Fasting

 ■ Why Did the Prophets, Companions, and Aulia Allah Choose Hunger?

Ever wondered why the most beloved servants of Allah ﷻ—the Prophets, Companions, and Aulia Allah—often chose to remain hungry, even when food was available? 🤔

Was it because they had no access to delicious meals? No.

Was it because they were forced into hunger? No.

Then why?

Because they had found something far more important than food.

They weren’t just surviving on hunger; they were thriving in it.

Have you ever been so busy with something that you completely forgot to eat?

Maybe you were working on an important project, deep in a heartfelt conversation, or simply lost in the beauty of a moment.

Now, imagine being so immersed in worship, so lost in the love of Allah ﷻ, that food no longer holds any meaning.

That’s exactly what happened with the Prophets, Companions, and Aulia Allah.

Imam Ghazali (ر) explained it beautifully:

❝When a person reaches a certain spiritual level, worldly things start feeling like distractions meant for children.❞

Food wasn’t their concern. Their hearts were too busy with greater things.

For most of us, hunger feels like suffering. But for them?

Hunger was a door to enlightenment.

They didn’t just endure hunger; they embraced it because they knew something we don’t:

The less you feed your body, the more you feed your soul.

They believed that when the stomach is full, the soul becomes lazy. But when the stomach is empty, the heart awakens.

That’s why the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and his closest companions would sometimes go days without eating. It wasn’t just out of necessity—it was a deliberate spiritual practice.

In our world, food is everything.

We plan our days around meals. We celebrate with food. We stress-eat. We diet. We overeat.

But for them...

Food was just a temporary necessity—not an obsession.

✅ They didn’t crave it.

✅ They didn’t chase after it.

✅ They didn’t consider it an important issue in life.

They had trained their hearts to be free from the distractions of the stomach.

Many of us have experienced it—after a big meal, all we want to do is sleep.

A full stomach often makes the body heavy, the mind dull, and the heart lazy.

That’s why these spiritual giants in Sufism chose hunger over comfort—because it kept them light, awake, and spiritually sharp.

They knew that too much food leads to:

🚫 Laziness in worship

🚫 Decreased spiritual awareness

🚫 Weak self-control

Instead of eating more, they prayed more. Instead of sleeping after meals, they cried in sujood. Instead of indulging, they disciplined themselves.

Here’s something beautiful:

Even when they had food, they often gave it away.

The Holy Quran describes the people of Taqwa:

❝They feed others despite their own hunger, saying, ‘We only feed you for the sake of Allah; we desire no reward or thanks from you.’❞ 

(Surah Al-Insan: 8-9)

This was their mindset:

They felt happier seeing someone else eat than eating themselves.

They sacrificed their own food so that someone else wouldn’t sleep hungry.

They believed that feeding others would bring eternal rewards in the Hereafter.

What a contrast to us! We often worry about whether our plate has enough, while they worried about whether someone else’s plate was empty.

SubhanAllah sitting at a fancy restaurant, but you know there’s a royal feast waiting for you later.

Would you waste your appetite on ordinary food? Of course not!

That’s exactly how these great souls viewed worldly pleasures.

They didn’t want to fill themselves up here because they knew the real feast was waiting in Jannah.

They believed that every pleasure enjoyed here reduces the rewards of the Hereafter.

They saw the luxuries of this world as incomplete and wanted to experience the perfect ones in the next life.

That’s why they chose to remain hungry here—so they could feast there.

The Prophets, Companions, and Aulia Allah understood something we forget:

❝The body needs food, but the soul needs hunger.❞

They weren’t just hungry for food.

They were hungry for Allah’s love.

They were hungry for spiritual closeness.

They were hungry for the eternal rewards of the Hereafter.

Because at the end of the day, the real hunger we should fear is not the hunger of the stomach…

It’s the hunger of a heart that has forgotten its Creator.

● FJ 13.3.25

Breath Warrior

 Breath warrior (non-violent warrior mentality)

The warrior culture is to be strong enough to be kind and compassionate,and forgiving! (,to maintain equinimity that is impervious to external circumstances)

Breathe through everything that life. throws your way. When things are not going your way ,catch your breath! (cling to your breath)

A breath warrior uses the instrument of breath to overcome all life's difficulties   .It enables one to go on living! To cope,to endure-- desire anything       .(Difficulties give. meaning and. purpose to life!!) One's breath is the source of energy, strenght,endurance, security ( Breath is God's armour! ),and fulfillment. 

