Deficiency in the hope for Divine Forgiveness when error and sin are committedis a sign of reliance on one's virtuous deeds.
In every single act the reliance of the arifeen is only on Allah Ta'ala. They do not rely on their spiritual states, knowledge and righteous deeds.
When these Saints of Allah render virtuous deeds, their hopes do not rise. They do not feel that they have acquired elevation in their ranks on account of their pious deeds. They perpetually dwell in the hope of Allah's mercy. Their gaze is never on their righteous deeds.
On the other hand, the non- arif reposes confidence on his good acts. When he practises virtue, his hopes rise and he feels pleased with himself, thinking that he has now become deserving of Maghfirat (Forgiveness) and Jannat. When he sins, his hopes sag. Since his reliance is on his own deeds, he labours under the impression that his sins constitute an obstacle in the path of Divine Rahmat. In consequence, such a person often abandons righteous deeds and takes to the road of sin. This is plain stupidity and ignorance.
Although A'maal-e-Saalihah are commanded and A'maal-e-Baatilah (sins) are forbidden, they do not constitute the basis of Maghfirat. The basis is solely Allah's Mercy. Thus, the sinner should not despair. He should advance along the spiritual path and turn the gaze of his heart away from his deeds, relying solely on the Mercy of Allah.
The aforementioned explanation should not be misconstrued. It should not be understood to mean abstention from regret and repentance after commission of sin. Regret and repentance are essential. The Mu'min will most assuredly repent. However, he will not despair of Allah's mercy.
If Allah Ta'ala returns you to your nafs, then your misfortune is limitless. If He reveals His grace and kindness to you, then there is no limit to your fortune.
The natural propensity of the nafs is evil and vice. Whatever virtue emanates from it, is purely the fadhl of Allah Ta'ala. If Allah Ta'ala allows you to remain enslaved to your nafs, and withholds His grace and kindness from you then there will be no end to your evil because the nafs is the abode of all evils and mischief.
On the other hand, if Allah Ta'ala directs His grace and kindness to you, then your virtues will be limitless on account of His grace being limitless.
Thus, when goodness emanates from the bandah, he should contemplate on the grace of Allah and refrain from attributing the virtue to his nafs. But if he perpetrates transgression, he should know that it is from his nafs.
Whoever has the notion of his good speech being the product of his virtuous deeds, will be silenced by his sinful acts on account of shame and embarrassment. Whoever speaks, bearing in mind the kindness of Allah Ta'ala, his sins will not silence him.
If the propagator of Naseehat to people or the one who expounds spiritual realities and subtleties labours under the impression that the knowledge which he is expounding is the consequence of his uprighteousness and good deeds, then he will be silenced if he commits a sin. Since his gaze is riveted on his uprighteousness, shame will overwhelm him. He will feel his discourses to be hypocritical, hence abandon his duty of propagating the truth.
But, this is not the state of the arif who believes that whatever knowledge and virtue he possesses are the fadhl of Allah Ta'ala. Since this is his constant perception, he never attributes anything of his excellences to his nafs. Should he commit a sin, he will not abandon the duty of proclaiming Allah's Law. He will continue to proclaim the Law with the same confidence and eloquence with which he rendered his duty before the sin.
When you wish the Door of Hope to open for you, then contemplate on Your True Master's kindness and bounties. When you wish the Door of Fear to open, then contemplate on the sins and transgression you had committed.
The state of his nafs and the evils perpetrated by him are kept in view by the Saalik. As a result, his heart suffers grief and despondency. Sometimes he is overwhelmed by despair and he loses hope in the mercy of Allah, which is, in fact, kufr. At times when the despair becomes excessive, the Saalik will abandon even Namaaz, Roza, etc. It is, therefore, essential that the aspect of Divine Mercy be kept in view.
When despair sets in, the Saalik should employ his intelligence. He should bring into contemplation all the bounties and favours which Allah Ta'ala has conferred on him. He should then convince himself that if it was Allah's desire to destroy him, He would not have blessed him with so many zaahiri and baatini favours. He should meditate for a considerable time on this aspect. Allah Ta'ala will hopefully open the door of hope for the Saalik and the state of despair will be dispelled.
Sometimes the opposite condition settles over the Saalik. Perceiving his good deeds, he develops vanity and self-esteem. On such occasions the Saalik should call to memory his acts of disobedience and transgression. This contemplation will engender fear in him.
Neither should the Saalik permit despair to overwhelm him nor excessive hope which will render him audacious. He should adopt moderation.
True rajaa (hope) is that which accompanies righteous deeds otherwise it is false hope.
The rajaa which is genuine is the hope which the Saalik entertains when practising righteousness. Along with his practice of virtue he hopes for the mercy of Allah Ta'ala. The man who has hope of reaping the fruits of his farm, will expend full effort in ploughing and caring for his fields. Similarly, the Saalik who has hope of acquiring Allah's mercy, will diligently involve himself in practising virtuous deeds. His hope will then be justified and be true.
If he acts in conflict with the Shariah and refrains from A'maal-e-Saalihah, his hope for Divine mercy and Jannat will be vain and false. It is false to describe such vain hope as rajaa. Such a person is like one who does not plough his land, but expects to reap a crop.
If you do not have a high opinion of your True Master by virtue of His Attributes of Excellence, then at least establish a good opinion of Him by virtue of the beautiful treatment He accords you. Has He not showered His Kindness on you? Has He not conferred His Bounties on you?
A true Mu'min is he who holds a high opinion of His Rabb. He understands that whatever treatment his Creator metes out is for his own benefit and welfare regardless of it being pleasing or displeasing. Since all attributes of Allah Ta'ala are only of excellence and nothing else, whatever is decreed by Him will be for the benefit of the Mu'min.
