The Prayer of Originality

If we understand this, it becomes clear that when the Infallible said, "Pray as you have seen me pray," it is as if he said through explicit language, "Imitate me in my prayer with precision and excellence, so that your imitation of me leads you to become as original as I am." Or it is as if he said, "Imitate me with precision, excellence, and complete awareness until your imitation of me evolves into following me in my originality."
However, originality does not involve imitation; it involves emulation: "Indeed, in the Messenger of Allah, you have an excellent example" (33:21). The term "example" here signifies guide by virtue of the perfection of his state of being.
The Prophet commanded us through his tongue of Shari'ah, the tongue of speech, to imitate, and through his tongue of Haqiqah, the tongue of his state of being, to attain originality. Originality is only realized after perfecting imitation, for originality is the ultimate goal of imitating the Prophet, thus imitation is not an end in itself.
The Ultimate Mi'raj (Heavenly Ascension) in which the Prophet rose to exalted ranks through Allah's Grace and Gabriel's assistance remained the focus of his life. This goal was achieved through his lesser Mi'raj - prayer. Allah made the prayer the delight of his eyes, as it allowed for continuous communion with Allah. With every raq’a of prayer, he traversed a new phase of proximity to the Praised Station: the station where "The sight did not swerve, nor did it exceed" (53:17).
This station must remain the aspiration of every worshiper in this nation, as it signifies complete knowledge, perfect witnessing, and the witnessing of the Divine Essence, which surpasses the witnessing of the Divine Names, as we previously explained. This station represents the realization of individuality and the ultimate enjoyment of absolute individual freedom, frequently mentioned in this treatise.
We discussed the verses from Surah An-Najm that describe the Lote Tree of the Ultimate Boundary (Sidrat al-Muntaha), where Gabriel stopped accompanying the Infallible, allowing the Prophet to proceed alone into the presence of the witnessing of the Essence. This witnessing of the Essence cannot occur [simply] through mediation, and [even] Gabriel had no station there.
Similarly, the Prophet, who serves as our Gabriel, guides us to each of our respective Sidrat al-Muntaha and then stops, just as Gabriel did, yet for a different reason which is to fulfill his mission of delivering the message and facilitating communion with the Divine. At that point, each worshiper, who has perfected their imitation, encounters Allah without intermediary.
Each perfected worshiper from the future Islamic community will receive their individual Shari’ah directly from Allah, gaining their unique witnessing, prayer, fasting, charity, and pilgrimage. They will embody originality while emulating the Prophet in his originality.
This is made possible by Allah’s Grace and through the Prophet's perfect mediation with his Lord. This applies to those who have mastered imitation. The reference for this originality is found in Allah’s statement:
"To each of you, We prescribed a law and a method. Had Allah willed, He would have made you one nation, but [He intended] to test you in what He has given you; so race to [all that is] good. To Allah is your return all together, and He will [then] inform you concerning that over which you used to differ" (5:48).
The context clearly refers to communities, but it also addresses individuals. Regarding individuality, it is more focused on individuals than communities: "To each of you, We prescribed a law and a method" (5:48). For each individual, "a law" means Shari'ah (the outward law), and "a method" means Sunnah (the way). "A law and a method" signifies Shari'ah and Haqiqah (reality). The Shari'ah of the knower is a part of their reality. Their reality is individual, and their Shari'ah is also individual. This individual Shari'ah far surpasses the general Shari'ah in magnitude.
"Had Allah willed, He would have made you one nation" (5:48) means that He could have made everyone alike in form and disposition. Here, nation refers to the individual. Allah says: "Indeed, Abraham was a nation, devoutly obedient to Allah, inclining toward truth, and he was not of those who associate others with Allah. He was grateful for His favors. Allah chose him and guided him to a straight path" (16:120-121). Here, nation means a leader to be emulated.
"But [He intended] to test you in what He has given you" (5:48) refers to Allah testing each individual with the blessings deposited in their hearts and minds. What have they done with these blessings? Have they nurtured and liberated them (purified them), or neglected and suppressed them (buried them)?
"So race to [all that is] good" (5:48) refers to seeking knowledge. "To Allah is your return all together" (5:48) is a clear indication of individuality, as people return to Allah as individuals: "And you have certainly come to Us individually as We created you the first time" (6:94).
As previously mentioned regarding individuality, we add here Allah’s statement: "And every person, We have imposed upon them their bird tied around their neck. And We will produce for them on the Day of Resurrection a book which they will encounter spread open. Read your book. Sufficient is yourself against you this Day as an accountant" (17:13-14).
Bird (Tair) refers to the heart. "A book which they will encounter spread open" also refers to the heart. "Read your book" means reading what the intellect has inscribed on the pages of the heart, whether ignorance or knowledge. "Sufficient is yourself against you this Day as an accountant" demonstrates the prominence of individuality.
"And He will inform you about that over which you used to differ" (5:48) means that Allah will help individuals realize their unique identities through which differences, or rather distinctions, arise among them.
The matter regarding imitation (taqlid) and originality (asalah) can be summarized as follows: God Almighty leads the way for all of us, yet His footsteps are subtle and imperceptible, visible only with intense illumination, a light that none possessed except Gabriel. Gabriel stepped precisely and meticulously in the footsteps of God. Gabriel's own footsteps are also subtle, visible only with a strong light, which none possessed except Muhammad. Muhammad followed Gabriel's footsteps with exact precision, striving diligently to make Gabriel's tracks clearer by pressing his own footsteps onto them. As a result, the tracks became discernible to all of us, albeit with varying [degrees of] clarity.
The least clear of these traces is still clear enough for even the least illuminated among this nation to follow. However, some merely walked behind the Prophet without concern for the placement of their steps, these are the ordinary imitators. Others were diligent, striving to step precisely where the Prophet stepped, ensuring their steps neither exceeded nor fell short of his, where possible. These are the imitators who seek perfected imitation.
Through this meticulous following, the Muhammadan light reflected upon the imitators, each according to their effort. Their vision gradually strengthened until they could see Gabriel's footsteps, which were initially hidden from them. Continuing in their diligence, they eventually perceived God’s footsteps, those that were hidden even from Muhammad but were revealed to him by Gabriel's precise following. Muhammad then followed Gabriel until he became independent in both vision and adherence.
When an imitator perfects their emulation of the Prophet and begins to perceive God’s footsteps, they become independent in both vision and following. Ultimately, thanks to their refined imitation of the Prophet, they end up imitating God directly, without the intermediary of the Prophet.
Exalted is God above physical footsteps as we understand them. Rather, His "footsteps" refer to the hidden, subtle, and profound wisdom embodied within His will. This wisdom is so concealed and refined that, in our ignorance and heedlessness, we often act as though we are leading Him and expect Him to follow us. This occurs when we prioritize our will over His and grow resentful of His will. “Glory be to Him, and Exalted is He above what they associate with Him” (6:100).
Imitating God, therefore, means aligning ourselves with the paths of His will, in complete submission and surrender. This is the essence of servitude (‘ubudiyyah), which we have discussed extensively. Servitude is the original purpose of creation: “I have not created jinn and humankind except to worship Me” (51:56).
This discussion reminds me of verses from the wise mentor and leader of a Sufi order, Abu al-Qasim al-Junayd, in which he says:
Purify yourself with the water of the unseen if you are one with insight;

