144 I ThcBook ol Stfi Heding
soft. In any event,the real objectof the dftikr-intenseas it may be-is not to get "high" or to becomedisoriented;rather, it is to ascendthe ladderof stationsof the soul, so that one may arrive ai the Thresholdand attain a glimpseof the Divine. When this happens(which is by no meansuniformly achieved),the personmay fall into a state of arajl (ecstasy).As a mark of respect,all presentrise until this conditiondepartsthe dervish. The shaykhsignalsthe end of one phaseof the dlitr and the beginningof the next. In the Chishtiyyah, the initial phase of the tlhikr consistsof recitationof Ii iliha illaLlahu,with a breathbreakat a particularplace'The second,third, and fourth parts of thg tlhikrare composedof segmentsof the sacredformula (illa llahil, nothing except Allalr;Allah, God; and Hi, the One). Amendments to the dhikr may be made at the discretionof the shaykh,by addingvariousof the divine attributes(€y'il)at variousplacesin the dhikr. After the term of the clhikr,longor short, the shaykh or other dervish recites from the Holy Qur'an. There then follows extendedsupplications his family and followers(may Allah for the ProphetMuhammad (s.a.w.s.), (a.s.),the piousancestorsin the prophets the other them all), havemercyon order, and others. The posture and motions of the head are done in a specificmanner by the Sufi orders and constitutesthe main differencesamong them. In the Chishtiyyah Order, the dhikr is ordinarily accomplishedin the following manner: br ilAhaillALlihu:First one must haveablution.Beginin a sitting posture as in prayer, the legs foldedunder the body. If the legs are crossedtailorstyle, the vein in the juncture of the left leg behind the knee must be graspedwith the big toe. This posture dispelsevil insinuationsand also dissolvesfat around the area of the heart, which is the abode of the "sneakingwhisperer"(sl-khannis), one of the forms of the Devil. WhilJ reciting, the head is moved in the motion of an arc, starting with the left cheek resting upon the left shoulder. The head is then swung downward acrossthe chest, and a pause is made with the face looking upward. This is done as Ld ilila is uttered. Then, as the syllableill is voiced, the head is thrown rather forcefully downward in the direction of the heart. The recitation concludesby raising the head again,looking upwardas" Allihn" is said.Thesemotionsare summarizedin the accompanying illustrations. There is no harm if one takes up this practicein moderation-a few dozentimes-alone. However,the Sufishaveorganizedtheir studentsinto the tariqats, so that closesupervisioncan be maintainedover thoseperforming the variouspractices.Whenevermaking recitationof formulasto treat disease,it is important that the number of recitationsend in zero (e.g.,SO, 60, 1OO,3OO).This is so becausethe desireis for the result to end with nothing.