A FEMALE DEVOTEE OF ALLAH

Sheikh Abu Abdullah Iskandari (rahmatullahi alayh) narrates:
“Once I wandered in the mountains in the hope of meeting a devotee of Allah from whom I could derive some spiritual benefit. In my wanderings I saw a woman walking and reciting poetry about the Love of Allah Ta`ala. I thought to myself: ‘It would have been good if I had met a man.’ As this thought crossed my mind the woman said: ‘O Abdullah! Indeed, your heart is queer. How can a man who cannot even attain the ranks of a woman hope to meet men (i.e. Auliyaa)?’

I said to her: ‘You have made a very bold claim!’ She said: ‘A claim without basis is unlawful.’
I said: ‘What is the basis of your claim?’ She responded: ‘The basis for my claim is that my King and True Beloved is for me as I wish because I am for Him as He wishes.’

I said: ‘If it truly is as you say, then produce fried fish immediately.’ She retorted scornfully: ‘You have indeed asked for something exceedingly insignificant. Why did you not ask that Allah Ta`ala bestows to you wings of Divine yearning so that you could fly to Him as I am doing.’
So saying, she flew into the air.”

Abu Abdullah continues: “I was smitten by remorse and embarrassment. Nothing at that time was more bitter to me than my contemptibility, and nothing sweeter than her elevated state of Divine Honour. I ran in the direction that she was flying and implored: ‘O Sayyidah! I swear by that Being Who has enriched you and deprived me, Who has made you fortunate and me unfortunate! For Allah’s Sake, assist me with some dua.”

She responded: “You need the dua of men. What need have you for women?”
Abu Abdullah: “At least cast a gaze (tawajjuh) on me.”
The woman: “The lofty state in which I am immersed is infinitely superior to gazing at you.”
Abu Abdullah: “Please, only two words of dua.”
The woman: “Tomorrow morning you will meet a man whose dua is readily acceptable.”

“After saying this she disappeared. My peace was utterly destroyed. I passed the remaining part of the day and night in considerable distress and restlessness. In the morning I saw a man crawling on his knees. The signs of holiness were cascading from his glittering face. It occurred to me that this was perhaps the person the woman had mentioned. As I was thinking, he said: ‘ Yes! I am that person.’”

Abu Abdullah: “Hadhrat, make a dua so that I could reach The True Beloved.”
The Buzrug: “O Abu Abdullah! You have been deprived from the dua of the one who had made no claim. You lacked the insight and spiritual vision for even recognizing Raihaanah Kufiyah (the name of the woman). Now I cannot make any dua for you until you have not met some insane persons. You will meet them tomorrow.”

As he spoke, he disappeared into thin air. A mountain of grief, regret and sorrow descended on Hadhrat Abu Abdullah.

“The next day I heard a Qaari reciting in a sorrowful and heart-rendering voice. I was enraptured by his recitation. Abu Abdullah said: ‘I give you an oath by that Being Who has bestowed to you this beautiful voice! Have mercy on my forlorn heart.’

A short while later there appeared on the scene a man who was immersed in Divine Love. He said: ‘What do you want from such mad men whose tears never stop flowing? However, since you have been assigned to me for dua, I advise you to cling to insane persons and hold on firmly to the Sunnat of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam).’”

Abu Abdullah: “Hadhrat, say something more.”
He said: “Have mercy on yourself. Abstain from sins. Renounce the world. This world is most ungrateful. It drowns and destroys its lovers. It throttles the middle class and burns out the inferior ones. May Allah bestow His True Attainment to you and accept you among his devotees. Insha`Allah, He will not deprive you of the pleasure of His Vision.”



Yesterday the beauty of early dawn came over me,
and I wondered who my heart would reach toward.
Then this morning again,
and You.

Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi

Come, come, whoever you are.
Wonderer, worshipper, lover of leaving.
It doesn't matter.
Ours is not a caravan of despair.
Come, even if you have broken your vow
a thousand times
Come, yet again, come, come.

Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi

Hazrat Bayazid Bostami (rahmatullahi alaihe) narrates that once an individual came to him and stated that a saint of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala lives in a nearby city.

After hearing this, Hazrat Bayazid Bostami (rahmatullahi alaihe) went on a journey to meet the saint. Once in the city, Bayazid Bostami (rahmatullahi alaihe) came to the mosque to meet the described saint. The saint also arrived at the mosque from his residence. Bayazid Bostami (rahmatullahi alaihe) observed that once inside, the so-called saint proceeded to spit inside the mosque. After seeing this, Bayazid Bostami (rahmatullahi alaihe) immediately left the place. He reasoned that if the individual had been a true saint, he would have properly honoured the mosque and would have never spit in the mosque in the first place. Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala would have given the individual sound judgment to honour the mosque had the individual conformed to the Shariah. Therefore, such an individual could never be a true saint of Allah.

On the same night, Hazrat Bayazid Bostami (rahmatullahi alaihe) was honoured with the vision of the Beloved Prophet (sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) in a dream. In the dream, the Beloved Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) stated: “Oh Bayazid! Your actions have brought ruhani barakaat for you.”

In fact, Hazrat Bayazid Bostami (rahmatullahi alaihe) was elevated to the position of saint the next day.