Daily Practices

To become proficient at anything requires practice. One cannot expect to play one of Beethoven's piano concertos with any skill, let alone achieve the kind of mastery required to perform in public, without daily practice.

In just such a way, the dervish who aspires to play the "instrument of the heart" in such a way as to attract the Beloved must devote time to perfecting his or her "craft".

We do this through daily practice. Each member of our Tariqa is given by his or her Shaykh an "assignment" designed to begin the process of stripping away the accumulated "dust of the heart". Over the life of the student the practice will be refined and retailored to fit individual needs.

The basic practice involves the recitation and remembrance of a number of the Divine Names. Each of these names is an antidote for a level of nafs, or represents a quality that the student needs for his or her development.

The daily practice works on many levels and teaches several important skills. The first is Rabita, the heart connection to ones Shaykh and Silsila, or spiritual lineage. This connection is fundamental to development and the daily practice helps to bring ones focus back to this.

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