Introduction: The Journey to Allah
In the name of Allah, the Vastly Merciful, the Bestower of Special Mercy. We seek assistance with His help alone, and there is no power or strength except through Allah, the Most High, the Magnificent.
Opening
The Science of Spiritual Journeying
What Is This Volume?
This collection gathers advices from nurturing scholars across the centuries on 'ilm al-sulūk — the science of spiritual journeying. This discipline encompasses the actions of the heart and moral character, which in turn drives a person's outward conduct.
Before the Details
Before exploring the finer details of this science, we first benefit from preliminary pieces of advice about the spiritual journey and its basic components — seizing the moment, focusing, being serious, and fleeing to Allah.
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds; the ultimate outcome is for the righteous, and there is no aggression except against the wrongdoers.
Seize the Moment
People Have Never Ceased Being Travelers
"Ever since they were created, people have not ceased being travelers, and they have no rest from their journey except in Paradise or Hell. The wise one knows that travel is built on hardship and facing dangers, and it is usually impossible to expect pleasure, enjoyment, and comfort during it. That is only after the journey ends."
— Imām Ibn al-Qayyim (d. 751 AH)
Don't Procrastinate
You Are in a Moment Between Two Moments
Ibn al-Qayyim offers a profound framework for the believer: your entire life is the present moment between past and future. Each has its remedy:
The Past
Rectify it with repentance, remorse, and seeking forgiveness. This requires no physical labor — it is only an act of the heart.
The Present
This is your real life — the time between past and future. If you waste it, you lose your happiness and salvation. People vary greatly in how they preserve it.
The Future
Abstain from sins through firm resolution and intention — a withholding and resting that brings ease to your body, heart, and inner self.
"It is, by Allah, your current days in which you gather provisions for your hereafter, either to Paradise or to Hell."
Urgency
Purchase Yourself Today
"Purchase yourself today, for the market is open, the price is available, and the goods are inexpensive. A day will soon come upon that market and those goods when you will not be able to obtain either little or much — That is the Day of Mutual Loss."
— Ibn al-Qayyim
If you do not embark with provisions of piety and see on the Day of Resurrection those who have taken their provisions, you will regret not being like them — and that you did not prepare as they had prepared.
Focus
Each Day and Night Is a Stage of Your Journey
"The servant, from the moment his foot settles in this world, is a traveler to his Lord, and the duration of his journey is the lifespan allotted to him. Days and nights are set as stages of this journey, each day and night being a stage. He continues to traverse these stages, one after another, until the journey concludes."
— Ibn al-Qayyim
The astute and perceptive individual focuses on each stage, endeavoring to pass it safely and gainfully. He does not allow time to harden his heart or overextend his hopes. Instead, he views his life as a single stage and strives to make it across with the best of what is at his disposal.
Gray Hair as Warning
The Older the Believer, the More Spiritually Mature
Ibn al-Qayyim offers a stern admonition about aging without spiritual growth:
"The Quran, knowledge, and the sayings of the Prophet are connections with the truth and serve as warnings, deterrents, and admonishments sent to you. Gray hair itself is a warning, a deterrent, and an awakening presence within you. However, you have not been admonished by what has reached you, nor have you been affected by its advice. Yet, despite that, you still expect respect and veneration from others!"
The Wise Person
Takes heed without needing signs. As each physical trace fades, his faith, certainty, and longing for Allah and the Hereafter grow stronger.
The Heedless Person
If prolonged life does not lead to rectifying flaws and seizing remaining breaths for the heart's vitality, there is no good in them being alive.
The Hadith
"The best among you are those whose lives are long and whose deeds are good, and the worst among you are those whose lives are long and whose deeds are bad."
Be Serious
Resolve and Aspiration Carry You Further Than Deeds Alone
Ibn al-Qayyim teaches that the quality of one's inner resolve determines the distance covered on the spiritual path:
"The perceptive one traverses a greater distance in the journey with the strength of resolve, the loftiness of aspiration, the purity of intention, and the soundness of purpose — even while having fewer deeds — than someone who lacks these qualities while enduring greater fatigue and a more arduous journey."
Advancement and racing towards Allah is determined by aspirations, the trueness of desire, and the strength of resolve. If someone matches another in aspiration, then he surpasses him by his deeds.
Ibn Rajab (d. 795 AH)
"Whoever walks on the path of servitude to meet the Beloved must continue the journey until reaching the destination. If one stops on the way or turns back, they are destroyed. If the pain of the journey intensifies, let them remember the comfort of arrival when the fatigue has dissipated."
No Standing Still
You Either Progress or Fall Behind
Ibn al-Qayyim is unequivocal: "There is no standing still in the journey; rather, it is either progression or regression." Allah says: "For whoever among you wills to advance or to regress." One's perfection lies in constantly seeking advancement. If his aspiration is not to advance towards Allah at every moment, he will regress without even realizing it.
