As-salama layaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakutuh.

Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem alhamdulilahi rabbi'l-`alameen was-salaat was-salaam ala sayyid al mursaleen … wa nashadu an la ilah ila-Allah wa nashadu anna Sayyidina Muhammad (s) …khatim ar-rusul sayyid al-bashr, rasuli rabbi'l-`alameen.

I don't know from where I begin. May Allah bless Husayn Haqqani we are very happy we are here in this place that he opened with a lot of difficulties but this is a place for Ahl as-Sunnah wal-Jama`at.

And I asked for a title of what to speak and he said, "spirituality in Islam" and in front of Mawlana Abdus Sattar Khan I feel I have nothing to say and he is a role model for everyone to follow and brother Jamaluddin he brought a story that is many, many years behind.

And I will bring the story from the beginning.

That is one day I was in Jeddah and I decide to visit, because every Friday and Thursday I used to go to Madinat al-Munawwara to pray there as I was most of the time living there. So one day I was going and to the house I received a call form my Shaykh who is Cyprus and many of you know him and especially Shaykh Abdus Sattar Khan he is Mawlana Shaykh Muhammad Nazim al-Haqqani. He said, "Where are you going?" if there is permission I am going to visit the Prophet (s). He said, "Kiss his threshold for me." And when someone says something like that to you what do you say, "Especially your shaykh. But your mind begins to think, "How am I going to do that with all these barriers and guards? It is impossible."

So I went and I said it yesterday and I repeat it today: that when the Prophet (s) went into Isra and Mi'raj - and this is problem many of us are facing today and the answer comes with this story, and this is the meaning of spirituality. Spirituality is not something you hav to do but it is something besides charity and fasting and prayer and hajj but it is the way to reach the maqam al-ihsan that Mawlana Abdus Sattar quoted the hadith of Sayyidina `Umar (r) to reach state of Ihsan, you have to do the five pillars of Islam and accept the 6 pillars of iman and how to reach the state of Ihsan. And especially that is very complex and difficult to something you say I will go to that station by myself and then find oneself turning in circles. You must have guide. And if you seek out you will find the guides. Saints. And all saints are brothers and all of them love each other. I am not speaking about false saints but I am speaking about real saints that give their lives for their students.

So that time I went and that time I was driving 150, 160 km./hour about 120 miles per hour in order to reach quickly. Because he said, "go and kiss the threshold of the Prophet (s). There must be an opening. So I reached there safely and quickly by baraka of the Prophet (s). And I have to take a shower and go that holy place that Allah made piece of Paradise. The holy grave of the Prophet (s). The mistake we all make when we go to the Muwajaha, the holy place of Paradise I don't like to say grave it is heavy on my heart to say "grave"; it is qata`n min al-jannah a piece of Paradise. So when you pass by a Paradise in this world what do you do? You stay as long as you can, you don't want to go out.

So when we visit the Prophet (s), it is adab to stand as much as we can in his presence even not making du`a but only standing there trying to connect our heart with his heart. In a way that taffakur sa`atin khayran min ibaadati saba`een sunnah. That is for one hour when you are contemplating by yourself. How do you think it is when in presence of the Prophet (s)?

Everyone when passing there might stand 5 minutes, 7 minutes, 10 minutes and then go. Some might stand more and more and more and depends on how much they are in that connection. So in the guidance of our shuyukh we have visited the Prophet (s) with Mawlana Shaykh Nazim many times and may Allah give him long life and give long life to Mawlana Abdus Sattar. And I have seen how Mawlana Shaykh used to stand there and make du`a three and It is not a du`a really it is more like a conversation. You feel that you don't see that but you need a lot to reach that level of mushaahada. But you feel the presence.

Since I used to go with my shaykh since 1967 he used to spend one hour or 1.5 hour there was no barrier as there is today. You have to kiss and move today.