Breath work is the core of many meditation practices!   The practice of maintaining the focus of one's awareness on one's breath is a very effective method of managing stress.Breathing is calming.,stabilizing. Best way to regain control of one's emotions is to focus on one's breath!  Regulating one's breathing ( by breathing slowly,deeply,regularly) normalizes one's inner state.

The way to "stay calm and soldier on" is to keep one's focus always on one's breath under all circumstances!  Focusing on one:s breath makes one very,very strong/powerful ! The external world cannot conquor such a one; he overcomes  the world! The world seems to fall into place.

Keeping one,,'s attention focused internally upon one's breath keeps one anchored/grounded.         It is an effective method for  regulating and staying in control of  one's inner thoughts and emotions.( inner world of Anxiety,fear,anger and negative thought.) .Self-control.

Everything  in the world (both inner and outer)clamors for our attention wch can leave one frazzled/,scattered...if one does not know what. is truely worthy. of our attention! Keeping one's attention internally on one's breath keeps one unshakeably  grounded/anchored.

There is only one Truth/Reality we can be sure of ::  "breathing in and breathing out"!

Its a lucky charm that one always has recourse to! It  induces a magical mindset.  (a feeling of confidence and inviolability)---a feeling of being blessed---every day is a blessing; each breath is a blessing  (grateful to the point of feeling joyful) Blissed out!

Point of contact between man and God

 

Point of contact between man and God

In man is a point of contact with God. Knowing this nexus point allows one direct. personal. contact with God.It is a means of communing with God

It is a highly effective stress management technigue. It enables one to remain calm under pressure . That is, to keep one's cortisol, adrnalin, blood pressurre, and heartrate down! 

It enables one to calm the body and remain centered and grounded....even in times. of utter  chaos and intense suffering

. Under conditions of overwhelming life stress (wch drives others to drink,substance abuse  ,etc.; drugs benefit people cope with anxiety, stress,psychic pain,economic hardship, and mental health issues), this becomes one's go-to source of security and fulfillment(strenght and endurance in the face of hardship ).....until it becomes one's exclusive source of security and fulfillment!

It is like walking through !life protected by a force field (armor of God)

It is a source of comfort and stability in an ever-changing unstable world.Everything outside onecan be lost , but the world cannot take away that wch is inside one.

It enables one to deal with the demands and burdens of everyday life with calm and focused energyy!

Meditation on shabd,allows one to experience oneself as enerrgy/spirit rather than as a material body ---the same energy that makes up the whole of creation!

Meditation on shabd, enables one to experience one's material body as. energy ---the energy that makes up the whole universe! The energy experienced within is coextensive with the energy that makes up the whole univerrse.It is all one unified continuem of onenesss .  https://fb.watch/pgfyvzli6N/?mibextid=Nif5oz

Every night I attune myself with that energy wch inhabits and animates (gives life to) this body...  This is the life force without sch the body is just an inanimate corpse.

Embracing this identity generates the delusion of immortality (eternal life)

...for energy can't be destroyed

But the energy itself is inanimate and senseless ,and it is only through its association with a material body that sensation and awareness emerges..Disassociation/death results in a. loss of. awareness.

The breathless state is accompanied by a massive release of neurotransmitters within the brain wch is subjectively experienced as cosmic consciousness or enlightenment/Samadhi

https://fb.watch/pgfyvzli6N/?mibextid=Nif5oz

#near death experience ("dying while living") 

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One who has not freed himself from the world and worldly attachments cannot progress in Na'am . One's attention is. continuously being pulled outward by the allure ments of the world.   Unless one receives the gift of.Naam , the outer world is the only. source of security  and fulfillment that we know!

 Only Na'am has the power to draw our attention inward. (Na'am is an inner experience, and cannot be realized by outward pursuits.) Attachment to Na'am frees one from bondage to the material world. Henceforth one obtains one's security and fulfillment  exclusively from the experience of Naam.

It is not sufficient to withdraw one's attention from the external world of sense experience,and focus one's attention on the internal world of the mind. The contents of the mind are. filled with our attachments to the external world.

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To define is to limit ,and since the Truth/God  is illimitable,..it remains undefined.(but not unknowable!). God cannot be demarcated. But can be experienced through Nam!

Nam is the energy (the life force)that enlivens everything that lives! Its primal manifestation is as sound and light. It is the primordial form of God

The saints achieved a direct inner contact with this Truth/Godhead within the Holy Temple of the human body.(by becoming adepts in the practice of Nam). Nam is the link (point of conntact) betweeen man and God.

Through the practice of Nam ( Surat Shabd Yoga) is the means of contacting the life current that creates,sustains,and controls creation.

