Lebanon

Huge procession of Muslims march through downtown Beirut in celebration of the arrival of Shaykh Muhammad Nazim al-Haqqani. Accompanied by drumming and police escort, the great shaykhs of the city escorted Shaykh Nazim, mounted on horseback, up to the city center.

Shaykh Nazim's arrival at the home of a famous Beirut politician.

Shaykh Nazim poses with Dr. Munir Sperling and his son Karam (right) and Sa`ad Kas`ab, UNESCO representative for Northern Lebanon..

In Beirut, Shaykh Nazim gives sohbet with Shaykh Husayn on his right and a Qadiri-Rufa'i Shaykh on his left.

Syria

The Umawi Mosque at sunrise

Bismillahir-Rahman ir-Raheem

Was-salaat was-salaam `ala Rasulullah

Damascus

On May 27^th, I traveled to Damascus from London to meet with Mawlana Shaykh Nazim and his entourage who were making a grand tour of the Middle East. I planned to meet them halfway through the tour, which when completed, had taken our shaykh from Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. When I arrived in Damascus, the first thing that hit me this particular time was when I arrived at Grandshaykh’s Mosque was the wonderful madih I heard blazing from the loudspeaker at a function nearby, filling the whole area with praise of the Prophet (s). It seems like that event colored my whole experience thereafter, filling it with the extraordinary spiritual aura, as if the Prophet (s) and his Sahaba’s presence permeated the very air we breathed, in this one of the most ancient of cities.

It was extraordinary to see people everywhere, many of whom had not seen Mawlana Shaykh Nazim for over 20 years, since his political ban from the country, overflowing with eagerness and joy to see this great saint of Sham ash-Sharif. They turned up in crowds wherever he traveled and surrounded him with love and affection, pouring out their joy and their sorrows to him.

One of the interesting events which took place in the Damascus area is when we traveled to the Christian village of Maaloula, in the heights above the city. Travelling by bus, we climbed the steep canyon of red rock up to the village in about one hour. This village contains one Mosque and only a handful of Muslim families, but such devout people! It is as if living in that community, as the sole trustees of the Faith of al-Islam, had only confirmed and strengthened their faith.

A large madih group and a large group of mashaykh attended in the mosque, in which Mawlana Shaykh Nazim gave a sohbet in Arabic. Many different groups performed lovely madih and qasaid (praising of Prophet Muhammad (s) in verse and song) in Arabic accompanied by the daff, a simple drum. These madih sessions, followed by the noon prayers (salat adh-Dhuhr), were then followed by dhikr in different forms, including the Qadiri, Shadili and Rufa’i. At the end of this session, a Christian priest met with the group and expressed his joy at such a beautiful and spiritually moving event.

The Grand Mufti of Sham, Shaykh Ahmad Kuftaro, received Mawlana Shaykh Nazim as guest of honor at the Jumah at Abou Nur Insitute. There he was greeted by many thousands of people, where he is loved very dearly. It was such that the press of people coming to shake or kiss the hand of the shaykh after the prayers would occupy more than an hour.

The same day other shaykhs also attended the Jumah, and addressed the people before the prayers. Then all joined for a sumptous meal provided by the gracious host, Shaykh Kuftaro.

About an hour from Damascus, Shaykh Nazim visited the maqam of Sayiddina Bayazid al-Bistami (r), the great Naqshbandi grandshaykh. There dhikr was performed at the maqam and lunch was provided for over 200 persons by the hosts who is mushrif of the maqam.

Shaykh Nazim prays for the soul of Grandshaykh Abdullah ad-Daghestani at his maqam on Jal Qasiyun.

Shaykh Nazim leads tasbih after Salat al-Dhuhr at the Mosque of Grandshaykh Abdullah al-Faiz al-Daghestani in Damascus.

The maqam of one of  the many awliya in Damascus.

Mawlana Shaykh Nazim visits
with Shaykh Faruq an-Naqshbandi
in Aleppo.