Sayyidi Ahmad Arabi ash-Sharnubi
– Guardian of Hidden Knowledge –
It is said that a remarkable conversation once took place between two great saints: Sayyidi Ahmad Arabi ash-Sharnubi and Sayyidi Abdal Wahab ash-Sharani, the renowned author of Dawrat al-Sharani – a luminous work recounting the lives of the saints from the time of the Prophet’s Companions to his own era.
During this encounter, Sayyidi Ahmad Arabi ash-Sharnubi asked:
“Why do you not honour me according to my spiritual rank, just as I honour you?”
Sayyidi ash-Sharani replied:
“Allah has granted me a noble gift. He has given me a book of light through which I can see the saints – the living and the departed. Their stations, their lives, and their deeds have been unveiled to me, and so I am able to write about them.”
To this, Sayyidi Ahmad Arabi ash-Sharnubi responded gently:
“Know then: it was I who gave you that book.”
Astonished, Sayyidi ash-Sharani asked:
“How can that be? Prove it to me.”
Sayyidi ash-Sharnubi answered:
“If I were to reveal to you the names and stations of all the saints from your time until the Day of Judgment – would you then acknowledge me?”
Sayyidi ash-Sharani agreed. And Sayyidi ash-Sharnubi fulfilled his word – he unveiled to him the hidden knowledge of the future saints, those destined to walk the path until the very end of time.
The Stations on the Path to Allah
In another conversation, Sayyidi ash-Sharani asked:
“What is the nature of the spiritual journey for a murid (seeker) on your path?”
Sayyidi ash-Sharnubi replied:
“The one who receives the first sign of connection is not like the one who is guided until he arrives.
He who arrives is not like the one for whom the door is opened, allowing him to enter.
He who enters is not like the one permitted to sit near the shaikhs.
And the one who sits near them is not like the one to whom they entrust their secrets.
Yet even he is not like the one who becomes one of them.”
And he concluded:
“These are, for me, the stages of the journey to Allah. And whoever walks this path sincerely – will never turn away.”
(Source: ʿAlimu ʿannī, Maulana Sheikh Mohammed Osman – Book I)
