what is bayaat, By Peer Syed Mohyuddin Mahboob

Bayt is to pledge spiritual allegiance & totally surrender yourself to a Spiritual Master to guide you to Allah . The Spiritual Master i.e. one who guides you on the path of Shari'ah and Tariqah is known as a Pir, Murshid and Sheikh & one who follows such a pious person is known as their Mureed (disciple).

Swearing the oath of allegiance (Bayt) upon the hands of a Pir who is complete in all aspects of Shari’ah & Tariqah, and devout in all aspects of his life is of utmost importance. It is one of the actions that have been passed down from the time of the Beloved Prophet SAW till today.

About pledging Bayt to a Pir, Hazrat Ibn Abbas reports that Sayyidina Rasulallah says:

“Whoever dies and did not make an oath of allegiance (to a Muslim leader) has died a death of jahiliyah (ignorance).”
[Bukhari, Muslim]

Requirements of a True & Righteous Pir

1. He must be a Sunni with the correct beliefs & Aqeeda. Without this, he will endanger your Imaan & corrupt your beliefs.

2. He must be knowledgeable so that he is able to differentiate between forbidden & acceptable, halal & haram.

3. He must not be a Fasiq (wrongdoer, one who does not follow the Shariah) as it is necessary to disrespect a Fasiq and it is important to respect a Pir/Sheikh.

4. His spiritual lineage (Shajra) must be connected to the Holy Prophet SAW otherwise he will not gain virtue (Faiz) from the top.

Loyalty to Your Pir & Spiritual Master

Loyalty to your Pir is of utmost importance, as there is none who is as aware of the Mureed’s state of mind & current situation as well as his/her Pir.

Once a Mureed of the great Sayyiduna Yahya Maneri was drowning. Sayyiduna Khizr (A.S) appeared and said to the Mureed, "Give me your hand & I will save you".
The Mureed replied, "This hand has already been given in the hands of Sayyiduna Yahya Maneri , and since it belongs to him I cannot give it to anyone else". Sayyiduna Khidr (A.S) then disappeared and instantly, Sayyiduna Yahya Maneri appeared and saved him.

Renewal of Bayt

Tajdeed or the renewal of Bayt used to take place in the time of the Holy Prophet SAW.
The Benefits of Pledging Bayt

There are two types of Bayt:

1. BAYT-E-BARAKAH:

This is to initiate one's self for the Barakah (blessings) of joining a Silsila and this is the general idea or reason of today's Bayts.

This should be done with good intention. If Bayt is taken for mere worldly gain or any reason other than spiritual elevation, then such Bayt is Baatil (null & void).

Ala Hazrat Imam Ahmad Raza Khan states:

“The above Bayt is not useless, but beneficial, in fact, very beneficial and profitable in Deen and Duniya. At least, his name would be recorded in the books of the Beloved of Allah. By just having a link with a spiritual order (Silsila) is itself a great fortune and blessing.”

2. BAYT-E-IRAADAH (OR BAYT-E-SALIKEEN):

This means to totally abolish one’s desires and intentions and surrender one's self at the hands of a true Guide or Spiritual Master. You must sincerely obey and execute all his orders and methods entrusted on you by him.

Never take a step without his consent even though some laws and orders may not suit you or make sense to you. The Murshid's commands may cause great discomfort to you and at such moments the Mureed must regard this as the interference of the Cursed Shaitaan. Your every hardship and difficulty must be presented to him. In conclusion, the Mureed must totally hand himself over to the Sheikh like a corpse in the hands of a person performing its last Ghusl (bath).

This is also known as Bayt-e-Salikeen. Such Bayt leads one to Allah . It was Bayt-e-Salikeen that was taken by the Ashaabs (Companions) at the hands of the Holy Prophet .

Sayyiduna Ubadah bin Samat (radi Allahu anhu) states:

“We had taken Bayt (at the hands of Rasulallah on the following principles: We will await his command and execute it in times of every ease and difficulty, every form of ecstasy or displeasure. And when the Master commands us, we will never disobey or question him.”
The command of the Murshid is the command of Rasulallah SAW and his command is the Command of Allah, the All Powerful, Who nobody dares disobey.
The Master’s Rights over the Mureed
Huzur Hazrat Peer Syed Mahmood Shah Muhaddis Hazarvi wrotr in Jameul Khairaat : ''A Murshid has many rights over his Mureed.”
Huzur wrote in his famous book, Jameul Khairaat, these rights are listed as follows.

The Mureed should:
1. Live like a dead person in the hands of his Murshid.

2. Believe that the pleasure & happiness of your Murshid is the pleasure & happiness of Allah .

3. Believe that the rights of your Murshid are above all the Awliya Allah of that time.

4. If you receive blessing from someone else, believe it was for the sake of your Murshid.

5. Be willing to sacrifice your belongings, children and life for the sake of your Murshid.

6. If you see something in your Murshid which you think is against Shariah or is a major sin, do not say anything in opposition & think to yourself that you have misunderstood.

7. Even if you see someone flying in the air, do not give your hand in allegiance to them. Do not leave one spiritual master for another.

8. Do not speak whilst in the presence of your Murshid, unless he has prompted you to.

9. The Mureed should concentrate fully on his Murshid (with his eyes, ears and heart.)

10. Answer any question your Murshid asks in a gentle way and be silent quickly.

11. Respect the clothes, seating place, children, house, local area and city of your Murshid.

12. Do not say 'why?' when told to do anything by your Murshid but rather give it priority.

13. Do not sit in the place of your Murshid in his absence.

14. Do not marry the wife of your Murshid after his death.

15. If your Murshid is alive, pray for his safety and well-being in abundance on a daily basis and if he has passed away, send the reward of Fatiha and Durood Sharif on a daily basis.

16. Be a friend of his friend and an enemy of his enemy.

After Allah and His Messenger , believe that the link between you and your Murshid is higher than any other link.
When this happens, you will get the help of Allah & His Messenger and the Pious in this world & the next.
However, it is important that the Murshid meets the four conditions of Bayt as mentioned above. When this happens, the Mureed’s good beliefs about his Murshid will prove to be fruitful & guide him to the realm of Truth & Divine Reality.