Spiritual Days & Nights with Shaykh Hisham Kabbani

Bismillāh ar-Rahmān ar-Rahīm In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful What an uplifting talk he gave during the lecture "Longing for the Divine" at Singapore Expo on Tuesday night. There were about 700 people in attendance and The Naqsh Band sang 3 qasaid before the lecture started. They got the crowd to sing along with them and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. When Shaykh Hisham Kabbani took the mike, it was easy to see why millions are in love with him. His ever-ready smiles, his humour, his great affection - it was infectious to say the least. Several times he turned to the poster that was behind him and asked, "I don't understand this. Longing for the Divine? Who?" He then drove home the point that in truth, it is the Divine that is longing for us, not the other way round. He talked about how everyone everywhere is looking and longing for something and throughout his travels, he's found that they are looking for spirituality. Shaykh Hisham talked about the concept of Sufism and its historical background and foundation. He mentioned how Istighfar is the vehicle on which to take you closer to the Divine. He said that the great Saint Rabia' Al-Adawiyah (Rabiahtul Adawiyah) was occupied with saying Astahgfirullah day and night and how she says that her 1st Istighfar was in need of a 2nd istighfar to purify it. SubhanAllah! Shaykh Hisham also said that one of the signs that someone is sincerely longing for the Divine is when his prayers are not enough. Each time he completes his obligatory prayers, he proceeds with nawafil prayers because he wants his connection with the Divine to not be cut off. He was also actively engaged with the audience, constantly asking questions and smiling and getting answers f [...]

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