An Explanation of the Significance of the Adab

Now I shall show you the Adab of the Awrad. and it is by means of these Awrad that you will attain the Gnosis of those Stations, this you will achieve by keeping to these Awrad. And they are of two kinds: those for the People of Determination (Ahlu'l-Aza'im) and the second kind is forthose who are not able to practice the first kind.

“A Spiritual exercise must be like clothing for the murid.It is the most natural and easy thing to wear, suitable and well fitted clothing- especially such a cloak of honour,but if the exercise exceeds the capacity of the murid, it becomes like an excess burden of ill fitting clothes that the murid can’t wear.And, so,if the exercise doesn’t fit him, he must carry it around like a heavy bulky package, he will always be looking for a place where he can conveniently dump it or get rid of it.” Sheik Nazim.

Adab — Perfected Manners. The outward behaviour to be observed by a follower of the Path that will aid him in reaching his goal.In this book it also refers to a foundation of prayers to be said before the main exercises, Awraad are built on the Adab. Awraad. The spiritual exercises. Discipline assigned by the Sheik for observance by the followers, sometimes practice individually and sometimes communally, sometimes silently,sometimes aloud.Awraad usually involve repitition of Holy Names and phrases or reading of litanies

The Adab of the first kind, during the course of 24 hours and its significance is detailed below: (1) For every Muslim man and woman: To repeat the Shahadah three times every day, Ashadu an Lailaha Illallah Washadu anna Muhammadan abduhu Wa Rasooluhu (Sallallahu alaihi Wa sallam). And the two phrases of the Shahadah are an expression of the Adab and the Soul ofeverything which the Prophet (Peace be upon him!) brought with him (i.e. the Shari'ah) and it is obligatory for every Muslim man and woman. (2) Seeking Allah's forgiveness: Astaghfirullah 70 times. (3) Fatihatu'l-Kitab, with the intention of sharing in the Tajallis and divine favours sent down with it when it was first revealed, in Mecca and without this intention it will be as if we have fallen outside.

Our respected teacher says: If a non-Believer should recite al-Fatihah, even if only once in his whole life, then he will not leave this world without obtaining at least part of those divine favours, because Allah does not distinguish between the non-Believer and the Fasiq (Wrongdoer) or between a Believer and a Muslim,? in fact they are all equal to him. since they are all 'included in the Ayah: (I seek refuge in Allah:) "And We have honoured the Sons of Adam." Here Allah (Who is Faultless and Self-Exalting) declares that He has honoured all the Sons of Adam. Inasmuch as these favours and these Tajallis which descended with Suratu'l-Fatihah belonged especially to the meaning of this verse, it is from this that the Kafir will get some portion of the divine favours. The Tajalli which came down with Suratu'l-Fatihah will nevercease and it will last forever, and it belongs especially to al-Fatihah. No one knows how much Tajalli there is except Allah (Who is Powerful and Sublibe) and His Messenger (Peace be upon him!) Whoever recites Suratu'l-Fatihah with the intention of sharing in these Tajallis will obtain a high position and a great rank. And whoever recites it without this intention gets general divine favours only, and not the special ones. This Surat possesses innumerable and limitless stations (Maqamat) in the sight of Allah (Who is Powerful and Sublime.)

(4) Bismillah and the verses 'Amana'r-Rasul', until the end. (Surat'ul Baqara, Surah 2, Verses 285- 286)

Whoever recites this Ayah even a single time will attain a high rank and a great position, and he will get the safety of al-Amman (Allah) in this world and the next. He will enter the circle of security in the Presence of Allah (Who is Powerful and Sublime) and will reach all the Stations of the Most Distinguished Naqshbandi Order. He will get what the Prophets and Saints could not get, and will arrive at the stage of Aba Yazid Al-Bistami, the Imam of the Order who said: "I amthe Truth (al-Haqq)". So this is the magnificent Tajalli which belongs to this Ayah and to other such Ayat also. Maulana Khalid al-Baghdadi, one of the Imams of our Order, obtained it after a good deal of time, and Allah made it special for this age.

