Sufi Quotes

Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani (RA)

"The best of men is the person who is most beneficial to others"

'"Everything that you rely on, every person you afraid of or you keep that trust in, becomes your God."

"Many wealthy people because of greed are poor and needy, in reality the brave person is he who wrestles and defeats the devil of greed and thereafter becomes independent and without want of need from this material World"

"Your most real enemies are the greed, the envy and the jealousy that live in your heart. These are the soldiers of the instigating self (an-nafs al-ammara)"

"There are 3 types of creation 1. Angels 2. The Devil 3. Man. The Angels are entirely good and the devil is entirely bad. Man is a mixture of good and bad. Whoever is overcome with good he can be likened to an Angel and whoever is overcome with evil he can be likened to the devil"

"Be happy in the changes and choices that the creator made for you. If you stay in this manner with him then he will definitely change your fears and horrors"

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Mawlana Abdul Aleem Siddiqui

"After years of serious thinking, I have come to the conclusion that the real cause of human strife and wars consists in selfishness, on the one hand and the forgetfulness of God on the other. When people begin to act in utter self-interest, when the social obligations are forgotten, when one can stoop down so low as to pursue one's interests at the cost of the rights of the other, harmony and concord recede in the background."




" We all experience it in our daily lives that whenever we break the physiological laws of nature, we feel ill and have to endure bodily pain. Similarly is the case of the divinely-ordained moral laws. By breaking them, we invite nothing else than misery. If one breaks the heart of someone today, one must be ready to suffer a similar pain tomorrow."

Divine Harmony

A Shavian and a theologian : an illuminating conversation between George Bernard Shaw, the sceptic, and Mohammed Abdul Aleem Siddiqui, al-Qaderi, the spiritualist

Rabia al-Adawiyya

" O God! if I worship Thee in fear of Hell, burn me in Hell; and if I worship Thee in hope of Paradise, exclude me from Paradise; but if I worship Thee for Thine own sake, withhold not thine everlasting beauty"

“Your prayers are your light;
Your devotion is your strength;
Sleep is the enemy of both.
Your life is the only opportunity that life can give you.
If you ignore it, if you waste it,
You will only turn to dust.

Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi

“Only from the heart Can you touch the sky.”
"Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it."

"Everyone has been made for some particular work, and the desire for that work has been put in every heart."

Farid ud din Attar

“He who would know the secret of both worlds,
Will find the secret of them both, is Love.”

“Do all you can to become a bird of the Way to God;
Do all you can to develop your wings and your feathers.”

"If You Will But AspireYou Will Attain To All That You Desire.Before An Atom Of Such Need The SunSeems Dim And Mirky By Comparison.It Is Life's Strength, The Wings By Which We FlyBeyond The Further Reaches Of The Sky."

Al Hasan al Basri

"The friends of God (awliya) are those who renounce this world and attain true knowledge of God"

"Son of Adam! You are nothing but a number of days, whenever each day passes then part of you has gone"

Nasrudin

"Saying of the Mulla Nasrudin. If I survive this life without dying, I'll be surprised."

"Ordinary humanity tries to find truth by methods as unsuitable as attempting to climb into the sky with a rope."

Hafiz

"My heart sits on the Arm of God like a tethered falcon, suddenly unhooded." 

“What we speak becomes the house we live in.”

“The heart is a
The thousand-stringed instrument

That can only be tuned with
Love.”

Video - https://youtu.be/ikNR3rzaYUA

Jami

“A seeker went to ask a sage for guidance on the Sufi way.
The sage counseled,
"if you have never trodden the path of love, go away and fall in love;
then come back and see us.”


"Whether your destiny is glory or disgrace,
Purify yourself of hatred and love of self.
Polish your mirror; and that sublime Beauty
From the regions of mystery
Will flame out in your heart
As it did for the saints and prophets.
Then, with your heart on fire with that Splendor,
The secret of the Beloved will no longer be hidden."

Ibn Arabi

"Each person is oriented toward a quest for his personal invisible guide, or . . . he entrusts himself to the collective, magisterial authority as the intermediary between himself and Revelation."



