think you are not going to be forgiven.
ً ‫ص َرا‬
‫طا ُّم ْستَقِّي ًما‬ َ ُ‫َّللاُ َما تَقَد ََّم مِّ ن ذَنبِّكَ َو َما ت َأ َ َّخ َر َويُتِّ َّم نِّ ْع َمتَه‬
ِّ َ‫علَيْكَ َويَ ْه ِّديَك‬ َّ َ‫إِّنَّا فَتَحْ نَا لَكَ فَتْ ًحا ُّمبِّينًا ِّليَ ْغف َِّر لَك‬
Inna fatahnaa laka fathan mubeena, li-yaghfira laka ’Llaahu maa taqaddama min dhanbika wa maa
ta-akhkhar.
We have opened to you a distinguished, distinct opening, so as to absolve you from all previous and
future sins that you will intercede on behalf of your ummah. (al-Fath, 48:1-2)
Prophet (s) has no sins, which means they are our sins. Prophet is saying, “My ummah,” and Allah is
saying, “We have forgiven you, don't worry. Whatever sins the ummah did before and after you, We
have forgiven.” Salloo `alayh! They are not happy with “naray takbeer” and “naray Rasoolullah” so
then they say “naray Haydari.” They bring the roof down, but we say, “Naray Siddiq, naray Farooq,
naray `Uthmaan and naray Fatimah!” So we add and we want to make them happy. Who wants to
be with them, raise your hands!
I have to say that we never produced any kinds of pictures of Prophet (s), although other schools of
thought can produce them and we respect what they do, and we keep our relationships with them.
What we cannot do, we don't, so if anyone distributes a picture, I do not agree with it; we do not
distribute pictures and if anyone said anything on my behalf, I reject it.
He is asking me to talk about what happened in San Diego. Fifteen years ago there was an event at
a university, not an MSA-sponsored event, as they are not happy with me because I am a lover of
Prophet (s)! It was an interfaith event with Christians and Jews, and I was with a rabbi, who
addressed the gathering and who spoke well and extended his hands to everyone. But he said that
Jewish people are Allah’s favored people. Of course, they are followers of Sayyidina Musa (a) and
according to what Allah (swt) revealed to them, we believe in him and in Sayyidina `Isa (a), so that is
okay. Yes, of course we believe; we cannot say, “no.” What Sayyidina `Isa (a) said we accept, not
what others claim he said. Sayyidina Musa (a) did not say only Jewish people will go to Paradise,
but he said, “Those who believe in me....” (...)
My turn came and I said, “With my respect to the Jewish faith I want to ask, is heaven smaller than
earth or is the earth smaller?”
They said, “Yes, Heaven is bigger.”
So I asked, “How many Jewish people exist on earth today: twenty, thirty or forty million all over the
world? If we go back before that it is less and less, so how much can the total be? One or two billion.
There are six-billion people on earth today and the earth is containing them. If we say one-million
from the time of Sayyidina Musa (...) but I want to ask, since heaven is bigger than earth, are only
one-billion going to inhabit heaven? What will happen to the rest? We are the luckiest ones.”
They asked, “Why?”
I said, “We believe in Moses and Jesus and we cannot be Muslim if we don't. If we don't go to
Paradise through Sayyidina Muhammad (s) then we can go through Sayyidina `Isa or Sayyidina
Musa, which is no problem for us, but you will be in a problem.”
The rabbi left, as he did not like it! (...) We believe that all prophets will come under the banner of
Prophet (s) on Judgment Day!
‫آدم ومن دونه تحت لواي يوم القيامة‬
Adamu wa man doonahu tahta liwaa’ihee yawma ’l-qiyaamah.
Adam and who is under Adam is under my flag on Judgment Day.
Sayyidina Adam (a) and who is under him will be under Prophet’s flag on the Day of Judgment. So
we see, Islam teaches us to be friendly (with people of other faiths).
