The Wash Cycles for the Heart

Bismillahir Rahmaanir Raheem

By Hazrat Maulana Yunus Patel Saheb (Rahmatullahi ‘Alayh)

Once, on viewing the Mataaf from one of the upper levels of Masjidul Haraam, the scene of thousands of people engaged in Tawaaf, brought to my mind the following analogy:

The sight of those thousands of people moving around the Baitullah reminded me of the wash cycles of the washing machine.

And indeed, we find that parallels can be drawn between the Tawaaf and the work of the washing machine.

The purpose of the washing machine is to wash our clothes clean. …We place dirty clothes into the drum of the machine and we add the detergent, bleach and softner. With a press of the Start button, the drum starts to spin, water pours in and the machine does its work of extracting the dirt, repeatedly, until the final rinse.

Once the drum stops, the clothes are taken out, hung up to dry, and when dry, they are ironed – with the end result being well pressed, crease-free, clean clothing.

Tawaaf has some resemblance to the purpose and work of the washing machine; except that we are not washing dirty clothes; rather we are washing our hearts – our spiritual hearts.

Like dirty clothes are placed into the washing machine, we place our dirty hearts into the Tawaaf – hearts which are stained with all kinds of sins, including the ‘tough’ stains of major sins. …What is not found in this heart? So much has soiled and spoilt our hearts : Pride, Jealousy, Malice, Vanity, Hubbe Dunya, Hubbe Jah and the deep, dirty stains of lustful gazes, backbiting, and other such evils have blotted our hearts, have smeared and blackened them.

Before washing badly stained clothing, a stain remover is used. Accordingly, the stain remover of regret and remorse over our sins, and the sincere intention that what is past being really past, is applied to our hearts.

The Hajre Aswad can be likened to the ‘START’ button. The intention of Tawaaf and the raising of the hands with ‘Bismillah Allahu Akbar wa-lillahil Hamd’, signify the commencement of the Tawaaf. Simultaneously the washing of the heart commences. The detergents of Istighfaar, Durood Shareef, and Zikrullah, then contribute to the cleansing of the heart.

Just as water gushes into the drum, Allah Ta’ala’s Tajalli, His Special Mercy and Noor, which is cascading onto the Baitullah, drench those who are in Tawaaf. These are the ones who are the first to benefit and they benefit more than all others. Their hearts too are being soaked with this Noor, similar to how the dirty clothes become soaked with water.

The detergent of sincere Istighfaar and Taubah wash the heart. …The amount of detergent a person needs for washing his clothes, depends on the size of the load. So if our hearts are heavily loaded with sins, then naturally, the demand will be of plenty of Taubah and Istighfaar.

If we want our hearts to be white, the bleach of Zikrullah is added to the Tawaaf, just as bleach is used when a person wants his white clothes to be as white as possible.

If we want our hearts to be soft, then the softner of Durood Shareef is also released into the washing of our hearts.

Each round of Baitullah is similar to the wash and rinses that the dirty clothing go through for a good, clean wash. Round and round, each cycle is completed with Istighfaar and Taubah, Durood Shareef, Dua and Zikrullah. Together with that Tajalli, the dirt of the heart is being extracted, until the final rinse and spin – the 7^th round. Now the heart is clean and purified.

…If we entered the Tawaaf with full concentration on Allah Ta’ala, and complete focus of the great privilege of Tawaaf of Baitullah – which is in reality Tawaaf of Rabbul-Bait, then we will experience that beautiful Noor and that Tajalli.

                                                           

Naturally, for the full benefit of Tawaaf, the gaze has to be controlled. If a person has ‘khauf-e-Khuda’ and he has ‘Azmat’ of Baitullah, he will not raise his glance towards strange women; he will not cast an evil gaze – in the Tawaaf and out of Tawaaf. …If during Tawaaf, the person is engaging in lustful gazes and other sins, there will be just an accumulation of darkness and dirt.

Once the heart is washed, it is taken out of the Tawaaf – clean and bright and white. After completion of the 2 Rakaats of Waajibut Tawaaf, the person proceeds to the Multazam, where he places his chest against the wall. That pressing of his chest, is akin to pressing and ironing the “creases” of his heart;  similar to how clothes are ironed, making them ‘crease-free’.

The tears shed at the Multazam are like droplets of sweet musk which now fragrance that heart. SubhanAllah, what a sparkling heart, emitting the sweetest of scents… Whilst we will sense it, Insha-Allah - we will have to thereafter look after this cleanliness and this sparkle.