Every Limb, Every Moment
Servitude in Every Moment and Every Limb
Ibn al-Qayyim explains that Allah has assigned both a command and a prohibition for each limb of His servant, and for every moment in time there is a state of servitude due to Allah:
Obedience of the Limbs
When a servant obeys Allah's command with a limb, they show gratitude for His blessings and strive for the completion of its benefit. Neglect turns that limb into a cause of pain and harm.
Servitude of the Moment
For every moment, there is a state of servitude that brings the servant closer to Allah. Dedicating time to this servitude means advancing; occupying it with desires or idleness means falling behind.
Always Moving
A servant is always either progressing or regressing. There is no standing still on this path. Allah says: "For whoever wills among you to advance or regress."
Core Teaching
Flee to Allah — ففروا إلى الله
"The most important thing the journeyer should aim for is the migration to Allah and His Messenger, as it is an individual obligation for everyone at all times, and no one is exempt from its mandated duty. It is what Allah desires and requires from His servants."
— Ibn al-Qayyim
Migration is of two types: bodily migration from one land to another (whose rulings are well-known), and the migration of the heart to Allah and His Messenger — which is the true migration, the basis, and the focus here.
The Heart's Migration
From and To: The Two Dimensions of Fleeing
From Loving Others → To Loving Allah
He migrates with his heart from loving others besides Allah to loving Him alone.
From Servitude to Others → To His Servitude
From servitude to others to His servitude alone.
From Fear of Others → To Fear of Allah
From fearing others, hoping in them, and relying on them, to fearing Allah, hoping in Him, and relying on Him.
From Calling on Others → To Calling on Allah
From calling upon others, submitting to them, and humbling oneself before them, to calling upon his Lord, submitting to Him, and humbling oneself before Him.
"This is precisely the meaning of fleeing to Him. Allah says: 'So flee to Allah.' The monotheism required of the servant is to flee from Allah to Him."
The Secret of Tawhid
Fleeing From Allah to Him — A Great Secret
Fleeing To Him
Includes dedicating seeking and servitude to Allah alone — with its implications of love, fear, repentance, trust, and other stations of servitude. It encompasses the monotheism of divinity (al-ilāhiyyah) which all the Messengers agreed upon.
Fleeing From Him to Him
Includes monotheism of lordship and affirmation of divine predestination. Everything disliked that the servant flees from exists only by Allah's will alone. So when the servant flees to Allah, he is fleeing from something that exists by Allah's will and decree — in reality, fleeing from Allah to Him.
"Contemplate how all safety returns to fleeing from Allah to Him; and this is the meaning of migration to Allah. Therefore, the Prophet said: 'The migrant is one who abandons what Allah has prohibited.'"
Constant Migration
Two Migrations at Every Moment
Migration to Allah
In one's seeking, loving, servitude, trust, turning back to Him, submission, surrendering will, fear, hope, and full attention — with true reliance and sense of dire need in every breath.
Migration to His Messenger ﷺ
In all outward and inward movements and stillnesses, in agreement with his religious law which details what Allah loves and is pleased with. Allah accepts no practice of religion other than this.
The servant's self, desires, and shayṭān constantly call him to other than his Lord's pleasure, while the call of faith calls him to his Lord's pleasure. At all times, he must migrate to Allah, and he is in a constant state of migration until death.
Sincerity & Sunnah
Be Sincere and Emulate the Prophet's Example
"Acting without sincerity and without emulating (the Sunnah) is like a traveler who fills his sack with sand; it weighs him down without benefitting him."
— Ibn al-Qayyim
The journey is the lifelong actualization of the two testimonies of faith. The person of sincerity and sunnah is guided while being a spiritual guide for others. Ibn al-Qayyim describes such a person: "For the one whose eyes find comfort in Allah, all eyes find comfort in him, and he becomes a companion to the lonely, purity to the impure, a source of joy to the sorrowful, security to the fearful."
The Complete Traveler
He Has Made Allah Alone His Object of Worship
01
Singling Out Allah
He singles out Allah in his worship, love, fear, and hope — making Allah alone his object of worship, hope, fear, the ultimate goal of his pursuit, and the destination of his quest.
02
Following the Messenger ﷺ
He singles out the Messenger in following, emulating, adopting his character, and adhering to his etiquette — taking him as his guide, leader, commander, and director.
03
Devoting Every Moment
Since happiness revolves around what the Messenger brought, it is fitting to devote the moments of one's life to knowing Him and limiting desire to what pleases Him. This is the highest ambition the predecessors strove for.
