Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
May our strength increase. May our love and longing expand.
May our servanthood be beautiful by our own standards.
May Allah give beauty to our face
and may He bless our body with health and wholesomeness.
Come, O Shah-i Mardan.
O Shah-i Mardan, how lovely you are!
O Lovers of Shah-i Mardan!
"alhimna rushdana" -
O our Lord, inspire us with states of goodness.
Our Lord, "wa ‘idhna min shururi anfusina" -
protect us from the evil of our lower soul.
We are weak. ‘abdun da'if - a weak servant.
Give us strength, O our Lord.
Someone who wants power, if his car runs out of petrol, where does he go?
He goes to the filling station in order to fill up the tank.
"Allahumma, alhimna rushdana
wa‘izna min shururi anfusina".
May this day be bright for us. Ey Yaran Shah-i Mardan!
O Friends of Shah-i Mardan who love him,
who wish to learn Adab/good manner from him.
Shah-i Mardan, teach us Adab!
He teaches good manner, so let us learn it from him.
Our Prophet said: "addabani Rabbi."
The Holy Prophet, ‘alayhi s-salatu wa s-salam,
spoke: "addabani Rabbi." "I was taught good manner,
My Lord taught me Adab."
Masha'Allah. That is what we too need to learn - "adab", good manner.
May Allah not part us from the company of those possessing adab.
O Lovers of Shah-i Mardan! O you seeking the company of the Lions of Allah!
LIsten! Today is a new day. Al-hamdulillah.
Allah Almighty brought us to a new day. O Lovers of Shah-i Mardan.
Those who love Shah-i Mardan, why do they love him?
"al-mar'u ma‘ man ahab", a person will be together with the one he loves.
He, Shah-i Mardan, he is one whom Allah Dhu l-Jalal loves,
a person who is on the way of the one he loves.
You learn Adab from one who has it. Whoever wishes to become a jeweller,
does not go to the shop of a farrier. By farrier we mean
a blacksmith, a horseshoer, one who shoes animals' hooves.
He doesn't go there. One who is looking for jewels goes to a jewel merchant.
Come, O Shah-i Mardan. You who are full of adoration for your Lord,
O Lion of Allah! We love you, we wish to learn Adab from you.
May this new day be full of blessings for you. "yawmun jadid, rizqun jadid."
O our Lord, do not part us from the company of those who love You.
What do we gain from it? Our gain is being together with people
possessing good manner. Come to us, O Shah-i Mardan, O Lion of Allah!
Teach us. O Friends of Shah-i Mardan, you who love Shah-i Mardan.
Why do they love him? Because from him they learn good manners, with which
to reach Rasulullah's holy presence. Man cannot enter Paradise without manners.
Know this: people cannot enter Paradise if they are ill-mannered.
Rude, unmannered people, their place is either the fire or this worthless world
Those asking for carrion, the world is a carcass, he says, a dead body.
The man chasing after it has no value.
Allah Almighty has given us value.
asta‘idhu bi-llah: "wa la-qad karramna Bani Adama" (17:70) [We have honoured
the sons of Adam.] He did not say this to the angels. Come, O Shah-i Mardan.
"tariqatuna as-sohba" - our path is association. Thus our Shaykhs have said.
When two people meet in one place, one should speak, the other should benefit.
Those taking part in the gathering of Shah-i Mardan
should learn adab from him, they should take power and light.
While there are jewels to be had, only a donkey will run after straw.
It takes a jeweller to know the value of a jewel.
A donkey does not know about it. But people today
run after straw. Straw, he says, give us some straw.
We want more straw. Now straw is not what is to be desired.
You must know what is desirable. That is: Bismillahi r-Rahmani r-Rahim.
Say the noble Basmala and your heart will be inspired with what is desirable.
The Basmala is not spoken over a carcass.
Don't be like the carrion crow. A crow is after carrion.
The nightingale rests on the rose. Be a nightingale then,
so that the rose may fall in love with you, and you with it.
