Below are some comments on the Lectures on audio-tapes given by Hamza Yusuf.

Tape Name: Putting the heart in worship

 Hamza Yusuf said: “Allah (SWT) is manifesting himself in creation from an unseen realm. Before we were in a realm in which Allah was (Zaher) and now he is (Baten). Allah (SWT) has hidden himself from us by manifesting his attributes in creations and it is the human heart that should recognize this.”

 Comment:  

1. What is the evidence from the Quran and Sunnah for this statement Br. Hamza is making?

2. Prior to indulging in what Hamza Yusuf says about Zaher and Baten, let us see how the Prophet (pbuh) explained these terms. The Prophet (SAW) has explained the meanings of these Attributes (names) of Allah (SWT), in a hadith found in Sahih Muslim. Abu Huraira reported the Prophet (SAW) as saying: “…O Allah, You are the First, there is nothing before You, and You are the Last and there is nothing after You, and You are ‘al-Zaher’ and there is nothing beyond You, and You are ‘al-Baten’ and there is nothing closer than You. Remove the burden of debt from us and relieve us from want."

This hadeeth clearly defines the terms Zaher and Baten. The scholars have said that this Hadeeth clarifies Allah (SWT) in terms of a time dimension and then in a spacial dimension. Firstly, Allah is preceded and followed by nothing (is eternal). Secondly, there is nothing beyond Him nor is there anything closer than Him.  He transcends all creation by being above and exclusive of all creation.

So now that we know what Zaher and Baten really mean...

3. Should we understand from Br. Hamza Yusuf's statement that Allah was once Zaher and that he is no longer Zaher, and that Allah is now Baten but that he was not Baten before? Are not the attributes of Allah SWT eternal in there majestic glory!

Hamza Yusuf said: “At the root of our lives is al-gabez (contractor) and al-baset (expander). The heart is saying (when pulsating) ‘Allah’ ”

Comment: 

While this statement should be taken literally, for the sake of argument we will attempt to answer it as if it were metaphoric as well:

1. Literally: Please provide us with some sort of medical proof that the heart says ‘Allah’ in its pulsating. In books of medicine the sounds that the heart makes are referred to as: “Lub” and “Dub.”

2. Metaphorically: Even if Hamza Yusuf’s statement about the heart saying “Allah” is to be taken metaphorically, how does he know this? Is there any proof in the Quran or Ahaadeeth for this statement ?!

The fact of the matter is that, this statement is in conformance with Sufi thought. In fact one renowned sufi scholar claimed that “Saying ‘La ilaha ilAllah’ is the dhikr of the common people, and that saying ‘Allah’ is the dhikr of special people, and that saying ‘hoo’ is the dhikr of highest of the special people!”

In fact there are so many such dhikrs on the internet we request you to go online and search for them yourselves. Just for amusement we provide some that we found in a few minutes of surfing:  

Janissaries prayer:    http://www.stanford.edu/~percin/Bektashi.html

"Allah Allah illallah. We are blameless. We have our hearts afire. Our devoting to the Sultan is revealed. the Three, the Seven, the Forty, the Light of the Prophet (gul-bang-i) Muhammed, the Beneficence (Kerem) of Ali, our Pir (Patron Saint) the head sultan Haji Bektash Veli, let's say Hu for all of them, Huuuu." 

Find Under Talks by Sheikh Taner:  http://www.qadiri-rifai.org/index.html

Go to Zikr (Remembrance) then the (body)…

Another way we move to La ilaha illa 'llah is forward to the right, back to center, then forward left and back to center. This repetition represents the wheat field submitting to the wind, among other things. We always come back to the center so as to say that everything ends in us. Allah, of course, is everywhere, but we don't need to look outside to find Him. We can find Him within us.

Allah, Allah

One movement is of the head from right to left, with a quick breath between each Allah. This becomes like a sawing sound. It is based on the story of the Prophet Zachariah, who while being pursued cried to a tree to conceal him. The tree opened up and he entered, but he was soon discovered by his pursuers. As they began to saw down the center of the tree, Zachariah realized his mistake; he should have called upon Allah to save him, not the tree. So as the saw came closer and closer, he repeated over and over, "Allah, Allah, Allah." Our repeating Allah in Zikr reminds us to seek refuge only in Allah.

This story as amusing as it is, is completely baseless... (no Quran or Hadeeth evidence is provided for it)

In short we ask Br. Hamza, how come the scholars of Islam and any ahlus-Sunnah people do not make any "heart saying Allah," statements. (Alhumdolilaah) But rather such statements are almost always made by the various Sufi tareeqas as evidences for their rather ridiculous methods of Dhikr.