Sufi Way: Building Up Character

[Vetus Ordo]

Excellent talk on building up character by Sheykh Nurjan Mirahmadi.

The good sheykh teaches us that this material world, the dunya, is continuously trying to drag us down and to change our characters in order to bind us to the temporal realm. The childish characters are those which see everything wrong in something or someone. However, true adulthood is to walk into an environment that is filled with cracks and being able to see the good in it. The propensity to find something wrong in everything is the worst of characters: finding the beauty in things and people is the best of characters and the goal of the God-fearing man.

Indeed, the one who does not have the peace that comes from knowing the truth is perpetually wrestling with himself and others. The one who knows the truth, lives it.

Shaykh Nurjan Mirahmadi has taught and traveled extensively throughout the world from Uzbekistan to Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Cyprus, Argentina, Peru, and North America. He teaches the spiritual sciences of Classical Islam, including meditation (tafakkur), subtle energy points (lata’if), Islamic healing, the secrets of letters and numbers (ilm huroof), disciplining the self (tarbiyya), and the process of self-realization (ma’arifat). He teaches the Muslim communities, the prophetic ways of being kind, respectful and live in harmony with people. He emphasis on good manners and respect, and often reminds his students that the spiritual journey begins from within and “You can’t give what you don’t have.”

One of Shaykh as-Sayyid Nurjan’s greatest accomplishments has been the worldwide dissemination of the spiritual teachings of Classical Islam through his books and online presence. The Prophet Muhammad [s.a.w.] has told us, “Speak to people according to their levels.” In an era of social media, Shaykh as-Sayyid Nurjan’s ability to reach a new generation of spiritual seekers through the Internet has been remarkable. His NurMuhammad.com website alone has over 1,000 unique visitors each day, and since its inception has seen more than 150,000 downloads of the book “Dailal Khairat”, 1,150,000 free downloads of Naqshbandi Muraqabah, and another 500,000 downloads of the Naqshbandi Book of Devotions (Awrad), as well as many more articles. As of Sept 2015, his Facebook pages “Shaykh Sayed Nurjan Mirahmadi” and “Nur Muhammad” combined have over 200,000 likes. Furthermore, his YouTube Channel “The Muhammadan Way” has over 1 million views, and his Google page, Shaykh Sayed Nurjan Mirahmadi has over 2.7 million views.

Shaykh Mirahmadi focuses on the worldwide social media presence working on ways to bring knowledge to all seekers around the world. In 2015 he launched an Online University called SimplyIman.org, to spread these traditional Spiritual Islamic teachings even further and make it accessible to all seekers around the world.

[Croix de Fer]

Excellent talk on building up character by Sheykh Nurjan Mirahmadi.
[...]

This guy rejects the Divine Incarnation of Jesus Christ and the Holy Trinity.

And every spirit that dissolveth Jesus, is not of God: and this is Antichrist, of whom you have heard that he cometh, and he is now already in the world. ~ 1 John 4:3

Haydock Catholic Bible commentary:

Ver. 3. That dissolveth Jesus, viz. either by denying his humanity or his divinity. (Challoner) --- This is antichrist;[2] i.e. such is the spirit of antichrist, of whom you have heard that he cometh, or is to come in the latter times. --- And he is now already in the world, not the chief and great antichrist, but his precursors, in whom he may be said to come. (Witham) --- And he is now already in the world. Not in his person, but in his spirit and in his precursors. (Challoner)
https://web.archive.org/web/20170724223612/http://haydock1859.tripod.com/id278.html

[Greg]

In my experience most people I meet have something wrong with them.

Look at the 90% of Catholics contracepted.

The 66% of Irish who voted for abortion.

The 98% of covidiots wearing masks against something no more lethal than flu.

So the sheykh is an optimist.

The Islamic world is really screwed up. Corrupt as hell.

[The Theosist]

Surely we can't carry out Jesus commandment without finding the good in another person.

Indeed, the one who does not have the peace that comes from knowing the truth is perpetually wrestling with himself and others. The one who knows the truth, lives it.

But often living the truth calls for wrestling with oneself and others. Our existence in this world is a struggle, and we wouldn't be here in the first place if we weren't meant to struggle.

[Vetus Ordo]

In my experience most people I meet have something wrong with them.

Look at the 90% of Catholics contracepted.

The 66% of Irish who voted for abortion.

The 98% of covidiots wearing masks against something no more lethal than flu.

So the sheykh is an optimist.

The Islamic world is really screwed up. Corrupt as hell.

The sheykh's point is not that we cannot identify the faults in others.

The point is that in order to build up a good character, one's priority is not to dwell on the cracks of a given vessel but on its whole as a creation of God. If we merely focus on the faults and sins of one's neighbors and enemies, it's a destructive approach that produces no spiritual growth.

But often living the truth calls for wrestling with oneself and others. Our existence in this world is a struggle, and we wouldn't be here in the first place if we weren't meant to struggle.

To a certain point, yes.

But truth must bring about tranquility of mind and soul. It is the serenity of the saints: good manners, good character, a quiet spirit and a loving heart.

[Greg]

[
The sheykh's point is not that we cannot identify the faults in others.

Of course we can.

Michael Voris, Fr. Corapi, the Resistance, Fr. Pfiffer, Tracy and Quis, Laura.

Many of us saw their faults accurately, predicted what would happen and it happened.

I get paid by companies to interview their potential salespeople and salesdirectors and filter out the crap people.  I am almost never wrong.

[Croix de Fer]

But truth must bring about tranquility of mind and soul.

This is subjectivism. Man's "truth" usually isn't God's truth, which is why He sends people the operation of error, to believe lying (2 Thessalonians 2:10). Most people who think they're tranquil are deluded. It's artificial.

