The Components of the Sharīʿah
Addressed to: Mullā Ḥājī Muḥammad Lāhorī (may Allah have mercy on him)
May Allah grant us and you steadfastness upon the reality of the Prophetic Sharīʿah — peace, blessings, and salutations be upon its noble bearer. And may Allah have mercy upon the servant who responds with Āmīn.
Sharīʿah consists of three essential components: knowledge, action, and sincerity (ikhlāṣ).
Until all three are attained in full, the Sharīʿah itself is not truly acquired. Once the Sharīʿah is realized, it leads to the pleasure of Allah — and Allah’s pleasure is greater than anything in this world or the Hereafter. It is the greatest of all blessings.
Therefore, the Sharīʿah is comprehensive of all worldly and religious felicity. Beyond it, there remains no goal that would require anything other than Sharīʿah to attain it.
Ṭarīqah and Ḥaqīqah, by which the Ṣūfīs are distinguished, exist only to serve the third element — sincerity. These two disciplines are in service of the Sharīʿah and their only purpose is to perfect it. They are not independent goals.
Lesson:
In this noble letter, Imām Rabbānī Mujaddid Alf Thānī (Quddisa Sirruhū) clarifies and refutes common misconceptions and criticisms aimed at true Ṣūfīs — often arising due to the behavior of superficial Ṣūfīs and formalist scholars.
Some claim to follow ṭarīqah while disregarding Sharīʿah, relying merely on rituals and litanies. Others among outwardly scholarly circles reject ṭarīqah and ḥaqīqah altogether, viewing them as innovations separate from Sharīʿah. Both are mistaken and ignorant of the true essence.
Those who are rightly guided are the ones who integrate both Sharīʿah and ṭarīqah. The great scholars of fiqh, ḥadīth, and the eminent Ṣūfīs (may Allah be pleased with them) were both ʿulamāʾ and ṣūfīs.
In his Maʿārif-e-Ladunniyyah, Imām Rabbānī writes:
“Ḥaqīqah is nothing but the inner reality of the Sharīʿah… not something separate from it.”
And:
“Ṭarīqah is the path to reach the reality of the Sharīʿah. Ḥaqīqah is not something opposed to Sharīʿah.”
Before attaining the reality of Sharīʿah, one only possesses its outward form. The true reality is attained at the station of nafs al-muṭmaʾinnah — the soul at peace — which is the level of sainthood (wilāyah).
He further explains:
Knowledge and action are attained through the company of ʿulamāʾ,
while sincerity (ikhlāṣ) is acquired through the company of the Ṣūfiyāʾ.