One who has not freed himself from the world and worldly attachments cannot progress in Na'am . One's attention is. continuously being pulled outward by the allure ments of the world.   Unless one receives the gift of.Naam , the outer world is the only. source of security  and fulfillment that we know! Only Na'am can free one from this dependence on the World.          Without Na'am one remains entangled in mind and. matter.Without this soul food (water of life,bread of life) one cannot detach from the world and remains slave to mind and senses.. . Absorbed in Na'am One becomes dead to all outside allurements/enjoyments  and loses all other appetites/desires. The love of the world drops off automaticaly with concentrated meditation on Naam.

 Only Na'am has the power to draw our attention inward. (Na'am is an inner experience, and cannot be realized by outward pursuits.) Attachment to Na'am frees one from bondage to the material world. Henceforth one obtains one's security and fulfillment  exclusively from the experience of Naam.  Shabd renders all worldly pleasures insipid and makes one a renunciate.

.The trouble is that everyone holds the conviction (clings to the delusion)that the outer world is the only reality and the only source of fulfillment. Without constant association with a Godman/saint (a master soul is one who is ever in contact with Naam; i.e ever absorbed within ) one cannot breakout of this delusion , and cannot lose the desire for worldly pleasures. He alone can explain the theory and provide a. practical demonstration of the Reality within.I.E. grant the experience of Naam! (knowledge of Self and knowledge of God).A master soul is one who can make known/manifest/audible the hidden Sound Current. He connects our awareness with the lowest level of hearing. of the Sound Cuurrent. This connection can then be developed by wholehearted  day-to-day practice/concentration.  It grows gradually with training and guidanve!  It is the place all men turn to when they are in distress and the world becomes a vale of tears!  Only Na'am is trustworthy! 

It is not sufficient to withdraw one's attention from the external world of sense experience,and focus one's attention on the internal world of the mind. The contents of the mind are. filled with our attachments to the external world..Our attention is ever flowing outward into the world and finds no interest in the Sound Current/Monotone .*                                                                          * "And there are they wch are sown among thorns,such as hear the Word..but the cares of the world, the deceitfullness of. riches ,and the lusts of other things entering in. choke  the Word and it.becomes unfruitful" --Mark 4  4-9.   14-20.                                                                             Doubt and distrust prevent most  from breaking out of bondage to the world.                                                 As long as the mind is in a continual state of flux and. unrest and is filled with thoughts of I-am-ness (egotism) ,it cannot catch the subtle and sublime  sound of Shabd nor acquire any love for it.  Unable to detach our attention from the world ,we cannot give our attention fully to the Sound within.  In the realm of mind and matter one remains prey to sorrow and affliction.

Total absorption in Na'am is the only escape from the ocean of delusive matter. It is the only means of salvation. The goal is to reach a state where thought is absent (stillnesss/ the ever-restless mind is subdued/subjugated ,and one is not moved by any form of allurement. (worldly pleasures)(not  deluded by the plurality of form/materialism  and dualisic distinctions of cognition )

Na'am is the essential aid in stilling the mind and purifying it of all impurities. This vital chord (primordial vibration) enables the spirit to transcend the physical plane and enter the higher spiritual planes where is the home of the Father/Beloved(Kingdom of God).                           Without Na'am all forms of worship anf religious practices are delusion.

Attuned within one can feel the vibration of Na'am permeating  every pore of one's body!              It reverberates within each one of us.(resounding in the temple of all living creatures).              . Naam is the presence and power of God (wch can be heard) within!

Shabd is the connecting link between God and man..and reunites us to our Source.                 Shabd is eternal/I'mperishable  and takes one beyond the confines of the body. Thereby. one loses all fear of death/dissolution. By merging with Shabd one attains eternal life.     Shabd is an eternal call for our return home. It is our true Identity!

   What is the effect of religiously listening to this sound? Of total absorption in this sound?    How is this practice different from attending to the sense data accessed through any other sensory modality?

How do we interpret this  sound? What meaning/value. do we ascribe to this sound/shabd?

Why have the meditation adepts (who achieve total immersion in the sound) attributed such positive meaning/value to this sound? Why is this sound worthy of reverence/worship?

It is the spiritual guide(priest/sage) who imbues this neutral sound with beauty,value, sacredness, indeed divinity (the highest significance).----a treasure of immense value and ultimate meaningfulness! Wch is the truth of who we are and ultimate reality!

Experiencing oneself as pure and perfect energy.  dispels the illusion of materiality foisted upon us by our outwardly focused senses.

Meditating on shabd is an effective means  of taming the unruly mind...and creating serenity and purity of mind

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’THE ONLY THING NECESSARY FOR EVIL TO TRIUMPH IS FOR GOOD MEN TO DO NOTHING’ --EDMUND BURKE

Freedom of Speech?

