The Naqshbandi Way – The Second Part
For the People of Determination
(l) Getting up one hour or at least one hour before Fajr, since it is at this time that the Gate Of the Mercy of Allah (Who is Powerful and ‘Sublime!) is opened and the time when the Great Shaikhs look at their Murids. One should get up and make wudu’, and then perform two rak’ats of Tahiyyatu’l-Wudu’ and then stand up facing the Qiblah and ask that Allah (Who is self-exalting) purify oneself from the anger of one’s Nafs. And with this intention one should then say: Ya Halim! one hundred times. And then one should seek protection from one’s external and internal enemies, and from both heavenly and earthly misfortunes, saying: Ya Hafiz! one hundred times.
Whoever wishes to reach the Station of the People of Determination (Ahlu’l-‘aza’im) must keep up these practices. And our Sheikh tells us about the importance of this time and its virtue, saying : If a person gets up one hour before Fajr and does nothing, not even praying, not even making Tasbih, but gets up to drink something such as coffee or tea, or to eat a moresel of food, then he must also be raised with the Ahlu’s-sahr (the Vigilant People.)
(2) Then he should stand and pray two Rak’ats Of Salatu’n-Najat (Prayer of Salvation). Reciting in the first Rak’ah: Al-Fatihah, then:
Bismillahi’r-Rahmani’r-Rahim.
Shahidallahu annahu la ilaha illa hu. Wa’l-Mala•ikatu wa ulu’l-‘ilmi qa’imam bi-l-Qist. La ilaha illa huwa’l-‘azizu’l-Hakim. Inna ‘d-Dina ‘indallahi’l-lslam.
And in the second Rak’ah, recite al-Fatihah.
Then : 11 Ikhlas Sharif. (Surah Number 112)
And then after making salams one should make sajdah to Allah ‘Azza wa Jalla with the intention of burying the arfger •of your Nafs and killing the child of the blameful Nafs, and changing reproachable manners into praiseworthy ones.
