What is the legitimate religious ruling on this statement issued by one of the shaykhs of Sufi orders: "Remember and listen, O present one, annihilate and gather. The meaning is, follow, you will reach and be watered by Allah’s permission. You will reach realization and drink from aged wine. This is not mere rhetoric, and wisdom is bestowed by Allah. Try it, you will be happy; in every atom of it, you will find a secret and a spiritual sustenance from the light of Allah’s Beloved. With earnestness and sincerity, you will annihilate yourself from every feeling. You will drink the cup from the essence of the One named Allah. In the sea you walk by Allah’s permission, and my shaykh, Isma‘il, my glorious master, may Allah grant us his satisfaction. You ascend, rising above the Throne, its light you find, the universes annihilated, and the King is then Allah. You see Him ‘at a distance of two bow-lengths or nearer’ openly with the eye. The enamored lover does not sleep, no slumber comes to him; he prays and fasts, absent from his form, by Allah. By al-Qasim, he said, relying on Allah, seeking His satisfaction, a humble servant affiliated with the people of Allah. Then prayers from the gardens of the Beloved, he found him, the Master of Masters, Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah"?
This Sufi poetry contains phrases that can carry both correct and false meanings, or even extremism. His statement: "Every atom in it you will find a secret and succor from the light of God's beloved" – if it implies the Prophet's disposal of the universe, then it is polytheism (shirk). As for "and my Shaykh" – if it means swearing by him, then it is polytheism; but if it means following his path, there is no harm, provided the Shaykh is from the People of Sunnah. And his saying: "My Lord grants us His contentment" – if it means the Shaykh's contentment, then it is extremism. Claiming to see Allah openly in this world is not religiously realistic. As for the stations of dhikr (remembrance), sama' (listening), fana' (annihilation), sukr (intoxication), and 'ishq (passionate love), these are Sufi terms that can carry false meanings. In conclusion, this speech contains what is unlawful, and indeed, may be polytheistic; and the rest should be avoided due to its ambiguity and corrupt possibilities.
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