So he used to stand one and a half hour and then he moved to Abu Bakr as-Siddiq and he stood another half hour and then to Sayyidina `Umar (r) another half an hour and then to Bab Jibreel, mahbit al-wahy - you know where Sayyidina Jibreel used to come with wahy to the Prophet (s) - and then we go back to the maqam of Sayyida Fatima az-Zahra that Grandshaykh said, "that angels have moved Sayyidina Fatima holy body to the end to the place where Sayyidina `Isa is to be buried" that is why awliyaullah see Sayyida Fatima there. and there he spends 45 minutes and then he goes to Bab at-Tawbah where he makes special du`a there (which is now closed) and makes sajda.

You have to take opportunity and whatever in my heart I was taking opportunity usually many guard come and tell you to move. But usually I don't stand by the beginning I stand by the wall. And that night however many guards and one of them with red beard and he is head of these guards. And he didn't approach me and he didn't let one guard to come to me. It is strange. Because you cannot stand one hour there or one and a half hours. They will come and say "move" even after five minutes.

So I finished and I was coming to kiss the pillar, the big pillar which is in the back as no one will see you. Then one of the big guards, the head of them, came towards me and I said to myself, "It is finished now." He came to me and said, "Do you want to kiss the threshold of the Prophet (s) ?" I said "yes." He took me to the door of the Prophet's (s) Holy Paradise and I was able to kiss the threshold of the Prophet (s) and everything disappeared no guards and I didn't seeing anything except the threshold of the Prophet (s). And I kissed the threshold, and then I stood up and then everything came back as normal and then he came to me and said, "give my salaams to Shaykh Nazim" that is where you saw me there. I went and left. He never knew Shaykh Nazim and Shaykh Nazim never called him and he never called Shaykh Nazim. How

I left and went to a school that is called Madrasat ash-Shoonah, ash-Shoonah School that Shaykh Nazim and Grandshaykh usually goes there to do seclusion there for many years. And I heard footsteps running behind me. And I said, "O they are coming" and I turned and one of the guards came and he was holding a very beautiful decorated Qur'an. And he gave it to me and said, "O Hisham." I never todl him my name. He said, "This is a gift from my father for Shaykh Nazim. My father is the head of the guards." I thanked him and didn't say anything or ask him anything. That is tark al-adab - beyond good conduct - to ask a question. Tariqah is not to ask anything. You listen. "asma`oo wa awoo – listen and act on what you heard."

If you understand you will be perfect, you reached the highest goal.

So I went, but I was so into that scene, you cannot understand that. For sure I understand it now. It was as if lost.

But is the mind in the head or the mind is in the heart? Shaykh Abdul Haqq. They asked the students this question and they said, "is the mind in the head." And he said, " no the mind is in the heart." Is the mind in the heart bigger or the mind in head bigger. The mind in the heart is bigger. Evidence? Allah gave us a mind that is in the head but with the mind that is in the head can you understand the universe?

ثُمَّ ارْجِعِ الْبَصَرَ كَرَّتَيْنِ يَنقَلِبْ إِلَيْكَ الْبَصَرُ خَاسِأً وَهُوَ حَسِيرٌ

Thumma irji`il-basara karratayni yanqallib ilayk al-basar khasiyan wa huwa haseer. Again turn thy vision a second time: (thy) vision will come back to thee dull and discomfited, in a state worn out. Al-Mulk, 67:4

Look at one star. Look two times even. Two times look at a star. At one star even. What did Allah say?

Yanqalib ilayk al basaru khasiyan wa huwa haseer. Your sight returns back turned down, khasiyan, defeated. Your eyes are defeated from one star. What do you think about 80 billion stars in our galaxy? So what do we know? Nothing. So by mind in the head we know nothing.

But by mind in the head we know nothing, but buy mind in the heart we know everything. What did Allah say to the Prophet (s) and the Prophet (s) said in holy hadith to us?

