Divine Names Retreat: Ya Nur

Bismillahirahmanirahim

Beloved Community Blessed Nowruz, Blessed Spring Equinox, Blessed approach to the Full Moon of Shaban Night of Forgiveness!

This is the day when Persian people celebrate the New Year, when the light of the sun passes from winter light into Spring and Summer light, the fullness of light. Ya Nur! Ya Nurun ala Nur! Ya Nur al Anwar! Ya Nur Muhammad!

Shaykha Amina wanted our Names Retreat to begin on this day. So let us begin with the Name of Nur! Light! Alhamdulillah!

Allahu!  Light of the heavens and the earth.
The parable of his Light is as if it were a Niche and within it a Lamp,
The Lamp enclosed in glass,
The Glass like a brilliant star,
Lit from a blessed Tree, an Olive, neither of the East
Nor of the West,
Whose oil is luminous, shining,
Without fire having touched it.
Light upon Light!
Allah guides to His Light whom He desires to guide.
Allah sets forth parables for humankind,
And Allah is the Knower of all the essences.
Quran, Light, Nur, Ayat of Light,24: 35

Shaykh Nur’s version of the Ayat of Light in Atom from the Sun of Knowledge page 224

Allah alone is the single Light of Truth that reveals both heavenly and earthly planes of Being. Meditate upon Divine Light manifest as a mystic flame, protected by transparent glass that glistens like a star. This spiritual lamp, placed in a high prayer niche, is kindled from the oil of a transcendent tree, not found in East or West – an oil luminous by nature, needing no spark of material fire. This light of the soul shines forth within Divine Light. Through such profound meditations, Allah Most High guides whomever He wills into His most intimate Light. Allah is Omniscience.

…

There has come to you from Allah a Light and a clarifying Book

Whereby Allah guides all who seek His Pleasure to ways of peace and security, And leads them by His own Desire and Will into the Light, guiding them to a direct Path to Himself.

Quran, Table Set, Maida 5:17-18

The day that Allah will not allow the Prophet and the faithful ones with him to be humiliated. Their light will run forward before them and by their right hands, while they pray: Our beloved Lord, perfect for us our Light and grant us Your forgiveness. Truly Your loving Power is over all beings.

Quran, Holding Forbidden, Tahrim 66:8

The Prayer of Light prayed by Muhammad the Messenger of Light, may he be enveloped by and transformed into Allah’s Light!

O Allah, make light in my heart, light in my tongue, light in my hearing, light in my seeing, light before me, light behind me, light on my right, light on my left, light above me and light beneath me; make light in my sinews, in my flesh, in my blood, in my hair and in my skin, in my nerves, in my bones and in my brain; make light in my soul, increase me always in light; make me entirely light.”

There are different versions of this prayer. You may look it up online to have the Arabic.

Hadith on Original Light of Muhammad, saws, from which everything in the heavens and the earth was created.

It is related that Jābir ibn ‘Abd Allāh (r) said to the Prophet, ‘O Messenger of Allāh, may my father and mother be sacrificed for you, tell me of the first thing Allāh created before all things.’ He said: O Jābir, the first thing Allāh created was the light of your Prophet from His light, and that light remained in the midst of His Power for as long as He wished, and there was not, at that time, a Tablet or a Pen or a Paradise or a Fire or an angel or a heaven or an earth. And when Allāh wished to manifest Creation, he divided that Light into four parts and from the first made the Pen, from the second the Tablet, from the third the Throne, then He divided the fourth into four parts and from them created everything else.

“The Man of Prayer, upon him be peace, remarks: Prayer is Light." 

Atom, Salawat and Hadith, page 185

From Irshad of Muzaffer Effendi, rahmetullah aleyhi

 AN-NUR:  Light

He Who gives light to all the worlds, Who illuminates the faces, minds and hearts of His servants.

Ya NURU:  O Light! Those who invoke this glorious Name will be inwardly enlightened.

Let us repeat the Name Ya Nur 33 times every day this week.