Rabbani teaching
by S. Amanoullah de Vos
The 3 axes of Rabbani teaching, tazkiyat an-nafs, Adab al Hadrah, strategy of the people of the Cave, Ahl al Kahf.
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In the letter n° 4, following the teaching of Mawlana Sheikh Nazim, we insisted on the dangers of our troubled times (Fitna). One of these major causes is : not knowing how to stay in one's place. This letter n°4 was not excessive, but a call to humility. It is a contribution to the protection of our right orientation : to seek God above all by avoiding to identify oneself with a function or by claiming titles.
Sheikh Nazim with his master Sheikh Abdallah
We discovered just after this writing an important teaching of Sheikh Adnan, this great scholar on the same subject, (see video of February 2014 in Sri Lanka on the risks of hypocrisy) where he says for himself in substance : "we do not claim any title, just the Peace that gives the Way". This is an example of the sainthood of the true knower who sees himself as faqîr, poor before God, not asking for any recognition knowing that God knows his saints.
Recently republished, everyone can also read a magnificent text by Sheikh Al Alawi on the sufi Way in which this same subject appears. We quote the extract : "He who claims to want to guide people and undertakes to educate them spiritually before it is obvious to him, presents the symptom of a disorder, fitna. Indeed, his initiative towards the creatures proceeds from something created, that is to say from his ego, nafs. This initiative does not come from his Lord, and that is why it will be rejected. His action will become a cause of trouble, fitna, for himself as well as for all those who will be attached to him .... The being who wishes to manifest himself is the servant of manifestation and he thus betrays his condition of servant of God insofar as he wants to correct in others what he has not finished correcting in himself. This rule of anonymity applies to all those who have obtained something from the secrets of the chosen community. The one who has not obtained anything and tries to guide (irchad) others is only a liar and an impostor (muftatirr)" (Sagesse céleste, Sheikh al Alawi, Entrelacs Editions, pages 464,465). The Sheikh in the same context reminds that if these people who use religion for a personal cause, according to a kind of political trickery, or personal interest, seems to succeed, one should not be deceived because the verse of the Quran is clear, and he quotes the one that Mawlana Sheikh Nazim used to recite systematically during the tarawih of the month of Ramadan, those who were present should remember it:
"When these people forgot what they had been reminded of, We opened the doors of all things to them; but after they enjoyed the goods that had been bestowed upon them, We took them away abruptly and they found themselves in despair. Then all that remained of that unjust people was cut off. Praise be to God, the Lord of the Worlds" (Qur'an 6-44-45).
Sheikh Ahmad al-Alawi, the spiritual pole and representative of Imam Ali (hence the name of his tariqa) in his time, showered the West with his Barakah in the early 20th century
This clarification does not come from bad intention, disappointment, jealousy or other feelings, but rather from a feeling of compassion, Rahma, which aims to prevent the risk of veiling the Way. "Allahumma anta maqsudi wa ridhak matlubi": This is the dhikr of the true murîd naqshbandi "O my God you are my Goal and it is Your satisfaction that I ask for". The path of the sincere, çiddiqiyyun, asks us not to turn away from God by functions, titles, stations. In this spirit I would like to continue by showing that the Rabbani teaching opened by Mawlana Sheikh Nazim ar-rabbani, the expression of the Way in our time, can be seen from three axes :
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Tazkiyat an-nafs, Purification of the ego ;
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Adab al Hâdra, the respect of the Presence in its particular theophany of the moment ;
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The strategy of the people of the cave, Ahl al-kahf, the companions of Imam Mahdi.
Sheikh Amanullah receiving the recommendations of his Master Sheikh Nazim ar-Rabbani
I- TAZKIYAT AN-NAFS
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Tazkiyat an-nafs (purification of the soul) is the Qur'anic term for the Sufi path in the holy text. It is therefore worth looking at it closely. Let us note that the Arabic and Koranic word nafs designates both the soul and the ego which is a deviated fixation of it. We will see that this soul which originally proceeds from Naffas Ar-Rahman, the breath of the All-Merciful, divine light equivalent to the Spirit, then descended, with the fall, from the summit of the Being into the miserable degrees of existential conditions. The magnificent Koran distinguishes 7 degrees of the nafs in the sacred text.
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An Nafs ammara bi Su', the soul that incites to evil. This is the degree of those who do not even know that the ego exists and who let themselves be guided by their morbid compulsive tendencies, the idolatrous fixations that lead to the imprisonment of the consciousness.
