1. In the Name of God, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful

In order for the dear reader to draw the fullest benefit from this book, without any trace of doubt pertaining its sources and sayings; it is appropriate to give a little glimpse of the author and who he is, even though the beauty of this radiant sun could not possibly be described in merely a few lines. The translator has had the privilege to encounter the writer on a number of occasions and hence relates what he has seen and experienced with his own eyes, not what he has heard or read.

Ayatullah Sayyid Mahdi Shams al-Din (famous as Sayyid Shams) was born on 1958 in the holy city of Qom. At the age of 12 he started his theological studies in Hawza and simultaneously was entrusted by his noble father Sayyid Sadiq Shams (RA) to Ayatullah al-Udhma Behjat (HA) as his personal master, with whom he naturally developed a very intimate bond with.

At that time, he also started preaching and since then has spent over 30 years travelling around the globe spreading the True Islam of Muhammad (SAW). Despite his young age it is several years since he reached the level of Ijtihad, however as it is not his demeanour to pay attention to titles few know of his scholarly rank and hence, he is still referred to as “Hujjat ul-Islam”. Instead, he continued with his studies, spreading True Islam and serving the people. He has written over one hundred books and articles not to mention the number of speeches he has delivered; in a total he is away half the year lecturing!

As a first-degree mystic (‘Arif), who has been trained and still is being trained under perhaps the greatest mystic living today, Ayatullah al-Udhma Behjat (HA), it is not necessary to mention him being in constant state of remembrance (dhikr), his prayers and worship, his serving of people, his minimal amount of sleep and food, his God-consciousness and the like.

Instead, the translator on account of personal experience will try to narrate a few delicate points regarding Sayyid Shams (HA) which are the sweet fruits of his self-building and gnosis.

Imam Jafar as-Sadiq (A) says:

“Wisdom lays not in extensive knowledge but rather being able to convey that knowledge in as few words as possible.”

Sayyid Shams (HA) was truly a fountain of wisdom and the thirst of every questioner was quenched by the answers he gave. He always looked upon the level the questioner was on and answered according to his state, according to the prophetic saying:

“Talk to people on the level they understand.”

The translator himself was present several times when he was asked deep and complicated mystical (irfani) questions, which others either could not answer or did not answer satisfyingly. Every time Sayyid Shams (HA) thought for a second, usually gave a small foreword and then always said, “In one sentence…”, and then summed, tied up and put forth the answer of an entire ocean in just one sentence, which left the translator amazed and in thoughts until the day after!

Another of his features which everyone noticed, some more than others, was his breath-taking scent. When he sat in a room the fragrance of musk filled it. If you walked where he had been the minute earlier you would still smell his scent. At times it even happened that his aroma would precede him, in a way that you could feel his arrival before he had actually entered!

It is sufficient to say that no ordinary perfume can accomplish such a strong scent; rather it is the aroma that comes from the flower of God-consciousness. And considering that he has reformed his heart into a garden of roses it is quite naturally that such a heavenly scent would encompass him.

The mention of dreams, visions, unveilings and miracles pertaining to him would burn up the paper and break apart the pen in awe; hence they have been left out.

The Translation

As this is the translator’s first major translation, he humbly asks the reader to have understanding and sympathy regarding possible errors or unclear translations in the text. As the aim has been to make most readers understand what has been said the Islamic terms have mainly been translated into English with the Arabic/Persian word written in italic after.

The clarification of three terms that comes through the text has are mentioned here:

Hazrat - It is a title of respect similar to “his eminence” and in this book normally used for Imam Mahdi (AJ). In order for the reader not to be confused as to who is meant with “his eminence”, that term has mostly been translated as “that master”, or at times as “Imam”.

Tawassul - The usual English translation of “tawassul” is “intercession”. However the way the word is used in the text differs, usually to describe the state when one turns to a saint and wants him/her to want from Allah what one has in mind, like an intermediate between the turner and Allah. Hence the term has been translated in a couple of ways like, “besought” or “turned to”.

Ziyarah - It literally means to visit someone, but this visitation must not necessarily be physical. Hence one can do a spiritual Ziyarah of for example the Prophet (S) by sending peace and greetings to him. A physical Ziyarah of the Prophet (S) would instead be to visit his grave in Medina. This term is either translated or not translated at all depending upon the context.

About “Den Väntades Vänner”

“Den Väntades Vänner” or “The friends of the Awaited” is an independent non-political group which began its activities in the year 2005. We are young Muslims from different cultural and national backgrounds gathered within the Swedish borders. We have made the choice to free ourselves from this state of defense in order to take the peaceful way – which by the way is promoted by our religion – and with God’s blessing and help take on the battle and through increased knowledge, shed light over the dark shadows of ignorance.

We see upon ourselves as our foremost goal and main duty to get to know the essence of Islam and its teachings and spread this knowledge to every truth seeking soul in order to raise and prepare our waiting souls and prepare the grounds for our Awaited Imam’s (AJ) promised return.

We intend to reach our goal by translating Islamic literature and through these efforts take part in books, religious and philosophical ideas, thoughts and interpretations. We intend to increase our own knowledge and also share what we have learned with other seekers who wish to learn more about Islam.

You can find out more on www.dvv.se or contact us at [email protected].

Last Word

We would like to thank everyone, without mentioning any particular one (they themselves and their Lord know who they are which is most important!), who has in any way given a helping hand in bringing this work to its present condition.

The last pages of translation and this introduction was written on the 13^th of the month of Rajab, which coincides with the birthday of the Leader of the Believers, the Master of the Mystics, the Lion of Allah and the Sword of His Prophet (S), Imam Ali (A). This was done intentionally with a hope that the divine rays of Imam Ali (A) will bless the pages, illuminate the words and enlighten the hearts.

Wa as-salam Alaykom, wa Rahmatullahi, wa Barakatuh

13^th Rajab 1427 - 8^th August 2006

Den Väntades Vänner / The friends of the Awaited