"The Beloved becomes a mirror reflecting the secret face of the mystic lover, while the lover, purified of the opacity of his ego, becomes in turn a mirror of the attributes and actions of the Beloved."

Inayat Khan

"Everything in life is speaking in spite of it's apparent silence"

“Be contented with what you possess in life; be thankful for what does not belong to you, for it is so much care the less; but try to obtain what you need in life, and make the best of every moment of your life.”

https://wahiduddin.net/hik/hik_origins.htm

Bawa Muhaiyaddeen

"The more you make yourselves humble and ask for forgiveness, the more your true exaltedness is seen. Humility is a sign of exaltedness. The preface of a spotlessly pure heart (Iman-Islam) is patience (sabur), contentment and gratitude (shakur), having trust in God (tawakkal), and praising Him for everything that happens to us, saying, “Al-hamdu lillah!” Therefore, without feeling shame, ask forgiveness whenever necessary. This will be good. Allah, the Lone One who rules and sustains (Allahu ta’ala Nayan), will protect you and me."

Al Ghazali

"Desires make slaves out of kings and patience makes kings out of slaves"

"To get what you love, you must first be patient with what you hate"

"Whoever says that all music is prohibited, let him also claim that the songs of birds are prohibited"

Uwais al-Qarni

"O Allah, You created me when I was not worthy of mention;
And You provided for me when I had nothing;
And I wronged my soul and sinned, and I confess my guilt.
If You forgive me, that will in no way diminish Your sovereignty;
And if You punish me, that will in no way augment Your authority.
You can find others to punish besides me,
But I can find no one to forgive me but You.
Truly, You are the most merciful of those who show mercy."

Bulleh Shah

You have learnt so much
And read a thousand books.
Have you ever read your Self?
You have gone to mosque and temple.
Have you ever visited your soul?
You are busy fighting Satan.
Have you ever fought your
Ill intentions?
You have reached into the skies,
But you have failed to reach
What's in your heart!

Yunus Emre

"My heart is the throne of the Beloved, the Beloved the heart's destiny: Whoever breaks another's heart will find no homecoming in this world or any other"

Shams Tabrizi

"No matter what people call you, you are just who you are. Keep to this truth. You must ask yourself how is it you want to live your life. We live and we die, this is the truth that we can only face alone. No one can help us. So consider carefully, what prevents you from living the way you want to live your life?"

"The real dirt is not outside, but inside, in our hearts. We can wash all stains with water. The only one we can't remove is the grudge and the bad intentions sticking to our hearts"

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Mawlana Jalauddin Rumi Quotes

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Unity

"There is only one truth that covers all" 

- Sufi Proverb

"O you who believe" in the all Merciful, The One that is kind to all his creations. 

Treat each other with Respect & Kindness. To be righteous and to stand for truth , that is the true purpose of life. You win only through Kindness, Respect, love for other human beings. All creatures, human beings deserve to live as you do, they were all created by the same hand.

"Your task is not to seek for love,but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it."- Jalaluddin Muhammad Rumi

The Barriers of Race, Religion, Pride, Hypocrisy, Hatred, Anger, Violence etc..These are the Barriers we have build against ourselves, and against our own success & freedom. Behind these Barriers is true Peace, Equality, Love, Freedom, Justice...It is these barriers within us that set us apart from others.

"your worst enemy is hiding within yourself, and that enemy is your nafs or false ego."- Jalaluddin Muhammad Rumi

To win over your own (Ego) Your own self. How can you conquer the world and others if you haven't conquer your own self, your own Ego. We were born perfect without ugly qualities, it is our upbringing and our surrounding that corrupt us, “ They will implant in you ugly qualities so that you will forget that I am the source of purity to you?-Rumi(Did I Not Say To You).
Therefore it's important to know who we are who we surround ourselves with. "Know yourself And you will know your Lord"

"The strong man is not the good wrestler, but the one who controls himself when he is angry"

 - Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)

Unfortunately nobody can fight these battles for you it's a work that has to be done by yourself and within yourself, even Allah tells you;  

“Verily never will Allah change the condition of a people until they change it themselves (with their own souls) 

Surat Ar-Ra`d [13:11] 

To win over yourself is no easy task, it is important to do it before death reaches you. These barriers must be broken down by only yourself no one can help you win these battles of the self Ego.

