What is Surrender and Submission?

The basis and locus of Faqr is surrender and submission translated from the terms ‘Taslim-o-Rida/Raza’. Submission or Rida is that the seeker considers every blessing and every loss as the will and decision of Allah. In fact the seeker’s betterment in the world and mysticism lies in between the two states of hope and fear. When He bestows, one should not become arrogant as well as one should not be disappointed while adversity befalls. He must be pleased with the Divine consent. Further he should submit to Him in every condition. Conditions like horror and distress, peace and grief, comfort and tension, convenience and misery, illness and health, hunger and satiation etc. Thus Allah accepts and approves such a seeker in His court.

 

What one gains on reaching this station?

The state of submission is one of the greatest among the several waystations of Faqr. Only after this station of Faqr, one gains access to the very important and the highest stations of the Divine vision and presence in the Mohammadan Assembly. Before these two, the surrender and submission is among the last stations and it is the one at which innerself is at peace.

Allah says:

یٰۤاَیَّتُہَا النَّفۡسُ الۡمُطۡمَئِنَّۃُ ﴿٭ۖ۲۷﴾
ارۡجِعِیۡۤ اِلٰی رَبِّکِ رَاضِیَۃً مَّرۡضِیَّۃً ﴿ۚ۲۸﴾

Meaning: O innerself at peace! Return to your Lord in such a state that you are both the aspirant to, and the aspired of, His pleasure (i.e., you seek His pleasure and He seeks yours) (Al- Fajr 27-28)

 

Surrender as in Quran

Allah says in the Quran that only those people are destined to have the vision of Allah who surrender before His will.

وَ مَنۡ اَحۡسَنُ دِیۡنًا مِّمَّنۡ اَسۡلَمَ وَجۡہَہٗ لِلّٰہِ وَ ہُوَ مُحۡسِنٌ 

Meaning: And with regard to adopting religion, who can be better than the one who submits his whole being entirely to Allah, whilst he also holds spiritual excellence (because he sees Allah). (An-Nisa-125)

بَلٰی ٭ مَنۡ اَسۡلَمَ وَجۡہَہٗ لِلّٰہِ وَ ہُوَ مُحۡسِنٌ فَلَہٗۤ اَجۡرُہٗ عِنۡدَ رَبِّہٖ ۪ وَ لَا خَوۡفٌ عَلَیۡہِمۡ وَ لَا ہُمۡ یَحۡزَنُوۡنَ ﴿۱۱۲﴾٪

Meaning: Yes, of course, he who submits his face to Allah (i.e., consigns himself to Allah) and becomes a man of excellence (by beholding Him) in piety will find his reward with his Lord. Such people will neither fear anything nor grieve. (Al-Baqarah-112)

It is proved from the above verses that the most desirable and favorite act is to submit to Allah’s consent and to always be grateful to Him for His blessings and even keep patience during the adverse circumstances.

 

Whose faith is acceptable in Allah’s court?

In Allah’s court, the faith of only that person is accepted and approved who submits to His will with all the sincerity, withdraws from all his own wishes and desires for Allah’s pleasure and consent. As this makes it easier for him to accept and face the troubles and calamities which befall on him. In every phase and aspect of his life he adopts the path of submission by sacrificing his own wishes for Allah.

• The Holy Prophet says:

  لَا تَتَحَرَّکُ ذَرَّۃٌ اِلَّا بِاِذْنِ اللّٰہِ  ۔

  Meaning: A single particle cannot move without Allah’s will.

 

Mystics are never aggrieved or sad even in the worst of circumstances

The Divine desire overcomes the Mystics to such an extent that they never become sad and aggrieved during the worst circumstances. Rather, they always remain happy and utter:

  سرتسلیمِ خم ہے جو مزاجِ یار میں آئے

Meaning: I surrender to my Beloved’s wish.

On this station, Allah blesses them with His unique light and the Divine union and grants them a new spiritual life every moment from the hidden world, as Sultan Bahoo said:

کشتگانِ خنجرِ تسلیم را

ہر زمان ازغیب مانِ دیگر است

Explanation: Those who submit their lives before the will of Allah are blessed with a new life every moment from the invisible. (Ain-ul-Faqr)

 

Remain pleased with the will of Allah

The Mystics whose purpose of life is solely to acquire Divine consent, remain pleased with the will of Allah in every condition. Fariduddin Attar relates that for thirty years Fazeel Ayyaz did not smile but when his son died, people saw him smiling unexpectedly. Somebody asked him, why is he smiling at such an occasion? Then he replied, “I am sure that my son’s death is Allah’s will. Therefore, I smiled for the sake of Allah’s pleasure. Whatever He likes, I like too.”

