November 2020 Message

Beloved Family,

What a privilege to be writing to my family and be able to say in the same sentence, Blessings on the approach of winter, and Blessings on the approach of summer, as we span both the Northern and Southern Hemisphere!

And as the world turns her face to different angles to receive the Sun’s rays, we make aspirations for the world that all those who wish can have a vaccine by late spring and then gradually we can return to a life which includes singing and dancing with our family, people can return to work, children to school, and in general, be able to express affection in a more visceral way.

Inshallah, I have a plan to spend the first two weeks of the New Year in a solitary retreat, and would then generally not be available during that period.

I hope you are enjoying reading Pir Zia’s Dissertation on the life of his grandfather and the Message he brought. I am certain it will bring you much understanding and insight.

Our Pandemic Fund is still receiving donations and sending grants out. If you need support in these difficult times, feel empowered to apply.

With all love and a warm embrace,
Shabda

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Wazifa Practice

We'll recite YA QUDDUS ~ YA NUR in a special way, starting at the crown center, recite 7 times YA QUDDUS, then 7x in the third eye, then the heart, then the belly, then the 2nd chakra, then the base of the spine, followed by 7x YA NUR in the base, 7x in the 2nd chakra, etc to the crown.

YA QUDDUS ~ YA NUR

4. Ya Quddus (yaa ḳud-DOOS)

Al-Quddus is the ever-purifying one. It requires us to take leave of what we cling to in order to experience intimate union. Al-Quddus allows the spiritual traveler to transcend the lower self and keep going toward the one. Al-Quddus is a force that constantly cleanses us from the conceptual mind and its differentiation. It is continuously purifying our experience of the world through inward intimacy and union with the absolute.

A variation of the root of this Name means to return home to one’s village. Al-Quddus is always purifying and always distancing, in the sense of leaving behind the ephemeral to go fully into the eternal. What is constantly moving toward Allah is al-Quddus. The union given by al-Quddus is one of continually becoming the eternal reality.

93. Ya Nur (yaa NOOR)

An-Nur is the essence of light, luminosity itself. A Qur'anic verse says, “Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth.” An-Nur is the light of every soul and an inherent characteristic in every pore of your body. Munawwir is a form of the same root and means the one who illuminates. It is interesting that the word for “hell” in Arabic is naar, which has the same root as Nur. What makes it hell is that the burning heat there is lacking in light. That kind of burning heat is our inner condition if we don’t embody God’s loving mercy and compassion (rahma) and instead become full of rage.

Whatever way we may turn, we see the all-pervading light of an-Nur. Even the darkness shines from within it. All the various forms of wisdom and guidance are expressions of an-Nur. For example, nur-ul-haqeeqah is the light of truth and guidance on the path. What continues to live on in God when we die is also a legacy of light.

To hear the pronunciation: Ya Quddus ~ Ya Nur

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Text and Commentary to Study

This month we continue reading A HYBRID SUFI ORDER AT THE CROSSROADS OF MODERNITY: THE SUFI ORDER AND SUFI MOVEMENT OF PIR-O-MURSHID INAYAT KHAN, by Pir Zia Inayat-Khan

Finish reading Part A, chapter 4, pages 119 - 190

Click to download

Life and Times of Hazrat Inayat Khan Part A

Life and Times of Hazrat Inayat Khan Part B

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PHOTOS

Sunset on our daily walk