يقول الله : ما وسعني أرضي ولا سمائي ولكن وسعني قلب عبدي المؤمن

That is why Allah, the Exalted, said, "Neither heavens nor earth contained Me, but the heart of My believing servant contained Me."

Meaning: "the believer's heart contained My light, My attributes, the understanding of the universe." Not the Essence.

You think awliyaullah don't have power to pass beyond this universe. They have or they don't have? [they have!] Evidence? The Prophet (s) went beyond this universe or not? That universe that we are not seeing even one star. The Prophet (s) passed through 80 billion stars in our galaxy and then he passed 60 billion galaxies he passed all that and even further. Beyond this universe even. He reached Qaaba qawsayni.. so adna is what? It is so less that might be one centimeter might be 1 millimeter.

So Allah said to prophets, but specially to his saints. Qul ya Muhammad (s) in kuntum tuhiboon Allah fatabi`oonee yuhbibkumullah. This is khaas understanding for them.

Do awliyaullah follow the Prophet (s) or not. We might struggle to follow but they don't struggle. Allah gave them that flexibility, because they gave up their lives for the Prophet (s). That is spiritually. Spirituality means to follow the Prophet (s) in every step. That means that if the Prophet (s) went for Mi'raj you go for Mi'raj. Else you are not a wali. A Wali has to follow in footsteps of the Prophet (s). Does wali love Allah or not. Yes that is condition to be wali. Whereever the Prophet is moving they are following. That is why they can guide. They are following and learning and giving.

Look what Sayyidina Abdul Qadir Jilani said? This is Fath ar-Rabbani. I was reading this today and I said, "I have to mention it." I hope I still have it.

He said, "Ya Ghulam!" He calls his students who are big scholars, sitting facing them. They are sitting facing him and he is the Ghawth. He says, "Ya Ghulam!" You are a child still. You didn't reach maturity yet. That is dangerous if we ware not mature how are we going to obey? How are we going to be responsible? Are you going to be responsible Abdul Haqq, yes or no? I am asking you. You have to understand when he says, "Ya Ghulam!" There is a secret there.

Because he is Ghawth. I never said that before, because we were going through that book in Ramadan every morning. But i didnt explain it in this way. But they are saying to throw it now.

When you are not mature are you responsible? No.

So it means you aren't responsible. You are still the the one responsible. Of course he is responsible. Awliyaullah are responsible. If you take hand of your guide he is responsible to guide you. If he doesn't guide you he is responsible. If not he is the one responsible.

Fee kitab al-`ilmi wa hifdhihi bi ghayri `amal - you lost your time in writing knowledge and memorizing it without doing it." That is why it is dangerous. Many, many, many scholars spend their lives in doing what. They are doctors and scholars writing presentations but they are not doing what they learned.

He told them what? He said, "aysh yanf`ak. This is not literature Arabic, this aysh is slang. They put I like that as it is important. It means, "O stupid!" What is it going to benefit you if you are not doing it and not practicing it. You donkey. Spirituality is practice. Even you practice one amal a day it is better than memorizing thousands of them. What is the benefit of memorizing and not practicing?

And he quoted hadith of the Prophet (s) which I like to mention yaqool Allah azza wa jall bi 'l-anbiya wa 'l-`ulama, Allah on Day of Judgment says to the prophets and scholars, which means the pious people, "O if you thought yourself antum kuntum ru'atu al-khalqee fa ma sana`tum fee ruya'tum, that you are the ones authorized to be shepherds for the nations, what you have done with your sheep, with your flocks? What you showed them and what you taught them. You are responsible and you are liable."

That is why all prophets in Judgment Day where do they run? Towards Sayyidina Muhammad (s). As what are they going to answer. So if anbiya run to the Prophet (s) where is the `alim on that day. Is there any more `alim? Even Anbiya are shaking. Where are the `ulama that are sitting on chairs in dunya and giving fatwas as if they are the biggest peacocks.

Then they have to run to the Prophet (s) - not directly to Allah. If not accepting then go to hell directly.

