I desired to praise the Chosen One and was hindered
By my own inability to grasp the extent of his glory.
How can one such as I measure an ocean, when the ocean is vast?
And how can one such as I count the stones and the stars?
If all of my limbs were to become tongues, even then –
Even then I could not begin to praise him as I desired.
And if all of creation gathered together in an attempt
To praise him, even then they would stint in his due.
I have altogether ceased trying – awestruck, clinging to courtesy,
Tempered by timidity, glorifying his most exalted rank.
Indeed, sometimes silence holds within it the essence of eloquence,
And often speech merely fodder for the faultfinder.
— Ibn Juzayy al-Kalbi
I envy the sand that met his feet
I’m jealous of honey he tasted sweet.
— Sīdi Aḥmad al ‘Arūsi.
Through him all is redeemed
And harmony restored.
He is the gate between
Mankind and the Lord.
In heaven he is praised,
On earth he is adored.
He is a mercy sent
By the Merciful One.
No one has equaled him
Since the world was begun;
No one will equal him
Should the world be undone.
His beauty makes silence
Burst into endless song.
His majesty mutes all
Makes love speechless and withdrawn.
His alchemy makes gold,
Transmutes virtue from wrong.
May his name be hallowed
In every place with every breath
May he and his nation
Like Abraham be blessed
And to his truthfulness
May all creation attest.
May the words of Rafi‘
To Muhammad ascend,
He is altogether lovely
My beloved, my friend;
And better praise than this
Be upon him without end.
— Rafael Alejandro Jara.
Loving the Prophet is the quickest way to Allah
He attained exaltation by his perfection,
He dispelled darkness by his beauty,
Beauteous are all his qualities,
Benediction be on him and on his family.
Talama ashku gharami - Al Kauthar.
“Ever do I complain of my love-sickness, O light of existence,
And call out to you, O Tihami; Source of magnanimity.”
“You were created innocent of every blemish,
as if you were created just as you would wish.”
— Hassan bin Thabit.
Muhammad is a man, but not like all men. He is as a ruby among stones.
O best of those whose bones are buried in the deep earth,
And from whose fragrance the depth
and the height have become sweet,
May I be the ransom for a grave which thou inhabit,
And in which are found purity, bounty and munificence!
I love this book so much.
He was the most beautiful of humanity and the most complete,
In outward form and ethical character.
You are mistaken if you likened him to the full moon
In splendor or deemed him like the ocean
In generosity, or said he was like the flowers
In fineness, or time in its determination.
Even if you inversed these statements,
It is still a mistake—in my opinion, utter nonsense.
Tell me, what has the full moon in relation to his cheek?
How can time compare to his loyalty?
How can the ocean compare to his hand’s liberality?
What comparison do flowers have to his gentle disposition?
No, I swear by the One who granted him every adornment
That there is no one similar to him in the entire universe.
And onlookers have never seen the likes of him.
How sweet he is, and how radiant his form.
No, I swear by the One who adorned him with every beauty
In meaning and image, and I make no exception,
He has names and attributes that have
Elevated him above all the rest of humanity
So tell me, O man above men in beauty
And beatitude most perfect, what then
Can those who praise hope to achieve with their tongues,
Even if they carried on for all time,
Especially after God’s praise of you in the Qur’an,
When you were described as being one who is of vast and magnanimous character?
May the benedictions and prayers of God be upon you,
And upon your family and companions, those celestial lights,
For as long as sinners seek refuge in the Ancient House,
And the remorseful seek refuge at your sublime porte,
Seeking forgiveness and success in whatever
Pleases you, most honorable of those who have smiled.
An excerpt from:
The Discerning Eyes’ Delights In Perusing the Chosen One’s Days and Nights.
By Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azīz al-Lamṭī.
Translated by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf.
Let the moons set or still be bright,
Ours is a full moon: in its sight
Full moons are humbled; for us its light
A splendour is by day and night.
No change of time can alter it.
— Abū Bakr al-Shiblī.