 

Shaikh Abdul Qadir Jilani’s sayings

• Al-Ghawth al-Azam Shaikh Abdul Qadir Jilani said:

According to Mansur Al-Hallaj, submission is, having the limbs cut off and been hanged even then uttering with no moan. “Upon the occurrence of destiny, raising objection on Allah (to think against the will of Allah) is the demise of faith, trust, Oneness and loyalty. Therefore the soul possessing true faith never says ‘why’ and ‘how’, its job is to say ‘yes’ (he obeys the Divine ordain and does not opine). Hence to argue and raise objections is in fact the habit of the innerself.” (Fatah-Al-Rabbani Chapter-01)

• The one who adopts patience being pleased at Allah’s reward and punishment, for him limitless Divine favour in the world and countless blessings are in the hereafter. (Fatah-Al-Rabbani)

 

Junaid Baghdadi’s saying

• According to Junaid Baghdadi, “submission means to give up one’s choice and to apprehend calamity as a blessing.”

 

Bayazid Bastami’s saying

• Bayazid Bastami states that I have attained to that destination of submission that if Allah replaces me with a person in the highest paradise forever and ever and throws me in the lowermost hell, I would be more pleased with Allah than that person.

 

Yahya Maaz Razi’s saying

• Someone asked Yahya Maaz Razi that how one could know that Allah is pleased. He replied, “Your being pleased with Allah is the sign of Allah’s pleasure”.

 

Rabia of Basra’s saying

• It is in the book Asrar al-Fatiha that one day Hasan of Basra, Malik bin Deenar, Shafiq Balkhi and Rabia of Basra were discussing about truthfulness in a meeting.

Hasan of Basra said, “One who does not adopt patience upon the pain inflicted by Allah is not truthful to his claim of love with Allah.” Surprisingly Rabia said, “This seems to be an egoistic statement, truthfulness can be defined in a better way.”

Then Shafiq Balkhi said, “That person is not truthful to his claim of love with Allah who does not enjoy the pain given by Allah.” Now Rabia said, “This statement also reflects pride, one must define truthfulness more appropriately.”

Malik bin Deenar said, “One who is not thankful to Allah upon the pain given by Him is not truthful to his claim of love with Allah.”

Rabia proceeded, “One must be so much engrossed in the observation of his Beloved Allah that he forgets all his pains, otherwise he is not truthful to his claim of love with Allah.” (Ain-ul-Faqr)

 

Allama Iqbal

• Allama Iqbal expressed:

  فقر ذوق و شوق و تسلیم و رضا ست

  ما امینیم این متاعِ مصطفٰیؐ ست

  Explanation: Faqr is the path of spiritual taste, passion, submission and the Divine consent. This is the treasured possession of the Holy Prophet which we have inherited from him and now we are its custodians.

   

Sultan-ul-Faqr VI and Surrender and Submission

Sultan-ul-Faqr VI Sultan Mohammad Asghar Ali said about surrender and submission to the Divine will:

• I never asked anything from Allah except His vision and consent.
• The core of Faqr is to submit to the will of Allah in every condition. Whether it is a calamity or ease, grief or comfort, convenience or misery, illness or health, hunger or satiation, honour or humiliation, richness or poverty. Only such complete submission is accepted and approved in the court of Allah. Only that person deserves to have the vision of Allah who surrenders sincerely and truthfully to the will of Allah withdrawing his own consent, and faces without any complaint the troubles and pains when befall.
• When the seeker of Allah approaches the final level of the submission to the will of Allah, the destiny is assigned to him. (Sultan-ul-Faqr VI Sultan Mohammad Asghar Ali Life and Teachings)

 

Sultan Bahoo and Surrender and Submission

Advice of Sultan Bahoo

The Fakir advises to have complete trust in Allah and remain content and happy. (Ain-ul-Faqr)

Sustenance is of two kinds

Sustenance is of two kinds. One kind is for the beloveds whom Allah directly feed and other is for the slaves. People collect a lot of wealth for the satisfaction of their selves. Moreover they collect to build credibility among others. This is so as they think that first one should enjoy the blessings and then one should adopt the path of righteousness. Instead you should purify your inward first and then adopt submission so that you may approach the levels of nearness to Allah by understanding the reality of ‘Be’ (Kun). For the wise people, this single point is enough to understand that by surrender and submission no complaint remains in a person. (Noor-ul-Huda)

 

Sultan Bahoo begged at every door to please Allah

Sultan Bahoo had been distributing the treasure of Faqr lavishly by travelling in every city, town and village. For this purpose, he had to visit door to door. In this context he expressed:

