Nazim al-Qubrusi
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Mehmet Nâzım Adil (Arabic : الشيخ ناظم القبرصي; also known as Sultan-al Awliya Shaykh Mawlana as-Sayyid Khwaja Muhammad Nazim Adil al-Haqqani al-Rabbani al-Qubrusi al-Firdausi an-Naqshbandi (April 23, 1922 - IC: Sha'ban 26, 1340) is the leader of the Naqshbandi-Haqqani Sufi Order.
He (qas) was born in Larnaca, Cyprus, hence the title "Qubrusi," Cypriot. He traces his lineage to the 11th century Sufi Abdul Qadir Jilani and the 13th century Anatolian mystic Jalaluddin Rumi. In both his maternal and paternal grandfathers were sheikhs in the Qadiri and Mevlevi orders respectively. As a child, the young Nazim showed a propensity towards spirituality. His father sent him to school to study secular knowledge during the day, and in the evening he studied Islam at the local maktab, where he learned the basics of Islamic law, jurisprudence, the Hadith, and Qur'anic exegesis.Shaykh Nazim is a spiritual leader of the Naqshbandi golden chain.[1] He is also head of the Naqshbandi Haqqani Sufi Order.
He has also written or dictated many books, some of which have been published by the Islamic Supreme Council of America[2]
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[edit] Biography
After completing secondary school in 1940, at the age of 18 the young Nazim moved to Istanbul where two brothers and a sister were living. He studied chemical engineering at Istanbul University. While advancing in his secular studies, Nazim continued his education in Islamic theology and the Arabic language under the tutelage of Shaykh Cemalettin Elassonli (d. 1955 CE). Nazim received a degree in chemical engineering and he excelled among his colleagues. Yet he would later state, "I felt no attraction to modern science. My heart was always drawn to the spiritual sciences." He later came to master not only his native tongue Turkish, but Arabic, English, German and Greek as well.
At some point during his first year of life in Istanbul, Nazim met his first spiritual guide, Shaykh Suleyman Erzurumi (d. 1948), who was a murshid in the Naqshbandi Order. Sheikh Nazim attended the gatherings of this particular shaykh which were held in the Sultan Ahmet Mosque. Here he learned the basic spiritual methods of the Naqshbandi Order, in addition to those of the Qadiri and the Mevlevi. His focus on spirituality was further reinforced by the unexpected death of an elder brother. Shortly after attaining his degree Sheikh Nazim received inspiration to go to Damascus in order to find the famed Naqshbandi master, Shaykh Abdullah al-Fa'izi ad-Daghestani (1891-September 30, 1973). He obtained permission from Shaykh Erzurumi to leave Istanbul and in 1944 he arrived in Syria, although the unrest caused by the Vichy French government prevented his entry into Damascus until 1945. Upon meeting with the master, whose tekke is located on the slopes of the Jabal Qasyoun, Sheikh Nazim took his hand in bay'ah, or initiation. The young Sheikh Nazim’s mystical faculties were self-evident and he advanced along the Sufi path with great speed.
Shortly thereafter Shaykh Abdullah Daghestani ordered Shaykh Nazim to return to his native Cyprus to deliver spiritual guidance. Shaykh Abdullah also conferred the title of "shaykh" to Sheikh Nazim thus giving him the legitimacy to speak on behalf of the Naqshbandi Order.
While in Cyprus, Shaykh Nazim came into conflict with pro-Atatürk governing body of the Turkish community of the island. His repeated act of making the adhan in Arabic rather than the prescribed Turkish brought several lawsuits against him and there were some 114 cases lodged against him for crimes against the secular order. Nevertheless all these were dropped shortly thereafter with the coming to power of Adnan Menderes in Turkey, whose government opted for a more tolerant approach to Islamic traditions.
Shaykh Nazim moved back to Damascus in 1952, when he was wed to the daughter of one of the murids of Shaykh Abdullah Daghestani, Amina Adil (1929-2004), whose family came to settle in Syria after fleeing Soviet rule of their native Kazan. From that time, Sheikh Nazim took up residence in Damascus, and every year he would visit Cyprus for at least three months. The couple has two daughters and two sons.
[edit] Worldwide mission work
In the year following the passing of his murshid in 1973, Shaykh Nazim began visiting Western Europe, traveling every year from the Middle East to London. On his return trips to Damascus, he would often drive by car through the former Yugoslavia, spending time visiting the Muslim communities there. It became his practice to spend the month of Ramadan in the large center established in London. In 2000 this practice was discontinued due to his advanced age.
In 1997, Shaykh Nazim visited Daghestan, the homeland of his murshid, Shaykh Abdullah Daghestani. He also made repeated visits to Uzbekistan were he made the pilgrimage to the tomb of the eponymous founder of the Naqshbandi Order, Shah Baha'uddin Naqshband (d.1388CE)
In 1991 Shaykh Nazim visited the United States for the first time at the invitation of his khalifa and son-in-law, Shaykh Sayyid Muhammad Hisham Kabbani (married to Hajjah Nazihe Kabbani, Shaykh Nazim's daughter), to officiate the marriage of their son Nour Kabbani. Shaykh Kabbani moved to the US in 1990 and instantiated the Naqshbandi-Haqqani Sufi Order in order to manage the affairs of the Tariqah in the US and the Americas and the Islamic Supreme Council of America to work in educating the American policymakers and public on classical Islam which is based on love, peace, tolerance and the brotherhood of humankind. The Naqshandi-Haqqani-Kabbani Sufi Order of America is a nationally-registered organization and is not related to any other websites or other organizations created by other deputies of Shaykh Nazim (such as Sheykh Abdul Kerim, Sayyid Ahmed Amiruddin etc.)
