The Breeze of Divine Communication

"From the Letters of the Guardian of Virtues, My Master, Sidi Al-Amine Rusi El-Hassani, may Allah have mercy on him."

Out of God's grace upon His devoted servants who establish the nightly vigil, He multiplies their rewards and recompense. By guiding them to stand in prayer during the nights and dispelling the solitude of their souls with the serenity of worship and the light of the Quran, He elevates their status to the highest rank and the greatest station. The true worth of their recompense can only be understood by those who can fathom the enormity of humanity's distress and hardship on a day that spans fifty thousand years as you count them, a day on which no close friend or intercessor will be of any benefit.

What an unseen and concealed reward awaits them with Allah! It is greater than can be mentioned and wider than what the scales can measure. It is the compensation from a generous Lord for their sincere worship of Him, free from deception, far from hypocrisy, untouched by showing off and reputation. They abandoned their beds, forsook their spouses and children, and denied themselves the comfort of soft beds, the pleasure of dreams, and the enjoyment of gatherings. They exhausted their bodies when people rested, kept their eyes awake when others slept, and troubled their hearts when others felt at ease. Their bodies clung to their Lord, their hearts were filled with love for Him, their spirits were captivated by His remembrance, and their souls were eager for His approval.

They did not feel the passage of the night, the loneliness of the darkness, or any heaviness or burden in their devotion. Their eyes were teary, their hearts humble, and their stomachs empty, all out of fear of their Lord, the Most Exalted, and in hope of the reward and recompense He had prepared for them. In their case and those like them, Allah, the Most High, says: 'They arise from [their] beds; they supplicate their Lord in fear and aspiration, and from what We have provided them, they spend. So no soul knows what has been hidden for them of comfort for eyes as a reward for what they used to do.' (Quran, Surah As-Sajda, 32:16-17). Truly, Allah is the Most Great.

The Messenger (peace be upon him) said: 'No one will enter the Fire if he weeps out of fear of Allah until milk returns to the udder.

If it were destined for us to witness someone from this devoted class, sincere in their struggle with their Lord, standing before their Lord Almighty in the darkness of the night, we would find them in intimate conversation with their Lord, fully present and oblivious to their surroundings, with a humble and contrite heart. While they raise their voices in supplication during prayer, the hearts of the bowing and prostrating believers shudder, and the bodies of the fearful tremble.

As they read Allah's book, they articulate its words and grasp its meanings, secrets, and etiquettes. They savor the sweetness of their Lord's sacred words, encompassing His majesty and His promise on one hand, and His beauty and reward on the other. Their hearts resonate with the profound meanings, and fear of His sovereignty and lordship melts their hearts. Through this process, their hearts are purified, their inner light intensifies, their souls become pure, and their veils are lifted.

They glorify the sovereignty and dominion of Allah, becoming drunk with His love, immersed in His intimacy, lost in His greatness, immersed in His light, enjoying His gardens, and vanishing into His closeness. They attain the bliss of communion and intimate supplication. In such moments of divine communion and illumination, even if the earth quaked beneath their feet, or the fire ignited before them to consume them, or even if their extremities were severed, they would not be diverted or moved from their position even as much as a hair's breadth. They would not shift away from their state of devotion to their Lord by the smallest measure.

In describing the intimacy and bliss of this divine communion and the pleasure of the breeze of union, he recited some of Allah's divine illumination beyond the divine veil, saying:

The breeze of reunion blew upon the remorseful,

Intoxicated them, though they never drank wine.

Thus, the branches leaned towards them,

For their hearts were filled with love.

When they saw the Lord revealed,

He awakened those who were asleep in the darkness.

My servants, do not sleep, He called to them,

For union is attained after separation.

Union is attained through sleepless nights,

On foot, they travel, and fasting they break.

Their destination is not the gardens of Eden,

Nor the beautiful maidens, nor the tents.

Rather, it's the glance of the Most High, that's their goal,

And this is the aspiration of the noble people.

If we were to witness this in a servant devoted to his Lord, we would see a radiant countenance, shining with the brilliance of His presence, and the angels would envy his worship. Mountains would humble themselves before his piety, and awe of his Lord would tremble in his heart. We would find a servant who savors the sweetness of obedience, the joy of worship, the delight of remembrance, and a happiness that surpasses the joy of wealth, children, and prestige.

This is the secret behind the fact that the righteous among God's servants have turned their faces away from the attractions of this world, marveling at how people are attached to it and engrossed in its pleasures, and they love it while others weep over it. This is the condition of the upright believers: they are knights in fear and humility by day and lions in humility and prostration by night. Neither heat nor cold deters them. If they are in the cold, they find themselves immersed in inner warmth and annihilation, and if they are in the heat, they inhale the breeze of the spirit and the fragrance, guided by God's lights that have been poured upon them through their striving, struggles, and their attainment of knowledge about Him. They have become independent of all but Him.

Ibn Ata' Allah, may Allah have mercy on him, alluded to this when he said, "The travelers have been guided to Him, and those who have arrived at Him have been given the light of direct encounter."

We have been neglectful of God's fear, and this has led to adverse circumstances. There is no salvation for the Muslim Ummah, and no escape from the calamities it has suffered, except by returning to the fear of God, so that hearts may be illuminated by the light of the Knower of the Unseen. O Allah, make us among those who glorify Your sovereignty, immerse themselves in the light of Your fear, so that we may attain nearness to You through supplication and union.

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[1] The Covenant, March 9, 1995 AD.

[2] Surah As-Sajda, verses 16 and 17.

Source: "Breeze of Reunion" or "Zephyr of Connection.",  "Masterpiece of Oratory" or "Excellence in Speech.",  "Historical Insights from Collective Memory." and "Guide for the Seekers." by Sheik Sidi Al Amine Rusi El Hassani.

The  Shadhiliya Darqawiya Rusiya Al-Hassaniya Path

The Kingdom of Morocco

2004-2025