So you see too many kings today, sitting on his chair like rooster on his chickens. We are thinking ourselves kings. We ourselves think we are kings. Ask 2 people that are similar in their understanding. Do you find. No you won't find them. Because each has his own opinion. So the Prophet (s) said, "If you are three, put one an amir." If you do that now they will fight one hour to see who is amir.

That is not spirituality. Spiritiuality is to submit. Taslimiyya.

Allah says to them antum kuntum khazaan kunuzikum you were the trustees or the containers of my treasures. Because all the treasures are in hands of kings. Hal wasaltum al-fuqara. Did you make relations with the poor? Sayyidina `Umar (r) when he became calipha, what he did? He was crying. His wife asked him, "why are you crying? You are calipha now." He said, "Now I have to cry. Before I was not liable or responsible. Now if anyone is hungry in the jungle I am responsible." He used to carry sacks of food on his back and distribute to the poor people.

You call youself kings and queens and you are holding the treasures of the world. They are raising the price of oil and sucking the blood of people. Today it is $60 from $160. Who raised it and who lowered it, in order to build their nations into every forbidden thing? How it went up and for what reason? To build their prostitution and alcoholic beverages. Go and see there. How it came? By them raising the price as a monopoly. And the poor become poorer and rich become richer.

He is saying that to them, and that is hadith of the Prophet (s) and quoted by Sayyidina Abdul Qadir Jilani and mentioned in Kanz al-`ummaal and many other hadith books. Did you take care of the poor; hal rabbaytum al-aytam, and did you take care of the orphans? How much food is sent to orphans and you find it next day in the market being sold. Wherever there are orphans and the food is sent to them..

"wa akhrajtahu al-haqq alladhee huw haqq al-fuqara - Did you take from your money what is written on you as My right to give to poor people?" You are under these questions.

So were do we stand now. Are we ghulam now or not? We are ghulam now because we are responsible. But since we are ghulam we are not responsible. It is not me saying, it is Sayyidina Abdul Qadir Jilani saying it. He will take responsibility for them. One wali is enough to take everyone and put in Paradise in maq`ad sidqin. He is Prophet for the Ummah he has to be with the Ummah, dunya and akhira. Be happy. You think the Prophet (s) can be alone in Paradise he has to have people with him.

Be happy, smile! that is maqam at-tashreef. And we go back to what we were saying.

When the Prophet (s) went in ascension, he saw Musa and always Sayyidina Musa has questions; he likes to ask questions.

Musa said ya rabbeee arinee anthur ilayk. Allahu Akbar! It is so easy like that. Never the Prophet (s) has any question. Always sami`na wa ata`na - Listen and obey. Listen to Sayyidina Jibreel. Never did he have questions.

Only one time. When he left seven heavens and he was going up he asked are you not coming with me. He asked for him to accompany as friend. He said, "No, I cannot. I will burn completely if I try." Only the Prophet could go to that station.

Prophet moved to Divine Presence alone. He was in maqam at-tawheed. Today that is all they speak about tawheed, tawheed and all Muslims are kafir. Tawheed al-iloohiyya, tawheed ar-ruboobiyya and tawheed I forgot. Only they are muwahhid. Is the Prophet (s) going to be alone with only this group that came recently? What about the Muslims who came before they were not on tawheed, they are not going to Paradise?

Ya akhee. Even he said, "Ya akhee" but he said, "Ya sayyidee, Ya Rasulullah! Of course he said that. The Prophet (s) said, "ana sayyidi waladi adam wa la fakhr - I am the master of the children of Adam, and no pride."

So Sayyidina Musa (as) said, "Can I ask this question as this comes to my heart a lot?"

You said, "al-`ulama waarithatu'l-`ulama." With all respect to scholars and not these scholars but the real scholars like Sayyidina Abdul Qadir Jilani . Awliyaullah.

