The Art of Contemplation – Fikr/Tafakkur Pt 2 (Shaykh Musab Penfound)

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم 

الحمد لله رب العالمين

والصلاة والسلام على رسول الله

The word Tafakkur is from wazn (Saraf) that entails an action that requires a certain amount of exertion. Which is different from merely day dreaming.

That is why we tried to translate it into Active Contemplation. It’s a mujahadah (struggle) some sort in thought or thinking.

It requires an element of cleansing the mind from erroneous thought that is not conducive and in active engaging in a particular train of thought. And this Active Contemplation has an impact in ones mind, heart and soul.

From one level we can say that we are always in some kind of contemplation, but in this regard its about catching that thought and being aware of it.

Its interesting that in different religion there is the concept of what we called Meditation but with some differences.

But what is the difference in that Islam is that it engages on this stream which leads towards something, it’s not kept open ended.

Also, this is a practice, a tradition that is inherited from the Prophet Saw, it’s not a kind of solo attempt or Diy approach to see what you find within yourself.

They say its important for one to reflect in abundance, to bring a conscious upon their connection back to Allah. To bring about thinking about this Reality within our minds and heart.

Imam Alhaddad said the Prophetic Reflections (Tafakkur) are on 3 primary types/modes; These are things that you can activate, cultivate and grow in you.

1) Upon the wonders of Divine Power. And the marvels of the heavenly and earthly kingdoms. Eg. The trees, birds, skies, universe are their own kingdoms. With their own language, praise and purpose in existence.

• Its fruits (meaning this stream of consciousness) will lead to Ma’arifatullah(Gnosis of Allah). Meaning an experience at the level of the heart and the Soul, The Sirr(part in you that is uniquely you), of Allah.

2) On the Gifts, Grace and Blessings of Allah. “Were one to enumerate the Blessing (singular form) of Allah, you will never be able to encompass it”

• One of the masters of this tradition said The Blessing here is the Prophet Saw, Were we to reflect who and what he is to us and to Allah we will never be able to do so.

• This is something we really need to be engaging in. Because when we have an influx of luxury and excess, what can happens is there can be an imbalance that can take place. And if its not attributed appropriately back to Allah it switches (the blessings) and it becomes a Niqmah (a distraction from Allah).

• Its not considered a blessing if its just merely a luxury of the Dunia, it’s a blessing if it ultimately connects you back to Allah. If its not then it’s a distraction even if its outwardly something that is nice and luxurious.

• The fruit the result of this type reflection, is the Love of Allah. Someone asked if when we start to love of Allah does Allah starts to Love us too? They say, if you feel Love for Allah, it’s a sign that Allah loves you.

• One of the signs of true gratitude is it that you place or use it in its rightful place, in what Allah will be pleased for. Eg, the eyes is for looking at His Creation, to look at with care and concern to your loved ones.

3) Upon this Dunia (the ephemeral world) and the Hereafter. The Dunia with its challenges, harsh nature eg. If we really understood or know more about what Jannah and Jahannam really is, we will be more motivated.

• To reflect on the states of the creation in this world and in the next.

• What we do here will affect Greatly how we are going to live by in the Next.

• The fruit/benefit is turning away from this World and become attentive to the Hereafter. If it sounds more frightening then the bigger the sign that we are attached to the world.

• One of the most prominent characteristic of the Sahabah is they have no attachment to the world and have no fear of death.

• Someone may have nothing in their bank account but can still be the people of the world. That is what we have to be careful of. Actually the money and the wealth, is the easy part, one of the hardest thing is Status. Seeking a place in the heart of people. May Allah protect us.

• There’s whole science to learn on how to turn away from this world. Someone can come up and say that they have spent their whole life building this business and now my religion say I need to throw it away? That is not what it means. That was never the way of the Sahabah. It relates to the purpose. What is it for, is it just to enjoy and benefit the life the Dunia?

• One of the signs of being attentive with the HereAfter is being serious with one’s prayer. One can never be truly serious on the hereafter if they cant be focus in fulfilling the 5 daily prayers. (Note to self!!!!) Those are the seeds we are sowing for the Hereafter.

• Its hard it was never easy but Allah does not burden a soul beyond it limits. Allah wont prescribe the 5 daily prayers to the whole mankind if it was too difficult.

• Its hard, the bit that doesn’t like it is from the Ego. But the Soul is yearning for it. That’s why you have to fill it up with so many other stuff in place of it but it will never feel satisfied in place of prayer.

Altho its good to have an allocated time for this but we don’t want to overburden ourselves with all the others practices like muraqabah, intentions.

Do that which you can maintain at the level of by which if you’re on travels or you might fall sick you’ll still be able to maintain that practice. That’s the bare minimum.

Even if its 1 minute! Any practice started is like planting a seed and the consistency is like this drop of water, everyday. Allah Yubarik. Allah will place His barakah into it and if Allah sees you at His door everyday come rain or shine. He WILL open up. That’s why you don’t give up hope.

You can’t throw this struggle away. Where else do you wanna go? We are going to die, the journey will always be going back to Him. You just gotta keep going, and keep up.

We’ll fall, we’ll delay, but this is this best place to be. We have to understand what Allah Swt is calling us to.

