Mawlana Sheikh Mehmed Adil. Translations.

By order of Mawlana, we will make, insha'Allah, a short suhbah for our coming again to this place. Alhamdulillah. Our intention is that everything must be for Allah. We have made this long journey to see our friends, our beloved ones, for Allah's sake. Insha'Allah, may Allah make it a source of barakah for us and for you also. Alhamdulillah, we are here after many years. Nine years ago, we were here with Shaykh Bahauddin. Maybe we cannot come here again, because we are getting old and it is a very long distance. But when Allah wants something, alhamdulillah, He makes it happen again. So alhamdulillah, we are so happy to see all of our brothers, sisters, daughters, and all the murid from Brazil and from Argentina. Insha'Allah, we will continue like this. As I said, we are not coming as tourists, just to visit and look around. The important thing for us is that these believers have love for Allah, and they love those who love Allah. As Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam teaches, to see someone who reminds you of Allah Azza wa Jalla, you should be happy. And we are also happy for this. When we see a believer, a lover of Allah, a lover of Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, a lover of Awliya Allah—if they are happy, we are happy also. Many times, people say "love, love, love," but it is not real love, real love is the love for Allah Azza wa Jalla. But for the people who truly love Allah Azza wa Jalla, this love does not finish. It keeps growing and growing and growing. Forever, insha'Allah. But with other kinds of love, people may love each other like crazy, but after one month, five months, one year, or five years, most of them do not continue. And why is this? Because people... everybody has something that is not complete. Nobody is perfect, nobody is complete. Because of this, after one month, they see, "Oh, she is like this," or "He is like that." After two months, five months, one year, five years, they become unhappy with it. But Allah Azza wa Jalla is Great. Nothing compares to Him. For this reason, the love of Allah does not get less; it only gets more. The love for Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam also gets more and more every day. For the mashayikh, the sahaba, the Ahl al-Bayt—the love for them becomes more and more, because they are perfect people, good people. And this is the secret of the difference between material love and spiritual love—why one lasts forever and the other cannot. Insha'Allah, our love will be forever, insha'Allah. And insha'Allah, people will come to this good thing, this sweet thing, this beneficial thing, insha'Allah. And this is purely for Allah Azza wa Jalla. And Allah will be with us, insha'Allah.

Say, “Travel through the land and see how He began creation.” (29:20) Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, says: "Travel throughout the earth." Contemplate Allah's creatures, His creation. To think about the essence of Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, to contemplate it – that is not possible for us. You should contemplate His creation. His essence is beyond all comprehension, all imagination. There is a group of people nowadays who say about Allah, the Almighty and Exalted: "He is in the sky, He is on the earth"... But Allah is not bound by any place. Allah is the Creator of all things. This topic is a delicate matter. Wherever you go – the purpose is to observe Allah's creation and to learn from it. Thanks be to Allah, we too will travel to a faraway place today. Through the blessings of Sheikh Muhammed Nazim al-Haqqani, our Sheikh-Father, and through his spiritual support, there are followers and lovers of the Order all over the world. To visit them, we travel here and there from time to time. Every place that Allah has created is beautiful. Allah has created everything in the most perfect way for the benefit of humanity. But the most important thing is: Wherever we go – our goal is not the journey itself, but Allah's pleasure. Besides, every place in the world has become the same by now. Big roads, buildings, and so on... By now, one hardly finds any pleasure in the world anymore. But what truly brings us joy is the joy of the people there – our brothers and sisters, or those who come to the faith or are guided. They are what is essential. Otherwise, for us, the world, the travel, the sights – all of that is unimportant. Our followers take us here and there, may Allah be pleased with them, and they are happy and say: "We are serving." What truly pleases us is that the people are joyful, that they are happy. This happiness springs from the love for Allah. That we come together because they have turned to Allah and are on this path – that brings them great joy. And that is our joy as well. Mountains, stones, buildings, this and that – all of it is meaningless. Whether it's the most luxurious, richest place in the world or the poorest – it makes no difference. That these people are happy for the sake of Allah's pleasure, that they rejoice... This love for the faith, which Allah bestows, this Islamic joy – that is what matters to us. May Allah increase their numbers, may He make the believers more numerous, insha'Allah. The place we will be traveling to is quite far away. We have been there once before. We wondered if it would be destined for us a second time. Thanks be to Allah, it was destined for today. May we go and return in peace, insha'Allah. May the brothers and sisters there also be happy. Because we will have come to them from far away. The material means of the people there are also modest. That is why they are very happy for the sake of Allah's pleasure when we come there. May their numbers grow even larger, insha'Allah. May Allah protect them. May they become a means for the guidance of others, insha'Allah. May first and foremost their families, their relatives, everyone come to the faith, to Islam, insha'Allah. May this mean happiness for all of us in this world and the Hereafter, insha'Allah.

