A gathering in Lamu, Kenya, with Shaykh Abdul Hamid from Leicester. These gatherings are renowned and are usually held for the occasion of Mawlid. The poem recited is ‘Bi-Rasūlillah wa’l-Badawī’. The poet is Shaykh Hasan Shadād.
۞
Shaykh Ahmad al-Badawī was a 13th century Saint and is revered as one of the Four Poles of Sufism and the founder of the Badawīyyah Order. He is one of Egypt’s most revered saints.
He was born in 1200 in Fes, Morocco, and was a descendant of Imam al-Husayn (عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ). His ancestors migrated to the area during the tyranny of Hajjaj bin Yusuf. Him and his family migrated to Makkah and stayed in Egypt for 5 years en route. He was nicknamed ‘Al-Badawī’, which means the Bedouin, because he used to cover his face like the Bedouins.
Shaykh Ahmad’s father, Sayyid ʿAlī, passed away in 1217 in Makkah and was buried in the al-Ma’alā cemetery. He stayed in the circles of knowledge in Makkah and was also known for being an excellent horseman. There was no horse in the Two Holy Cities that he couldn’t master and he was known as ‘the Father of Brave Men’.
Even though his reputation as a horseman was well-known, Shaykh Ahmad was pious and God-fearing. He did Bay’ah to Shaykh Birī, one of the students of Shaykh Abu Na’īm, a companion of Shaykh Ahmad al-Rifa’ī. Shaykh Ahmad meticulously studied the works of Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qadir al-Jilanī and Shaykh Ahmad al-Rifa’ī and was inspired to visit their tombs.
He travelled to Iraq with his older brother, Sayyid Hasan, in 1236 and visited Baghdad and Umm Ubayda, the village of Shaykh Ahmad al-Rifa’ī, where he first received divine illuminations. He stayed in Iraq for a year and then returned. There was a noticeable difference in his character. He would be silent and would gaze at the sky for long periods of time. He was divinely ordered to migrate to an Egyptian town called Tanta. His instructions was, “Go to Tanta for you will settle there and raise up men and champions.”
When visiting the Prophet ﷺ in Madinah, Shaykh Ahmad addressed him saying "If they say to me, you went and visited, what did you come back with of benefit? O most generous of all creation ﷺ, what do we say in return?" He heard the blessed voice of the Prophet ﷺ replying “Say: We have come back with every goodness, and the branch has met and connected with its origin.” He arrived in Tanta in 1239, where he would spend the rest of his life.
Shaykh Ahmad lived on the roof of the house of a merchant called Ibn Shatīt. He preferred to live in the nature and lived on the roof so he could see the signs of Allah and His work. He lived on the roof for about 12 years. Shaykh Ahmad also wrote letters to his counterpart, Shaykh Ibrahīm ad-Desuqī, often. A famous miracle attributed to him was that he saved Muslims that were captured by Crusaders. He, along with his Murīds, also went into battle against Louis IX’s army. Due to his blessings, both of Louis IX’s crusades failed.
He passed away on a Tuesday, 12th Rabī’ al-Awwal, 1276. He was succeeded by Shaykh ʿAbd al-ʿAl. His blessed tomb has become a massive pilgrimage destination for Egyptians and it’s estimated about 2 million people visit his tomb every week. His Mawlid in October attracts hundreds of thousands of people annually. Shaykh Ahmad was also known for his famous ‘Salawat al-Nuranīyyah’ which I have left below.
‎اَللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ وَسَلِّمْ وَباَرِكْ عَلىَ سَيِّدِناَ وَمَوْلاَناَ مُحَمَّدٍ شَجَرَةِ اْلاَصْلِ النُّوْرَانِيَّةِ، وَلَمْعَةِ الْقَبْضَةِ الرَّحْمَانِيَّةِ، وَأَفْضَلِ الْخَلِيْقَةِ اْلاِنْسَانِيَّةِ، وَأَشْرَفِ الصُّوْرَةِ الْجِسْمَانِيَّةِ، وَمَعْدِنِ اْلاَسْرَارِ الرَبَّانيِّةِ، وَخَزَائِنِ الْعُلُوْمِ اْلاِصْطِفَائِيَّةِ، صَاحِبِ الْقَبْضَةِ اْلاَصْلِيَّةِ، وَالْبَهْجَةِ السَّنِيَّةِ، وَالرُّتْبَةِ الْعَلِيَّةِ، مَنِ انْدَرَجَتِ النَّبِيُّوْنَ تَحْتَ لِوَائِهِ، فَهُمْ مِنْهُ وَاِلَيْهِ، وَصَلِّ وَسَلِّمْ وَباَرِكْ عَلَيْهِ وَعَلىَ آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ عَدَدَ مَاخَلَقْتَ، وَرَزَقْتَ وَأَمَتَّ وَأَحْييْتَ اِلَى يَوْمِ تَبْعَثُ مَنْ أَفْنَيْتَ، وَسَلِّمْ تَسْلِيْماً كَثِيْراً وَالْحَمْدُ ِللهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِيْنَ
May Allah have mercy on him and raise his rank. Al-Fatiha.
Original video:
• maulid in Lamu-Sheikh ...
Video credits:
• تروح فين في طنطا وتاكل...
• باب الخلق| حقيقة صاحب ...
• Ziarah Makam Imam Ahma...