You said, "They are inheritors of the Prophet (s), could it be their knowledge is like our knowledge? Inheritors are not like prophets but they have knowledge like prophets. Can you give me the answer ya Rasulullah how these people are going to inherit from prophets?"

He called one, and he came in the presence of the Prophet. He called through the souls, fil arwaah, because Allah said, "alastu bi rabbikum qaaloo bala. So the Prophet (s) can bring any soul he wants in past and in the future. Allah gave him that power. He brought one and that is one coming later, after the time of the Prophet (s). He said, "That is one."

Musa said, "What is your name?" He said, "Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad Hamid al-Ghazali. Seven times. If he were able to say it 100 times he would have said it. But he felt shy from the Prophet (s), he said, "seven time is enough." Musa said, "what is this? I thought you were an inheritor of the Prophet (s). Why did you say 'Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad Hamid al-Ghazali'? "

If I can say "Muhammad" (s) until Judgment Day it will not stop. Why? Because as much as you say the name of the Prophet (s), Allah will order angels to mention your name in His Presence. That is why keep your tongue busy with salawaat on Prophet (s).

So he said, "Ya Musa , why do you object when I say 'Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Muhammad Hamid al-Ghazali' why didn't you object on yourself?" He said, " why?" because when Allah asked you what is in your hand, you said,

قَالَ هِيَ عَصَايَ أَتَوَكَّأُ عَلَيْهَا وَأَهُشُّ بِهَا عَلَى غَنَمِي وَلِيَ فِيهَا مَآرِبُ أُخْرَى

" … you gave all the classifications of the cane that you are going to use in your lifetime. Why? Because that is an honorary place. Maqam at-tashrif.

He said, "That is place of honor for me to be with the Prophet (s).

So that is difference between `alim and wali. How to imitate the Prophet (s)? He is happy to say Muhammad bin Muhammad.... He can say Muhammad Rasulullah, I can say Muhammad Sayyid ar-Rusul. I can say ...

So practice is what is important.

And I would like to add to what Mawlana Abdus Sattar said from the hadith of `Umar (r), that after he mentioned maqam al-ihsan and Sayyidina Jibreel said, "sadaqta" and then Sayyidina Jibreel asked more questions. And he asked him after he finished, "mata` as-sa`at ya Rasulullah - when is the day of Judgement?" Then the Prophet (s) said, "the one asked doesn't know more than the one who is asking." That is humbleness that he wants to hide himself. Then he gave the signs of it: "An tara al-hufaat al-araat yatataawaloona fil-bunyan - To see the naked barefooted Bedouins competing in high buildings." Now go to see the Gulf and you find them building the highest rises in the world and you find them building of one kilometer, and some meters more. That is going to be the highest. Buildings they are building in the desert and you still find them wearing slippers, they are Bedouins. Even they go to visit the presidents of Europe they wear slippers.

So that is not humiliating anyone but that is hadith of the Prophet (s). They have been raised like that.

"When you see the barefooted naked Bedouins competing in high rises." Are we seeing that or not? So what do we expect? There is no more time, O Muslims!

Allah shook the earth three weeks ago. Did you see that earthquake? Allah can make the earth to shakes when He wants to - that was the stock market crash. Allah made that in one minute to shake the whole world. That day [of judgment] is coming. So don't let it to cheat us.

Sayyidina Abdul Qadir Jilani says in this book another place, Anna an nabi qaala yunaadee munadee yawm al-qiyama ayn adh-dhalamah – on the Judgment Day a caller will call out, "Where are the oppressors? Let them come!"

We are afraid to be oppressor to ourselves. Are we oppressors or not? We don't know. Even he who doesn't know if he is oppressor, he is struggling. If we are not oppressors to ourselves it means we don't make sins. Then he is not oppressor. Do we make sins? Yes, say, "yes", and ask forgiveness, O our Lord forgive us, nastaghfiruka wa natooboo ilayk. That is better than saying, "no".