Despite our differences lets take part in things that will unite us and not divide us. May the peace of Allah be upon us.

What can I do, Submitters to God? I do not know myself.

I am neither Christian nor Jew, neither Zoroastrian nor Muslim,

I am not from east or west, not from land or sea,

not from the shafts of nature nor from the spheres of the firmament,

not of the earth, not of water, not of air, not of fire.

I am not from the highest heaven, not from this world,

not from existence, not from being.

I am not from India, not from China, not from Bulgar, not from Saqsin,

not from the realm of the two Iraqs, not from the land of Khurasan

I am not from the world, not from beyond,

not from heaven and not from hell.

I am not from Adam, not from Eve, not from paradise and not from Ridwan.

My place is placeless, my trace is traceless,

no body, no soul, I am from the soul of souls.

I have chased out duality, lived the two worlds as one.

One I seek, one I know, one I see, one I call.

He is the first, he is the last, he is the outer, he is the inner.

Beyond "He" and "He is" I know no other.

I am drunk from the cup of love, the two worlds have escaped me.

I have no concern but carouse and rapture.

If one day in my life I spend a moment without you

from that hour and that time I would repent my life.

If one day I am given a moment in solitude with you

I will trample the two worlds underfoot and dance forever.

O Sun of Tabriz (Shams Tabrizi), I am so tipsy here in this world,

I have no tale to tell but tipsiness and rapture.

The religion of love is separate from all forms of religions

 Lovers are of one nation and one religion - love

 And that is God.

-Rumi

In Rumi’s vision, the expressions “God is Love” and “Love Thy Neighbor” either go together or go nowhere.

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The Value of Truth by Mullah Nasrudin

The Value Of Truth

"If you want truth", 

Nasrudin told a group of Seekers who had come to hear his teachings, 

"you will have to pay for it."

"But why should you have to pay for something like truth?" asked one of the company.

"Have you noticed", said Nasrudin, 

"that it is the scarcity of a thing which determines its value?"

-Mullah Nasrudin






Everything of value comes at a great price. All Awliya(saints) has given themselves and part of their lives to become a person of value. Greatness can't be achieve by sacrificing little. Become a person of value.

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Mir Baba Bulleh Shah Qadiri Shatari

Look into Yourself

"Yes, yes, you have read thousands of books
but you have never tried to read your own self
you rush in, into your Mandirs, into your Mosques
but you have never tried to enter your own heart
futile are all your battles with Satan
for you have never tried to fight your own desires."

"I have got lost in the city of love,

I am being cleansed, withdrawing myself

from my head, hands and feet.

I have got rid of my ego,

and have attained my goal.

Thus it has all ended well.

O Bullah, the Lord pervades both the worlds;

None now appears a stranger to me."

"Neither Hindu nor Muslim,
Sacrificing pride, let us sit together.
Neither Sunni nor Shia,
Let us walk the road of peace.
We are neither hungry nor replete,
Neither naked nor covered up.
Neither weeping nor laughing,
Neither ruined nor settled,
We are not sinners or pure and virtuous,
What is sin and what is virtue, this I do not know.
Says Bulhe Shah, one who attaches his self with the lord.
Gives up both hindu and muslim."

You Alone Exist

You alone exist; I do not, O Beloved!
You alone exist, I do not!
Like the shadow of a house in ruins,
I revolve in my own mind.
If I speak, you speak with me:
If I am silent, you are in my mind.
If I sleep, you sleep with me:
If I walk, you are along my path.
Oh Bulleh, the spouse has come to my house:
My life is a sacrifice unto Him.
You alone exist; I do not, O Beloved!

Tear down the mosque and temple too, break all that dividesBut do not break the human heart as it is there that God resides.

