Wasiyyat al-Shaykh al-Sulami
- Author died
- 412 AH
- Editions
- Maktabat al-Ṣaḥābah
Wasiyyat al-Shaykh al-Sulami (The Spiritual Testament of Shaykh al-Sulami) is a concise treatise on Islamic ethics, asceticism, and Sufi comportment by the Persian traditionist and Sufi authority Abu Abd al-Rahman al-Sulami (d. 412 AH / 1021 CE) .
Content and Structure
Framed as an epistolary counsel addressed to a spiritual brother, the treatise opens with an exhortation to God-consciousness ( تَقْوَى اللَّه ), absolute reliance upon God ( التَّوَكُّل عَلَى اللَّه ), and the complete renunciation of dependence on created beings, citing early sayings that seeking aid from creatures is like one prisoner seeking deliverance from another .
The work is organized into thematic counsels supported by Quranic verses, prophetic traditions, and maxims from early ascetics and Sufi masters:
- Adherence to the Sunnah and Companionship: Strict emulation of the Prophet's practice, following the righteous predecessors, enjoining good and forbidding wrong beginning with one's own soul, and seeking the company of the righteous while shunning corrupt associates, citing Abu Turab al-Nakhshabi .
- Relations with Rulers and the Affluent: Admonitions against entering the courts of rulers or frequenting affluent and worldly people, warning that gazing at worldly luxury diminishes one's appreciation of divine favors, with reference to sayings by Yahya ibn Mu'adh .
- Spiritual Discipline and Sincerity: Mindful stewardship of time, leaving what does not concern oneself, upholding sincerity ( الإِخْلَاص ) and truthfulness ( الصِّدْق ), as transmitted from Sahl ibn Abd Allah al-Tustari .
- Repentance and Renunciation: Continuous introspection, repentance ( التَّوْبَة ), and seeking forgiveness ( الاسْتِغْفَار ), accompanied by detachment from worldly surplus and restricting consumption to basic necessity .
- Social Ethics and Interpersonal Conduct: Fulfilling filial piety, maintaining family ties, honoring neighbors, assisting those in distress, pardoning injuries, avoiding envy, respecting elders, showing mercy to youth, and practicing modesty ( الحَيَاء ) .
- Humility, Consultation, and Self-Scrutiny: Displaying humility before the poor while maintaining dignity against arrogant wealth—as cited from Sufyan al-Thawri—consulting the God-fearing, treating others with gentleness, guarding the tongue and ears from falsehood and slander, and maintaining equity toward others without demanding reciprocity .
- Vigilance and Constant Remembrance: Abstaining from unlawful sustenance and doubtful matters, constant divine remembrance ( ذِكْر اللَّه ), shortening worldly hopes, and maintaining goodwill toward believers, citing al-Junayd .
The text concludes with an emphasis on spiritual struggle ( المُجَاهَدَة ), harboring suspicion toward one's own ego while thinking well of others, loving the righteous, and a humble request from al-Sulami asking the reader to pray for his forgiveness and repentance .
Transmission
The text was transmitted among bibliographical chains of Sufi literature; the Moroccan scholar Muhammad ibn Sulayman al-Rudani recorded an isnad for the work traced back to al-Sulami through Fakhr al-Din Ibn al-Bukhari, Ibn Tabarzad, Abd al-Samad ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Khayri, and Abu al-Qasim al-Jurjani .
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