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Sufism

Khuṭbāt-e-Ḥakīm al-Ummat, Volume 3

Religion and the World

Ḥakīm al-Ummat, Ḥaḍrat Mawlānā Muḥammad Ashraf ʿAlī Thānawī

The third volume of the addresses: what religion is, why it must be kept pure and undivided, and how it is set right beside the demands of the world.

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Contents

  1. The Religion Made Pure (al-Dīn al-Khāliṣ) Sincerity (ikhlāṣ) is that one should have no selfish motive of one's own, that only the pleasure of the Truth be sought. The way to attain it is...
    Sections 16
    1. The Transmitted Sermon
    2. The Error of the Common People and the Elite
    3. The Standing of a Muslim
    4. Conduct Towards the Familiar and the Unfamiliar
    5. A Form of Imitating the Disbelievers
    6. The Importance of Sincerity
    7. The Necessity of Sincerity
    8. The Effect of Elaborate Formality
    9. The Methods of Spiritual Struggle
    10. The Reality of Taṣawwuf
    11. The Need for Sincerity in Knowledge
    12. The Requirement of Servitude (*ʿubūdiyyat*)
    13. The Need for Good Intention
    14. The Faults of the Absence of Sincerity
    15. The Sincerity of the People of the Inward
    16. The Ways to Sincerity
  2. The Religion Set Out in Full (Tafṣīl al-Dīn) Gentlemen! This is the very verse concerning which a necessary discourse was delivered yesterday. Since that subject was composed of two parts, and...
  3. Perfection in Religion (al-Kamāl fi'l-Dīn) The easiest way to reach Allāh is that we should not rest content with our deficient state, but should strive to attain perfection in religion (kamāl...
    Sections 59
    1. The Transmitted Sermon
    2. Introduction
    3. The Secret of Failure
    4. The Difference between Wishing and the Way
    5. There Is No Hardship in Religion
    6. The Objections of Today
    7. Illustrative Parables
    8. The Reality of the Hardship
    9. The Promise of Fruits
    10. The Form of the Connection with Allāh
    11. The Station of Boldness and Humble Need
    12. The Method of Every Task
    13. The Difference Between Religion and the World
    14. Regard for the Means of Livelihood
    15. The Excuses of the Self
    16. Converse with Allāh
    17. The Sign That Acts of Obedience Are Accepted
    18. The Reason for Failure in Religion
    19. Commentary on the Noble Verse
    20. The Striving for Perfection
    21. Religiousness and Contentment
    22. The Story of a Seeker of Allāh
    23. The Story of an Ignorant Man Who Trusted in Allāh
    24. An Account of a Seeker of Allāh
    25. Divine Help
    26. The Want of Concern
    27. A Remarkable Theme
    28. The State of the Noble Companions
    29. Piety Set Out in Detail
    30. The Meaning of the Truthful
    31. Commentary on the Verse of Righteousness
    32. The Account of the Beliefs
    33. The Kinds of the Deeds of the Sacred Law
    34. The Station of the Lover
    35. The Kinds of the Rights of People
    36. The Connection between the Body and the Soul
    37. The Prohibition of Speaking Ill of the Dead
    38. Respect for the Saints of Allāh
    39. The Reality of Patience and Its Kinds
    40. Desire for Beardless Youths
    41. The Origin of Desire for Beardless Youths
    42. The Wrong Use of the Word Liwāṭat
    43. The Disease of the Gaze
    44. Striving for Arrival unto Allāh
    45. The Manner of Arrival unto Allāh
    46. The Rope of Allāh
    47. The Kinds of Desire
    48. A Comprehensive Trait of Character
    49. The Way to Become Perfect
    50. The Cure for the Resistance of the Lower Self's Demands
    51. The Difference Between General and Special Sainthood
    52. The Condition for the Companionship of the Perfected Ones
    53. The Effect of the Companionship of the Perfected Ones
    54. The Meaning and Commentary of Truthfulness
    55. The Terms of the Sacred Law
    56. The Precedence of Piety
    57. The Degrees of Piety
    58. An Amusing Story
    59. The Meaning of Abrogation
  4. The Need to Attend to Religion (Ḍarūrat al-Iʿtināʾ bi'l-Dīn) A very great disease has now arisen among the Muslims, namely the want of attention to religion (qillat-e-ihtimām-e-dīn). It is a disease on account...
    Sections 17
    1. The Transmitted Sermon
    2. The Real Benefit Is the Benefit of Religion
    3. The Religious Upbringing of Children
    4. Setting Right Both Livelihood and the Return
    5. The Want of Attention to Religion
    6. The Consequence of Denying Prophethood
    7. The Effect of Cutting Short Deeds
    8. An Explanation of the Abrahamic Prayer
    9. The More Excellent Teaching
    10. The Proprieties of Teaching and Upbringing
    11. Following the Excellent Example
    12. The Pattern of a Wedding
    13. The Prophet's Conduct in Bereavement
    14. The Poverty of the Prophet
    15. An Illustrative Story
    16. The Sincerity of the Poor
    17. The Effect of Veneration
  5. The Need for Knowledge of Religion (Ḍarūrat al-ʿIlm bi'l-Dīn) At this time, reflecting on the state of the Muslims of the whole world shows that those who are Muslims are leaving the commands of Islam and its...
    Sections 24
    1. The Transmitted Sermon