They gave me this salawaat on Prophet (s) by one of the aqtaab of Islam, Ahmad Badawi (q), who is
one of the biggest scholars in Islam. I will read it now:
Salawaat Nooraniyyah / Salawaat Badawi Kubraa
ِّ‫ص ْو َرة‬ ُّ ‫ َوأ َ ْش َرفِّ ال‬،ِّ‫سانِّيَّة‬ َ ‫ض ِّل ْال َخ ِّل ْيقَ ِّة اَْلِّ ْن‬َ ‫ َوأ َ ْف‬،ِّ‫الرحْ َمانِّيَّة‬
َّ ‫ض ِّة‬ َ ‫ َولَ ْمعَ ِّة ْالقَ ْب‬،ِّ‫ش َج َرةِّ اَْلَص ِّْل النُّ ْو َرانِّيَّة‬ َ ‫سيِّدِّنا َ َو َم ْوَلَنا َ ُم َح َّم ٍد‬
َ ‫لى‬َ ‫ع‬ َ ‫س ِّل ْم َوبا َ ِّر ْك‬
َ ‫ص ِّل َو‬ َ ‫اَللَّ ُه َّم‬
‫ت‬ ْ ْ
ِّ ‫ َم ِّن ان َد َر َج‬،ِّ‫الرتبَ ِّة العَ ِّليَّة‬ ْ ُّ ‫ َو‬،ِّ‫سنِّيَّة‬ ْ
َّ ‫ َوالبَ ْه َج ِّة ال‬،ِّ‫ص ِّليَّة‬ َ ْ
ْ ‫ض ِّة اَل‬ َ
َ ‫ب الق ْب‬ ْ ِّ ِّ‫صاح‬ ْ ُ ْ
َ ،ِّ‫ َوخَزَ ائ ِِّّن العُل ْو ِّم اَلِّ صْطِّ فَائِّيَّة‬،ِّ‫الربَّانِّيَّة‬ َ ْ
َّ ‫ َو َم ْعد ِِّّن اَلس َْر ِّار‬،ِّ‫ال َج ْس َمانِّيَّة‬ ْ
‫ث َم ْن‬ ُ َ‫ َو َرزَ ْقتَ َوأ َ َمتَّ َوأَحْ ييْتَ اِّلَى يَ ْو ِّم ت َ ْبع‬، َ‫ع َد َد َما َخلَ ْقت‬ َ ‫صحْ بِّ ِّه‬ َ ‫لى آ ِّل ِّه َو‬
َ ‫ع‬َ ‫علَ ْي ِّه َو‬ َ ‫س ِّل ْم َوبا َ ِّر ْك‬ َ ‫ َو‬،ِّ‫ فَ ُه ْم مِّ ْنهُ َواِّلَ ْيه‬،ِّ‫النَّبِّي ُّْونَ تَحْ تَ ل َِّوائِّه‬
َ ‫ص ِّل َو‬
َ‫ب ْالعَالَمِّ يْن‬ ِّ ‫هلل َر‬ ِّ ِّ ‫س ِّل ْم ت َ ْس ِّل ْي ًما َكثِّي ًْرا َو ْال َح ْم ُد‬ َ ‫ َو‬، َ‫أ َ ْفنَيْت‬
Allahumma salli wa sallim wa baarik `alaa Sayyidina wa Mawlana Muhammadin shajarati 'l-asli 'n-
nooraaniyyati wa lam`atil qabdati 'r-rahmaaniyyati wa afdali 'l-khaleeqati 'l-insaaniyyati wa ashrafi 's-
soorati 'l-jismaaniyyati wa ma`dini 'l-asraari 'r-rabbaniyyati wa khazaaini 'l-`uloomi 'l-istifaaiyyati,
saahibi 'l-qabdati 'l-asliyya wa 'l-bahjati 's-saniyya wa 'r-rutbati 'l-`aliyya, man indarajati 'n-nabiyyoona
tahta liwaa'ihi fahum minhu wa ilayhi wa salli wa sallim wa baarik `alayhi wa `alaa aalihi wa sahbihi
`adada maa khalaqta wa razaqta wa amatta wa ahyayta ilaa yawmi tab`athu man afnayta wa sallim
tasleeman katheera wa 'l-hamdulillahi rabbi 'l-`alameen.
O Allah! Exalt, greet and bless our master and liege-lord Muhammad, the Tree of Original Light, the
Sparkle of the Handful of Divine Mercy, the Best of All Humankind, the Noblest of Physical Frames,
the Vessel of the Lord’s Secrets and Storehouse of the Sciences of the Elect, the Possessor of the
Original Divine Grasp, Resplendent Grace, and Uppermost Rank, under whose flag line up all the
prophets, so that they are from him and point to him. Bless, greet and sanctify him and his Family
and Companions, to the number of all that You have ever created, sustained, caused to die, and
caused to live again, to the Day You resurrect those You reduced to dust, and greet him with an
abundant and endless greeting. Glory and praise belong to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds!
