The importance of the companionship of the heirs of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) for learning lessons of adab (proper conduct) and virtue, for the manifestation of hidden faults and diseases of the qalb (the heart), and for ascending to the degree of kamāl (perfection) was explained in previous lessons. However, some people ask: “How does one reach that straight path? How does one attain his maʿrifa (experiential knowledge of God)? What are the conditions and qualities for these?” We say:
1- The seeker must know that he is in need of a murshid (spiritual guide), just as a patient knows he needs a physician. He must resolve with loyalty, keep his intention pure, turn to Allah the Exalted with a humble and broken qalb, and in the depths of the night, call out to Him in his prostrations and after prayers: “O Allah! Guide me to one who will guide me to You, unite me with one who has reached You.” This is his dua (supplication).
2- A person should seek his murshid in his own land. He should not heed those who claim that there are no nurturing murshids in this age, but rather, should search and inquire for a murshid with vigilance and care.[1] If he cannot find one in his own land, he should seek in other lands. Do you not see that if a patient cannot find a specialist physician in his own land, he travels to other lands for treatment? Or if the doctors of his land are unable to diagnose or treat his illness, he journeys elsewhere; likewise, for the treatment of the soul, one is in even greater need of more skilled doctors than those for the body.
There are four conditions required for a murshid to be qualified to guide people:
1- Knowing Allah the Exalted,
2- Knowing the individual obligations (farḍ al-ʿayn),
3- Being aware of the means for the purification and training of the nafs (the lower self),
4- Having authorization for guidance from his own shaykh,
The explanation of these conditions:
First condition: The murshid must know, with knowledge and discernment, that he must realize the creed of the people of the sunnah through action and spiritual taste. He must affirm the creed of the people of the sunnah with his ruh (spirit) and qalb, live by it, bear witness that Allah the Exalted is one in His essence, attributes, and acts, know the Divine Names with spiritual taste and witnessing, refer all of these collectively to the Divine Presence, and not fall into doubt due to the multiplicity of attributes. For the multiplicity of attributes does not indicate multiplicity of essence.
Second condition: The murshid must know the individual obligations, that is, the rulings of prayer, fasting, zakāh (almsgiving), transactions, and the sciences of commerce. In tawhid (the oneness of God), he must know the creed of the people of the sunnah and the community. He must know, in summary and in detail, what is necessary, permissible, and impossible regarding Allah the Exalted and the Prophets, as well as the pillars of iman (faith).
Third condition: The murshid must have purified his own nafs under the hand of a nurturing murshid, know the levels, diseases, and insinuations of the nafs, be aware of the methods and interventions of Satan, know the calamities of the stages of the spiritual journey (sulūk), and be able to prescribe remedies appropriate to each person's spiritual state (ḥāl) and condition.
Fourth condition: A murshid must certainly have permission from his own shaykh to provide spiritual training and guide others on the path. One who claims to be a murshid but has not been attested to, that is, has not received authorization (ijazah) from those who are experts in this science, has no right to leadership on this path.
Ijazah: This is a certificate attesting that a murshid is qualified for guidance and possesses these attributes. Modern madrasas and universities are also established on this basis. Just as a person without a medical diploma cannot open a clinic to treat patients, or a person without an engineering diploma is not permitted to draw building plans, or a person without a teaching diploma is not allowed to teach in madrasas and faculties, likewise, it is not permissible for someone who has not graduated under a qualified murshid to claim to guide others. Moreover, it is not permissible to follow someone in this matter whose chain of authorization does not reach back to the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) through a continuous chain.[2]
Just as it is not appropriate for an intelligent person to seek treatment from someone ignorant of medicine, it is also not appropriate to turn to anyone other than a murshid authorized for guidance. Those who have previously acquired the foundations of knowledge know the value of receiving ijazah from a shaykh and meeting with them. In fact, they call those who have not received their knowledge from scholars 'journalists,' for they have acquired their knowledge by reading newspapers.
