Parable of the Pearl of Great Price

Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is

like a merchant in search of fine pearls,

who, on finding one Pearl of Great Price,

went and sold all that he had 

and bought it.

~ Teaching Parable of Christ, Gospel of Matthew 13:45-46 ~

1.

Pearl of Great Price is a parable found in the teachings of Jesus, Son of Mary, upon them both be divine peace. In the 13th chapter of Matthew, Christ goes on in great length, bringing in many parables to illustrated the concept of the Basileia tou Theou (Kingom of God) or Basileia tōn Ouranōn (Kingdom of Heaven) to his intimate companions.

As part of our series: Sufi Readings of Jesus' Teaching Parables, we turn to the parable of Pearl of Great Price. The Parable illustrates the great value of the Kingdom of Heaven, and immediately follows the Parable of the Hidden Treasure, which has a similar theme. As I asked about your sharing on the Parable, I have received a number of entries with multi-dimensional insights which I wish to share with you here, with acknowledgment and thanksgiving to all of you who shared.

2.
Placing in the Context

In reading any of the ancient scriptures, the modern reader must take into account the social context in which Jesus’ message/parable is delivered. In this society, many of the listeners were fishermen and derived their family’s sustenance from the sea; everyone knew the value of pearls and how difficult they were to obtain. Not every oyster had a pearl and the pearl itself starts from a piece of ordinary sand/dirt (unrefined soul), taking years to develop; also, in this community the position of pearl merchant had considerable social status and wealth attached to it.

Here was a merchant, trained over many years to know the beautiful, fine qualities and variety of pearls who one day found a pearl of such extraordinary rarity that he fell in love and sold everything he had to own it. Any listener would understand this must have been an exquisite, extremely rare pearl for the merchant to instantly fall in love and essentially give-up everything he worked years to obtain.

This is the great prize, or spiritual journey, that Jesus calls the Kingdom of Heaven. Remember all of his audience were part of the Roman Empire, and well acquainted with living in a Kingdom, and understood this contrast and comparison; one Kingdom being harsh, restrictive and the other sublime bliss.

In more modern terms, for the spiritual traveler, the Kingdom of Heaven is God Consciousness/Higher Knowledge and in order to reach this goal, out of love the traveler must give-up all their attachments, thoughts and desires. Surrendering their ego and lives to the Divine Impulse they become God’s Servant.

Another way to discuss this is that the traveler’s ego/consciousness becomes annihilated and their heart becomes unified with God. In this state, the traveler and the Beloved, blissfully become One; that is the Kingdom of Heaven that Jesus describes and is the spiritual traveler’s goal.

This Caress is bestowed, not earned and involves giving-up everything because one loves for the Beloved (Pearl of Great Price/Beauty). This spiritual state is comprised of extreme joy, unity, great happiness, profound peace and love.

3.
Multiplicity of the Symbol

The Pearl is the symbol reserved by Christ for the Kingdom. Pearl was the most precious object for a fisherman who might accidentally discover the pearl or seek and find it. As the Lotus remains the archetypal symbol for Buddha, Pearl is for Jesus - a symbol of purity, preciousness, a goal to be sought.

In some texts it is the Pearl of Immortality, Pearl of Infinite Oneness, Pearl in the Ocean of Divine Love, God Realization, God Consciousness. And the ‘great price’ is also about our own enormous struggle to reach it, similar to actual ‘pearl divers’ or ‘pearl hunters’. Even though there is tremendous progress that we can make on our own, after a certain point we can go no further without a Perfect Master. They are the only ones who can unlock the final stage and bestow God Realization on another. In every age there are always Perfect Masters to guide human souls, to guide humanity, including Khidr - the green man (every living) who guide the elect and ardent seekers..

Diving to the bottom of the ocean of divine life to obtain the pearl of Realization and to resurface to show the pearl to others comprises the lives of the Perfect Masters. The great mystic sage Ibn Arabi talks about the false self getting crushed, which is also a possibility in pearl diving – the body gets crushed by the pressure of the water the deeper one goes.

Hafiz says that at first, when he placed his feet on the "beach," he thought he had already got the "Pearl." But little did he know that he had to face the waves, the storms and the whirlpools, and dive deep into the Ocean before getting the Pearl.

He says that in the beginning he was like a man who goes down to the seashore and paddles in shallow water, and in his enjoyment, thinks he has gained the Pearl. Then after a long time, Hafiz realized that he had yet to learn to swim; and when he learned how to swim, there were the many waves he had to encounter and overcome. Then he realized he had yet to learn to dive. The next step he had to master was holding his breath under water before, at long last, he could reach the bottom of the ocean for the Pearl – the Goal.

On the path, cowards have no place. Hafiz said that when he became a lover of God, he thought he had got a grip over the "Pearl." But he never dreamt of the depth of the Ocean and the dangers to be faced from storms and waves! Then the Perfect Master comes to Hafiz's rescue. He teaches him that the "Pearl" (of Realization) is on the Ocean-bed. You have to learn to swim, then learn to dive, then find the Pearl and bring it back. After forty long years, Hafiz got the Pearl in his hands. It took forty years for him who was absolutely determined!

Hafiz says:

How foolish people are who compare pearls with seashells.
The real pearl is here. Do not run after shells.

For one who is an aspirant on the Path, it is not seeing, but becoming that is the objective.


4.
Diving for the Pearl

[...] To compare the above with spirituality, take the water of the ocean as Maya, the pearl as God, the diver as the seeker, the diving suit as love, or the willingness to renounce the world, and the man on the beach or boat in charge of the air compressor as the Sadguru. Without the help of the Sadguru (Kamil Murshid) to manipulate the air compressor, it is thus impossible for one to dive down and take the pearl, which means to free oneself from the clutches of Maya while remaining in Maya.

A man may discharge his worldly duties and maintain a household with a wife and child. But at the same time, he should remain detached from all this, come what may. This does not mean that he should be neglectful of his duties toward his near and dear ones, but that he should have no attachments to it at all. You know that a pen is yours and you use it. But if you lose it, you should not care about it; you should remain detached.

The meaning of God-Realization is emancipation – freedom from the bondage of Maya. But one has to be in Maya to come out of it. So remain in Maya but do not get enmeshed in it. Keep away from its tricks and snares.

Diving for the Pearl can also be considered from a psychological level. Finding the jewels: emerald/ amethyst/ ruby/ diamond/ pearls. The perilous adventure, going through Jung's archetypes, especially dealing with the ones out of balance.

- from Freedom from Maya


5.
Jesus himself as the Pearl

The Pearl of Great Price casts a light on the gift of Jesus as the messenger of God's Love who paid the price of surrendering his life to convey God's great love for us.

On a different esoteric level the making of both masculine and feminine energy as one, the being of androgyny, and that Christ is its chief symbol. In Mysterium Coniunctionis C. G. Jung writes, .. "the lapis (Self) is itself androgynous, a synthesis of male and female. It is the pearl of great price." (For every female who makes herself male will enter the kingdom of Heaven.' - Christ, Gospel of Thomas). The mystics understand the soul as feminine who longs for the Beloved, is receptive (essentially a feminine quality) - is receptive to the Divine and thus the soul can be made pregnant with God - and God is the Pearl of Great Price.

