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Transcendental Rapport¹

and Silent Dhikr²

 

Induction, daily obligations and recitations³

1. Bath for absolution (Ghusl): After being inducted, the individual (henceforth the follower) is supposed to wash, in accordance with the conditions stated⁴, on the same day before going to bed (or within the first three days in case of an excuse or inconvenience). This process will be for no other purpose than absolution and the follower will start by saying, I intend to wash for absolution from all my sins and faults. The follower should imagine that his whole body is coated with mud of misdeeds, which is indeed the sins in the form of mud that covers his body, and the follower gets rid of all his sins as the mud is being cleansed. The washing detail will be completed in this way in accordance with the procedure explained.
2. Prayer of repentance (Salat-al-Tawbah): The individual will pray as he does when he prays in the morning, as in the first stage which is the Sunnah prayer, reciting whichever surahs he knows best with no error and difficulty. Before starting, the follower will say I intend to pray for repentance (tawbah).
3. Offering of Surah al-Fatihahs (The Opening Surah): Following the Salat-al-Tawbah, the follower will sit, facing the Qibla and remaining cleansed, with eyes shut, and repeat, 25 times, Astawfir-Allah (May Allah forgive my faults), prolonging the last syllable a bit. The follower will then recite the Surah al-Fatihah, starting the first one with the long form of Basmala (A-ozu-bi-llah-i min-esh-shaitan-i[i]r-rajim Bismillah-er-Rahman-er-Rahim) and the others with only the short form (Bismillah-er-Rahman-er-Rahim). After the completion of this, the follower will say My Allah, please accept these Surah al-Fatihahs that I have offered. I have offered them the way Awni Afandi has dedicated; please make them reach their destinations. Amen.
4. The rapport: In the same state of cleanness and following the dedications, the follower will pass into a transcendental rapport for approximately five minutes as described below:

 

Awni Reyhan is sitting on a golden throne right across my eyes and he is talking (conversing about Allah and the love of Allah). Some illuminating brightness radiating from his face, shining as the full moon, has surrounded me. The radiance fills up my heart breath in and a dark smoke of evil comes out of my mouth as I breath out. I have thrown my nafs (despicable self), imagining it in the shape of a mangy black dog, at the feet of my Sheikh. He tames the pooch by flogging it with the whip of Sharia. A beam of radiance flows from the middle of his eyebrows, which is as thick as my thumb, right into my heart which I am presenting on a golden plate. The radiance purifies my heart and renders it pristine and pure. Meanwhile, I behold the blessed face of my Sheikh.

Upon completion of this procedure, the follower goes to bed without doing anything else. He is not supposed to do this daily assignment on the first day. The four steps mentioned above are fulfilled only once upon induction.      

 

Description of the daily assignment:

Following the night when the follower performed the Salat-al-Tawbah, within the 24 hours until midnight, whenever he feels convenient or whenever he feels like it, the follower, in the state of prayer ablution, sits facing the Qibla, retreating to a silent and isolated spot if possible. Shutting the eyes, he recites the long form of the Basmala and repeats Astawfir-Ullah 25 times, prolonging the last syllable. Again, repeating the Basmala, the long form in the first and the short form with the others, recites the Surah al-Fatihah five times and offers them as he did the first time. Dedication of the surahs will be in this way until the follower learns to dedicate them one by one as described below, which is the more desirable way. He then passes into the transcendental state of rapport, as described earlier, for no less than 3 and no longer than 5 minutes. As he sits when he prays – or cross-legged, if not comfortable with that (whichever way he feels more relaxed) – prostrating, with the head tilted to the right or left and the left hand resting on the knee while the right hand is five or six centimeters below the left breast, the follower pulls the beads of the rosary between the index finger and the middle finger, two or three beads at a time, without any intervention of the other fingers. With the tongue attached to the upper palate, making no sound, in the heart, the follower says Allah, Allah, as he pulls the beads. When completes the rounds, he says Ilah-i-ente-maqsoudi we ridake-matloubi, which means Allah, you are my only destination and I expect Your High Consent. The follower may say the English translation until he memorizes the Arabic version. He can use the left hand to keep record of the rounds and he is not supposed to do any more than assigned. No single bead can be pulled unless assigned; this is a strict rule.

Upon induction, those who vow are allowed to engage in a daily assignment of between 1000 and 5000 dhikr of Allah. If the follower is assigned with 1000 dhikr of Allah upon induction may freely increase the number to 2000, 3000, 4000 or 5000 without asking for permission. Once he has increased the number, he can never do it under that number. He cannot do it over 5000 without permission, either. To be able to do it over 5000, he needs to get permission from his Sheikh. While doing the daily assignment, should anything urgent happen, he can attend to it and then he can go back to pick it up from where he has left, again, in the state of prayer ablution, of course.

