Spiritual Letter 49 - Expanded Version About Spiritual Letter 49 Title: "The True Meaning of Islam, For Our Age" Date: May 16, 2003 Written by: Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler) Written to: Our dearest loving brother Farokh, and his wife, from Toronto, Canada Home Page - Spiritual Letters Go To Spiritual Letter 50 Letter 49: Original Version Library Navigation Tree Go To Spiritual Letter 48 Letter 49: Related Material Page 2 of 2 Go To Table of Contents - Spiritual Letter 49 Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim. In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate. Al-salam 'alaykum wa-rahmat Allah wa barakatuhu kulluhu. Wa 'alaykum al-salam wa-rahmat Allah wa barakatuhu kulluhu. May all the peace, the beneficence, and the blessing of God be upon us all. May God help us all. My love you (anbu), my dearest loving brothers and sisters - Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler). Outline of Spiritual Letter: 5-a. Introduction To Page 2 - a short intoduction to the content of Page 2 5-b. The True Meaning of Islam for Our Age - is using the grace, the light, and the power of God within us to let God and True Man within us finish what They have started within us 5-1. Introduction To Chapter 02 - no summary provided 6. Additional Wisdom Points - from Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler) 6-1. Only God is Great Text of Spiritual Letter: 5-a. Introduction To Page 2 - a short intoduction to the content of Page 2 My love you (anbu), my dearest loving brother Farokh, and my dearest loving sister, the wife of Farokh, from Iran, and from Toronto, Canada - Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler). . In this last page of Spiritual Letter 49 we take a detailed look at the beautiful discourse given to us by our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) on November 22, 1979, and later made available to the public, first as an News Release, and then as Chapter 01, "The True Meaning of Islam", in the book, "The Truth and Unity of Man - Letters In Response To a Crisis", published in 1980 by the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. May we now spend some time together sharing this beautiful teaching by His Holiness. It contains a very different focus for Islam than the focus provided by the traditional teaching of Islam that have gradually come down to us since the age of the Prophet Muhammad (Sal.), over 1400 years ago, and we must be clear about the difference. The people who lived in the age of the Prophet Muhammad (Sal.) were in many ways just like the people living today, in the age of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him), and of the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with each of Us), yet the people who lived 1400 years ago lived in a very different world than our current world, and in many ways their needs were different. Bawa teaches us that the Arabs of over 1400 years ago, before the establishment of Islam, often buried the newborn female child in the sand, if enough male children had not yet been born to a family, they often abused animals, and randomly killed them to meet their needs, without regard to the suffering of the animals. Also, there was little unity between the tribes that made up most of Arabia at that time, and fighting, stealing, and killing between tribes was the normal state of affairs. Bawa also teaches us that the worship of many gods and idols was the normal practice for most of the Arabs at that time and that the Kaba, the original house of God build by Abraham (peace be upon Him) and his son Ishmael (peace by upon Him) had become a house to hold all of the many gods of the different tribes, where sacrifice of animals to these gods was common practice. Into this world came the Prophet Muhammad (Sal.), and the revelations of God to Muhammad (Sal.) that became the Holy Qur'an for that age, that became the teachings of God for that age, that moved the Arabs at that time, and gradually the people surrounding Arabia, from living a very combative, male dominated, female insensitive, selfish, and tribal oriented society that worshipped many physical gods, and the primal energies they contained, into a more unified, male subdued, female protective, centralized, and selfless society that worshipped the One God, who had no form, but who had a representative, a Messenger on earth, through whom He could be heard, understood, and worshipped. Taken in this context, the people in the age of Muhammad (Sal.) were facing a very different set of problems, than are facing the people in our age, in the age of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) and His Children (may God be pleased with all of Us), and the transition for them, from before Islam and after Islam was very, very different from the transition that we are all now facing in our life, before the coming of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (Ral.) and His Children (Ral.) and after the coming of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (Ral.) and His Children (Ral.). And this is what the discourse by His Holiness, given to us on November 22, 1979, "The True Meaning of Islam", as well as the following additional letters and discourses that His Holiness gave to us at that time, over the next 4 months, from November 22, 1979 to March, 25, 1980, were all about, the transition that we are all now facing, that everyone living in this age must now make, to truly be Islam in the 21st Century, after the coming of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (Ral.) and His Children (Ral.) into the world, which is very, very different from what Islam was or could be before His coming into the world, and before His bringing of His Children into the world. 1) The True Meaning of Islam - November 22, 1997, News Release. 2) First Letter To The Ayatollah Khomeini - November 30, 1979. 3) Letter To President Sadat - December 6, 1979. 4) Dispel Your Differences - December 6, 1979, Release to Boston Newspaper. 5) Second Letter To The Ayatollah Khomeini - December 11, 1979. 6) A Plea For Unity - January 10, 1980, Letter To The American People. 7) Maintain Your Honor - February 6, 1980, Letter To The American People. 