The Prophet said, "akhwafa ma akhaafu `alam ummatee ash-shirk al-khafee -The thing I fear most for my nation is the hidden shirk."

Did we do hidden shirk or not? Anything related to yourself is hidden shirk.

And then (going back to the hadith related by Sayyidina Abdul Qadir al-Jilani), it comes: "ayna awwaan adh-dhalama - Where are the helpers of the oppressors? Then another voice come: Ayna man yara lahu min qalaman. - and where are those seen with a pen?" The oppressors used a pen to judge people and send them to prison even though they are innocent. Dhalama oppressors are the ones who will benefit from anyone, even if they kill people, they don't care. That is what we call mafia.

Look today mafia everywhere. There is mafia in everything. Today if you don't pay your car ticket what happens? They send you to jail even. They send to you a warrant an dput points on your licenses. Tha is why people try not to get a ticket. For a ticket that costs $60 or $10 you are afraid and you try not to go to jail. These people, CEOs that sucked billions of dollars of human beings no one said, "I will put one of them in prison." These are dhalama or not? Are they oppressors or not? All these people who benefited from stock market will be asked on Judgment Day, they such the wealth of every poor, and they made the rich richer and the poor poorer. He said, "Where are the helpers of these dhalama?" Where are the brokers. Now the borkers are the helpers. He is describing them say. abdul Qadir Jilani 100 years ago. They made the rich richer. They are the commissioner. He knows them the commissioner they cheat you. They say to you "stocks are going down, buy gold now" and they sell you gold. They come to you when gold drops, they say, "Sell quickly." Then they come to you and buy, they make money. "Where are these ones?" he says.

Ayna man yara lahu min dawaat. Did you find anyone in this crowd that has ink bottle? Has anyone seen an ink bottle? Come here to witness on them.

Ajma`oohum waj`alhum fee taaboot min an-nar - Collect them and put them altogether in a coffin of fire. Akhrajahu adh-Dhahabi and ibh Hajr. And this is from Sayyidina Abdul Qadir al-Jilani.

That is from Sayyidina Abdul Qadir Jilani . That is general meaning of dhalama. Are we dhalama or not. Break it down. Zoom it in. We find ourselves dhalama in many things. So what Allah said in Holy Qur'an? And dhalama must go to that. Not these ones who suck money of people. No we are zooming in and we say "we are dhalama" and Allah gave a way for dhalama in the zoom-in process.

وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا مِن رَّسُولٍ إِلاَّ لِيُطَاعَ بِإِذْنِ اللّهِ وَلَوْ أَنَّهُمْ إِذ ظَّلَمُواْ أَنفُسَهُمْ جَآؤُوكَ فَاسْتَغْفَرُواْ اللّهَ وَاسْتَغْفَرَ لَهُمُ الرَّسُولُ لَوَجَدُواْ اللّهَ تَوَّابًا رَّحِيمًا

Wa maa arsalnaa min rasoolin illa liyuta`a biithni Allahi wa law annahum idh dhalamoo anfusahum jaooka faistaghfarullaha wa'staghfara lahumu ar-rasoolu la-wajadullaha tawwaaban raheeman

We sent not an apostle, but to be obeyed, in accordance with the will of Allah. If they had only, when they were unjust to themselves, come unto thee and asked Allah's forgiveness, and the Messenger had asked forgiveness for them, they would have found Allah indeed Oft-returning, Most Merciful. An-Nisa [4:64]

When you feel you have oppressed yourslef, come to presence of Muhammad (s). From here you can go to the presence of Muhammad (s) and say, "Ya sayyidee, ya Rasulullah." In your presence and you ask forgivenss on our behalf. Allah said, "They come in your presence Ya Muhammad (s), and you will ask forgiveness on their behalf, then Allah will forgive them." so this is our medicine. We say istaghfirullah `inda hadarati 'l-Mustafa wa bi jahi Nabiyyika al-Mustafa.