If Allah helps you, none can overcome you; (3:160) Whoever adheres to Allah's commands stands on His side, and no one can defeat them; victory always belongs to them. No harm will befall them. Truly, the promise of Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, is true. This promise will certainly be fulfilled. This means there is no doubt about it. Therefore, hold fast to Allah. One must always remain steadfast on the path of Allah, so that Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, grants them victory and helps, insha'Allah. People are often impatient. They have no patience and want everything to happen immediately. But it happens as Allah decrees. The true victory lies in preserving one's own faith. That is the most important thing. Not to surrender to Satan and one's own ego. If you succumb to them, you have lost. But if you are victorious over them, you have achieved the true victory. Worldly victory is not the decisive factor. The important thing is, as our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) taught, to move from the lesser jihad, the Jihad al-Asghar, to the greater jihad. Our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) explains that the lesser jihad is warfare. The greater jihad, on the other hand, is the struggle against the ego. For this is a struggle that lasts a lifetime. A person wages a constant jihad against their ego, Satan, and his followers. This is the greater jihad. So one cannot simply say, 'I have won,' and then stop. What is meant by this? If you leave the path of Allah and think, 'Good, I have triumphed, I have defeated my ego and Satan,' then at that very moment, you have already lost everything. Precisely because this struggle lasts a lifetime, our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) called it the 'Jihad al-Akbar.' That is the greater jihad, the great struggle. May Allah assist us in this struggle until our last breath. Thus we are on His path, insha'Allah. May Allah always be our Helper.

Then he has been of those who believed and enjoined upon one another patience and enjoined upon one another compassion. (90:17) Those are the companions of the right. (90:18) Patience and mercy characterize the Muslim and the believer. Allah, the Mighty and Exalted, loves these qualities. Whoever is merciful, Allah is also merciful to him. But whoever is unmerciful, his punishment will surely befall him. In our time today, there was and is, of course, a lot of oppression. Since the fall of the Ottoman Caliphate, oppression has reached its peak all over the world. They deceived the people with the promise: 'We will free you from the oppression of the Ottomans.' Not only here, but the whole world was afflicted by oppression. Millions of people were massacred, murdered, and oppressed. For what? A Muslim is merciful; he is filled with mercy. They enjoin one another to patience and mercy. By saying: 'Do not commit injustice.' The disbeliever, on the other hand, is the opposite; he knows no mercy, only oppression. That is why the Muslim is that servant whom Allah, the Mighty and Exalted, loves. Allah honors him and rewards him. Allah will hold the oppressor and the disbeliever to account. They should not rejoice that their reckoning does not take place in this world. In the Hereafter, the oppressor will most certainly be held to account. Even in this world, Allah places a fire in his heart so that he finds no peace. No matter what he does against this fire—whether he drinks alcohol, takes drugs, or commits every imaginable disgraceful act—it will be of no use to him. For this fire will never leave him. This is the reason for the world's current state. Everything that happens is to the advantage of the Muslim. Nothing is to his disadvantage. No matter how much oppression and suffering there is, all of this will be credited to the believer, the Muslim, as a reward with Allah in the Hereafter. As compensation for the hardship he has suffered here, Allah, the Mighty and Exalted, will reward him so richly in the Hereafter that other people will say, 'If only we had suffered the same.' May Allah not count us among the oppressors, Insha'Allah. Let us not oppress anyone, Insha'Allah.

Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, has placed humanity above other creatures. He has bestowed upon him every kind of good quality. But there is also the ego. He has also placed the ego within him. The ego, as we always say, always pulls one towards evil. Yet Allah has also placed something within us that does not strive for evil. This is called the conscience. Every person has a conscience. Whether Muslim or non-Muslim, everyone has a conscience. Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, has implanted the conscience into humanity. He has given the conscience so that man may question himself and not commit injustice. He has also given him mercy. But for a person to be able to act upon it, he must overcome his ego. For one who has a conscience oppresses no one, causes no one harm, does not steal the property of others, and deceives no one. Through this, his faith also gradually grows. And in the end, he is often granted guidance; he finds the right path. But if this conscience is missing, his ego will not let him do anything good, even if he is a Muslim. A person without a conscience, even if he is a Muslim, does not distinguish between right and wrong, between the permissible and the forbidden. He calls himself a 'Muslim,' performs his five daily prayers, and may have even been on the Hajj. But without a conscience, he follows his ego and its whisperings. In this lies a wisdom of Allah that we cannot fathom. The human mind cannot grasp this. Allah says: 'I have created man in the most beautiful form.' وَلَقَدۡ كَرَّمۡنَا بَنِيٓ ءَادَمَ (17:70) Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, says: 'I have created humanity at the highest level, endowed with the best qualities; We have honored them on land and sea, everywhere.' So, how does this humanity come about? Humanity arises from the conscience. Without a conscience, this humanity is also lost. Whatever a person does, he ultimately does to himself. That is why you sometimes see a non-Muslim who has such a conscience that he performs good deeds that some Muslims do not. 'Why is that?' people ask. It is because of the conscience. It comes from that conscience which Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, has placed in man. On the other hand, you see a Muslim who commits every kind of oppression, deceit, and malice. And why is that? Because he no longer has a conscience. He has silenced his conscience. Because once you have silenced your conscience, it is very difficult to reawaken it. But if you preserve it, it is for your own good. Then your deeds will also be righteous. The most beautiful thing is to attain the pleasure of Allah and our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). A conscientious and merciful person is loved by Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, the Prophet, the friends of Allah, and the believers. That is what truly matters. Otherwise, the wealth you accumulate through fraud, deceit, and the exploitation of others is of no use at all. Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, does not need these things. You are the one who is in need. People must return to their conscience to find peace. People say, 'My conscience is clear, my heart is at peace.' When a person's conscience is clear, his heart also finds peace. May Allah not count us among those without a conscience, insha'Allah. May Allah give guidance to all people, so that they do not kill this beautiful quality within themselves, insha'Allah.

Grandshaykh Abdullah ad-Daghistani always instructed Mawlana Sheikh Nazim to write down his Sohbahs. As the first lesson, he used to say, "Tarikatun kulluha adab." The Tariqa is based entirely on Adab, good manners. Whoever does not have good manners should not claim, "I belong to the Tariqa." Someone without good manners is no different from any person on the street. Whoever does not honor people, show respect to the elders, and do good to his relatives and neighbors, is not counted among the Tariqa. The Tariqa is good manners. And these good manners are the good manners of the Prophet (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam). The most perfect manners among people are the good conduct of the Prophet (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam). The members of the Tariqa must follow him on his path. Therefore, it contradicts the rules of good manners of the Tariqa to do evil or to engage in falsehood and lies. Adab means to obey the commands of Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, and to follow the path of the Prophet (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam). Nothing else. People today are practically looking for opportunities to misbehave. That is the way of common people, not of the members of the Tariqa. The Tariqa means to adopt the noble character of the Prophet (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) and to strive to be like him. May Allah help us. Because nowadays, even the members of the Tariqa can hardly control their ego. They want to do whatever their ego commands them. They are subject to the desires of their ego. So what is the Tariqa? The Tariqa is discipline. You must discipline your ego. A disciplined ego rises to the highest levels. One does not advance through shouting and bad behavior. Instead of advancing, one even goes backwards. May Allah protect us from the evil of our ego. Some ask, "What should we do in the Tariqa?" The task in the Tariqa is to maintain good manners. That is the most important thing. To maintain one's good manners means to pay attention to one's actions and words. May Allah help us all. May Allah make it easy for us not to follow our ego.