    2. The Standing of the Qurʾān
    3. The Qurʾān and Scientific Learning
    4. How the Qurʾān Is Understood
    5. The Disease of These Days
    6. The Nature of the Qurʾān's Contents
    7. The Qurʾān's Teaching of Peace
    8. Diagnosing the Diseases of the Spirit
    9. The Ease of Religion
    10. The Attempt to Alter the Qurʾān
    11. The Want of Knowledge and Action
    12. The Need to Memorise the Qurʾān
    13. The Reality of the World
    14. Attending to the Service of Religion
    15. Serving the Servants of Religion
    16. The People of Allāh Are Not Hangers-On
    17. The Responsibility for Guarding the Qurʾān
    18. The Cheapness of Knowledge of Religion
    19. The Importance of the Arabic Sciences
    20. The Importance of the Words of the Qurʾān
    21. The Matter of the Hereafter
    22. The Right Time for Teaching the Qurʾān
    23. The Wisdom of the Ruling on Asking Leave to Enter (istīdhān)
    24. The Excuse of a Weakened Brain
  6. The Need for the Scholars (Ḍarūrat al-ʿUlamāʾ) Allāh exalted has given man reason so that by it he may consider the outcome. When you keep the outcome in view in the works of the world, where...
    Sections 23
    1. The Transmitted Sermon
    2. The Most Important Existence
    3. The Scholars in the Eyes of the Common People
    4. Removing a Misunderstanding
    5. The Importance of Poverty
    6. Want of Interest in Religion
    7. The Need for Concern for the Hereafter
    8. Mere Belief Is Not Enough
    9. The Education Necessary for One's Children
    10. The Need to Earn a Living
    11. Worldly Advancement Is Not What Is Sought
    12. The Effect of the Interest of the Rich
    13. True Awe
    14. Friendship with Religion
    15. The Special Property of Knowledge of Religion
    16. Corruption and Setting Things Right
    17. The Reality of Religion
    18. Beliefs and Public Peace
    19. The Deeds of the Sacred Law and Public Peace
    20. The Social Dealings of the Sacred Law and Public Peace
    21. The End of Rebellion
    22. The Students and the Common People
    23. An Address to Those Who Are Not People of Knowledge
  7. The Causes of Heedlessness (Asbāb al-Ghaflah) Man thinks that whatever he has is 'our wealth, and we may squander it wherever we please!' But this is his mistake. Whatever man has belongs to...
    Sections 20
    1. The Transmitted Sermon
    2. Regard for the Listeners' Disposition
    3. The Causes from Which Sins Issue
    4. The Degrees of Wealth and Children
    5. Carelessness in Acquiring Wealth
    6. Contrivances to Keep Wealth Safe
    7. Want of Care in Spending
    8. Aiding in Sin
    9. The Effect of Mixing
    10. The Faults of Women
    11. Women and the Collection
    12. The Need to Consult the Husband
    13. A Suitable Match for Marriage
    14. The Expense of Weddings
    15. The Evils of Spending Wealth
    16. How to Know a Righteous Wife
    17. The Bane of Children
    18. The Expiation for a Missed Prayer
    19. The Wrong Kind of Care for the Future
    20. The People of Loss
  8. The Manifestations of Deeds (Maẓāhir al-Aʿmāl) This sermon, concerning the warning (tarhīb) against absorption in the world (inhimāk fī al-dunyā) and the encouragement (targhīb) to prepare for the...
    Sections 19
    1. The Transmitted Sermon
    2. The Seeking of the World
    3. The Seeking of Status
    4. The Effect of Seeking Refuge with Allāh
    5. The Need for Repetition
    6. Subtle Mysteries
    7. The Kinds of the People of Paradise
    8. Love of the Truth
    9. Witnessing the Truth
    10. The Commentary on the Verse
    11. Seclusion and Education
    12. The Effect of Connection with Allāh
    13. The Reality of the Caliphate
    14. The Enduring Good Deeds
    15. The Worth of a Deed
    16. The Reality of the World
    17. The Importance of Hope
    18. The Fruit of Deeds
    19. Ongoing Charity
  9. The Way of Success (Sabīl al-Najāḥ) This verse comes at the close of Sūrah Āl ʿImrān. In Sūrah Āl ʿImrān, Allāh, the Most High, has set out the rulings of various matters, as their...
  10. The Path of Salvation (Ṭarīq al-Najāh) History bears witness that the world of the Muslims is set right together with their religion; that is, when their religion advances, their world...
    Sections 25
    1. The Transmitted Sermon
    2. The Purpose of Life
    3. The Regret of the Unbelievers
    4. Disease and Cure
    5. The Ease of Religion
    6. The Way to Set Things Right
    7. The Diseases of the Muslims
    8. The Property of a Sound Heart
    9. Asking after the Rulings of the Sacred Law
    10. The Bond between Religion and the World
    11. The Parts of Religion
    12. The Emblem of a Nation
    13. The Basis of the Proofs of the Sacred Law
    14. Our State of Character
    15. The Kinds of Treatment
    16. The Root Diseases
    17. What the Scholars Are For
    18. The Need for Good Company
    19. The Way of Teaching and Nurture
    20. The Benefits of Good Companionship
    21. The Responsibility for Children
    22. The Spirit of Religion
    23. The Signs of a Man of Perfection
    24. The Etiquette of Good Companionship
    25. A Substitute for Good Companionship
  11. Glossary