8) Third Letter To The Ayatollah Khomeini - March 11, 1980 9) Who Will Protect America - March 25, 1980, News Release. Plus: 10) Jerusalem - February, 1980, Letter written to prominent Leaders of the Middle East, and the Free World. This letter was later published as Chapter 2, "Jerusalem" in the book, "Islam and World Peace: Explanations of a Sufi", that was published in 1987, after the death of His Holiness, on December 8, 1986. My dearest loving brothers and sisters, we must realize, understand, accept, and join with this truth of our life, of our age, and of all lives living in this age. This is why Bawa teaches us the following, "One day the followers of the Prophet Muhammad (Sal.) asked the Prophet of God how long Islam would last in the world, and the Prophet of God told His followers, "Islam would last in the world 1400 years, and after that, only God knows." And what is the transition that we are all now facing, with the coming into the world of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (Ral.) and His Children (Ral.), that we must all successfully make in order to be truly Islam in the 21st Century? It is the transition from living in the world to living in our heart, it is the transition from living a life of "separation and differences" in the world with our brothers and sisters in the world that we see in our collective ignorance as existing "outside" of us, to living at the feet of the Messenger of God for our age, to living in the heart of our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him). It is the transition of being Islam in a Mosque in the state of "separation from" the Jews, the Christians, the Fire Worshippers (Zoroastrians), and the Hindus, to being Islam in our very own heart as "One with" all of our brothers and sisters living in this age. It is the transition from trying to practice Islam in the world to becoming Islam for the world, and it is the transition from trying to do duty "here" from "here" to doing duty "here" from "there", of doing duty in the dunya or earth world from akhirah or the hereafter, to being the light of God to the world, to being the Aham or purified heart of God reflected in the Muham or face of God to the world, which is Muhammad (Sal.) It is the transition of working for wages to get into heaven to joining in partnership with God and True Man within us, to allow Them within us to finish what They have started within us, which is to reveal True Man within the Creation of God within us, and to reveal God within the Creation of True Man within us, which is to reveal the "Oneness of God and True Man" within us. It is the transition of Islam into Iman-Islam, where people are not Islam, only Iman is Islam. My dearest loving brother and sister, may we all reflect on these beautiful words of wisdom a little, it is very, very important, if we are to successfully make this transition from Islam to Iman-Islam, before it is too late, before we die, and before the world is prematurely destroyed by one of us for all of us. May we all do this divine work, this work of the heart, starting right now. May God give us the grace of His wisdom to do this. Amen, Amen, Ya Rabil Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahman Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahim Alameen. Al-hamdu lillah. Allahu Akbar. My love you (anbu), my dearest loving brother Farokh, and my dearest loving sister, the wife of Farokh - Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler). 5-b. The True Meaning of Islam For Our Age - is using the grace, the light, and the power of God within each of us to let God and True Man finish what They have started within each of us, to let our life turn out as God and True Man within us, as They within us, as "One with" us, have intended for us, not as "we" within Them, not as "we" as "separate from" Them within us, have intended for us, not as "we" as "separate from" God, as "separate from" each other, and as "separate from" the Creation of God within us, have intended for us After reading and studying the beautiful discourse given to us by His Holiness, on November, 22, 1979, a discourse that was later published by the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship in 1980, as Chapter 01, "The True Meaning of Islam", in the book, "The Truth and Unity of Man - Letters In Response To a Crisis", we developed the following Outline and Summary for Chapter 01, which is drawn directly and exclusively from this discourse by His Holiness. We will use this Outline and Summary of Chapter 01 as the starting point for our review and sharing of the beautiful wisdom points given to us by His Holiness in this discourse. In addition, for the purpose of this Spiritual Letter we have also expanded on each Summary and have called this expansion of the Summary of a Topic, "Additional Comments". Most of the "Additional Comments" are still in process. The difference between the "Summary" and the "Additional Comments" is as follows: The "Summary" is drawn directly and exclusively from the discourse by His Holiness, and the "Additional Comments" is drawn from the heart of this child, of your brother Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler), from this child living at the feet of His Holiness for 28 years. An on-line copy of this same Outline and Summary of Chapter 01, without any "Additional Comments", is also available to support your own study of Chapter 01, which you can access after clicking HERE, which takes you to a "Text Only Version of Chapter 01", by then clicking on "Outline and Summary Version of Chapter 01". 5-1. Introduction To Chapter 02 - no summary provided 5-2. The True Message Within the Qur'an Summary: The true message within the Qur'an is to bring about brotherhood and unity, to sooth and comfort those who weep in sorrow and suffer, to explain the bounteous wealth of God to those who are poor, and to inspire faith in those without faith in God, and to help them reach a state of reverence for God. Additional Comments: The true message within the Qur'an, and within the Bible, both the Old and New Testaments, as well as within all religious scriptures, including the spiritual writings of the Zoroastrian or Fire Worship religion and of the Hindi religion, is always the same, which is to bring man into harmony with the reality of his own life, with his true destiny and birth right, which for this child is the "Oneness of God and True Man". And to do this by reducing the distance between man and God, by gradually, over the ages, to reduce the distance between man and man, and through this experience of true brotherhood, to show the oneness of God and man, to show the congruence of what God is doing within man and what True Man is doing within God. Until in this age, at the end of time, to show and explain the true agreement or contract between God and man, which God and True Man have entered into, which preceded all creation by God and True Man, which both God and True man within us, which They are trying to fulfilled in completeness within us, which is for God within us to reveal True Man within the Creation of God within us, and for True Man within us to reveal God within the Creation of True Man within us, and in this way, for God and True Man within us to reveal the "Oneness of God and True Man" within us, for the benefit of all of the Creation of God, and of all of the Creation of True Man, within us. And now in this age, at the end of time, everything is now ready for both God and True Man within each of us to complete what They have started within us, which is to reveal True Man within the Creation of God within us, and to reveal God within the Creation of True Man within us, if we, in our current state of "separation and differences", in our current state of "separation from" God, of "separation from" each other, and of "separation from" the Creation of God within us, if we will but realize, understand, accept, and join with this truth of our lives, before it is too late, before we die, and before one of us destroys the world "outside" for all of us, destroying forever any chance of any of us getting it right before we die. Realizing that this condition of man, and the choice he must now make within himself, before he dies, is just like the condition and the decision facing an apple seed that finds itself buried within the earth. Either it must germinate before it dies, by dropping its