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Naqshbandi Sufi Order

A little history of Sufism and the Naqshbandi Order:

 

Sufism has penetrated into the Western world at two far removed periods of history if we exclude the Muslim population of Europe in such lands as Albania and Bosnia.  The first was what in the West is called the medieval period and in such lands as Spain and Sicily where Sufi orders flourished and even influenced certain esoteric currents of both Judaism and Christianity elsewhere in Europe.

 

The second is the present century when Sufism has expanded much more widely into the Occident, including both Europe and America.  During this second period, it was first of all the Shadhiliyyah Order which sank its roots seriously into the soil of the West and created a ‘space’ for Sufism in that world. 

 

Other orthodox and traditional orders …soon followed the Shadhiliyyah Order in creating branches in the West, including the Chrishtis, Rifa’is, Qadiris., Ni’matullahis and Khalwati-Herrahis.

 

Finally, one of the most widespread of Sufi orders, the Naqshbandiyyah, has come to Europe and American and begun to spread its teachings extensively especially during the past two decades. 

The Naqshbandiyyah Order was founded by Shaykh Baha al-Din Naqshband born in the 14th century near Bukhara in what is now called Central Asia, but which, at that time, was culturally a part of the Persian-speaking world.  The Order spread rapidly from its original home into the Eastern areas of Persia and present-day Afghanistan, and from there, into India which became the home of some of its greatest later figures.

 

Also it spread eastward to China where it remains strong to this day and westward to the Ottoman Empire expanding rapidly into the Balkans as well where it survives to this day in Macedonia, Kosovo, Albania and Bosnia.

 

The name of the Order, derived from its founder, means on one level, what is related to an embroiderer or literally one who casts patterns upon cloth (naqshband).  But on a deeper level, it means bonding the heart with God through the imprint of His Name upon the human heart.

The Naqshbandis have always been very orthodox, staunch defenders of the Shari’ah and emulators of the Sunnah.  Throughout Islamic history they have played a most important role in the preservation and spread of Islam especially under conditions of duress while of course having as their central aims the spiritual, inner perfection of their followers.  But they have always sought to preserve a balance between the esoteric and exoteric, avoiding excesses which one might observe elsewhere.  This fact is also reflected in the active role they have played politically on the one hand, and in their cultivation of the most esoteric doctrines of Sufism, on the other.

 

Seyyed Hossein Nasr

From his Foreword to the book

The Naqshbandi Sufi Way

By Shaykh Hisham Kabbani

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maulana Shaykh Nazim

and his representative to the West,

Shaykh Hisham Kabbani

 

The Naqshbandi Sufi Way

 

The Naqshbandi Order is the way of the Companions of the Prophet and those who follow them.  This Way consists of continuous worship in every action, both external and internal, with complete discipline according to the Sunnah of the Prophet. 

 

It consists in maintaining the highest level of conduct and leaving absolutely all innovations and all free interpretations in public customs and private behavior.

 

It consists in keeping awareness of the Presence of God, Almighty and Exalted, on the way to self-effacement and complete experience of the Divine Presence. 

 

It is the Way of complete reflection of the highest degree of perfection.  It is the Way of sanctifying the self by means of the most difficult struggle, the struggle against the self.  It begins where the other orders end, in the attraction of complete Divine Love, which was granted to the first friend of the Prophet, Abu Bakr as-Siddiq.

 

Historically speaking, the Naqshbandi Way can be traced back directly to the first of the rightly-guided caliphs, Abu Bakr as-Siddiq, who succeeded the Prophet Muhammad in his knowledge and in his role of guiding the Muslim community and indirectly to the fourth rightly-guided caliph, Ali Abi Talib.

 

The Golden Chain--Transmission of the Teachings

The transmission of the teachings in this Order has been passed down in an unbroken line (referred to as The Golden Chain) from the time of the Prophet (pbuh) to the present living Master, Shaykh Muhammad Nazim Adil al Haqqani, who revived the Naqshbandi Order at the end of the 20th Century.  He infused into the Community and the planet, love of God and love of the lovers of God.

For more about Shaykh Nazim, go to:

http://www.naqshbandi.net/haqqani/sufi/NaqshSufiWay/Sh_Nazim.html

 

Maulana Shaykh Nazim appointed Shaykh Hisham Kabbani as his representative to the West. 

 

A prominent scholar of mainstream, traditional Islam, Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani has spent his life spreading the teachings of peace, tolerance, respect and love that are the message of Islam throughout the world. Here in the United States for the last eleven years, Shaykh Kabbani has continued to disseminate the light and peace of Islam's spiritual dimension to people of every background, ethnicity, race, and belief.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Links in The Golden Chain

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Naqshbandi in America

 

Shaykh Hisham has published a number of books and articles, a few of which are listed here.

 

Publications

BOOKS

§         Classical Islam and the Naqshbandi Sufi Way, 840 pp. detailing Naqshbandi Sufi tradition of classical Islam.

§         The Approach to Armageddon? An Islamic Perspective, 294 pp. details Islam’s perspectives on science and technology and prophecies regarding end times and Judgment Day.

§         Encyclopedia of Islamic Doctrine and Beliefs - 5 years in research and writing, 1500 pp. 7-volume, set describes Islamic beliefs according to the classical approach of the major schools of jurisprudence and doctrine.

§         The Naqshbandi Sufi Way: History and Guidebook of the Saints of the Golden Chain

§         Encyclopedia of Muhammad's Women Companions.

§         Angels Unveiled - a modern view of a traditional subject.

 

ARTICLES (available through www.islamicsupremecouncil.org--currently under reconstruction.

·         Understanding Sharia - Islamic Law from the classical Islamic perspective

·         Islam & Democracy

·         Terrorist Threat in America: Extremist Wave Threatens to Engulf Muslim Americans

·         Bin Laden’s Nuclear Weapons

·         Usama Bin Laden: A Legend Gone Wrong

·         Radicalism: Its Wahhabi Roots and Current Representation

·         Jihad: A Misunderstood Concept from Islam

 

Other books and publications can be obtained from The Islamic Shopping Network:

http://www.isn1.net/books.html

 

At the time of publishing this website (July 2005), the official Naqshbandi official websites are under re-construction.

These include the Naqshbandi.org, Haqqani.org, and ISCA sites.

Links to these will be provided will they are up and running.

 

 

Education

§        Bachelor's Degree in Chemistry from the American University of Beirut, Lebanon.

§        Medical studies in Louvain, Belgium.

§        Degree in Islamic Divine Law, Damascus, Syria.

§         License to teach, guide and counsel students in Islamic spirituality from the renowned Shaykh Muhammad Nazim Adil, authority of the Hanafi school of Islamic law in the Middle East and world leader of the Naqshbandi Haqqani Sufi Order.