We have to make sure that we fulfill the rights of that Taubah, by making amends on our shortcomings in Huqooqullah (the rights of Allah Ta’ala) and Huqooqul Ibaad (the rights of the servants of Allah Ta’ala). Whatever is outstanding of Salaah, Zakaah, fasts, will have to be made up for, and whatever is due to people will have to be returned to them, or forgiveness secured from them.

May Allah Ta’ala grant us all the Taufeeq of making such Tawaafs, which only increase our hearts in purity and whiteness, which increase that Qurb (proximity) to the Owner of the House.

The Magnet That Pulls Hearts

Bismillahir Rahmaanir Raheem

Hazrat Maulana Yunus Patel Saheb (Rahmatullahi ‘alayh)

We know that magnets draw different metals: steel, iron, nickel and other material. Imagine if the Ka’bah Shareef had the properties of a magnet. How much would it have drawn – considering its proportions and weight? …One ton? Two tons? Perhaps ten tons?

However, the Ka'bah Shareef is not a magnet, like the magnets of this world. Whilst it is made of stone, it contains Allah Ta’ala’s Tajalliyaat. It thus has a different kind of magnetic effect. It does not draw metal; rather it draws the hearts. Subhanallah.

Throughout history, we find that Baitullah drew the hearts of the Ambiyaa (AS) to it. It drew the Mubarak heart of Sayyidul Mursaleen (Sallallaahu ‘alayhi wasallam), and it pulled the hearts of all the Sahaba-e-Kiraam (RA), the Tabi’een, Taba' Tabi'een, millions of Auliya-e-Siddiqeen, Gauth, Qutub and Abdaal[1] . It also pulls sinful, sinful ones like us.

The Ka`bah Shareef has such magnetism, which draws and pulls and attracts millions and billions. …Unlike a magnet, that has limitation in respect to the amount it draws, we find people pouring into Makkah Mukarramah, into Masjidul Haraam, because their hearts are pulled to the Mubarak Baitullah. And there is no end to the numbers of people.

…This attraction is not because of the stone; it is due to the Tajalliyaat of Allah Ta’ala which pulls the hearts that have the commodity of Imaan.

For a magnet to draw another metal, the metal has to have certain properties. Without which, there is no attraction and no pull. Once these properties are found, the metal is drawn and we see how it clings to the magnet.

…Imaan is the necessary component in the heart, which the Tajalliyaat of Allah Ta’ala pulls and a person’s heart desires to be nearer and nearer to Baitullah, desires to cling onto the Multazam, to enter the Hateem, to hold onto the Ghilaaf of the Kab`ah Shareef, to make Istilaam of Hajre Aswad and to touch the Rukne Yamaani.

If a knife is taken and it is constantly rubbed against a magnet, it will draw the properties of the magnet and will be able to also draw metals. In the old days, there used to be a shoe maker outside my late father's shop. He used to have a magnet and he used to take a knife or piece of metal and rub it over the magnet. The effect of the magnet would then be evident in the knife or piece of metal, and it would be able to also draw nails and other such items.  In those days, we even saw the ladies in the family use magnets to pick up their pins and needles.

Since the blade or the knife made contact with the magnet, it drew that magnetic effect. The greater the effort made and the more the knife was rubbed against the magnet, the more it increased in its own magnetic effect.

If contact was for a lengthy time, so the magnetic effect will be strong; if for a short time, the magnetic effect will be temporary, and if there was no contact, then there is no effect.

The friends of Allah Ta’ala have made such effort on their hearts, with their Mujahadah (Striving) and their Ibaadaat and have “rubbed” their hearts – so to speak - with the Zikr of Allah Ta’ala and with Durood Shareef. Their hearts are filled with such Ishq and Ma`rifat of Allah Ta’ala and His Rasul (Sallallaahu ‘alayhi wasallam), that their hearts also became like magnets.

Similar to how the Ka'bah Shareef pulls the hearts of people, these pious servants also cause the hearts of people to be attracted towards them. …Since the heart has drawn the “magnetic” effect of Allah Ta’ala’s Love, it draws the hearts of people as well.

In the company of the Auliya Allah, we will draw that love of Allah Ta’ala and Rasulullah (Sallallaahu ‘alayhi wasallam), that Khashiyat and Yaqeen. Zikrullah and Durood Shareef will increase the strength of our hearts until our hearts too will become like magnets.

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[1] Various classes of Auliya Allah