6.
Think What will happen

If we surrender to God to guide us.... truly surrender to a God with no limits.. think what that opens up?  What if we absolutely trust God where He takes us... guides us and says look at this?   and this? and this?  and this? How does God see it? How He truly loves everything He creates? What have we done to his divine intention?

How do we open the doors?

What if two or more truly learn to love it all? Do they open a pathway of energy that creates the possibility in human beings?

A pearl is created by agitation and irritation and a polishing process that is very similar to our own pruning and refining to become a drop of  the oceanic source of all life, a translucent light, a seed of light, a holy touch, a divine sperm, super strings, physicists called it, a moving particle - yet they change it - because they don't really know, they speculate - the pearl becomes a treasure that cannot be bought or sold, or contained.

It is a pearl of great price, because it cannot be bought, we discover it when we surrender all that we are, all that we ever have been and all that we ever will be into an unlimited, omniscient, consciousness who dares to truly care about what it creates .. to welcome it.

The pearl of great price is the secret of God's Love for us and ours for God - the ultimate in relationship and variation in a growing, expanding, awakening to what is ever new, ever changing, ever life-giving, ever marvelous, and forever loving and tender and compassionate and sometimes intense, passionate, powerful, and majestic - with a force that could wipe out all of civilization in one blast but doesn't, instead He is a God who saves us, because God holds us in that great Heart that consists of countless universes beyond our imagining, each particle of God is a universe, one particle, one drop, one seed, one tiny drop of light, one speck, one glimmer, one glance, one anything of God is a pearl of great price that holds the whole world in the curve of His Love and we surrender into the majesty and beauty of that embrace - anxious for the night and the morning and the sweet wonder of the first day of forever with such a Love.

In Love alone
    can such wonders be.

- a composite contributions from Stewart Bitkoff, M. E. B. and Naomi

I would love to kiss you.
The price of kissing is your life.

Now my loving is running toward my life shouting,
What a bargain, let's buy it: the Pearl of Great Price!

 ~ Rumi ~

In the follow-up post, God willing, we would like to share a Sufic Perspective on the reality of Kingdom of Heaven / Kingdom of God - how it is described, understood, realized and sought - and the Quranic perspective of the state of the merchant in the Parable of Jesus of "selling everything that one has for the purchase of the Pearl of Great Price."

Rabbi zidni ilma.

O Lord increase us in knowledge.

Rabbi zidni ilma.

O Lord increase us in awareness.

Allahumma Rabbi zidni ilman bil Haqq.

O Allah, O Lord enlighten us with Truth.
Ya Muniru! Ya Munir!
O the Illuminator! O the Enlightener!

# Related:
. Invisible Hierarchy of the Journey Back to God 
. Sufi Reading of Jesus' Teaching Parables
. Parable of the Budding Fig Tree and the Fig
. Ask, Seek, Knock | A Sufi Exegesis of Jesus Parable
. Jesus, the Symbol and Sign | from Ibn Arabi

The Maqam of Ya Ummati, Ya Ummati

1.
From Ya Nafsi, Ya Nafsi to Ya Ummati, Ya Ummati

The famous Persian Sufi, Bayazid of Bistam (Bistami), saw in a moment of unveiling that the Pole (spiritual king) of the age was none other than the town's humble ironsmith.

Bayazid was amazed, for the ironsmith happened to be a man with few distinctive qualities. Finally, unable to supress his curiosity any longer, he went over to the smith's shop in order to take a closer look. When he arrived, the smith was nonplussed, threw away his hammer and tried to kiss his hand as a gesture of respect - for Bayazid was of great renown - and asked for his prayers.

Bayazid was surprised. He said, "It is I who should be kissing your hand and asking for your prayers, please, pray for me."

"Sure I will," said the smith, "But I wish for your prayers in a matter that has been disturbing me for a long time. My own prayers won't work."

"What's your problem? Asked Bayazid.

"I'm worried about the state of the people," said the smith. "Everytime my hammer descends on the anvil and the sparks fly, I wonder how these human beings are going to withstand the fire, and try to find a way to improve their codition."

Bayazid thought to himself: "So this person is not of those who say, 'My self, My self' (ya Nafsi, ya Nafsi). Rather, He says: 'My people, My community (ya Ummati, ya Ummati) [just as the Prophet did]. Now it's clear why the station of polehood was given to him, for he deserves it.

"Moreover, the Pole of the Age is so unaware of his station that he kisses my hand and ask for my prayers. So he hasn't received unveiling yet, and doesn't know where he is - thus doubling his sincerity."

The station of Godly person is always full of love and compassion towards other beings and acts accordingly, because God's light and compassion flow out of such person and into the world.

~ as quoted from book by Henry Bayman, may Allah bless him - titled "The Station of No Station: Open Secrets of the Sufis".

* In Sufism 'Maqam' refers to Spiritual Station


2.
Way of the Beauteous Beings

Its known that the Seal of the Prophet, Muhammad, may Allah complete every divine blessings upon him, used to be absorbed in his prayer and contemplation to such degree that he would forget his existence, he would not recognize even his most closely associate ones when he would enter into what in the East is called Samadhi (unity experience). Sometime during his night time prayer, he would pray with his forehead on the ground in prostration, crying all night long out of deep compassion and concern: "Ya Ummati, Ya Ummati." 'My Community', 'My people'.

Its transmitted that on the Yaumul Qiyamah or Day of Final Resurrection, when every human soul out of the tremendous bewilderment and terrible fear will cry ‘nafsi, nafsi’ (‘myself, myself’), only Muhammad al-Mustafa will say ‘ummati, ummati’ (‘my people, my people’). Such was, is and will be the degree of his compassion, for which he is testified as 'Wa ma arsalnaka illa rahmatallil 'alamin.': “And the Divine Authority have not sent you except as a Mercy to the worlds.” (The Quran, 21:107)

Thus the cry of the beloved, ummati, ummati is cry for not only one community, but in extension to whole of humanity. The real sunnah, the deep sunnah (holy pattern) of the Most Beauteous being is 'Harisun alaikum bi mukmina raufur rahim.', ‘to be deeply concerned, and tenderly compassionate for fellow human beings’. That has always been the station of the heart of compassion of every beauteous being who is not confined to own enlightenment and salvation but that of the others. To follow the way of the Rasul means to become 'Harisun alaikum bi mukmina raufur rahim' - concern for the suffering of others with a heart of tender loving compassion. The raising of the degree of saintly station ihas a direct co-relation with the capacity to embody this state.

This how the perfect sage, a complete man and model of the Rasul is also described from Chung-Yung in Doctrine of the Balanced in Chinese classic:

"It is only he, possessed of all SAGELY qualities that can exist under heaven, who can show himself quick in apprehension, clear in discerning , of far reaching intelligence, and all embracing KNOWLEDGE, fitted to exercise RULE, magnanimous, generous, benign and mild (harisun /raufur rahim), fitted to EXERCISE forbearance ( hilm /sabr), impulsive, energetic, firm, and enduring, fitted to maintain a FIRM HOLD (urwatul wusqa), self adjusted, grave, never serving from the MEAN / MIDDLE (Istiqama) and correct, fitted to COMMAND (Amar) reverence; accomplished, distinctive, and searching, fitted to exercise DISCRIMINATION (furqan).

