Shāfiʿiyyah

O you who begs of humankind, In whom no path of good is found, Leave all of mortal men behind, And to your Lord let hopes be bound. — Imām al-Suyūṭī The final line of this poem contains an iqtibās (literary borrowing), directly quoting Q 94:8 wa-ilā rabbika fa-rghab “And turn to your Lord [alone] with hope.”

Allāh has placed Rasūlullāh ﷺ within the hearts of people such that they find delight in the mere mention of him ﷺ. ‎— Imām Fakhruddīn al-Rāzī, al-Tafsīr al-Kabīr 32/208

He utilizes the dual-meaning of Ghuṣūn by painting the imagery of a ring-necked dove who lost its branches—the ring signifying the “burden of sorrow” he has to bear due to her death.

When Imām al-Suyūṭī’s slavegirl named Ghuṣūn (literally: “branches”) passed away, he wrote these lines mourning her: “O you who see me collared by worries, As I remain in deep sorrow having lost my Ghuṣūn (branches). Do you blame me for the greatness of my wailing and weeping? It is but the nature of the ring-necked dove to mourn for its Ghuṣūn (branches).”

“Such is the ascetics’ way of life in this world. Thus, whoever is deprived of this rank should at the very least feel regret over missing out on it, and strive to ensure that their closeness to them exceeds their closeness to those who indulge in the delights of this world.” — Imām al-Ghazālī

Expounding on the third condition, al-Subkī explains that Rasūlullāh ﷺ continues to seek forgiveness for the believers after his passing ﷺ. Even if one were to deny this, his ﷺ istighfār for us during his ﷺ lifetime is understood from the report narrated by Imām Muslim, in which the Companion ʿAbdullāh b. Sarjis was asked if the Prophet ﷺ had sought forgiveness for him. Ibn Sarjis answered, “Yes, and for you too,” then recited the verse: “And seek forgiveness for your sin, and for the believing men and believing women” (Q 47:19). Nothing in the verse implies that these three conditions must occur in sequence. Since Rasūlullāh ﷺ has already sought forgiveness for all believers, visiting him ﷺ and asking Allāh for forgiveness oneself completes every requirement, ensuring Allāh’s repentance and mercy. شفاء السقام

“If only they had come to you ˹O Prophet˺ when they had wronged themselves, sought Allāh’s forgiveness, and the Messenger had sought forgiveness for them, they would surely have found Allāh Accepting of Repentance, Most Merciful.” (Q 4:64) Commenting on this verse, Imām al-Subkī notes that Allāh’s acceptance of repentance and mercy has been tied to three conditions: (i) coming to Rasūlullāh ﷺ, (ii) seeking Allāh’s forgiveness oneself, (iii) Rasūlullāh ﷺ seeking forgiveness on one’s behalf.

In this couplet, Iqbāl eloquently explains the fundamental crisis in our advancing world. He states that the flask of modern civilization is entirely filled with the wine of lā, representing lā ilāha (“there is no god”), signifying that humanity has vastly advanced in intellect, using critical reasoning to identify and dismantle many ancient falsehoods, superstitions, and harmful practices. However, what the contemporary world lacks is the wine of illā, representing illā Allāh (“except Allāh”)– the second half of the testimony of faith. While human intellect has triumphed in its skepticism toward and defiance of falsehood, it has utterly failed to affirm the objective Divine Truth. The testimony of faith is a two-step equation involving first denying all falsehood, then affirming the one objective truth, but the modern world has unfortunately stopped at the first step. According to Iqbāl, this is exactly why modern global civilization has left itself brilliantly advanced and intellectually enlightened, yet entirely hollow and spiritually bankrupt.

The flask of modern civilization is brimming with the wine of negation (lā), Yet the cup-bearer’s hands hold no chalice of the wine of affirmation (illā). — Iqbāl

‎“The repetition of minor sins has a great impact in darkening the heart. It is like drops of water continuously dripping onto a stone; they will inevitably create a cavity in it, despite the softness of water and the hardness of stone.” ‎— al-Ghazālī ؒ