Two Strengths
Knowledge and Action: The Two Strengths of the Journeyer
Ibn al-Qayyim masterfully explains that the journey to Allah and the Hereafter requires both:
The strength of knowledge is like a bright light in one's hand, guiding through a profoundly dark night — revealing both the landmarks of the road and its dangers. The strength of action is the actual journeying itself. Seeing the road constitutes the first half of success; traversing it is the second.
Encouraging the Soul
"O Soul, Rejoice — the Destination Is Near"
"O soul, rejoice, for the destination is near, and the meeting time is close. Do not give up on the road lest you are prevented from reaching the abode of the beloved. If you endure and continue traveling, you will arrive honored and delighted, welcomed by the beloved with various gifts and honors."
The Three Paths of the Soul
- If it retreats — it returns to its enemies
- If it advances — it reaches its beloved ones
- If it stands still — its enemies, who are in pursuit, will catch it
The soul must choose one of these three paths. Let it choose whichever it wants.
Sustenance for the Journey
Let the remembrance of the beloved be his guide and driver. The light of their knowledge and guidance his leader. The genuineness of their affection and love his sustenance, drink, and cure.
He should not feel lonely in his solitude, nor be deceived by the multitude who have fallen by the wayside. The pain of quitting will affect him, not them — and the honor of nearness is uniquely his.
Common Pitfalls
Two Types of Imbalanced Travelers
Strong in Knowledge, Weak in Action
They see spiritual truths but do not act upon them. They see dangers yet do not avoid them. Knowledgeable only until action is required — when it comes time for action, they join the ignorant in lagging behind. This is common among most souls engaged in knowledge.
Strong in Action, Weak in Knowledge
Earnest in deeds, renouncing the world, desiring the Hereafter — yet blind when presented with doubts in beliefs or deviations in spiritual states. This is the state of most Sufis who walk on the path of personal taste and feeling rather than knowledge.
The Balanced Traveler
Whoever possesses both strengths — his journey to Allah becomes upright, his success is hoped for, and he is empowered to overcome obstacles and hindrances by the power and help of Allah.
Supplication
Constantly Supplicate for Guidance
"He commanded all of His servants to ask Him for guidance to the straight path every day and night in the five prayers. This includes guidance to the path and guidance on it."
Going astray comes in two forms: straying from the path (not being guided to it), and straying while on the path (from its details). Ibn al-Qayyim's Shaykh explains that in every situation the servant needs guidance — for past matters requiring repentance, for matters guided only in part, for future matters, and for matters not yet undertaken. Allah has therefore made it obligatory to ask for this guidance in the best of states — prayer — multiple times daily.
Time Is a Sword
The Obstacles Are Numerous — But Allah's Mercy Intervenes
The Warning
"Time, as it is said, is like a sword: if you do not cut it, it will cut you."
When journeying is pathetic, ambition feeble, knowledge of the path limited, and obstacles numerous — that is truly a hard trial and a depth of misery.
The Hope
The obstacles are numerous and their reality is severe. Only a few escape their snares. Had there been no obstacles, the path would have been crowded with travelers.
Yet Allah may intervene with His mercy from where one least expects — taking him by the hand and delivering him from the clutches of these pitfalls.
Allah is the bestower of success.
Summary of This Volume
A Quick Summary: What This Volume Covers
This volume explores the science of progressing along the spiritual path ('Ilm al-Sulūk), distinguishing what is sound in theory and practice from error-laden approaches. It highlights the legacy of the people of Sunnah and ḥadīth in contrast to the Sufi inheritance.
1
Part One (Chapters 1–6)
Preliminary aspects of 'ilm al-sulūk: states of the heart and moral characteristics. The reality of Sufism and its divergence from the people of ḥadīth. The connection between sound knowledge, correct beliefs, and their effects on the heart's moral character.
2
Part Two (Chapters 7–10)
Four interrelated concepts describing the spiritual journey: (1) Servitude (al-'ubūdiyyah), (2) Steadfastness (al-istiqāmah), (3) Character refinement (tahdhīb al-akhlāq), and (4) Worldly asceticism (al-zuhd). Each receives a dedicated chapter.
3
Conclusion
Briefly discusses the types of obstacles and hazards each person must overcome in the spiritual journey.
Closing
May Allah Accept This Effort
"Would that my people knew! That my Lord has forgiven me and placed me among the honored." (Qur'an 36:26–27)
I have drawn from a rich body of literature from the scholars whose names appear on the inside cover. I have attempted to provide a simple yet accurate English rendering for each scholarly selection. May Allah accept this small effort and pardon my shortcomings. I ask Allah to make it a source of benefit for the compiler and reader, and to shower mercy upon the illustrious scholars whose advices are gathered in its pages.
Your brother, Abu Suhailah Umar Quinn (عفا الله عنه — May Allah pardon him)
Maryland, USA
19 Jumādā I 1445 AH / 2 December, 2023 CE
Maryland, USA
19 Jumādā I 1445 AH / 2 December, 2023 CE