Spiritual Chat 07 - Outline & Summary Version About Spiritual Chat 07 Title: "Only True Man Is Good, & Only God Is Love", Date: March 11, 2002 Chat Between: Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler) and Rumi Library Navigation Tree Go To Spiritual Chat 6 Chat 07 - Related Material Page 1 of 2 Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim. In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate. Al-salam 'alaykum. My love you, my dearest brothers and sisters. Outline of This Spiritual Chat 1. Introduction - to Spiritual Chat 07 2. The Two Options In Our Life - "separation from" God or "oneness with" God 3. Re-establishing Our Direct Connection With God - through our direct-connection with Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) 4. The Father And Children of God For This Age - Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) and the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Us) 5. Using The Gift of God For This Age - by joining in partnership with Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) 6. The Real Gift of God For Our Life - is learning "what we do not know" 7. The True Measure Of Our Progress - is Bawa curing Himself of us 8. Watching Bawa Cure Himself of Us - by handing all that we have to Bawa 9. Allah Alone Is Sufficient - when we learn to use Bawa to get to Allah 10. Allah Alone Is Sufficient - when we learn to use Allah to separate us from all that separates us from Allah Text of Spiritual Chat 1. Introduction - to Spiriual Chat 07 MuhaiyaddeenLB: Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim. In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate. Al-salam 'alaykum. Rumi. My love you (anbu) - Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler) Rumismith: wa alaikum as-salaam, ya Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen. MuhaiyaddeenLB: How is the roller coaster ride today? Rumismith: By God's grace it is going very well today. I am ready for the next breathtaking clean out. I certainly got immense inner freedom from the last one. 2. The Two Options In Our Life We really only have two options in our life, to continue to live "separate from" God, or to start to live again as "One with" God. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Al-hamdu lillah. We have two options in our life, God and what has separated from God. For His Holiness teaches us that, In the end, all that is left is God and what has separated from God, and what becomes separated from God in the end is what says, "I am separate from God." In this way, we separate ourselves from God. It is not God who separates us from Him. We must all realize this with our wisdom. MuhaiyaddeenLB: This is the point of our life, learning how it all works, and then in the context of this understanding, re-establishing our life as one with God. 3. Re-establishing Our Direct Connection With God We can re-establish our direct connection with God by establishing a direction connection with Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him), the Guardian of our soul, the gift of God to our life, the wisdom God personally placed surrounding our soul. Rumismith: Yes, what an amazing opportunity we have been given, that is why Bawa says do not even waste one breath. How are you, Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen, what is going on in your life? MuhaiyaddeenLB: We are fine. There is nothing else going on in our life of value. Other than this, other than this re-establishing our direct connection with God, anything but this learning is but a distraction from this learning. That is why Bawa teaches us that, "The only thing of real value that is happening at the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship is Bawa curing Himself of us." MuhaiyaddeenLB: So unless we have joined with Bawa within us, to facilitate His curing Himself of us, of the "us" of separation and differences within us, nothing of value is happening in our life. MuhaiyaddeenLB: And the way we facilitate His curing Himself of us, the "us" of separation and differences within us, is by our handing God everything that we encounter of the "us" of separation and differences, which in truth is all of us, as we are currently experiencing us. MuhaiyaddeenLB: This makes our life very easy to live, since its only value is in its being lived in partnership with God, its only value is in its being placed in God's hand, not keeping it in our hand. And what God does with it is always the same, which is to harvest True Man out of the crop of God within us, out of the Creation of God within us, out of that we have handed Him. And then, and only then, will we start to experience "who we are" as the "oneness" of God and His Creation, rather than what we are currently experiencing as "who we are", which is the "separation and differences" of the Creation of God. MuhaiyaddeenLB: This is "who we are", my dearest loving sister Rumi, as we shared in an earlier chat, "we are what God is doing", and what God is doing is revealing God, by revealing True Man within the Creation of God, by revealing the Oneness of God and His Creation, which is True Man, by harvesting "who we are" out of what we hand God, out of the Creation of God, out of "who we aren't". MuhaiyaddeenLB: Al-hamdu lillah. 