It is also forbidden to delve into the works of the Friend's of Allah in most cases as one is required to have mastery of the terminology of the Sufis.
Walaikum as Salaam al-`Izz on the Superiority of the Rank of the Awliya' Over That of the `Ulama' Al-`Izz ibn `Abd al-Salam was asked in his Fatawa about the correctness of Qushayri's and Ghazali's saying that the highest level among Allah's servants after Messengers and Prophets was that of saints (Awliya'), then that of the scholars (`Ulama'). He replied: Concerning the priority of the knowers of Allah over the knowers of Allah's rulings, the saying of the teacher Abu Hamid (al- Ghazali) is agreed upon. No reasonable person doubts that the knowers of Allah... are not only better than the knowers of Allah's rulings, but also better than those of the branches and the roots of the Religion, because the rank of a science is according to its immediate object... Most of the time scholars are veiled from their knowledge of Allah and His attributes, otherwise they would be among the Gnostics whose knowledge is continuous, as befits the demand of true virtue. And how could the Gnostics and the jurists be the same, when Allah says: 'The noblest among you in Allah's sight are the most Godwary' (49:13)?... and by the 'erudite' (`Ulama) in His saying 'The erudite among His bondsmen fear Allah alone' (35:28), He means those who know Him, His attributes, and His actions, not those who know His rulings... A sign of the superiority of the Gnostics over the jurists is that Allah effects miracles at the hands of the former, but never at the hands of the latter, except when they enter the path of the Gnostics and acquire their characteristics. (10) al-`Izz ibn `Abd al-Salam, Fatawa, ed. `Abd al-Rahman ibn `Abd al-Fattah (Beirut: dar al-ma`rifa, 1406/1986)- Taken from www.abc.se (Shaykh GF Haddad)
As-salamu alaykum: Many people wrongly attack the Awliya and the Sufiya especially scholars like Hadrat Shaykh al-Akbar Imam Muhyi al-Din ibn Arabi and Hadrat Bayazid Bastami rahmatullahi alayhim. The following is a sampling of some of the sayings of others on Hadrat Bayazid Bastami rahmatullahi alayh. Please feel free to add on 1. Imam al-Dhahabi in Siyar writes: سلطان العارفين أبو يزيد ، طيفور بن عيسى بن شروسان البسطامي ، أحد الزهاد ، أخو الزاهدين : آدم وعلي ، وكان جدهم شروسان مجوسيا ، فأسلم يقال : إنه روى عن : إسماعيل السدي ، وجعفر الصادق ، أي : الجد ، وأبو يزيد ، فبالجهد أن يدرك أصحابهما . See: http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfrom=2447&idto=2447&bk_no=60&ID=2309 https://archive.org/stream/FP11950/san13#page/n86/mode/2up (Siyar al-Alam al-Nubala, 13:86) 2. Taqi al-Din Ahmad ibn Taymiyyah al-Harrani يَرْجُوا لِقَاءَ رَبِّهِ فَلْيَعْمَلْ عَمَلًا صَالِحًا وَلَا يُشْرِكْ بِعِبَادَةِ رَبِّهِ أَحَدًا} لَيْسَ الشِّرْكُ عِبَادَةَ الْأَصْنَامِ فَحَسْبُ؛ بَلْ هُوَ أَيْضًا مُتَابَعَتُك لِهَوَاك وَأَنْ تَخْتَارَ مَعَ رَبِّك شَيْئًا سِوَاهُ مِنْ الدُّنْيَا وَمَا فِيهَا وَالْآخِرَةِ وَمَا فِيهَا فَمَا سِوَاهُ - تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى - غَيْرُهُ فَإِذَا رَكَنْت إلَى غَيْرِهِ فَقَدْ أَشْرَكْت بِهِ غَيْرَهُ فَاحْذَرْ وَلَا تَرْكَنْ وَخَفْ وَلَا تَأْمَنْ وَفَتِّشْ وَلَا تَغْفُلْ فَتَطْمَئِنَّ وَلَا تُضِفْ إلَى نَفْسِك حَالًا وَلَا مَقَامًا وَلَا تَدَعْ شَيْئًا مِنْ ذَلِكَ ". وَقَالَ (الشَّيْخُ عَبْدُ الْقَادِرِ أَيْضًا: " إنَّمَا هُوَ اللَّهُ وَنَفْسُك وَأَنْتَ الْمُخَاطَبُ وَالنَّفْسُ ضِدُّ اللَّهِ وَعَدُوَّتُهُ؛ وَالْأَشْيَاءُ كُلُّهَا تَابِعَةٌ لِلَّهِ فَإِذَا وَافَقْت الْحَقَّ فِي مُخَالَفَةِ النَّفْسِ وَعَدَاوَتِهَا كُنْت خَصْمًا لَهُ عَلَى نَفْسِك - إلَى أَنْ قَالَ -: " فَالْعِبَادَةُ " فِي مُخَالَفَتِك نَفْسَك وَهَوَاك قَالَ تَعَالَى: {وَلَا تَتَّبِعِ الْهَوَى فَيُضِلَّكَ عَنْ سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ} إلَى أَنْ قَالَ: وَالْحِكَايَةُ الْمَشْهُورَةُ عَنْ أَبِي يَزِيدَ البسطامي - رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى - لَمَّا رَأَى رَبَّ الْعِزَّةِ فِي الْمَنَامِ فَقَالَ لَهُ: كَيْفَ الطَّرِيقُ إلَيْك؟ فَقَالَ: اُتْرُكْ نَفْسَك وَتَعَالَ قَالَ أَبُو يَزِيدَ: فَانْسَلَخْت مِنْ نَفْسِي كَمَا تَنْسَلِخُ الْحَيَّةُ مِنْ جِلْدِهَا. فَإِذَا ثَبَتَ أَنَّ الْخَيْرَ كُلَّهُ فِي مُعَادَاتِهَا فِي الْجُمْلَةِ فِي الْأَحْوَالِ كُلِّهَا فَإِنْ See: http://shamela.ws/browse.php/book-7289/page-5098 https://archive.org/stream/mfsiaitmmfsiaitm/mfsiaitm10#page/n518/mode/2up (Majmu` al-Fatawa Ibn Taymiyya 10:518)
