Spiritual Abuse, Karma, and Seeking
Someone wrote in and described some of the spiritual abuse which this individual had experienced. Among other things, the person indicated how hard it was to start over again spiritually after feeling so betrayed.
Response: As someone who has been on the receiving end
of spiritual abuse, I have an abiding empathy for
the sense of betrayal (spiritual, emotional, social,
and intellectually) which you have felt and are
feeling with respect to your past experiences with
people who purported to be authentic mystics,
but, unfortunately, as events over time proved, are
not. The grief which one feels when one's holy
longing has been trampled upon is very deep and
cuts to the core of who one is or aspires to be.
There were a variety of issues which you raised
in your posting. I will try to respond to a number
of them - but what I am saying is merely food for
thought, and you should not feel, in any way,
that I am seeking to make judgments about you
or your life - my comments are more directed
toward the structural character of the framework you
were induced to adopt through which to view the
Sufi path - a framework which others built for you and
which you, in all innocence and sincerity, accepted
as being true.
I do not know your previous 'teacher'. You say the
individual was a pious and sincere Muslim ... perhaps,
yes, perhaps, not necessarily.
I spent around 10-11 years with a man (and I used
this term advisedly) who professed to be a Muslim
and a Sufi shaykh. For 10-11 years I believed that
person to be sincere and pious, until the unfolding
of events made it clear that there was a huge
difference between how this individual invented a
persona for public consumption which was at great
odds with his private behavior.
Many people, including me, thought this individual
was a pious and sincere person. Moreover, this
person didn't speak about a form of Sufism or
tasawwuf which was at odds with the Islamic
spiritual tradition, but something which went to
the very heart of that tradition and which was
completely compatible with both the exoteric and
esoteric teachings which have been taught over
the years by the great scholars of Islam.
But, talk is cheap. Deeds and what goes on
in the darkness of someone's heart is quite
another matter.
To me, it is an oxymoron for someone to seek
to convey the idea that they are a pious and sincere
Muslim and, simultaneously, teach principles and
values which cannot be reconciled with either
the Qur'an or the traditions of the Prophet
Muhammad (peace be upon him). Neither the
idea of karma, nor a belief in re-incarnation are
supportable by original texts - whether Divine (i.e.,
revelation), Prophetic (i.e., traditions), or from any
of the great shaykhs.
A remember a conversation I had with an authentic
Sufi shaykh (who was my first teacher and prior to
my encounter with a false shaykh) about the issue
of karma. If one takes karma as being a universal
principle which operates independently of Divine
Grace and forgiveness, and if one takes karma as
an explanatory principle which seeks to account for
why there are inequalities and disparities in the world
which are independent of the Divine rizq (allotment)
that is assigned by God according to Divine purposes,
and if one takes karma as a way of saying "what goes
around, comes around" which is independent of the trials
and tribulations which come into everyone's life
(including the Prophets and saints) and have nothing to
do with any self-contained principle of retribution and
reward for the quality of one's conduct - then, given
the foregoing, from the Sufi perspective, there is no
such thing as karma, but, rather, karma is a theoretical
idea which has been invented by some to explain why
suffering exists and, in the process, seeks to by-pass the
fact that God alone is supreme and Divinity does with
Creation whatever Divinity wishes.
Karma does not explain why a person makes the initial
choice which leads in certain directions. Nor, does karma
explain how someone falls from grace nor is raised up
from the depths of human degradation, despite having
done nothing to deserve such Divine favor.
The great shaykhs have all said that one should not
count on one's prayers, fasts, zakat, pilgrimages or
good deeds to save one. Our actions do not control
Divine activity and response, and, yet, there is a need
for prayers, fasting, charity, and good works ... for
the constructive impact these have on the quality of
our lives, and not because the universe is set up
according to a quid pro quo arrangement between
Divinity and Creation which is played out on a game
board that is ruled by principles of karma and
reincarnation in an eternal 'Groundhog Day' temporal
warp.
God's supremacy is such that the Sufi shaykhs have
indicated that on the Day of Judgment there will be
a few people who will be delivered into Paradise
despite having done nothing good in their lives. God's
Mercy does have precedence over Divine wrath,
and Divinity is the One Who has attested to this truth.
The issues surrounding reincarnation are similar
to the foregoing. Reincarnation is a theory which
has been invented in order to try to account for,
or make sense of, various experiential data. There
is nothing in either the Qur'an, nor the Prophetic
traditions, nor the teachings of such notables as
al-Muhasibi, Junayd, Qadir Jilani, al-Ghazzali,
Ibn al-'Arabi, Ahmad Sirhindi, or others (may
Allah be pleased with them all) which says
anything but the fact that we only get one kick
of the can, and this world is the only place we
get to take a kick at the can of life and the
spiritual challenges encompassed by life that
are inherent in the Divine purpose.
