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The term Tariqa Muhammadiyya has come to refer to a philosophy of tasawwuf which focuses on the Prophet ﷺ as initiator of the tariqa and ultimate means of the spiritual upbringing of the aspirant. The roots of the concept are found throughout the span of space and time of the various spiritual paths and shaykhs, however it is considered to have reached its apex in the 18th century with a wave of tariqas ascribed to this approach and understanding. Several tariqas are often highlighted as representatives of this approach, namely, the Tijaniyya, Sammaniyya, the Idrisiyya and its various offshoots, and branches of the Khalwatiyya.
The purpose of this article is to situate Shaykh Salih al-Ja'fari and his path (an offshoot of the Idrisiyya) in the light of the broad concepts of the Tariqa Muhammadiyya designation. In his book, On the Path of the Prophet, Dr Zachary Wright has done great work in fleshing out certain key characteristics of the Tariqa Muhammadiyya movements shared by the various spiritual paths associated with it. Naturally, despite these shared characteristics they do diverge to various degrees on some points. Thus, just as Dr Wright's book situated shaykh Ahmad Tijani and his path within this framework we will seek to situate shaykh Salih and his path in a similar, albeit, abbreviated fashion.
Of the shared characteristics, Dr. Wright highlighted four basic elements and I will add a fifth.
- Emphasis on the Sunna of the Prophet, leading to an objection to certain popular manifestations of Sufism and a de-emphasis of the madhahib.
- Prominence of the idea of the Haqiqa Muhammadiyya (Muhammadan Reality) in esoteric conceptualizations, leading to a form of spiritual concentration on the spirit of the Prophet and a de-emphasis of the role of the shaykh in spiritual instruction.
- Stress on the transmission of knowledge through dreams and visions of past saints or prophets, particularly through the waking vision of the Prophet.
- A tendency to restrict the disciple's adherence to the one preeminent tariqa.
- The Tasliya (Prayers on the Prophet ﷺ) and madih (praise poetry) as primary means of spiritual elevation.
Shaykh Salih and following the Quran and Sunna
As a great Azhari scholar, Shaykh Salih, anchored his teachings and methodology in the practical application of the Quran and the Sunna. However, Shaykh Salih differed from his shaykh, Sayyid Ahmad ibn Idris, in his opposition to the madhahib. He in fact emphasizes the importance of the 4 schools of law in general and the Ash'ari school of theology specifically. Shaykh Salih says,
Know that this path of ours is built upon the Qurʾān, the Sunna, the law of the four schools, the theology of al-Ashʿarī, and the taṣawwuf of Abu al-Qāsim al-Junayd, may Allāh be pleased with them all.
As it relates to the importance of the Sunna, he says,
This path is only the following of the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ in speech and action, inwardly and outwardly.
My path is the path of the Qurʾān, knowledge, and piety, praise of the Messenger of Allāh, the obliterator of misguidance.
And our master Shaykh Muhammad ibn Ali al-Sanusi said,
Know that the way of the People of Allah, may God be pleased with them, is the following (ittibaa') of the Prophet ﷺ in the big and the small. The more that one increases in following, the more he increases in perfection – for full perfection according to them is the fullness of following – or else he is not one of them, or is considered by them to be lacking. They weigh all their actions by the scale of the Shari'a so that all that is part of it they follow and all that is not part of it, they reject.
The shaykh has many poems in praise of acquiring sacred knowledge and following the Sunnah but the above should be sufficient for the point.
Role of the Shaykh
In the Tariqa Muhammadiyya paths and in truth all true Sufi paths affirm the Prophet ﷺ as their ultimate guide. What is distinctive of the Muhammadi way is the sense of the Prophet's direct care in the tarbiya of the aspirant thus the relative role of the living shaykh is minimized compared to other paths. Though the importance and role of the shaykh of tariqa, meaning the founder of the tariqa, is still emphasized even after he has passed to the barzakh realm. As such much of the admonitions found in Sufi manuals about following the shaykh, visualizing the shaykh, loving the shaykh, etc. in the Muhammadi paths refer to the Shaykh of Tariqa, though adab to the living shaykh is also necessary.
Shaykh Salih mentions the role of the shaykh in the following way:
Know that the founders of all the Sufi tariqas are now in the barzakh, in the other world. And from there, each has more knowledge of his murid than the knowledge of his khalifa in the world, multiple times over. This is a spiritual tarbiya (upbringing), from the category of 'breaking norms', and this is the state of tarbiya from the barzakh. As for when the shaykh is still alive on the Earth, then his tarbiya is real. He commands him to perform the Salat, Zakat, and acts of obedience: "Pray!" "Give Zakat!" "Do this and that", and "Don't do this or that!"
