Bay'ah, Guidance & Direction
بیعت اور رشد و ہدایت
Shāh ‘Abd al-Ghanī’s Spiritual Attention in Childhood
Ḥaḍrat did not take bay'ah (the formal pledge of allegiance between disciple and spiritual master) at the hand of anyone in the formal sense. However, as has already been mentioned in the account of his early life: when Ḥaḍrat was approximately six or seven years old, he was in Madīnah al-Munawwarah with his father and mother during their second journey to the Two Holy Cities. His father was a devoted disciple of a great spiritual master of that city, Ḥaḍrat Shāh ‘Abd al-Ghanī Ṣāḥib raḥmatu’llāhi ‘alayhi. Ḥaḍrat's father presented the young Ḥaḍrat before Shāh Ṣāḥib as well. Shāh Ṣāḥib directed his spiritual attention (tawajjuh) towards Ḥaḍrat and placed his blessed turban upon his head. Ḥaḍrat felt the effect of Shāh Ṣāḥib's tawajjuh even at that young age — and from that very moment, the faculty of spiritual unveiling (kashf) began to manifest in Ḥaḍrat.
Ḥaḍrat had not taken formal bay'ah at the hand of Shāh Ṣāḥib. However, through the conferral of the turban of khilāfah (spiritual succession), Ḥaḍrat became recognised among those accepted by Shāh ‘Abd al-Ghanī's circle — and all the spiritual chains (silsilas) that reached Shāh Ṣāḥib, their permission (ijāzah) was thereby transmitted to Ḥaḍrat.
The Father's Conferral of Ijāzah
Later, Ḥaḍrat's father granted both his sons ijāzah (formal authorisation to transmit the spiritual chain) for all the silsilas that reached him through his own ancestors — and as a formal expression of khilāfah, he placed his own turbans on both sons' heads. This was so even though Ḥaḍrat had not formally taken bay'ah at his father's hand.
The Selection of a Murshid
Since Ḥaḍrat's father himself possessed ijāzah and a silsila, the question of becoming a formal murīd was one in which the attention of two candidates was fixed on two persons. One was Ḥaḍrat's own maternal uncle, Ḥaḍrat Sayyid Khwājah Muḥammad Ṣiddīq Maḥbūb Allāh, and the other was Ḥaḍrat Shāh Afḍal Biyābānī raḥmatu’llāhi ‘alayhi's son Ḥaḍrat Shāh Sarwar Biyābānī raḥmatu’llāhi ‘alayhi. Choosing one of these two was exceedingly difficult for Ḥaḍrat. Both directed their favour and attention towards him, and he had immense love for both. Ḥaḍrat once said: “Shāh Sarwar Biyābānī and his son Ghulām Shāh Afḍal Biyābānī would explain important matters of taṣawwuf and would themselves listen and be delighted.” He also said: “Between Ghulām Shāh Afḍal Biyābānī and myself there was boundless friendship and affection.”
On the other side, Ḥaḍrat was always present in the service of his maternal uncle Ḥaḍrat Khwājah Muḥammad Ṣiddīq Maḥbūb Allāh. Khwājah Ṣāḥib would himself expound on various issues, saying: “Look, mawlwī, this issue is such-and-such.” Ḥaḍrat said: “I would never pose a question to Ḥaḍrat (Khwājah) myself — he would explain each issue one by one. When our Ḥaḍrat (Khwājah) would deliver a discourse on the issues of taṣawwuf (Islamic spiritual discipline), it was as if a river of knowledge was flowing.”
سوچ سمجھ کر دینا ہاتھ — ورنہ پیچھے ندامت ہے غیرسے جو کردے آزاد — لازم اس کی صحبت ہے
(Verse by Ḥaḍrat Ṣiddīqī raḥmatu’llāhi ‘alayhi): Think carefully before extending your hand (in bay'ah) — else regret will follow. The one who sets you free from all besides (God) — his company is indispensable.
The Criterion of the Perfect Human Being (Insān-i Kāmil)
In the view of some, the criterion of the insān-i kāmil (the perfected, complete human being) is possessing correct knowledge and acting in full accordance with it. In the view of some others, it is being a manifestation (maẓhar) of all of Allāh's names and attributes — and one's degree corresponds to the extent of those attributes that are manifested.
But in Ḥaḍrat's view, the goal is not to gain something but to lose oneself. Ḥaḍrat would say: “The more a person empties, the more he receives.” He would say: “Your thought comes and goes, and the One of Majesty comes — because a vacuum is impossible. The more empty you become, the more you will be filled. When there is nothing left, He alone will remain.”