4. The Father And Children of God For This Age The Father of God for this age is Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) and the Children of God for this age are the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Us). MuhaiyaddeenLB: What a wonder is this God of ours. What a wonder is this Bawa of ours, this gift of God for this age, this life and teaching of God for this age, which is the life and teaching of our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him). And what a wonder are the brothers and sisters of ours, that God has given us, the Children of God for this age, the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Them), the Children of God who have been born with us into this school called the world. We are so blessed. 5. Using The Gift of God For This Age The gift of God for this age is the life and teaching of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) and the life and teaching of the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Us). MuhaiyaddeenLB: But the real blessing of our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him), and of our brothers and sisters, of the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Them) is how we use them. Do we use them to live in the world, and effectively lose any chance to leave the world, or do we use them to leave this world, as Rumi and Louie are using each other. That is the only question. MuhaiyaddeenLB: As you mentioned earlier, my life too has never moved forward more since we began our chats. It is as if the whole power of God has been released upon the darkness within this child. Al-hamdu lillah. 6. The Real Gift of God For Our Life Is "Learning What We Do Not Know" The real Gift of God to our life is sitting on the lap of God while Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) teaches us "what we do not know". MuhaiyaddeenLB: It seems that sitting in the physical presence of Bawa is one kind of grace. Then sitting in the presence of Bawa in our hearts is another kind of grace. But this, this coming together as the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with ), in His Name, this sitting on the lap of God while Bawa teaches His Children "what they do not know" is an entirely new form of Grace for this child. Al-hamdu lillah. Allahu Akbar. Rumismith: Al-hamdu lillah. Indeed we are very blessed. What is there to say. I was thinking back today to the day Bawa passed. Shortly after he passed He entered my heart, joining with the Nur and Allah, I actually experienced it. I was peaceful thinking now He is always with me, so close, no more wondering if the room is open, how the "room girls" will treat me, etc.. But another part of me felt guilty because I was not sad about Bawa's passing. I feel like that today. 7. The True Measure Of Our Progress The true measure of progress in our life is Bawa completing what He is doing with us, which is revealing True Man within us, so God can complete what He is doing within Bawa within us, which is revealing God within True Man within us. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Yes, and we still have to contend with, "wondering if the room is open, and how the room girls will treat me", but now it is easier to deal with these things. Because now we see that all of this "outside" stuff is really "inside" stuff. And before we tried to deal with it using ourselves, but now we just have to hand it to Bawa. That is the true measure of our progress, the room and the "room girls" are now inside of us, not outside of us. This is how we progress on the path, from outside to inside. MuhaiyaddeenLB: And this "chat process" makes it easier to see this transition, from outside to inside, as long as we do it with Bawa, not only with our mind and desire. Because if we join in partnership with Bawa within us, it allows us to cut away so many things of the "outside", while we are still with each other on the "outside", but are making the transition to the "inside", by handing our "outside" to our "inside", to God within us, to the life and teaching of our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him). Amen, Amen, Ya Rabil Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahman Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahim Alameen. Al-hamdu lillah. Allahu Akbar. 8. Watching Bawa Cure Himself of Us We can each watch Bawa cure Himself of "us", cure Himself of the "us" of "separation from" God, by joining with Bawa in what He is doing within us, which is revealing True Man within the Creation of God within us, which is the oneness of God and His Creation within us. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Do we have time for a short story? Rumismith: Yes please. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Short Story 1: Louie was working on the computer one day, and notification came through the AIM IM system that someone wanted to chat. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Louie asked Bawa, and Bawa said, "Yes." So Louie return the invitation to chat. MuhaiyaddeenLB: The brother on the other end was a Muslim from Egypt, which Louie did not know at the time. MuhaiyaddeenLB: The brother was very cryptic and intense. He started to ask a series of questions like the following: a. What is your name. b. Where do you live. c. Are you a student. d. How old are you. e. Are you a Muslim. MuhaiyaddeenLB: We told him my name was Louie, and that this child had met Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) in 1975 and had become one of the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Them). However, something within me kept avoiding his questions, not giving him direct and worldly answers to his questions, but rather trying to awaken a deeper understanding within him, and this child was watching it rather than doing it. To the question "where do you live" and "are you a student", the answer was given, "This is the real question of our life - where do we live, and are we a student." To the question "How old are you. The response that was given by this child was: "200 million years old". This answer seemed to upset him and he asked if I was making fun of him. The response was: "No - this is the true age of all of us". He said, Ok. And went on to his next question. MuhaiyaddeenLB: When he asked if I was a Muslim, the response given by this child was: "Only God is a true Muslim". This really upset him. Then he wanted to talk directly with me, which you can do with the AIM IM system, not with the AOL IM system, but this child kept ignoring his repeated requests to talk directly. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Something within me was completely in charge of the whole situation, but certainly not me or the brother we were chatting with. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Then he started to scold me for the answers that were being given to his questions. He said that my answers were a bad reflection on Islam and that I should not chat in this manner. To this scolding the response was given: "It depends on who is chatting". This answer seemed to change everything, and he said that this child made him laugh. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Then he asked if I was a Sufi, and the response was given, "Only a True Man is a Sufi.". This again set him off, and he again wanted to talk to me directly. And the response was given: "Writing things down makes the mind slow down. This way of talking (by writing everything down) is enough for now." MuhaiyaddeenLB: Again, this response seemed to calm him down. He asked if I believed "Jihad", and the response was, "Yes - Jihad within". Then he asked if I believed in "Jihad against the Kufr". The response was: "Yes - Jihad on the inside against the Kufr on the inside." MuhaiyaddeenLB: He seem to accept this but seemed to be puzzled by the answer. Then we got into the life of Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of God be upon Him) and he seemed to believe that Muhammad was just a man and had left the world 1400 years ago. That Allah is our God and that is that. To which this child responded: Al-hamdu lillah. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Then there was a long pause in the chat, maybe 2 or 3 moments, as if something was being decided. During this time something within me changed or emerged or awakened. And the following unsolicited response was given to the brother. "My love you, my young brother. Please do not be upset with your brother Louie, we are trying very hard to give you the right answers." Rumismith: Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen, is the story continuing? To the point you made earlier, "But this, this coming together as the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with him), in His Name, this sitting on the lap of God while Bawa teaches His Children "what they do not know" is an entirely new form of Grace for this child". I feel this is truly giving of oneself and that is the richness of our life. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Yes, my sister Rumi, it is that way for this child too. Back To Short Story 1: Then we told the brother that all that we knew about Islam had been learned at the feet of our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him). And his response was something to the fact that "Islam doesn't accept this." Which this child took to mean that "Allah alone is sufficient". MuhaiyaddeenLB: Then we got back on the topic of Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of God be upon Him) and my comment that Muhammad was still alive. He asked how Muhammad is still alive, and the response was "within our hearts". MuhaiyaddeenLB: Then he asked if I spoke Arabic, and the response was "no", and if I read the Qur'an, and the response was, "yes". Then he said, "If you read the Qur'an how can you believe that Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of God be upon Him) is still alive." Rumismith: Yes, Allah alone is sufficient, but how will we get the knowledge to know that without a wise man, Bawa. Rumismith: Why did you wait to send me that last paragraph? MuhaiyaddeenLB: Yes, my sister Rumi, that is true. Please be patient, the paragraphs are coming as they come. Back To Short Story 1: And the response was, "Muhammad is alive within us In the same way that an apple tree is alive within an apple seed." To this, his response was, "You are a philosopher", and his whole manner changed. He embraced me as his brother, told me his troubles, told we what he was doing in his life, which was trying to get into college in America, asked for my help, said he wanted to keep in touch, that he wanted to get to know me better, and gave me his E-mail address. Al-hamdu lillah. End of Short Story 1 ------ 9. Allah Alone Is Sufficient - when we learn to use Bawa to get to Allah First, the "outside" of us is really the "inside" of us when we join with Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) in