The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, says in essence: Whoever is humble for Allah's sake, He will raise him, and whoever is arrogant, He will lower him. The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, says: Whoever is humble for the sake of Allah, Allah will elevate him. He whom Allah elevates is truly exalted. But the arrogant, Allah will continuously lower. Thus, he can never be elevated. A person who boasts with the words, 'I am this, I am that,' is unpopular among his fellow people from the very beginning. For Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, does not love the arrogant person. Arrogance is one of the greatest vices of man. It is a major sin, not a virtue. Unfortunately, most people are inclined towards arrogance. Whoever is arrogant has no standing in the sight of Allah. He also has no standing in the sight of the Prophet. Arrogance is permitted only towards disbelievers. However, to be arrogant among Muslims and to boast, 'I am a scholar, I am a sheikh, I am this, I am that,' is inappropriate and senseless behavior. Such behavior increases a person's sins and, at the same time, erases his good deeds. Therefore, humility is the most important characteristic for the people of the Tariqa. A person without humility should not even enter the Tariqa in the first place. Even if he is among scholars and, in his arrogance, tells himself, 'My knowledge is such and such'—it benefits neither himself nor anyone else. May Allah protect us from this evil of our ego. May Allah help us. May Allah, insha'Allah, protect us from arrogance.

And when the ignorant address them, they say, 'Peace.' (25:63) Allah, the Exalted, says about the believers: When the ignorant address them with inappropriate words, they pay no attention to it. They do not engage with them. They pay them no attention whatsoever, as Allah, the Exalted, teaches us. This attitude, this approach, is the way of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. It is a character trait that Allah, the Exalted, loves. If an ignorant person attacks you with words and you answer him, you give him importance. He will feel important because of it. Then he will attack you even more fiercely. As long as you keep replying, he will continue. He will provoke you. Nothing good comes from it. Nowadays, there is a modern term for this: 'polemics'. People say: "Let's not get involved in polemics." And that is the most important thing. Because nowadays, the ignorant have discovered this method for themselves everywhere. They attack everyone just to raise their own profile. They pick a fight with everyone—whether great or small, learned or ignorant—just to become famous and so that people will think they are special. And so it happens that other ignorant people suddenly consider someone who was previously completely unknown to be important and start following him. Therefore, it is best, as Allah, the Exalted, has instructed us, not to engage with the ignorant. Proclaim the truth. Whoever accepts it, accepts it, and whoever does not, that is their own affair. This means that Allah has not willed it for him. Therefore, this is a very important point. But people nowadays immediately jump at the slightest remark and think: "I'm going to answer him!" But that is wrong. That is not the way of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. One only has to recall the well-known incident from the time of our Prophet. Someone was insulting Hadrat Abu Bakr. The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, stood by and smiled. Once, twice, but the third time, Hadrat Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, gave that man an answer. At that, the Prophet's expression darkened, his smile vanished, and he walked away. Of course, Hadrat Abu Bakr and the other Companions noticed immediately when the Prophet was displeased and when he was pleased. He immediately went after him and asked, "O Messenger of Allah, when that man was insulting me so, you were smiling." "But when I answered him, you turned away and left." The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, replied, "When he was insulting you, Allah had sent an angel to defend you." "But when you began to answer, the angel left and Satan came." "And I do not stay in a place where Satan is," he said. So that is how it is. One must understand this. As long as you answer the ignorant person, Satan is involved. If you remain silent, the angels will defend you. Therefore, a person must have their ego under control. One should never forget that. Every time one gets into an argument with an ignorant person and the matter escalates, Satan is right in the middle of it. May Allah protect us from their evil.

Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says: "Do not make your houses into graveyards." Perform voluntary prayers in them. This means: Do not let your houses be without prayer; pray at home. A house without prayer is like a graveyard. It becomes a soulless, loveless place. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) narrates that the angel Gabriel (peace be upon him) came to him. "O Muhammad (peace be upon him)." "Live as long as you wish, in the end you will die." This means: No matter how long a person may live, no one can escape death—in the end, everyone will die. Since our Prophet (peace be upon him) was also a human being, death is destined for everyone. He continues: "Love whomever you wish, in the end you will be separated from them." This means: Whomever you love, you will be separated from them by death. Sometimes people also separate during their lifetime. "Do what you wish, in the end you will bear the consequences." This means: Whether you do good or evil, it certainly has consequences. You will experience the consequences. "Know that the true honor of the believer lies in standing for the night prayer." This means: To stand for the Tahajjud prayer at night and to pray while people are sleeping—that is the true honor of the believer, the highest rank. His dignity lies in not being dependent on anyone, not submitting to anyone, being content with what Allah has given him, and not expecting anything from people. This is called Izzet-i Nefs—self-respect: to be content with what Allah has given, to expect nothing from others, to hope only from Allah—that is the true dignity of the believer. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says: "If someone wakes up at night and also wakes their spouse, and they perform two units of prayer together, they will be counted among the men and women who remember Allah often." This means: They belong to the group of "Dhâkirînallâhe kathîran wadh-dhâkirât"—those men and women mentioned in the noble Quran who remember Allah often. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says: "When one of you stands for the night prayer, he should use the Miswak." The Miswak is part of the Sunnah. For when one of you recites the Quran in prayer, an angel places his mouth on that person's mouth, and everything that comes out of his mouth passes into the angel's mouth. This means: Through the Miswak, no bad odor remains in the mouth. The angels receive what is recited and write it in the account of that person's good deeds. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) further says: "When one of you stands for the night prayer and, due to fatigue, the recited Quran becomes jumbled on his tongue and he no longer knows what he is saying, he should stop the prayer and go to sleep." This means: Sometimes, when you get up too early, this really happens—you are a bit groggy and haven't slept enough. If you sleep a little longer, about an hour, you will be fresher afterwards. For this reason, our Prophet (peace be upon him) has given this permission, so that the Quran is not mixed up. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says: "When one of you stands for the night prayer, he should begin his prayer with two light, short units of prayer." With these two units of prayer, a person collects themselves, the sleepiness disappears, and they become more aware of what they are doing. In the beginning, our Prophet (peace be upon him) recommends not to prolong the two units of prayer too much. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) spoke this beautiful Hadith in the form of a rhyme: "Speak good words, spread the greeting of peace, maintain ties with your relatives, pray at night while people sleep—then you will enter Paradise in peace," says our Prophet (peace be upon him). Whoever follows this, Allah willing—whoever speaks good words, greets everyone, is good to their relatives, and prays at night—will also enter Paradise with ease and in peace. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says: "The most excellent time to perform the Tahajjud prayer and to make supplications is the middle of the last third of the night." This means: Getting up about an hour before the morning prayer is the best time. Afterwards, one performs the morning prayer and then either goes to work or rests. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says that the most excellent prayer after the obligatory prayers... Of course, no prayer can be equated with the obligatory prayer—the obligatory prayer is the most important. Some say: "I don't perform the obligatory prayer, but I do perform that one." Even if you perform voluntary prayers your entire life, you cannot attain the reward of a single obligatory prayer. But after the obligatory prayer, the most excellent prayer is the one performed in the last third of the night—that is, at the time of Tahajjud. The most excellent fast after Ramadan is fasting in the month of Muharram, the month of Allah, says our Prophet (peace be upon him). Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says: "The moment your Lord is closest to His servant is in the middle of the last third of the night." "If you are able to be among those who remember Allah at this time, then be among them." This means: The moment a person is closest to their Lord is in prostration and in these prayers—especially the time of Tahajjud in the last third of the night is the most excellent time. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says: "Verily, Allah has given every prophet something that he loved and desired. What I love is the enlivening of the night." Every prophet had different things that he loved and ardently desired. What our Prophet (peace be upon him) desired and loved is the enlivening of the night. "When I stand for the night prayer, no one should stand behind me for prayer." For our Prophet (peace be upon him) advises this so that he does not have to think of others and worry that they might get tired. For there were times when our Prophet prayed in such a way that he recited the Surahs Al-Baqara, Al-Imran, An-Nisa, Al-Ma'ida, and the congregation thought: "Is he going to recite the entire Quran?" This means: Our Prophet's desire is for the prayer, this night prayer. That is why he says: "They should not pray behind me at night, so that I may feel free." "Because I stand for prayer for a long time, no one should stand behind me." "Verily, Allah has given every prophet a livelihood." My livelihood is the Khums—which means one-fifth of the spoils of war. "After my death, this share belongs to the rulers who come after me, the Caliphs." This means: One-fifth of the goods captured in war belongs, after our Prophet, to the succeeding Caliphs and rulers. To the Sultans and Caliphs. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says: "Whoever prays with the Imam until he finishes the prayer, it will be recorded for him as if he had spent the whole night in prayer." This means: Whoever performs the prayer with the Imam and remains in the congregation until the end is like someone who has enlivened the night. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) says: "There is an hour in the night during which—if a Muslim servant asks Allah for something good for this world and the Hereafter, and his supplication coincides with this hour—Allah will certainly grant him what he wishes." "This hour exists every night." This means: When you get up and pray during this night, make supplications and ask for what you desire. If your supplication coincides with this hour, you will, with Allah's permission, receive what you desire. Even if you do not get it immediately, the supplication is not lost—you will receive the reward for it in the Hereafter.

And thus We have made you a community of the middle path (2:143). Allah says: "And so have We made you a community of the middle path." This means not going to extremes, not taking one side or the other. Stay on the middle path. Do not be too strict. Be neither too lenient nor too harsh. He says: "Be moderate in all things." The Ahl as-Sunnah wa l-Jama'ah—that is, the people of the Tariqa and the schools of law who follow the path of our Prophet—are the very ones on this middle path. Those who are outside of them have strayed from the right path. They have turned away from the command of our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). On the one hand, you see those who do not recognize anyone as a Muslim except themselves. On the other hand, you see the exact opposite, which is, however, just as extreme. Therefore, the true community is the Ahl as-Sunnah wa l-Jama'ah. It is they who follow the path of our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Nowadays, however, voices arise from everywhere. In the past, people would listen to one person and not be confused. But today, people appear from all sides, wanting to instruct the people. Through the new media, from these devices, they spread all sorts of things. At their own discretion, they incite people against one another, claiming: "This is right, that is wrong; one person did this, the others did that." The people who remain on the middle path will find salvation. Otherwise, those who listen to them will, unfortunately, stray from the path. For the Fitna is everywhere. And Fitna is the work of Satan. He relentlessly tries to corrupt Islam and the Muslims. Therefore, one must not fall into extremes. Falling into extremes only causes harm. Extremism is never good. If you stay on the middle path, you benefit yourself and others, and on top of that, you find peace. In this way, you preserve your religion. For the Ahl as-Sunnah wa l-Jama'ah loves both the Ahl al-Bayt and the Sahaba. Whoever insults the Sahaba falls into an extreme. And whoever does not love the Ahl al-Bayt also falls into an extreme. To deceive people, they spread all sorts of lies and baseless claims as truth. There are even many who fabricate Hadith. Likewise, there are many who reject Hadith entirely. There are even groups that do not even recognize the Quran. They say: "The true Quran is still hidden; it will emerge later." Therefore, the path of the Tariqa is the middle path. Following this path is beneficial for every Muslim. For as the saying goes: "Whoever has no Murshid, his murshid is Satan." And this condition harms people. It is always best, for both this world and the Hereafter, to stay on the middle path. May Allah protect us. May He not leave us to our egos. Let us not fall into extremes, insha'Allah.