(5) Suratu'l-Inshirah (Alam Nashrah Laka Sadrak.) (Surah Number 94)

Allah (Who is Powerful and Sublime) says in this surah: (I seek refuge in Allah:) inna ma'a'l-'Usri yusran. inna ma'a'1-usri yusra. (With the difficulty comes ease, truly with difficulty comes ease.)

On each letter and on each Ayah there is a Tajalli different from that on the others, and for each letter there is an Angel from Allah (Who is Powerful and Sublime), and none of Allah's slaves .who worships in the manner of Jinn and Men may attain any Station without the recitation of Surah Alam Nashrah with the intention of sharing In these Tajallis, because of what they contain of Divine Magnificence. So whoever recites an Ayah or letter of the Quran will obtain the Divine Grace which is particular to that Ayah or letter. And know my children, my brothers, my beloved ones that I am speaking to you with the knowledge of certainty (Ilmu'l-Yaqin), and Allah (Who is Powerful and Sublime) is the Guide who guides those of His servants whom He pleases. I am telling you about these Stations not only from hearsay, I have tasted them and entered and I have embraced them, learning about what exists even in their most secret regions.

So my children, you should know that if a non-Believer or a hypocrite recites this Surah or any Ayah of it, especially (I seek refuge in Allah). Inna ma’a’l usri yusran, inna ma'a'l-'usri yusra.

Then he will obtain some of those divine graces, Tajallis and virtues, because Allah does not distinguish between a Kafir or a hypocrite, or between a Saint and a Prophet. All slaves are equal in the sight of Allah because they are all included in the verse: La-qad karramna bani Adam. "Wehave honoured the Sons of Adam.” Yes they are all included in this one phrase. Allah is the Guide, He guides those whom He wishes from among His Servants. Satan was kept veiled from this news and he is ignorant of the Tajallis and great Divine Graces with which Allah guides His Slaves. And you should know that whoever wishes to get these virtues must keep to his Adab and Awrad, then it will be, easy for him to gain true life and eternal life. These Stations and continuous Divine Graces are closely bound together and they cannot be separated, so any deficiency in the Adab will automatically create a deficiency in the Divine Graces being sent down. As an example of that we may take Wudu'. We may wait in front of the tap, waiting for water to come out, but the large and small pipes do not connect properly and sothe water does not flow out, but escapes before reaching the tap. And so we must never allow any deficiency to creep into our Adab until we obtain all the Tajallis and Divine Graces.

(6) Ikhlas Sharif (Surah Number 112) : 11 times.

And whoever recites this Surah must obtain the Tajalli of the two names of Glory (Ismayyu'l-Jalalah): Al Ahad (the One) and As-Samad (the Eternal), and even if a Kafir were to recite it, hemust get a portion of this Tajalli. Even if one of Allah's Slaves –worships Him in the manner of Men and Jinn, he will not get complete Divine Grace without reciting al-Ikhlas.

(7) The two Surahs of Seeking Refuge: Once each.

Qul a'udhu bi-Rabbi'1-Falaq. (Surah Number 113) Qul a'udhu bi-Rabbi'n-Nas. (Last Surah of Qur'an) Hazrat Shaikh says: The Reality of the Secret of Allah's Greatest Name (Ismullahi'l-A'zam) is connected with these two Surahs and with them is also linked the Perfectness (Kamal) of Allah's Greatest Name. And since they mark the end of the Qur'an they are linked and associated with the completion of Divine Graces and Tajallis.

By means of this Adab the Masters of the most Distinguished Naqshbandi Order became seas of knowledge and gnosis. Oh my brothers! My children! You've now reached the beginning, that every letter, verse and Surah of the Qur'an al-Karim has its own special Divine Graces and Tajallis which do not resemble any others, and for that reason the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him!) said: "I have left three things with my Ummah: death which makes them afraid, true dreams which gives them good tidings, and the Qur'an which addresses them." By means of the Qur'an Allah Almighty will open up the Gates of Divine Grace in the last times, the like of which did not come down in the time of the Holy Prophet, nor in the times of the Companions, nor in the times of theKhalifahs. Nor in the times of the Saints until the time of Maulana Khalid al-Baghdadi(RA/QSA).

