sufi-mystic.net - The Key to Sufizm. Questions-Answers.

Q:	Why do Sufis consider sorrow and illness a gift of God?
Ans.:	Hazrat Baba Farid-ud-din Ganje-e-Shakar says thus: “If any person is in grief, ill, in trouble or in trying circumstances, take it that he is being purified of his sins.”

Q:	Why is this world a house full of sorrows?
Ans.:	Hazrat Khwaja Modood Chishty says thus: “If you collect all the badness and lock it together in one house, then the key to such a house is this world.”

Q:	How long should I bear my suffering? I have tremendous faith in Saints and dervishes, yet I have to bear sorrow and pain. Why?
Ans.:	According to Hazrat Khwaja Hasan Basri: “Sorrow strengthens the soul.”

Q:	Why do the servants of God consider illness, too, a gift from God?
Ans.:	When someone is unwell, take it that there is a transformation taking place to his being, to his existence. To annihilate his self (ego) and to erase his own being (identity) is the purpose of the life of a dervish. In our creed, to weaken the ego is the first step on the path of mysticism. Illness weakens the ego but strengthens the spirit.

Q:	Why is it considered a tradition of the Holy Prophet to consume medicines?
Ans.:	Our fight is against the self and the ego, not against the body and medicine is concerned with the body. In the world of material existence, the material remedy for illness is medicine.

Q:	What should I do to gain nearness to God?
Ans.:	Become an enemy of your being (wajud).

Q:	I am fed up of my difficult circumstances and am contemplating suicide.
Ans.:	The Holy Prophet has said that there are two parts to faith – patience (sabr) and gratitude (shukr). Whoever does not have patience in trying circumstances, in such a person, there is no evidence of faith. This is the reason why the spirits of those who commit suicide do not find salvation, because such people do not have faith and faith has a direct link to salvation.

Q:	I am easily distracted by the material world. What should I do to cool-off my heart from worldly things?
Ans.:	Do not look at anything directly but with a fleeting glance.

Q:	I wish to leave my spiritual guide (pir) and become your disciple (murid) because he does things prohibited by the religious laws (shariat).
Ans.:	Hazrat Syed Mohammed Husaini Banda Nawaz Gesu Daraaz, the caliph of Hazrat Naseeruddin Chiragh Dehlvi, writes thus in his book Ruh-e-Tasawwuf (The Spirit of Mysticism): “If any deed of the spiritual guide (Pir) which goes against the religious laws (shariat) does become apparent, then on seeing such an act, one should not have a loss of faith (in him). Even Prophets have made mistakes but have not lost their prophet-hood. If a Pir makes a mistake, he does not lose his rank as a spiritual guide. By the act of repentance (Tauba), he retains his rank.” Did Adam not make a mistake?

Q:	I have a family. What will happen to my family and me after I join an Order? Will I have to leave them?
Ans.:	You have no need to leave them. Live together as the Moon, the stars, the Sun and the other planets live in the universe. There are several divisions of a day (pehar) and the sufis lead their life in a similar manner. They live a balanced life.

Q:	My wife is always full of anger. What should I do so that she may start caring more for me?
Ans.:	According to Hazrat Imam Ghazali: “There is one shortcoming in a woman for which there is only one remedy, namely, tolerance (bardasht) or patience (sabr); and one should not cause any hurt or pain to a woman, instead, one should try to share her pain.”

Q:	Can I include my wife in my business?
Ans.:	“No community can prosper till such time that the womenfolk of that community can walk shoulder to shoulder with the men on the path of progress.” — Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishti.

Q:	Will my family also have to join the Order?
Ans.:	There is no need for them to join. Every one has freedom. It is a practical path. Even a Sufi carries his own cross for death.

Q:	Can I as a Muslim approach a non-Muslim healer or Guru for healing or help? How can I judge whether he is a correct person or not?
Ans.:	It is not a matter of religion or of spirituality (ruhaaniyat) but a matter of faith. Every where there are good and bad people. Wherever there is a talk of money or there are expectations, you can take it that there is something wrong.

Q:	Should sufis refrain from alcohol, tobacco and other intoxicants?
Ans.:	Actually Chishti order is based on the love of the Holy Prophet Mohammed & the sufis believe that the intoxication of love is more powerful than that of alcohol or tobacco.

Q:	How can I get rid of magic or a curse ?
Ans.:	To be protected against the evil of magic, curse, jinn or ghosts etc., you can recite: Ya Qabiz - 21 times every morning and evening.

Q:	I am facing discord in my marriage. What can I do to improve my marital relationship?
Ans.:	For love, affection , friendship and for making your married life better, you can recite any one of the following: Ya Wadood - 101 times every morning or Al qet’oo aleyka mohab’batan min’ni walay tusna aa’la ayney {Quran TAHA - 39} "And I cast down upon thee love from Me (that everyone may love thee); so that thou mightest be brought up under My eyes (as I will)" - 41 times every morning and evening or Ya Mehmood - 138 times every morning and evening or Ya Hamid - 101 times every day Before you start, distribute sweets to children in the name of Hazrat Khwaja Usman-e-Haroon and Hazrat Khwaja Moin-ud-din Chishti
Q:	What is Muttah & how is this viewed in the Sufi path?
Ans.:	Muttah means temporary wife. In Sufism there is no place even for the word "temporary". Sufism is not a way to pass away time. If a step is once taken along the Sufi path, it cannot be taken back.