Yet, the first way (spiritual tarbiya) is superior to the second. The murid obtains the normal, real, tarbiya of the shaykh. Thus, when his soul becomes stronger a connection occurs for him and he sees his shaykh, who is in the barzakh, in his sleep. Then he will guide him to Qiyam al-Layl and the rest of the acts of obedience. And when his soul becomes even stronger, he will see him while awake, and sit with him, and talk to him. His shaykh will come to him and tell him of things that will happen to him in his life, and command him to have patience over them, and forbid him from doing ugly acts.
The Friday Lessons Vol 1, Arabic edition pg. 69
He also says,
Know my brother, may Allah guide you and guide us: That that shaykhs of the path say: "Obedience brings us together, and disobedience separates us".
Is there a worse calamity for the murid than separation between himself and his shaykh?
For the shaykh is the door to the Prophetic Presence, and the Prophetic Presence is the door to the Holy Presence, and he who knows both doors, will enter both Presences.
فبابك للمختار شيخك يا فتى * به الوصل بالمختار في حضرة القرب
وبالسيد المختار ترقى إلى العلا * ويدنيك من رب الوجود بلا حجب
Your door to the Chosen One is your Shaykh, young man!
Through him is your connection to the Chosen One, in the realm of nearness!
And by the Master, the Chosen One, you rise up high
And he brings you close to the Lord of Existence, without veils!
Important Note
What I meant by the Shaykh, is the Shaykh of the Tariq who is in the barzakh. As for the one from whom you took the awrād, he is your door to the Shaykh of the awrād, and without him arrival becomes very difficult/impossible. And it is enough in him the uprightness of his outward, in doing what is obligatory and leaving what is forbidden, because his obedience (to Allah) does not benefit you, and his disobedience (to Allah) does not harm you. And the connection of your actions, sayings, and this figurative/metaphorical shaykh of yours is only to your real shaykh, who has authorization from the Prophetic Presence.
The Beneficial Inspirations, Arabic edition pg. 58-59
As it relates to the living shaykh, Shaykh Salih lists as a necessary state for the murid:
Having adab with the shaykh who he received the awrād of the ṭarīqa from. It is incumbent to be given the awrād, and that the shaykh and the ṭarīqa acknowledges one. Likewise, it is incumbent to love him and have proper manners with him for the sake of the shaykh of ṭarīqa because the shaykh of ṭarīqa has a door, and it is the shaykh from whom you received the awrād, and the Muhammadan presence has a door, and it is the original shaykh of the Ṭarīqa, and the Divine presence has a door and it is the Prophet ﷺ.
As for the tarbiya of the Prophet ﷺ the shaykh says:
Our awrād is only to connect you to the spring of realities, the intercessor of creation ﷺ. Our shaykh has turned us over to him and delegated our tarbiya to him ﷺ. So do not forget this turning over or be heedless of this delegation as they are what Allah has distinguished us by among His remembering slaves and made our guidance on the hands of the seal of the prophets ﷺ.
Knowledge Transmission by Means of Visions and Dreams
As was mentioned in the section on the role of the shaykh, once the soul of the murid is strengthened through adherence to the sharia' and performing their awrād consistently they will begin to have dreams of the shaykh of tariqa and beyond that even visions of him in the waking state. This process continues until likewise one sees the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and receive instruction and guidance from him ﷺ.
Shaykh Salih mentions:
Dear brother in the path of Allāh, you must reflect. For reflection is from the completeness of faith. And do not forget that with your taking of the Muhammadan-Aḥmadī litany that you have come under the care of the Prophet ﷺ. My proof for this statement is your seeing of him ﷺ in your sleep.
Also from his book The Luminous Moons he writes:
My master, Aḥmad [b. Idrīs], gave glad tidings to those who took his path, that they will be able to see him ﷺ while awake and in a dream; he mentioned that in regard to al-Ṣalāt al-ʿAẓīmiyya. And many of the murids have obtained that privilege, especially those who recite al-Ṣalāt al-ʿAẓīmiyya in abundance, as well as the fourteen Ṣalawāt [of Shaykh Aḥmad b. Idrīs]. Therefore, you should increase [your recitation] until you [also] behold the best of creation and meet with him ﷺ.