All embracing is he and vast (innaka ala Khuluqi azim), deep and active as a fountain (rahmata lil-alamin), sending forth in their due season his virtues (rahma /syafaa).

He is seen, and people revere him; He speaks, and all people believe him (amin); He acts and the people are pleased with him (atiu ‘Llah wa atiur Rasul); ..therefore his fame overspreads the middle kingdom (ummatan wasatan) and extended to all foreign races. Where ships and carriages reach; Wherever the strength of man penetrates; Wherever the heaven overshadow and the earth sustains ; Wherever the sun and moon shine (was syamsi wa qamar); where the frost and dews falls – all who have blood and breath unfeigned honor and love him. Hence it is said -  'He is equal of Heaven' (Nur Allah). Who can know him, but he who is indeed quick in apprehension, clear in discernment, of far reaching intellect and all embracing knowledge, possessing heavenly virtue (iman/ihsan). The superior man accords / follow with the course of the Mean (Middle Path) . Though he may be all unknown, unregarded by the world, he feels no regret;  It is only the SAGE who is able for this!

The Way which the superior man pursues, reaches wide and far, and yet is secret / concealed."

Allahumma Salli ‘ala Badrit-Tamaam
Allahumma Salli ‘ala Nuriz-Zalaam
Allahumma Salli ‘ala Miftaahi Daaris-Salaam
Allahumma Salli ‘ala Shafee’i fee Jamee-il Anaam

Allah! Send Blessings upon the Full Moon in brilliance.
Allah! Send Blessings upon the Light overwhelming darkness.
Allah! Send Blessings upon the Key to the Abode of Peace.
Allah! Send Blessings upon the Intercessor of all humanity.

3.

Sufis Ethics

To be concerned with the troubles of others, to try to ease their pain and heal their wounds, in an act of love and compassion. It is only those who have this in abundance who can rise to the higher stages of Sufi sainthood.

The following Sufic statement, ascribed to Loqman (a mystic sage), neatly summarizes sufis ethics:

In loving kindness, be like the sun;
In generosity, be like water;
In humility, be like the earth;
In hiding the fault of others, be like the night.

Sufis Ethics | Collage by Sadiq

To elaborate, the sun rises and sheds its light on all things, without making any distinction between good and bad, worthy or unworthy, etc. Water gives life to both the rose and the thistle without favoritism. The earth continues to lend its bounties to all, taking no heed of who steps on its face. And the night draws a veil of darkness over even the greatest iniquity. The Master used to say that each of these represented a pole, and anyone who was able to emulate even one of them would achieve salvation.

~ "The Station of No Station: Open Secrets of the Sufis" (pg 100, 101), Henry Bayman

4.
Signs of Generosity

A certain servant of God, Abu MahfuzMaruf was held by his teacher in Islam, Ali b. Musa al-Rida in the highest esteem. It is related that Abu Maruf said: 'There are three signs of generosity - to keep faith without resistance, to praise without being incited thereto by liberality, and to give without being asked.' 

In men all these qualities are merely borrowed, and in reality they belong to God, who acts thus towards His servants. God keeps unresisting faith with those who love Him, and although they show resistance in keeping faith with Him, He only increases His kindness towards them. 

The sign of God's keeping faith is this, that in eternity past He called His servant to His presence without any good action on the part of His servant, and that today He does not banish His servant on account of an evil action. He alone praises without the incitement of liberality, for He has no need of His servant's actions, and nevertheless extols him for a little thing that he has done. He alone gives without being asked, for He is generous and knows the state of everyone and fulfills his desire unasked. 

Accordingly, when God gives a man grace and makes him noble, and distinguishes him by favor, and acts toward him in the three ways mentioned above, and when that man, as far as lies in his power, acts in the same way towards his fellow-creatures, then he is called generous and gets a reputation for generosity.

~ "Kashf al-Mahjub" (chapter XI) by Data Ganj Bakhsh

5.

In the play of many, its only Thee, O Thee!

The Divine Voice shall call on the Day of Resurrection: O son of Adam, I was ill and you visited Me not. He will say: O Lord, and how should I visit You when You are the Lord of the worlds? He will say: Did you not know that My servant So-and-so had fallen ill and you visited him not? Did you not know that had you visited him you would have found Me with him? 

O son of Adam, I asked you for food and you fed Me not. He will say: O Lord, and how should I feed You when You are the Lord of the worlds? He will say: Did you not know that My servant So-and-so asked you for food and you fed him not? Did you not know that had you fed him you would surely have found that (the reward for doing so) with Me? 

O son of Adam, I asked you to give Me to drink and you gave Me not to drink. He will say: O Lord, how should I give You to drink whin You are the Lord of the worlds? He will say: My servant So-and-so asked you to give him to drink and you gave him not to drink. Had you given him to drink you would have surely found that with Me. - Hadith Qudsi

On the Day of Judgment the Son of Man shall reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' - Matthew 25:40

6.
Your Generosity

As you perhaps have learned that under the umbrella of Porshee Foundation (Read a report about its activities and Scope of Work), which is inspired by two universal value of 'small kindness' and 'loving for others what one love for one's self' we are raising funds to reach out to those who face severe economic hardship that compromise human dignity. Our beneficiaries include children, orphans, widows, single mother, poors in severe debt and handicap. We have helped enabling setup businesses to earn a respectable living by those who would otherwise would simply beg on daily basis to live. We have convinced poor parents to continue their girls education by providing scholarship and supports such as school dress whom otherwise couldn't continue education. We have two schools setup one in a community of marginalized people (Harijons) and another in a community of blinds whose children we teach.

As of 24th August we have raised about 38% of our target 33,00 USD. With your generosity we hope to achieve our target and Inshallah will exceed it as well. Kindly donate and spread the words among those whom you know, specially those who have a generous heart. Indeed there are no other direct means to serve the Divine except by serving the creation. 

Click on [ChipIn] button below to donate.

Allah Almighty says, ‘My love is mandatory for those who love each other for My sake and those who sit with each other for My sake, and those who visit each other for My sake and those who give to each other for My sake - Hadith of the Messenger, recorded in Imam Malik’s al-Muwatta

May Allah keep your heart inspired, fill it with pure peace and happiness and reward you for your every giving for His sake.

# Related:
. Ramadan Fund Raising for Gladdening the Sacred Hearts Project
. Heart of Compassion | Way of the Bodhisattvas
. Hadith Qudsi
. Sufi Framework of Service

Ramadan Fund Raising and Updates on the GSH Project

Bismillahil Wahhab, wa Ni'mal Razzaq
In the Name of God, the Bestower, the Best of Provider

1.

