A Breeze of Musk

 

Was it a breeze of musk or the fragrance of [the Prophet’s] Garden
or was it Layla’s smile that sent her perfume to us?
Was it a flash of lightning or the brightness of her forehead
that released the light when she showed her affection
They both have added joy to my happiness
and swept away my troubles; so my fear has vanished.
The breath of the Living One moves my heart when it comes
to Wadi Al-`Aqiq, and tears cry out.
How often we spent there, in favor,
in junction and intimacy—but time changes
And after junction I am now far from them
and news from them diminish and dwindle away.
Incessantly I think of them—tell me, messenger,
do you not have good news from them that may comfort me?
Thrilled has my heart he whose tomb is in Tayba
by the beauty it encompasses, beyond description.
Passionately loved I him before I knew of worldly love—
ask me not [how much I love him] now that I know it!
I go to sleep in his love and wake up in it
my heart knows him, my mind and my eye.
The beloved—all hearts he captivated, so they grew,
O young man, truly longing for his sight!
He is wrapped in the mantle of beauty, covered;
vestments of beauty are spread over him.
A prophet who led us in guidance on the way
and who let down a curtain indescribable
Upon the faults of those of us who are at fault, out of mercy.
He shows compassion for the disobedient among us, and clemency.
No other apostle resembles him in character and physiognomy;
this is a special grant of favor from his Lord.
If Abraham is distinguished by friendship
as [God’s] friend, [Muhammad] is characterized by love and closeness.
Moses was spoken to on Mount Sinai; Ahmed
on the Throne—above the veils he receives this gift.
The dead spoke to Jesus, Mary’s son;
but Yasin—the pebbles on his right found words.
Supreme is his rank among angels and apostles
and yet he is the most submissive of men to his Lord, the most fearful.
True! All the prophets on [the Day of] Congregation
pass responsibility for intercession to him; he takes it upon himself.
They all say, “Myself!” to mankind;
he calls out, “My community—men and jinn!
Come unto me, all you who are congregated!
The banner of praise flutters with me!”
and he is given what he wishes—so the fearful can feel safe!
God’s peace upon him—God elevated him to a rank
that cannot be surpassed and not described—
From the weak slave Majdhub who
through your rank with God becomes acquainted with you.
God’s blessings upon you, and his peace
Verily, O Apostle of God, I am full of fear!

Shaykh Muhammad Majdhub

I am the slave of the Master of Prophets

By Shaykh Yusuf Nabhani (Allah have mercy on him)

I am the slave of the Master of Prophets
And my fealty to him has no beginning.

I am a slave of his slave, and of his slave's slave,
And so forth endlessly,

For I do not cease to approach the door
Of his good pleasure among the beginners.

I proclaim among people the teaching of his high attributes,
And sing his praises among the poets.

Perhaps he shall tell me: "You are a noted friend
Of mine, a truly excellent beautifier of my tribute."

Yes, I would sacrifice my soul for the dust of his sanctuary.
His favor should be that he accept my sacrifice.

He has triumphed who ascribes himself to him!
- Not that he needs such following,

For he is not in need of creation at all,
While they all need him without exception.

He belongs to Allah alone, Whose purified servant he is,
As his attributes and names have made manifest;

And every single favor in creation comes from Allah
To him, and from him to everything else.

Translated by Shaykh Gibril

O Messenger of Allah, I come to you seeking refuge

An Intimate Calling
from the Wird Book of Imam Ashraf Ali al-Tahanawi

O Messenger of Allah, I come to you seeking refuge
May my Lord’s blessings be upon you and all peace

I come distressed, seeking assistance and succor
For a soul that wrongs despite not having been wronged

O Messenger of Allah, I come to you seeking your protection
And your Lord grants you protection and you can’t be let down

O Messenger of Allah, I come to you as a guest
And the rights of guests are known to those noble

I come to you indigent and needy
With a soul possessing only tremendous sins

A stranger who has come from a strange land
Without any companions or partners

…..

Help me, O Messenger of Allah, for I
Am at a loss, and despair has reached my very bones

Grant mercy, O Son of Aminah, grant mercy
For in sin have I been nursed and grown

It is your intercession I seek in distress and ease
And your healing when sickness befalls me

You are my support when darkness befalls
And in struggles you are my sure sword

If you seek forgiveness for me, O Master, even once
I’ll be of those upright on religion

Every limb of mine obeys you as if a slave
And in my heart love for you is constant

O God grant me success throughout my life
To pray weeping while others are asleep.

