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Recite ioo times the Darood-Sharif and
ioo times the Divine Name-Ya'Haiyu Ya'Qayyumu and then close your eves and imagine
you are watching God or that God is watching you. This Muraqaba helps create
the link between you and God and keeps fear and grief away from you.
The Muraqba of Ihsaan is great for
forming Salat (prayer; remembrance of God). The prophet Muhammad has
said," when you standing for prayer, imagine that you are seeing God or
that God is seeing you." This Muraqaba creates the link with the Divine
and the joy during prayer.
Saadia Khanum from Shah Kot, Pakistan
wrote,
"With your permission I started the
Muraqaba of Ihsaan. Here is the report:
During
Muraqaba, I saw myself beneath the Divine Throne. The floor resembled mercury
and there was a comfortable bed for me nearby. I was sitting in it
comfortably. Divine Light was falling on me. A thought came that this is the
light of Divine Vision and God is watching me. I saw in His vision great love
and compassion. Ifelt like a little girl and I had a desire to see Him. I asked
Him, 'When can I see You, O' Lord!"
He replied, `Thou art too young to see
us. When thou art old enough then we will grant thee Our glimpse.'
I kept
asking questions of when I would be old enough, when this would happen. Then a
thought crossed my mind that though I could not see Him, He is watching me, and
he understands me. Moreover, when I am older I will be able to see Him. That
thought had a calming effect on me. Every cell of my body was feeling serenity
and joy."
125
Rasheed Khan from DG Khan, Pakistan
wrote,
"I
started the Muraqaba with the permission of the Sufi Master (author). I saw
myself standing under the Divine Throne (ur sh) and the Divine Light (nur) is fulling on me
like a fountain. Its rays entered my head and then were absorbed into illy
eyes. I felt as if I
had a binocular and I could see everything clearly. I saw the Divine Light was encompassing
me like a sheet. Every layer felt like
a separate sheet as if one were
wearing a sheet over another sheet. This clothing of light felt glued to my body. They
looked great. There were in total thirty-five sheets all over me and for a long
time the Divine Light kept shining into
my eyes. Then my vision started
seeing the Divine Throne (arsh), suddenly
the flow of the light stopped. Ifelt that God was on the Throne (arsh). I glanced at Him and was lost.
Then Ifelt the Divine Light coming directly out of Him and entering me. This light was even brighter and more delicate than the previous one. With this light my face lit up
like a
star. Ifelt Him very close to me. In
my mind, I had the echo of the following verse of the Qur'an (Koran):
"We are closer to thee than thy
cerebral vein."
During
the entire period of Muraqaba the thought of His nearness and His Light
dominated my mind. Ifelt as though I were made of delicate lights. My heart
and mind felt likewise. I felt immensely the Divine Love. I wished I could
always be near Him. At that moment besides longing for Him, I had no other
thoughts in my mind." NOTE: Seekers of the Truth are required to do this
Muraqaba only after obtaining permission from their Spiritual Master (murshid).
We
mentioned earlier that spirituality creates a condition through which the
student is able to feel the Divine Presence to a point where they feel like
they are watching God. The program of salat (prayer) is meant to reinforce the
link with God and the idea that God is omnipresent wherever they may go. When
they complete this exercise, the audience with the Divine becomes an
observation. The prophet Muhammad has called this state the station of Ihsaan.
At
least twenty minutes before Fajr prayers, sit in a comfortable position. Close
your eyes and imagine you are at the Divine Court and God is in front of you.
Keep this imagination for five to ten minutes and then form the Fajr prayer.
During the prayer keep the imagination that God is in front of you. During
prayer, imagine that you are praying in the Divine Court right in front of Him.
This way the mind will be focused on God while the body will be performing the
prayer. While reciting the Qur'an (Koran) during prayer, imagine that you are
conversing with God. After completing the prayer, while still sitting keep the
imagination of Divine Presence for a few minutes.
If
you are having difficulty in imagining God then imagine that you are present
before Him and God is witnessing your every movement. I~.ither of the two
imaginations can be done. If in the beginning the imagination is not formed
then do not worry. Keep practicing this consistent-IN, and God
willing you soon will be able to establish the image and will feel the real
closeness of God during prayers.
Before
Zohr and Asr prayers, do dhikr (invocation) of Al-Lah Haziri (God is present)
Al-Lah Naziri (God is seen) for a few minutes and imagine the presence of God.
Then continue this imagination during the entire prayer. During Maghrib,
prayers due to lack of time only do the imagination that you are present before
Him.
In the I'sha prayer, imagine the
presence of God five minutes before the prayer and then perform the prayer. At
night before going to bed repeat the imagination of either seeing God or that
He is seeing you for ten minutes and then go to sleep.
When you are not enthusiastic about the
prayer or you miss it often then for forty days perform the Fajr prayer in the
mosque with the congregation. God willing, no more prayers will be missed
afterwards.
KHWAJA SHAMS-UD-DEEN AZEEMI
In the current information age, the very question of what Man
is, and to what extent his abilities
go, has gained prominence. Metaphysical knowledge tells us
that Man is not just a mass of muscles and bones but in fact is a living
universe or microcosm (a'lam asghar) itself. His life is primarily relying on
information. As a matter of fact his life is nothing but a collection of
thoughts and imagination. His every movement is influenced by information and
thoughts. Every human achievement is circled around the unseen world of
cognition, imagination and creative thoughts. By giving new meaning to this
idea, Man creates and invents new things out of nothing.