Clinging to one Tariqa
The main idea behind restricting the aspirant to one tariqa, is that the Prophet himself ﷺ instituted these paths. So, the view is one is not leaving the path of Shaykh So and So, rather, one is leaving the path of the Prophet ﷺ. This produces a type of exclusivity in the path. Though not as strict as the Tijani path in this matter, in the sense the covenant (bayah) doesn't include a promise to never leave the tariqa, the admonition is there in the form of a rhetorical question, Shaykh Salih asks:
Do you want to look to a path other than ours and take another guide other than the Prophet ﷺ? So that your desires play with you and toss you around in the dust of the Earth? Whoever disassociates from us does not know us, nor have they taken knowledge of realities from us. The one who leaves our marketplace does not drink from our nectar, nor does the one who leaves our litanies arrive at our watering place. He has not whispered nor come close, and our love has not settled in his heart.
Tasliya and Madih
As with all paths the Ja'fari path has an array of adhkar, largely in the form of dua, that the aspirant recites as a part of their daily regimen. However the tasliya and madih have a special emphasis in the path. As Shaykh Abdul Ghani, the son and inheritor of Shaykh Salih al-Ja'fari, has mentioned,
One of the main characteristics of this path is frequent prayers on the Prophet ﷺ. It is the greatest thing that a disciple can do to raise their rank after correcting their beginning and making sure their path is according to the Qurʾān and the Sunnah. Then, they will increase in closeness and connection in all aspects to the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ.
And Shaykh Muhammad ibn Ali al-Sanusi said speaking of the Tariqa Muhammadiyya in general,
The Tariqa Muhammadiyya is based on the close following of the Sunna in one's sayings and spiritual states, and on occupying oneself with the sending of blessings on the Prophet at all times.
This is due to the fact that the tasliya is a means of spiritual elevation and realization. For example, in the nomenclature of the sufis, annihilation in the actions of Allah (fana fil af'al) is the first level of annihilation. It is the experience, as opposed to the mere intellectualization, of Allah as the True Actor (fa'il haqiqi).
In this vein Sidna Shaykh Salih tells us from the benefits of frequently reciting the salat al-Azeemiyya, particularly the statement within it "and join him with me, just as You joined the spirit with the soul, outwardly and inwardly, in wakefulness and in sleep" that one of the meanings of "joining" is the following:
He obtains the joining of realizing theophanies in actions, which is in His saying "It was not you who threw, when you threw, but it was Allah Who threw." (Quran 8:17) As our beloved shaykh as-Sayyid Ahmad ibn Idris said [in a supplication], "so that I don't see in myself, anything, or in no-thing other than You."
As for the madih, Shaykh Abdul Ghani al-Ja'fari, speaking on the methodology of his father Shaykh Salih al-Jafari says:
We have discussed in the biography of our Shaykh a subtle point of discussion, which we recognize as the secret to the Ja'fari spiritual openings. And we have not found a door that our Shaykh preferred, in terms of gifts and spiritual support (madad), more than the door of the Prophetic praise (madih). And the Ja'fari diwan, which is in numerous volumes, expresses this Lordly opening which he expounds from his very essence, the love for the presence of Mustafa ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ spoke the truth in his saying: "The one who loves a thing mentions it often."
Our Shaykh has taken this path, i.e. longing for the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, in terms of the spiritual upbringing of his students. And from that is found in the introduction to his qasida al-Maqbula:
O lover of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, shall I not show you the closest of paths to reach the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, without weariness or difficulty? Pay attention! It is in the praise of him ﷺ, whether listening to or reciting them, with a sound heart and great love, while imagining him ﷺ in your heart. And this imagining will either be by imagining his noble Rawda if you have visited it, or bringing to mind his form ﷺ if you have seen him in a dream, or based on his description in the shama'il. And we behold this at the time of sending prayers and peace upon him ﷺ always.
This door of spiritual openings, which our Shaykh traveled, is a clear opening, and whoever traverses it will arrive, and whoever arrives will be connected, and whoever is connected will see and witness, and whoever has witnessed, has intimate discourse, and becomes acquainted, and whoever becomes acquainted, is guided to the Muhammadan Reality, thus he multiplies love by love. As he ﷺ has said: "A man is with the one he loves."
Conclusion
Our intention was to give a brief sketch of how our shaykh, Shaykh Salih al-Ja'fari, and his path fit into the designation of Tariqa Muhammadiyya. We did so by investigating some of the sayings of the shaykh as they relate to the various characteristics that are shared across the Muhammadiyya paths.