Islam: Work and Surrender

God says, “Walk and work for Me.” He wants you to work and to surrender at the same time. He does not want you to stay at home like the person who says, “I stay at home and do not work and Allah sends me everything.” The Khalifah ‘Umar came to a man in the mosque and said, “Why are you still here?” He said, “I want to always be praying.” ‘Umar asked him, “Who gives you food and who brings food to your children?” The man answered him, “God.” ‘Umar said, “But who told you to always be in the mosque and to not work and to leave your children? This is not praying.”

The deep praying is to know Him in every face and in every job. ‘Umar took a stick and hit him, “Wake up God, and find work to feed yourself and your children, and feed the animals and everything. Go to know how to help people. This is the deep praying for you! Do not leave your religion to die. It is important to not call yourself a Muslim.” This is the meaning of the real surrender, to work and when you work you know with Whom you work. You work with God. You follow His Order. Allah wants you to be very careful with the earth. This is the meaning of the surrender, trust - trust God.

Many Dervishes or Sufi people speak about themselves as Sufi and say that the Sufi Way is to keep your self inside the Zawiyah and to pray. This is the understanding of the Sufi for himself, but this is not the way. Allah does not like to see any one of His beloveds weak. He likes to see His beloveds strong in the perfect way, to know how to give and how to work. You see many who say they are Sufi and who keep themselves inside praying. I tell them this is not the right kind of praying. You are praying for yourself, but God wants you to pray for another and to give to others. This is praying and this is the meaning of al-Islam.

Where is this religion from? The Prophet, may peace be upon him, worked. He carried the message but at the same time he had a business. He traveled often from Mecca to Damascus bringing things everywhere. This is because he searched about the right life. You can know the Beloved of Allah (the Prophet, may Allah bless him) when you live between the people. How can you know how to help people if you do not live between them? If you do not have a business, how can you be honest? And when you have work, you learn how to give, how to take, and how to care about everything, even animals and plants. The Prophet, may peace by upon him, had many sheep and cared for them. And he cared about himself because he wanted to feed the people. He helped himself and, others. This is al-Islam. Islam does not like weakness. If you are healthy in body and mind, then it is important to go and work but to be straight in everything, to see how to work, to follow when you work, and to change everything, beloved, because the teaching comes through you when you walk straight and follow the teachings of Allah.

- Sheikh Sidi Muhammad al-Jamal

In the Presence of the Mightiest of Emperors...

Imagine yourself entering the presence of a mighty emperor. You are overwhelmed with awe at his power, and with a sense of your own insignificance. Your entire attention is absorbed by the emperor's greatness, so you are utterly unaware of his physical presence and of the other people around him. When you leave his presence, people ask you about the other people, about his physical appearance, and about your own experience of being in his presence. But you are unable to answer.

This is a parable for losing the sense of self.

- Qushayri, "Risalah"

Supplication of Love

Lord, the night is gone. The dawn has lighted the sky. How I long to know if You accepted or rejected my prayers. Comfort me, Lord, for only you can comfort this state of mine. You gave me life and nurtured me; Yours is all the praise. If You would ever drive me away from Your door, I would never abandon it for the sake of Your love, which I carry in my heart.

- Rabi'a, "Rabi'a the Mystic"