what he is doing within us, and secondly, if we have fear, we do not have Allah, but if we continue to live as "one with" Bawa within us, we will lose all of our fear and become again "one with" God within us. MuhaiyaddeenLB: To your comment about "Allah alone is sufficient." The meaning of this quote changes as we change. MuhaiyaddeenLB: This is the great subtlety of the path. Rumismith: That is a beautiful story, Al-hamdu lillah. MuhaiyaddeenLB: What this child was able to extract from this story follows: a. The "outside" of us is really the "inside" of us when we join with Bawa in what He is doing within us This chat with the brother from Egypt was "within" Louie, not "outside" of Louie, as the chats of Louie and Rumi, sitting on the lap of God as Bawa teaches us, "What we do not know", are within Louie and Rumi, not outside of us. b. If we have fear, we do not have Allah, but if we continue to live as "one with" Bawa within us, we will lose all of our fear, and we will become again "one with" God within us MuhaiyaddeenLB: Bawa teaches us that, "If you have fear, you do not have Allah. And if you have Allah, you do not have fear." MuhaiyaddeenLB: This chat with the brother from Egypt was a fearful experience for Louie but by having it on the lap of God as Bawa teaches His Children, including the brother from Egypt, "What they do not know", it became a fearless experience. That is the whole point of our chats, my dearest loving sister Rumi, to move from fear to fearlessness through our relationship with Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) MuhaiyaddeenLB: Louie and Rumi still have a lot of fear, and to the level that they do, they do not have Allah, and they are living on the "outside", but as they come together on the lap of God and hear Bawa teach them, teach all of the Children of God for this age, to all that will listen, "What they do not know", they lose their fear and become fearless. And to the level that they become fearless, by building up their relationship with Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) on the "inside", then they have Allah, and they are living on the "inside". MuhaiyaddeenLB: This is one inner meaning of the quote, "Allah alone is sufficient". 10. Allah Alone Is Sufficient - when we learn to use Allah to separate us from all that separates us from Allah First, the "outside" of us is what separates us from Allah, is what separates us from each other, and is what separates us from the Creation of God, and secondly, we can only use God to get to God, we cannot use what God has rejected to get to God, and what God has rejected is all that we are currently experiencing as existing "outside" of us. MuhaiyaddeenLB: When we mistakenly apply this quote, "God Alone Is Sufficient", to the "outside" of us, we make God separate from us and us separate from God, we make everyone living with us as living and existing "outside" of us, we make everyone living with us a person living with us on the "outside" of us, a person like us who is separate from God, and from whom God is also separate. Then in our ignorance we look to God, as separate from us, and as separate from everyone else who is living with us, we look to God as someone who is on the "outside" of us, and is "separate from" us, to protect us, to provide for us, and to accept our deeds and devotion on the "outside" as making us worthy of Him, of making us worthy of His protection and nourishment on the "outside" of us, we make our "working for wages to get into heaven" a good, necessary, and true thing. So in this way, when we make God an "outside" thing, there is no room for a true Shaikh in our life, there is no room in our life for one who is one with God and one with us, because we are always coming from the perspective of living a life that only exists "outside" of us, a life that is always lived "separate from" God, separate from each other, and separate from the Creation of God. In this way, we try to use ourselves to get to God, making our effort, our action, our duty, our devotion as the vehicle to our gaining heaven, as the vehicle to our earning a place in heaven near God, rather than using God and the things of God to get to God, rather than using the life of God within us, the consciousness of God within us, and the words and understanding of God within us, which is the grace and wisdom and 'ilm or divine knowledge of God within us, which is the life and teaching of our Shaikh, which for this age is our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) to get to God. And when we try to get to God in this way, on the "outside" of us, using ourselves on the "outside" of us as the major vehicle for our reaching God, then everyone and everything in our life and in our experiences is always separate from us, and separate from the personal illusory God of separation that we have created for ourselves, in our ignorance of ourselves, a personal illusory God of separation that we can really only worshipping on the "outside" of us. And when we try to worship and reach God in this way, on the "outside" using ourselves on the "outside", then a True Shaikh is of no value to us, because He is the true "inside" of us. Do you understand? End of Page 1 of 2 of Spiritual Chat 07 - outline & summary version - ........................................... or Go To Spiritual Chat 07: Related Material or |
