Excerpt from The Sufi Realities, 2004, Shadhiliyya Sufi Center
This is an excerpt from one of the books of Sidi’s transcribed teachings, The Sufi Realities, published in 2004. May Allah help all of the travelers on the way to fully embody the qualities Sidi describes below. Amin.
La ʾilaha ʾilla-llaaaaaah, La ʾilaha ʾilla-llaaaaah, La ʾilaha ʾilla-llaaaaah
Muhammad rasulu-llah
La ʾilaha ʾilla-llaaaaaah, La ʾilaha ʾilla-llaaaaah, La ʾilaha ʾilla-llaaaaah
Ibrahim rasulu-llah
La ʾilaha ʾilla-llaaaaaah, La ʾilaha ʾilla-llaaaaah, La ʾilaha ʾilla-llaaaaah
Musa rasulu-llah,
La ʾilaha ʾilla-llaaaaaah, La ʾilaha ʾilla-llaaaaah, La ʾilaha ʾilla-llaaaaah
ʿIsa rasulu-llah ʿalayhim salatu-llah.
For Those New to Sufism
Translator: “Now I wish to explain to you [about] Sufism and the creed of the Sufis. This is for new people who do not know what Sufism is. In reality, it is the core of the Unity, which is the real teaching of Islam, the religion of Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, peace be upon them.
The Sufi is the one who has purified his heart and made it completely for Allah. He is the one who follows the faith decreed by Allah, the one who purifies his heart, self and spirit, and offers everything as a sacrifice for the sake of the love of Allah. His speech, state and reality is from Allah, by Allah and for Allah. He has annihilated [his self] from everything. He uses the dunya for the sake of Allah, for seeking His pleasure.
He does not stop with illusions or imagination, because he carries the Reality, the Truth. He does not behave in a fashion that has a split between the speech and the state. He only acts after considering if it would meet Allah’s pleasure.
How a Sufi Begins
He starts with purifying his body when he makes the witnessing to Allah and to the truth of the Messenger, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. He follows the orders of Allah by witnessing that there is no god except Allah truly, sincerely. Then he gives witness that Muhammad is His slave and messenger, that Abraham is His slave and messenger, that Moses is His messenger and that Jesus is His messenger, making no separation between any of the messengers of Allah. They are all His prophets and His beloveds. He always bows his neck to everyone who carries the creed of the unity and the message of the prophets in all of his actions.
How a Sufi Lives
His speech cannot be in conflict with his state. He does not steal; he does not betray. He is always truthful, sincere, and happy with Allah’s decree and with following the orders of Allah. His state is a manifestation of the Qurʾan. When walking on the earth [he is] very watchful of every action he takes, very circumspect about speaking any word that would cause pain to any heart—no backbiting, no envy, no discrimination and making no separation between people, because his state is clean.
The Sufi Makes No Separation
He makes no separation between poor and rich or men and women. They are all beloveds. They all are equal, because each one is a mirror for the presence of the Reality. They are all holy. You cannot transgress against any one or against any of Allah’s creatures. He respects all the worlds because he sees in them divine manifestations. He sees divine rankings. He works for the happiness of everything, so his state is always established by the Lord.
The Sufi Prays For Those Who Need It
He prays for the sake of the poor, the weak, those who have suffered from injustice. He always pays attention to the weak to save them from their pain. He is bandaging their wounds. He is fast to go to the relief of the hungry, the destitute, the sick. This is his state. He is like the rain in relationship to the earth. His rain always falls on everything as a sign of mercy, because Allah has sent him as a mercy.
The Sufi Has Only One Beloved In Their Heart
This is the message of Sufism. Such people are always walking with Allah, in Allah. Such people cannot live without the Greatest Beloved. He only has one beloved in his heart, no other, because he does not subscribe to partnership. His heart is the abode of the throne of his Lord. His Lord is his beloved Allah. He has traveled and he has completed his emigration like the emigration of Abraham who said, “I am emigrating to my Lord and He will guide me (Qur’an 37:99).”
The Sufi’s Walking
The Sufi, in reality, is always moving from station to station and from rank to rank. His journeying does not stop until he has a meeting with his greatest Beloved who is Allah, Mighty is He. He annihilates all of his humanity in service to the faith of Allah, which is the faith of all of humanity. Even more, this is the faith of everything that Allah created in all the worlds. This is our creed that carries all the divine qualities. This is our life, our true life, not the life that you see many people living who do not take on these divine attributes.
This is the Sufism we carry. We wish for all people to carry it so that the happiness of humanity can be complete for all. Thank you.”
The True Sufi
from The Truth of a Sufi, Part 1
This is a video excerpt where Sidi describes a true Sufi.