It is the serenity of the saints: good manners, good character, a quiet spirit and a loving heart.

More neo-hippie, docile, domesticated humanism.
The serenity of the saints is of the Holy Ghost: to know, love & serve God with all their strength and mind, professing Jesus Christ even during violent opposition, to speak the inconvenient truth which is an act of charity, and to fear not.

[Graham]

The trouble with this advice is it means everything and nothing. I have always found that people with better character are discerning about who they spend time with and are not too free with their praise.

[Vetus Ordo]

The sheykh's point is not that we cannot identify the faults in others.

Of course we can.

Michael Voris, Fr. Corapi, the Resistance, Fr. Pfiffer, Tracy and Quis, Laura.

Many of us saw their faults accurately, predicted what would happen and it happened.

I get paid by companies to interview their potential salespeople and salesdirectors and filter out the crap people.  I am almost never wrong.

Yes but this time you misread my post.

[TheReturnofLive]

This talk gave me the unquenchable urge to stick a knife into the corner of my eye to make it pop out.

[Vetus Ordo]

This talk gave me the unquenchable urge to stick a knife into the corner of my eye to make it pop out.

A fitting evangelical response to a perceived occasion of sin.

[TheReturnofLive]

This talk gave me the unquenchable urge to stick a knife into the corner of my eye to make it pop out.

A fitting evangelical response to a perceived occasion of sin.

Well, I get a similar urge to self-flagellate whenever I see a Franciscan, and I get an urge to sacrifice children to snake deities whenever I see an illegal Mexican immigrant

[Greg]

one's priority is not to dwell on the cracks of a given vessel but on its whole as a creation of God.

How do you view a predatory paedophile as a creation of God?  And why would Jesus want them drowned in the depths of the ocean with a millstone around their necks if it were merely "cracks in the vessel?"

An abortionist who for decades disposes of baby parts.  Or has a baby born alive and murders the baby.  Or sells body parts for medical experiments.

Stalin who killed 40 million people.  Those are just cracks?

Jihadists who kidnap and rape Yazidi children.  We are not suppose to dwell on that but try to find the good in these Jihadists?

In your wished-for world there would be no disincentive to sin.  Everyone would pat you on the head and try to find the good in you.

In my world punishment from the age of 2 would be swift, harsh and effective.  People often comment to me after Mass that my children are the best behaved kids in mass they have ever seen, completely quiet and sitting still, and I reply, "of course, because if they were not I would beat them".  They laugh like I am joking, but I am not joking.

Parents now are weaker than dishwasher.

I don't need to beat my kids very often because the mere threat that I would, and severely if needed, appropriate to their age and gender is enough.  They are told to be quiet and respectful in Church and what Papa says goes.

The way to raise good children is to watch for cracks when they start forming and come down on those cracks hard, heavy and force the child to acknowledge them and repair them.  My teenage son for example does not have a mobile phone and will never have a mobile phone until he leaves home, because he was unable to stick to basic rules about it.  Now he has learned his lesson he has the self-discipline and could probably have a mobile phone, but the punishment will continue for another 3 years at least.

I don't phuck around.  When I punish, I really punish, and that makes the threat of punishment effective.

The best punishment for people is rare, but very harsh, so they remember how painful physically or emotionally it was.  The big crimes should get big punishments.

[The Theosist]

In my experience most people I meet have something wrong with them.

Look at the 90% of Catholics contracepted.

The 66% of Irish who voted for abortion.

The 98% of covidiots wearing masks against something no more lethal than flu.

So the sheykh is an optimist.

The Islamic world is really screwed up. Corrupt as hell.

The sheykh's point is not that we cannot identify the faults in others.

The point is that in order to build up a good character, one's priority is not to dwell on the cracks of a given vessel but on its whole as a creation of God. If we merely focus on the faults and sins of one's neighbors and enemies, it's a destructive approach that produces no spiritual growth.

But often living the truth calls for wrestling with oneself and others. Our existence in this world is a struggle, and we wouldn't be here in the first place if we weren't meant to struggle.

To a certain point, yes.

But truth must bring about tranquility of mind and soul. It is the serenity of the saints: good manners, good character, a quiet spirit and a loving heart.

Indeed, theosis is impossible without this. Though one might return with that spirit enflamed and smash things up, like Elijah. Or Jesus himself.

[The Theosist]

one's priority is not to dwell on the cracks of a given vessel but on its whole as a creation of God.

How do you view a predatory paedophile as a creation of God?  And why would Jesus want them drowned in the depths of the ocean with a millstone around their necks if it were merely "cracks in the vessel?"

An abortionist who for decades disposes of baby parts.  Or has a baby born alive and murders the baby.  Or sells body parts for medical experiments.

Stalin who killed 40 million people.  Those are just cracks?

Jihadists who kidnap and rape Yazidi children.  We are not suppose to dwell on that but try to find the good in these Jihadists?

It doesn't take much looking to find good reason to hate everyone. Yet Jesus has commanded you to love them. Their vileness in this case is a given. Hating them is the easiest thing in the world. Slit their throats, well and good, but it's not something to dwell on, and you're a fool if you do.

In your wished-for world there would be no disincentive to sin.  Everyone would pat you on the head and try to find the good in you.

You misunderstand the talk and the point.

In my world punishment from the age of 2 would be swift, harsh and effective.  People often comment to me after Mass that my children are the best behaved kids in mass they have ever seen, completely quiet and sitting still, and I reply, "of course, because if they were not I would beat them".  They laugh like I am joking, but I am not joking.

Yes, you definitely misunderstand.