bismillah hirahma niraheem...
what does it mean to surrender (islam)?
28:7. And We inspired the mother of Musa (Moses), (saying): "Suckle him [Musa (Moses)], but when you fear for him, then cast him into the river and fear not, nor grieve. Verily! We shall bring him back to you, and shall make him one of (Our) Messengers."
story of moses, story of moses, story of moses. the layer. the hidden layers. hidden in plain sight "for those who think" - another repetition in the qur'an - "for those who think".
plain sight was hidden from me when i read this before. read it again. heard the soul of islam podcast on moses. if you haven't checked this podcast out yet, do so. they are tapping in to surrender (islam) and speak on sattvic topics in a sattvic frequency to facilitate our tuning in. not an easy thing to do for a people (surrenderers - muslims) under every surveillance camera and spot light recording the number of times islam, ALLAH, salam, muhammad, are mentioned. enough times sets off the pre-programmed drones aiming at your sister's wedding.
moses' mom gave up her son. but she did so with the math that the path of surrender taught her. there was a hunt for every jewish boy born that month. pharoah was tapped in to a realm as well. there are layers to this spirit thing. other dimensions exist. the realm of idols is real. everything has a spirit/energy to it. by over-emphasizing this spirit in place of the One, idolizing, idol-worshipping occurs. sun-worship, moon-worship, mountain-worship. of course.
of course, the sun, moon, oceans, trees are worthy of worship. these elements sustain us. but they are only component parts of the One. not the One. the prophet muhammad was constantly reminded of this in his revelation of the word. hence, no pictures please. hence the forgoing of kingship, when people requested he be their ruler. there's only al Aziz, Shahanshah - King of kings. otherwise, idols. idolizing. celebrities. gossip. he said, she said. what's beyonce going to wear to the bet awards? is brad pitt really still with angelina?
we deify and get misguided. river spirits, tree spirits, spirits of people who get passed on, become deities, become the subject of prostration. of course. i believe, they should be bowed down to (hence vegeterian/veganism, living simply) but jut as all beings and life should - sun, moon, stars, planets, oceans, bees, crosw, bears, mongolians, uzbekistani's, masai, hopi, celtics...but all are only manifestations of the One.
moses' mother, knowing the math (complete surrender to the One), had a choice. the choice was between moses potentially getting murdered shortly after birth, and risking this by devising some plot to eschew this fate, or to seek Guidance from the Guide, and listen and act. the Guide gave the message to let moses float and to trust, to do this without a trace of fear.
when was the last time you totally surrendered? what was the message you got? how did you act on it? what was the result?
i hardly ever totally surrender. i do practices to get me there. i am hoping to get to this place...insh'ALLAH...
this story, this repeated story, only serves to legitimate previous scriptural stories that were intended to serve as a guide. surah 28 tells us that the qur'an serves as universal truth, not for any one group of people but for all. but just as the torah and moses were rejected by the israelites, the people that the prophet muhammad (s.a.w) faced, also disbelieved, and ironically asked for a book like the torah.
28:48. But when the truth has come to them from Us, they say: "Why is he not given the like of what was given to Musa (Moses)? Did they not disbelieve in that which was given to Musa (Moses) of old?
28:49. And who is more astray than one who follows his own lusts, without guidance from Allah?
we need guidance.
who is your Guide? who do you turn to for direction in your life decisions? who tells you what you may not want to hear, but whose advise will guide you on the straight path, not the path of those who go astray. isn't this what surrenderers constantly repeat in every salat?
yesterday, i was listening to the persian national music ensemble. they performed a concert to celebrate rumi. the host artist, narrated the path of spirituality, by way of interpreting the guidance of the sheik rumi. the narrator-artist, refers to guides, as arif-ullah.
arif-ullah's are one's that all of us should be around, the narrator said. an arif-ullah is one who knows ALLAH.
in the absence of an arif-ullah are the scriptures. but scripture could be misinterpreted, easily misunderstood, especially for those, whom ALLAH refers to as having seals in their hearts. this arrogance of being leads to easy rejection, simplification, dismissal of the spiritual process.
28:49. Say: "Then bring a Book from Allah, which is a better guide than these two [the Taurat (Torah) and the Qur'an], that I may follow it, if you are truthful."
28:50. But if they answer you not then know that they only follow their own lusts. And who is more astray than one who follows his own lusts, without guidance from Allah? Verily! Allah guides not the people who are Zalimun.
in the absence of a guide, a true guide in the spiritual process, one who is hidden and seeks no fame, one who knows, the sensory individual operates from his/her personal conveniences, desires, attachments...in a word senses.
the vedas, the rishis, the boddhisatvas, jesus, moses, and muhammad, all warn about placing too much attachment on the senses. in the epic scripturally-based movie, the matrix, the spy in the revolution of morpheus, of those fighting the world of illusion - the matrix - says during a dinner he is having at a fancy restaurant, in which he reveals secret info of the movement - "i know this is not real, but it tastes and feels so good". thus ramadhan, thus a requisite process of getting away from the senses, not just food...
among yogis, asana practice serves not to impress others with stunts, nor grow into a washboard 6-pack, but to grow so deep in Ishwara (the One), and through this process, the body ceases to be in pain in what may appear as otherwise painful positions.
there is no quick-fix to yoga. no muscles in 7 days. it takes months, sometimes years to get into some asanas.
often times, so-called self-proclaimed spiritualists/sufis in my life, make up rules as they go, on how they don't need to fast, or pray, or how they are not into dating, except they will date when someone shows interest in them that they find hot. they are, as chris rock put it during a stand-up he gave on relationships - "a man is only as good as his options." i often find both the modern man and women to be this way. so, i'd say the masculinzation of gender, has equalized the sensory driven unaccountable individualist.
it's easy to be unaccountable. everything in our society propels us towards a hyper-individualism, while the more progressive of us toss around words like community and romanticize village cultures...but what practices are you engaging in to tame your beast - your senses - your ego? who do you listen to? and i don't mean a celebrity artist. and i don't mean during your once a month meditation workshop, or 6 month visit to the mosque/church/temple to hear a sermon, or a weekend retreat on spirituality, or....
convenience.
how do you stay accountable? who do you really listen to?
who is the arif-ullah in your life?
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