[Source: Munajat-e-Maqbool, 234-238, Idara-e-Islamiyat, Lahore, 1995]

Fundet via Shaykh Faraz Rabbanis Seeker’s Digest

Weakness of my mind

Weakness of my mind

A mind of confusion
A mind of selfish
A mind of disgrace
A mind of weakness   

O shaytân, you are weak
You mislead me
through ignorance
distracting my mind from my deen

We are weaker than you
You are strong-willed,
you do as you wish to do
We claim to be guided muslims
we claim to be among the lovers
the lovers of Allah and His Beloved

But all we do
is to follow you
We follow your steps
Disobeying The Great Lord

The soul is confused
Whether to do or not to do
O shaytan, you are everywhere i look
but I have in my mind a sentence
that destroys you;
Allahs is Greater than you
I am a follower of His Beloved
I am a lover of al-Habib
By this I don’t regret my choice
Choice of peace, love and patience
A soul of inner peace

O soul melt into fusion
O my Lord, everything is possible
with Your will and acceptance
Let me be among those
who love You and Your Beloved
Those who follow the footsteps of al-Mustafa (sallallâhu ‘alayhi wa sallam)
Those who dies in the feet of al-Habib (‘alayhi as-salâtu wa as-salâm)
Those who dies saying these words;

La ilâha illallâh Muhammad ar-Rasulullâh
As-salâtu wa as-salâmu ‘alayka yâ Sayyidi yâ RasulAllâh

© Maryam Khan

Madih khair al-Mursalin

Selections from the Exordium (tashbîb)

From the direction of Benares went a cloud toward Mathura;

The breeze brings Ganges water on the shoulders of lightning.

The cypress-statured residents of Gokal perform ablutions right [in their] home;

For to go to bathe in the River Jumna is a prolonged hope.

News has just reached the great forest that

The wind-borne clouds are proceeding to the [Hindu] pilgrimage sites.

The dense black clouds extend far into the distance;

The idols hold sway not only in Hind [India] but indeed the whole world.

The invasion of black clouds proceeds towards the qibla:

Perhaps Lât and Hubal may yet again lay siege to the Ka’ba.

In the entire day, not even for a couple hours did it [the rain] cease;

For fifteen days there has been a joyful abundance of water

 

Neither the moon is visible at night nor the sun during the day;

This tumultous darkness is the influence of Saturn.

The density of the dark clouds is such that it renders the candle invisible,

Even though the moth searches for it with a torch.

The pupil of the eye was concealed in the veil of darkness;

The eye of the world-seeing sun contains symptoms of cataract.

The smoke of the fire of the rose reached the ceiling of the spheres;

Lamp-blacked congealed on the ceiling of the house of the sun!

So blinding is the darkness that the cloud itself cannot move;

Thunder says to lightning, “Better bring a torch!”

 

Selections from the Panegyric (madh)

The saplings of anthropomorphism are verdant in the garden of attributelessness

Of which the prophets are the branches and the gnostics are the buds.

The beautiful rose of the Arabian, Medinan, Prophet

Adorns the skirt of eternity and ornaments the turban of pre-eternity.

No one resembles him, equals him, or is like him;

Neither is there anyone who is similar, comparable or who can replace him

He is the moon of the highest zenith, the fruit of the palm-tree of the two worlds;

The pearl of the ocean of Oneness, the lotus of the fountain of multiplicity;

The light of the sun of monotheism, the new moon of the zenith of honor;

The flame of the candle of creation, the lamp of the assembly of messengership.

 

The refuge of the Trusted Spirit (Gabriel), the adorner of the heavenly thrones sublime;

The protector of the firm religion, the abrogator of creeds and nations.

He is the high-ranking King in the seven climes of dominion;

The messenger sent for the four directions of guidance.

I wish to write many befitting hemistiches.

If only the pen would not become ecstatic and fly off from my hand!

He was the chose selection of the manuscript of Oneness on the day of pre-eternity.

There is neither a second to Ahmad nor a predecessor to the One.

 

How [beautifully] the cloud prostrates toward the Ka’ba, the qibla

The cloud prostrates towards Yathrib and Bathâ

Having abondoned the tavern of India and the idol house of Braj,

Today the cloud has spread its prayer rug in the Ka’ba.

Having put on blinkers on the grey horse of the heavens,

The black cloud has brought it for the Arabian rider.

In the ocean of contigency, the Arabian messenger is a unique pearl;

The cloud is a special mercy of the Lord Almighty.

 

The Ka’ba of the eyebrow of the Prophet is the qibla for the people of insight,

The black cloud is the hair surronding the head of the qibla [Muhammad]

Lightning weeps out of envy of the flame of that face,

The cloud has placed a shawl on the face of lightning.

Widespread is the fame of the life-bestowing lips of the Prophet,

Listen a moment to what Jesus says to the cloud:

“Look with the eye of justice at his [the Prophet's] noble teeth,

He is your unique pearl even though you are a unique cloud.”

The thread of angels was bound around the holy pearl;

On the night of the mi’râj the cloud was at the exalted divine throne.