Spiritual Chat 07 - Outline & Summary Version About Spiritual Chat 07 Title: "Only True Man Is Good, & Only God Is Love", Date: March 11, 2002 Chat Between: Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler) and Rumi Library Navigation Tree Go To Spiritual Chat 6 Chat 07 - Related Material Page 1 of 2 Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim. In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate. Al-salam 'alaykum. My love you, my dearest brothers and sisters. Outline of This Spiritual Chat 1. Introduction - to Spiritual Chat 07 2. The Two Options In Our Life - "separation from" God or "oneness with" God 3. Re-establishing Our Direct Connection With God - through our direct-connection with Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) 4. The Father And Children of God For This Age - Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) and the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Us) 5. Using The Gift of God For This Age - by joining in partnership with Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) 6. The Real Gift of God For Our Life - is learning "what we do not know" 7. The True Measure Of Our Progress - is Bawa curing Himself of us 8. Watching Bawa Cure Himself of Us - by handing all that we have to Bawa 9. Allah Alone Is Sufficient - when we learn to use Bawa to get to Allah 10. Allah Alone Is Sufficient - when we learn to use Allah to separate us from all that separates us from Allah Text of Spiritual Chat 1. Introduction - to Spiriual Chat 07 MuhaiyaddeenLB: Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim. In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate. Al-salam 'alaykum. Rumi. My love you (anbu) - Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen (Louie Beutler) Rumismith: wa alaikum as-salaam, ya Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen. MuhaiyaddeenLB: How is the roller coaster ride today? Rumismith: By God's grace it is going very well today. I am ready for the next breathtaking clean out. I certainly got immense inner freedom from the last one. 2. The Two Options In Our Life We really only have two options in our life, to continue to live "separate from" God, or to start to live again as "One with" God. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Al-hamdu lillah. We have two options in our life, God and what has separated from God. For His Holiness teaches us that, In the end, all that is left is God and what has separated from God, and what becomes separated from God in the end is what says, "I am separate from God." In this way, we separate ourselves from God. It is not God who separates us from Him. We must all realize this with our wisdom. MuhaiyaddeenLB: This is the point of our life, learning how it all works, and then in the context of this understanding, re-establishing our life as one with God. 3. Re-establishing Our Direct Connection With God We can re-establish our direct connection with God by establishing a direction connection with Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him), the Guardian of our soul, the gift of God to our life, the wisdom God personally placed surrounding our soul. Rumismith: Yes, what an amazing opportunity we have been given, that is why Bawa says do not even waste one breath. How are you, Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen, what is going on in your life? MuhaiyaddeenLB: We are fine. There is nothing else going on in our life of value. Other than this, other than this re-establishing our direct connection with God, anything but this learning is but a distraction from this learning. That is why Bawa teaches us that, "The only thing of real value that is happening at the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship is Bawa curing Himself of us." MuhaiyaddeenLB: So unless we have joined with Bawa within us, to facilitate His curing Himself of us, of the "us" of separation and differences within us, nothing of value is happening in our life. MuhaiyaddeenLB: And the way we facilitate His curing Himself of us, the "us" of separation and differences within us, is by our handing God everything that we encounter of the "us" of separation and differences, which in truth is all of us, as we are currently experiencing us. MuhaiyaddeenLB: This makes our life very easy to live, since its only value is in its being lived in partnership with God, its only value is in its being placed in God's hand, not keeping it in our hand. And what God does with it is always the same, which is to harvest True Man out of the crop of God within us, out of the Creation of God within us, out of that we have handed Him. And then, and only then, will we start to experience "who we are" as the "oneness" of God and His Creation, rather than what we are currently experiencing as "who we are", which is the "separation and differences" of the Creation of God. MuhaiyaddeenLB: This is "who we are", my dearest loving sister Rumi, as we shared in an earlier chat, "we are what God is doing", and what God is doing is revealing God, by revealing True Man within the Creation of God, by revealing the Oneness of God and His Creation, which is True Man, by harvesting "who we are" out of what we hand God, out of the Creation of God, out of "who we aren't". MuhaiyaddeenLB: Al-hamdu lillah. 