These truths which are given expression in
the Qur'an, the Traditions, and the teachings of the
great spiritual masters of the Sufi path, indicate
that one of the reasons life is so precious is
because it is a non-renewable resource as far
as realizing the purpose of one's life is concerned.
The purpose of life is not perfection, for only God
is perfect, and to aspire to perfection is arrogant
- rather, we should aspire to the Divine himma for
us - a himma which is inherent in our fitra or
essential, spiritual nature.
We are who we are. To desire to be other than that
is foolhardy and sets us up for nothing but frustration
and disappointment.
What people suppose to be evidence for the
existence of reincarnation (e.g., the fact that some
people seem to be able to re-experience earlier lives)
is a misinterpretation of such data. Another phenomenon
is going on which is altogether independent of issues of
reincarnation, and one can no more suppose that such
a phenomenon constitutes evidence for reincarnation
than one can suppose that because one is able to watch
the History channel on televison that one is witnessing
a previous life - something is being communicated
through such experiences, but this 'something' is not
a previuous life, but, rather information about someone's
experience which has been tapped into and with which
one has identified and interpreted it as one's own when
it is someone else's.
Descartes said: "I think, therefore, I am. He might have
been more accurate to say that 'something thinks,
therefore something is'.
There are many channels through which human beings
are sensitive to the universe - sometimes this sensitivity
is touched through physical events, or dreams, or spiritual
experiences. However, none of this sensitivity to the array
of influences in the universe requires us to be forced to resort
to the theory of reincarnation as the only way to make logical or
spiritual sense out of such experiential data.
Now I know you understand the foregoing, or, at least, our posting suggests you do. I have gone into a little detail with respect to the foregoing as a prelude to answering your question - namely, are
there now, or have there ever been, any authentic Sufi
groups who have espoused such doctrines as karma
and reincarnation? The answer to this question is an
unqualified "No!"
As far as your feeling is concerned about how difficult
it is to start over again, while, on the one hand, I
appreciate this aspect of your situation more than you
can know, nevertheless, on the other hand, not only do
we have no other real choice in the matter - since the
alternative is to let such frauds (especially the chief of
all spiritual charlatans, Iblis or Satan) win the day by
succumbing to the plan which Satan announced to God
after his fall from Grace - that is, with the respite for
which he asked and was granted by God, he promised
to lay in wait along the sirat-ul-mustaqueen and seek
to dissuade human beings from the straight path.
These spiritual charlatans - like your teacher and the
one with whom I interacted - are part of the ambush
which Satan has set in place in order to destroy our
faith, to discourage us, to send us into tailspins of
despair, depression, grief, and to induce us to become
alienated from the stuggle into which we were born
through Divinity in order to have an opportunity to work
toward realizing our spiritual potential.
Yes, the pain of spiritual betrayal is terribly debilitating
and painful. The pain which ensues from allowing
ourselves to be ruled by this pain and debilitated
condition is to add insult to injury - an insult which
is totally self-inflicted.
Iblis and his minions can lead us to the brink of wishing
to destroy ourselves spiritually. But, we are the ones
who make that final, sometimes irrevocable choice, which
permits ourselves to be taken over by such forces -
and, remember, the Qur'an clearly points out in relation
to Iblis's request for a respite and his plan to create a
detour for human spiritual aspiration that only those
who permit themselves to fall under the sway of this
plan will fall - if we do not make that fateful choice,
things may be difficult, but the first step down the
slippery slope of opening oneself up to Satanic
suggestion, 'guidance', influence, delusion, and
illusion will not have been taken - as we are enjoined
in the Qur'an, 'do not despair of the mercy of thy
Lord'.
There is a well-known story with which you may,
or may not, be familiar. More specifically, a
man is reviewing his life and notes that at many
junctures in his life there are two sets of
footprints which mark his journey through life,
and he understands this to mean that God was
walking with him at such points. But, then, he
comes upon a portion of his life in which there is
only one set of footprints, and the individual
interprets this to mean that God had abandoned
him - in truth, as Divinity points out to him, such
places mark the place where we are carried by God.
Whether you presently believe so, or not, your
participation in this Community which is focused
on learning about issues affecting Spiritual Health
is an oasis provided for you, and others (including
myself), to permit you some time to refresh yourself,
heal, be nurtured, gain perspective, and find, God
willing, encouragement, support, and constructive
assistance. How did you come here? What set of
forces were in play to not only permit you to find
this Community but to go ahead and join, despite
your previous experiences?
I agree with you that the so-called 'community of
scholars' - whether Muslim or non-Muslim - lack a
great deal of intellectual and spiritual rigor in their
examination and acceptance of this or that person
as being an authentic exemplar of the Sufi tradition.
