In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
When you find the love, you find yourself. The secret is in the love. You are the love, not another. Everything is in the love, and everyone needs the love. If you find this, what more could you want? When you know, what could you want? When you have the knowledge of the love, you feel peace in your heart. The jewels are inside you. This is the holy meaning. When you understand, then you are the meaning, the holy meaning. But look and reach so that you find every meaning, and do not hesitate because inside every meaning is the quality of the love. The love has seven qualities and this love knows no differences. If the Muslims, Jews, Christians and the people of any other religion knew their religion well, there would only be one religion, the religion of love and peace and mercy.
Leave everything outside that is not useful and give everything to God to live inside His garden of love. Remember the Name of God at every waking moment, and you will find Him beside you, to help you to walk in the way. Be courteous with everyone you meet. Give them mercy to help them to know the meaning of this love. Give and listen to everyone who speaks to you. Listen with the ear of your heart because this is the voice of God speaking to you, trying to help you to know Him. If you hear another voice, it is wrong. Open your heart to God and He will give you everything. Then your heart will feel quiet and you will only see the love, only the love.
You are the reflection of God. This is nothing, only He. Where is another? Give everything to God and you will begin to know yourself. When God made you, He made beauty. Live with the people on the outside, but hear only your God. Those who live in the outside world are like jewels that need cleaning. They need the fire to burn away all their imperfections so that the jewel may reflect its inner beauty. If you are not clean, how can you find the love. The Sufi way is the straight way – walking a straight path to God, letting nothing on either side block the vision of the straight way. I will ask God to send mercy and peace to everyone because He is the Peace.
If you want God, remember that He gives you what you want. Don’t be afraid. God will not give to you anything that is not good. We must see God in the face of every human being. When you walk and when you sleep, remember the name of God because He knows no time. When you pray to God, pray only to love Him. Do not pray for Him to put you in the garden. God throws out a net, and when He catches you in this net, then you are in the garden. Every student needs God.
When He helps you to find Him, then pray, and when you look into another’s eyes, see the reflection of God looking at you. Understand that inside every word is a message or a sign from God. See the picture of God in every person that you meet.
All the troubles in the world are necessary. If there was no darkness, how could there be light? If you did not see sadness, how could you see happiness? Be courteous to everyone and see the face of God in every person, but know that the people on the outside carry two faces. On the inside they carry the face of God, but on the outside, the face of the shaytan (evil one). Be polite with both faces, and when you see someone angry or shouting, know Who speaks with you. Everyone has put himself in his place and this is the station for that person. Be polite with him and give him mercy. Be with God all the time and do not speak with anyone from the outside unless it is necessary. Give your time for God and He will change you from station to station, cleaning your heart of everything that is not good. This is the message of the prophets. It is a difficult way and at the same time a very easy way. When anyone wants to know God, He will help anyone to walk the straight way.
Follow one guide to take you by the hand, to guide you from the darkness to the light. He will make the walking easy for you and then you can rest. If you go from here to there, you lose time, The student of the family of God rests because he lives in the garden. When anyone knows why he lives and walks in this created world, then he begins to know himself. We are here only to know Him. Live all the time in the garden of love. When your heart feels love, then everything around you is quiet and at peace. This is from the message, but not all the message. Live to love and to know God.
An excerpt from Music of the Soul, written by Shaykh Muhammad Sa’id al-Jamal ar-Rafai, ash-Shadhuli in 1994, revised third addition, 2002. From the chapter entitled, “The Love”.
