TAQWA - Habib 'Abd Al-Qadir Al-Saqqaf

When al-Sayyid Salim bin 'Abdullah al-Hamid requested counsel from Habib 'Abd al-Qadir, he wrote the following:

After praising Allah and sending blessings upon the Messenger of Allah, he advised him to hold fast to taqwa of Allah. He said that, “The people of taqwa are of varying levels and taqwa itself has no end, since it is in reality a divine out- pouring which people receive according to the readiness of their hearts. Those who have attained these stations are with the people with their physical bodies but with Allah with their hearts and souls.

So be avid, my brother, to reach these realms in which you witness the great- ness of Allah’s signs. This is to be achieved through inward and outward purity and protecting one’s limbs from committing acts of disobedience. If the slave uses his limbs in the service of his Lord, Allah will protect him from Shaytan: Truly you (Iblis) have no power over My slaves.

Fulfil the rights of your parents, your relatives, your spouse, your children, your neighbours and all the people of la ilaha ill’Allah. Observe the prayer, for in the prayer you give greetings to all the pious slaves of Allah. Thus, whoever neglects the prayer neglects the rights of all the people of la ilaha ill’Allah. Perform the sunnahs and the adhkar pertaining to the prayer, because every pious action entails a specific reward and a specific divine gift and connection. Whoever pleases his Lord through serving Him, seeks to draw close to Him by obeying His com- mands and realises that he is a slave whose role it is to stand at the door, Allah will enshroud him with the cloak of His love and bring him close until [Allah says] “I become the hearing with which he hears, the vision with which he sees...”

Seek constantly the descent of Allah’s mercy through calling upon Him in a state of brokenness and lowliness, as nothing is more conducive to bringing forth His mercy than the slave’s recognition of his own weakness, and Allah is more merciful to His slaves than a mother is to her child.

You are required to fulfil the rights of Allah and the rights of His slaves and this is only possible, firstly, by seeking the assistance of Allah and, secondly, by organising your time so that you give every individual his or her right. Fulfil the rights of the people of la ilaha ill’Allah by attending funerals, visiting the sick and assisting the helpless. Treat them in the best possible way, as you would love to be treated, because mercy entails mercy and “those who show mercy are shown mercy by the All-Merciful.”

Habib 'Abd Al-Qadir Al-Saqqaf