defenses that protect it from the earth destroying it, and trust in the truth that lies hidden within it, which is the story of the apple tree, and within that the story of the apple fruit, from which it came, or keep protecting itself from destruction in the earth, until it dies, rots in the earth, and is eventually absorbed into the earth. Either it must self destruct before it dies in the earth, or continue as normal until it dies. Either it must join with the earth to destroy the apple seed and in the process tell the story of the apple tree that has been hidden within the apple seed, or try to live forever as an apple seed. Either it joins with the earth and dies now, before it dies in the earth later, before it rots in the earth, and is absorbed into the earth, only to be reborn as something else, but never again as the apple seed, forever breaking its connection to the story of the apple tree that it was placed in the earth, to join with the earth, to tell, or trust in itself, in its current life buried in the earth, and continue protecting itself from destruction, getting what it can out of life now, and ignore what will happen to it later. And as with the apple seed, the choice is ours. 5-3. How Not To Use The Qur'an Summary: Do not use the Qur'an as a banner to carry into battle, or as a way to impose or prove your own personal understanding and belief upon others, do not use it in ignorance of the inner wisdom or consciousness of the qualities of God within your own life. Additional Comments: 5-4. The Nature of Iman-Islam Summary: Iman-Islam is the state of one who has the purity of Islam and the true faith of Iman, the state of one who cannot hurt the heart of another, or view them as separate from his own life. Additional Comments: 5-5. The Law of the Qur'an Summary: The Law of the Qur'an is that only the qualities of God, which are the 99 powers or attributes of the grace of Allah, that God has personally and ever so lovingly hidden within each of us, even before we were born into this world, only these qualities of God are permitted in the life a true believer in God. For one who has true Iman, who has perfected his faith in God, and is truly Islam, who has purified his heart, anything existing outside of these qualities of God within us is haram, forbidden, or evil, and only that which exists within these divine qualities of God within us is halal, permissible, or good. Additional Comments: 5-6. What Is Against The Law of the Qur'an Summary: What is against the Law of the Qur'an is the keeping of anything other than the qualities of God within us, is the keeping of anything other than the 99 attributes or power of the grace of Allah within us. Additional Comments: 5-7. Only God Knows All of Everything Summary: Only God knows all of everything, and only God can correctly judge the state of anyone, can correctly judge whether a person has Iman (true faith), has perfected his faith in God, and whether a person is living in the true state of Islam, has purified his heart. So don't try and judge the state of other people, groups, or countries, and wage war (jihad or holy war) on them, instead, wage war or jihad only on yourself, only wage war within yourself to defeat the demonic forces and other evil feelings and attributes that may exist within your own heart Additional Comments: 5-8. The Reason God Sent The Qur'an To Each Age Summary: God sent His "Prophets and their Message" to each age as witnesses to the grace and attributes of God given to each age, to support each of us in our inner battle or holy war (jihad) for our age, and to help us to win victory over our own evil desires Additional Comments: 5-9. How Do We Fight Our Inner Holy War, Our Inner Jihad Summary: To fight our inner Holy War or Jihad we must use the wisdom contained within the Qur'an to make our mind sit down, and then join with our wisdom to defeat our own compulsive desires, transforming our outer battles in the world into the true Holy War (jihad) within us. And in this way, revealing the light of God within our outer darkness, revealing our true life within our false life, revealing our life of "Oneness with" God within our life of "separation from" God, revealing the honey of our life within the bitterness of our life. Additional Comments: 5-10. The Value of the Light of Islam Within Us Summary: The Value of the Light of Islam, of the Prophet and the Qur'an, within us is to reveal the essence of God, which is the Dhat of God (His treasury; His wealth of purity; His grace), in every life. The value of the Light of Islam is for each of us to come to the state where we recognize and praise the essence of God, this Dhat of God, as it exists in each and every life. Additional Comments: 5-11. An Explanation of the Truth In The Qur'an Summary: An explanation of the truth that is in the Qur'an within us, of the truth that is within each of us, if that be our wish, is an explanation of the truth of the 99 within the 99, within the 99, within the 99, within the ......, within each of us living in this age. Additional Comments: And we can receive this explanation of the truth within us, of the truth within the Qur'an within us, if we will but realize, understand, accept, and join with our Shaikh within us, and with God within Him, as the Qutbiyyat of God within us, as the wisdom that explains within us, as the grace of the Dhat of God within us. And in this way, our life will become successful, if we will but let our soul join with the Light of our wisdom, with the true consciousness of Muhammad (Sal.) within us, with the Nur Muhammad within us, that can be found within the Holy Qur'an within each of us, allowing the Nur Muhammad within us to reveal the Dhat of God, the Essence of God, within all lives within us, within the Creation of God within us. Allowing God and True Man within us to finish what They have started within each of us, which is to reveal True Man within the Creation of God within us, and to reveal God within the Creation of True Man within us, revealing in this way, the Oneness of God and True Man within us, which in truth is God and True Man within us. (Note: the 99 are the qualities of God's grace within us, the Asma' al-husna, the form or sifat of the dhat of God within us, the manifestation of His essence within us, that has been hidden by God within each of us, within the Holy Qur'an within each of us, which when revealed by the Nur Muhammad or wisdom within the Holy Qur'an within us becomes the dhat within the dhat of God within us, becomes the understanding of the dhat within us. Becomes our innermost heart within our purified heart within us, becomes the Creation of True Man within the Creation of God within us, becomes the "Three of Us" within the "Three of God" within us, becomes the Disciple, the Shaikh, and God - within the Triple Flame of God within us, within -Ya Allah, Ya Rasul, Ya Muhaiyaddeen - within us. Becomes the Everything within the Essence of the Power, within the Power within the Essence of Everything within us, becomes the next world within this world within us, becomes akhirah within the dunya within us, becomes the arsh al-mu'mim, the Throne of the True Believer, within the Kingdom of God within us. Amen, Amen, Ya Rabil Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahman Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahim Alameen. Al-hamdu lillah. Allahu Akbar) 5-12. The True Meaning of Islam Summary: The true meaning of Islam is to realize that every atom contains the power of Allah, the divine power of God, and having realized this, without the slightest doubt, to act accordingly, to never harm anyone, to never take revenge or be treacherous toward anyone. Additional Comments: 5-13. What We Must Do To Be True Islam Summary: We who strive to be True Islam must give up our sinful lustful desires and come to the plenitude of firm faith in God, we must give up the hell caused by our attachments in the world, and come into the love of God that is His grace, we must incorporate the 99 compassionate powers of God as the basis of our actions, and as the law of our life, and in this way, discover God's mercy and compassion within our very own life. Additional Comments: 6. Additional Wisdom Points - as provided by Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler), and as inspired from a study and analysis of this beautiful discourse by our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him), and as such they are not drawn directly and exclusively from the text of Chapter 01, as is the case for the "Summary" comments provided for the earlier wisdom topics. Also, we have divided the comments into two categories, "Comments", and "Expanded Comments. Most of the "Expanded Comments" are still in process. 6-1. Only God is Great Comments: Only God is great, not you or I or anything else, for the value of anything is only that it contains the greatness of God, not that it contains any intrinsic value of its own as "separate from" the Greatness of God within it. In this way, the greatness of anything is only that it contains the 99 attributes or powers of the grace of Allah, which can be revealed within each of us, if, and only if, like the Rasulullah (Sal.) demonstrated to us, we join with God within us to reveal it. Other than this greatness, wealth, and power of God within everything, there is no greatness, or wealth, or power within anything or anyone (provided as a supplement to Item, "5-7. Only God Knows All of Everything", above). Expanded Comments: 6-2. Warriors of God For Each Age Comments: The true warriors of God for each age are those within each age who join with their wisdom within them and with the truth of God within their wisdom, who join with their Shaikh within them, and with God within Him, to allow God and True Man within them to accomplish what God and True Man have set out to accomplish within them in their age. In order to complete the intention of God and True Man within us for each age, as part of Their intention for creating man in the first place, which is God revealing True Man within the Creation of God, and True Man revealing God within the Creation of True Man, and in this way, revealing the Oneness of God and True Man within us, for the benefit of all of the Creation of God and the Creation of True Man within us (provided as a supplement to Item, "5-9. How Do We Fight Our Inner Holy War, Our Inner Jihad, above, especially, the following text from His Holiness, "We must use the wisdom or divine consciousness within the Qur'an to correct ourselves." Expanded Comments: 6-3. The Purpose of the Holy Qur'an in Each Age Comments: The purpose of the Holy Qur'an in each age is to move forward what They are doing within us in each age, to move forward what God and True Man are doing within us in each age, which is to reveal True Man within the Creation of God, and to reveal God within the Creation of True Man, which is to reveal the Oneness of God and True Man within us, which in truth is God and True Man within us. Expanded Comments: 6-4. How To Properly Use The Holy Qur'an In Each Age Comments: To properly use the holy Qur'an in our age we must join our life with the life of God within us, with our wisdom and with the truth of God within your wisdom, we must join our life as One with our Shaikh within you, and with God within Him, becoming in this way, the Oneness of the "Three of Us" within the "Three of God" within us. To properly use the Holy Qur'an in our age we must use the Qur'an to become the Common Wealth of God for our age. Expanded Comments: To properly use the holy Qur'an in our age we must join our life with the life of God within us, with our wisdom and with the truth of God within our wisdom, we must join our life as One with our Shaikh within us, and as One with God within Him. Becoming in this way, the Oneness of the "Three of Us" within the "Three of God" within us, becoming in this way, the dhat within the dhat of God within us, which is the understanding of the dhat of God within us, allowing the dhat of God within us, which is the essence of God within us, to return to the power of God within us, from which it has come. And before this can occur within us, we must first become the everything within the everything of God within us, we must become the 18,000 universes within the 18,000 universes within us, which is the understanding of the 18,000 universes within us, allowing the everything within us, which is the sifat or form of the Creation of God within us, to return to the dhat of God within us, to the essence of God within us, from which it has come, so the dhat of God within us can return to the power of God within us. And in this way, allowing the power within the essence of everything, now with the understanding of the dhat or essence of God within us, to again reveal the everything within the essence of the power of God, but this time as True Man and the Creation of True Man, which is akhirah or the hereafter, with True Man now being the essence of God in akhirah, as the dhat or Muhammad (Sal.) was the essence of God in the dunya, and the Creation of True Man being akhirah or the hereafter, as the Creation of God was the dunya or this earth world. In this way, to properly use the Holy Qur'an in our age we must use the Qur'an to become the Common Wealth of God for our age, which is the Light of God to the world, which is True Man, which is the life and teaching of God for our age, which is the life and teaching of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) for all of the Children of God for our age, which is everyone living in our age. Amen, Amen, Ya Rabil Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahman Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahim Alameen. Al-hamdu lillah. Allahu Akbar 6-5. How To Improperly Use The Holy Qur'an In Each Age Comments: To improperly use the Holy Qur'an in our age is to use the Holy Qur'an for our own personal benefit, for the benefit of the life of "separation and differences" that we are currently living with our brothers and sisters in the world that we collectively see in our ignorance as existing "outside" of us. To improperly use the Holy Qur'an in our age is to use the Qur'an to accumulate personal wealth for our age, like titles, praise, position, and power, or personal things of a similar nature. Expanded Comments: End of Page 2 of 2 of Spiritual Letter 49 - expanded version - ........................... or Go To Spiritual Letter 49: Table of Contents Original Version Related Material or ( a top-down version of the Library Home Page) (a bottom-up version of the Library Home Page) |