Bulleh Shah was a Sufi poet who lived in Pakistan from 1680 to 1758. His given name was Abdullah Shah, Bulleh was a nickname and it is the name he chose to use as a poet. Bullah traveled to Lahore in search of a Murshid(Master). He found Hazrat Shah Inayat, a well-known Qadiri Sufi and gardener by profession. He asked Inayat, "I wish to know how to realize God." Inayat Shah replied, "What is the problem in finding God? One only needs to be uprooted from here and replanted there." Inayat graced Bulleh with the secret of spiritual insight and the Knowledge of God.

Bulleh Shah's poetry reflects a turbulent period in Punjab history and highlights his mystical spiritual journey. He is critical of those in power - intellectuals, academicians and religious authorities - who put obstacles in the way of the common people in discovering the love of God. 

Sufism has produced a multitude of saints, Bulleh Shah is arguably one of the greatest Sufi saints and Punjabi poets. His tomb is in Qasur (Pakistan) and today he is highly regarded by all Sufis of Sindh and Punjab.

source: http://onetruename.com/bullehshah.htm

Poetry by Bulleh shah -http://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/Poets/B/BullehShah/index.html

Bulleh Shah’s writings represent him as a humanist, someone providing solutions to the sociological problems of the world around him as he lives through it, describing the turbulence his motherland of Punjab is passing through, while concurrently searching for God. His poetry highlights his mystical spiritual voyage through the four stages of Sufism: Shariat (Path), Tariqat (Observance), Haqiqat (Truth) and Marfat (Union). The simplicity with which Bulleh Shah has been able to address the complex fundamental issues of life and humanity is a large part of his appeal. Thus, many people have put his kafis to music, from humble street-singers to renowned Sufi singers like Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Pathanay Khan, Abida Parveen, the Waddali Brothers and Sain Zahoor, from the synthesized techno qawwali remixes of UK-based Asian artists to the Pakistani rock band Junoon.
Modern renderings ....http://allpoetry.com/Bulleh_Shah

click here: The Life of Bulleh Shah

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Farid ud-Din Attar

In the Dead of night

In the dead of night, a Sufi began to weep.

He said, “This world is like a closed coffin, in which 

We are shut and in which, through our ignorance,

We spend our lives in folly and desolation.

When Death comes to open the lid of the coffin,

Each one who has wings will fly off to Eternity,

But those without will remain locked in the coffin.

So, my friends, before the lid of this coffin is taken off,

Do all you can to become a bird of the Way to God;

Do all you can to develop your wings and your feathers.”

- Attar

Translation by Andrew Harvey and Eryk Hanut

From – ‘Perfume of the Desert’

Poem of the butterflies 

 by 

Attar of Nishapur

The people of this world are like the three butterflies in front of a candle's flame.

The first one went closer and said, 

"I know about love"

The second one touched the flame lightly with his wings and said, 

"I know how love's fire can burn"

The third one threw himself into the heart of the flame and was consumed.

He alone knows what true love is.

Video: http://youtu.be/Li3X854Few8

Image courtesy of thawats's / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Farid ud-Din Attar

Born in Nishapur, in northeastern Persia around 1142. He traveled widely, Tehran, Egypt, Damascus, Mecca, and Turkestan, then settled in Nishapur. He worked as a healer and saw patients in his shop where he prescribed herbal remedies. Attar is considered one of the greatest Sufi mystic poets - his work inspired Rumi and many others. His greatest work Mantiq al-Tair (The Conference of the Birds) is a symbolic story of the soul's search for truth and one of the definitive masterpieces of Persian literature. Attar was charged with heresy and banished by the ruling Islamic orthodoxy because of his poetry. He died around 1220-30. His tomb is in Nishapur.

