CASE STUDY: SHAIKH NAZIM AL-HAQQANI
Many of you may be familiar with Shaykh Nazim (infamously or famously, that’s a whole new agenda in itself which we shall not go into today!) As the founder of the Naqshbandi tradition, he is held with very high esteem and reverence. Shaykh Nazim (residing in Cyprus) has followers from all over the world who speak of him very loyally, with the upmost respect. The very reason why he has so many followers is due to the Naqshbandi’s prominent online dominance, enabling the initiation process to be very accessible.
Some Testimonials:
The ultimate worry, tears of sadness as some wait in anticipation……
“June 2, I took online baya with Maulana Shaykh Nazim and I’ve been patiently waiting for a confirmation on this. But now sadness and tears overcome me when I think of the fact I haven’t recieved anything, fearing that my baya is not accepted. Should I do it again, or should I wait for a reply? Please inform me on this.”
The downer as they would say is, curiosity killed the cat. You could be waiting months on end for a reply or a sign that your pledge has been accepted.
All is not lost though…
“I recently took online bay’at and said to myself that I would only consider my bay’at accepted if I received a sign from Mawlana Shaykh Nazim or if I see the Prophet-Sallallahu-’Alaihi-wa-Sallam. Alhamdulillah that night I dreamt of the Prophet-Sallallahu-’Alaihi-wa-Sallam. […]. This is the karam of Mawlana Shaykh Nazim.”
Or on the positive side of things, you may very well receive a dream or a positive sign that will strengthen your faith in your baya.
There is no need to question why some people would pledge allegiance to the Naqshbandi tradition. With the means available and a well renowned shaykh, one wouldn’t think twice to query the legitimacy of Shaykh Nazim’s authority or the initiation process. Having venturing the risks of trusting online shaykhs in previous posts there are on the contrary, genuine reasons for pledging allegiance online:
· Remote believers; unable to access the shaykh.
· Being a woman. Not in a discriminative way, but generally speaking, there are many women that have given baya that have never faced their shaykh directly, yet reap the same spiritual rewards as oppose to someone who has direct contact with their shaykh. Thus our female audience can argue that physical interaction is not required for spirituality.
· Spirituality is an internal affair; many people have spiritual experiences via dreams, positive signs or symbols. Evidently from the example of one of our testimonials it is apparent to see that dreams are a strong form of spiritual communication.
Can we then based on these reasons justify online initiation processes? That once you’ve pledged allegiance with Shaykh Nazim you shall reap the same rewards via non-physical means?
In the context of online baya, it all essentially comes down to the believer and their faith; if your intentions are pure and it is purely for the sake of God, then surely you will be rewarded!
I must correct you by saying that "Shaykh" Nazim is not the founder of the Naqshbandi tareeqa but this tareeqa comes from Hazrat Abu Bakr As Siddiq (ra) and is named after Hazrat Shah Bahauddin Naqshband (ra), an Auliya who from many centuries ago.
ReplyDeletePlease understand that there are four main tareeqas, namely Naqshbandi, Qadri, Suharwardy and Chishti. Tareeqa Shadhiliyah is a branch of the Qadri Tareeqa just as Tareeqa Naqshbandiyah Mujadadiya, to which "Shaykh" Nazim belongs, is a branch of the Naqshbandiya Tareeqa.
Coming back to the subject at hand, I am personally against this online or over the phone baya and personally think its mockery of this sacred practice. I believe one should actually be physically present in the company of the Shaykh so that we can get to know them and see what we are letting ourselves in for.
Also you will only have information regarding a particular Shaykh from a third party most likely a mureed and that information is guaranteed to be polluted with exaggerations as is the case with "Shaykh" Nazim and his infamous predictions regarding Imam Mahdi and the End of Times.
It is due to such baya methods that people keep changing their Shaykhs as they feel no benefit from them or they may come to realise something about the Shaykh, which puts doubt in their minds.
Tareeqa Al Naqshbadeeyah,
ReplyDeleteThank you for correcting me there. I must say that great shaykhs such as Shaykh Al-Yaqoubi or Shaykh Nazim have followers from all over the country. They are unaccesible yet giving baya to them is very accesible. Giving baya online in such circumstances I feel are permissible, mainly because as soon as you see the shaykh you are encouraged to renew your baya (Shaykh Al-Yaqoubi often visits the UK.)
It all comes down to the murid and the sincerity in their baya. If their intentions are pure then surely whether they give baya online or in person won't make a difference to their spiritual progession. As I have mentioned before spirituality is an internal affair, thus I feel online baya wouldn't conflict or hinder the murids spiritual progress.