Injustice, no matter in what form it comes: whether social, political or economic injustice - is shun in the most unambiguous message across all faith traditions. In truth all faith traditions, the movement that rose - if one trace back their roots - one will find that it was primarily injustice in community / society which was the single most important driving factor that gave rise to every single movement out - of which a tradition, way, faith or religion took shape and evolved. Doing good to one and many, nullifying injustice, doing away inequality and uniting humanity was the genuine goal of every faith tradition, without exception. That was the mission of every luminous beauteous human beings.

The very mission of Mighty Messenger Moses rescuing the Children of Israel out of Egypt was because they were severely oppressed, enslaved generations after generations and were subjected to inhumane conditions. It was extreme injustice which was the backdrop for the sacred activism that was entrusted to Moses which he with the help of his brother Aaron almost in super-human quality provided leadership to.

It was the glaring existence of division among different sects, religious group and all kind of suffering which made Prince Gautama Siddartha to abandon everything to contemplate upon the solution to human society. At a time when people of one sect couldnt even travel freely to another village in fear of being persecuted, when one group of people would deny basic human rights to another group of people in the excuse of religion (unjust caste system), Buddha with his genius transcendental teachings dissolved all such differences in creating his spiritual community (sangha) having no division and inequality among any member.

Christ was extremely vocal and a revolutionary hero against the corrupt religious elite (the pharisees and hypocritical religious doctors) who on a regular basis, on the excuse of religion exploited the poorest of the poor, turned the holy temple into a place of monetary transactions, selling certificate to salvation and imposed taxes by giving fatwas (religious injunctions, opinions). The trial of Christ and his persecution by the power elite was more a political case for speaking against injustice and corruption, for speaking naked truth than any theological argument and blasphemy.

It was economic and social inequality, inhumane slavery and gross violation of human rights in his society which first made Muhammad, the Last Messenger to go into deep contemplation about how to resolve this and establish a harmonious society, uniting all its member as equal before One Creator. Ya Ummati, Ya Ummati, 'O my community', 'O my community' was his constant cry, out of compassion and deep concern for their betterment. The biggest contribution of Islam, then and now is the practice of single brotherhood, and sisterhood, equality of all its members. By the striving of the Prophet, the artificial divisions and inequality was removed and slaves were freed from their bond in an unprecedented manner. The establishment of zakat (poor-due) and great emphasis on charity had a single goal alone, to dissolve economic injustice towards a better human society.

This emphasis on justice, preserving human dignity through a standard of equality and just system doesnt limit in Judeo-Christian-Islamic or Buddhist tradition and values - but spans across all traditions, as universal and transcendental priority.

Allah, the Most High says: "O My servants, I forbade injustice upon Me, and it is forbidden amongst you, so do not oppress each other." - Sacred Tradition of Islam
 
2.

Its extremely unfortunate that as global society, even though we pride ourselves as the inheritor of an age of abundance never experienced in human history, with more access to wealth, technology, and energy resources than ever before, the mere existence of poverty itself, let alone its severity and global scope boggles the mind. Ironically, the era that is responsible for the birth of the internet, space travel, and open heart surgery has been unable, or rather unwilling, to decisively and purposefully end the phenomenon of extreme and absolute poverty that affects hundreds of millions of people across the world.

% of population living below national poverty line across the globe

 
The inequality of the world is very glaring: 20% of the population in developed nations consumes and hoards 86% of the world's goods. The greed and over consumption of one section of humanity continues while extreme poverty kills more than 50,000 people every day, 18 million poor people die every year from poverty. More people die as a result of extreme poverty than any other causes, yet this aspect receive very little attention. According to FAO sources, as of 2009 there are 1.02 billion people who face severe hunger / are undernourished worldwide, a number highest since 1970. 

On one hand we claim to live in an age of information, yet nearly a billion people entered the 21st century unable to read a book or sign their names. Less than 1% of what the world spent every year on WEAPONS to KILL was needed to put every child into school by the year 2000 and yet it didn’t happen. Lack of education has been a major cause for perpetual poverty.

In our world, 1 billion children live in poverty (1 in 2 children in the world). 640 million live without adequate shelter, 400 million have no access to safe water, 270 million have no access to health services. 10.6 million died in 2003 before they reached the age of 5 (or roughly 29,000 children per day).

Today, nearly one billion people – about one in eight – lack access to clean water. More than twice that many, 2.5 billion people, don’t have access to a toilet. Lack of sanitation is the world’s biggest cause of infection. More than 3.5 million people die each year from water-related disease; 84 percent are children.

"The children of Adam has no better right than that he would have a house wherein he may live and a piece of cloth whereby he may hide his nakedness and a piece of bread and some water."

- Hadith, Tirmidhi

3.
The world is full of suffering, it is also full of overcoming it.

- Helen Keller

When this remain the sorry state of this tear stained world, if a major portion of humanity remain shackled under inhumane poverty that robs people of their human dignity, then there is no hope for a collective enlightened humanity.

If Buddha were alive in our age, or lets put it in another way, if any one were to attain Buddha (pure) Consciousness, an evolved awareness rising above ghaflat of common people (ignorance and unawareness), one can not help but contemplate about how to reduce suffering (because suffering of the world is suffering of the World Soul, suffering of God's Heart) - then where would one look into? In our time, the greatest suffering caused by humanity is extreme and absolute poverty and the most enlightening activism in today's world can be nothing but working towards the betterment of the life of the poorest of the poor who are so deeply into poverty. No other action in today's world is more needed than restoring the human dignity of the poorest of the poor, even if it is done for a single human being.

When his companions asked: O Messenger O Allah, what are the most excellent of actions?

The beloved of Allah replied:
To gladden the heart of human beings,
To feed the hungry,
To help the afflicted,
To lighten the sorrow of the sorrowful, and
To remove the sufferings of the injured.
- Sacred Tradition of Islam, Bukhari

This has been the inspiration and scope of work of Gladdening the Sacred Hearts Project for which we raised about few thousand dollars last years to help education of poor children and school that support them, to distribute winter clothing and helping the poorest of the poor. While raising the fund for the Phase II of Gladdening the Sacred Hearts (GSH) Project last April 2010, I was inspired to work towards a Foundation, so that the activities could be done in a more wholesome way, spreading the benefit even further.

Thanks to your prayers and blessings, the GSH Project has taken off. Thanks to some of the generous readers of this site, the fund we received has been utilize towards a host of activities. In order to better manage, we are in process of a creating a Foundation called "Porshee Foundation."

4.
Porshee and the Foundation

"Porshee" (pronounced as \Pour-She\ is a Bangla word for Neighbor.

Visionaries of humanity have always emphasized on the very basic idea of caring for our neighbors. For a harmonious, organically connected and healthy society it is absolutely necessary that people who live in proximity care for each other and extend each others hand in need. Regardless of where people live in the world, if people care for those in the neighbors, in their immediate vicinity - the scale of human suffering could be reduced dramatically.

Even though as human race we have advanced unbelievably in terms of our material gain, scientific inventions and technological innovations – yet when it comes to caring for our fellow human being who live next to us, we are failing in an unprecedented manner. Fellow human beings like us who are lying in the dust, starving just in front of our door step, those who are suffering in sickness silently because of lack of means for treatment - it is them who are the most easy to extend our hands to help . No time in human history have we been so oblivious to human dignity at such close proximity. 