There are so many roses in the creation! Why then do you run after a cadaver?
How is it that a man loses his worth?
By not knowing what he wants, the value of man is brought down.
What is the value of a crow? It is called a carrion crow.
It is after carrion. The nightingale adores the rose and the rose adores it.
O our Lord. You have graced us
with such boundless, innumerable blessings.
Therefore, our way is the way of association.
"Tariqatuna as-sohba". You must keep to sohba, attend associations.
You must benefit from sohba. Please come, O Shah-i Mardan.
Your loving friends adore you. What did he say,
Shah-i Mardan, when speaking with Shah-i Jihan?
What did he say when he conversed with the Prince of Creation?
Did they talk about dates? About camels?
Did they talk about women? No. Those who attended the Holy Prophet's
association, ‘alayhim ridwanu-llah, may Allah be pleased with them. They
are of such rank that Allah is pleased with them and they are pleased with Him.
Allah was pleased with them, what a great honour! So why
don't you make some effort, so that Allah will be pleased with you!
If Allah is pleased with you, what more can you possibly ask for?
"is'al, tu'ta" - ask and you will be given.
O My servant, ask!
You will be given what you asked for. Shall we ask for other than You?
You are our Lord, O our Lord,
You are all we wish for.
You are all that we want. So, if it is Me whom you desire, give up your selves.
Give up your self on My way.
At that time: "is'al, tu'ta"
Those who sacrifice themselves on Our way,
are addressed in this way: "is'al, tu'ta"
O My servant, ask of Me, in an instant your wish will be fulfilled.
Ma‘rifatu-llah, Shaykh Mehmet Effendi, ma‘rifatu-llah, the Knowledge of God.
The touchstone for everthing, all that is desired
you will find it in the Knowledge of God, ma‘rifatu-llah.
"is'al, tu'ta", ask and you will be given.
Ask of Me. What you ask for will be given. Radiya-llahu ‘anhum,
because their Lord was pleased with them, wa radu ‘anhu,
they were pleased with their Lord. Who is content, has the rank of Humankind.
He has been dressed with the qualities of being Allah's deputy.
Being Allah's deputy is a robe of honour granted by Allah Almighty.
What else are you looking for? Haji Mehmet, Shaykh Mehmet Effendi, what?
The robe of deputyship Allah Almighty dresses you in is Allah Almighty's
gift of greatest honour to you. What else do you wish for after that?
O, My servant. I have robed you in such
a robe of honour which nobody else can dress you in.
My gift to you, My favour is boundless.
Nobody else can give it. Only I can give it, I who am your Lord.
I robe you in it, I who have created you. That is how it is, O mankind.
Don't involve yourselves in the dung of this dunya. The world is a carcass.
Do not go into it, come to Me!
"id‘uni, astajib la-***" - turn to Me, I will respond to you.
You must ask of Me, and I will answer you.
O Shah-i Mardan, please come and teach us!
O you who are in awe of the Lord, who are beguiled by His Beloved,
O Shah-i Mardan, Lion of Allah!
Come please, so we may learn. "f-as'al bi-hi khabira" - ask of one who knows;
A farrier is one who nails horse shoes to horses' feet.
Don't go to a farrier. Why would a person seeking jewels go to a farrier?
Are you a beast? You are of the honoured sons of Adam.
You must find one who can give you what you seek.
"f-as'al bi-hi khabira", ask of one who knows. That is our honour.
Shaykh Mehmet Effendi, in this station of dignity
there is beauty. Man is beautiful.
Allah did not create man to be ugly. But there are
countless people who make themselves ugly.
O our Lord,
"ahsin wujuhana, hassin akhlaqana",
make us lovely of face and refine our moral character.
Don't be rude or immoral. "innama bu‘ithtu li-utammima makarima l-akhlaq."
I have been sent to dress you in the robe of beauty.
