Welcoming Ramazan the Osmanli Naksibendi way!

Saturday, September 15th, 2007
7:00 pm
Earl Hall Auditorium

Garden State Exhibit Center 50 Atrium Drive
Somerset, New Jersey, USA 08873

ISLAMIC ARTS & CULTURAL FEST 2 PM – 10

Speakers:
Shaykh Hamza Yusuf
Imam Zaid Shakir
Imam Siraj Wahaj

Entertainment:
Native Deen
Kareem Salama
Noor
Daniel Abdul-Hayy Moore

Film Previews:
Michael Wolfe: Prince of Slaves
Zahir Ahmed: God of Abraham

Art Display:
Haji Noor Deen: Chinese Calligrapher

For more information call 1-866-475-6313 • Event hours 2 PM – 10 PM • Doors open at 1:30 PM
Tickets are $30 each. Get yours ONLINE at www.islaminthewest.org • Limited tickets at the door.

Help a Brother (or Sister) Out!

Peace and Blessings on the Holy Prophet, his Family and Companions

Holy Prophet (s) said “When you pass by the Gardens of Paradise sit in them”. A companion asked, “What is a Garden from Paradise, O Messenger of Allah?”

The Holy Prophet answered, “The circles of zikir”. – [Tirmidhi, Ahmad]

“ZIKR”
The Spiritual Reality of Islam
Saturday, March 31st at 6:00 pm

With Shaykh Abdul Kerim al-Kibrisi and Lukman Hoca

Sheykh Abdul Kerim al-Kibrisi is the leader and Imam of the Osmanli Naksibendi Dergahi, of Sidney Center, NY. Sheykh Abdul Kerim is the representative of Shaykh Maulana Nazim al-Hakkani, who is recognized world wide as a master of Islamic spirituality. Shaykh Abdul Kerim is blessed not only with sacred lineage, being a descendant of the Holy Prophet’s family, but he is also blessed with royal lineage of the Ottoman sultans. Shaykh Abdul Kerim leads religious services in Sidney Center, New York City, and Washington D.C. calling people to live the reality of traditional Islam.

Sheykh Abdul Kerim al-Kibrisi and Lukman Hoca will be holding a short talk about the true spiritual reality of Islam. Afterwards, Shaykh Abdul Kerim al-Kibrisi will be leading traditional zikr. Traditional Islamic Songs will also be shared with all.

Location: Paul Robenson Campus Center, Multi Purpose Room at Rutgers – Newark

(Right across from NJIT)

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
350 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard
Newark, New Jersey 07102

Directions:

http://www.newark.rutgers.edu/maps/index.php?sId=directions

Come sit with us in a Garden from Paradise

All are invited to attend
Light refreshments will be served

Saturday, March 31st at 6:00 pm

All are welcome. These events are held for the pleasure of Allah and they are free of charge.
For information call Yursil at: (908) 342-6011

–
Updated with Flier below:

Alhamdulillah, a couple of us attended a Thanksgiving night at the Church of Latter-Day Saints of Jesus Christ, also known as Mormons. We read the last section of Sura Yasin and translated it for them. In addition, our musicians played an Osmanli Nakshibendi song for the audience, who said the event was their first and one they cannot forget. Representatives of other houses of worship read from their scriptures and sang a few hymns too.

Other pictures available on his blog.

]]> http://www.yursil.com/blog/2006/11/brass-crescent-awards/feed/ 1 http://www.yursil.com/blog/2006/10/shaykh-abdul-kerims-eid-khutba/ http://www.yursil.com/blog/2006/10/shaykh-abdul-kerims-eid-khutba/#comments Mon, 30 Oct 2006 06:17:17 +0000 yursil http://www.yursil.com/blog/2006/10/shaykh-abdul-kerims-eid-khutba/

It promises to be a beautiful day

Some excellent (in my humble opinion) audio clips of the event:

091706-PrayerVigil-SheykhAbdulKerim-JoiningSunday.mp3
– Sheykh Effendi Abdul Kerim arrives after our detaining and speaks about it

091706-PrayerVigil-SheykhAbdulKerim-Closing.mp3
– Sheykh Effendi Abdul Kerim’s Closing remarks (MashaAllah must listen) after our final dhikr on Sunday

On the second day, Sunday, we were to arrive at approximately 7 to 7:30 to share the Azaan with the folks participating at the event.

I parked the car and began preparing my few things to bring across the street to the event. Half of us crossed and the other half returned back to grab some additional things from the cars.

Instantly, there were four police cars stopping those on the far side and three cars stopping us on our side from proceeding to the event was not very far away at all.

These were the Secret Service police on our side.

These were the Secret Service police on the other side.

They wanted all of our information, social security numbers, drivers licenses, names, etc. We had to wait for ‘The Suits’ to arrive , and when they did they simply took more of our time with unneeded questioning. I must say this, if the Secret Service is wasting time with the Naksibendi order, it should make everyone feel a lot less safer.

While we waited we took some pictures. They didn’t want pictures taken, but they –unfortunately– got into the background while we took pictures of other things.

Bilaal and I

Yaseen and Bilal

The Patient Mureeds

They detained us for some time when finally we were allowed to attend the event.

Luqman Khwaja gave a good speech in response to this occurance and responding to the Jewish Rabbi who spoke as well.