نفس را رُسوا کنم بہر از خدا

بر ہر درے قدمے زنم بہراز خدا

Explanation: I disgrace myself and beg at every door for the sake of pleasing Allah. (Nur-ul-Huda and Kaleed-ul-Tauheed Kalan)

 

Disclosure of all spiritual stations

گر بینی حال احوال از قبر

میشود مکشوف زیروبا زبر

بعد ازاں عبرت خوری باغم تمام

دل سلیم وگشت واضح ہر مقام

Explanation: If you see the reality of the grave, the details of ruination would be revealed upon you. Then you would learn a lesson in your agony and your soul adopts submission. Moreover then the truth of all the spiritual stations would be disclosed upon you. (Nur-ul-Huda Kalan)

 

Serve the perfect spiritual guide even if he scolds you

گر ترا بر سرزند سر پیش نہ

خدمتے بہر ازخدا درویش بہ

Explanation: If a dervish snubs or scolds you, even then bow before him, as to serve a dervish (the perfect spiritual guide) is an act of righteousness. (Nur-ul-Huda Kalan)

 

Surrender and Submission is the straight path

Surrender and submission is the status of a person having sublime character and the pure inward. This is the straight path on which the rewarded people have been treading. (Nur-ul-Huda Kalan)

 

To please Allah overpower innerself (nafs)

خود پرستاں را نہ حاصل شُد خدا

خود پرستان راہ خدا وند شُد ہوا

ہر کہ کردہ جان واز جاں تن جدا

باز دارد نفس را بہر ازخدا

Explanation: The self-conceited people can never find Allah, as their gods are their sensual appetites. Only those find Allah, who overpower their selves at the cost of their lives just to please Allah. (Nur-ul-Huda Kalan)

 

What is obligatory duty for any man?

Remember! It is not an obligatory duty to get a lot of worldly knowledge but it is essential to get necessary information about Islam to avoid sins and to be afraid of Allah. Moreover it is compulsory to get rid of lust and greed of the self, to drown in Divine love and to have Divine knowledge of Oneness. For this purpose, travelling on the ancient and the great straight path, getting the pure inward and adopting submission are essential. (Noor-ul-Huda Kalan)

 

Powers of Sultan Bahoo which he exercise to please Allah only

باھوؒ  بہر از خدا وحدت نما

می برد حاضر ترا با مصطفےٰؐ

Explanation: Bahoo has the blessing of the power to show you the Divinity and take you to the Mohammadan Assembly. He does this merely to please Allah. (Kaleed-ul-Tauheed Kalan)

 

Surrender and Submission takes to the Mohammadan Assembly

باھوؒ بردار تسلیم و رضا

دل سلیمی گشت حاضرِ مصطفےٰؐ

Explanation: O Bahoo! If you remain submissive and contented at the will of Allah in all the conditions, your inward will become pure, perfect and eligible for presence before the Holy Prophet. (Kaleed-ul-Tauheed Kalan)

 

What can you do except surrendering before the will of Allah

صبر کن صبر کہ جُز صبر دوا نیست

چہ کند گر تسلیم ورضا ندارد درپیش

Explanation: Have patience, except patience there is no way out. What can you do except surrendering before the will of Allah! (Kaleed-ul-Tauheed Kalan)

 

No fear from what is written in destiny

باھوؒ رضا برقضا غالب چوگردد

زکردہ از خدا ہر گز نہ لرزد

Explanation: O Bahoo! When submission to the will of Allah becomes dominant upon the destiny, one not at all fears from what Allah has written in the destiny. (Kaleed-ul-Tauheed Kalan)

 

Those who achieve Allah’s closeness do not fear

چرا لرزد کہ قرب او تمام است

برآں لرزد کہ ناقص عام خام است

Explanation: Why would the one, who has got the ultimate closeness of Allah, fear from anything. Fearing from anything other than Allah is the attribute of imperfects and the commoners. (Kaleed-ul-Tauheed Kalan)

 

The power of submission

رضا قاضی قضا در حکم بہ او

بجز حکمش نہ گیرد جان از مو

Explanation: Submission to the will of Allah is like the judge while destiny is its subordinate. Without its order, destiny can do nothing. (Kaleed-ul-Tauheed Kalan)

 

Accept destiny

Do not turn away from your destiny, nor try to evade it. (Kaleed-ul-Tauheed)

 

Entrust everything to Allah

You must understand that man is not born out of his own will, so how can everything happen according to his will and desire! Ali ibn Abi Talib said;

عَرَفْتُ رَبِّیْ بِفَسَخِ الْعَزَا  ئِمِ

Meaning: I recognized my Holy Lord when it happened against my will.