In ascending and descending, Burâq was equal to lightning

The cloud was the verdant meadow of the world above.

 

Selections from the Supplication (du’â)

Your rank is the highest and the most excellent;

This is the essence of my detailed faith.

It is my wish that none of my poetry, be it qit’a, or qasîda, or ghazal,

Should be devoid of your praise.

In religion and the world I should have no other refuge;

Only on you do I depend, on your strength, on your power.

May [you be] my fibre of hope and palm tree, fresh and green

Whose every branch has flowers, and whose every flower contains a fruit.

 

My desire is that I continue to think of you till the moment of death,

That I see your form when death comes.

With the name of Muhammad on the tongue and the secret of “without mîm” in the heart,

On my lips be the blessing on the Prophet and in the heart the glorification of God.

May the angel of death, ‘Azrâ’îl, lovingly say to my soul:

“My dear, if you are coming along to Medina then let’s go.”

At the moment of death let this be the sign of your intercession:

“Don’t worry about the day of resurrection, we’ll take care of it tomorrow.”

The memory of the mirror-like face may confound me,

May I see the mirror palace in the corner of my grave.

May the two scribe angels, my hosts, say: “Feel at home [here];

Don’t worry about a thing, don’t be anxious!”

 

May I remember your resplendent face after annihilation (fanâ)

So that it may come as my companion on the road of non-existence as a (guiding) torch.

May my sins, heavy and light, be erased,

When my deeds, righteous and noble, come to the scales.

 

May [I] your panegyrist be with you in the ranks of resurrection,

Holding this intoxicating qasîda and ghazal.

When Gabriel signals and says “Yes, begin in the name of God,

‘From the direction of Benares went a cloud towards Mathura’”

 

Muhsin Kakorawi Madîh khair al-mursalîn (Eulogy for the best of messengers)

[Ali S. Asani & Kamal Abdel-Malek, Celebrating Muhammad: Images of the Prophet in Popular Muslim Poetry]

If the fragrance of his remembrance radiates in the West
And a sick man resides in the East, he will recover

Ibn al-Fârid

The Treasury of Truths

The Treasury of Truths 

O, Allah, bless and grant peace to our lord and master Muhammad, the first of the lights emanating from the oceans of sublimity of Essence, with every one of Your perfections in all Your self-manifestations. In the two worlds  – the hidden and the seen – he realised the meanings of the Names and Attributes.

He is the first to give praise and worship with every kind of adoration and good action. He is the helper of all created beings in the world of forms and the world of spirits.

And blessings be upon his family and Companions with a blessing that will lift the veil from his noble face for us in visions and in the waking state and will acquiant us with You and with him in all ranks and presences. Be gracious to us, O Mawlana, by his rank, in movement and in stillness, in looks and in thoughts.

Glory be to your Lord, the Lord of might, above all that they describe, and peace be upon the messengers, and praise belongs to Allah, the Lord of the worlds.

Shaykh Muhammad Ibn al-Habîb

Lovprisning uden ende

By the gate of your generosity stands a sinner, who is mad with love.

O best of  mankind in radiance of face and countenance!

Through you he seeks a means [tawassala], hoping for Allah’s forgiveness of slips;

from fear of Him, his eyelid is wet with pouring tears.

Although his genealogy attributes him to a stone [hajar],

how often tears have flowed, sweet, pure and fresh!

Praise of you does not do you justice, but perhaps,

In eternity, its verses will be transformed into mansions.

My praise of you shall continue for as long as I live,

For I see nothing that could ever deflect me from your praise.

Ibn Hajar al-’Asqalânî, Dîwân

 

Længsel efter Madina

It is we who, like a tulip in the desert of Medina,
Bear in our heart the scar of longing for Medina.
Passionate longing for Paradise may disappear from the wiseman’s head, but
It is not possible that the passionate longing for Medina should leave him…
The Tuba tree that has lifted its head on the apex of the Throne
Is only a branch from the garden-adorning palm tree of Medina.
When you eat dates, kiss their kernels, for
The kernels of the dates of Medina are the beads of the angels’ rosary!

Jami

En længsel efter Madina i mit hjerte

En længsel efter Madina i mit hjerte 

Lyset fra månen skinner
Til månen stjernerne binder
Atter freden, de finder

Tvivlen i vore hjerter svinder
Intet er tilbage end minder
Synet af Profetens by optrapper

En dag i Madina vil jeg sige
O Madina, dig vil jeg altid hige
Aldrig vil jeg fra dig vige
Intet andet sted er dit lige

I Madina vil jeg være hvert øjeblik
Et smukt tilbageblik

Opslugt er jeg af Deres kærlighed
Betaget af Deres dristighed
Gjort skør, af deres ekstreme barmhjertighed

© Maryam Khan