Yursil: ‘Being Spiritually Ambitious’

Last week, I had the opportunity to discuss one popular Muslim blogger’s most recent post prior to its publishing. And at the time, when he shared the idea for the post, I thought it would be one of the most important blog topics of Rabi al-Thani 1429. And after reading the post, I realized just how significant an issue it was.  

In the post, Yursil of the Mind, Body, Soul blog discusses the phenomena of ‘Spiritual Ambition’. He touches on a subject that few people want to accept, let alone discuss, and that subject is spiritual rank. The ‘spiritually elite’ is clearly identified as a reality in the Qur’an al-kerim and the Sunnat of the Holy Prophet (may Peace and Blessings be upon him) and his Companions (may Allah be Pleased with them) but is this a reality today?

Please pardon my rhetoric and absurdity, but this is exactly what some are implying by ignoring or rejecting varying degrees of spiritual excellence among mankind. But for one moment, lets imagine spiritual rank is a phenomenon unchallenged, how then is it measured and defined? Yursil makes his case in the segment below:

clipped from www.yursil.com For modern day people of faith, this may be a perplexing idea. Ambition?       Spirituality? Ambition inherently involves ranks and gain. And modern day spirituality has been the great ‘equalizer’, everyone has become the same. For Muslim literalists, this is even more true. They refuse to accept spiritual training in a manner which inherently depends on recognizing the spiritual superiority of ones teacher. For them, the questions become asinine repetitions of “How do you know that teacher is not going to hell fire? No one knows!”