At that time Shaykh Nazim made the first of four nationwide tours, during the course of which he brought several hundred individuals into the fold of Islam.
In 1993 Shaykh Nazim, at the invitation of Shaykh Kabbani, opened a center in SE Michigan for the purpose of Sufi retreats and activities. Established officially as the Naqshbandi-Haqqani Sufi order the center has since expanded into a mosque and Islamic studies center, located in Burton, Michigan. This visit also included a long traverse of the US and Canada.
In 1996, Shaykh Nazim was guest of honor at the First International Islamic Unity Conference, held in Los Angeles, under the chairmanship of Shaykh Kabbani. Over 8000 people attended this conference which included major Islamic scholars from around the world and whose theme focussed on Islamic Spirituality. Following the conference, as guest of his son-in-law Shaykh Kabbani, Shaykh Nazim visited many parts of the US and Canada, giving talks, association and meetings to people of all faiths and every walk of life. Shaykh Nazim gave widely-attended speeches and associations and Dhikr gatherings in a number of venues, including churches, temples, universities, mosques and New Age centers.
In 1998 Shaykh Nazim was again chief guest of honor at the Second International Islamic Unity Conference, held in Washington DC, under Shaykh Kabbani. Attended by over 6000 people, the highlight of this conference was the ringing denunciation of terrorism by Shaykh Nazim to the 160 Islamic scholars and VIPs from around the world, including the current Grand Mufti of Egypt, Grand Muftis of Russia and neighboring nations and dignitaries from Malaysia, Indonesia, the Middle East and Africa.
Following this conference Shaykh Nazim visited the home and spiritual center of Shaykh Kabbani, as well as traveling to a number of areas, including the East Coast and the Midwest to deliver lectures, associations, Mawlid and Dhikr in universities, mosques and other venues.
Later in 1998, Shaykh Nazim traveled to South Africa, accompanied by Shaykh Kabbani and a large contingent of students from around the globe. There he visited Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban, in each city giving lectures in mosques filled to capacity. He assigned his representative in South Africa to be Dr. Yusuf DaCosta.
In 2001, Shaykh Nazim, accompanied by his khalifa Shaykh Hisham Kabbani and a large group of students, made the 2001 Naqshbandi-Haqqani Eastern World Tour of the Muslim World, starting in Uzbekistan, from where he then traveled to Japan, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. In the course of this journey, Shaykh Nazim met with people of all walks of life, from the highest dignitaries and leaders to the common folk. The Shaykh, despite his advanced age, was able to maintain an incredibly hectic schedule of meetings, speeches, dhikr gatherings and spiritual gatherings with little or no rest for a period of forty days and covering a distance of over 15,000 miles.
Shaykh Nazim made his last trip to the United States in 2000, during which he was invited to speak at a United Nations conference on Religion and Spirituality.
He sent Sheykh Sayyid Abdul Kerim to New York, and Sayyid Ahmed Amiruddin to Toronto, Canada to spread the message of the Naqshbandi Tariqat.
Shaykh Nazim has had close relations with several notable politicians, notably the late president of Turkey, Turgut Ozal as well as the president of Turkish Cyprus, Rauf Denktaş. During his travels in Southeast Asia (which began in 1986) he gave his spiritual blessings to His Majesty Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei, His Highness Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X of Yogyakarta and several members of Malaysia’s royal families including His Highness Prince Raja Dato’ Seri Ashman Shah have taken initiation into the Naqshbandi-Haqqani Order at his hand. He also traveled on numerous occasions to India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka where he has been received with great fanfare. In the late 1990s he visited South Africa where he established contacts with the Sunni Muslim community. Shaykh Nazim has made the pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj) some 27 times.
Due to his advanced age, Shaykh Nazim rarely travels abroad nowadays. He currently resides in his family home in the town of Lefke, Northern Cyprus.
[edit] References
- ^ Bottcher, Dr Annabelle. The Naqshbandiyya in the United States. Retrieved on 2007-06-13.
- ^ Adil Al-Haqqani, Shaykh Nazim (2005), Liberating the Soul, Islamic Supreme Council of America, ISBN 9781930409163, <http://www.play.com/Books/Books/4-/707686/Liberating-the-Soul/Product.html> }}
Classical Islam and the Naqshbandi Sufi Tradition, Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani, Islamic Supreme Council of America (June 2004), ISBN 1930409230.
[edit] External links
- A weekly podcast of Shaykh Nazim's most recent talks - http://www.beforearmageddon.com/
- http://www.hakkanipost.com
- The official website of the Osmanli Naksibendi Hakkani Tarikat - www.naksibendi.org
- The official website of the Naqshbandi-Haqqani Sufi Order under the auspices of a deputy of Shaykh Nazim , Shaykh as-Sayyid Muhammad Hisham Kabbani
- Biography of Shaykh Nazim Al Adil al Qubrusi al Haqqani al Hanafi by Shaykh as-Sayyid Muhammad Hisham Kabbani
- "The Sheikh Nazim Naqshbandi Sufi Center" in New York
- The Naqshabandi Tariqa of Sri Lanka
- Haqqani Mevlevi Tariqah of the Representative of Mevlana Mehmet Jelaluddin Rumi of our time , Shaykh Ahmad Dede , an Indonesian Deputy of Shaykh Nazim in both the Naqshbandi-Haqqani and Mevlevi Tariqahs (Turuqa)
- Italian official web site of the Naqshbandi Sufi Order
- Sufi Personal blog of a student (mureed) of Shaykh Nazim
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