An nafs lawwama, the self-blaming soul. This is the degree of the soul that resists evil but settles in morbid reproaches that do not bring it out of its state. It criticizes itself and at the same time begins to criticize others without finding a solution. These are souls tormented by the mind.
An nafss moutma’inna, the appeased soul; This is the degree of the soul that finds Peace, through the path of invocation of the heart dhikr Allah and begins to taste the silence. People at this level prefer silence to the discussions produced by the mind because they have begun to taste the peace that comes when the mind stops soliciting them constantly.
An Nafs radhia, the satisfied soul, happy because it has received the true joy (which is the contact with the Being; this is the degree of the soul, which is not only at peace, but finally tastes the JOY, as its deep and real nature. Indeed, our BEING radiates. As gold naturally shines by its nature, the nature of the soul is to radiate JOY naturally. People of this degree are recognized by their inner joy.
An Nafss Mardiyya, the soul that gives Joy to God as it is accepted and by extension gives JOY to others. This is the degree of those who give the joy of spiritual awakening.
An nafss ‘ibadi, the perfectly obedient servant soul like the angels, the angelic soul or Rabbani, An nafs jannati, the soul that has regained its paradisiacal nature and lives continuously in Paradise wherever it is.
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This is the path by which the soul finds its original nature according to the Koranic teaching. There is no need to remind you that it is necessary to start at the beginning: to know the mechanisms of detour produced by the ego. For let's emphasize it: in order to achieve the following degrees, it is necessary that the eyes have become clear, that the heart has operated its "unveiling". The immense importance of the beginning, this wudu’, this ablution of the soul, will condition the continuation of the path. Without this unveiling through the purification of the soul, how can we see the divine call, how can we perceive the theophanies that allow Adab al Hadra. For we will see that the remedies for these diseases of the soul are included in the knowledge and practice of the Divine Names as hadarat, the manifestation of the Presence as the fragrance of a spiritual aromatherapy (see chapter 558 Futuhat al Makiyya - where the Divine Names are considered by Sheikh al-Akbar as hadarat). This science called in Islam 'ilm an-nafs is magnificently developed in the Sufi path, and is the subject of my book L’Enneagramme dans la voie soufie. I show that the first chapters of the Qur'an, 9, 18, 27 36, all multiples of 9 speak about this subject. The beauty of it is that the 9 compulsions (produced by wounds of the soul) identified in the Qur'an (chapter 27) as : "9 individuals who corrupt the city" (the heart) have their positive corollaries (chapter 9) as the 9 typologies of sainthood:
« at-taibun, al ‘abidun, al hamidûn, as-saihûn, ar raki’un, as-sajidûn, al-amirûn bi-l ma’rûf, an-nâhûn‘ani-l-munkar, al-hafizûn li hudûd Allah…».
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The Enneagram and the 9 typologies of sainthood according to the Magnificent Koran
Now these nine typologies of sainthood are found in the 9 companions of Imam Mahdi, clearly identified by Sheikh al Akbar as the "people of the cave", the Ahl al-Kahf. Each of them carries specific sciences related to the divine names. We will write about this in the paragraph on Adab al Hadra but it seems useful to us to remind again that before we fly away by prayers, dhikr, songs, a cleaning is necessary. Is it necessary to recall that prayer must be preceded by wudu', ablution ? However, our "poisonous memories", those that condition us in the depths of our cells, where the mind does not even have access, lead our lives without our being aware of it.

I insist : neurosciences even tell us that if the mind is the equivalent of 2000 bits/second, the unconscious which makes us somatize, corresponds to 4 billion bits/second. How can we believe that the mind can control the unconscious ? The latter is 2 million times more powerful!
We need a "trance" technique that makes us "travel" in the memories of our cells with a specific "divine light". This is the science that I have been applying for 10 years in seminars by following the "birth process". This process of our birth through the 9 months of gestation in the womb structures us deeply in the depths of our cells. Bringing down the light of consciousness is liberating. It is a true science of the soul that can be learned and not improvised and whose results are magnificent.
The old edition on the left and the new edition on the right (increased with the 27 subtypes in correspondence with the fussuss al hikam) of the Sufi Enneagram, only available in french for now
II – ADAB AL HADRA
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The WAY, whatever form it takes, consists in realizing the right attitude in the relationship to God, al Haqq, the REAL. Now, the modalities of the Divine Presence change at every moment according to theophanies, Tajjali, which are renewed. The Qur'an teaches us in chapter 55: "kulu yawmin huwa fi cha'n (Every day God is at a new work)". This is a teaching about the fluidity of knowledge in constant renewal. Knowledge is a process, a permanent mutation of consciousness, it is even "stability in renewal". It is like breathing which is the expression of the "breath of Mercy". It is structured as the breath itself is structured by the word. This breath, divine Spirit, the equivalent of divine light, is structured through relationships: through man's needs (when he calls in his dependence on God) or through his receptive capacities (when he clothes himself with these divine qualities, takhaluq bi akhalqi llah).
