VIIIRemembrance & meditation
Connect first, then speak
The book will not let you begin the words until the line is open. Remembrance with a heedless heart, it says, brings less benefit — though it is not devoid of benefit either.
When a person is engaged in the remembrance of Allah while his heart and inner self are heedless of it, there is less benefit. To obtain the maximum benefit, it is necessary that before beginning the verbal remembrance a person establishes a spiritual connection.
Just as when the telephone wire is not plugged into the socket, or there is no network coverage for the mobile, it is not possible to communicate with anyone — even though one has the best mobile, and speaks in a loud tone.
The Prophet ﷺ said that Allah does not accept the prayer of a person with a heedless heart. The words of remembrance are like the form of the body; the presence of the heart is like the spirit.
The three keys
What to hold in mind before a single word
Before beginning, refresh these three beliefs in the heart and mind — and keep them running throughout.
Key one
Allah is with me
Key two
Allah is seeing me
Key three
Allah is hearing me
Only after a person has firmly and deeply implanted these three thoughts should he begin the recitation.
And the book points out that this is not difficult, because you already do it constantly. When you sit conversing with someone, you know that this person is sitting with you, is watching you, and is listening to your speech — that is already a connection. You may even be speaking one thing while thinking another about them in your heart. In dhikr the only difference is that the connection is directed towards the Creator instead of the creation.
How the three faculties divide the work
The tongue
The mind
The heart
Fifteen minutes a day, for forty days
The first dhikr
Before beginning, recite the following while keeping their meaning in mind: Bismillah once; Astaghfirullah three times; prayers and salutations upon the Prophet ﷺ three times; and La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah three times.
One does not need to be in a state of wudu to perform the dhikr, but should always try to be. Wudu is the clothing of the body — so put on the best of clothes, and be in the presence of Allah. The souls of those who have wudu engage in remembrance more easily.
Recite for fifteen minutes daily, forty days
أَسْتَغْفِرُ اللهَ الَّذِيْ لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ الْحَيُّ الْقَيُّوْمُ وَأَتُوْبُ إِلَيْهِ
Astaghfirullah alladhi la ilaha illa Huwal Hayyul Qayyumu wa atubu ilayh
“I ask forgiveness from Allah, the One whom there is no deity worthy of worship except He, the Ever-Living and Sustainer — and I repent to Him.”
There is no set time for performing it, but fix one according to your own timetable, so that it becomes a part of your life. One should try to pray Salatul Tawbah before it, if time allows, avoiding the disliked times.
The seven levels of thought during it
- Imagine you are begging forgiveness for all your shortcomings — for all the acts of sin, and for all the acts of goodness too. One can never present his deeds in the court of Allah in a manner worthy of Allah's praise. Feel that your deeds have no value in His presence.
- Beg forgiveness for the evil deeds you have done alone and in public, intentionally and unknowingly. And beg forgiveness for the good deeds — for their imperfection, and for their absence of the remembrance and presence of Allah.
- Think of the three keys. Know that Allah is watching you, and is seeing your entire day and night wherever you are. Remember that He hears you — your thoughts, your feelings, what you thought of while engaged in the sins of darkness. And yet He still awaits the thought of reliance and of help. He is always present with you. He never left you; you left His presence. You are never alone — so return, and beg forgiveness.
- Repentance is direction. So direct your heart towards the Kingdom of Allah. Imagine you are walking towards it, leaving Shaytan and his ways behind. Perform the repentance of the footsteps of our father Sayyidina Adam — know that you are standing in the field of Arafat, begging forgiveness.
- As you walk, imagine the darkness of sin — like a grease — slowly falling away from your body as you move towards the light of Allah.
- Every step is a step of commitment and allegiance with your Creator. Imagine your body being cleansed with the light of Allah's name.
- There is no other direction than towards Allah. All others have abandoned you, but Allah the Most High shall never leave you — so do not leave Him. Have the fear of your shortcomings, but also the hope of His mercy. Become like the wings which fly towards the Kingdom of Allah.
Meditation · Muraqabah
Ten minutes with the blessed name
Follow the same procedure for connecting, and the same etiquettes, as for dhikr. Meditation consists of two integral components: connection, and the communion of a servant.
For the connection: be in the presence of Allah by holding the three keys. Then the communion:
Firstly look at the blessed name of Allah, and try to write it with your eyes as you follow each stroke. Try not to blink while you see the blessed name. Do this for two to three minutes. Then close your eyes and try to picture it. Imagine you are holding your heart as you write the blessed name of Allah inside it. Imagine the blessed name is illuminating inside your heart, and then the light is covering the entire body. Feel the presence of Allah, and call Allah with your heart.
Two things are used in this method: your imagination, to feel the presence; and your heart, to communicate with Allah while the tongue stays silent. Your tongue remains silent so that your heart becomes the voice.
It is not necessary to see the blessed name. Whether one sees it or not, the seeker still receives the blessing of performing this practice.
When the thoughts come
When a servant remembers his Lord, Shaytan’s jealousy and animosity flare up, and he attempts whatever is within his power to distract and disturb the seeker — including whispering thoughts into his mind and heart, which he has the power to do.
As long as the seeker does not willingly invite the thought, and does not extend it, the thoughts will not harm him. In fact, rejecting the whispering and returning to the remembrance of Allah leads the seeker closer to Him. The solution is not to fight with the stray thoughts, but to ignore them and continue.
Do not bring it. Do not extend it. Do not fight it.
After the forty days
La ilaha illAllah
لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا اللهُ
- La
- There is no
- ilaha
- deity worthy of worship
- illa
- except
- Allah
- Allah
Stretch the La, and stretch the lam of ilaha. Make sure not to read the alif of Allah as a ha. The lam of Allah should be read slightly longer, and with a full mouth. Twenty minutes.
The method is a movement as much as a recitation. Imagine all the darkness and all the desires existing inside the stomach — the rust which has engulfed the heart and the inner self through sin.
While reciting La — think that you are negating all the false deities, and everything that causes you to forget Allah; and through this you are drawing all the dirt, rust, darkness and desire of sinning up towards the head.
Ilaha — deity. Here imagine yourself saying: the nafs, the lawful and unlawful desires, and all those people who cause a person to become heedless of Allah, are not gods — so why should I follow them and listen to them? With this thought, imagine you have extracted them out of your mind.
Then think, with heart and mind: my God is Allah, the One who has the power to give me life and death, benefit and harm, honour and disgrace, paradise and hell, and to increase or decrease provision. I will worship only Him, and live my life according to His commands.
IllAllah — while saying this, think and imagine that in your heart there is no deity except Allah, and that the light of the name of Allah is enlightening your heart. That completes one cycle. Then carry on in this manner for the prescribed length of time.