4. The Father And Children of God For This Age The Father of God for this age is Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) and the Children of God for this age are the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Us). MuhaiyaddeenLB: What a wonder is this God of ours. What a wonder is this Bawa of ours, this gift of God for this age, this life and teaching of God for this age, which is the life and teaching of our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him). And what a wonder are the brothers and sisters of ours, that God has given us, the Children of God for this age, the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Them), the Children of God who have been born with us into this school called the world. We are so blessed. 5. Using The Gift of God For This Age The gift of God for this age is the life and teaching of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) and the life and teaching of the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Us). MuhaiyaddeenLB: But the real blessing of our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him), and of our brothers and sisters, of the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Them) is how we use them. Do we use them to live in the world, and effectively lose any chance to leave the world, or do we use them to leave this world, as Rumi and Louie are using each other. That is the only question. MuhaiyaddeenLB: As you mentioned earlier, my life too has never moved forward more since we began our chats. It is as if the whole power of God has been released upon the darkness within this child. Al-hamdu lillah. 6. The Real Gift of God For Our Life Is "Learning What We Do Not Know" The real Gift of God to our life is sitting on the lap of God while Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) teaches us "what we do not know". MuhaiyaddeenLB: It seems that sitting in the physical presence of Bawa is one kind of grace. Then sitting in the presence of Bawa in our hearts is another kind of grace. But this, this coming together as the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with ), in His Name, this sitting on the lap of God while Bawa teaches His Children "what they do not know" is an entirely new form of Grace for this child. Al-hamdu lillah. Allahu Akbar. Rumismith: Al-hamdu lillah. Indeed we are very blessed. What is there to say. I was thinking back today to the day Bawa passed. Shortly after he passed He entered my heart, joining with the Nur and Allah, I actually experienced it. I was peaceful thinking now He is always with me, so close, no more wondering if the room is open, how the "room girls" will treat me, etc.. But another part of me felt guilty because I was not sad about Bawa's passing. I feel like that today. 7. The True Measure Of Our Progress The true measure of progress in our life is Bawa completing what He is doing with us, which is revealing True Man within us, so God can complete what He is doing within Bawa within us, which is revealing God within True Man within us. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Yes, and we still have to contend with, "wondering if the room is open, and how the room girls will treat me", but now it is easier to deal with these things. Because now we see that all of this "outside" stuff is really "inside" stuff. And before we tried to deal with it using ourselves, but now we just have to hand it to Bawa. That is the true measure of our progress, the room and the "room girls" are now inside of us, not outside of us. This is how we progress on the path, from outside to inside. MuhaiyaddeenLB: And this "chat process" makes it easier to see this transition, from outside to inside, as long as we do it with Bawa, not only with our mind and desire. Because if we join in partnership with Bawa within us, it allows us to cut away so many things of the "outside", while we are still with each other on the "outside", but are making the transition to the "inside", by handing our "outside" to our "inside", to God within us, to the life and teaching of our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him). Amen, Amen, Ya Rabil Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahman Alameen. Amen, Amen, Ya Rahim Alameen. Al-hamdu lillah. Allahu Akbar. 8. Watching Bawa Cure Himself of Us We can each watch Bawa cure Himself of "us", cure Himself of the "us" of "separation from" God, by joining with Bawa in what He is doing within us, which is revealing True Man within the Creation of God within us, which is the oneness of God and His Creation within us. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Do we have time for a short story? Rumismith: Yes please. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Short Story 1: Louie was working on the computer one day, and notification came through the AIM IM system that someone wanted to chat. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Louie asked Bawa, and Bawa said, "Yes." So Louie return the invitation to chat. MuhaiyaddeenLB: The brother on the other end was a Muslim from Egypt, which Louie did not know at the time. MuhaiyaddeenLB: The brother was very cryptic and intense. He started to ask a series of questions like the following: a. What is your name. b. Where do you live. c. Are you a student. d. How old are you. e. Are you a Muslim. MuhaiyaddeenLB: We told him my name was Louie, and that this child had met Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) in 1975 and had become one of the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Them). However, something within me kept avoiding his questions, not giving him direct and worldly answers to his questions, but rather trying to awaken a deeper understanding within him, and this child was watching it rather than doing it. To the question "where do you live" and "are you a student", the answer was given, "This is the real question of our life - where do we live, and are we a student." To the question "How old are you. The response that was given by this child was: "200 million years old". This answer seemed to upset him and he asked if I was making fun of him. The response was: "No - this is the true age of all of us". He said, Ok. And went on to his next question. MuhaiyaddeenLB: When he asked if I was a Muslim, the response given by this child was: "Only God is a true Muslim". This really upset him. Then he wanted to talk directly with me, which you can do with the AIM IM system, not with the AOL IM system, but this child kept ignoring his repeated requests to talk directly. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Something within me was completely in charge of the whole situation, but certainly not me or the brother we were chatting with. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Then he started to scold me for the answers that were being given to his questions. He said that my answers were a bad reflection on Islam and that I should not chat in this manner. To this scolding the response was given: "It depends on who is chatting". This answer seemed to change everything, and he said that this child made him laugh. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Then he asked if I was a Sufi, and the response was given, "Only a True Man is a Sufi.". This again set him off, and he again wanted to talk to me directly. And the response was given: "Writing things down makes the mind slow down. This way of talking (by writing everything down) is enough for now." MuhaiyaddeenLB: Again, this response seemed to calm him down. He asked if I believed "Jihad", and the response was, "Yes - Jihad within". Then he asked if I believed in "Jihad against the Kufr". The response was: "Yes - Jihad on the inside against the Kufr on the inside." MuhaiyaddeenLB: He seem to accept this but seemed to be puzzled by the answer. Then we got into the life of Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of God be upon Him) and he seemed to believe that Muhammad was just a man and had left the world 1400 years ago. That Allah is our God and that is that. To which this child responded: Al-hamdu lillah. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Then there was a long pause in the chat, maybe 2 or 3 moments, as if something was being decided. During this time something within me changed or emerged or awakened. And the following unsolicited response was given to the brother. "My love you, my young brother. Please do not be upset with your brother Louie, we are trying very hard to give you the right answers." Rumismith: Shaikh Muhaiyaddeen, is the story continuing? To the point you made earlier, "But this, this coming together as the Children of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with him), in His Name, this sitting on the lap of God while Bawa teaches His Children "what they do not know" is an entirely new form of Grace for this child". I feel this is truly giving of oneself and that is the richness of our life. MuhaiyaddeenLB: Yes, my sister Rumi, it is that way for this child too. Back To Short Story 1: Then we told the brother that all that we knew about Islam had been learned at the feet of our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him). And his response was something to the fact that "Islam doesn't accept this." Which this child took to mean that "Allah alone is sufficient". MuhaiyaddeenLB: Then we got back on the topic of Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of God be upon Him) and my comment that Muhammad was still alive. He asked how Muhammad is still alive, and the response was "within our hearts". MuhaiyaddeenLB: Then he asked if I spoke Arabic, and the response was "no", and if I read the Qur'an, and the response was, "yes". Then he said, "If you read the Qur'an how can you believe that Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of God be upon Him) is still alive." Rumismith: Yes, Allah alone is sufficient, but how will we get the knowledge to know that without a wise man, Bawa. Rumismith: Why did you wait to send me that last paragraph? MuhaiyaddeenLB: Yes, my sister Rumi, that is true. Please be patient, the paragraphs are coming as they come. Back To Short Story 1: And the response was, "Muhammad is alive within us In the same way that an apple tree is alive within an apple seed." To this, his response was, "You are a philosopher", and his whole manner changed. He embraced me as his brother, told me his troubles, told we what he was doing in his life, which was trying to get into college in America, asked for my help, said he wanted to keep in touch, that he wanted to get to know me better, and gave me his E-mail address. Al-hamdu lillah. End of Short Story 1 ------ 9. Allah Alone Is Sufficient - when we learn to use Bawa to get to Allah First, the "outside" of us is really the "inside" of us when we join with Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) in what he is doing within us, and secondly, if we have fear, we do not