Then the others in the event did some type of song which we provided some Tauheed to (it was probably in need of it). Mustafa enjoyed it and called out to do it again!

Sheykh arrived after that and gave a very good sohbet about peace, terrorism, and the war-mongers.

After that we had some adventures with a Christian fundamentalist who was causing some problems for the event coordinators. We invited him to eat, gave some Dawah and wrapped up.

What a trip! I will have some good audio up shortly InshaAllah. I have to internalize this trip a bit and then I will post part 3.

After staying the Friday Dhikr in New York City, Sheykh and the mureeds stay overnight until Fajr before they head back upstate. This was a special day as some mureeds who rarely leave upstate were given an opportunity to travel with Sheykh down to Washington D.C. We headed out to Washington D.C. after Fajr. I left seperately in order to take my wife and gather some things.

I bought a new microphone stand, something I sorely needed, before leaving. It was intended to help with recordings in the future, whereas right now I usually put the microphone on the ground and I was keen on using it during this weekend.

My arrival in Washington D.C. was right on time. I knew this event had many Native American participants and sponsors, so the large Teepee’s along the Washington Monument park made clear where I needed to go. Alhamdulillah we found excellent parking both times.

Sheykh Effendi had just arrived as well and I began working on setting up.

Although, SubhanAllah only later did I discover that although I did have a nice shiny new stand, I was missing a key cable which prevented me from using the external microphone.

In the end the stand had a very good use, alhamdulillah, to hold the flag with the Osmanli Naksibendi symbol.

Here Bilaal and I figure out some way to hang the flag on it:

Later the flag caught air and began spinning, MashaAllah a whirling dervish of its own kind

Sheykh gave a short talk before Zikr, explaining it in very good ways that made it clear to those of different faiths watching.

Here is a picture of me with the monument.

Sheykh Effendi, Luqman Khwaja and myself

After Saturday night we went to stay as guests at a mureeds house. There Sheykh led Maghrib and gave a Sohobet, and we had dinner afterwards.

After that there was an amazing session of Illahyi’s (traditional Islamic music)

I’ll continue the strange events of Sunday in a seperate post.

….

inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raajioon

Umm Ibrahim, wife of Shaykh Ya’qubi passed away today. From what I understand there was a car accident and one of the children also suffered minor injuries.

Al-Fatiha

IT was not long after this outward sign of his authority and his mission that he began to experience powerful inward signs, in addition to those of which he had already been conscious. When asked about these he spoke of “true visions” which came to him in his sleep and he said that they were “like the breaking of the light of dawn.” 1 The immediate result of these visions was that solitude became dear to him, and he would go for spiritual retreats to a cave in Mount Hir? not far from the outskirts of Mecca. There was nothing in this that would have struck Quraysh as particularly strange, for retreat had been a traditional practice amongst the descendants of Ishmael, and in each generation there had been one or two who would withdraw to a solitary place from time to time so that they might have a period that was uncontaminated by the world of men. In accordance with this age-old practice, Muhammad would take with him provisions and consecrate a certain number of nights to the worship of God. Then he would return to his family, and sometimes on his return he took more provisions and went again to the mountain. During these few years it often happened that after he had left the town and was approaching his hermitage he would hear clearly the words “Peace be on thee, O Messenger of God”, 2 and he would turn and look for the speaker but no one was in sight, and it was as if the words had come from a tree or a stone.

Ramadan was the traditional month of retreat, and it was one night towards the end of Ramadan, in his fortieth year, when he was alone in the cave, that there came to him an Angel in the form of a man. The Angel said to him: “Recite!” and he said: “I am not a reciter,” whereupon, as he himself told it, “the Angel took me and whelmed me in his embrace until he had reached the limit of mine endurance. Then he released me and said: ‘Recite!’ I said: ‘I am not a reciter,’ and again he took me and whelmed me in his embrace, and again when he had reached the limit of mine endurance, he again released me and said: ‘Recite!’, and again I said ‘I am not a reciter.’ Then a third time he whelmed me as before, then released me and said:

Recite in the name of thy Lord who created!
He createth man from a clot of blood.
Recite; and thy Lord is the Most Bountiful,
He who hath taught by the pen,
taught man what he knew not. ”

He recited these words after the Angel, who thereupon left him; and he said; “It was as though the words were written on my heart.” 3 But he feared that this might mean he had become a jinn-inspired poet or a man possessed. So he fled from the cave, and when he was half-way down the slope of the mountain he heard a voice above him saying: “O Muhammad, thou art the Messenger of God, and I am Gabriel.” He raised his eyes heavenwards and there was his visitant, still recognisable but now clearly an Angel, filling the whole horizon, and again he said: “O Muhammad, thou art the Messenger of God, and I am Gabriel.” The Prophet stood gazing at the Angel; then he turned away from him, but whichever way he looked the Angel was always there, astride the horizon, whether it was to the north, to the south, to the east or to the west. Finally the Angel turned away, and the Prophet descended the slope and went to his house. “Cover me! Cover me!” he said to Khad?jah as with still quaking heart he laid himself on his couch. Alarmed, yet not daring to question him, she quickly brought a cloak and spread it over him. But when the intensity of his awe had abated he told her what he had seen and heard…

Please make dua for all those who have passed on, and those who are injured and dealing with this struggle and challenge.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000080&sid=aPgd_hxq12SM&refer=asia