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It is imperative for a
qualified Sufi Master to have gained the spiritual link (nisbat) with the
Prophet Muhammad and have gained his perceptivity (tart-e-fikr).
When a student achieves fana fi
shaykh" (as described in chapter-29) then his perceptivity and traits of
personality mirror those of his Spiritual Master (shaykh) and he starts to
assimilate the essence of the Prophet Muhammad. To improve this link, the
student is given the Muraqaba of tasawwar rasul (visualization of the Prophet)
so their spiritual connection improve and they could receive the blessings of
the Light of Prophethood (nur nabu'wat). Depending on the prophet Muhammad's
intercession, the students see the Light of Prophethood based on their ability,
which is subject to his approval. When the Light of Prophethood fills the inner
self of the students, they achieve the station of ' fana fi rasul."
There are different methods of
tassawar rasul:
In the Muraqaba, the student
imagines the Mosque of Medina (masjid nabawi) or its green dome. The students
imagine the lights from the city of Medina are being absorbed in their inner.
In the heart of the student, the word Muhammad is written in luminescent form
and his heart lit because of it. The Prophet Muhammad is sitting in the crown
of Prophethood and from his heart the lights are falling into the student's
heart. The student imagines that he or she is sitting with the Prophet and that
he is watching them.
Just as Muslims consider the
Prophet Muhammad to be their mediator or medium to God, members of other
faiths consider other personalities to he their medium between them and God.
Jews regard Moses as such while Christian mystics consider Jesus, Hindus
consider Krishna or Ram, and Zoroastrians consider Zoroaster to be their
medium. Buddhists believe in redemption through Buddha. Based on this belief,
in these religions the Muraqaba of these personalities is given after the
Muraqaba of the guru.
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.