Ḥaḍrat said: “What does a servant have to do with excellence? Excellence is the very means of humiliation.” Whoever wishes to attain must be willing to lose. People seek a shaykh who matches their own individual temperament.
Bay'ah from Ḥaḍrat Khwājah Muḥammad Ṣiddīq Maḥbūb Allāh
To lose everything and become without (apparent) excellence matched Ḥaḍrat's own spiritual taste (dhawq). Accordingly, Ḥaḍrat took bay'ah at the blessed hand of Ḥaḍrat Khwājah Muḥammad Ṣiddīq Maḥbūb Allāh raḥmatu’llāhi ‘alayhi. Khwājah Ṣāḥib too had said: “Mawlwī, your temperament is upon my temperament.” And he honoured Ḥaḍrat with khilāfah as well.
تیرے آگے سر بہ زمین ہے — اب ڈر کاہے کا
(Ḥaḍrat's verse): My head bows before you to the ground — what is there now to fear?
Ijāzah from Shāh Iḥsān al-Ḥaqq
Ḥaḍrat Shāh Iḥsān al-Ḥaqq Ṣāḥib — who was Ḥaḍrat's respected father-in-law — granted Ḥaḍrat the ijāzah of the Qādirī Kalīmī ṭarīqah by inner command (ḥukm-i bāṭinī). The occasion for his personally coming to confer this ijāzah was as follows: one day — in a state of kashf (spiritual unveiling) — while Ḥaḍrat was teaching Gulshan-i Rāz in Madīnah, Shāh Kalīmu’llāh Shāhjāhānābādī raḥmatu’llāhi ‘alayhi appeared close to Ḥaḍrat in vision and said: “Also obtain the ijāzah of our silsila.” Ḥaḍrat replied: “But now from whom should I obtain this?” He replied: “Shāh Iḥsān al-Ḥaqq is your father-in-law — he himself will come.” Accordingly, Shāh Iḥsān al-Ḥaqq Ṣāḥib came to visit Ḥaḍrat and conferred the ijāzah. Ḥaḍrat said: “So I received the ijāzah of the silsila from him — and bowed my head before him, even though he was my father-in-law.”
Ijāzah from Naqīb al-Ashrāf Ḥaḍrat Pīr Ḥusām al-Dīn Maḥmūd
Ḥaḍrat Pīr Ḥusām al-Dīn Maḥmūd Ṣāḥib, Naqīb al-Ashrāf (Custodian of the Descendants of the Prophet ﷺ) of Baghdād Sharīf, conferred upon Ḥaḍrat the ijāzah of his family's Qādirī-Naqshbandī silsila — so that Ḥaḍrat, as his authorised representative, could initiate his wife Rābi‘ah Begam Ṣāḥibah into the silsila.
Majma‘ al-Salāsil (Confluence of the Spiritual Chains)
In this way, through his murshid Ḥaḍrat Khwājah Muḥammad Ṣiddīq Maḥbūb Allāh, his father Ḥaḍrat ‘Abd al-Qādir Ṣiddīqī, his respected father-in-law Shāh Iḥsān al-Ḥaqq Ṣāḥib, and his elder pīr Ḥusām al-Dīn Maḥmūd Ṣāḥib, Ḥaḍrat received ijāzah in all the silsilas that reached those persons. Since all the major silsilas converged in Ḥaḍrat, he became majma‘ al-salāsil — the confluence of the spiritual chains. These include: Qādiriyyah, Naqshbandiyyah, Chishtiyyah, Rifā‘iyyah, Shādhiliyyah, Akbariyyah, Suhrawardiyyah, Shāh Madāriyyah, Shaṭṭāriyyah, Badawiyyah, Harmiyyah, Qalandariyyah, and others.
The Specification of the Qādirī Path
Although Ḥaḍrat was the majma‘ al-salāsil and maintained a specific inner bond (nisbat) with all the great shaykhs, his original and primary silsila was the Qādiriyyah — associated with the elect of God, Ḥaḍrat Ghawth al-A‘ẓam ‘Abd al-Qādir Jīlānī raḥmatu’llāhi ‘alayhi. The spiritual blessings (fayḍ) of the Prophet ﷺ reached Ghawth al-A‘ẓam through two great intermediaries: through Ḥaḍrat Abū Bakr al-Ṣiddīq raḍiy Allāhu ‘anhu and through Ḥaḍrat ‘Alī al-Murtḍā raḍiy Allāhu ‘anhu — joined together through the pure being of Imām Ja‘far al-Ṣādiq raḥmatu’llāhi ‘alayhi.
