Waseelah: The Means of Approaching Allah

Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim
In the name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful

Ya Ali Madad and Salgirah Mubarak! On the occasion of the 87th birthday of Noor Mowlana Shah Karim Al-Hussaini Hazar Imam (a.s.), we extend Salgirah Mubarak to the global Jamat. Let us reflect upon the Institution of Imamat and offer heartfelt gratitude for the guidance and vision of our present and living Holy Imam.

On this day, may Noor Mowlana Shah Karim Al-Hussaini Hazar Imam, the 49th direct lineal descendant of the Holy Prophet (s.a.s.), grant peace, prosperity, happiness, barakat, higher spiritual enlightenment, spiritual & luminous tayid (help) and empowerment to the global Jamat as we go through this difficult period. Ameen.

Allâhumâ salli alâ Muhammadin wa âle Muhammad
(O Allah! Bestow Peace on and through Muhammad and his Descendants).

Introduction

This post has four parts:

1. Ayat from Surah Al-Maidah and Commentary on this Verse;
2. Creation of Light (Noor) in the Heart (Soul) Through Divine Remembrance;
3. The Role of a Living, Hereditary Imam; and
4. Global prayers and Three Grand Aspirations.

1. Ayat from Surah Al-Maidah and Commentary on this Verse

Ayat 5:35

This ayat reads as follows:

“O⁶⁷⁷ ye who believe! Fear God and seek ye an approach unto Him, and strive hard in His way, that ye may be successful.”

Holy Quran Ayat 5:35

Explanation of Ayat 5:35

Here is the footnote from S. V. Mir Ahmed Ali’s translation of the Holy Quran:

Footnote 677

‘Waseelah’, i.e., means of approach. To seek the pleasure of God by obeying His commands and abstaining from everything forbidden.

‘Waseelah’, i.e., means of approaching a personality of very high position or status, a king or a minister or the means to reach a high position or an unapproachable height which otherwise could not be accessible. In the case of reaching God or any position of divine excellence there cannot be any doubt about the means to it, being the Holy Prophet and the Holy Imams. If God had willed He could have guided mankind each one individually. But in His infinite wisdom, He had not deemed it desirable. He deputed His emissaries to express His will to His Creation, through angels as intermediaries and sometimes directly addressing those chosen by Him. His will was revealed to His apostles and the chief of apostles being Holy Prophet Muhammad, the chief ‘Waseelah’ or means to approach Him, can be none but the Holy Prophet and those whom God did commission to be his successors, the Holy Imams. The Holy Prophet had declared:

“The likeness of my Ahlul-Bait (the Holy ones of the family) is like the Ark of Noah, whosoever got into it, is saved and whosoever strayed away from it, is drowned and lost.” (Hadith).

Thus the ‘Waseelah‘ or the means to each God, is to faithfully follow the Holy Prophet and the Holy Imams who had always been on the right path for they are purified by God Himself (33:33) who are always guided by the revelation from God and the divinely inspired knowledge, who never in their lives yield to falsehood—whose lives have always been beacon lights of knowledge and the divine guidance for mankind.

It is not without justification and a purpose that Holy Prophet seconded his parting caution to his followers saying:

“I leave behind me Two great things: The Book of God (i.e., the Holy Quran) and my progeny, i.e., my Ahlul Bait. If ye keep yourselves attached to These Two, never, never will ye get astray. These Two, i.e., (The Holy Quran and the Ahlul-Bait) will never be separated from each other until they meet me at the cistern of ‘Kauthar’

Footnote 677 S. V. Mir Ahmed Ali, pp. 474-475.

