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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Hazrat Rabi'a al-Adawiyya al-Qaysiyya (ra) - Quotations

Hazrat Rabi'a al-Adawiyya al-Qaysiyya (ra) -Quotes

 Indeed your days are numbered, for when one day passes, a significant portion of your life has passed away. And when that portion has fled, soon it will come to pass that your whole life has disappeared. As you know this, strive always towards the performance of good deeds.

Repentance is attained by the saints with the Divine grace and it comes from the side of God who enlightens the hearts of those whom He loves. Seeking a formal forgiveness is the sin for lying. If I seek repentance of myself, I shall have need of repentance again. 

 Seclusion is the soul's ideal preparation for reaching God. It is in the state of solitude that the soul contemplates on the attributes of God. 

The best thing for a servant who desires to be near his Lord, is to possess nothing in this world or the next save Him. 

I have not served God for fear of Hell, for I should be like a wretched hireling, if I did it for fear; nor for love of Paradise, for I should be a bad servant if I served for the sake of what was given, but I have served Him only for the love of Him and out of desire for Him. 

'O God, You are aware that the sole longing of my heart is to be totally surrendered to your command. The very light of my eyes is service to Your court. If it were up to me, I would never cease serving you, even for an hour. Yet you have caused me to be subject to a creature. For this, I come late to your service.'

Hazrat Malik bin Dinar (ra) has described Hazrat Rabia (ra)'s life-style as follows:


I visited the saint. She possessed a pitcher with a crack in it which she employed both for ablutions and drinking; instead of a pillow, she used a brick. There was also an old straw mat. My heart was anguished at the sight, and I pleaded with her, 'I have wealthy friends; only indicate it and I’ll see that they regard you favourably.' 'You are wrong Malik,' she replied, 'my Provider is their Provider too, isn't He?' 'Of course,' I replied. 'Do you imagine,' she rejoined, that He has forgotten the poor because of their poverty, while assisting the rich because they are wealthy?' 'No,' I answered. 'Since He is aware of my state then,' she went on, 'what need is there to remind Him? If this is how He likes it, my, wish is one with His.'




Hazrat Rabi'a al-Adawiyya al-Qaysiyya (ra) was a Mystic Sufi saint from Iraq. She lived during the 8th Century and was born in Basra, a seaport in southern Iraq where she spent the vast majority of her life. Much of her early life is narrated by Hazrat Fariduddin Attar (ra), a later Sufi saint and poet, who used earlier sources. She did not leave any written works herself.

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My Lord

Eyes are at rest, the stars are setting.

Hushed are the stirrings of birds in their nests,

Of monsters in the ocean.

You are the Just who knows no change,

The Balance that can never swerve,

The Eternal which never passes away.

The doors of Kings are bolted now and guarded by soldiers.

Your Door is open to all who call upon You.

My Lord,

Each love is now alone with his beloved.

And I am alone with You. 

Rabia al Basri

Hazrat Rabbia Basri Rahmatullahe alayha is one of the earliest mystic saints of Islam. She left her worldly life and devoted herself for Allah (swt) in Islam. She was a Muslim Saint and a Sufi Mystic (717–801 C.E.)

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Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani -Quotations from Jala'al khawatir

Jala' al-Khawatir (The Removal of Cares)

The Fourty-Fourth Discourse
A certain righteous man is reported as having said: "The hypocrite [munafiq] remains in one and the same spiritual condition for forty years at a stretch, while the champion of truth [siddiq] experiences transformation forty times every single day."
The hypocrite is totally involved with his lower self [nafs], his passions [hawa], his natural inclinations [tab'], his devil [shaitan] and his interest in the things of this world [dunya]. He is committed to their service, from which he never takes a break. He is never known to disagree with their point of view, and he will never say a word to contradict them. His only interests are food and drink, clothes, sexual intercourse and the accumulation of wordly goods, and he does not care how he comes by them. He cultivates his physical body and his worldly affairs, but he lets his heart and his religion [din] go to waste. He tries to please his fellow creatures [khalq], but he gives offense to the Creator [Khaliq]. The longer his hypocrisy [nifaq] continues, the harder and darker his heart becomes, so he is quite unmoved and unaffected by any spiritual counsel [maw'iza], takes no notice of any admonition ['iza], and pays no attention to any reminder. Thus it is undoubtedly a fact that he remains in one and the same spiritual condition for forty years at a stretch.
The champion of truth [siddiq] cannot possibly remain in such a static condition, because he is entirely at the disposal of the Transformer of hearts [Muqallib al-qulub], immersed in the ocean of His power, so that one wave raises him up and another sends him down. He is moved this way and that by the operations [tasarif] and transformations [taqalib] of the Lord of Truth (Almighty and Glorious is He), like a feather in a windswept desert, like a fresh stalk [khama] in the farmer's field, like the corpse in the hands of the ritual washer of the dead [ghasil], like the baby in the hands of the wet nurse [zi'r] or the midwife, like the ball on the receiving end of the polo player's mallet. He has surrendered both his outer [zahir] and his inner being [batin] to Him, and he is completely satisfied with His management. Far from taking any interest in his eating, his sleeping and his carnal appetites, he is interested only in the service of his Lord (Almighty and Glorious is He) and in earning His good pleasure. This is why a certain righteous man once said: "As for the people [of the Lord], their approach to eating is that of the sick, their form of sleep is the sleep of the drowned, and if they speak it is only out of sheer necessity." How could they not be like this? In their hearts there is something that is quite invisible to others. They have ceased to be aware of anything apart from their Lord. They have absented themselves from this world, the hereafter, and everything else apart from Him. They have settled humbly at His door. They have rested their heads on the threshold of His doorway, in readiness to comply with His orders. They have become accustomed to being contented, to needing nothing. Fate and destiny [al-qada' wa 'l-qadar] are now their servants, and these two approach them in visible form and then carry them on their heads.
If you are not one of the people [of the Lord], they are the people you must serve. You must befriend them, sit in their company and draw close to them. Put your material goods at their disposal. Follow them by emulating their actions, not by repeating their words and saying how excellent and wonderful they are. Carry your righteousness [salah] in your heart; do not wear it as part of your outer clothing. Dress as ordinary people dress, but do not behave as they behave. 

For more information on this article please clink on the link below: 

http://www.al-baz.com/shaikhabdalqadir/Books_and_Text_of_Wisdom/books_and_text_of_wisdom.html

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Hafiz-Some Fill With Each Good Rain

There are different wells within your heart.

Some fill with each good rain,

Others are far too deep for that.

In one well

You have just a few precious cups of water,

That “love” is literally something of yourself,

It can grow as slow as a diamond

If it is lost.

Your love

Should never be offered to the mouth of a

Stranger,

Only to someone

Who has the valor and daring

To cut pieces of their soul off with a knife

Then weave them into a blanket

To protect you.

There are different wells within us.

Some fill with each good rain,

Others are far, far too deep

For that.

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