The great Sufi figure Abu Madyan al-Ghauts: Wali Abdal Andalusia

 

The great Sufi figure Abu Madyan al-Ghauts: Wali Abdal Andalusia

Abu Madyan Al Ghauts, great Sufi from the westernmost region of Islam. His full name is Abu Madyan Syu'aib bin Husein Al Ansari Al Andalusi. His admirers consider him Shaykhul masyayikh (major teacher), a title that did not appear suddenly, but rather his admirers' appreciation for Abu Madyan's success in combining the teachings of Shari'a and reality.

Al Ghauts was one of the abdal guardians of his time. He is well known for his piety, wira'i, and asceticism (zuhud) characteristics. Born in the city of Qunthiyanah Seville, Andalusia in 509 H. He was educated in Fez, Morocco, and settled in Bejaia.

Al Ghauts was born as an orphan and lived a very simple life so that he formed a very strong personality and determination. Al-Tadili narrated a story from Muhammad Al-Ansari who heard directly from Al Ghauts about the beginning of his life:

“I am an orphan from Andalusia. My brothers employ me as their cattle herder. Whenever I see people praying or reading the Qur'an, I am always interested and fascinated, so I approach and pay attention to them. However, I often grieved because I could not memorize the Qur'an and did not know how to pray properly. Immediately, a very strong desire arose in me to leave the herd so that I could study the Qur'an and study sharia.”

One of Al Ghauts' teachers in Fez was a jurisprudent named Abu Hasan Ali bin Ghalib (d. 592 H), from whom Al Ghauts learned one of the canonical hadith books; which is the book As-Sunan by Abu Isa At-Tirmidhi. While in Sufism, he studied with Abu Abdullah Al-Daqqaq and Abu Ya'za Yalnur bin Maimun. About his teachers, Al Ghauts once told a story:

"I have listened to the stories of pious people since the time of Uwais Al-Qarni until now, nothing is amazing to me other than the figure of Abi Ya'za, and there is no book that is amazing to me besides the book Ihya Ulumudin by Al-Ghazali".

Because of his fame for his breadth of knowledge and wisdom, eventually many people gained knowledge from him. Among his students are:

Abdurrazaq Al-Jazuli, his grave is located in Alexandria, Egypt. As reported by Ibnu Qanfazd in the book Al-Wafayat, he was one of the teachers of Sidi Abi Muhammad Abdul Aziz Al-Mahdawi and Abi Baqa Abdullah.

Ja'far bin Sidi Bunnah Al-Khaza'i. This student of Abu Madyan was once mentioned by Lisanudin Ibnu Khatib in the book Al-Ihathah fi Akhbar Al-Gharnathah.

Abdussalam bin Masyisy, he is one of the teachers of the great figure, Abu Hasan As-Syazili.

At the end of his life, he was slandered by envious people, envious of the fame of his name, so that they provoked the ruler of the Muwahidin at that time, namely Ya'kub Al Mansur, by pinning him as a Zindiq scholar. Finally he left the city of Bejaia for the city of Tlemcen until the end of his life in the year 594 H.

One of his very famous works is the qasidah "Ma Lazdah Al 'Isy" . Here are some of the quotes and messages contained therein:

ما لذة العيش إلا صحبة الفقرا * هم السلاطين والسادات والأمرا

There is no pleasure in life except making friends with poor people

They are sultans, leaders and rulers

فاصحبهمو وتأدب في مجالسهم * وخل حظك مهما قدموك ورا

So be friends and be kind in their parties

And leave your personal interests even if they offer you

واستغنم الوقت واحضر دائما معهم * واعلم بأن الرضا يختص من حضرا

Take advantage of the time, and always be present with them

Find out! in fact, the pleasure is poured specifically for the people present

وراقب الشيخ في أحواله فعسى * يرى عليك من استحسانه أثرا

Follow a guru in all things, hopefully

His goodness will influence you.