MURAAQABAH MAUT – Hadhrat Maseehul Ummat رحمه الله
The Story of the King and the Buzrug
MURAAQABAH MAUT – HAZRAT MASEEHULLAH رحمه الله
Hadhratwálá (RA) mentioned a qissah:There was an age when the Muslims, and even kings, had tremendous faith and confidence in the buzurgs and had the habit of visiting them regularly. A particularly king had this habit as well and he used to regularly visit a certain buzurg who used to live in the jungle.
This particularly buzurg had the routine of taking a particular tablet at a specific time daily. It so happened that the king also came to visit daily at this particular time. One day the thought struck him, “This buzurg is taking this tablet daily but there appears to be nothing else to eat or drink besides the tablet. I wonder why he takes this tablet?” The buzurg became aware of his thinking through kashf. He gave the king one tablet, saying, “You take and drink this tablet.” The king became extremely happy and went home and drank the tablet.
Now, this tablet was one that was extremely invigourating and stimulating, so the king became extremely steamed up. He had to let off steam. He visited all his wives, and then visited all his laundís (female slaves), but his urges were still not satisfied. He thought to himself, “Ohoho! This is my condition by taking merely one tablet! Oho! And what about the buzurg? Living in the jungle, he has one daily! He is maintaining his buzurgí and also fulfilling his passions! Damsels must be visiting him!”
Despite having such thoughts about the buzurg, the king did not stop visiting the buzurg. The buzurg again perceived what he was thinking through kashf.
Suddenly, the buzurg’s mood became very serious. He addressed the king very sombrely, “It seems that there are only forty days left before your death! My advice is that you hand over the reigns of your kingdom to your son – make him the crown prince. And prepare for the hereafter!”
The king became terrified. The words of the buzurg were like the hiss of a snake as it prepares to attack. He forgot about the tablet as the spectre of death rose in front of him. As he was about to leave to commence his preparations, the buzurg handed him forty tablets, saying, “Take one everyday so that you do not become weak.”
The king departed. He made his son the heir apparent to the throne and entrusted the running of the affairs of the kingdom to him. As for himself, he devoted his entire time to ‘íbádat. Sticking to the buzurg’s instructions, he took his one tablet daily. He was thus nourishing himself with both rizq bátiní and rizq jismání. Forty days passed in this manner. However, the awaited death did not come! He waited a few days more but still death did not overtake him.
He decided to visit the buzurg again and complained to him, “Hadhrat! What have you done? My kingdom has slipped out of my hands, and here I am, still alive!” The buzurg replied calmly, “Your kingdom has not disappeared – it is with your son. Whenever you wish, you take it back and take up the reigns of rule again. It has not gone anywhere. But, what I am interested in knowing is whether you have been taking the tablets given to you or not?” The king replied, “Huzúr, if I had not taken them, I would have been like a dead person without death coming to me.” The buzurg spoke again, “So, you took your tablets daily? Tell me then, how many wives did you go to everyday and how many of your laundís did you go to everyday?” The king replied, “Huzúr, death was staring me in the face, where could I go to them? With death standing in front of me, my thoughts did not even go in that direction!”
Now, listen carefully to what the buzurg had to say! He said, “You were given respite for forty days, whereas I do not have respite for the space of one breath even. If I breathe in, I am not certain whether I would be given an opportunity to breathe out again; and if I breathe out, I am not certain whether I would be given an opportunity to breathe in again! I do not have respite even for the duration of even one breath!” The king was full of regret for his unfounded suspicions, “Huzúr, I humbly ask for your forgiveness. You have answered the doubts I had.”
Hadhratwálá (RA) mentioned this qissah for the lessons it contained. The king was faced with the spectre of death: When would it come? How would it come? In his concern, he forgot completely about his wives and his laundí’s. Do you see the effect of muráqabah-e-maut?
Rasúlulláh (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) has said,
أكثروا ذكر هازم اللذات أي الموت
Increase your remembrance of that which terminates desires, that is death.
This is encompassed in the statement of Alláh Ta’álá:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَلْتَنْظُرْ نَفْسٌ مَا قَدَّمَتْ لِغَدٍ وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ خَبِيرٌ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ
O ye who believe! Fear Alláh! And let every person look to that which it sendeth forth for the morrow (i.e. Qiyámat). And fear Alláh! Verily, Alláh is informed of what ye do! )59:18(.
The essence of this is the following:
موتوا قبل أن تموتوا
Die before your death.
This means that those aspects that are associated with your nafs (carnal desires) should be forged such that they are utilised according to the orders of Záte Bárí Ta’álá, This is because you are His slave. Should you discard the commands of Alláh Ta’álá until the time of your death, then you are not His slave. You have reversed the roles. You are not His slave.
Source: For Friends