On one occasion, ‘Ināyat ‘Alī Ṣāḥib asked Ḥaḍrat: “You are Chishtī, you are Qādirī — you are everything.” Ḥaḍrat replied: “Look — the one who feeds me is Ghawth Pāk raḥmatu’llāhi ‘alayhi, seated in Ajmer; Bahā’ al-Dīn Naqshband feeds me fruits; one Qalāndar Shīrwānī also nourishes me. If any person wishes to take bay'ah in a specific ṭarīqah, I give bay'ah in that specific ṭarīqah — otherwise, in the Qādirī ṭarīqah.”
Ḥaḍrat's Distinctive Characteristic
In comparison with other shaykhs and spiritual masters, Ḥaḍrat's distinctive characteristic (mābihi al-imtiyāz) was that in his single person, the distinctive teaching of all the silsilas was gathered together. His penetrating thought and spiritual insight had separated from the path of Islamic taṣawwuf all those views, thoughts, practices, and states that were contrary to the spirit of Islam — and through his nisbat (spiritual connection) and fayḍ-i rūḥānī (spiritual blessings), which he received directly from the Prophet ﷺ, he pointed back to the source of Prophethood and the ways of the Companions raḍiy Allāhu ‘anhum.
Importance Given to Certain Matters in Teaching
According to circumstances, occasion, and natural disposition, Ḥaḍrat would teach how one should act in the light of the Qur'ān and Sunnah. A wonderful quality of his teaching was that at every moment a new dimension of the Qur'ān would come into view — not only would the Qur'ān open up, but its practical utility would also become comprehensible, and the inner secrets of the Qur'ān would begin to unfold. Ḥaḍrat wished that the Qur'ān should permeate the very life of those who came to him.
Ḥaḍrat also did not give undue importance to dreams and to kashf (spiritual unveiling). He said: “If we do not have correct knowledge, that will not be a means of anything. If the knowledge is not correct, the witnessing (shuhūd) will not be correct either. Did the entire company of the Prophet's ﷺ Companions have the world of subtle images opened to them? For us, the opening of the ‘ālam-i mithāl is not the most important thing — the opening of the knowledge of divine realities (ma‘ārif) is far more important.”
مَن كَانَ فِي هَذِهِ أَعْمَى فَهُوَ فِي الْآخِرَةِ أَعْمَى وَأَضَلُّ سَبِيلًا
Translation: “Whoever is blind in this (world) shall be blind in the Hereafter, and even more astray from the path.” [Qur'ān 17:72]
The Goals of Spiritual Nurturing (Maqāṣid-i Tarbiyat)
Ḥaḍrat wrote concerning the goals of spiritual nurturing (tarbiyat):
“The awliyā’ (saints) are of several types. Some possess the zeal and jealousy for the faith (ḥamiyyah wa ghayrat al-dīn) — they remain indignant toward those who oppose the faith. These awliyā’ are called Mūsawī al-mashrab (those of the temperament of Moses ‘alayhi al-salām). Some are filled with the ardour of love — weeping, longing, and restlessness is their way. Some are characterised by guidance and submission — they go through the greatest trials smiling and rejoicing. These are called Ibrāhīmī al-mashrab. Some remain immersed in tawḥīd (divine unity) — nothing is visible to them except their Beloved. These are called ‘Ĭsawī al-mashrab. And some live according to the demands of the moment — they have no purposeful will of their own — whatever is shown to them they do. Wa mā yanṭiqu ‘ani’l-hawā — in huwa illā waḥyun yūḥā [Qur'ān 53:3-4] — this applies to their state. These awliyā’ are called Muḥammadī al-mashrab (those of the Muhammadan temperament).”
Ḥaḍrat also said: “The one who is a true Sufi — even when he uses the metaphorical (majāz), he does not forget the Real (ḥaqīqah). He considers forgetfulness of the Real to be shirk-i khafī (hidden association), and he always carefully avoids it.”
The style of Ḥaḍrat's spiritual nurturing would change along with the progress and development of the recipient's capacity. Initially, he gave exceedingly special love and kindness for ordinary mistakes. With progress, he applied correction and censure alongside kindness. The fruit of his nurturing was to draw the murshid toward the wellspring of love for Allāh and the Prophet ﷺ, developing the faculty to absorb and benefit from instruction.
