Re: Observations of Nazim Kabbani and his murid disciples -

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Shaykh Nazim, the head of the Haqqani-Naqshbandi Sufi order, is believed to be the last Saint, the “Seal of the Saints,” just as the Prophet Muhammad is believed to be the last Prophet, the “Seal of the Prophets” in Islam (Fig. 5.2).

For one week in Singapore Pa’ Ariffin attended to Shaykh Nazim round the clock from 5.30 a.m. to 1.00 a.m. or later the following morning. Throughout the entire week Pa’ Ariffin wore white clothes, an inversion of his usual black attire. The Shaykh enjoys boundless energy belying his eighty plus years of age. His followers describe Shaykh Nazim as a living Saint and as Allah’s representative on earth. Pa’ Ariffin and Raja Ashman form part of a group, an inner circle, comprised mainly of Malays, who serve the needs of the Shaykh. Only this group are allowed access to the Shaykh’s private quarters.

In this back region away from the scores of visitors the Shaykh, the Raja and the other members of the core group can relax, exchange stories, and tell mischievous jokes. The Shaykh doesn’t always like to be surrounded by “them” says Pa’ Ariffin, “they” also being on occasion referred to as the “Sufi goofies” (Fig. 5.3).

Some of the adherents would hand round blessed leftovers of curry puff from Maulana’s plate, and parcel out dozens of bottles of holy water from a bottle he had sipped from.

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In a more revolting variation of the salaam, some of the Shaykh’s visitors would slobber their mouths all over his hands. Several of the Shaykh’s followers seemed mentally disturbed, a point duly noted by Pa’ Ariffin. Initially I could not understand the Shaykh’s English, which he spoke Fig. 5.2 Shaykh Nazim, Chief, and Raja Ashman in Singapore The Veneration of Shaykh Nazim 191 Fig. 5.3

Shaykh Nazim, Shaykh Raja Ashman and a Singapore silat group through a thick beard with a heavy Turkish Cypriot accent. Later, his speech became easier to follow, although without the aid of the others I could not always comprehend his cryptic statements. For example, Shaykh Nazim talks about a green cup. The Shaykh would then say it is a red cup: “You don’t stare at it perplexed, you don’t look amazed; you just accept it. A red cup,” says Pa’ Ariffin, laughing and looking away.

According to the Naqshbandi the most important duty for a Muslim is to find and follow their Shaykh.

As Pa’ Ariffin says: If you go to the Shaykh, nothing is private to the Shaykh. If you go to the Shaykh and he says “die” – die. If he says, “cut your hand” – cut your hand. He is not going to ask you to do that, he is not Shaytan . . . I am here to tell you that I am authorized by Shaykh Nazim, Shaykh Raja Ashman, Shaykh Hisham (Pa’ Ariffin, from fieldnotes).

In part Pa’ Ariffin derives legitimation for his own autocratic behaviour from the Naqshbandi shaykhs. Not surprisingly, however, outside of the liminal events of saint veneration, shadowing the exemplary behaviour of a Saint or Prophet can prove difficult to sustain.

From 1992 to 1996 Pa’ Ariffin was imam at St. Ann’s Mosque in North London. From “donations” he was paid £50 to £400 per week, based on fifteen percent of the takings. Free accommodation was provided. However, in the U.K. the life of a Sufi imam is not easy because, as Pa’ Ariffin puts it, “in the summer 192 5 The Guru Silat prayers start at 4.00 a.m. and finish so late! And they call all day long with all sorts of problems.” So he “got fed up.” “But,” he continues, “the winter was nice: 5 p.m. to 7 a.m. off.” However, to “dress like the Prophet, act like the Prophet – it’s a heavy responsibility, and that’s why I just couldn’t take it.” Finally, “it’s hard to deal with all these problems when you have so many (expletive deleted)problems yourself.”