In 1953,at a New York Press Club, John Swinton,Chief of Staff for the New York Times made the following statement:

"There is no such thing in America as an independent press. You know it,and I know it. There is not one of you who dares to write your honest opinions,and if you did, you know beforehand that it would never appear in print.I am paid weekly for keepng my honest opinion out of the paper I am connected with.Others of you are paid similar salaries for similar things,and any of you who would be so foolish as to write honest opinions would be out on the streets looking for another job.If I allowed my honest opinions to appear in one issue of my newspaper,before twenty four hours my occupation would be gone.
The business of the journalists is to destroy the truth;to lie outright;to pervert;vilify;to fawn at the feet of mammon,and to sell his country and his race for his daily bread. You know it and I know it,and what folly is this toasting an independent press! We are the tools and vassals of rich men behind the scenes. We' re the jumping jacks, they pull the strings and we dance. Our talents ,our possibilities and our lives are all the property of other men. we are intellectual prostitutes"

A US Police Action:Operation Vampire Killer,The American Citizens and Laumen Association,pp 18,19

The secret to happiness: blessed/happy is he who counts his blessings!

Improving the quality of one's life


One's attitude determines the quality of one's life. If you want to improve the quality of your life, accumulating more money or more material possessions isn't going to do it.But improving your attitude will!

Heaven (and happiness) is not a place to get to ,but a way of seeing the place you're at.It is an internal process that is a matter of choice--of shifting focus and feeling grateful even in the midst of seemingly discouraging circumstances (hardship).
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Date: Wed, 26 Apr 2006 09:28:25 -0700 (PDT)
From: "bill dality"
Subject: It's Spring!
To: tomas



It's a beautiful time of the year here.All plant life has awakened and come to life again---fruit trees blossoming and leafing out, flowers blooming,grass green again.
It's Spring!
I am occupied with planting the garden,yardwork, and going to market on weekends.

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The more difficulties one encounters in one's life, the more one developes an appreciation for one's breath as a source of security,strength, comfort,and fulfillment,and as a means of balancing all one's energy . By maintaining the focus of one's attention on one's breath one can block out all other unwanted sensations and remain centered even under the most difficult circumstances.

In the womb the child is totally self-sufficient and experiences no threat from it's environment.Proprioceptive sensory input (i.e. sensory input of internal origin)provides security and comfort because of it's constancy and stability.After birth our attention is drawn outward and much of the sensory stimuli wch are of internal origin are filtered out and disregarded as being unimportant and not worthy of attention.As we form greater attachment and dependence upon sensory stimuli from the external environment we cease to value sensory stimuli from our internal environment as a valid source of fulfillment and security.When our internal biorhythms become entrained to the chaos of ever-changing external stimuli--this is a recipe for disintegration.We are at the mercy of external forces and circumstances over wch we have no control.
Sensory stimulation is a nutrient wch promotes the development of specific loci in the brain.Thus the kind/modalty of sensory input wch we value and give our attention to ,directly affects the development of our brain not just during the formative period of gestation but throughout adult life as well.
We continuosly build our own brain by what we give our attention to.
Man cannot know God until he constructs a brain (or rather a neural network within the brain) by wch God can be known!

Through meditation on and absorption in Naam , one purifies the mind, frees oneself from the confusion of duality, and diminishes one's dependence on the external world(as a source of fulfillment).That is, one frees oneself from addiction to the external environment .

Again and again we turn our back on our breath and give our attention to the world for fulfillment ,wch again and again betrays our trust and destroys all that we give our love to (all that we love)
It is difficult to let go of something so beautiful as the world...unless one finds something of even greater beauty.Then one readily relinquishes that wch is of lesser value.

Joy is the portion of those whose hearts are turned away from the world and who have no worldly possessions/attachments.They really enjoy this world ,because it cannot cause them any sorrow/loss nor separate them from God.The one object of their desire is God alone.