The daily assignment has no excuse. If one cannot do his daily assignment, with heat-felt sorrow and regret, he should say, Alas, I could not do my assignment. He should believe that an unfulfilled assignment in such a state, causing remorse and penitence, will be considered as fulfilled. However, if the assignment has not been done without any excuse, he should also know:

If you disappoint your master, he will deny your share.

 

The Surah al-Fatihahs are offered as follows:

The follower says the long version of the Basmala before he recites the first Surah al-Fatihah and then he says, I offer the Fatihah that I have recited to the Pure Garden of the Prophet Mohammad and to the High Souls of Shah-i Naqshbandi and Abdul-Qadir Gilani.

The follower recites the second Surah al-Fatihah with the short of version of the basmala at the beginning and then he says, I offer the Fatihah I have recited to the High Souls of Sayyid Amir Kulal, Haje Abdul-Khaliq-al-Ghujdawani and Imam Rabbani.

The follower recites the third Surah al-Fatihah with the short of version of the basmala at the beginning and then he says, I offer the Fatihah I have recited to the High Souls of Mawlana Khalid, Sayyid Abdallah and Sayyid Taha.

The follower recites the third Surah al-Fatihah with the short of version of the basmala at the beginning and then he says, I offer the Fatihah I have recited to the High Souls of Sayyid Sibghatullah-al-Arwas, Abdur-Rahman-i Tagi and Sheikh Mohammad Sami-al-Erzinjani.

The follower recites the third Surah al-Fatihah with the short of version of the basmala at the beginning and then he says, I offer the Fatihah I have recited to the High Souls of Sheikh Mohammad Beshir, Sheikh Dede Pasha and Sheikh Abdur-Rahim Reyhan.

Recitation of the Fatihahs one by one is desirable; however, saying I have offered them the way Awni Afandi has offered, as indicated in the section that deals with induction stage, is also accepted although it is not advised.

 

The prayers that are assigned:

1. Salat-al-Awwabin: Following the Sunnah of the the Maghrib Prayer, saying the Salaam after each of the two raka’ats, a four-raka’at Salat-al-Awwabin is performed. The follower starts each of these two-raka’at prayers saying, I intend to pray Salat-al-Awwabin. And then he performs this four-raka’at prayer.
2. Salat-al-Tahajjud: This is the prayer performed between the Salat-al-Isha and the time of the Imsaq. The Salat-al-Tahajjud is a prayer of two two-raka’at stages with the Salaam after each two-raka’at bit. The follower says I intend to pray the Salat-al-Tahajjud at the beginning of each two-raka’at stage. During the first two-raka’at bit, the follower recites the Surah al-Fatihah and, without Basmala, five times Surah al-Ikhlas at each raka’at. During the second stage of the prayer, the follower intends in the same manner and recites the Surah al-Fatihah and seven times Surah al-Ikhlas at the first raka’at and, again, the Surah al-Fatihah and five times Surah al-Ikhlas.

 

The assigned wirds (the surahs and duas):

1. Following each Fard prayer, the follower says Astawfir-Allah five times.
2. Following the dua at each prayer, the follower recites the following pieces from the Quran:

 

The whole of the Surah al-Yaseen or the last page of it after the Salat-al-Fajr.

Amanar-Rasul after the Salat-al-Zuhr.

The Surah al-Naba (The Great News) or the ayats 31 through 40 from the that surah after the Salat-al Asr.

No ayats are assigned after the Salat-al-Maghrib.

The Surah al-Mulk or the ayats 26 through 30 from that surah after the Salat-al-Isha.

 

1. After each of these surahs (or if the follower performed the prayer with other people, following the dua), the follower says Sadaqa Allahu al-Azim and repeats La ilahe IllAllah 11 times after saying Faal-a-mennahu. Before saying the eleventh, he says Haqqun and then La ilahe IllAllah. Allahumma salli 'ala Mohammadin wa 'ala aali Sayyidina Mohammad, bi adadi kullu daim we dawaim wa bariq we alayhim tesliman kesira. Allahumma salli 'ala Mohammadin wa 'ala aali Sayyidina Mohammad, bi adadi kullu daim we dawaim wa bariq we alayhim tesliman kesira. Allahumma salli 'ala Mohammadin wa 'ala aali Sayyidina Mohammad, bi adadi kullu daim we dawaim wa bariq we alayhim tesliman kesiran kesira. Salli we sellim ala ashrafi nur al-jami al-anbiya we al-mursalin we alayhim kullu ajmain amen. After completion of this, the follower will recite the following or listen to the Imam recite it, with hands open at dua state.

