VIIThe example of the plane
The allegory is not decoration. It is the book's memory device — so that a seeker who cannot recall a list of stages can still ask himself a simpler question: which part of this aircraft is currently broken?
Many people travel to many lands of this world, and they travel in many different ways: by foot, by vehicle, by train, by ship, by aeroplane. There are many planes which wait for you all, to travel to the land of Allah’s closeness.
The plane is your heart and soul.
Part 01
Your heart and soul
The plane is your heart and soul. It is through your heart and soul that you travel towards Allah — so you must build the love, and recognise the potential, as the plane travels towards Him. Every other part of this list is something being built inside you.
Part 02
Servanthood, and the invitation
Wherever you board, you need a ticket and you need your passport. But many have lost their tickets — they have lost their passports of servanthood, which they were all given as they entered this world.
Every person has been given the invitation towards Allah’s closeness: the Qur’an and the Sunnah. Shaytan issues invitations too — towards his own closeness, towards the Dunya and its temptations.
Part 03
Belief, and Islamic law
If one’s belief or knowledge of the law is not correct, the aircraft will not fly. Both wings are needed — no wings means no flight, and if one wing is broken then one drifts towards destruction.
Part 04
Repentance, and striving
The wheels are the direction, and the first point of the plane that moves. Repentance is the direction the wheel is pointed; striving is the effort that turns it. Direction and effort together produce speed, and speed is what makes lift possible.
Part 05
The seven organs
Each door needs to be closed against the evil which seeks to enter. The winds of desire will get in if the doors are left open, and the devils seek to enter through them. So close the doors of desire, and keep Shaytan and the desires out.
Part 06
The mind
The shell protects the inside of the plane from the rain and the storms — which are the whispers of Shaytan. If one does not have a strong shell, the rain leaks within, causing delays and even damaging the soul and the closeness of Allah.
Part 07
The qualities of your character
Every seat is a quality of goodness in one’s character — sincerity, humbleness, servitude, gratitude. But some seats are ripped and torn and stained, and their quality is jealousy, self-likeness, arrogance, pride: these are the qualities of Shaytan.
Part 08
The Sunnah
The windows are the actions of the Sunnah, and they are a reflection of the Prophet ﷺ. When the traveller looks through the window he sees only the Prophet ﷺ, his beauty, and the beauty of the Hereafter. And when others wish to see who is aboard the plane of closeness, what they see is his Sunnah.
Part 09
Reliance, and your own helplessness
There is only one clean air which flows within the plane. The cabin’s air is like the blood inside the heart — the heart should have the blood of reliance flowing through the body, because it is the blood which circulates goodness.
The air of reliance is the reason you are present at all. No air means no control of the plane. It will crash land if you lose reliance.
Part 10
The poison of thinking you are flying yourself
As soon as you think you are travelling by your own power, the air becomes contaminated with poison. It is like a leaking pipe, a crack within the walls of the plane, letting the poison gas in. Slowly the cabin fills, all control is disabled, and the plane begins to descend. You are only flying due to Allah’s help.
Part 11
Remembrance, and steadfastness
The engine is dhikr and remembrance; the fuel is steadfastness. The engine will always run strong on that fuel, and you need both. No steadfastness means no movement. No engine means emptiness. No power means the plane sits in darkness, with no lights within and no fuel to move — stationary.
Part 12
Whose company you are travelling in
The vertical stabiliser is the sign of the company — whom you are travelling with, and their method of achieving the outcome. It stabilises the person towards the destination. It is the flag of where you are going.
For some it is Allah and His Messenger ﷺ. For others it is the path of Shaytan and desire — the drugs, the women, the fame of a name.
Part 13
Enjoining good, forbidding evil
There needs to be a balance. Enjoin good — but not to the extent of becoming forgetful of Allah’s presence, and not so as to enjoy your stay in this world.
And do not be harsh with people when forbidding evil. Every situation should be assessed, so that it becomes the Sunnah of your action — not the way of those who fix on one thing and become weak on everything else. People learn through explanation and advice, not through rudeness and shouting.
Part 14
You are the pilot; the teacher is the navigator
The pilot is you. You are the controller of your soul, and the decisions you make will affect it. You have received the invitation of both the righteous and the evil, and you have the freedom of that choice. The guide and navigator is the teacher, who shows you towards the pleasure of Allah.
Part 15
The Mashaykh
The cabin crew are like the Mashaykh. They serve you more than your needs, and their food and drink for the passenger is advice, and reminder of the path towards Allah. They are the best host on the journey — catering you in comfort, giving reassurance and advice.
Part 16
The four objectives
The clouds represent the objectives of the path. It is the sky and the clouds through which we fly towards the island of Allah’s pleasure. Reach the clouds, and Allah shall guide us towards His island of closeness.
Part 17
The Sunnah
It is the footsteps of the beloved which illuminate the path towards Allah — seeing his footsteps as the runway towards success. There are many runways leading to different lands. There is only one which leads to the Prophet ﷺ.
Part 18
The pleasure of Allah
The destination. Beyond the clouds, past the mercy and grace of Allah, the kingdom of heaven and the pleasure of the Lord of the Worlds.
Part 19
The lands of your desire
There are many planes which wait for you, and not all of them are going where you would choose in a clear moment. Some shall take you to the lands of Hell, and the lands of your desire. The billboards along that runway are advertising.
And when it all works
Through this journey many have travelled to many places. Through one journey many have boarded the plane of Allah’s closeness, and many have been saved through the path towards Allah. Conveying the message of the Prophet ﷺ is as though people have boarded your plane of closeness.
