"Often in our busy lives, we think of spirituality as yet another category we must make time for. Through his deep understanding of the Sufi way, Azim Jamal has put together this special book which allows us to bring spirituality into our everyday lives. Just one of the many powerful concepts here, which you can pick up in literally one minute, can have a profoundly positive effect on your thinking, your actions, and your life."
Victoria Labalme - Internationally Acclaimed Writer-Performer
Who is a Sufi? There are many ways people describe Sufis, and there are many historical facts about Sufis. In reality, their origins are hard to date and to trace. Most research points to sufi as traceable to the Arabic word soof which literally means "wool", referring to the material from which the simple robes of the early Muslim mystics were made.
Sufis feel at ease in all religions. We have Moslem Sufis, Jewish Sufis, Christian Sufis and Sufis from many other religions. Idries Shah, in his book The Sufis, has outlined past Sufi influence on St. Francis of Assisi, the Troubadours, St. Augustine, the Rosicrucians, Maimonides, the Jewish Kabbalah, and a host of other medieval and modern religious movements. Sufis are beyond religion, culture, color, and creed.
Jalaludin Rumi, the 12th Century Sufi master, describes a Sufi aptly in his poem:
"What is the solution, O Moslems: for I do not know myself.
Neither Christian, Jew, Zoroastrian or Moslem am I;
I am not an easterner or a westerner, or of land or sea:
Not of nature or of heaven: not of India, China, Bulgaria, Saqsin.
Not of the Iraqs, nor of the land of Khorasan.
My place is placelessness: my sign is of no sign.
I have no body or life: for I am of the life of life
I have put away duality: I have seen the two worlds as one.
I desire one, I know one, I see one, I call one."
A Sufi is interested in the essence, not the form. He looks at what is inside, not outside. A human being has an outward appearanceŠlooks, clothing, the car we drive, the house we live in, and the money we have. To the Sufi they matter little. It is what is inside youŠyour character and spiritŠthat interests the Sufi. To the Sufi the exoteric forms are an illusion; the reality is the esoteric part.
A Sufi is grounded in ethics and principles. He knows that these principles connect him to his core. He knows that, no matter how much change there is around him, the principles are changeless. They do not changeŠno matter what. These principles provide an anchor for the Sufi. The quest for the Sufi is to listen to his conscience and to follow it in good and trying times. The Sufi knows that he can never get lost following the straight path.
A Sufi is a person of "timelessness" and "placelessness", living in the world but not of the world. He is a mystic who is not a hermit living on the mountain somewhere, but rather one who lives a balanced life, avoiding excessive materialism and striving for spirituality as his core. A Sufi views his or her role as that of an instrument or vessel through which he or she takes with one hand and gives with another. He goes with the flow, living in the moment without losing sight of his vision.
A Sufi is a man or a woman, young or old, black or white, a professional or a homemaker, a Muslim, Christian, Jew, or of any other faith. Labels do not matter to a Sufi.
All these qualities of the Sufi are elaborated in my book, citing Sufi stories, poems, and anecdotes. The focus is on the message, rather than the messenger. So if a message conveyed reflects the Sufi thinking, I have included it as a Sufi message, irrespective of its origin.
Since our lives are becoming busier and faster, we don't have a lot of time to nourish our souls. The One- Minute Sufi dishes up small doses of inspirational Sufi principles, allowing us to reflect subconsciously on them as we go about our daily business. These principles can change the course of an entire dayŠand, gradually, our destiny.
The key message of the book is that it is not how much we read that matters but what we do with what we read that is critical. Moreover, it is through reflection that change takes place. Consequently, the book is designed in such a way that we read for about a minute a day and reflect on the message. To make the best use of the book, read it for a minute a day and reflect deeply on what you have read. Implement what you learn from the reading and reflection right away and, preferably, over the course of the entire day. Practice creates habit and momentum. If you do this regularly, you will notice a marked improvement in your life, and, gradually, you will be well on your way to realizing your destiny. The key to success is the regularity of reflection on and implementation of these one-minute messages.
This book will show how to:
- focus on the essence, not the form
- look beyond religion, culture, color, and creed
- ntegrate the spiritual and the material, so that twenty-four hours of your day are grounded in spirituality
- go with the flow and yet travel in a purposeful direction
- be in the moment and learn from every experience and every encounter
- make a difference every day to others and self
- go to sleep at night eager to wake up, looking forward to another fulfilling day
and having no regrets if you never wake up.
Now, what would we invest to get such help? This is precisely what this book is worth.
Azim Jamal
Vancouver, British Columbia
April 2002