Its wonderful that we live in an age when thanks to technological innovations we can connect to anywhere in the world without delay, we can speak to anyone in real time, – yet at the same time we are growing more and more disconnected and less caring for those who are the most nearby, our own neighbor; specially those who are in need.

Caring for and reaching out to the neighbor, which is a simple idea, carry universal value and yet have great implication towards transforming communities in a positive way by removing the suffering and preserving human dignity. The Vision of Porshee Foundation is : Communities and Societies where every able neighbor cares for those in need in the surroundings - acting locally, empowered globally based on the universal value of ‘small kindness’ and ‘loving for others what one love for one’s self.’

For a brief of the activities so far of the Porshee Foundation (utilizing the funds from Phase II of GSH Project), please click the image below to download and read the [Inaugural Report].

Click on Image to Download PDF

For a better world, "small kindness" and "loving for others what one love oneself" - are two universal values the world need to return to and are sufficient to give back the dignity to ourselves as one human family.

5.

Happy faces on the day of New School Dress at Second School (Akhaura, Bangladesh) in the community of blinds, most of these children comes from blind parents and background of economic hardship

Programs under the umbrella of Porshee Foundation include (not not restricted to) are Free Education for Children of economic hardship (including scholarships), Medical Treatment for ultra poor, Nano Credit (interest free loan to the nano-entrepreneurs) and Zero Credit (no return required investment).

Our modest class rooms and students, we keep our setup as simple and as organic as possible to best utilize our funds

Some of the beneficiaries of Nano Credit Program

Some of the beneficaries of Zero Credit Program

One of our activities have been to provide interest free loan to those who have been caught into serious debt, freeing them from the grip of the loan sharks by immediate payment of their previous high compound interest loans. At the same time we are providing them fresh fund so that they could invest in small income generating activities like buying products to resale. This is based on the Islamic ideal of Karz Hasana (means 'beautiful loan') which is given without interest to poor so that they could use the money to better their lives. This was a practice of the noble Prophet that he would give out money to poor to have sustainable income at the same time it will lift them from inhumane condition of depending on others / begging. We are very hopeful with this program, as we have seen the tremendous effect of how very small amount of investment (hence called Nano-Credit) can have super effect in the lives of those who live under absolute poverty.

Read the Report for brief case studies and example of our Programs.

6.
Giving in this blessed month: an Appeal

wa la tansawl fadla baynakum
And do not neglect to be magnanimous to one another.
- The Quran

This is blessed the month of Ramadan, the month of generosity and the month of purification in giving freely for the sake of Allah. This is a month for freeing the self from over-attachment with wealth, month of freeing from the blameworthy quality of hoarding excess.

Sufi Guide Bawa Muhaiyyaddeen reminds us "Being hungry for a month is not a fast if we take away others’ property & freedom, intending to accumulate more for ourselves. Because such acts cause others pain, the fast will not benefit anyone...We must alleviate the hunger of others, comfort them, give them clothing & make them peaceful. This will be the reward of the fast."

In the timeless message of the Isaiah we read the Divine Voice Echoes:

Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
       to loose the chains of injustice
       and to lighten the burden of people,
       to set the oppressed free
       and break every bonds?

Is it not to share your food with the hungry
       and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter -
      when you see the naked, to clothe him,
       and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
       and your healing will quickly appear;
       then your righteousness will go before you,
       and the glory of the LORD will be your guard.

Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
       you will cry for help, and He will say: Here am I (Labbaik).

- Isaiah 58

The above is also the secret of how and when our prayers are heard, our longings are answered. When we start seeing the other as no separate than ourselves, when the suffering of others become our suffering - and we hasten to do genuine good to others and remove suffering from others just as we would like us to receive good - only then we are raised to the saintly station when prayer is answered as it is answered and when the Lord is called, thousand responses arrive, Here I Am!. Until and unless we strive to act towards others, help them with compassion, love and care - our faith is not sanctified, our prayers and our spiritual station rises not. Without that our belief only remain something as meaningless noise. May God guide us to truth and sanctify our actions.

When one knows Thee, then alien there is none,
then no Door is shut.
Oh, grant me my prayer that I may never lose
the touch of the One in the play of many.
- Rabindranath Tagore

I would like to make an appeal, fi Sabilillah, for your donation, Zakat or free will gift (sadaka) to the Porshee Foundation Fund. The money received will go directly to help the orphans, the most needy, for helping the poorest of the poor who are under debt, for treatment of those in urgent need and other services.

For secure payment via Credit / Debit Card, click on [Chipin]

Bismillah!



(download flash player if you can not see the chipin interface above)

Alternatively, for Direct Bank Transfer:

@ United States

Sadiq M. Alam
Bank of America
Branch: California
Account No: 00993-68109 (Checking Account)
Routing No for Electronic Direct Deposit: 121000358
Routing No for Paper: 122000661
Wire Transfer: 026009593
SWIFT Code: BOFAUS3N

Or, @ Bangladesh

Sadiq M. Alam                               
Dhaka Bank Ltd., Bangladesh
Account No: 210-200-14592       
SWIFT code: DHBLBDDH102    

Or, @ India

Priyasree Home
Savings A/C No: 15140100024618
The Federal Bank Ltd.
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Kolkata, India

Or, @ United Kingdom

Antonina Scott-Edeson
Account No: 51658794
HSBC Bank, UK
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(International bank account Number: GB59MIDL40341351658794)

Or, send via Western Union Money Transfer:

Sadiq M. Alam
City: Dhaka
Country: Bangladesh

You may contact me <sadiq.alam@gmail.com> for any inquiries or additional method of donation.

(The righteous are those) who feed the poor, the orphan … for the love of God, saying: 'We feed you for the sake of God alone; we seek from you neither reward nor thanks.' - The Quran 76:8-9


7.

As for the one who gives and guard oneself and confirms ultimate goodness, so We shall ease him to the ease.

But as for one who is miserly and claim to be self-sufficient and denies ultimate goodness, so We shall ease him to hardship. His riches shall not save him when he perishes.

Truly upon the Divine rests the guidance and truly to Us belong the Beginning and the End.

- The Quran 92:5-13


# Past Projects:
. Phase II of Gladdening the Sacred Hearts
. Project: Spreading the Warmth
. It doesn’t take much to spread the warmth
. Gladdening the Sacred Hearts Project: Introduction

# Wisdom:

. The Etiquette of Giving | Quranic Wisdom

. Zakat | Almsgiving | A Sacred Practice of Purification

. Yearning to serve others without desiring others service

. Loving the creation for the sake of loving the Creator

# Naked Truth:
. Causes of Poverty
. World Hunger and Poverty Facts and Statistics 2010
. Facts on World Hunger and Poverty
. Poverty Most Serious World Problem: Global Poll
. Poverty around the world

# Insight:

. Islam’s Radical Formula to End Poverty

. Islam Solves World Poverty and Hunger

Haqiqat of Siyam | Reality of Fasting

1.
Therefore, be perfect (insan al-kamal), 
as your Heavenly Father is Perfect (Al-Kamal).
- Christ, upon him be peace, Matthew 5:48

To attain kamaliyat, "perfection" - is a sure destination set out for every sincere seeker, as Murshid al-Qulub, Sayyidina Isa (Jesus, the Mystic Guide of the Heart) has reminded in his sohbet.

