He returns to what is necessary and ascends. That which he ascends to is the Real (al-Ḥaqq). He sees the Real as a specific, imagined rank, without any increase. He understands that descent to the farthest degree of sensation is the manifestation (ẓuhūr) of the Essence (al-Dhāt) in its absolute form and its particular self-disclosure (tajallī); it is the return of the inner realities and their being characterized by particular absolute absence (ghayba). (Ravza, 610)
The beginnings of the spiritual states (aḥwāl) of the murīds (aspirants, disciples) are resolve (ʿazm), and their ends are truthfulness (ṣidq). Murīds are divided into three: The first is the murīd who seeks to observe the reality (ḥaqīqa) of his spiritual station (maqām) of nearness to Allah; the second is the murīd who seeks to observe the reality of his qalb (the heart) and the iman (faith) inscribed upon it; the third is the murīd who seeks to observe the reality of his nafs (the lower self) and thereby come to know his Lord. The murīd constantly desires the realization of his aspiration through righteous deeds. Such a murīd is at the maqām of Islam. The murīd who seeks the fulfillment of unseen promises is at the maqām of iman, and the murīd whose sought-after and intended goal is his Lord is at the maqām of ihsan (spiritual excellence). (Ravza, 616)
I once heard my master, ʿAlī Mürṣafī, say: The effect of the shaykh's instruction (talqīn) to the murīd is like that of a seed planted in dry ground, waiting to be saturated by rain. That is, its growth, nourishment, and the emergence of its leaves depend on its thorough absorption of water. Thus, the blessing depends not on the shaykh's planting of the seed, but on the degree to which it is quenched by water. The shaykh exerts effort (gayra), and Allah brings forth the vegetation. Sometimes, it emerges in one hand. This is either due to the weakness of the murīd's spiritual aspiration (himma), or because the meanings of dhikr (remembrance of God) do not come to the qalb and lisān (tongue) in succession. They have said: The succession of dhikr after talqīn is like the rain coming repeatedly upon the seed after it is planted, for it hastens the opening, blossoming, and result.
It is known that after talqīn, the murīd does not suffice with merely attending dhikr gatherings with the poor morning and evening. Indeed, most murīds in our time are content with this. The fruit of such dhikr, in terms of effect, is like someone who drops a single drop of water on the seed in the morning and another in the evening. Yet, between morning and evening, the sun and wind intervene, so the soil of the seed is not saturated. Sometimes, not even a single drop reaches the seed, and thus the time of blossoming is prolonged. Sometimes, it dies and nothing ever emerges. Sometimes, such a murīd blames the shaykh for his instruction, saying inwardly: 'What need have I for this instruction? It has brought me no benefit.' He forgets that the shaykh's duty is only to plant the seed. Therefore, the murīd must engage much in dhikr and perform deeds that are pleasing. (Anwār, I, 40)
The principal capital of the murīd is to oppose his nafs. Whoever gives the reins of his nafs to his desires (hawā) has destroyed his nafs. Abū Ḥafṣ said: For one's spiritual states to endure, one must not encourage the nafs, must oppose it in all its desires, and must draw it towards what it dislikes at other times; otherwise, one is excused in other states as well.
Abū Bakr Tāmistānī said: The greatest veil between you and your Lord is your following of your nafs.
Ibn ʿAṭāʾ said: Whoever expects recompense from Allah for his acts of worship is deserving of being cast away and punished.
Ibn Shaybān said: A servant who eats out of lust (shahwa) is deprived of witnessing his Lord. (Anwār, I, 59)
Ibrāhīm Adham said: The sign of a servant's sincerity in tawba (repentance) from his sin is that after tawba, he feels in his qalb a delight so great he cannot estimate its magnitude. Whoever does not feel delight in his qalb after tawba is a liar in abandoning the sin, and it is likely he will soon return to it. (Anwār, I, 61)
The constant practice of the murīd is to purify his outward and inward from qualities such as anger, pride of nafs, arrogance, self-admiration, envy, and the like, which may prevent him from entering the presence of Allah Most High. When the murīd is purified of these qualities, he becomes able to recite the Qur'an, to be present before the Real, and to stand in prayer and similar acts of worship in His presence. (Anwār, I, 69)
After entering the path of the tariqa (Sufi order), the murīd should not, even with his heart, pay attention to worldly possessions that have left his hand. What the murīd must do is to put the world into a purse and cast it into the sea of despair, so that in his eyes, gold and earth are of equal value and inclination. Thus, gold appears to him as simple and worthless as earth. This is achieved by not competing with the people of the world or contending with them.
For one in whose qalb there remains even a little value and importance for the world, the name of will (irāda) does not apply.