2. Creation of Light (Noor) in the Heart (Soul) Through Divine Remembrance

In order to approach the Light of God in one’s spiritual heart (Qalb), please reflect on the gems of wisdom from verse 91 of Kalāmē Mowlā of Noor Mowlana Murtaza Ali (a.s.):

Recited by Shafiq Rawji

Kalām khudāekā hay dilkee dāru,
kalām padnēsē dil sahee howē changā
dil roshan howē nur nurānee,
jo pahēlē gunāh seeāheesē rangā
Bhāi sab daradkee dāru leekhee,
pan dilkē daradkee dāru hay yēh
kalām khudāekā yād karo neet pado,
jeeyu(n) tum dil vasē rabkā nēh ………….91

The sayings of God are a healing of the heart.
By reciting the sayings, the heart becomes joyous and pure.
The heart becomes totally immersed in Light,
and its sinful darkness is dispelled.
O brother, there is a healing for every illness,
that of the heart lies in this (i.e., remembrance of His words).
Remember the sayings of God and recite them daily
and His love will possess your heart. …..(91)

3. The Role of a Living, Hereditary Imam

The following is an excerpt from the address of Noor Mowlana Hazar Imam to both Houses of the Parliament of Canada in the House of Commons Chamber (Ottawa, Canada):

The Ismaili Imamat is a supra-national entity, representing the succession of Imams since the time of the Prophet. But let me clarify something more about the history of that role, in both the Sunni and Shia interpretations of the Muslim faith.

The Sunni position is that the Prophet nominated no successor, and that spiritual-moral authority belongs to those who are learned in matters of religious law. As a result, there are many Sunni imams in a given time and place. But others believed that the Prophet had designated his cousin and son-in-law, Ali, as his successor. From that early division, a host of further distinctions grew up, but the question of rightful leadership remains central. In time, the Shia were also sub-divided over this question, so that today the Ismailis are the only Shia community who, throughout history, have been led by a living, hereditary Imam in direct descent from the Prophet.

The role of the Ismaili Imam is a spiritual one; his authority is that of religious interpretation. It is not a political role. I do not govern any land. At the same time, Islam believes fundamentally that the spiritual and material worlds are inextricably connected. Faith does not remove Muslims, or their Imams, from daily, practical matters in family life, in business, in community affairs.

His Highness The Aga Khan, Address to both Houses of the Parliament of Canada in the House of Commons Chamber (Ottawa, Canada), 27th February, 2014. Source: AKDN Speech Archive

Let us offer gratitude for being under the umbrella of a present and living Imam who is the 49th direct lineal descendant of the Holy Prophet (s.a.s.).

Shukhran Lillah Wal Hamdu Lillah
(All thanks are due to Allah, and all praises are due to Allah)

Salgirah Mubarak!

May Noor Mowlana Hazar Imam fill your spiritual heart (Qalb) with his Noor and nothing else! May this enable you to present Spiritual and Luminous Nazranas described below.

4. Global Prayers and Three Grand Aspirations

Through the barakat of recitation of Holy Quran, Qasidas, Holy Ginans and voluminous prayers and Angelic Salwat by many, many individuals of the global Jamat, O Noor Mowlana Hazar Imam, bless the global Jamat with:

1. Spiritual and luminous tayid (help) to advance materially, spiritually and intellectually;
2. Sunshine in our spiritual hearts and actualization of the inner vision of the Truth;
3. Empowerment to present a Material Nazrana of time, knowledge and financial resources;
4. Empowerment to present a Spiritual Nazrana in the form of a pure heart which is in a state of constant dhikr; and
5. Empowerment to present a Luminous Nazrana in the form of a sound heart (qalb-i salim) which is in a state of constant dhikr and enlightenment.

Al-Hamdu lil-lahi Rab-bil Aalamin (All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the worlds).

Angelic Salwat Supplication

Let us now start supplicating with angelic salwat, Allâhumâ salli alâ Muhammadin wa âle Muhammad (O Allah! Bestow Peace on and through Muhammad and his Descendants) to our beloved NOOR Mowlana Shah Karim Al-Hussaini Hazar Imam for mushkil aasan for material and spiritual upliftment.

Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim
In the name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful

Haizinda — Qayampaya
(Our Present Imam is Living and His NOOR is Eternal)