Spiritual Letter 49 - Expanded Version About Spiritual Letter 49 Title: "The True Meaning of Islam, For Our Age" Date: May 16, 2003 Written by: Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler) Written to: Our dearest loving brother Farokh, and his wife, from Toronto, Canada Home Page - Spiritual Letters Go To Spiritual Letter 50 Letter 49: Original Version Library Navigation Tree Go To Spiritual Letter 48 Letter 49: Related Material Page 2 of 2 Go To Table of Contents - Spiritual Letter 49 Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim. In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate. Al-salam 'alaykum wa-rahmat Allah wa barakatuhu kulluhu. Wa 'alaykum al-salam wa-rahmat Allah wa barakatuhu kulluhu. May all the peace, the beneficence, and the blessing of God be upon us all. May God help us all. My love you (anbu), my dearest loving brothers and sisters - Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler). Outline of Spiritual Letter: 5-a. Introduction To Page 2 - a short intoduction to the content of Page 2 5-b. The True Meaning of Islam for Our Age - is using the grace, the light, and the power of God within us to let God and True Man within us finish what They have started within us 5-1. Introduction To Chapter 02 - no summary provided 6. Additional Wisdom Points - from Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler) 6-1. Only God is Great Text of Spiritual Letter: 5-a. Introduction To Page 2 - a short intoduction to the content of Page 2 My love you (anbu), my dearest loving brother Farokh, and my dearest loving sister, the wife of Farokh, from Iran, and from Toronto, Canada - Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler). . In this last page of Spiritual Letter 49 we take a detailed look at the beautiful discourse given to us by our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) on November 22, 1979, and later made available to the public, first as an News Release, and then as Chapter 01, "The True Meaning of Islam", in the book, "The Truth and Unity of Man - Letters In Response To a Crisis", published in 1980 by the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. May we now spend some time together sharing this beautiful teaching by His Holiness. It contains a very different focus for Islam than the focus provided by the traditional teaching of Islam that have gradually come down to us since the age of the Prophet Muhammad (Sal.), over 1400 years ago, and we must be clear about the difference. The people who lived in the age of the Prophet Muhammad (Sal.) were in many ways just like the people living today, in the age of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him), and of the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with each of Us), yet the people who lived 1400 years ago lived in a very different world than our current world, and in many ways their needs were different. Bawa teaches us that the Arabs of over 1400 years ago, before the establishment of Islam, often buried the newborn female child in the sand, if enough male children had not yet been born to a family, they often abused animals, and randomly killed them to meet their needs, without regard to the suffering of the animals. Also, there was little unity between the tribes that made up most of Arabia at that time, and fighting, stealing, and killing between tribes was the normal state of affairs. Bawa also teaches us that the worship of many gods and idols was the normal practice for most of the Arabs at that time and that the Kaba, the original house of God build by Abraham (peace be upon Him) and his son Ishmael (peace by upon Him) had become a house to hold all of the many gods of the different tribes, where sacrifice of animals to these gods was common practice. Into this world came the Prophet Muhammad (Sal.), and the revelations of God to Muhammad (Sal.) that became the Holy Qur'an for that age, that became the teachings of God for that age, that moved the Arabs at that time, and gradually the people surrounding Arabia, from living a very combative, male dominated, female insensitive, selfish, and tribal oriented society that worshipped many physical gods, and the primal energies they contained, into a more unified, male subdued, female protective, centralized, and selfless society that worshipped the One God, who had no form, but who had a representative, a Messenger on earth, through whom He could be heard, understood, and worshipped. Taken in this context, the people in the age of Muhammad (Sal.) were facing a very different set of problems, than are facing the people in our age, in the age of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) and His Children (may God be pleased with all of Us), and the transition for them, from before Islam and after Islam was very, very different from the transition that we are all now facing in our life, before the coming of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (Ral.) and His Children (Ral.) and after the coming of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (Ral.) and His Children (Ral.). And this is what the discourse by His Holiness, given to us on November 22, 1979, "The True Meaning of Islam", as well as the following additional letters and discourses that His Holiness gave to us at that time, over the next 4 months, from November 22, 1979 to March, 25, 1980, were all about, the transition that we are all now facing, that everyone living in this age must now make, to truly be Islam in the 21st Century, after the coming of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (Ral.) and His Children (Ral.) into the world, which is very, very different from what Islam was or could be before His coming into the world, and before His bringing of His Children into the world. 1) The True Meaning of Islam - November 22, 1997, News Release. 2) First Letter To The Ayatollah Khomeini - November 30, 1979. 3) Letter To President Sadat - December 6, 1979. 4) Dispel Your Differences - December 6, 1979, Release to Boston Newspaper. 5) Second Letter To The Ayatollah Khomeini - December 11, 1979. 6) A Plea For Unity - January 10, 1980, Letter To The American People. 7) Maintain Your Honor - February 6, 1980, Letter To The American People. 8) Third Letter To The Ayatollah Khomeini - March 11, 1980 9) Who Will Protect America - March 25, 1980, News Release. Plus: 10) Jerusalem - February, 1980, Letter written to prominent Leaders of the Middle East, and the Free World. This letter was later published as Chapter 2, "Jerusalem" in the book, "Islam and World Peace: Explanations of a Sufi", that was published in 1987, after the death of His Holiness, on December 8, 1986. My dearest loving brothers and sisters, we must realize, understand, accept, and join with this truth of our life, of our age, and of all lives living in this age. This is why Bawa teaches us the following, "One day the followers of the Prophet Muhammad (Sal.) asked the Prophet of God how long Islam would last in the world, and the Prophet of God told His followers, "Islam would last in the world 1400 years, and after that, only God knows." And what is the transition that we are all now facing, with the coming into the world of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (Ral.) and His Children (Ral.), that we must all successfully make in order to be truly Islam in