 

Allahumma salli ala Sayyidina Mohammad, Salat-an Tunjina biha min jami-al akhwali we al-afat. We taqdilana biha jami al-khajad. We tutakher-na biha min jami-al sayyi-ad. We tarfawna biha indeke al-ad-darajad. We tub al-lougna biha aqs al-ghayad. Min jami al-khayrad fil khayad we ba’d al-mamad. Bi rahmnet-i ya erhamar ra’himin. Bi khurmat-i Habibike ya erhamer ra’himin. Bi khurmat al-jami al-anbiya we al-awliya pir-i piran, pir-i azam ya erhamer ra’himin. Amen, amen, amen we al-khamd al-Allah ar-Rab al-alemin.

 

What is advised in addition to these are the rapport on a voluntary basis and the Dhikr Allah, which is done silently and countlessly. Those who wish to do additional duties are supposed to consult with the authority concerned. Voluntary wirds are forbidden. Those who engage in such voluntary endeavors or those who fast on the month of Shawwal or perform other voluntary prayers are advised not to tell about them.  

 

KHATMAH (HATME)

When to do: Khatmah can be performed during the period following the Salat-al-Asr until the time the Salat-al-Isha is to be completed.

 

Short (Khatmah) version: 

1. Those who participate sit forming a circle.
2. 100 pieces of stone are distributed among the participants (everyone gets the same number of stones).
3. Upon the signal announced by the one who conducts the procedure, everyone shuts their eyes and recites Astawfir-Allah 25 times.
4. Upon the announcement of Rabita-i Sharif (The Transcendental Rapport), everyone performs the rapport as described earlier for 5 minutes.
5. When the Surah al-Fatihah is announced, the one conducting the khatmah and the six participants sitting on his right recite the Surah al-Fatihah, starting with the long form of the Basmala.
6. When Salawat Sharif is announced, the participants say, Allahumma salli 'ala Mohammadin wa 'ala aali Mohammad, as many times as the number of stones they get and starting with the long version of the Basamala.
7. When Ya Baqi Ente al-Baqi is announced, starting with the long version of the Basmala, the partcipants say Ya Baqi, Ente al-Baqi, as many times as the number of stones they have received. This step is repeated five times.
8. When the participants hear the Surah al-Fatihah announced, the one conducting the khatmah and the six participants sitting on his left recite the Surah al-Fatihah, starting with the long form of the Basmala. 
9. When Salawat Sharif is announced, again, the participants say, Allahumma salli 'ala Mohammadin wa 'ala aali Mohammad, as many times as the number of stones they get and starting with the long version of the Basamala.

10-The one who is conducting the khatmah or somebody else recites

     aloud the long version of the names and the assigned titles of the

     chain of sheiks up to present (the Long Silsile-i Sharif). When this

     is finshed, the Surah al-Asr is recited aloud. All others engage in

     dua and rapport. Or they may also include their friends or relatives

     who are not present.

 

    Upon completion of the surah, Al-Fatihah is announced. The one conducting the khatmah says May Allah Almighty accept this khatmah as it is. Everyone says Amen, Bless be upon you. Then, the eyes are opened.      

 

Long (Khatmah) Version:

If the number of participants is more than 15 and the number of those who know the Surah al-Insyirah is at least 10, the long version of the khatmah is supposed to be performed.

1. Again, the participants sit in a circle.
2. Upon the signal announced by the one who conducts the procedure, everyone shuts their eyes and recites Astawfir-Allah 25 times. In the meantime, somebody who knows how to distribute and collect the stones prepares to distribute the 79 pieces of stone, allocated earlier, to those who know the Surah al-Insyirah and hold up their right hands at their chests waiting to be given stones.
3. Upon the announcement of  Rabita-i Sharif, everyone engages in the rapport and wait for the stones to be distributed.
4. When the Surah al-Fatihah is announced, the one conducting the khatmah and the six participants sitting on his right – or those who are told to do so – recite the Surah al-Fatihah, starting with the long form of the Basmala.
5. When Salawat Sharif is announced, the participants say, Allahumma salli 'ala Mohammadin wa 'ala aali Mohammad, as many times as the number of stones they get and starting with the long version of the Basamala.
6. When the Surah al-Insyirah is announced, those who have received stones recite the surah as many times as the number of stones they have.
7. The distributor then distributes the 21 pieces of stones, in addition to the 79 distributed for the Surah al-Insyirah, to those who have not received any or in accordance with the procedure if everyone has received stones.
8. Upon announcement of the Surah al-Ikhlas, everyone recites the surah as many times as the number of stones they have, starting with the long of version of the Basmala and the short one with the others. This is repeated 10 times. This way, 1000 Surah al-Ikhlas will have been recited. The one making the announcement recites one extra and the number is totaled to 1001.