By - Shaykh Tauqeer Chaudhary (db) Saturday, September 28, 2013
All praise is for Allah ta'ala, and may the blessings of Allah ta'ala be upon our beloved Prophet (peace be upon him). We thank Allah 
for His continuous blessings that He is showering on weak people like us. The tawfeeq (ability) of publishing another edition of Nisbah is a huge blessing of Allah ta'ala, and we thank Him with the core of our hearts, with a hope that He will increase us in His blessings and accept us for the service of His beautiful religion.
As mentioned in the foreword of the last edition that in order to develop oneself, one should take a Shaykh (spiritual guide) and then there are four key things that one has to have in the connection with their Shaykh to get maximum benefit;
1. Love and Trust (Mahabbah)
2. Facilitating him in serving the religion of Allah ta'ala (Khidmah)
3. Informing him of one’s spiritual state (Ittila’)
4. Following his advices (Ittiba’)
It was mentioned that one has to have complete trust and love for one’s Shaykh, so that there is focus and direction, and so that one takes on the advices imparted by the Shaykh into one’s live and not follow his own desires.
The next principle in this process is called Khidmah.
The main reason for all our spiritual downfalls is our ego, our lower self, called Nafs (lower self ) The nafs has to be subdued so that the self desires can be controlled and the sacred law is completely implemented in one’s life. Whoever subdues his nafs and humbles himself down, it comes in the hadith that Allah ta'ala will give him the spiritual uplift he needs.
من تواضع لله رفع الله
Whoever humbles himself for Allah, Allah will raise him up
One of the ways to subdue the nafs is to exhort oneself in serving Allah , be it in the way of worship, or serving the cause of Allah ta'ala through any means, physically or financially. This, when combined by taking the Shaykh in the path of spiritual development, means serving the Shaykh (khidmah) and facilitating him in his efforts. This has a profound effect on one’s development. Our mashaikh (spiritual masters) have said that you get paradise by worship, but you get Allah ta'ala by khidmah. All of our pious predecessors have spent time in doing the khidmah of their Shaykh.
This sunnah goes back all the way back to the time of the Prophet (peace be upon him). The mother of Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) brought him to the Prophet (peace be upon him) for his service when he was only ten years of age. Imagine the heart of a mother, who normally can never see her child go out of her sight at such a tender age, but her love for her Shaykh, the Prophet (peace be upon him), was so much that she wanted to serve him physically as well along with other means, which could only be done by a male, and her son was all that she could offer. The Prophet (peace be upon him) was so happy with her thought that he made three duas (supplication) for Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him). He said, ‘May Allah ta'ala bless his age, his children and his wealth’. Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him), who received the title of ‘Khaadimu Rasulillah’ (Servant of the Prophet of Allah ta'ala) after that, said that Allah ta'ala accepted all three duas,“I was one of the last sahaba (companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him)) to pass away, I saw more than a hundred children and grandchildren with my own eyes, and I got so much wealth that I used to break the bricks of gold with my own hands.”
The second benefit that khidmah brings alongside humbling oneself down, is to earn the dua (supplication) of the shaykh. What better dua can raise the spiritual state of a person, than the dua of a person of Allah for him. The three young companions, the three Abdullahs, who used to be in the service of the Prophet (peace be upon him) all the time and also learning from him at the same time, received duas of the Prophet (peace be upon him) in his tahajjud (last portion of the night) prayers. As a result, Abdullah Bin Masood 
became Imam ul Fuqaha (leader of the jurists), Abdullah Bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) became Imam ul Mufassireen (leader of the scholars of the explanation of Quran), and Abdullah Bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) became Imam ul Muhaddi’thin (leader of the scholars in the science of Prophetic narrations).
The third benefit, along with many others, that the khidmah of the Shaykh brings, is that he gets the share in all the service that the Shaykh is doing in the cause of Allah ta'ala. All the good that may come out as a result of the work of the Shaykh, he will get reward for that as well, thus elevating his spiritual state. The Prophet (peace be upon him) has said,
الدال على الخير كـفاعله
Helping in a good cause is as he has done that act
I have not been able to do enough khidmah of my Shaykh, but I encourage all on the path of spirituality, who are serious to develop themselves, to not let go of any opportunity. If somebody gets such an opportunity, take it as a blessing of Allah ta'ala, and be at the forefront of grabbing it than letting it go. It is indeed a favor of Allah ta'ala on us if He gives us any opportunity of khidmah. It’s a sign that His mercy awaits us as we walk on this path towards Him.
Tauqeer Chaudhary
On behalf of the beautiful students of Nur ul Ilm Academy
Saturday, Sep 28th, 2013 | Dhu al-Qa’da 22, 1434 H