have Allah, but if we continue to live as "one with" Bawa within us, we will lose all of our fear and become again "one with" God within us. MuhaiyaddeenLB: To your comment about "Allah alone is sufficient." The meaning of this quote changes as we change. MuhaiyaddeenLB: This is the great subtlety of the path. Rumismith: That is a beautiful story, Al-hamdu lillah. MuhaiyaddeenLB: What this child was able to extract from this story follows: a. The "outside" of us is really the "inside" of us when we join with Bawa in what He is doing within us This chat with the brother from Egypt was "within" Louie, not "outside" of Louie, as the chats of Louie and Rumi, sitting on the lap of God as Bawa teaches us, "What we do not know", are within Louie and Rumi, not outside of us. b. If we have fear, we do not have Allah, but if we continue to live as "one with" Bawa within us, we will lose all of our fear, and we will become again "one with" God within us MuhaiyaddeenLB: Bawa teaches us that, "If you have fear, you do not have Allah. And if you have Allah, you do not have fear." MuhaiyaddeenLB: This chat with the brother from Egypt was a fearful experience for Louie but by having it on the lap of God as Bawa teaches His Children, including the brother from Egypt, "What they do not know", it became a fearless experience. That is the whole point of our chats, my dearest loving sister Rumi, to move from fear to fearlessness through our relationship with Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) MuhaiyaddeenLB: Louie and Rumi still have a lot of fear, and to the level that they do, they do not have Allah, and they are living on the "outside", but as they come together on the lap of God and hear Bawa teach them, teach all of the Children of God for this age, to all that will listen, "What they do not know", they lose their fear and become fearless. And to the level that they become fearless, by building up their relationship with Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) on the "inside", then they have Allah, and they are living on the "inside". MuhaiyaddeenLB: This is one inner meaning of the quote, "Allah alone is sufficient". 10. Allah Alone Is Sufficient - when we learn to use Allah to separate us from all that separates us from Allah First, the "outside" of us is what separates us from Allah, is what separates us from each other, and is what separates us from the Creation of God, and secondly, we can only use God to get to God, we cannot use what God has rejected to get to God, and what God has rejected is all that we are currently experiencing as existing "outside" of us. MuhaiyaddeenLB: When we mistakenly apply this quote, "God Alone Is Sufficient", to the "outside" of us, we make God separate from us and us separate from God, we make everyone living with us as living and existing "outside" of us, we make everyone living with us a person living with us on the "outside" of us, a person like us who is separate from God, and from whom God is also separate. Then in our ignorance we look to God, as separate from us, and as separate from everyone else who is living with us, we look to God as someone who is on the "outside" of us, and is "separate from" us, to protect us, to provide for us, and to accept our deeds and devotion on the "outside" as making us worthy of Him, of making us worthy of His protection and nourishment on the "outside" of us, we make our "working for wages to get into heaven" a good, necessary, and true thing. So in this way, when we make God an "outside" thing, there is no room for a true Shaikh in our life, there is no room in our life for one who is one with God and one with us, because we are always coming from the perspective of living a life that only exists "outside" of us, a life that is always lived "separate from" God, separate from each other, and separate from the Creation of God. In this way, we try to use ourselves to get to God, making our effort, our action, our duty, our devotion as the vehicle to our gaining heaven, as the vehicle to our earning a place in heaven near God, rather than using God and the things of God to get to God, rather than using the life of God within us, the consciousness of God within us, and the words and understanding of God within us, which is the grace and wisdom and 'ilm or divine knowledge of God within us, which is the life and teaching of our Shaikh, which for this age is our Father, Shaikh Muhammad Rahim Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (may God be pleased with Him) to get to God. And when we try to get to God in this way, on the "outside" of us, using ourselves on the "outside" of us as the major vehicle for our reaching God, then everyone and everything in our life and in our experiences is always separate from us, and separate from the personal illusory God of separation that we have created for ourselves, in our ignorance of ourselves, a personal illusory God of separation that we can really only worshipping on the "outside" of us. And when we try to worship and reach God in this way, on the "outside" using ourselves on the "outside", then a True Shaikh is of no value to us, because He is the true "inside" of us. Do you understand? End of Page 1 of 2 of Spiritual Chat 07 - outline & summary version - ........................................... or Go To Spiritual Chat 07: Related Material or |
This page was last updated on: September 6, 2002