Ibn Sīrīn (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “Indeed, this knowledge is religion. So look to whom you are learning your religion from!”[3]
The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) advised this to Ibn ʿUmar (may Allah be pleased with them both), saying: “O son of ʿUmar! Beware your religion! Beware your religion! For it is your flesh and your blood. Take your religion only from those who are upright, and do not take it from the misguided!”[4]
According to some gnostics (ʿārifīn): “Knowledge is a spirit that is breathed in, not matters that are written.” Let those who learn be vigilant about from whom they take their religion, and let the scholars see to whom they are giving religion. Know well that a murshid has certain signs, which can be summarized as follows:
The first of these: “When you sit in his gathering, you sense the fragrance of iman (faith), and feel a spiritual excitement. For he speaks for Allah, speaks good, gives admonition or nasīḥa (advice). Just as you benefit from his words, so too do you benefit from his company. Whether you are far or near, you benefit. Just as you benefit from his speech, you also benefit from his gaze.
The second: Among his brethren and disciples, you observe forms of iman, ikhlas (sincerity), taqwa (God-consciousness), and humility. If you mix with them, you see that they are outstanding examples in love, sincerity, preference, truthfulness, and brotherhood. A skilled physician is known by his works and the results of his efforts. You see that patients are healed by his hand, regain their health and strength, and leave in complete well-being.
The number of a murshid’s disciples and students is not the sole criterion. Rather, the real measure is the righteousness of his disciples, their taqwa, their deliverance from faults and diseases, and their uprightness in the sharia (the sacred law) of Allah.
Another sign: “You see that his students and disciples come from various backgrounds. The Companions (ṣaḥāba) of the Messenger of God were like this.
Finding such a murshid motivates the disciple to hold his hand, attend his gatherings, acquire adab with him, and act upon his advice and guidance, in order to attain happiness in this world and the hereafter.”
Footnotes
- Ibn ʿAjība (may Allah have mercy on him) says: “People are divided into three groups regarding affirmation and negation of this particularity: 1- Some accepted the early murshids but denied the later ones. These are the most detested among the common people. 2- The second group accepted both the old and the new, saying: ‘They are hidden in their times. Allah the Exalted has deprived people of their blessings.’ 3- The third group accepted both the early murshids and those of their own time, recognized them, attained them, and honored them. These are the people whom the Exalted Allah has willed, guided to Himself, and brought near to His presence. In the ḥikam: ‘No one can reach the awliyāʾ (friends of God) except by the will of Allah the Exalted, who is free from all deficiencies; whoever He wills to be guided to His awliyāʾ, He brings to them…’ Those who claim that the training of the shaykh has ceased are refuted by this. For the power (qudra) of Allah the Exalted is universal and His dominion is everlasting. The earth will never be devoid of those who provide proof until the Day of Resurrection. Ibn ʿAjība (may Allah have mercy on him), al-Baḥr al-Madīd fī Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-Majīd, vol. 1, p. 77. Some verses on this subject have reached me. Refuting those who say that there are no murshids left in this age, or that they are rare, he said: ‘The people who have strayed from guidance say: In our age, murshids are rare or do not exist. I said: No! Indeed, they are too exalted to be seen by the eyes of the ignorant.’ Praise be to Allah, we have reached the gnostic murshids of our time. Those who fulfill the conditions of training in perfection, who possess word, state, and himma (spiritual aspiration), have graduated many, and a large portion of the people have benefited from them. However, bats are incapable of seeing that light.”
- Murshids are like hadith masters. They transmit the hadiths of the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) from person to person, attributing them to the Messenger of God. They considered isnād (chain of transmission) fundamental so that the Prophetic sunnah would not be lost or distorted. For this reason, Ibn al-Mubārak said: “Isnād is part of religion. If it were not for isnād, anyone could say whatever they wished.”
- Muslim relates in the introduction to his Ṣaḥīḥ from Muhammad ibn Sīrīn.
- Hāfiẓ Ibn ʿAdī relates from Ibn ʿUmar, as in Kanz al-ʿUmmāl, vol. 3, p. 152.