Transcript Rabia al-Adawiyya

Rabia alAdawiyya
8th Century Islamic
mystic
Powerpoint prepared by Ms T. Coyle
• Old houses from Basra
Rabi'a al-Adawiyya is a
major saint of Islam and
was one of the central
figures of the Sufi
tradition. She was born
around 717 A.D. in what
is now Iraq, near the city
of Basra.
She is the most famous
woman saint of classical
Islam.
The founder of Islam, Muhammad, was born in the
Middle East, in Arabia in the 6th Century.
Rabia al-Adawiyya was born in the Middle East, in
Iraq, in the 8th Century.
• Sufis are sometimes called the
Masters of Love because the
Sufi path strives for the ultimate
experience of God. It is a path of
total love and involves
completely overcoming the ego
and the deepest love of God
and others.
• The experience of God’s Divine
Love results in a state of
ecstasy and devotion.
• The ‘fire’ of God’s love
overcomes the ego and the
person is ultimately no longer
separate from God. They are
transformed by God’s Love.
• Poetry has been a revered
art in every world culture, but
this is particularly so
throughout the Islamic world.
This is partly due to the
traditional Islamic restrictions
on art.
• Portrayal of people and
things was largely forbidden.
So the visual arts tended to
focus on rich, elaborate
patterns and calligraphy.
• Much of the Islamic artistic
genius emphasized the
power of words and poetry,
over the visual image.
• Some spiritual poetry composed by
Rabia…….
Brothers, my peace
is in my aloneness
Brothers, my peace is in my aloneness.
My Beloved is alone with me there,
always.
I have found nothing in all the worlds
That could match His love,
This love that harrows the sands of my
desert.
If I come to die of desire
And my Beloved is still not satisfied,
I would live in eternal despair.
To abandon all that He has fashioned
And hold in the palm of my hand
Certain proof that He loves me--That is the name and the goal of my
search.
Rabia al-Adawiyya
My joy
My joy –
My Hunger –
My Shelter –
My Friend –
My Food for the journey –
My journey's End –
You are my breath,
My hope,
My companion,
My craving,
My abundant wealth.
Without You -- my Life, my Love -I would never have wandered across
these endless countries.
You have poured out so much grace for
me,
Done me so many favors, given me so
many gifts -I look everywhere for Your love -Then suddenly I am filled with it.
O Captain of my Heart
Radiant Eye of Yearning in my breast,
I will never be free from You
As long as I live.
Be satisfied with me, Love,
And I am satisfied.
Rabia al-Adawiyya
O my Lord, the
stars glitter
• O my Lord,
the stars glitter
and the eyes of men are
closed.
Kings have locked their
doors
and each lover is alone
with his love.
Here, I am alone with
you.
Rabia al-Adawiyya
THE HOLY WATER
No one lives outside the walls of this sacred place, existence.
The holy water, I need it upon my eyes: it is you, dear, you –
each form…..
……..
Rabia
• The poetic tradition
within Islam is still
very much alive today
and Rabia’s poetry is
still inspiring.
• Islamic poetry has
given us an amazing
bounty of sacred and
mystical poetry from
the Sufi and Muslim
traditions.
Rabia’s poetry reveals her relationship with God. This inspires and
teaches others.
The sole object of Rabi`a's life was bound up in her yearning and
passionate love (shawq) for her Beloved. This is revealed in her
poetry as well as her life story.
She demonstrated, like many other saints and mystics that to become
closer to God means letting go of self-love …….
and loving God more and more. Ultimately this can result in the
destruction of the separate self (nafs).
Rabi’a also taught that the spiritual
path ultimately requires the
surrender to Allah in every moment.
Rabi’a revealed her experience and
her desire – where the goal is
perfect Union with God. This is state
“where there is no Lord and slave,
no Creator and created being, only
He in Himself.”
That is, the person and God are
one.
Mystics like Rabia strive to get
closer and closer to God in every
moment.
In a state of
complete
surrender and
union with God,
she
demonstrated
that life was
lived to its
ultimate levels
when there was
no
separateness
from God.