What is the pathway, walking upon which one reaches that destination of perfection?

One of the gnostic have said, "If you desire to reach perfection, say: Allah! And leave this ephemeral existence and what it contains."

Siyam or Sawm, the original Arabic word (Hebrew Tsom) is used to mean fasting, but it also means to abstain, to negate, leaving, sacrifice for something greater. One who practice Siyam is called Sayem.

Outwardly the seeker is given the first layer of outward action - which is to abstain from food, drink, vain talk, sexual union during the day light hours, so that they may also embody the inward action - to detach from earthly attachments, materialism.

The true battlefield is where no warriors or arrows are needed.
It is inside each one of us where each man must fight alone.
- Mahabharata

Thus when Ramadan comes, for practicing believer, who strive to walk upon the path of haqiqat, the road of reality - in this month declaring 'the declaration of spiritual independence' from the earthly attachment. During Ramadan the sayem practices two essential traits of Godly perfection: to abstain from material food during day and to stay up at night in worship. God in His perfection is free from taking food and free from sleep (Laa ta'-khuzuhuu sinatunw-wa laa nawm. 2:255). And practicing so, the sayem partake in the image of his Lord in which he or she is created in reflection.

In the very Sohbet of Beatitudes of Jesus where he finishes by inviting his companions to become perfect, among the Pathways to reach that perfection which he hints among his teaching were: "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst (fast) for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied." (Matthew 5) This is different from fast of ordinary people who go by the motion of the society, but fasting with a heart oriented by perfect intention of attaining righteousness, attaining perfection. Thus the sayem prays over his fasting, "O Allah I fasted for Your sake and I break my fast for Your sake, please accept this offering for YouSelf."

Goal and result of fasting is becoming Saf (pure) by refraining from everything other than God. 'Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God' said blessed Master Christ. As Sufi Inayat Khan explains, "This purity of heart is not only in thought, feeling, and action; it is the purity, which in the East is called Saf, from which the word Sufi is said to have come. This Saf makes the heart pure from all that is not God, in other words, the heart must see and realize all as God and God as all."

In pursuit to attain kamaliyat, the seeker attain the power or mastery of breaking bonds from tagut, from the maya of creation. Siyam is that where the seeker in this life time consciously break the bond of materialism, the bond of flesh. Dr. Hisham Hasballah writes, "Physical nourishment is not sufficient for a healthy life; man also has spiritual needs.  Fasting is way more than just going without food and drink (that's called a crash diet). At its best, it is a spiritual and physical cleansing and a declaration of independence from the shackles of earthly life. If you want to embark on a spiritual fast, you need mental readiness to forgo the normal things that define your life."

The breaking of fast, which is called Iftar has very significant meaning to the people of Haqiqat. The word iftar comes from "fatara" which means "to break into pieces". This is the breaking of every bonds that hinder perfection, that stand between this self veiled from God and God: the Lord of Perfection and Reality. This breaking also includes the bond of dependence on food and drink. Freedom from materialism is the precondition for nirvana, freedom from entering into the samsara again and again and hence freedom from suffering.

For the people of haqiqat, breaking of fast or iftar is the symbol of "knowing God" by breaking the idol of everything other than God. Thus when the Prophet said, "Man shall not have his blessing cut as long as they hasten to break their fast", this breaking of fast outwardly means not to delay when the sun is down, to resume food into the body with the proper rhythm of the nature - and inwardly this means to rise above the ego's impulses for material attachment and to come to know that this human existence  is not flesh, bones, blood  and veins alone, but spirit from God's breath. From real iftar, self-realization comes and also comes every kind of inner illumination. In another place the Mystic Master Muhammad transmitted, Allah says, "Among My servants they are My most favorite who does Iftar without delay."

Some reach Self-Realization at a later stage of their life, those who are fortunate and blessed attain it earlier stage of their journey. Those who strive, enter into sadhana (and Ramadan is one of such hallmarked month to enter into such state of practice), by grace, accelerate their progress towards Self-Realization. One who attain the love of God and through that love, gnosis of God earlier on, while in their body, they are more dear to God because then they could enjoy this existence, spending more breath with the consciousness and pure awareness of Taqwa (Godly Consciousness) than wasting precious breaths in unaware state. Thus the Sayem (one who fast) strive for real Iftar without delay.

2.
If you do not fast from the world, you will not find the (eternal) Kingdom. - Saying of Christ, The Gospel of Thomas

But the days will come when the beloved of the heart (the bridegroom) is taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.
- Mark 2:20

It is related that Jesus remained for sixty days in secret communion with his Lord without eating. Then the thought of bread occurred to him, and the communion ceased, and behold a loaf was placed before him. Then he sat down weeping over the loss of the communion. Then behold an ancient man approached him, and Jesus  said to him, "God bless you, O friend of God! Pray for me to God, Exalted is He!, for I was in an ecstasy and the thought of bread occurred to me, and the ecstasy ceased." - Ascetic sayings of Jesus

As long as the Nafs is busy with material world and engagement with the external faculty which has to do with food, drink, fulfillment of bodily urge through sexuality - the eye of the Batin remains dormant and closed. The reality of the practice of fasting is readiness towards Batin, towards that which is unseen and perceived by the inner faculty with the outer faculty actions being suspended.

3.
This passing world of appearance (dunya) is a prison for the believer
and paradise for the non-believer.  
- Hadith

For the soul, body is like a cage.
For the the lovers who long to meet the True Beloved, without any veil in between - in the Final World - this lower world is like a prison house.

"Whoever has come to understand the world (dunya and its reality) has found only a corpse, and whoever has found a corpse is superior to the world (has risen above the world). Whoever finds the world and becomes rich, let him renounce the world. Become passers-by."  
- Jesus Christ

The reality of fasting is that renouncing the worldly attachment and becoming passer by (into the AfterWorld, that which is Eternal Life, as compared to life in this lower world which vanishes in a blink of an eye).

... and Jesus answered: "It is written, Man Shall Not Live by Bread Alone. But on every Word that emanates from God's Breath." (Luke and Matthew 4.4)

Jesus was referring to Old Testament when he talked about it is written for he knew well Deuteronomy 8: 2-3: "Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep His commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD."

In Siyam, in the practice of Fasting, a sincere seeker enter into the Haqiqat that "Man shall not live by bread alone." Here "bread" symbolizes the material dependence, attachments. Inside Fasting, on the first level of abstinence from food and drink, one enters into the first level (literally) of "not living by bread alone". But pure inspiration follows as a result of true fast, where the inner heart blossoms: which is the implication of the second part of Christ's mystical saying "But on every Word that emanates from God" - it is the Divine inspiration that descends upon the inner heart of the seeker that nourishes the soul more than any worldly food or drink.