Source: http://onetruename.com/attar.htm

The Seven Valleys of spirituality(conference of the birds)

Attar has described the seven stages of spirituality in the conference of the birds:

• The Valley of Quest
• The Valley of Love
• The Valley of Understanding
• The Valley of Independence and Detachment
• The Valley of Unity
• The Valley of Astonishment and Bewilderment
• The Valley of Deprivation and Death

'Attar began The Conference of the Birds (Mantiq al-tair) with an invocation praising the holy Creator in which he suggested that one must live a hundred lives to know oneself; but you must know God by the deity, not by yourself, for God opens the way, not human wisdom. 'Attar believed that God is beyond all human knowledge. The soul will manifest itself when the body is laid aside. One cannot gain spiritual knowledge without dying to all things. When the birds assemble, they wonder why they have no king. The Hoopoe presents herself as a messenger from the invisible world with knowledge of God and the secrets of creation. She recommends Simurgh as their true king, saying that one of his feathers fell on China.

The Nightingale says that the love of the Rose satisfies him, and the journey is beyond his strength; but the Hoopoe warns against being a slave of passing love that interferes with seeking self-perfection. The Parrot longs for immortality, and the Hoopoe encourages the Peacock to choose the whole. The Duck is too content with water to seek the Simurgh. The Hoopoe advises the Partridge that gems are just colored stones and that love of them hardens the heart; she should seek the real jewel of sound quality. The Humay is distracted by ambition, and the Owl loves only the treasure he has found. The Hoopoe reprimands the Sparrow for taking pride in humility and recommends struggling bravely with oneself. She states that the different birds are just shadows of the Simurgh. If they succeed, they will not be God; but they will be immersed in God. If they look in their hearts, they will see the divine image. All appearances are just the shadow of the Simurgh. Those loving truly do not think about their own lives and sacrifice their desires. Those grounded in love renounce faith and religion as well as unbelief. One must hear with the ear of the mind and the heart.

A total of 22 birds speak to the Hoopoe or ask questions about the journey. Short anecdotes are told to illustrate the Hoopoe's points. The Hoopoe says that it is better to lose your life than to languish miserably. The Hoopoe says,

So long as we do not die to ourselves,
and so long as we identify with someone or something,
we shall never be free.
The spiritual way is not for those wrapped up in exterior life.5

You will enjoy happiness if you succeed in withdrawing from attachment to the world. Whoever is merciful even to the merciless is favored by the compassionate. It is better to agree to differ than to quarrel. The Hoopoe warns the sixth bird against the dog of desire that runs ahead. Each vain desire becomes a demon, and yielding to each one begets a hundred others. The world is a prison under the devil, and one should have no truck with its master. The Hoopoe also says that if you let no one benefit from your gold, you will not profit either; but by the smallest gift to the poor you both benefit. She says,

Good fortune will come to you only as you give.
If you cannot renounce life completely,
you can at least free yourself
from the love of riches and honors.6

A pupil becomes afraid in facing a choice between two roads, but a shaikh advises getting rid of fear so that either road will be good. The Hoopoe tells the eighth bird that only if death ceases to exercise power over creatures would it be wise to remain content in a golden palace. The ninth bird is told that sensual love is a game inspired by passing beauty that is fleeting. The Hoopoe asks what is uglier than a body made of flesh and bones. It is better to seek the hidden beauty of the invisible world. An anecdote about Jesus yields the following lesson:

Strive to discover the mystery before life is taken from you.
If while living you fail to find yourself, to know yourself,
how will you be able to understand
the secret of your existence when you die?7

The Hoopoe advises the eleventh bird that giving yourself over to pride or self-pity will disturb you. Since the world passes, pass it by, for whoever becomes identified with transient things has no part in the lasting things. The suffering endured is made glorious and is a treasure for the seer, for blessings will come if you make efforts on the path. The fifteenth bird is told that justice is salvation, and the just are saved from errors. Being just is better than a life of worship. Justice exercised in secret is even better than liberality; but justice professed openly may lead to hypocrisy. A story of two drunks teaches that we see faults because we do not love. When we understand real love, the faults of those near us appear as good qualities. When you see the ugliness of your own faults, you will not bother so much with the faults of others.

