Pledging Allegiance to the People of God

30 Sep

“Truly those who pledge allegiance unto thee pledge allegiance only unto God. The Hand of God is over their hands. And whosoever reneges, reneges only to his detriment. And whosoever fulfills what He has pledged unto God, He will grant him a great reward.” (Q Fath 48:10)

Your pledge of allegiance to the People of God is a pledge of allegiance to God. It is devoid of intermediaries, though it may be qualified by them. The sign that one has pledged allegiance to the light of God is the instantaneous illumination of the heart. Your pledge, moreover, is preceded by God’s invocation of blessings upon you. For God says, “He it is Who blesses you, as do His angels, that He may bring you out of darkness into light. And He is Merciful unto the believers.” (Q Ahzab 33:43)

The blessing of being singled out by God’s mercy flows through you [at the moment of the pledge of allegiance]. This is why the light of the Real discloses itself to you in plain sight. You see it with the eye of the heart during an awakened state…

The blessed Messenger of God (s) says in an authentic hadith: “You shall see your Lord in the Hereafter just as you see this moon.” (Bukhari and Muslim)…You see the moon [of light during your pledge of allegiance] in herebelow before the hereafter. For the Real is not confined to time, just as He is not confined to space. The day of your pledge allegiance to the People of Light is therefore the beginning of the Day of Increase (yawm al-mazid).

This pledge of allegiance to the Shaykh is a pure pledge of allegiance to God. It is sheer subtle grace (laṭafa mahḍa). It is a light from the light of the Almighty; a mirror of the attribute of the Real; A lamp (misbah) that shines brilliantly upon God’s kingdom. Were it not for the glass (zujaja) of concealment, its luminosity would burn the eyesight that beholds it. Thus should you recognize the Lam of Love: behold it with the eye of lordship, gaze at it just as God described it; treat it in the outer realm with reverence and honor, and in the inner realm with worship and sincerity, so that you may stand at the station of courtesy with the presence of the People of God.

— Shaykh Mohamed Faouzi Al Karkari (Kaf al-astar)

More Teachings

Is the Path for Everyone? Yes — here’s why

Choose a Path for yourself. You can be an Adamic human being by virtue of the inblowing of the Spirit within you…or a bestial human being by virtue of the dominance of your bestial body, so that the Spirit’s influence weakens within you. You will then become ignorant of your reality, and you will not draw out the treasure that is buried within you.

The Path and the Name

The seeker must journey from the Haʾ of the Name back to the Alif, bearing in mind their differing levels. Entering unto the singular Alif is achieved through the attributes of the saint, not through those of the believer. Attaching to the elevation of the Alif enables the knower of God to taste the reality of servanthood.

God’s Light is Real — Not Metaphorical

When you strive against your lower self, the reality of this world becomes evident to you, you know that it is non-existent; that it has no existence except through God. Then God provides you with light, and through that light you come to know how close He is to you.

The Mantle of Divine Majesty

A mantle conceals the upper part, whereas a garment conceals the lower part. The higher part of the divine mantle is an allusion to Lordship (rububiyya). This mantle of Lordship comprises two sides: the outer side is the aspect of Lordship, and inner side is the pre-cosmic reality of the Cloud (al-ʿamaʾ).

Three Levels of Being within the Microcosm and Macrocosm

the sensorial human being is the one whose heart is stamped by the forms of the sense-objects. He is marked by a dominant love for the herebelow. Moreover, the spiritual human being is the one whose inward vision (basira) has opened up so that he perceives what lies beyond the sensorial realm.

Fasting the “White Days” of the Lunar Month

The Prophet (s) recommends fasting during these blessed days, and it is said that Ibrahim (s) fasted them as well. The early Arabs called these days the “White Days” (al-ayyam al-biḍ) because the moon is brightest during this period and it achieves its most complete perfection.

Finding a True Master

With manifold arguments and no shortage of nagging, my teachers, father, family, friends, and loved-ones, sought to hold me back from cutting my worldly ties and setting off alone in search of God and a true master; and in their efforts to do so they would attempt to clinch the matter with various rational and religious objections.

Why is the Divine Name the Mirror of the Spiritual Traveler?

The spiritual traveler’s journey through the Name, however, must begin at the last letter Haʾ, which we call the Haʾ of Divine Identity (haʾ al-huwiyya).

Knowledge of God Inspires Reverential Fear of God

Reflective thought that is devoid of the remembrance God (fikr duna dhikr) is a transgression. For true reflection only occurs in the wake of long periods of remembrance (dhikr tawil), once your time has been filled with the invocation.

“I am the Dot”

And this is the dot that is ascribed to the all-inclusive names and divine realities because it is through the basmala that God takes charge over the servant who has realized the station of servanthood and upon whom His names and attributes have become manifest in both his knowledge and his state.

Yousef Casewit

Pledging Allegiance to the People of God

The Shade of the Tree of Allegiance

Esoteric Knowledge and Spiritual Purification