On Surrender

The testimony of faith, the Shahada, is the first and oft-repeated step to surrender to the will of Allah.

The Sufi wishes to love and be loved by Allah. In tariqa he follows in the Prophet's (saws) footsteps with this single goal in his heart, because he knows Muhammad (saws) is Habibullah, Allah's lover. He understands that the only way to gain Allah's love is through surrender, for in surrender he denies the selfish urgings of his nafs in order to secure Allah's good pleasure. Allah created the Prophet (saws) as the model of a human being in a state of complete surrender to his Lord. His exquisite state embraced the perfect balance of his inner and outer being. The key to this balance was an unswerving focus on Allah in all things. From the firmness of his faith sprouted his impeccably pure intention to serve his Lord lovingly in thought, word, and deed.

That is because Allah never changes the grace He has bestowed on any people until they first change that which is in their nafs, and (that is) because Allah is Hearer, Knower. (Qur'an 8:53)

In the dynamic of their loving relationship, as the Prophet (saws) scrutinized the purity of his intention, Allah in turn increased his faith. The Sufi murid is encouraged to reenact such a working relationship with Allah, maintaining focus on Allah with the intention to surrender to Him in every way. Intention is the springboard of surrender, the inner aspect which gives meaning to outer deeds. The intention to act in a way pleasing to Allah is the foundation of faith, because in it is the tacit assumption of Allah's complete sovereignty. The acknowledgment "La ilaha illa 'llah," that, in truth, there is no god but Allah, is implicit in the believer's pure intention. The believer who knows that Allah holds all power, as our Prophet (saws) did, should preface every action by saying, "Bismillah er Rahman er Rahim," "In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate." In saying this with sincerity, the believer states that he is acting in Allah's name, with Allah's power. Saying "Bismillah er Rahman er Rahim" is to be in a state of rabita with Allah, and is the beginning of surrender.

Nay, but whoever surrenders his whole person to Allah and does good, his reward is with his Lord; on those shall no fear come, neither shall they grieve.
(Qur'an 2:112)

As the beginning of surrender is in the pure intention to act in Allah's name, the completion of surrender is in the outer aspect of right action. Right action is propelled from the heart of one who has been cleansed from his nafs' interference, and is shaped by his excellent character. In being cleansed through the levels of nafs, the murid achieves good ahlak, or beautiful character. These are the noble traits which adorned Prophet Muhammad (a.s.), and helped bring him to closeness with Allah. Good ahlak will carry the murid through life's circumstances with grace and fortitude because it is the seedbed of righteous conduct. Putting good ahlak to use in action is known as the practice of adab. It is the outward manifestation of one's inner willingness to accept Allah's decree and to serve his Lord lovingly. The observance of adab is basing one's actions on the premise that Allah is the Owner of the universe. Actions performed with adab reflect the realization that even though Allah has given us the conscious will to make decisions, we do not exercise this privilege independently but only as executors of Allah's energy and attributes.

Excerpted from The Sun Will Rise in the West
Shaykh Taner Ansari

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