Listen to me, by my hand I will dress you in that robe of honour. The Lord
gives it into the hand of His Beloved and
by his hand, he dresses us in that robe of honour.
No one else can approach this. “wa la-qad karamna Bani Adama” (17:70)
A divine gift of honour given to the sons of man. There are many tales.
In this way spoke the wise of old, those who possessed adab.
What are you going to teach? Teach him what will benefit him, he says.
It is not necessary to teach a man everything.
However, it is knowledge that makes man human, which dresses him in dignity
and the wise men who teach this knowledge,
will dress you with these ranks. Ey Yaran Shah-i Mardan!
Therefore, you must seek, he says. Seek out gatherings of sohba.
Grandshaykh used to say: When two believers come together,
engage in sohba, even if it lasts only as long as it takes to milk two goats.
Let one of them say: La ilaha illa-llah, while the
other one should say: Muhammadun rasulu-llah.
That is enough for a sohba. What great honour Allah dresses upon that servant!
From the Divine Presence a robe of dignity is given to the Holy Prophet,
the Leader of the Here and the Hereafter. In that He dresses him.
Therefore, sohba is the first and basic decree.
Our Prophet said: "innama bu‘ithtu li-utammima makarima l-akhlaq".
You will be entering the presence of a very great one, "makarima l-akhlaq".
We will robe you with good qualities, in a robe of dignity, so that you may
enter into that Presence: The Presence of Allah, the Presence of His Beloved,
that of the great Shaykhs; finally our presence, the presence of the
brothers, to have lovely meetings and good dealings with them.
When one believer meets another, they should relate to each other.
If the one says "La ilaha", let the other say "illa-llah".
They are then dressed in a robe of honour. Man is created with honour.
He has the most honour of all Creation. All his being is robed in honour.
Ask. Behold, the friends of Shah-i Mardan,
they are in love with him. They wish to dress in that robe of honour.
Nowadays people are keen on wearing a new suit of clothes every day.
What is this? A shirt. That is not what they are looking for.
Every day there is a robe of honour descending from heaven.
But that is not what he wishes for, he is interested in dunya garments.
Let me wear a nice dress. A nice dress - your dress is not worth a farthing.
Every day there is a beautiful robe for you that comes down from heaven.
O my Lord! O Shah-i Mardan!
This is what you teach your beloved friends. We must know and make known
what we should request, what we should wear, and wherein lies our honour.
“innama bu‘ithtu li-utammima makarima l-akhlaq”
The Holy Prophet says, "I have come to dress you in the lovely robe of
servanthood, in the robe of honour that will suit you every day.
Follow me, so that you may find honour.
Who does not follow me has no honour."
Not every stone is a ruby. No. There are plenty of stones beneath our feet.
But a ruby is not to be thrown on the ground. Rubies, emeralds -
these are jewels, they are not to be trampled underfoot.
"ad-dinu nasiha", religion means advice, counsel.
A man who cannot distinguish good from evil is at the level of the beasts.
Learn this, learn what is good,
and what is not good. A person who cannot make this distinction,
is not human, he falls in the animal category. Don't be animal, be human.
Look at yourself, if you will. Look at yourself.
Where will you see yourself?
"al-mu'minu mir'atu l-mu'min" - is it not so?
mir'at - a mirror. You are mirrors for one another. Look into it.
There is a shining mirror, look into it, you will perceive your condition,
your dignity, the robe of honour you are to wear.
Do not run after the rubbish heap of dunya, or after foul carrion.
Wrap yourself in the robe of honour coming to you from heaven above.
This is the robe of servanthood. But what shall we do? Nowadays people
are overpowered by shaytan, shaytan deceives them.
Moda, fashion, this is rubbish which has no value.
People cannot differentiate between the real fashion, the honourable dress
descending from heaven, and instead they follow the fashion the devil has
invented for them here. What a pity! Look for the robe of honour descending
on you from heaven, and ask for that. Ey Yaran Shah-i Mardan!