This is one of the most alarming things which has
bubbled to the surface of my consciousness over the
last year, or so - the sad fact of the matter is, most
of the so-called Islamic scholars in North America,
and, in fact, in many other places, in the world,
really don't have any - or much - insight into
determining the authenticity of an alleged Sufi
guide.
People confuse surface hype with the reality of
what is hidden in the lives of many of these
so-called teachers. People conflate book learning
and actual mystical understanding. People
suppose that they would be able to differentiate
frauds from the real deal if confronted with such
individuals, and, in most cases, they cannot, but
in keeping with the story about the 'Emperor
who had no clothes', these so-called Islamic
scholars have convinced themselves, or have
been induced by others to believe, that all manner
of alleged 'shaykhs' are clothed with legitimacy
when, in truth, most of the latter group are buck
naked - wearing nothing but, spiritually speaking,
the birthday suit with which they came into this
world.
This Community has been created not as an end,
but as an opportunity to learn while we wait and
search for whatever remnants of spiritual authenticity
may be left in this world. That such remnants do
exist follows from the fact that the world is still in
existence and the greater events of the Latter Days
have not, yet, transpired (i.e., the coming of the Mahdi
(may Allah be pleased with him), the dajjal, Isa (peace
be upon him), the Beast, the rise of Gog and Magog,
and so on.
Originally, I was thinking of naming this Community
- 'Waiting for Shams'. It was intended to serve as a
sort of way-station for the spiritually disaffected and
abused among us who were seeking some sort of
process through which to re-orient or re-right
themselves spiritually by interacting with the holy
longing of others and benefitting from the support of
other Community members through discussing and
reflecting on a variety of spiritual issues, problems, and
questions.
The Community was, and is, intended as an opportunity
to do something constructive while biding our time and
waiting in case a real Shams-like figure comes along.
The Community was, and is, intended to serve as a
means of exchanging information, hopes, possibilities,
ideas, understandings, and concerns with one another
about spirituality - including the discovery of potentially
authentic shaykhs.
But, all of the foregoing is intended to occur within a
responsible environment. In other words, without
wishing to throw the mystical baby out with the dirty
bath water of spiritual fraudulence and, as a result,
abandoning the spiritual/mystical quest altogether,
we each have a duty of care to the other members
of the Community to critically reflect upon a variety
of issues and try to explore matters in a balanced
manner which will not cause us to make the only
two kinds of mistake one can make - namely, we
should try not to accept a false hypothesis as true,
and we should try not to reject a true hypothesis
as false - the difference between the two lies in the
details, and it is these details which need to be critically
examined in order to serve as a constructive source
of insight from which well-considered spiritual decisions
might be made - each in our own way, and without any
expectations as to how we each should live our, respective
spiritual lives - for, this is the grist around which individual
choice grinds.
I would say that, in one sense or another, most of the
people who will become members - whether temporarily
or somewhat longer - are people who are looking for a
new start. Maybe, they have been spiritually abused;
maybe, nothing which they have tried so far has spiritually
clicked or resonated with their hearts; maybe, they are
disappointed in one, or another, facet of spiritual life
and feel a need for the kind of meaning, purpose,
guidance, and relationships to which one can commit
oneself constructively; maybe, they have been turned
off by the rigidity, if not fanatical fundamentalism, of
various approaches to spirituality, and, yet, do not feel
that one can make up the rules as one goes along;
maybe, they have become disillusioned in the so-called
spiritual leadership which, thus far in life, has been
available to them.
Starting over is not a defeat or an end, it is a beginning
which recognizes that the direction in which we have
been traveling is not satisfying our holy longing. Every
time we learn something new, we begin again from a
new place, with a new understanding, and sense of
appreciation both for what we have learned, as well
as that which we do not yet know or understand.
We may not rise to the spiritual station to which we
aspire, but this is not the purpose of life. The purpose
of life is to discover the station to which Divinity wishes
us to aspire to and, then, set about doing the best our
capacity permits to serve, love, and worship Divinity
through that station.
I am not a shyakh. I am a fellow seeker.
I may understand some things, while there is much
that I do not understand. I am prepared to share
whatever I have with others, and I hope others will
be willing to reciprocate.
The goal of this reciprocity is not to reach an
agreement about how to proceed in life and, then, to
start a social/spiritual movement of some kind to give
expression to that shared framework of values. The
goal of this reciprocity is to help one another struggle
toward being the best human beings we can be.
Love, kindness, tolerance, empathy, integrity, peace,
sincerity, hope, inspiration, honesty, nobility, generosity,
forgiveness, and patience, - to mention but a few -
are the woof and warp through which our relationships
with one another are to be woven. These qualities are far
more important to establish as a venue through which to
explore mysticism/spirituality than are a body of theological
doctrines.
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