False Spirituality – From Reliance of the Traveller

“Others claim to have attained to gnosis and contemplative knowledge of the Divine, to have passed through spiritual stations and states, and to have reached nearness to Allah, while they know nothing of any of this except the words. You might see one of them reiterating these terms, thinking it above the combined learning of the first and last, and looking with condescension upon the scholars of Sacred Law, hadith, and other disciplines, to say nothing of ordinary Muslims. Sometimes a common person will keep their company for many days, picking up these artificial phrases and parroting them as if he were speaking divine revelation, with sneering contempt for scholars and worshippers, saying that they are veiled from Allah (A: which could be true, though saying it by way of self-praise is very wrong) while he has attained to the Truth, and that he is one of those brought near to Allah – while Allah considers him a debauched hypocrite, and the transformed ones know him to be an ignorant fool who has not acquired sound knowledge, perfected his character, or kept watch over his heart, but merely pursued his own fancy and memorized a lot of gibberish.”

…

Muhyiddin ibn al-‘Arabi said:
“When we see someone in this Community who claims to be able to guide others to Allah, but is remiss in but one rule of the Sacred Law – even if he manifests miracles that stagger the mind – asserting that his shortcoming is a special dispensation for him, we do not even turn to look at him, for such a person is not a sheikh, nor is he speaking the truth, for no one is entrusted with the secrets of Allah Most High save one in whom the ordinances of the Sacred Law are preserved (Jami’ karamat al-awliya’)”

(Ibn Qudama in “Those Deluded by This World, Allah’s Forgiveness, Or Their Own Works” [p 778-795 of “The Reliance of the Traveller”, t: by Shaykh Nuh Ha Meem Keller])

….

“Do not limit yourself to deep words and profound spiritual allusions but make provision for the afterlife before death comes, when fine words will be lost and the rak’as you prayed by night or day will remain.” (Muhammad Sa’id Burhani)

[p 803 of “The Reliance of the Traveller”, t: by Shaykh Nuh Ha Meem Keller]