Dhikr is to remember God in different ways and in multiple forms
DR AREEF JAMAEI
The Remembrance of God, dhikr literally means “to remember, to recollect, to remind or to make a reference (of something).” Both in Arabic and Urdu dhikr means to “make a mention of something.” However, technically dhikr means to remember God and to make repetition of his attributes. Thus, dhikr is the elaboration and explanation of monotheism (tauhid) in the form of tahlil (elaboration of the oneness of God), takbir (explanation of the greatness of God), tasbih (uttering the majesty of God), taqdis (veneration of God), tahmid (stating the magnificence of God) and tamjid (glorification of God). As such, dhikr is to remember God in different ways and in multiple forms.
It is interesting to note that the most popular Sufi-saint vis-à-vis Kashmir, Mir Sayyid Hamadani (R‘A), as a profound scholar and a prolific writer has penned down different pamphlets/booklets on dhikr for the benefit of Muslims in general and for the guidance of his disciples in particular. These book(let)s include: Aurad-i Fathiyyah (Arabic), Aurad-i ‘Asriyyah (Arabic), Risalah-i Auradiyyah (Arabic), Risalah-i Dhikriyyah Sagir (Arabic) and Risalah-i Dhikriyyah (Persian). So far as the case of the mosques and khnaqahs of Kashmir is concerned, Aurad-i Fathiyyah of the Sayyid (R‘A) has echoed here from the very outset.
It is very interesting to note that Aurad-i Fathiyyah has been always recited in the Grand Mosque of Kashmir (Jama‘ Masjid Srinagar) with enthusiasm. Same has been the case of the mosques of Kashmir’s periphery where traditionally this Aurad has always been read in chorus especially after the dawn prayers. However, the dhikr that we are concerned with here is Risalah-i Dhikriyyah, written by the Sayyid (R‘A) in Persian. It is worth noting that this booklet is not a collection of dhikr as such. The booklet actually throws light on the significance of the remembrance of God. It also highlights the fact that why a believer should make dhikr? Moreover, the pamphlet puts forth the etiquettes of dhikr.
Actually, dhikr is such a practice that inscribes different dimensions of tauhid (monotheism) on the mind and heart of the believer who makes dhikr. Sayyid Hamadani (R‘A) has made this aspect of dhikr very much clear. It is very interesting to note that the pamphlet begins with a grand and sublime literary style which includes, naturally, the glorification of God’s name and praising of the Prophet (SA‘AS).
The hymn for God reads: “Praise be to God Who took to culmination the pious souls through the gardens of the trees of human bodies; Who by His grace and mercy made to bloom the Being of Human by dint of the Tree of Being!” (p. 39) It is clear that the Sayyid (R‘A) begins his discourse on dhikr with the fact that God always showers His mercy on His sincere slaves.
Vis-à-vis the Prophet (SA‘AS), the Sayyid (R‘A) says that “Muhammad (SA‘AS) is the fruition of the Tree of Being and the River of generosity and mercy!” (p. 39) This statement of the Sayyid (R‘A) highlights that he declares the Prophet (SA‘AS) as the Leader of the Prophets (‘AS) on the pattern set forth by the Qur’an itself. (See, al-Anbiya: 107; al-Qalam: 4)
Before dividing human beings into three groups, Sayyid ‘Ali Hamadani (R‘A) highlights three aspects or dimensions of the human personality. He says: “The personnel/agents/guards of destiny clothed everyone with the cloak of Being; put the crown of reason on everyone’s head; girdled everyone with the girdle of comprehension; put everyone on the sledge of Self and sent them in groups and bands to the market of the world one after another!” (p. 40)
Here stems out Sayyid Hamadani’s (R‘A) three layered division of human beings. The reason is obvious that it is because of humans’ blind following of the Self (wishes/whims/desires) that First Group gets depicted as: “Those who are chaotic transgressors, misguided and ignorant. They are not serious vis-à-vis the lofty goal/purpose of life. They stick to the transitory world and like animals they drown themselves in the gorges of beastly life.” (p. 41) Clearly, it is the blind following of the Self that renders humans as useless entities, about which the Qur’an says:
“And if We had willed, We could have elevated him thereby, but he adhered to the earth and followed his own desires. So his example is like that of a dog: if you chase him, he pants, or if you leave him, he (still) pants. That is the example of the people who denied Our Signs. So relate the stories (to them) that perhaps they will give thought.” (al-A‘raf: 176)
However, when a person decides to behave rationally, s/he gets the path of golden mean. About this Secomd Group of people the Sayyid (R‘A) says: “Second Group is those of the Companions of the Right Hand who follow the Middle Path. They remained away from the Valley of Sin by dint of their will power and resolve.
For the sake of a righteous and blissful life, ……. they abandoned the life of sinful luxury and remained patient on misfortune and hardships of life.” (p. 41) These people, as such, control the dictates of the Inordinate Appetite (lust, al-Nafs al-Ammarah) through the bridle of the Self-Reproaching Soul (conscience, al-Nafs al-Lawwamah). It is this control that creates the Third Group of people which has been described by the Sayyid (R‘A) as:
“The Third Group is of those people who are in the first row of the Friends of God. It is they ……. who traveled to the world of spirit from the world of matter.” (p. 42) Thus, according to the Sayyid (R‘A), the grace and mercy of the Beatific Vision (Didar-i Ilahi) which God has promised His righteous servants with is not meant for those who don’t elevate themselves to the lofty truths of life here and the wisdom related to the life hereafter. This is certainly as per the Qur’anic verse: “[Some] faces, that Day, will be radiant; looking at their Lord.” (al-Qiyamah: 22-23)
This pamphlet (Risalah-i Dhiriyyah) of the Sayyid (R‘A) is thus an elaboration of the theme of monotheism (tauhid) using a sublime philosophical language and literary diction. It, on the one hand, shows the Sayyid’s (R‘A) scholarly stature and, on the other hand, exhibits how he endeavoured to popularise the Tauhidic Weltanschauung amid a populace which was turning to the monotheistic worldview after millennia of polytheism and superstition.
(The author is Sr. Assistant Professor, Islamic Studies, GDC Sogam, Lolab. Feedback: alhusain5161@gmail.com)