The journey of the birds takes them through the seven valleys of the quest, love, understanding, independence and detachment, unity, astonishment, and finally poverty and nothingness. In the valley of the quest one undergoes a hundred difficulties and trials. After one has been tested and become free, one learns in the valley of love that love has nothing to do with reason. The valley of understanding teaches that knowledge is temporary, but understanding endures. Overcoming faults and weaknesses brings the seeker closer to the goal. In the valley of independence and detachment one has no desire to possess nor any wish to discover. To cross this difficult valley one must be roused from apathy to renounce inner and outer attachments so that one can become self-sufficient. In the valley of unity the Hoopoe announces that although you may see many beings, in reality there is only one, which is complete in its unity. As long as you are separate, good and evil will arise; but when you lose yourself in the divine essence, they will be transcended by love. When unity is achieved, one forgets all and forgets oneself in the valley of astonishment and bewilderment.

The Hoopoe declares that the last valley of deprivation and death is almost impossible to describe. In the immensity of the divine ocean the pattern of the present world and the future world dissolves. As you realize that the individual self does not really exist, the drop becomes part of the great ocean forever in peace. The analogy of moths seeking the flame is used. Out of thousands of birds only thirty reach the end of the journey. When the light of lights is manifested and they are in peace, they become aware that the Simurgh is them. They begin a new life in the Simurgh and contemplate the inner world. Simurgh, it turns out, means thirty birds; but if forty or fifty had arrived, it would be the same. By annihilating themselves gloriously in the Simurgh they find themselves in joy, learn the secrets, and receive immortality. So long as you do not realize your nothingness and do not renounce your self-pride, vanity, and self-love, you will not reach the heights of immortality. 'Attar concluded the epilog with the admonition that if you wish to find the ocean of your soul, then die to all your old life and then keep silent. 

Farīd ud-Dīn Attar Abū Hamīd bin Abū Bakr Ibrāhīm

Source:http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/conference-of-the-birds/

Other Poem By Farīd ud-Dīn Attar: http://www.poetseers.org/spiritual-and-devotional-poets/sufi-poets/attar/

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Imam Ghazali's last word

Imam Ghazali woke up one early morning and as usual offered his prayers and then enquired what day it was, his younger brother, Ahmad Ghazali replied,"Monday." He asked him to bring his white shroud, kissed it, stretched himself full length and saying "Lord, I obey willingly," breathed his last.

And underneath his head rest they found the following verses; composed by him, probably, during the night.

        "Say to my friends, when they look upon me, dead
        Weeping for me and mourning me in sorrow
        Do not believe that this corpse you see is myself
        In the name of God, I tell you, it is not I,
        I am a spirit, and this is naught but flesh
        It was my abode and my garment for a time.
        I am a treasure, by a talisman kept hid,
        Fashioned of dust, which served me as a shrine,
        I am a pearl, which has left it's shell deserted,
        I am a bird, and this body was my cage
        Whence I have now floron forth and it is left as a token
        Praise to God, who hath now set me free
        And prepared for me my place in the highest of the heaven,
        Until today I was dead, though alive in your midst.
        Now I live in truth, with the grave - clothes discarded.
        Today I hold converse with the saints above,
        With no veil between, I see God face to face.
        I look upon "Loh-i-Mahfuz" and there in I read
        Whatever was and is and all that is to be.
        Let my house fall in ruins, lay my cage in the ground,
        Cast away the talisman, it is a token, no more
        Lay aside my cloak, it was but my outer garment.
        Place them all in the grave, let them be forgotten,
        I have passed on my way and you are left behind
        Your place of abode was no deweling place for me.
        Think not that death is death, nay, it is life,
        A life that surpasses all we could dream of here,
        While in this world, here we are granted sleep,
        Death is but sleep, sleep that shall be prolonged
        Be not frightened when death draweth night,
        It is but the departure for this blessed home
        Think of the mercy and love of your Lord,
        Give thanks for His Grace and come without fear.
        What I am now, even so shall you be
        For I know that you are even as I am
        The souls of all men come forth from God
        The bodies of all are compounded alike
        Good and evil, alike it was ours
        I give you now a message of good cheer
        May God's peace and joy for evermore be yours."

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