the 21st Century? It is the transition from living in the world to living in our heart, it is the transition from living a life of "separation and differences" in the world with our brothers and sisters in the world that we see in our collective ignorance as existing "outside" of us, to living at the feet of the Messenger of God for our age, to living in the heart of our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him). It is the transition of being Islam in a Mosque in the state of "separation from" the Jews, the Christians, the Fire Worshippers (Zoroastrians), and the Hindus, to being Islam in our very own heart as "One with" all of our brothers and sisters living in this age. It is the transition from trying to practice Islam in the world to becoming Islam for the world, and it is the transition from trying to do duty "here" from "here" to doing duty "here" from "there", of doing duty in the dunya or earth world from akhirah or the hereafter, to being the light of God to the world, to being the Aham or purified heart of God reflected in the Muham or face of God to the world, which is Muhammad (Sal.) It is the transition of working for wages to get into heaven to joining in partnership with God and True Man within us, to allow Them within us to finish what They have started within us, which is to reveal True Man within the Creation of God within us, and to reveal God within the Creation of True Man within us, which is to reveal the "Oneness of God and True Man" within us. It is the transition of Islam into Iman-Islam, where people are not Islam, only Iman is Islam. My dearest loving brother and sister, may we all reflect on these beautiful words of wisdom a little, it is very, very important, if we are to successfully make this transition from Islam to Iman-Islam, before it is too late, before we die, and before the world is prematurely destroyed by one of us for all of us. May we all do this divine work, this work of the heart, starting right now. May God give us the grace of His wisdom to do this. Amen, Amen, Ya Rabil Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahman Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahim Alameen. Al-hamdu lillah. Allahu Akbar. My love you (anbu), my dearest loving brother Farokh, and my dearest loving sister, the wife of Farokh - Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler). 5-b. The True Meaning of Islam For Our Age - is using the grace, the light, and the power of God within each of us to let God and True Man finish what They have started within each of us, to let our life turn out as God and True Man within us, as They within us, as "One with" us, have intended for us, not as "we" within Them, not as "we" as "separate from" Them within us, have intended for us, not as "we" as "separate from" God, as "separate from" each other, and as "separate from" the Creation of God within us, have intended for us After reading and studying the beautiful discourse given to us by His Holiness, on November, 22, 1979, a discourse that was later published by the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship in 1980, as Chapter 01, "The True Meaning of Islam", in the book, "The Truth and Unity of Man - Letters In Response To a Crisis", we developed the following Outline and Summary for Chapter 01, which is drawn directly and exclusively from this discourse by His Holiness. We will use this Outline and Summary of Chapter 01 as the starting point for our review and sharing of the beautiful wisdom points given to us by His Holiness in this discourse. In addition, for the purpose of this Spiritual Letter we have also expanded on each Summary and have called this expansion of the Summary of a Topic, "Additional Comments". Most of the "Additional Comments" are still in process. The difference between the "Summary" and the "Additional Comments" is as follows: The "Summary" is drawn directly and exclusively from the discourse by His Holiness, and the "Additional Comments" is drawn from the heart of this child, of your brother Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler), from this child living at the feet of His Holiness for 28 years. An on-line copy of this same Outline and Summary of Chapter 01, without any "Additional Comments", is also available to support your own study of Chapter 01, which you can access after clicking HERE, which takes you to a "Text Only Version of Chapter 01", by then clicking on "Outline and Summary Version of Chapter 01". 5-1. Introduction To Chapter 02 - no summary provided 5-2. The True Message Within the Qur'an Summary: The true message within the Qur'an is to bring about brotherhood and unity, to sooth and comfort those who weep in sorrow and suffer, to explain the bounteous wealth of God to those who are poor, and to inspire faith in those without faith in God, and to help them reach a state of reverence for God. Additional Comments: The true message within the Qur'an, and within the Bible, both the Old and New Testaments, as well as within all religious scriptures, including the spiritual writings of the Zoroastrian or Fire Worship religion and of the Hindi religion, is always the same, which is to bring man into harmony with the reality of his own life, with his true destiny and birth right, which for this child is the "Oneness of God and True Man". And to do this by reducing the distance between man and God, by gradually, over the ages, to reduce the distance between man and man, and through this experience of true brotherhood, to show the oneness of God and man, to show the congruence of what God is doing within man and what True Man is doing within God. Until in this age, at the end of time, to show and explain the true agreement or contract between God and man, which God and True Man have entered into, which preceded all creation by God and True Man, which both God and True man within us, which They are trying to fulfilled in completeness within us, which is for God within us to reveal True Man within the Creation of God within us, and for True Man within us to reveal God within the Creation of True Man within us, and in this way, for God and True Man within us to reveal the "Oneness of God and True Man" within us, for the benefit of all of the Creation of God, and of all of the Creation of True Man, within us. And now in this age, at the end of time, everything is now ready for both God and True Man within each of us to complete what They have started within us, which is to reveal True Man within the Creation of God within us, and to reveal God within the Creation of True Man within us, if we, in our current state of "separation and differences", in our current state of "separation from" God, of "separation from" each other, and of "separation from" the Creation of God within us, if we will but realize, understand, accept, and join with this truth of our lives, before it is too late, before we die, and before one of us destroys the world "outside" for all of us, destroying forever any chance of any of us getting it right before we die. Realizing that this condition of man, and the choice he must now make within himself, before he dies, is just like the condition and the decision facing an apple seed that finds itself buried within the earth. Either it must germinate before it dies, by dropping its defenses that protect it