Sufi Master Bawa Muhaiyaddeen hints this pure inspiration in his inspired words (July 30 1980, Lailatul Qadr, Chapter 3, "The Ramadan Book"):

"O Muhammad (Praiseworthy Creation),

if man climbs

the black rocky mountain of his heart

and goes beyond

if he opens the bismin - kai,

The minute morsel of flesh

goes within, climbs beyond,

and worships Me with a melting heart,

I will send down the divine knowledge

known as Lailatul-Qadr.

I will send this into his heart.

O Muhammad,

I will send down the same divine knowledge

the same Lailatul Qadr,

to anyone who opens his inner heart

and offers worship.

This Qadr, this Ray, will resplend.

It will resonate in the inner heart."

In his book, Siyam Darshan (Meeting with Fasting) Sadr Uddin Ahmad Chishti writes (as translated in concise form here), During the real fasting, when the mind is guarded - no unripe thoughts, no negativity find any entrance to the mind. Thus door to the garden is opened. Thus inspirations begin to pour in upon the inner plane of Mujahid (one who strives, warrior of light) and in such inspiration - subtle aspect of truth and falsehood become manifest and clear. This in one hand, guides the Mujahid into the path of truth and attracts towards truth; and in other hand, shows what is false and drive him away from every falsehood. Thus every subtle thoughts, delusion with the material lower world slowly gets detached from the mind. Thus no where in his inner world can there be any place for the fire (nar). From first night (of Ramadan) to last, this is how it is.

That is the meaning of the saying of the Prophet on the authority of  Dervish companion Abu Huraira: "When Ramadan comes, the unholy beings get chained and the doors of fire get shut and the doors to Garden is opened and none of it is closed. And an announcer announces: "O who seek success, come forward! O who seek failure, leave this door. And every night is like this."

4.

Fasting is to refrain from seeing otherness. My breaking the fast is to return to You. Fasting in common language is to refrain. In the language of the People of Haqiqat, it is to refrain from everything except their Beloved.

When the gnostics refrain from other-than-Allah, it is in a special presence, and it is the Presence of the Essence. This is also expressed as the Presence of the Kingdom of Power. There is no witnessing of the essence in the presence of acts, or names, or attributes. That is why refraining is permissible in this situation. The man of this station is not in a state of gatheredness in most cases, because of disturbances from the waves of names and attributes. These disturbances interfere with the attempt to refrain from other-than-Allah. On the contrary, the Presence of Oneness is exalted above the interference of other matters. Even if the one of this station intends to see otherness, he cannot, because the reality of that Presence does not permit it.

- 'Knowledge of God' by Shaykh Ahmad Ibn Mustafa ibn al-‘Alawi


5.

Fast from phenomenal being and do not break your fast!

The God of creation will bring you close, taking charge of you by that.

Inasmuch as it is a fast, intend that. By nature it is your nourishment.

If you reflect on it, there is a meaning in the fast

whenever a creature alights at your abode.

"There is nothing like the fast."

The Lawgiver said that to me, so reflect on that!

This is because it is non-action. Where is that

which you have done and where is your claim?

The matter has returned to its root.

My Lord has seized control of you by that.

If you reflect on the principle of the fast

and the basis of its meaning by your meaning,

Someone with news came from Him

about your prescribed fast which will divest you.

The fast belongs to Allah, so do not be ignorant.

You are merely the place of its manifestation.

The fast belongs to Allah,

and yet you are the one dying of hunger, so know that!

The Merciful made you feminine (receptive soul) because of what appears from you when He fashioned you (the self).

Glory be to the One who fashioned you! Welcome to Him!

He only gave that to you!

You, like the earth, are a bed for it

and your source-spring (eye) is described as weeping.

You see the source of the handiwork of Allah

between the two of you, so where is your manifestation?

When you called on Allah out of abasement to Him, the Great,

He said, "At your service" to you.

The highest pen in His Tablet

wrote your pure description from Him.

You are the source of all, not His source.

He brought you near from one aspect and put your far from another.

Beware of being content with what pleases you

for the sake of what He makes pleasing to you.

Remain with your root in all He desires.

Do not forget so as to be forgotten.

This is the knowledge

which came to me from one Who does not lie.

He brought it down at the command of the One who has the most

knowledge of what is between the ascetics and devout.

Praise be to Allah who bestowed on me knowledge of lights and darkness. He gave me a form whose perfection is only by Your shelter.

Fasting is abstention and elevation

May Allah support you! Know that fasting (sawm) is both abstention and elevation. One says "the day has reached its full height (sama)" when it has reached its highest point. (The poet) Imru'l-Qays said:

When the day reached its height and its heat was intense, i.e. the day reached its fullest extent. It is because the fast has a higher degree than all other acts of worship that it is called "fast". Allah elevated it by denying that it is like any other act of worship as we will discuss. He denied its ownership to His servants although they worship Him by it and ascribed the fast to Himself. Part of its affirmation is that He rewards the one who is described by it by His hand even though He connected it to Himself when He stated that it is not like anything else.

Fasting in reality is non-action, not action

In reality, fasting is non-action, not action. The negation of likeness is a negative attribute. Therefore the relationship between it and Allah is strengthened. Allah Almighty says about Himself, "There is nothing like Him." (42:11) He denied that there is anything like Him and so there is nothing like Him by logical proofs and by the Shari'a. An-Nasa'i related that Abu Umama said, "I came to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and said, 'Give me something that I can take from you.' He said, 'You must fast. There is nothing like it.'" He denied that it was like any of the acts of worship which are prescribed for the servants of Allah.

Anyone who recognises that it is a negative attribute – since it consists of abandoning things which break it – knows absolutely that there is nothing like it since it has no source which is described by understood existence. This is why Allah said, "The fast is Mine." In reality, it is neither worship or action. It is permissible to apply the name 'action' to it, as the application of the expression 'existent' can be applied to Allah. We understand that it is allowed although the ascription of existence to He whose existence is the same as His Essence is not like the ascription of existence to us. "There is nothing like Him." (42:11)

Every action of the son of Adam is his except fasting. It belongs to Allah. 

The Gate of Quenching by which fasters enter the Garden

By way of the meaning, the Shari'a has described fasting with the perfection above which there is no perfection. This is because Allah gave it a special Door with a special name which demands perfection. It is called the Door of 'Rayyaan': the Quenched. The fasters enter it. Quenching is a degree of perfection in drinking. After being quenched, the drinker does not accept any more to drink to all. Whenever he accepts, then he was not quenched, whether it is a land or not a land among the lands of the animals.

Muslim related from the hadith of Sahl ibn Sa'd that the Messenger of Allah said, "There is a door in the Garden called the Quenching. The fasters will enter it on the Day of Rising. None except them will enter it. It will be said, 'Where are the fasters?' and they will enter it. When the last of them has gone in it, it will be locked and no one else will enter it." That is not said about any of the commanded or forbidden acts of worship except for the fast. By "the Quenching," He made it clear that they obtain the attribute of perfection in action since they are described by that which has no like as we already said. In reality, the one who has no like is the perfect. The fasters among the gnostics enter it here, and there they will enter it with the knowledge of the entire creative manifestation.

