Awareness in Action and Knowing the Aim
In Islamic ethics and Sufi (taṣawwuf) training, it is not sufficient to perform an act of worship or charity merely in form; it is essential to be conscious of with what intention, for whom, and how that act is performed. ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Geylani (may Allah sanctify his secret) warns those who attempt to worship without awareness and knowledge with a striking analogy: "Do not wish to be like one who gathers wood at night. When you reach out your hand, know what you are taking." A man who enters the forest in pitch darkness thinking he is gathering wood may, instead of wood, grasp a poisonous snake. In the same way, a person who blindly pursues so-called spirituality without knowing the knowledge of the sharia (the sacred law) or recognizing his nafs (the lower self), may think he is running towards the Truth but fall into the trap of Satan. Knowing the object you turn to and to whom you are running is the very soul of action.
Two Unshakable Witnesses: The Book and the Sunnah
The only lantern that illuminates a person's path in darkness is the Divine Revelation and the Prophetic Sunnah. Al-Geylani commands that a person should use these two scales in everything he eats, drinks, and does: "For everything you eat and drink, find two witnesses; let one be the Book, and the other the Sunnah." In every step taken, the command of Allah and the custom of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) must be the guide. Any spiritual discovery, feeling, or action that lacks these two witnesses is no different from a poisonous thorn plucked in the dark forest of the nafs. Those who, without knowing the religious boundaries, seek license by saying "my heart is pure" according to their own minds, are gathering their own destruction in the darkness of the night.
Consulting the Inner World and the Qalb
After adhering to the outward rules, there is also an inner (bāṭinī) approval to the matter. Even in a matter that the sharia has clearly permitted (declared mubah), the true dervish does not immediately rush into it with the desire of his nafs. Al-Geylani (may Allah sanctify his secret), who says, "Even if the muftis give a fatwa, do not act without consulting your inner world...", states that even a provision whose permissibility has been confirmed should be filtered through the sieve of ikhlas (sincerity) in the qalb (the heart). When the outward fatwa of the sharia and the inward fatwa of a qalb kneaded with taqwa (God-consciousness) are united, the servant emerges from darkness into light, and every step he takes brings him directly to his Creator.