The Holy Prophet said;

فِعْلُ الْحَکِیْمِ لَا یَخْلُوْا عَنِ الْحِکْمَۃِ

Meaning: Every act of the wise forms its bases on wisdom.

So, it is better to entrust all the matters to Allah and remove oneself from in between.  (Kaleed-ul-Tauheed Kalan)

 

Sultan Bahoo Couplets

Sultan Bahoo expresses in his Punjabi couplets (Abyat)

Know consent of Allah

بوہتی میں اوگن ہاری، لاج پئی گل اس دے ھو

پڑھ پڑھ علم کرن تکبر، شیطان جیہے اوتھے مُسدے ھو

لکھاں نوں ہے بھو دوزخ دا، ہک نت بہشتوں رُسدے ھو

عاشقاں دے گل چھری ہمیشاں باھوؒ، اگے محبوب دے کسدے ھو

Explanation: My sins make me an unfortunate person. As they take me away from my Beloved Allah but I am proud of my slavery to my perfect spiritual guide. As he has made me the fortunate one by taking me to Allah under his guidance and blessing. Like Satan, many people are proud of their knowledge. Moreover their pride has deprived them of the union with Allah. Similarly, there are millions of people who are involved in the fear of others instead of fearing Allah. Further many of them seek paradise instead of seeking Allah. All these people never bother to know the consent of Allah regarding their destiny. They are always captured in the trap of their own wishes. Still there are certain people who have nothing to do with heaven or hell. They are craving for the Divine vision only. These true lovers always remain in the state of submission before their Beloved.

 

Submissive like a beggar

جیوندیاں مر رہناں ہووے، تاں ویس فقیراں بہیئے ھو

جے کوئی سٹے گودڑ کوڑا، وانگ اڑوڑی سہئیے ھو

جے کوئی کڈھے گاہلاں مہنے ، اس نوں جی جی کہئیے ھو

گِلا اُلاہماں بھنڈی خواری، یار دے پاروں سہئیے ھو

قادر دے ہتھ ڈور اساڈی باھوؒ ،جیوں رکھے تیوں رہئیے ھو

Explanation: In this stanza, Sultan Bahoo is teaching the lesson of patience and perseverance to the seeker of Allah. That he should tolerate the troubles and agony afflicted by the worldly people while serving the perfect spiritual guide. He says, if you want to gain the status of ‘death before dying’ you must be submissive like a beggar. If somebody throws garbage on you, bear it, just like the heap of rubbish supports further filth on itself. If somebody abuses or insults you and quarrels with you, you should respond very politely with love and decency. All such things like complaints, taunts, humiliation etc., must be borne for the sake of the true beloved. I have totally submitted myself to my spiritual guide, as he pleases I also reciprocate.

 

Slaughter innerself (nafs) by the knife of surrender and submission

صفت ثنائیں مول نہ پڑھدے، جو جا پہنتے وچ ذاتی ھو

علم و عمل انہاں وچ ہووے، جیہڑے اصلی تے اثباتی ھو

نال محبت نفس کٹھونیں، گِھن رضا دی کاتی ھو

چوداں طبق دِلے دے اندر باھوؒ، پا اندر وچ جھاتی ھو

Explanation: The seekers who have drowned in the realm of First Manifestation need not to recite hymns etc. because their purpose is to gain vision of Allah which is already their possession. The real Divine knowledge and practice is also the legacy of the eternal seekers of Allah. These people have found the secret of Reality slaughtering their selves by the knife of surrender and submission. O seeker! Just be attentive esoterically as the whole universe is within yourself.

 

Divine love tolerates many rivalries and taunts

عاشق ہونویں تے عشق کمانویں، دل رکھیں وانگ پہاڑاں ھو

لکھ لکھ بدیاں تے ہزار اُلاہمے، کر جانیں باغ بہاراں ھو

منصور جیہے چُک سولی دتے، جہیڑے واقف کل اسراراں ھو

سجدیوں سر نہ چائیے باھوؒ ،توڑے کافر کہن ہزاراں ھو

Explanation: If you are a Divine lover and want success and achievement on this path, then keep yourself strong and firm. The path of Divine love is not an easy task. The lover has to tolerate thousands of rivalries and taunts. People hung Mansur al-Hallaj to death because he knew the Divine secrets. Which he revealed upon the ignorant people. Once somebody becomes a slave of the perfect and accomplished spiritual guide then he must not leave him, even if the world keeps calling him an infidel.

 

Concluding words

The perfect spiritual guide persuades and guides the seeker through the contemplation of Ism-e-Allah Zaat. He does this in such a way that it becomes his nature and habit to always submit before the Divine wish. Rather he is pleased and satisfied with every aspect of his physical and spiritual life. He is pleased with Allah and Allah is pleased with him.