- Selections from al-Futuhat al-Makkiyya  by Shaykh Muhyiddin Ibn al-'Arabi 


Blessed are those who hunger and thirst (fast) for righteousness,
for they shall be satisfied. - Beatitudes of Jesus

May we not swim out of this holy month of Ramadan without receiving that blessedness and grace and may the fulfillment of the promise of the Most Faithful Beloved be fulfilled, that we be quenched and be satisfied, in this passing-world and in the after-world to arrive. Ameen ya Rabbal alaamin. So Be it, O Lord of the two worlds!

# Resources:
. Kitab al-Siyam (Book of Fasting), Sunan Abu Dawud
. The Sufi Guide to the Holy Month of Ramadhan- 2010
. The Book of Fasting by Muhammad b. Ibraheem at-Tuwaijry
. Ramadan Inspirations
. Reality of Fasting: audio lecture by Saeid Tabar

Ramadan Preparations and Inspirations

1.

The gnosis of soul is that everything comes from the Presence. That’s how we know God, through the awareness that the soul has. If everyone could know this all the time, everyone would be a prophet. But that is not the case. Prophets have been given the power to renounce tasty food and drink, to relinquish pleasure in order to dissolve their attention more completely into the Divine. Very few can do this.

- Ma'arif, Bahauddin Valad, The Drowned Book

2.
Preparations for Ramadan

It was customary that the Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace, prepared for the month of Ramadan [and exemplified to others to do so, he was most generous in terms of giving away wealth in this month, he was most humble in his worship of the Lord]. All kinds of worship activities have been reported. None of which will be effective unless, we all cut-out people and things out of our lives that distance us from the Dhikr of Allah and focus on the related tasks e.g. for me the tasks are the writings here, for you might be something else.

In particular I would wish to cut out unnecessary thoughts about people and events which have nothing to do with the needed focus. In conclusion, if there is a thought or action or meeting a person, all have to be in service of the Dhikr and its related tasks, or else they need to go. It is easier said than done, but INSHALLAH let's try to prepare for the Ramadan as such.

The Prophet said: He who does not thank people will not thank Allah!

So before entering the month of Ramandan let's be thankful to the people around us:

Mother or wife or sister or son or brother... who share their lives and love(s) with us, maybe make our homes or prepare our foods or go to work and provide... Employer (Customer) who provides employment and honorable halal (Lawful) provision. Country, municipality, police and others who provide us safe and secure land. And so on.

We tend to anger when we are hungry and thirsty, angry to those around us, whether justified or not, so the Prophet also advised in such upset to invoke Allah: My Lord I am fasting. The latter actually works even if you are eating now i.e. you are within the state of fasting though not abstaining, and if you are angered by folks around you invoke Allah for calm.

I know there are quite a few foul and evil deeds that I cannot get rid of in this life, and probably I will die and only the dust of the grave shall wash them off my Nafs. And I know they plague me during the Ramadan. What to do?

23:96 Repel evil/foulness with that which is best/good-deed

Let's say you have trouble with anger and that is your evil/foulness then give gifts and charity to repel it away by good deeds. Let's say you like shopping, indulging in foods and luxury, then be nice and fair to people or speak less and spend more time silent in Dhikr. Therefore repel one foulness with another good behavior. So for this Ramadan, INSHALLAH, let's choose 3 foul and evil aspects of our personalities and behavior, and seek repellents now before the month starts. Mind you the repellents must be some deed or behavior that is easy on you and you can perform it with sincerity, in completion and frequently. [Recommended: 68 blemishes of the ego-self to work upon/ also, Defects of Nafs]

[if there is only one imperfection that you can work on in this lunar cycle, then practice towards having no malice in your heart for anyone. Love all, have malice towards none - and by Allah's grace, one is guided to exalted state of the heart and soul in this. Thousand times easier said than done. But those who are successful in freeing their inner heart from any trace of malice towards other sentient beings, shall enter That Divine Presence in the Renewed Reality of the AfterWorld, Inshallah. This is confirmed by our Grand Master Mustafa and his heirs.]

Prophet Moses, peace be upon him, could not wait to make the rendezvous with Allah, just because Hu is sublime and most beautiful: Once a servant is exposed to a single ray of Nur's beauty, there is no going back or waiting... When you fast, you WAIT for the time to eat and drink, similarly we have to WAIT for when and where and how Allah might show us some Divine Beauty. To view that Divine Beauty is endowed, not achieved.

- Advice of Dara O Shayda, may Allah bless his work
via his moderated Yahoo Group: the Sufi Notes


3.
Ramadan Inspirations from previous years posts

. Ramadan: The Quintessential Month of Fasting
. The Meaning and Dimensions of Fasting in Ramadan
. Ramadan Hadith
. Two fold meaning of Sawm
. Purpose of Ramadan
. Ramadan Mubarak | Blessed Ramadan to all 

. Ramadan Discourse by Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani
. A Sufi Masters Advice on Fasting
. Secrets of Ramadan

. Rumi on Fasting and Jesus on Spiritual Nourishment
. Science of Fasting - Medical benefits of fasting and beyond
. Philosophy of Ramadan
. Essence and Symbology of Fasting and Sacrifice
. Symbolic Meaning of Sighting New Moon and Breaking Fast

. Fast of Jesus Christ and Mother Mary
. Jesus Christ bless those who fast
. Wisdom of Confucius: Fasting of the Heart
. Fasting as self discipline
. Spiritual Wisdom of Fasting
. Observing Ramadan as a Month of Universal Spirituality
. Immersion | a Ramadan Sharing

. Prayer for Ramadan
. Ramadan Prayer
. Prayer for the last ten days of Ramadan
. Last Ten Nights of Ramadan of Exalted Possibility of Transformation
. Come! let us fast today


4.

In Numerology Number Nine (9) represent the completion of numbers, it is of the highest value, after which again the number series repeats itself. Similarly the ninth month of  Islamic Lunar Calendar, Ramadan is the month of highest point of spiritual embodiment, a time for spirituality in practice, reaching climax for divine inspiration. It is the month when servant, the seeker journey to learn the way of the luminous beings, way of the truly guided one - to fast, to abstain (sawm) from everything other than God. And abstraining from everything other than God is mean to approaching the divine promise where Allay says, "Fasting is for Me and I Myself is its Goal and Reward."

Every moment of this holy month is best reserved for contemplation, inner-work (as well as stepping up of amal saleh, the wholesome work) and turning inward. Allah gives us the most wonderful opportunity to see who we are and how we are (our states and stations). During Ramadan I won't be posting here frequently except for update on the Gladdening the Sacred Hearts Project progress and a report of a Foundation which is a work in progress to help the needy, the poorest among the poor, orphans and the less fortunes ones. Since it has been mostly your generous contributions which helped put together these projects, it is my obligation to update on it. God willing, I hope to provide an update within few days. 

I ask your forgiveness for every shortcomings on my part, for being less than sincere and I ask forgiveness and grace of Allah, except Whom there is no other to turn to. Hasbun Allah wa Ni'mal Wakil, wa Ni'mal Mawla, wa Ni'mal Nasir.

May this blessed month be truly blessed and may we perfect our journey unto Allah, by Allah, with Allah, for Allah. La ilaha illa Allah.