Malfuzat - Volume IV — Page 161
161 Malfuzat – Volume IV the self and the pleasure of the soul are the same thing, I would point out that the wicked derive greater pleasure from the songs of immoral women. Would such people, on account of the carnal pleasure that they experience, be considered holy servants of Allah and saintly individuals? Of course not. The misconception of those who have invented their own ways in contradiction to the shariah and the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, is that they have not been able to differentiate between the pleasure of the self and the soul. Otherwise, they would not search for pleasure and comfort of the soul through such absurdities. These avenues do not bless one with a soul at rest. Those who seek pleasure from the verses of Bulleh Shah should know that the soul derives pleasure from the Holy Quran. 1 These people did not stop to consider the misfortune of their own evil deeds and instead, abandoned the good deeds given to us by the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, replacing them with self-invented litanies and invocations. They deemed it sufficient to memorise a few poetic verses and become entranced on hearing the verses of Bulleh Shah. It is for this reason that where the Holy Quran is being taught, very few people congregate to listen, but where these other sorts of gatherings are being held, a large group of people come together. A lack of interest in virtues and an inclination towards carnal and lust - ful purposes clearly demonstrate that the people of whom I speak see no differ - ence between the pleasure of the soul and the pleasure of the self. It has been observed that some people who attend these gatherings of dance and music will intentionally take off their turbans and proclaim: ‘As soon as we sit in the assembly of Mian Sahib, we become entranced. ’ These are the sorts of innovations and self-invented ideologies that have come about. The fact of the matter is that those who have failed to derive pleasure from the Prayer and who are deprived of this delight simply cannot comprehend the state wherein the soul feels comfort and tranquillity—they know nothing of this pleasure. It always astonishes me that if the self-invented practices crafted by these people, who are called Muslims, are a means of joy and pleasure for the soul, then the Prophet of God, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, who possessed the greatest insight of matters divine, and who was the most perfect human being, ought to have given us such teachings or adopted such practices as well. As for these oppo - nents of mine—who are renowned sufi leaders and custodians of shrines, and 1 Al-Hakam , vol. 6, no. 27, dated 31 July 1902, pp. 5-8 p. 428