Question:

As-Salam Alaykum Wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh!

May Allah bless you all, dear Shaykhs! Reading the great book about the History of the Saints of the Golden Chain, written by Shaykh Hisham. I’ve read about the “Shaykhs of the Two Wings.” Are they just 9 in number, in every “age”, in every historical period? Do they consider all humankind as their followers? It is really a very interesting matter. A big hug! Wa-Salam!

Answer:

786

Wa `alaykum as-Salam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

According to your true source, these saints are so designated because the spiritual and physical authority are combined in them, and that they are “only nine in number.” The Shaykh continues: “Each one represents one of the nine spiritual points on the chest of the human being…Because they have the authority of these nine points, they consider all of humankind to be their followers, whether they are aware of their spiritual connection to them or not.” While your questions should be satisfied with the above sentences, this subject is of such relevance to everyone that we hope some further reflection will not be worthless.

First of all, it should be observed that just as the spiritual and physical are combined in these saints, there are in fact two interconnected perspectives relating to their function: one concerning the human form or structure (the microcosm), and another concerning the greater world of humanity (the macrocosm). As far as the microcosm is concerned, Mawlana Shaykh Hisham Kabbani has only recently provided the traditional context for the doctrine of “points,” in the hadith that begins, “Every one of the children of Adam has been created with 360 mifsal…” from Sahih Muslim. Now, 360 is of course a multiple of 9, and as it is – remarkably – with every such multiple, the sum of its digits simplifies to 9. More remarkable, however, is the fact that 360 is precisely 40 times 9, since 40 is a number which signifies a completion of possibilities. There are said to be no less than 40 variations of the doctrine of the 9 points; some of them are in fact mentioned in the books of Islamic esoterism.

In terms of the macrocosm, it should be recalled that traditional cosmology comprises 9 celestial spheres: the 7 spheres of the planets, the sphere of the fixed stars, and the sphere of the zodiacal towers or buruj. It is less well known that the Greatest Shaykh Muhyiddin – may Allah sanctify his secret – specifies 9 Divine Names as holding positions of leadership in relation to created entities. A correspondence between these Names and the nine saints is indicated by another passage from the book by Shaykh Hisham: “Allah gave the authority to change the fixed destiny only to the nine saints who are at the highest level in the Divine Presence.” This “highest level” would seem, then, to transcend the degree of the “Mother of the Book,” and as much may be said of the Divine Names.

In the same section, Mawlana Shaykh Hisham indicates that the number of these saints “has not changed from the time of the Prophet until today,” may peace and blessings be upon him. Still, since spirituality transcends the vicissitudes of history, it should not be surprising if these saints have appeared in history at different times; and given the spiritual reality of the nine for “all of humankind,” we may even find traces of them in ages and places outside of the lands of Islam. In the East, the supposedly Buddhist legend of the Nine Unknowns may be compared with the doctrine of the nine saints, not least because they were understood to control the destiny of humanity. In Western Christendom, in addition to formulations of 9 in its Pythagorean significance, there are the Nine Worthies, who are models of chivalry for a world choosing to ignore the Knights of Islam; even so, their ideal of combining the spiritual and physical may be compared to the “Shaykhs of the Two Wings.”

Such examples should not obscure the fact that this rank of sainthood is not mentioned in the classical formulations of Sufism. The great Ruzbihan Baqli – may Allah sanctify his secret – does, however, describe the saints as being 360 in number, and it is certainly worth noting that he brings this number into correspondence with the Divine Names. In addition to its microcosmic significance mentioned above, the number 360 is related above all to the degrees of the sphere of the zodiacal buruj. Very significantly, the number 360 for Shaykh Muhyiddin refers to certain sciences linked to the unfolding of temporal cycles, and these sciences in turn relate to 360 Pens which confirm or abrogate traditional forms, according to the commentator Abd Ar-Razzaq Yahya. No doubt these teachings resonate with the doctrine of the nine saints. Nevertheless, the uniqueness of this doctrine and the lateness of its disclosure indicate the singular importance of the Naqshbandi Order for the world of humanity now.

For similar reasons – and it could hardly escape mentioning – the circle of the Enneagram has been associated in the popular mentality with this way of Sufism. As we have seen with the 360 degrees of the zodiac, the number 9 is naturally related to the circle, which is why the circle is traditionally divided into degrees by multiples of 9. For his part, Mawlana Shaykh Hisham provides an astounding description of how Gurdjieff – the creator of the Enneagram – received an understanding of the nine points through one ayat of the 36th Surah. It may therefore be observed that the nine points on the chest have a special correspondence with the surah that is known as the “heart” of the Qur’an. That is not all: the Shaykh further describes the nine saints as having the power of sultan adh-dhikr with “the secret of the Holy Qur’an.”

However, on the Naqshbandi authority of Sayyidina Abu Bakr as-Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him, Allah’s secret in the Qur’an concerns the initial letters of the surahs. In his commentary on the Isolated Letters, `Abdur-Razzaq al-Qashani relates this secret to the Jafr and Jami`a that are to be made known with the appearance of al-Mahdi and the return of Jesus, peace be upon them. Here is no doubt a clear indication that the 9 saints and the 9 points are realities pertaining to this secret, as Shaykh Hisham has indeed confirmed: “This is a secret that in general will not be opened until the Last Days when the Mahdi appears and Jesus returns.” After all, it may even be said that the Last Days are under the leadership of nine: Jesus, the Mahdi, and the 7 viziers of the latter. But for now, even while these words remain speculative, the rectification of the macrocosm is being prepared; and this rectification, in the words of Shaykh `Abdul Wahid Yahya that so strongly recall our subject, “can only be done by one who, by uniting in himself the powers of Heaven and Earth, of East and West, will manifest outwardly, both in the domain of knowledge and in that of action, the twin sacerdotal and royal power that has been preserved across the ages in the integrity of its unique principle by the hidden keepers of the primordial tradition.”

Mahmoud Shelton