SHAYKH DR MUHAMMAD ‘ABDUL HAYY ‘AARIFI ra

Khalifah of Hakeemul Ummat, Shaykh Ashraf ‘Ali Thanwi ra

Dr ‘Abdul Hayy ‘Aarifi was a homeopathic doctor who helped people with physical ailments, however according to Mufti Taqi Uthmaani Sahib (Khalifah of Dr ‘Abdul Hayy ‘Aarifi), “In reality the spiritual ailments that plague hearts and souls were cured in that surgery of his”! The following are some examples of his beautiful character and wisdom.

His wife of 60 years says that in all their time together, her husband did not once command her to do something for him and she used to happily serve him of her own free will. Generally, husbands consider it their right and have their wives perform various tasks for them. Not so this amazing friend of Allah who did not even ask her for a glass of water! They had spent approximately 60 years together and let alone an expression of anger, he did not even change his tone while addressing his wife!

Is that not the example of one who adhered to the Hadith of our beloved Prophet sallallaahu ‘alayhi wasallam,

“The best among you are those who are best to their wives
and I am the best to my wives among you”?

*****

Once while travelling to a remote area in a horse drawn cart the driver of the cart suddenly stopped in a wide stretch of wilderness and instructed the travellers to get off and take shelter from a violent storm for which the area was well known. In this storm even heavy objects were known to be lifted and dropped elsewhere.

Dr Sahib relates that I was about to take shelter by the side of a tree when the driver screamed at us saying that in such a storm massive trees are known to drop and it was extremely dangerous. His advice was to lie down on the ground, face down. We acted on this and lay down while the storm raged around us uprooting trees and hillocks. Throughout the raging storm we lay without a single hair of ours moving out of place. When the storm ended there was serenity and we continued with our journey.

Dr Sahib says that there was a great lesson in the incident, “Safety from the storms of time does not lie in seeking out heights, but lies rather in adopting humility and servitude in the form of placing one’s forehead on the ground”.

*****

“Only they will get Him who have a thirst
Only they will find Him who seek Him”

*****

A person once belittled his own act of prostration saying, “What is the reality of our sajdah? It is nothing more than a joke. The heart and mind are filled with filthy thoughts. What will be achieved by placing the forehead on the ground in such a state?”

Dr ‘Abdul Hayy’s reply was “Can this sajdah, impure and filthy though it may be, ever be made before me?” On a negative reply he continued, “If this sajdah is so impure and filthy and without any importance, why can it not be made before a being as filthy and impure as myself? Since this forehead can prostrate to none besides Allah, then your prostration was actually for none besides Allah. So firstly express gratitude for the fact that Allah has given you the tawfeeq for even such a sajdah because there are many souls who are deprived of this. Thereafter seek forgiveness for whatever shortcomings you discover within yourself in this regard. Beware of ever considering prostration before Allah as useless and wasted”.

He then recited a couplet which meant:

“If by prostrating the forehead nothing is attained….then “nothing” is fine.
How can anyone ever leave the threshold of the Beloved?”

*****

He said he made a concerted effort for years to develop correct intention of obedience to the Sunnah. For instance if delicious food was placed in front of him and even though he was extremely hungry, he would control his desire and withhold from eating until he spent a few moments to ponder on the bounty and gift from Allah and then he would say to himself that it was the practice of Allah’s beloved Messenger sallallaahu ‘aayhi wasallam to express gratitude on the bounties of Allah. Dr Sahib would then say to himself that I will now eat in keeping with the Sunnah.

In the same way on coming home his gaze would lovingly settle on his child and his heart’s desire was to take the child lovingly on his lap. He would pause and meditate for a few moments that Allah’s beloved Messenger sallallaahu ‘aayhi wasallam used to love children and in keeping with this Sunnah he would then allow himself to pick up the child and play with him.

Even in intense thirst when a glass of cold water was placed in front of him and he desired to gulp it down and quench his thirst, he says he would not allow himself to do this until he ponders over the fact that cold water was extremely beloved to Allah’s Messenger sallallaahu ‘aayhi wasallam and it will be in keeping with this Sunnah that I will drink this water.

In short, for a lengthy period of time he practised this form of meditation to make an intention to act upon every Sunnah from morning till night. The result was reaching a stage where an intention automatically came to mind.

He used to say that Deen is in reality the changing of one’s point of view. Acts which we consider worldly remain the same but they are converted to acts of worship and essential parts of Deen.

*****

» Posted by ummi taalib on 21st June 2009

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