Give us strength, so that our trust may increase. For our Lord
let us dress in the robe of servanthood and know the Presence of our Lord.
Let us dress in the robe of servanthood, that is honour -The robe of servanthood.
It is the "libs ul-‘afiyat", the robe of health.
It gives health to man. You must know which robe you are going to wear.
Recognize its beauty! O brothers who are his Loving Friends,
listen to Shah-i Mardan! Ey Shah-i Mardan,
Sahib-i Maydan, Rabbisine hayran! [he who adores his Lord]
How lovely to be of his Loving Friends.
Mankind has sunk into the filth of dunya, deceived by shaytan.
Every day something new appears, which distances people from their humanity.
Come, it says, be like me. That is shaytan's goal,
to make people into devils. Nowadays humanity
takes its lessons from the devil. Shaytan says: Be like me!
And people have indeed turned into devils.
"wa la-qad karramna Bani Adama" (17:70)
He leaves the beautiful dress his Lord Almighty Allah has honoured him with,
and wears the devil's filthy dress, and he is proud of it, too!
O man, seek to be honourable, seek to be like the angels!
The honour of man lies in his becoming like the angels.
Shaytan's intention is to make men into devils.
A person who cannot distinguish between these two things, is not human.
It is ignorance and darkness.
Knowledge can dispell that darkness. And Knowledge is found
with Shah-i Mardan and the blessed ones who attend his gathering.
O our Lord, You have dressed us in such fine robes - A mark of Divine
honour. Let us take care of that. Let us try to become as angels.
But instead of that, shaytan is turning people into devils.
May it be far from us! Their houses and places, their food and drink
are all from shaytan. We have no need of them. We are divinely honoured.
We must realize Allah's Divine Favour
in that everything is made to serve mankind.
Every creature has a service to render to mankind, and an honour to give.
Every created being, of plants or animals, is made to give honour to man.
Do not forget this. O Lovers of Shah-i Mardan!
Ask for strength from Allah, ask Him for assurance. O Shah-i Mardan!
Teach us! May our force and power be strengthend.
On the way that you have shown us,
let us engage in the servanthood of our Lord!
There is no higher rank than this. O our Lord, forgive us,
and send us a Sultan. We are without a Sultan.
People are destroying one another, because they have no Sultans.
The Sultan will come and teach people their humanity.
May it be soon! Rajab Shahru-llah. Rajab is the month of Allah. We have hope
that such ones, that such a Sultan will come.
Be ready to render service to that Sultan. Success is from Allah. al-Fatiha
May Allah give you strength, dress you in grandeur and give you fervent love.
May He give you knowledge and forbearance, and dress you in His Beauty
From Allah Almighty's Perfection comes His Grace. O glorious Ka‘ba!
Allahumma zid baytaka hadha tashrifan wa ta'ziman wa takriman
wa mahabbatan wa rif'atan wa birra.
We are ordered to glorify the Ka‘ba -
a square structure built by the sons of Adam.
We are commanded to glorify it. Eh, and whose structure are we?
We are what Allah Almighty created in His Creation.
You glorify the Ka‘ba, but you do not glorify man? What is that?
"addabani Rabbi fa-ahsana ta'dibi." Learn good manner.
Let us learn adab, so that our rank might be raised. al-Fatiha.
Allahu Allah, Allahu Allah, Allahu Rabbi, Allahu Allah,
Allahu hasbi, Allahu Allah, Allahu hasbi.
Say: Hasbun Allah wa ni‘ma l-wakil.
Say this "hasbun Allah" at least 70 times a day; and even if
the world were filled with devils, they could not touch you.
May we have a day full of blessings. Shaykh Mehmet Effendi, he is my son.
May your face glow like the sun and your wrist have the strength
to bring down mountains. Amin. May all illness and pain be far from you.
And were there as many devils as men, they couldn't harm you in any way.
O our Lord, You are Sultan, You are Subhan.
Subhan Allah, Sultan Allah. al-Fatiha.