Question:
Asalaamhulaykum All.
I recently attended a lecture of Sayed Shaykh Hazim Abu Ghazala of the Qadri Tariqa , As me and friends who all attended are All mureeds of our Beloved Maulana Shaykh Nazim (may Allah bless him). The question I have is after the lecture was done the Shaykh told everybody to put their hands on the right shoulder of the person in front so they can take BAYA . I got up and went to sit at the back, as I felt that if participated I would ashame Shaykh Nazim as he is my Shaykh. Other Naqshabandi mureeds took part and said it’s only for the baraqah . Can someone please explain this. I really wish Shaykh Hisham could come visit Capetown, my heart longs to be by Maulana Nazim’s presence.
Answer:
`Alaykum as-Salam,
This is the bay`a of blessing (baraka) and not the bay`a of spiritual guidance (irshad). A true shaykh knows when one is already connected to a true spiritual guide and such a shaykh would never try to steal another shaykh’s murids. One can take a bay`a of blessings from a thousand shaykhs but the bay`a of irshad is from one and no other. Since you were not aware of the bay`a of baraka you were right to sit back; but since the others were aware of it they were right to receive it. In any case, a murid must always have Mawlana Shaykh Nazim in front of his eyes and in his heart, even if he should be sitting with al-Khidr (upon him peace), so no matter whose hand he takes after that, it is Mawlana’s hand and no other; and Allah knows best.
Hajj Gibril Haddad
