Accepting the Leadership of a Guide

Our respected teacher, the venerable Khwaja Muhammad Nazim (Sheikh Nazim) says,

"We recognize that the only way to approach God is to strengthen our souls sufficiently that they may gain control over our egos.  By this the egos of those people feel threatened, as "the truth hurts".

The most difficult thing in the world is for a person to leave the pursuit of vain fancies and break the ego's ingrained bad habits; but it is a sign of a true way that it enables its followers to take such actions against the ego.  It is little wonder that materialistic people feel uneasy and their lower selves positively threatened by the Sufi Way, as it demands from its followers even more than mere adherence to the Divine Law.  It demands that we leave our ego's behind by accepting the leadership of a guide.  Satan worshipped Allah for thousands of years, but fell from his station in one instant when asked to submit to another creature and to follow him as his guide.  It is most difficult for the ego to obey anyone's advice, especially when that advice contradicts its own ideas and prevents it from seeking fulfillment of its desires.

Whoever is sincerely seeking his Lords Love must submit himself to one of his Lord's beloved servants; he must stop being self-willed in order to do the Will of his Creator.  How can he know what his Creator wants of him? The Creator's Will is expressed through the will of those beloved servants.  Don't imagine that those servants are serving their ego's-no! Saints can only be Saints when their lower selves have been defeated by their souls; then the way is open for the Holy Prophet to impart the secret of Sainthood.  When a Sheikh orders his followers to do something or abstain from it, you must know that those orders come from the Holy Prophet, who is in total subservience to his Lord's command.

Source:Mercy Oceans: Pink Pearls. Selected lectures of Sheikh Nazim Al-Qubrusi, p.76.