Allah (Who is Powerful and Sublime) has opened up for us these Stations (Maqamat) so that we may be of the Contented Ones m this world and the next. To this we may add the fact that every night we get the Tajalli of the night of Power from the Gate which Allah has opened up for the people of this time. This Ummah is the last of all Ummahs, and the Ummah of those who follow in the footsteps of the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him') for that reason, if any one of us prays humbly to Allah (Who is without fault and exalts Himself) and makes dua that He make him successful in any action he wishes for the sake of the Ummah of Muhammad then Allah (Who is without faultand is Self-Exalting) will certainly accept it right away.

(8) La ilaha Illallah: 10 times and after the last time we add: Muhammadur Rasulullah (Sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) (9) Allahumma salli 'ala Muhammeden wa 'ala Ali Muhammaden wa sallim.: 10 times.

Ila sharffn-Nabiyyi(SAW) wa Alihi wa Sahbihi. wa ila ar- wahi ikhwanihi mina'l-Ambiya'i wa'l-Mursalina wa Khudama'i Shara'i'ihim wa ila arwahi-A'immat' i1-Arba'a (We mention the four Imams of Islamic Law Imam Shahfi (RA), Imam Hanafi(RA) Imam Hambali(RA), Imam Malikki (RA) since it is one of our principles that we set foot in the Shari'ah first and then in theTariqah.) wa ila arwahi Mashayikhina fi 't-Tariqati 'n-Naqshbandiyati 'I-'aliyyah: khassatan ila ruhi Imami 't-Tariqati wa GhawthiI-Khaliqati Khawajaha Baha'i 'd-Dini Muhammadmi'l-Uwaisiyyi 'l-Bukhari(RA) wa ila Moulana Sultan Ul Auliya Shekh Abdul Khaliq Ghudjuduwani (RA) Usthasi Ustadhina wa Moulana Sayyidina Sultan Ul Auliya Sheik Abdullah Faiz Dahestani (RA) wa hadrati Usthadhina Murshiduna Sultan Ul Auliya Sheik Muhammed Nazim Adil al Haqqani an Naqshbandi- a'l-Fatihah... (Now the Fatihah is recited with the intention of sharing in the Divine Graces and Tajallis which were sent down when it was revealed in al-Madinah for the second time, and no one knows just how many Graces and special Tajallis belong to it, except Allah (Who is without fault and is Self-Exalting) and His Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him!). Now recite three times being present totally with Allah. Allahu Allahu Allahu Haqq: Allahu Allahu Allahu Haqq. Allahu Allahu Allahu Haqq. Then you may make du'a as you like al Fatiha. These are the basics of those Adab which are considered necessary, and if the Murid does not bind himself to it, then his Guide will be embarassed to have to accept such a deficient gift from his Murid. This Adab must be performed once in every twenty four hours. Everything which the Prophet (Peace be upon him!) brought was founded on this Adab and it is the way that the slave reaches the key to being very close to Allah (Who is Powerful and Sublime!). It was also by means of it that the Prophets, Messenger Prophets and Saints reached their Creator (Whose condition is Sublime and Exalted). And it is also by means of it that we reach to Allah (Who is without fault and is Self-Exalting) and take all the Stations of the most distinguished Tariqah. The Masters of the Most Distinguished Naqshbandi Order say that whoever claims that he is affiliated with one of the forty orders or to the Most Distinguished Naqshbandi Order, but nevertheless has not entered Khalwah even once in his life, then such a person should beashamed of connecting himself with the People of the Path. But Maulana, our great guide, says: Whichever of the People of the Last Time wishes to attain a high rank and an exalted stage, and to get what a Murid normally gets only by means of Khalwah and spiritual exercises, then he must continuously perform this Adab and also the Waza'if.

With this Adab we have set the foundation for the higher Stations, and now we are ready to build on this foundation.