Otherwise, seek purification from the earth and from stone.
Appoint as your imam the One you once placed behind you,
And pray the dawn prayer at the first hour of the age.
This is the prayer of those who know their Lord.
If you are among them, let the land soak the sea.

In this message, we are not delving into a detailed explanation of these verses. However, what concerns us here are the lines:
“Appoint as your imam the One you once placed behind you,
And pray the dawn prayer at the first hour of the age.”
“Appoint as your imam” refers to appointing God as your leader. “One you once placed behind you” alludes to the state of ignorance, where one places oneself ahead of God, metaphorically “turning their back on Him” by choosing their own will over His and resenting His decree.
“Pray the dawn prayer” symbolizes the dawn of the spirit, before the creation of physical bodies. “at the first hour of the age” refers to the early era of creation in the corporeal world, what is known as the realm of al-dharr (the particles), referenced in the verse: “And when your Lord took from the children of Adam, from their loins, their descendants and made them testify of themselves, ‘Am I not your Lord?’ They said, ‘Yes, we have testified.’ lest you should say on the Day of Resurrection, ‘Indeed, we were unaware of this,’ or [lest] you say, ‘It was only that our fathers associated [others in worship] before, and we were but descendants after them. Then would You destroy us for what the falsifiers have done?’ And thus do We explain the signs, that perhaps they will return” (7:172-174).
The phrase “Am I not your Lord? They said, ‘Yes!’” signifies the acknowledgment of servitude (‘ubudiyyah) by all creation before their physical existence. The verse “Thus do We explain the signs, that perhaps they will return” highlights the heedlessness that has overtaken humanity, distracting them from their servitude to their Lord and leading them to place themselves ahead of Him, as referenced in the verses of Imam al-Junayd.
The expression “Thus do We explain the signs, that perhaps they will return” is akin to the verse: “And We have certainly made the Qur’an easy for remembrance, so is there any who will remember?” (54:17). The intended meaning is that God has made the verses of the Qur’an straightforward to remind those who have forgotten the covenant they made in the primordial realm (‘alam al-dharr), when they affirmed their servitude to their Lord by saying, “Yes, we testify” in response to the Divine question: “Am I not your Lord?”
Here, “pray” (ṣalli) implies “follow.” The term ṣalli in Arabic refers to the one who follows the leader (al-mujalli). The mujalli is the foremost, while the muṣalli is the one who follows closely behind. This is captured in the words of the poet:
“Indeed, we, the sons of Nahshal,
Claim no father save him, nor does he disown us.
Should a race for honor occur on any day,
You will find among us both leaders and followers (al-musallina).”
From all of this, it becomes evident that imitating the Prophet strengthens our intellects, enabling us to emulate God. The Prophet emphasized this when he said: “Adopt the character of God, for my Lord is upon a straight path.” Following God means aligning ourselves behind Him and not placing ourselves ahead of Him, exalted is He beyond the ignorance of those who do so.
Walking behind God signifies servitude (‘ubudiyyah), which is the highest station a human being can achieve. We have discussed servitude extensively, sufficiently addressing its importance in this context.