The Remembrance (Zikr)
 
Remembering (the Creator) is the fruits of deep muse and the lofty hearth of bewilderment. [1]
 
Remembering me because of the sorrow of others
But inflicting your Self with infinite cruelty always [1.5]
 
There are three forms of Remembrance:
 
  1. On the tongue
  2. Within the heart
  3. Saving Life (from Self & Mankind)
 
Remembrance on the tongue is a form of habit and Remembrance within the heart is the worship and Remembrance by rescuing (from Self) is rapture and jubilation. The one in the realm of physical world remembers It habitually and the one in the realm of Sifat [2] (attributes of the Creator) remembers It by means of worship and for the one who is drowned in the realm of Essence (Zhaat) Remembrance of It is like a rescue effort to save one’s life (from the Mankind and from one’s own Self).
 
The true Remembrance is pointed out by the ancient scripture (Koran) on the Prophetic luminous tongue: “Remember your Lord once you forgot” (Koran [18:24]). Forget completely the attributes of Mankind and pierce your ears with the earrings of non-existence [3], thus drink the wine [4] of Its Remembrance. The Remembrance of the Beloved is forgotten upon the survival of the lover and dissolved within the Remembrance of one’s self. To remember the one’s Self while remembering the Beloved is Shirk [5] (association of other deities). Once you truly remembered the Beloved you have emancipated yourself (from Self and this world). Once Remembered (the Creator) your attributes are ancient and forgotten, indeed the attributes of your existence annihilated and you are without a trace:
 
In depth of Your love sometimes humiliated and sometimes drunken
In depth of Your Remembrance sometimes no more and sometimes present
 
In lowly humiliation and drunkenness if you not hold my hand [6]
O! My Beloved completely dozing off drunken and selfless I am
 


[1] Remembrance is the act of repeated mention and recalling the Lord like counting rosaries/tasbih/beads or saying praises/Sobhans. Bewilderment is when you have a momentary awakening and you have no idea where all these things around you came from and you may not even know who and what you are. All things are amazing and shocking to you since you no longer belong to this world. As though it is the first time you have seen this world.
 
[1.5] The poem is speaking on behalf of the Beloved. Beloved says, “you Mankind constantly complaining about the pain and sorrow others have inflicted upon you but your Self has cruelly harmed you perpetually every moment and you complain not about your Self and still keep it company every moment”. This poem is the prelude for the discussion to follow on cutting one’s Self off.
 
[2] Relam of Sifat is the universe where you see all things an outward manifestation of the Creator. Events, objects, love & hate, history, laws, and sciences… You are no longer traveling point to point in time-space you are traveling within the attributes (Sifat) of the Creator. Example, you are feeding a hungry poor person, It is the Razzaq (the sustainer) attribute of the Creator feeding the needy creation created by Khaleq (the Creator) the food was given to you by Wahhab (the giver) you are merely entangled in between these Sifat like a traveler traversing from one to the other.
 
[3] In ancient times the slaves’ ears were pierced to indicate the brand of bondage. Ansaari making a poetic gesture saying, make yourself slave voluntarily to non-existence i.e. be perpetually absent and gone from this world.
 
[4] Why the term wine:
 
  1. Once you drink a sip you want to drink again and again. Once you truly remember the Creator you want to go back and remember again like a drunk.
  2. If you stop drinking you get hangovers i.e. once you stop remembering the Beloved all your problems come to torment you.
  3. You drink to forget your troubles, you remember the Creator to forget all this world and its troubles and more importantly your Self
  4. Wine is manufactured and served in proper manner and due time, you cannot just go to a river and drink wine! Same way you cannot just remember the Beloved you must be prepared and place yourself in situations and people to make it due.
  5. People drink wine to be with their loved one man or woman, so Sufis drink this wine of Remembrance to be with their ONLY love the Beloved of heavens and earth.
 
[5] Shirk in Arabic/Koranic terms means to associate a peer to something. An idol is an associated peer to Allah therefore the act is considered Shirk. Same way if you are conscious of your Self and your needs and desires when you remember the Beloved then you are committing an act of Shirk by associating the idol of Self with the Almighty.
 
[6] Lowercase ‘you’ is the person himself. In other words, if you i.e. myself do NOT hold my hand then I am free from you (or my Self) therefore I am fully drunken with my Beloved.

Background: Fossilized Bacteria, click on the image.


© 2003-2002,  Dara Shayda