Our spring retreat, February 17–19, 2023, was a wonderful and important event. We continued to form a cohesive spiritual group for the purpose of our individual and collective spiritual growth. We recognized our brother Hasan as an authorized Shaykh of our order. We also established a new name for our Order: we are now the Hudur Sufi Order. Alhamdulillah!
In reflecting on our discussions last weekend, I would like to make a few comments.
First of all, the purpose of our Order’s events is not to debate different views of God and religion. Certainly, those debates are interesting and helpful to some. Yet we are not a debating society, nor are we a philosophy club, nor are we here as scholars of comparative religion. We are exclusively interested in explicating our own Sufi view and advocating our own perspective and methods.
Attempts to help our members know God may take the form of questions. These questions should be explored for the purpose of shedding light on the topic under discussion. The purpose of such discussions is never to determine whether a particular view is right or wrong; rather, it is to explore the questions from other points of view. Some of those points of view may seem hypothetical or even outrageous. The objective here is never to affirm a doctrine but to use that point of view as a tool for understanding and spiritual growth. This is wonderfully expressed in one of the most spiritual and esoteric books I know—Mister God, This Is Anna—in which Anna states, “People have different points of view; God has different viewing points.”
Those who feel that they have understood and can express their understanding with a doctrinal formulation should do so with the intent to explore, not defend, that doctrinal formulation. Having offered that formulation, they should step back from the discussion, regardless of their agreement, and make space for others to consider the questions as posed by the Shaykh and others of our Order. In this connection, let me express with absolute certainty that all formulations and conceptions of God are necessarily incomplete and inadequate.
Nevertheless, we do stand for a perspective that is nondual and universal. The question is never what is “right” but rather what is “useful” for expanding one’s personal experience of knowing God.
There are many views of God, religion, and the Path. Many of these can be discussed and debated, as they have been throughout all of history. But we are not a discussion society. We are here to grow and to help our companions grow.
Speaking from my own spiritual journey as the Shaykh of the Order, I have realized that discussions of doctrinal formulations, although true can become an obstacle to one’s path.
We should be interested in the actual and experiential operation of the Path to the One.
I am here to help, Bring me your story. Bring me your soul. I will do everything I can to help you discover the Truth. The key to that door lies in your hands.
