All sources of knowledge and that which is said to be knowledge is not at all knowledge; it is only information. A person may have a lot of information, but this does not influence his character. However, the Prophets, and only the Prophets disseminate knowledge. They not only tell about all things, the Divine Being, the Akhirah i.e. belief, worship and worldly issues, but it is the distinctive characteristic of Prophetic teachings that the feelings associated with their words, flow into the Qalb(Heart). Thus, only that information, which also has feelings associated with it, deserves to be called as knowledge. Therefore, knowledge is obtained only from the Prophets-as. The Holy Prophet-saaws is the treasure of all knowledge of the first and the last, but much more than all of that, is his personal knowledge. Therefore his teachings are, in fact, the real source of knowledge. Whatever the Holy Prophet-saaws says, the lights of his noble Qalb(Heart) enter the Qalb(Heart) of a seeker and produce those feelings in it. That is why the Companions are the most superior because, the Lata‘if (Spiritual Organs) and every cell of the body of any one blessed with Companionship, were instantly illuminated and his Rooh(Soul) crossed the nine ‘Arsh(Divine Throne) and reached the ‘Aalam-e Amr(Realm of Order). As Allah-swt says: Then did soften their skins and hearts towards Allah’s Zikr(Remembrance). Having arrived at the ‘Aalam-e Amr(Realm of Order), his Rooh(Soul) started advancing to higher stations. Hence, every one of the Companions passed away in some Circle of ‘Aalam-e Amr. This was the miracle of a single glance of the Holy Prophet-saaws. Now, imagine their further greatness and see those who, in this world, Barzakh and the Hereafter, are present in his exalted company. Thereafter, whoever came to the Companions was called a Taba‘i and was blessed with the entire Sulook (Sufi path of Love) by only being in their company. This excellence continued till the Tab‘a Taba‘een, as these three periods are the best of all times. Later on, the way the scholars were categorised as Mufassir, Muhaddith and Faqih, in the same way, those who achieved spiritual excellence came to be known as Sufis. Those fortunate ones who received the wealth of knowledge and then were also blessed with the feelings of the Qalb came to be known as ‘Ulama-e Rabbaniyeen (Divine Scholars). On the other hand, the exoteric knowledge of those unfortunate ones, who remained deprived of this wealth of the Qalb (Heart), couldn’t reform even their own selves. And for us is to explain plainly. Probably, I have written a lot, without having written much, and Insha Allah it shall be sufficient for the guidance of the Ahbab(Seekers) of the Silsilah(Spiritual Order). Who knows if any one, after this, would be able to uncover such mysteries or not! Everyone has to leave this world and the truth will become manifest on the Day of Resurrection. We will also be there and so will be the other creations of Allah-swt . But what will be the use of believing then? Believing and accepting are bound to the present. The one, whom Allah-swt grants the opportunity, must come and partake generously of all these blessings. This Faqeer prays to Allah-swt for an end in which these feelings and the ways to their enhancement are safely taken along, because we have witnessed many vicissitudes of time where many a home was ruined or burnt and many a wilderness turned into gardens.

And the conclusion of our speech is: All Praise is for Allah, the Lord of the Universe.

Ameer Muhammad Akram Awan