Jihad and Amir Abd al-Qader

"If I have accepted leadership, this is to have the right to be the first to march in the battles, and I am ready to step behind any other chief whom you judge more worthy and more capable than me to lead you, provided that he pledges to take in hand the cause of our faith."

- Amir Abd al-Qader

If one were to look for a perfect model of chivalry and the spirit of jihad one would be hard pressed to find a better example then Amir Abd al-Qader. He rallied the people of Algeria against the French occupation under the banner of Islamic Jihad. He was a man of strength and honor but also of compassion who was respected even by his enemies. One of the French leaders in Algeria even went so far as to liken him to Jesus.

Abd al-Qader was empowered in a Spiritual manner to wage Holy Jihad in a vision that came to him on his way back from the tomb of the great Sufi Shaykh Sayid Abd-el-Qader al-Jilani. In this vision Sayid Abd-el Qader al-Jilani handed him a black robe and a sword saying, "Now I entrust to you the secrets of jihad fi sabeelillah. Your trust from me is to take this knowledge, and to lead your people against the non-believers who are preventing Islam from being followed and are preventing implementing Shariah and Tariqah. Go my son, and with this sword repel those with enmity to God, and enmity to the Sunnah of the Prophet."

Wikipedia notes the following on this period of his life:

"In 1830, Algeria was invaded by France; French colonial domination over Algeria supplanted what had been domination in name only by the Ottoman Empire. Within two years, `Abd al-Qâdir was made an amir and with the loyalty of a number of tribes began a rebellion against the French. He was effective at using guerrilla warfare and for a decade, up until 1842, scored many victories. He often signed tactical truces with the French, but these did not last. His power base was in the western part of Algeria, where he was successful in uniting the tribes against the French. He was noted for his chivalry; at one occasion released his French captives simply because he had insufficient food to feed them." *

Eventually he was overpowered by the French and exiled to Damascus. When Abd al-Qader was in exile he risked his life to defend Christians from persecution and attacks by the Druze. For this effort he was given a life long pension as a reward from the French! He was also gifted with several exquisitely crafted guns by President Abraham Lincoln in honor of his actions.

Wikipedia notes the following about this event:

"While in Damascus he befriended Jane Digby and Richard and Isabel Burton. In July 1860, conflict between the Druze and Maronites of Mount Lebanon spread to Damascus, and local Druze attacked the Christian quarter, killing over 3,000 persons. `Abd al-Qâdir and his personal guard saved large numbers of Christians, bringing them to safety in his house and in the citadel. For this action the French government, which granted the amir a pension of 4000 Louis, bestowed on him the Grand Cross of the Légion d'honneur. He was also honoured by Abraham Lincoln for this gesture towards Christians with several guns that are now on display in the Algiers museum."*

Not only did al-Qader posses great martial and moral qualities he was also a Sufi of some note. He was an initiate of the Qadiri Sufi order and a leading authority on the thought of Ibn Arabi. His writings provide an excellent introduction to the thought of the Shaykh al-Akbar.

Last week I came across a web page dedicated to Abd al-Qader that contains a short but informative video.

As Muslim we must give thanks to Allah (swt) that He has blessed us with such examples!

Henry Corbin Memorialized in Iran.

This is old news but I thought I would post it anyway because I found it interesting and I've always loved the works of Henry Corbin. This article appeared in the Iran Daily on June 29 2005:

"TEHRAN, June 28--A plaque to commemorate the noted French philosopher Henry Corbin was unveiled in a ceremony here Monday which was attended by the French Ambassador to Iran Francois Nicouloud, reported IRNA. The plaque was installed at the intersection of Neauphle-le-Chateau and Marjan streets in downtown Tehran. Meanwhile, Marjan Street was renamed after Henry Corbin, a philosopher who conducted extensive oriental studies and was deeply interested in Iranian culture and civilization. Speaking at the ceremony, Nicouloud said that Corbin (1903-1978) was a great philosopher who is held in high esteem in France. He successfully introduced Iranian culture, literature and civilization to the Europeans, he added. The outgoing French ambassador said that Corbin proved that culture will develop when it is opened up to others. Addressing the same gathering, Chairman of Tehran City Council Mehdi Chamran said that Iran and France have friendly relations and hoped that they would further develop in all fields."