Another thing also, the nature of Reflection shouldn’t be constrained in a particular time. Its like saying (that allocate time) is you’re doing this regular cardio in the gym but so at times you still need to sprint for the bus.

So the technical allocated time to focus is maybe at the end of the day. But however Reflection generally is open at any time.

One practical thing is in our time is when we are going to a place, there’s a lot of time in between that. And we’re often thinking about things during the time making it to somewhere.

Another thing that helps to get into that reflective mode is to listen to something, the Quran, beautiful Qasidah, something that kick starts this mode. Because nowadays we are so against friction, we are not in the society where we listen to the Azan and it moves you back into that reflection.

In Tarim, everyday after Isyrak, asar, zohor, they have a Calling (nida’) from the same speakers that play the azan,  they have this haunting chant, they say the Shahadah and then they recite the persons name, and inform that they have passed away and their place where you can visit to pay the condolence, and you hear it everytime. You can’t escape death. The constant reminder.

Now to apply this 3 channels of contemplation:

• 1) Upon the wonders of Divine Power. And the marvels of the heavenly and earthly kingdoms: We are constantly bombarded with screen and billboards that take us away from that. So its important to fill up this gaps and aware that there is a gap bcs this is not a normal way of being human. There is a frightening statistics that the amount of advertisement expose to kids, the kind of damage and conditioning at such a tender age. Its abuse at one level, the potential that the kids have to cultivate something meaningful is being taken away by this notions and desires for games, sweets.
• We as adults are also being conditioned in this but at a more sophisticated way.
• Now all of the Islamic tradition in particular this tradition of Reflection, is to help and allow us take back your own streams of consciousness and re calibrate. Not to be dictated, not to be abused and misused as a human being. To use what you have been given, to reach your fullest potential. What an amazing gift, alhamdulillah.
• Instead of opening the radio to somewhere, just to look out with the scenery and be aware of the heavenly and earthly kingdoms of Allah. How the wind blows its like this mystical force that you cant see but you feel and hear its presence, the subtleties of the trees and the birds movement. SubhanaAllah its like an orchestra. This are all signs of Allah.
• We need to be expose in loving and learning about nature especially in this concrete world that we have created and box ourselves in. Its good exercise too. We can do that as individuals or as families and to expose ourselves with nature to increase ourselves in the Ma’arifah (knowing) of Allah.
• One of the most important things our teachers have said is to let our kids to be expose and see the natural world, see where their food comes from. Often the slaughtering of animals is an overwhelming feeling of gratitude because it’s the recognition that this animal gave his life up to be of benefits to us. We are so detached from this feeling because our food at always prepared in boxes.
• Remind yourself the fruits are Maarifatullah. Don’t you want to know your Creator?
• 2) On the Gifts, Grace and Blessings of Allah:
• A lot of the Sunnah its not about just saying Alhamdulillah but it has to do with that offering of gratitude, its about the display to show that one’s being appreciative of this moment, this time, this place.
• The fruits, is the love for Allah.
• Start, being more appreciative and more aware. See how you feel.
• Its interesting as well that in our lands, we as people live in such abundance but also, we can be very negative and unappreciative. What that can lead to is lack of patience, like an expectation and entitlement.
• 3)  Upon this World and the Next.
• One of the ways is to reflect of people’s emotion in the world. You will see a lot of old people being sad. To reflect why. Pray for them.
• See the state of the world, how people are so attached to the devices. Part of being Human is to feel love, community, sacrifice etc.
• And for the Next, we contemplate through being in gathering of scared knowledge. Again, being around people, being around people of Akhirah. Contemplate on their state.
• One of the Salaf, Imam Asseggaf, just by merely meeting him, every bit of the world just went out from people’s heart. Because of the light in his heart, in the state he is.
• So what this does is to bring us into a place of realization, prioritization that we are not in this world for too long.
• One of the saints gave an example. “were you to have a palace, and everything you wanted, for a day and then nothing at all and live miserably”. or ‘like a shed, but it last forever?’ – and intellect would chose the shed because it is sustainable and is not the worse state to be in.
• So now he gave example that if the choice here is “Be patient with a shed for day, and what’s on offer is this palace that last till eternity.”
• Another thing to reflect as well, is that it is very hard as modern people, as temporal being, we exist very much in time. Pre modern people their time was cyclical, it is rooted around prayer, nature, the sun, moon etc. So for us, to understand the concept of eternality, we can’t really grasp and resonate? don’t you get bored? So it is an interesting reflection, living eternally.
• So the fruits is turning away from this world and being attentive to the HereAfter.

So there are 2 kind of approaches to tafakkur, obviously this is a whole discipline in the journey to Allah. It gets deeper and it has different levels, which the masters of this science has codified and articulate.

Just an entry point to this, is we have to be aware that this is something we need to engage. To think about how to think. Thinking about what we don’t need to think about. Adjusting and  reorienting ourselves.

The 2 things go together are, Fikr and Zikr. The more active one does the remembrance of Allah, Zikr, the more purer one’s Fikr become.

Zikr is like fuel for one’s Fikir. It illuminates the place where you Fikir is received, is like your satellite. The more Zikr is done, the more your contemplation (Fikr) becomes luminous, deeper and profound. It expands your consciousness and those streams become clearer.

And Allah knows best.