The First Teaching
First Teaching of Futuhul Ghaib
Biography of Sheikh Abdul Qadir al-Jailani
Sayyid Abu Muhammad Abdul Qadir was born in Naif, in the region of Jilan, Persia, in Ramadan 470 AH, or around 1077 CE. His father, Abu Shaleh, was known for his devotion and traced his lineage to Imam Hasan, the eldest son of Ali ibn Abi Talib and Fatimah al-Zahra. His mother was the daughter of Abdullah Shaumayya, a devout woman descended from Imam Husain. In that sense, Sheikh Abdul Qadir al-Jailani is remembered as carrying the lineage of both Imam Hasan and Imam Husain.
As a scholar, Sheikh Abdul Qadir al-Jailani was known not only for his knowledge but also for the way he lived it out through guidance, legal opinions, and spiritual counsel. Three collections of his teachings became especially well known: Futuhul Ghaib, Fathul Rabbani, and Qasidatul Ghautsiyyah. The book Futuhul Ghaib contains eighty pieces of advice. The passage below presents the first of those teachings:
Three Essential Devotions
There are three things that every believer must guard in every situation:
- carrying out all of God’s commands;
- staying away from what is forbidden;
- accepting God’s decrees with contentment.
These three qualities should never be absent in a believer. A believer should reflect on them, examine himself through them, and let every part of his life be shaped by them.
That is the opening teaching presented in Futuhul Ghaib. May it be beneficial.