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The expression of these different manifestations under different circumstances constitutes the Tajjali, the Theophanies or manifestations of the "divine presences", hadarat, which are identified with the Divine Names. The murîd, the aspirant, precisely thanks to his asceticism of tazkiyat an-nafs, through the purification of his soul, by polishing the mirror of his heart, becomes capable of recognizing these divine lights without distorting them. He knows how to perceive, receive, and move according to these "presences" thus becoming ibn al-waqt, the "son of the moment". In popular language, one could say "he knows how to dance with music". However, the only one who can dance properly is the one who hears the music and its changes. In Koranic language, this is translated by the famous expression : "sami'na wa ata'na, they have heard and they have obeyed". It is a matter of hearing the divine order and conforming to it, of being in harmony with the divine plan by taking into account its fluidity, its changes. In practice the murîd, aspirant, can for example invoke the name Allah ! Allah ! And in this presence which gathers all the divine attributes, he can be led to a particular presence which represents one of the great Names of God. This is a very important secret of the way: while being in the invocation of the same name: Allah ! Allah ! The aspirant can perceive different divine names of which the name Allah takes the form. Ibn 'Arabi calls the name Allah jâmî' al-hadharat, the one that includes all presences. This explains why in the khatm khawajagan of the naqshbandi brotherhood one invokes the different divine names always ending by indicating that it represents Allah, for example: Ya Latif, Ya latif, Ya latif, Ya Allah! This practice also indicates that all these names are directed towards Allah regardless of the relationship to God that they represent. This is indicated in the Ayat "qul Id'ou Allah awi Id'ou ar-rahman, ayyama tad'uhou, falahou al asma al hossnâ" (Invoke Allah or invoke the Merciful. Whatever name you call upon Him, to Him belong the most beautiful names (Qur'an. 17-110)). Lahou (to Him) indicates here that the variety of the divine names is only the expression and the shimmering of His Essence and always lead back to Him.
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We can consider two phases corresponding to our "spiritual orientation". In the first one the murîd realizes that when he invokes Allah, in fact he thinks for example "ya Sattar" the one who "saves", because it is in fact the request from which he invokes. Another time he will still say Allah Allah but in fact he will think, "ya Razaq", the one who feeds, because his request and his call proceeds from this need for food. This attitude is normal and it is the attitude of the believer who asks his Lord quite legitimately. But the one who aspires to sainthood, to purity, to sincerity, when he realizes that his invocation is often "interested", he then tries to say really Allah, Allah, without a particular request included in his call, just for the "face of God". This practice is not so simple to realize because it implies "the awareness" of what motivates us unconsciously and how to detach ourselves from it to invoke Allah in the purest way. In the second phase, the murîd, has realized in full consciousness that there is only HIM. He can invoke by all names, the one who remains (al-bâqî) will always be HIM, Allah. Nothing distracts him from the contemplation of the Essence, for he sees it present in all things, no matter by which names he invokes. This ability and practice are based on the application of two fundamental sciences: first tazkiyat an nafs, in order to open the eye of the heart, then on the knowledge of the Divine Names which are the matrices of theophanies, the angles of the light, the relations of man with his Lord. This is what one learns with a qualified guide in particular, in the practice of khalwa, the spiritual retreat.
III- The Strategy of the People of the Cave, Ahl al Kahf
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The Qur'an gives us a universal teaching, an archetype that can be applied to all times. Today, in this time of trouble (fitna), the convergence of all the hadiths (the prophetic words) leads us to follow the example of the "people of the cave". Retreat with one's spiritual family to a chosen space in order to protect oneself from what one cannot change. We can also understand this retreat as a training to become the companions of Imam al-Mahdi preparing for his appearance. We will talk in letter n°6 about the modalities of this strategy in relation to the sciences of these companions of Imam al-Mahdi as taught by Sheikh al Akbar as well as Sheikh Abdallah ad-Daghestani and Sheikh Nazim, who also named these companions who are mentioned in the talisman, daïra, worn by the disciples. It is a blessing of protection but also connects us with the presence of these companions. And it is from God that the timely graces come (wa mina Allah Tawfîq).
Servant of the Way, S. Amanoullah
Daïra Naqshbandi