The Manner and Method of Teaching
Ḥaḍrat's style of nurturing was not through discourse and speech alone — but was the simple, direct method of instruction through personal example (talqīn). He would himself present as a model in acquiring knowledge and righteous action. His numbered goals of tarbiyat include:
That moral character, conduct, and deeds should be so thoroughly rectified that every matter in one's life should be a point of excellence and beauty. That a state of harmony and order (jamʿ wa naẓm) should arise in life — a state of peace and singularity of purpose. That along with the teaching of goodness, he would also impart the feeling of goodness. That individual responsibility should remain primary. That firmness in the principles of tawḥīd should be cultivated. That together with knowledge and reason, the impulse of love (‘ishq wa maḥabbat) should arise — for while knowledge can bring one near to the destination, traversing it without love is not possible. And that the power of action (quwwat-i ‘amal) should be awakened — for without action, however lofty the purposes may be, they remain meaningless.
What is Bay'ah?
Bay'ah-i taqwā (the pledge of godliness) — which has been current among the ṣūfiyā’, fuqarā’, and mashā’ikh for fourteen hundred years — Ḥaḍrat writes in his treatise Niẓām al-‘Amal Fuqarā’:
“Bay'ah is a covenant (mu‘āhadah). In the time of the Prophet of God ﷺ, whenever a Muslim wished to make a pledge, he would do so — and when he repented, bay'ah would be taken.”
Ḥaḍrat ‘Abdullāh ibn Ṣāmit raḍiy Allāhu ‘anhu narrates that the Prophet ﷺ said, while a group of his Companions was seated around him: “You people make the pledge to me on these terms: do not associate anything with Allāh, do not steal, do not commit fornication, do not kill your children, do not falsely accuse anyone of what you have fabricated with your own hands and feet — and whoever fulfils these things, his reward is with Allāh. And whoever commits any of these bad things and it is carried out upon him as punishment in this world, that is his expiation. And whoever commits these (bad things) and Allāh conceals it — then his matter rests with Allāh: if He wills He forgives him, and if He wills He punishes him.” (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī)
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ إِذَا جَاءَكَ الْمُؤْمِنَاتُ يُبَايِعْنَكَ عَلَىٰ أَن لَّا يُشْرِكْنَ بِاللَّهِ وَلَا يَسْرِقْنَ وَلَا يَزْنِينَ وَلَا يَقْتُلْنَ أَوْلَادَهُنَّ وَلَا يَأْتِينَ بِبُهْتَانٍ يَفْتَرِينَهُ بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِنَّ وَأَرْجُلِهِنَّ وَلَا يَعْصِينَكَ فِي مَعْرُوفٍ فَبَايِعْهُنَّ وَاسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُنَّ اللَّهَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
Translation: “O Prophet! When believing women come to you pledging that they will not associate anything with Allāh, will not steal, will not commit unlawful intercourse, will not kill their children, will not bring forth a slander they have invented, and will not disobey you in what is right — then accept their pledge and ask forgiveness for them of Allāh. Indeed, Allāh is Forgiving and Merciful.” [Qur'ān 60:12]
He said: “The Qur'ān, ḥadīth, and books of fiqh are all before us — but what is the necessity of taking bay'ah at the hand of any person? Consider this: in every matter there is one who is an expert, and one needs to place one's affairs in trust to that person. In the subtle and delicate matters of the path to God, a spiritual teacher or shaykh is needed — precisely because of the abundance of possible errors in such matters.”
Tawbah (Repentance)
Ḥaḍrat says: “Allāh Most High demands from us the state of ḥuḍūr (presence and awareness of God). This is a prohibition against heedlessness (ghaflah) — heedlessness and turning away from Allāh which is the root of all sins and the secret of all wickedness. Allāh Most Pure is Light (Nūr). Whoever is heedless of Him is without doubt in darkness. Spiritual heedlessness is spiritual impurity — Allāh and those accepted by Allāh find it repugnant.”
“The remedy for all sins is tawbah — that is, returning to Allāh (rujū‘ ilā Allāh). Tawbah has certain conditions: remorse (nadāmat); if restitution is possible, making it; if prayers and fasts have been neglected, performing them as qaḍā’ (makeup obligations); resolving not to act contrary to God's pleasure in the future; and continuously seeking forgiveness from God with humility and supplication.”