There is a prevalent cultural misconception in our society that success and fulfillment comes from the acquisition of wealth.This despite numerous studies showing that wealth is not an indicator of happiness.
I was fortunate to learn that money does not make one happy. The secret to happiness lies in counting one's blessings--in cultivating one's capacity for appreciation/love and an "attitude of gratitude".--that is ,the amassing of "spiritual wealth".
Supposing for a moment that you worshipped money/wealth,...would you not be overjoyed to win a lottery!?
Well it just happens that we have won the biggest lottery in the universe --by virtue of the fact that we are breathing.We have paid nothing to obtain this life.
So why are we not overjoyed to simply be alive!?
Why do we not realize the immense value of what we have been given?
Why is breathiing not paradise enough!?
It is wonderfully ironic that this simplest Truth turns out to also be the greatest Truth!
If we are not filled to overflowing with joy,the deficiency lies not in any lack other than our failure to use our capacity to appreciate all that we have been given!
Each day a million miracles go unnoticed and unappreciated for lack of attention.
"There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the gtround--let the beauty we love be what we do" --Rumi ...for what we do will determine what we become!
If we are alive we are a miracle—we are the result of that one gold medal swimmer who has beaten out millions of other contenders for the coveted prize of first place at the egg.
Conception and birth are miracles. Then there are all the moment-by-moment miracles wch sustain this life.In our bodies we digest food and grow. We repair ourselves…all unconscious acts. We maintain our blood pressure and temperature. We accomplish great feats on a daily basis.We need to remind ourselves of our greatness—to pay attention to all the great things we do every day . If we were to take the time to write down all the fantastic things we have accomplished in our life we would quickly come to appreciate our greatness.
We spend so much of our lives focusing our attention on and pursueing what we don’t have and ignoring all that we do have—such as life and breath!
Stop to tell yourself that you already have everything essential—that you are already great!
Gratitude is the mother of joy!
Ingratitude is the greatest sin!
The greatest wealth within us is the power of appreciation!
Without this capacity nothing would be of any value!
"Worship" is the attribution of worth and value to an object.

see "Breathing as Worship"

I had "discovered" a truth about life that was previously concealed to me and to most other people. And once I discovered this new reality, I was able to do things and accomplish things with a greater degree of success and efficiency, not to mention much less STRESS!

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There is no salvation for the soul But to fall in love. It has to creep and crawl Among the Lovers first. (Only through love can ego and pride be eliminated.Love dissolves the boundaries of identities so that we can no longer distinquish between self and the beloved.

Only Lovers can escape From these two worlds. This was written in creation.

Only from the Heart can you reach the sky. The Rose of Glory can only be raised in one's Heart.

-- Rumi
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http://onetruename.com/

To pursue a purely intellectual understanding of God is like trying to see with your ears. That which is without color or form, unlimited and unfathomable, beyond imagination, without beginning or end, is impossible to conceive with the mind. When it comes to knowing God, the mind is blind and will always be. But there is a way to intuit with the inner self and recognize with the heart. This is the message of the mystic poets, who see the relationship between a seeker and God as the same as between a lover and their Beloved. They emphasize the importance of consistent remembrance, treating all with respect, and a simple faith. Their love of God awakens in the heart a yearning to rise up and touch the ocean of Oneness, to be consumed in the transcendental fire, to die in Love and be reborn anew.
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Repeat the Name of Allah, O Bahu, and free yourself from the worries of life.

Those who enshrine the Lord in their hearts, O Bahu, have both the worlds at their command.

-- Hazrat Sultan Bahu

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The mystical traditions of all religions share the common goal of enligtenment--to understand the true nature of Self.

Our eyes are always looking outward. We are always looking/turned away from our selves,always looking outside of our self,always facing the wrong way.
we've all been taught to look outside ourselves for our sustenance and our fulfillment. We've come to believe that all of life's rewards /promise lies outside of ourselves ,become attached to external physical objects thinking them to be the only possible source of fulfillment/happiness.
to know oneself (to discover who you are)one has to turn around and face inward.When we reverse the direction of our attention from outward to inward we become aware of an energy that permeates our body--the energy that keeps our physical body alive,that moves our breath,our thoughts ,our muscles and enables all the functions that a living being is capable of.
Ordinarily this energy --wch is nothing less than the life within us--is not given much of our awareness/attention.
But when we experience this inner energy directly within inside our self,and allow it to guide our life
we experience the fulfillment (the radiance and joy) that we have always yearned for and have always sought /looked for outside ourself--where it could not be found/experienced!
You realize that the entire universe is made of this primordial energy(indeed nothing else/other exists:this is the mystic experience of "Oneness") and that It is not confined to the body,but is unlimited (co-extensive with the universe) and eternal(deathless). You realize/recognize this spiritual energy is your essential Self/nature,and it is you who are reflected everywhere--that is,it is your own reflection that passes before you all the time.
This knowledge can only be gained during the short time one inhabits a living human body.

As long as one fears death ,one remains identified with(attached to ) that wch is perishable and subject to dissolution (the body).A drop of water upon merging with the ocean gives up it's individual identity and becomes the ocean.At the moment of death we must relinguish our attachment to our body and surrender ourselves to the ocean of the universe.