SHAYKH IBRAHIM NIASSE'S WORKS: INTERPRETATION FROM ARABIC: October 2017

A MASHHĀD: A MOMENTOUS OCCURRENCE IN THE DIVINE PRESENCE

By: Shaykh Ibrahim b. Alhajj Abdullahi Niasse (ra), Sirr al-Akbar

"A momentous occurrence happened to the humble servant writing this in the year 1350 after the Ḥijrah of Muḥammad, upon him be blessings and peace. It was this: I came to abide for a hundred thousand years among the Days of the Lord. There I heard the purest, pre-eternal speech in intimate conversation. I became bewildered and restless, as both rapture and longing were joined in me.

Then I plunged headlong into the Divine Presence, and I witnessed there the reality of the reality of the reality of the reality, in utter essentiality, exclusivity, and blinding effacement. Nothing was left of sensory feelings. I dwelled like this for two thousand years. Then something was with me.

Existence emerged from me like shadows or smoke. And I sought after this existence, and then I was with the Messenger of the Divine Essence, the servant of the Divine Essence and Its secret. And he came close to me and stayed suspended until I disappeared in him. He became my essence. Then I was overcome with joy, for I was the beloved of the Divine Essence, Its secret, Its desire. I was he who held Its comprehensive station, to whom the perfection of the Divine Essence was manifest.

I resided in my state of rapture for one million years. In this manifestation in the unseen, I did not find any servant of the Divine Essence except myself.

But then there was another manifestation, in the unseen of the unseen, and I saw the Divine Majesty in the Divine Beauty. In this presence of the unseen of the unseen, I was called and named, “O Aḥmad al-Tijānī!” I knew for certain that the Real had no desire for anything, after the secret, except for me.

I kept company with this servant of the Divine Essence, and I helped him and aided him for two million years. Then God made me the father of humanity, and the spiritual support for the entirety of existent beings, the Adam of souls and spirits.

I carried the trust (amānah), and I was addressed with, “O Dāwūd, surely we have made you the vicegerent (khalīfah) on the earth” (Al-Qur'an 38:26). I looked at the earth, and saw its state, the worlds of sense and of meaning, and then the celestial gathering. “We built the heaven with might, and it is We who made the vast expanse. And We have laid out the earth. Gracious is He who spread it out! And all things We have created in pairs, that perhaps you may reflect. Therefore flee to Allah, I am a warner to you from Him. Set up no other gods besides God. I am a warner to you from Him (Al-Qur'an 51:41-51).

So I came back to my sensory feeling & perception, and it was as if the time period of its occurrence was [no more than the time between] the even and the odd (Shaf' wa'l Witr).

Glory be to God the Majestic. He selects whom He will for what He wills, and no one outstrips His wisdom. “And He is not asked about what He does, but they are the ones asked.” (Al-Qur'an 21:23)

—Shaykh Ibrahim b. Alhajj Abdullahi Niasse (ra), Sirr al-Akbar

[As published by Imam Shaykh Tijani Cisse in his book "What the Knowers of Allah have said about the Knowledge of Allah", Interpreted from the Arabic by Sidi Muhammad Abdullahi] (Fayda Books, 2014), p.95-97.

Imam Shaykh Tijani Cisse with Sidi Muhammad Abdullahi

SUFI LITERATURE AND PRAYER BOOKS COLLECTION (AVAILABLE FOR SALE)

1. Vessel of Spiritual Flood, Translation of Goran Faydah by Shaykh Balarabe Haroon Jega - (Translated by Khalifah Awwal Baba Taofiq)

2. Rihlat Konakriyah (A trip to Conakry), Shaykh Ibrahim Niasse - (Translated by Khalifah Awwal Baba Taofiq)

3. Shariah and Haqeeqah: In the Light of the Qur'an and the Prophetic Traditions (Compiled by Khalifah Awwal Baba Taofiq)

4. The Icon of Mystics: Shaykh Ibrahim Niasse Al-Kawlakhy (Compiled by Khalifah Awwal Baba Taofiq)

5. Dala'ilu l khairat of Shaikh Sulaiman Jazuli (Arabic text, Translation, Transliteration by Imam Marooph Raji)

6. Hizbu Sayfi & Hizbul Mughni (Arabic text, Translation, Transliteration by Imam Marooph Raji)

7. Hizbul Bahri (Arabic text, Translation, Transliteration by Imam Marooph Raji)

8. Hizbu Suwar al Manee'hi – ‘Arabic (composed like Hizbu Sayfi)’ (by Shk. Muhammad Gibrima)

9. Sidratul Muntaha ad-daa'een– ‘Arabic’ (by Muhammad Gibrima)

10. Jihazu Sarih – ‘Arabic prayer book on Salatul fat’hi’ (by Shk. Muhammad Gibrima)

11. Tibbul faa'ihi – ‘Arabic prayer book on Salatul fat’hi’ (by Shk. Abdul-Waahid Nazeefii)

12. Nataa'ij Safar – ‘Arabic prayer book on Salatul fat’hi’ (by Muhammad Gibrima)

13. Itbaau Tazyeel – ‘Arabic prayer book on Salatul fat’hi’ (by Muhammad Gibrima)

14. Kano Conferences (Majlis Kano) and the khutba titled (Hadiqat al-Anwar fii ma ihtawa alayhi qawaaid al-Islam minal hikam wal asrar) - (Translated by Sayyidah Bilqis Grillo)

15. Katsina and Kaduna Conferences (Jadhbul ahbab ila hadrat Rabbil arbab) and Mecca Conference - (Translated by Sayyidah Bilqis Grillo)

16. A Brief Biography of the Shaykh al-Islam Ibrahim Niasse (Compiled by Sayyidah Bilqis Grillo)

17. Risalat at-Tawbah (Epistle of Repentance) of Shaykh Ibrahim Niyass al-Kawlakhi" – (Translation & Commentary by Dr. Razzaq Solagberu)

18. Islamic Law of Inheritance, by Sayyid Ali ibn Abubakar al-Muthanna ibn Abdullah Niasse (Translated by Dr. Sulaiman Shittu)

19. Muassasah Nasr al-'ilm Int. (AAII) Magazines No. 13, 14 & 15 (with Articles like Outline of Life of Sufi Heros & Heroines like Shaikh Ibrahim Niasse, Shaikh Abdus-Salam Oniwiridi Pakata, Shaikh Muhammad Bello Eleha, Shaikh Ahmad Rufa'i Nda Salati, and others...this magazines also features other interesting Articles).

20. Numerous “English” Sufism & Tijaniyyah Tariqah E-books/Journals/Articles (soft copies - to be sent via email)

21. Numerous “Arabic” Sufism & Tijaniyyah Tariqah E-books/Journals/Articles (soft copies - to be sent via email)

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