It is mentioned in many different books that for anyone who mentions this salawaat in this way, it is
as if he recited all salawaat from the time of Adam (a) with all angels to the Day of Judgment, and if
you accumulate all those, you get the reward of that salawaat by reading this once! Who is Ahmad
Badawi (q)? Every year his urs is attended by at least five-million devotees in Tanta, Egypt. He was
a big mufti who was always asking, “Yaa Rabbee! Give me the key to Your door.” He was a scholar,
a mufti, and a qutb.
One day a person appeared in front of him, saying, “Yaa Ahmad! Do you want the key?”
He said, “No, I don't want the key from people, I want it from The Maker.”
“My explanation of this, yaa Ahmad, is that someone is coming to you and he has a secret, why
didn’t you take the key?”
He continued, “Yaa Allah! Give me the key.”
He heard an angel’s voice, “Yaa Ahmad! The key was with that man. There is cause and effect, not
‘kun fa yakoon;’ you cannot reach that level. You asked and I sent, so go find that person and take
the key.”
Ahmad Badawi could not find him, as that person veiled himself. After six months he appeared, and
Ahmad Badawi said, “Please grant me the key.”
He said, “Now if I grant it to you, I have a price, whereas it was free before.”
“How much?”
“No wealth, the world is rich.”
“What do you want?”
“I want your knowledge.”
“How?”
“Look into my eyes.”
He looked and like a vacuum that one made Ahmad Badawi forget everything, as if he was born
today, not knowing Fatihah or anything, and he left him. He appeared again after six months and
Ahmad Badawi said, “You left me and now children are throwing stones at me, I don't know
anything.”
That one said, “Yaa Ahmad! We don’t build our knowledge on dunya. You built it on arrogance,
claiming that you know so much and Allah does not need that. The knowledge you need is what
Prophet gave to the awliya in their hearts. Look in my eyes,” and he poured back knowledge and
Ahmad Badawi became the biggest `alim of his time. No one was able to look into his eyes and he
used to wear a veil; otherwise if people looked in them they fainted.
So that is the salawaat he wrote, which was dictated by Prophet (s) in his dreams and there are
many awliya like that. I have given several lectures on salawaat of awliya on Prophet (s).
(...) When Sayyidina Musa (a) was looking for knowledge, Allah sent him to an ocean where the two
rivers meet, and they say it can be the Mediterranean Sea or others, but in reality it is where the two
knowledges meet: `Ilm az-Zaahir and `Ilm al-Baatin. That is where you become a wali. If you take
one and leave the other it doesn't work, because Allah is Az-Zaahir and also Al-Baatin. There is fiqh
and then there is more...so Allah sent him …
‫علَّ ْمنَاهُ مِّ ن لَّ ُدنَّا ع ِّْل ًما‬ ْ ً‫ع ْبدًا ِّم ْن ِّعبَا ِّدنَا آت َ ْينَاهُ َرحْ َمة‬
َ ‫مِّن عِّن ِّدنَا َو‬ َ ‫فَ َو َج َدا‬
Fa-wajadaa `abdan min `ibaadinaa aataynaahu rahmatan min `indinaa wa`allamnaahu min ladunnaa
`ilma.
So they found one of Our Servants on whom We had bestowed mercy from Ourselves and whom
We had taught knowledge from Our Presence. (Surat al-Kahf, 18:65)
“And he found one of Our Servants” means there are many servants like Sayyidina Khidr, and then
ataynaa means We gave mercy first then he was taught divine knowledge. Allah (swt) said:
َ‫س ْلنَاكَ إِّ ََّل َرحْ َمةً ل ِّْلعَالَمِّ ين‬
َ ‫َو َما أ َ ْر‬
Wa maa arsalnaaka illa rahmatan li 'l-`alameen.
(O Muhammad!) We have sent you not except as a Mercy for all the Worlds. (Surat al-Anbiya,
21:107)
Allah (swt) dressed him with the reality of Prophet (s), then he was able to enter the Divine Presence
and learn heavenly knowledge. Surat al-Kahf is the main surah teaching us that “rahmah” was
Prophet (s) and may Allah dress us with the Divine Rahmah and love of Prophet (s) and
knowledge...
Wa min Allahi 't-tawfeeq, bi hurmati 'l-habeeb, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.
http://www.sufilive.com/19_Letters_of_Bismillahir_Rahman_Ar_Rahim_19_Letters_of_
Muhammad_Ali_Fatima_Hassan_and_Husain-4410.html
© Copyright 2012 Sufilive. All rights reserved. This transcript is protected
by international copyright law. Please attribute Sufilive when sharing it. JazakAllahu khayr.
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