Al Mathal al-A'la :
Commentary of As-Salat al-Mashishiyyah [English/Arabic],
*[A5] Paperback - 63 pages,
by Mawlai Abd as-Salam ibn Mashish,
English translation & commentary by Abu Faydan Faridi,
*Published by Nalayn Publications, Karachi.




Description :

Al Mathal al A'la : 'The Likeness of the One without Semblance' is a commentary in English of As-Salat al-Mashishiyyah of Mawlai Abd as-Salam ibn Mashish, by Shaykh Abu Faydan al-Faridi.


The Salat al-Mashishiyyah is well known in the Western regions of the Islamic world as it is a regular part of the invocative traditions of the 'Shadhili Sufi Order' whose founder, Abul Hasan ash-Shadhili, was the spiritual successor of the author of this prayer., Mawlai Abd as-Salam ibn Mashish - may Allah sanctify their secret and fill their graves with light.


By the testimony of Mawlai Abd as Salam, rahimullah, the wording of this particular salutation was vouchsafed to him by the Noble Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, himself during a mystical encounter with him, and as such, this prayer takes a very special place and rank among the innumerable benedictions, tributes and invocations dedicated to the Messenger of Allah − Allah's Blessing and Peace abound with him forever.


By virtue of its teaching content, it is a pearl of incomparable luster from the treasure troves of the gnostic legacy of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and anyone who recites it regularly with sincere devotion cannot but derive great spiritual benefit from it.






Table of Contents :

---Acknowledgements,
---Foreword by Shaykh Ebrahim Schuitema,
---Prologue,
---Introductory Note.

---A Glimpse of the Life & Spiritual Legacy of Mawlai Abd as-Salam ibn Mashish,
------His Life,
------His Teachings.

---[1]. As Salat al Mashishiyyah :
------The Arabic Text, transliteration and translation, plus traditionally recited subsequent invocations,
---[2]. Al Mathal al A'la :
------A Commentary on as-Salat al Mashishiyyah,

---Appendix 1 : Glossary of Arabic Terms,
---Appendix 2 : The transliteration of the Arabic Text,
---Appendix 3 : Explanatory Note to the Cover Design.





The Author of the Commentary, Shaykh Abu Faydan Faridi, alias Muhammad Harun Riedinger, was born in 1947 in a Christian family in Germany, where he spent the first part of his life. At age 27 he left everything behind and set out on a journey to the East in pursuit of his spiritual aspirations. While on his way he had a number of profound mystical experiences with the great saint Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi, may Allah be pleased with him, which eventually led him to accepting Islam in Pakistan in 1975, where he also attended a seminary for some time in pursuit of regular Islamic studies.


Soon after becoming a Muslim he met an eminent shaykh of the Chishti Sufi Order, Hadrat Shahidullah Faridi − may Allah sanctify his secret and fill his grave with light − who initiated him into the 'Sufi path of divine love' and gnosis. After his master departed from this world, he undertook the pilgrimage, and stayed on in Madinah for a year. Thereafter he traveled widely, associating with, and benefiting from a number of masters of various Sufi orders, and scholars.


During a journey to Morocco in 2011, an intense encounter with Shaykh Ebrahim Schuitema of the Shadhili-Darqawi Order prompted the latter to confer on him the ‘Idhn of Shaykh’ (i.e. the authorisation of a Sufi master) of that order. Presently he lives in Karachi, counseling and teaching a growing circle of seekers and devotees.







More Shadhiliya books.
Also see Qasidas of the Shadiliya : New,