Although His attributes of excellence and perfection demand that the Mu'min holds the highest esteem for Allah Ta'ala (i.e. with regard to His attributes of perfection), nevertheless, if you lack this ability, then at least ponder on the treatment which you have received from Allah Ta'ala to this day. Do you not acknowledge His boundless favours upon you? He created you in perfect form. He bestowed a variety of innumerable bounties to you. You are, in fact, drowned in the abundance of favours. This wonderful relationship which Allah Ta'ala has with you should be sufficient to induce in you a good opinion of Him.
The high esteem on account of Allah's attributes of excellence is the rank of Allah's selected servants. Those who lack this rank should contemplate on the bounties of Allah Ta'ala for the cultivation of a beautiful comprehension of Allah Ta'ala.
He who thinks it amazing and difficult that Allah Ta'ala will release him (the Saalik) from the grip of nafsaani desires and from the prison of ghaflat, casts the blemish of inability (Ijz) against the infinite power of Allah. But, Allah has power over all things.Sometimes people lost in worldly affairs and forgetful of Allah Ta'ala, on seeing a pious man, yearn to be like him. They momentarily yearn to be free from worldly encumbrances so that they too could take to the path of piety. But, the nafs immediately raises its head and neutralises their eagerness for piety. The nafs leads them to believe that on account of their numerous mundane involvements, it is not possible for them to adopt piety. Their initial idea appears extremely far-fetched and impossible of realisation.
Similarly, some Thaakireen despite their Thikr and Mujahadah do not discern any improvement in their moral and spiritual condition. They then labour under the notion of the impossibility of their reformation.
There are also such Thaakireen in whose hearts Thikr has taken effect, but has not become entrenched. They, therefore, sometimes experience ghaflat and sometimes kayfiyat (the spiritual effect of Thikr). This fluctuating state remains for even years. They, therefore, begin to believe that it is impossible to eliminate their ghaflat and improve their condition.
For such people the Shaikh (rahmatullah alayh) says that those who feel that it is difficult for Allah Ta'ala to extricate them from the grip of their nafs, are in reality attributing weakness to Allah Ta'ala. They are implying by their attitude that the infinite Qudrat (Power) of Allah Ta'ala is defective – Na-uthubillah!
It is within Allah's power to deliver you from the grip of your nafs and bless you with His remembrance. There is, therefore, no need for despair. Many Auliya were involved in sin and transgression in their initial stage, but later Allah Ta'ala elevated them to the rank of Auliya and Masha-ikh. He bestowed elevated ranks to them.
There is nothing but Khauf (fear) or intense Shauq (eagerness) which can prevent and expel the lustful desires of the nafs. Khauf is cultivated by meditation on the Fiery Attributes (Sifaat-e-Jalaal) of Allah or on the terror of the Day of Qiyaamah. Shauq is acquired by contemplating on the Beautiful Attributes (Sifaat-e-Jamaal) of Allah Ta'ala or on Jannat and its pleasures.
It was explained earlier that when a nafsaani desire becomes grounded in the heart, it is most difficult to remedy it. The Shaikh (rahmatullah alayh) informs of its remedy. There are two treatments for such a severe disease: Khauf and Shauq.
Khauf (Fear) is either of the terrifying episodes of Qiyaamat or of the Fiery Attributes of Allah Ta'ala. The former is for the masses. The second kind of Khauf for His Sifaat-e-Jalaal such as Him being Qahhaar (Wrathful), Jabbaar (Powerful in Punishment), Muntaqim (Vengeful), etc., is for the elite (i.e. the select ones striving to attain His Proximity).
By meditating on these issues for some time, Khauf will be cultivated. Gradually it will permeate the heart and eliminate the domination of emotional desires.
Shauq (Eagerness, Yearning) is achieved by contemplating the pleasures of Jannat. This kind of Shauq is for laymen who strive to gain piety. The second kind of Shauq is achieved by meditating on Allah's attributes of Beauty such as Him being Rahmaan (Most Merciful), Ghafoor (Most Forgiving), etc. This kind of Shauq is for the elite.
It should, however, be understood that Khauf and Shauq of an inferior degree will not eradicate lust from the heart. To eliminate the entrenched disease of shahwat (lust), a strong state of either Khauf or Shauq is essential. In view of the essentiality of a high degree of these states, the Shaikh (rahmatullah alayh) qualifies Khauf with the adjective, ‘preventive' and Shauq with ‘intense'.
Do not despair of the acceptance of an act in which you do not experience the pleasure of concentration. In most cases acts, the worldly fruits of which you do not experience, are accepted. (Worldly fruits: sweetness, pleasure and concentration in ibaadat).
Hudhoor-e-Kaamil (Perfect Concentration) is to perform ibaadat with such concentration of mind and heart as if you are seeing Allah Ta'ala. Not a vestige of shaitaani and nafsaani thoughts remains to distract the heart from Allah Ta'ala. The pleasure of such Hudhoor permeates the entire being of the bandah. If by the fadhl(blessing) of Allah Ta'ala the bandah(person) has gained such a high degree of concentration, it indicates that his ibaadat is accepted by Allah Ta'ala.
If the bandah(Person) fails to attain this high degree of concentration, he should not despair nor interpret it as rejection of his ibaadat. While Hudhoori is the sign of acceptance, it is not conditional for acceptance of ibaadat. Thus, the absence of a sign does not indicate rejection of the act. It frequently happens that despite acceptance by Allah Ta'ala, the effects of the ibaadat are withheld here on earth. The reward is reserved for the Hereafter.