“Through tawbah all sins are forgiven and the person becomes as if born anew. Ulā’ika yubaddilu Allāhu sayyi’ātihim ḥasināt — these are those whose evil deeds Allāh will replace with good deeds.” [Qur'ān 25:70] “Remember: the Muslim's heart is always between fear (khawf) and hope (rajā’) — he remains remorseful and fears accountability — and simultaneously also retains hope for forgiveness, and seeks from God both rectification and supplication.”
Sulūk (Wayfaring on the Spiritual Path)
Ḥaḍrat explained the details of sulūk (the disciple's methodical progress on the path under a shaykh's guidance) in this way: First, tawbah (repentance). Second, taqwā — Fattaqū Allāha ḥaqqa tuqātihī (“Fear Allāh as He ought to be feared” [Qur'ān 3:102]) — avoiding the unlawful. Third, tawakkul (trust in God). Fourth, ṣabr (patience) — Faṣbir wa mā ṣabruka illā biLlāh (“Be patient — and your patience is only through Allāh” [Qur'ān 16:127]). Whatever Allāh is doing is pure justice, pure wisdom, and pure good for us.
“From the aḥādīth we learn that in the case of the person who achieves qurb-i nawāfil (nearness through voluntary acts), Allāh Most High becomes their hands and feet — meaning He fulfils their needs through their hands, so that God's work is done through their hands. They walk without will (bī-irādah) — they live without personal desire — others have blessing in their company and peace in their presence.”
Ibtilā’ (Divine Trial)
Ḥaḍrat said: “If someone places complete trust in Allāh Most High, He fulfils those affairs for him even without means. When Allāh observes that a servant's intention is firm, His testing of him begins — the whole world becomes hostile — Allāh afflicts him with hardships, illness, poverty, and need. In this condition, patience is necessary. Hardships and afflictions are to be turned into contentment — and the pleasure of God is the greatest thing.”
Khaṭarāt (Stray Thoughts) and Their Repulsion
Ḥaḍrat said: “Keep this in mind — a khaṭar (stray thought) is that which comes and then goes. When one has formed a firm resolve toward a thing, it is no longer a mere khaṭar — it has become ‘azm (firm intention). A khaṭar is pardonable; a firm intention is not. If random thoughts come and go throughout the day without being acted upon, there is no accountability for them.”
He outlined several methods for repelling stray thoughts: directing the gaze to a single fixed point; focusing thought on the remembrance (dhikr) of God; moving immediately to recite Durūd Sharīf (salutations upon the Prophet ﷺ) when an unwanted thought arises; and asking God in prayer to repel evil thoughts, since Ud‘ūnī astajib lakum — “Call on Me and I will respond to you” [Qur'ān 40:60].
Tawajjuh (Spiritual Attention) and Tamawwuj (Spiritual Wave)
Ḥaḍrat said: “Remember this point: in every person, the thoughts and influences of one's company are set in motion — just as goodness is obtained from the company of the good and evil from the company of the evil. A person of weak certainty (yaqīn), if he sits in the company of a perfected one (kāmil), his whisperings (waswās) and random destructive thoughts will become dissolved and annihilated — and he will become influenced by the effect of that perfected and strongly-willed person's company.”
صحبت طالع ترا اصلح کند — صحبت صالح ترا طالع کند
(Persian verse): The company of the fortunate sets your affairs aright; the company of the righteous makes you fortunate.
Ḥaḍrat said: “The Naqshbandī people direct their spiritual attention (tawajjuh) towards their murīds, empowering their weaknesses and driving away stray thoughts through their will-power. The Chishtis, through their emotional love and gracious tawajjuh, awaken emotions of love in their disciples. And in the Qādirī methods, the teaching is: remain in the state of sukūn al-qalb (stillness of the heart) — bring your self (nafs) to contentment — remain will-less (bī-irādah) — your Master will take care of your connected ones. This tamawwuj is the work of God.”
Laṭā’if (Subtle Spiritual Centres)
Ḥaḍrat said: “Every person's nature and character is distinct — one's nature inclines toward worship; another's toward love; another's toward steadfast adherence to the obligatory duties and maintaining a single point until one becomes absorbed in annihilating one's own ego day and night. Always keeping one's essential non-existence (‘adam-i aṣlī) before the mind is the key. The one who is without wilful ego is always free from the burden of self — his attention remains upon Allāh Most High and he finds His manifestation in every thing.”