from the earth destroying it, and trust in the truth that lies hidden within it, which is the story of the apple tree, and within that the story of the apple fruit, from which it came, or keep protecting itself from destruction in the earth, until it dies, rots in the earth, and is eventually absorbed into the earth. Either it must self destruct before it dies in the earth, or continue as normal until it dies. Either it must join with the earth to destroy the apple seed and in the process tell the story of the apple tree that has been hidden within the apple seed, or try to live forever as an apple seed. Either it joins with the earth and dies now, before it dies in the earth later, before it rots in the earth, and is absorbed into the earth, only to be reborn as something else, but never again as the apple seed, forever breaking its connection to the story of the apple tree that it was placed in the earth, to join with the earth, to tell, or trust in itself, in its current life buried in the earth, and continue protecting itself from destruction, getting what it can out of life now, and ignore what will happen to it later. And as with the apple seed, the choice is ours. 5-3. How Not To Use The Qur'an Summary: Do not use the Qur'an as a banner to carry into battle, or as a way to impose or prove your own personal understanding and belief upon others, do not use it in ignorance of the inner wisdom or consciousness of the qualities of God within your own life. Additional Comments: 5-4. The Nature of Iman-Islam Summary: Iman-Islam is the state of one who has the purity of Islam and the true faith of Iman, the state of one who cannot hurt the heart of another, or view them as separate from his own life. Additional Comments: 5-5. The Law of the Qur'an Summary: The Law of the Qur'an is that only the qualities of God, which are the 99 powers or attributes of the grace of Allah, that God has personally and ever so lovingly hidden within each of us, even before we were born into this world, only these qualities of God are permitted in the life a true believer in God. For one who has true Iman, who has perfected his faith in God, and is truly Islam, who has purified his heart, anything existing outside of these qualities of God within us is haram, forbidden, or evil, and only that which exists within these divine qualities of God within us is halal, permissible, or good. Additional Comments: 5-6. What Is Against The Law of the Qur'an Summary: What is against the Law of the Qur'an is the keeping of anything other than the qualities of God within us, is the keeping of anything other than the 99 attributes or power of the grace of Allah within us. Additional Comments: 5-7. Only God Knows All of Everything Summary: Only God knows all of everything, and only God can correctly judge the state of anyone, can correctly judge whether a person has Iman (true faith), has perfected his faith in God, and whether a person is living in the true state of Islam, has purified his heart. So don't try and judge the state of other people, groups, or countries, and wage war (jihad or holy war) on them, instead, wage war or jihad only on yourself, only wage war within yourself to defeat the demonic forces and other evil feelings and attributes that may exist within your own heart Additional Comments: 5-8. The Reason God Sent The Qur'an To Each Age Summary: God sent His "Prophets and their Message" to each age as witnesses to the grace and attributes of God given to each age, to support each of us in our inner battle or holy war (jihad) for our age, and to help us to win victory over our own evil desires Additional Comments: 5-9. How Do We Fight Our Inner Holy War, Our Inner Jihad Summary: To fight our inner Holy War or Jihad we must use the wisdom contained within the Qur'an to make our mind sit down, and then join with our wisdom to defeat our own compulsive desires, transforming our outer battles in the world into the true Holy War (jihad) within us. And in this way, revealing the light of God within our outer darkness, revealing our true life within our false life, revealing our life of "Oneness with" God within our life of "separation from" God, revealing the honey of our life within the bitterness of our life. Additional Comments: 5-10. The Value of the Light of Islam Within Us Summary: The Value of the Light of Islam, of the Prophet and the Qur'an, within us is to reveal the essence of God, which is the Dhat of God (His treasury; His wealth of purity; His grace), in every life. The value of the Light of Islam is for each of us to come to the state where we recognize and praise the essence of God, this Dhat of God, as it exists in each and every life. Additional Comments: 5-11. An Explanation of the Truth In The Qur'an Summary: An explanation of the truth that is in the Qur'an within us, of the truth that is within each of us, if that be our wish, is an explanation of the truth of the 99 within the 99, within the 99, within the 99, within the ......, within each of us living in this age. Additional Comments: And we can receive this explanation of the truth within us, of the truth within the Qur'an within us, if we will but realize, understand, accept, and join with our Shaikh within us, and with God within Him, as the Qutbiyyat of God within us, as the wisdom that explains within us, as the grace of the Dhat of God within us. And in this way, our life will become successful, if we will but let our soul join with the Light of our wisdom, with the true consciousness of Muhammad (Sal.) within us, with the Nur Muhammad within us, that can be found within the Holy Qur'an within each of us, allowing the Nur Muhammad within us to reveal the Dhat of God, the Essence of God, within all lives within us, within the Creation of God within us. Allowing God and True Man within us to finish what They have started within each of us, which is to reveal True Man within the Creation of God within us, and to reveal God within the Creation of True Man within us, revealing in this way, the Oneness of God and True Man within us, which in truth is God and True Man within us. (Note: the 99 are the qualities of God's grace within us, the Asma' al-husna, the form or sifat of the dhat of God within us, the manifestation of His essence within us, that has been hidden by God within each of us, within the Holy Qur'an within each of us, which when revealed by the Nur Muhammad or wisdom within the Holy Qur'an within us becomes the dhat within the dhat of God within us, becomes the understanding of the dhat within us. Becomes our innermost heart within our purified heart within us, becomes the Creation of True Man within the Creation of God within us, becomes the "Three of Us" within the "Three of God" within us, becomes the Disciple, the Shaikh, and God - within the Triple Flame of God within us, within -Ya Allah, Ya Rasul, Ya Muhaiyaddeen - within us. Becomes the Everything within the Essence of the Power, within the Power within the Essence of Everything within us, becomes the next world within this world within us, becomes akhirah within the dunya within us, becomes the arsh al-mu'mim, the Throne of the True Believer, within the Kingdom of God within us. Amen, Amen, Ya Rabil Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahman Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahim Alameen. Al-hamdu lillah. Allahu Akbar) 5-12. The True Meaning of Islam Summary: The true meaning of Islam is to realize that every atom contains the power of Allah, the divine power of God, and having realized this, without the slightest doubt, to act accordingly, to never harm anyone, to never take revenge or be treacherous toward anyone. Additional Comments: 5-13. What We Must Do To Be True Islam Summary: We who strive to be True Islam must give up our sinful lustful desires and come to the plenitude of firm faith in God, we must give up the hell caused by our attachments in the world, and come into the love of God that is His grace, we must incorporate the 99 compassionate powers of God as the basis of our actions, and as the law of our life, and in this way, discover God's mercy and compassion within our very own life. Additional Comments: 6. Additional Wisdom Points - as provided by Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler), and as inspired from a study and analysis of this beautiful discourse by our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him), and as such they are not drawn directly and exclusively from the text of Chapter 01, as is the case for the "Summary" comments provided for the earlier wisdom topics. Also, we have divided the comments into two categories, "Comments", and "Expanded Comments. Most of the "Expanded Comments" are still in process. 6-1. Only God is Great Comments: Only God is great, not you or I or anything else, for the value of anything is only that it contains the greatness of God, not that it contains any intrinsic value of its own as "separate from" the Greatness of God within it. In this way, the greatness of anything is only that it contains the 99 attributes or powers of the grace of Allah, which can be revealed within each of us, if, and only if, like the Rasulullah (Sal.) demonstrated to us, we join with God within us to reveal it. Other than this greatness, wealth, and power of God within everything, there is no greatness, or wealth, or power within anything or anyone (provided as a supplement to Item, "5-7. Only God Knows All of Everything", above). Expanded Comments: 6-2. Warriors of God For Each Age Comments: The true warriors of God for each age are those within each age who join with their wisdom within them and with the truth of God within their wisdom, who join with their Shaikh within them, and with God within Him, to allow God and True Man within them to accomplish what God and True Man have set out to accomplish within them in their age. In order to complete the intention of God and True Man within us for each age, as part of Their intention for creating man in the first place, which is God revealing True Man within the Creation of God, and True Man revealing God within the Creation of True Man, and in this way, revealing the Oneness of God and True Man within us, for the benefit of all of the Creation of God and the Creation of True Man within us (provided as a supplement to Item, "5-9. How Do We Fight Our Inner Holy War, Our Inner Jihad, above, especially, the following text from His Holiness, "We must use the wisdom or divine consciousness within the Qur'an to correct ourselves." Expanded Comments: 6-3. The Purpose of the Holy Qur'an in Each Age Comments: The purpose of the Holy Qur'an in each age is to move forward what They are doing within us in each age, to move forward what God and True Man are doing within us in each age, which is to reveal True Man within the Creation of God, and to reveal God within the Creation of True Man, which is to reveal the Oneness of God and True Man within us, which in truth is God and True Man within us. Expanded Comments: 6-4. How To Properly Use The Holy Qur'an In Each Age Comments: To properly use the holy Qur'an in our age we must join our life with the life of God within us, with our wisdom and with the truth of God within your wisdom, we must join our life as One with our Shaikh within you, and with God within Him, becoming in this way, the Oneness of the "Three of Us" within the "Three of God" within us. To properly use the Holy Qur'an in our age we must use the Qur'an to become the Common Wealth of God for our age. Expanded Comments: To properly use the holy Qur'an in our age we must join our life with the life of God within us, with our wisdom and with the truth of God within our wisdom, we must join our life as One with our Shaikh within us, and as One with God within Him. Becoming in this way, the Oneness of the "Three of Us" within the "Three of God" within us, becoming in this way, the dhat within the dhat of God within us, which is the understanding of the dhat of God within us, allowing the dhat of God within us, which is the essence of God within us, to return to the power of God within us, from which it has come. And before this can occur within us, we must first become the everything within the everything of God within us, we must become the 18,000 universes within the 18,000 universes within us, which is the understanding of the 18,000 universes within us, allowing the everything within us, which is the sifat or form of the Creation of God within us, to return to the dhat of God within us, to the essence of God within us, from which it has come, so the dhat of God within us can return to the power of God within us. And in this way, allowing the power within the essence of everything, now with the understanding of the dhat or essence of God within us, to again reveal the everything within the essence of the power of God, but this time as True Man and the Creation of True Man, which is akhirah or the hereafter, with True Man now being the essence of God in akhirah, as the dhat or Muhammad (Sal.) was the essence of God in the dunya, and the Creation of True Man being akhirah or the hereafter, as the Creation of God was the dunya or this earth world. In this way, to properly use the Holy Qur'an in our age we must use the Qur'an to become the Common Wealth of God for our age, which is the Light of God to the world, which is True Man, which is the life and teaching of God for our age, which is the life and teaching of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) for all of the Children of God for our age, which is everyone living in our age. Amen, Amen, Ya Rabil Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahman Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahim Alameen. Al-hamdu lillah. Allahu Akbar 6-5. How To Improperly Use The Holy Qur'an In Each Age Comments: To improperly use the Holy Qur'an in our age is to use the Holy Qur'an for our own personal benefit, for the benefit of the life of "separation and differences" that we are currently living with our brothers and sisters in the world that we collectively see in our ignorance as existing "outside" of us. To improperly use the Holy Qur'an in our age is to use the Qur'an to accumulate personal wealth for our age, like titles, praise, position, and power, or personal things of a similar nature. Expanded Comments: End of Page 2 of 2 of Spiritual Letter 49 - expanded version - ........................... or Go To Spiritual Letter 49: Table of Contents Original Version Related Material or ( a top-down version of the Library Home Page) (a bottom-up version of the Library Home Page) |
This page was last updated on: May 20, 2003