Henry Corbin Memorial Plaque Installed

Esoteric Exegesis of the Quran.

I'm reading a great book now " Tuhfah Yi-Abbasi: The Golden Chain of Sufism in Shi'ite Islam" by Shaykh Muhammad Ali Mu'addhdhin Sabzawari Khurasani translated by M. H. Faghfoory. It had a section on the esoteric exegesis of the Quran that I wanted to share!:

In a discourse on the nature of the Quran, Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq said, " The Book of Allah is of four natures: al-'ibarah, that is to say, the text, that is for the common people; al-Ishara, i.e. allusions that are for the select (khawass) al-lata'if, that is fine mysteries that are for the friends of God (awliya); and finally, al-haqa'iq, the truth which is for the Prophets (anbi'ya)."

The manifest meaning of the revelation (al-Zahir) can be understood by ordinary people (al-nas) who accept the principles of religion and observe its commands such as the daily prayers, fasting and other rituals. The inner meaning of the revelation however, can be understood only by those who have purified their hearts and those who have emptied it form anything other then God, as the Quran testifies: "Verily, this is indeed a nobel Quran , in a Book kept hidden, which none touches except the purified".

God the Almighty says in the Quran " Verily, We gave the Book as an inheritance to those whom we have selected from among our servants." It is obvious that what is meant by the Book is not only the Nobel Quran in its descended form (kitab munzal), but more importantly, the reality of the Quran that is Kitab al-maknun.

Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib asked the Prophet " O Messenger of God! How would I spread your message to people after you?" The Prophet answered, 'inform people of the non-manifest meaning (ta'wil) of the Quran, that is difficult for them [to understand]. Only God Knows Quran's reality and reveals it only to the Pure (mutahharun) and those who are steadfast in knowledge (rasikhun fil'ilm)" When a man asked Imam Sadiq who the steadfast in knowledge are, he replied that "They are the progeny of Muhammad."

In another discourse on the Quran, Imam Jafar al-Sadiq said:" Verily God taught His Messenger the science of interpretation of the Quran (tanzil and ta'wil), then he taught those sciences to Ali and by God, Ali taught them to us."

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I also wanted to share a statement of the great Sufi Hamid Al Ghazali on the topic of Quranic exegesis as well because it ties in perfectly with the above teachings:

"The man who claims that the Koran has no meaning except that which the exoteric exegesis has transmitted is acknowledging his own limitation. He is right in his acknowledgment, but is wrong in his judgment that puts all people on the level to which he is limited and bound. Indeed, reports and traditions ( of the Prophet and others) indicate that for men of understanding there is great latitude in the meaning of the Koran. Thus 'Ali said "The Messenger of God did not confide to me anything which he concealed from people, except that God bestows understanding of the Koran upon a man." If there were no meaning other than that which has been transmitted, what then is meant by that understanding of the Koran? The Prophet said , "surely the Koran has an outward aspect (Zahr) , an inward aspect (batin), an ending and a beginning." This tradition is also related as being from Ibn Mas'ud on his own authority, and he was one of the scholars of exegesis. What then is the meaning of the outward aspect, the inward aspect, end and beginning?"

Ali said, " If I wished I could load seventy camels with the exegesis of the Opening Surah (al-Fatiha) of the Koran". What is the meaning of this, when the exoteric interpretation [of this Surah] is extremely short? Abu al-Darada said " A man does not truly understand until he attributes different perspectives to the Koran." A certain scholar said "For every Koranic verse there are sixty thousand understandings and what remains to be understood is even more ." Others have said " The Koran contains seventy seven thousand two hundred sciences, for every word in it is a science, and then that number can be quadrupled, since every word has an outward aspect, an inward aspect, an end and a beginning"

The Prophets repetition of the phrase " In the name of God the merciful, the compassionate" twenty times was only for the purpose of pondering its esoteric meanings (batin ma'aniha). Otherwise its explanation and exegesis are so obvious that someone like him would not need to repeat it. Ibn Masu said " He who desires the knowledge of the ancients and the moderns should ponder the Koran." and that is not something that can be attained merely by its exoteric interpretation".