He did not make much effort to prescribe specific ashghāl (bounded spiritual exercises) or to set the laṭā’if (subtle spiritual centres) in motion for his associates — because in such things a person's own imaginations may operate. He placed greater emphasis on concentrating thought (irtikāz-i khayāl) so that nothing might come between the person and the thought of God.
Types of Dhikr (Remembrance of God)
Ḥaḍrat said: “Repeatedly reciting any one of Allāh's Names produces a nisbat (spiritual connection) with that Name, and the tajallī (effulgence) of that Name begins to manifest in the heart of the dhākir.” He distinguished between dhikr of the tongue, dhikr of the heart, and dhikr of the deeper spiritual stations — each building upon the other.
Taṣawwur al-Shaykh (Contemplative Visualisation of the Shaykh)
Ḥaḍrat said: “The best method we have is taṣawwur al-shaykh — through it one is drawn toward the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ. When one begins to contemplate the murshid (spiritual guide), one will also come to acquire courtesy (adab), inner peace, and the secrets which the murshid carries. The murshid belongs to the world of witnessing (‘ālam-i shahādat); his image is easy to fix in the mind. Through taṣawwur al-shaykh, the world of subtle forms (‘ālam-i mithāl) quickly opens.”
He said: “When fixing the contemplation, imagine that from Allāh Most High, a brilliant radiance is flowing into the heart of the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ, and that same light is continuously flowing into the shaykh's heart. Draw that light with complete attention toward your own heart.”
Ḥaḍrat described a four-stage movement within taṣawwur al-shaykh: the murshid, then the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ, then one's own annihilation in the Messenger ﷺ (fanā’ fī’l-Rasūl), and ultimately the pure servanthood of fanā’ fī’llāh — understood as the total effacement of ego-driven existence before God, when nothing remains except God. This process is what is called ṣu‘ūd wa nuzūl (ascent and descent).
[Translator's note: The passage in the source describing this process uses the phrase “Allāh came in the image of the Messenger.” This is to be read, in line with Ḥaḍrat's own Junaydi-Māturīdī framework, as: the divine effulgence (tajallī) manifested through the image of the Prophet ﷺ in the contemplative vision of the wayfarer — a spiritual mushāhadah experienced by the sālik, not an ontological statement about the divine Being. Allāh Most High is infinitely beyond any form or image. This corresponds to the well-established ḥadīth: “Allāh Most High said: I become his eye with which he sees” — expressing spiritual proximity, not divine incarnation. The doctrine of ḥulūl (divine indwelling in creation) is explicitly rejected in Sunni-Ḥanafī-Māturīdī theology.]
The Sovereign Remembrance (Sulṭān al-Adhkār) and Spiritual Exercises
Ḥaḍrat said: “The heart is a camera. If it is turned toward worthless things, those pictures will be imprinted. If it is turned toward people's hearts and homes, the conditions of those who dwell there will come into view. The one who sees the divine effulgences (tajalliyāt) of God and those of His friends — and who knows people's outward and inward — how can God's friend and such a person be equal?”
Seeking supernatural events, kashf-i qubūr (unveiling of graves), performing litanies or ashghāl merely to see hidden things — all this was a waste of time in Ḥaḍrat's view. Firmness of faith and certainty (yaqīn), complete sincerity (ikhlāṣ), and perpetual presence (dawām-i ḥuḍūr) are the most important elements in Ḥaḍrat's teaching.
The Supplications (Ad‘iyah)
Ḥaḍrat said: “Entrust all your needs to Allāh, the Majestic and Most High — trust and rely upon Him alone. Adopt tawakkul (trust in God). There is a need to face life — and to render useless those hands and feet and powers that are God's own gifts to you — that is not tawakkul. The gifts reach their fullness in the Sunnah.”
He said: “To work out of hope for reward or out of fear of punishment — this is the lowest of matters. In all affairs, take Allāh from Allāh alone. The purpose for me is not Paradise but the Lord of Paradise. We must conform to God's pleasure — not seek our own pleasure and desires from God Most High.”
[Translator's note: Throughout this chapter, terms such as fanā’ (annihilation), baqā’ (subsistence in God), and tajallī (divine effulgence) are employed in the sober Junaydi sense consistent with Sunni-Ḥanafī-Māturīdī theology: they describe the spiritual station of the servant whose ego-driven existence is effaced before God, not any ontological merger of the servant with the divine Essence. The distinction between Creator and creation remains absolute. Pantheism (waḥdat al-wujūd in any crude sense) and divine indwelling (ḥulūl) are rejected throughout.]