Exploring the life and writings of Sufi women in this time of Ramadan
The first August full moon rises on Thursday 2nd
Theme: Exploring the life and writings of Sufi women in this time of Ramadan
This them will help us to remember the struggle on the path of Divine Unity and the benefits of fasting. Rabe’ah was a leader among the Sufis in their elementary stage. “In the ecstatic heights of her love of God, Rabe’ah even forgot to love His Prophet and to curse Satan. Thus, when asked “Do you love God?” she replied, “Yes.” And further that “God’s love leaves me no time to curse Satan.”
The ecstatic praise of her in the Conference of Birds echoes these sentiments :
“No, she wasn’t a single woman
But a hundred men over:
Robed in the quintessence of pain”
On another level Omm Hayyan Salmiyah was said by Abu Khaldah to have immense perseverance in maintaining the night vigil and prayers. “When she stood for prayers in the neighbourhood mosque, she was so thin that she trembled like a date-palm in the breeze.”
Think about: ascetism, fasting, renunciation, righteousness, soul growth, liberation. A woman who through her religious practices changed your life forever.
Bring: something of an Islamic flavour, a scarf, a song, a poem (Rumi is a Sufi poet), a morsel of food, a flower, a dance.