15 March 2023

Dear Companions on the Path,

May this find you well. In my last letter I had the pleasure of describing some of the auspicious and inspiring events in which I took part in India. That was the light; now comes the shadow. Not long after writing to you, while still in Baroda, I fell prey to one of those silent marauders (and murshids of a certain kind) that lurk so prodigiously in the water of tropical lands – namely, a stomach bug. Do you know why chili peppers were introduced into Indian cooking in the sixteenth century? Peppers have antimicrobial properties. Alas, in this case the spices didn’t save me.

I don’t think I’ve ever been quite as ill as I was in India. I then briefly rebounded and was well enough to return to France. We had special guests at Fazal Manzil the next day, but soon after, I began to feel unwell again. A visit to the ER in Suresnes provided the chance to have tests done, and I got back just in time to deliver an online class. By the evening, however, my condition had worsened and I had to sign off. The next few days were difficult. Gratefully, I was sustained by the gentle care of Pirani, the generous ministrations of Dr. Tajalli Annie Lacuisse-Chabot, and the kind prayers of many of you. The new Suluk Global Online course was supposed to begin that week, but it soon became obvious that postponement was in order. You can imagine how sorry I felt for the more than a hundred students around the world who had specially reserved the time. I was looking forward to it as much as they were.

Alhamdulillah, I am well again. Looking back, there was good in all of it. I remember reading about “the benefits of illness” in an old Sufi book. I don’t have the book handy at the moment and don’t exactly recall the list, but let me mention three benefits that come straight to mind.

• Illness reveals the mortal human condition in its starkness. Think of the hitherto sheltered young Prince Siddhartha when he left the palace gates and was confronted with the sights, sounds, and smells of sickness and death. For me, the ER was a formidable sight to see: bloodstains on the wall, black excrement clogging the toilet, rows of speechless old men in cots with eyes glazed over. When Siddhartha became the Buddha he said, “There are those who do not realize that one day we all must die. Those who do realize this settle their quarrels.” I entered the ER worried about myself, but seeing the state of my hall-mates, inevitably they became the focus of my prayers.

• The little ego prides itself on ability and control. Vulnerability sets the ego on its head. One wishes to be the one who helps others, not the one who needs help. To accept help is humbling, and in a certain way purifying. It’s part of the path of trusting in the One. Experiencing one’s absolute dependence on God is both unsettling and illuminating. At my lowest ebb I stood by the window as a flood of sunlight shone through. There could be no doubt at that moment that the Light of Lights was reaching me through those beams, and that the very best thing I could do was to passively receive what was being given from the inner worlds.

• An illness can serve as a reset. It’s like a punctuation mark at the end of a sentence. It signals a transition and a new start. When it’s over, the air is clear and it’s time to begin anew. A fever burns away more than one can know. There is a catharsis in which impressions from the recent and distant past are purged. One is given a new lease of life and accordingly resolves to recommit one’s days to a high purpose. At the same time, one is reminded of the need to judiciously match activity with rest. “The essence of today’s Message is balance.”

But enough fussing over a little ailment! Many of you have certainly been through much worse. What I really want to say is that I appreciate your prayers, and that you have my prayers always. I wish you the best of good health. And if you must sometimes undergo illness, may there be copious blessings in that too. In sickness and in health we will remain, I trust, constant companions on the path toward the One, and I look forward to seeing you at the next caravanserai.

Yours ever,
Pir Zia

P.S. I often receive kind responses to my Zephyr letters. In this case, to spare Josh’s inbox – already overflowing with Inayatiyya correspondence – may I ask you to please send any good wishes through the ethernet rather than the internet?

P.P.S. Beloved Shaikha Nur Hayat Artiran has conveyed how dire the situation in Turkiye is following the earthquake. Please continue to send prayers and donations to Turkiye and Syria. If you would like to make a donation to support the recovery, please see here for a list of recommended organizations. Also please note that, after speaking with our teachers in Turkiye, Pir Zia will not offer a retreat there, as he usually does, this coming summer.

Spring Retreat – Cosmic Celebration
w/ Pir Zia Inayat Khan
April 6th – 10th, 2023 – Gersfeld, Germany & via Zoom

Between the years 1973 and 1983, Pir Vilayat conceived and set into motion an interreligious mystical pageant he called the Cosmic Celebration. Forty years have since passed, and the seeds of the Cosmic Celebration are quietly flowering in our time. In this spring retreat, we will return to the music and sacred vision of the Cosmic Celebration, approaching the pageant this time as an interior experience of illumination. Through contemplation, meditation, prayer, and music we will make our way through the successive transformative stations of the immanence of the glory of the One, the renewal of faith, the descent of the Holy Spirit, Divine aid, communion with life’s essence, and the promise of the heart’s resurrection. Click here for details and to register.

The Biography of Pir-o-Murshid Hazrat Inayat Khan
A Six-Part Course w/ Pir Zia Inayat Khan via Zoom
Sundays, April 16th to May 21st, 2:00 pm EDT / 8:00 pm CET

The highly anticipated reissue of the 1979 edition of the biography of Hazrat Inayat Khan is now back in print, ready for our collective study with Pir Zia Inayat Khan, Hazrat’s central lineage carrier (sajjada nishin).

Throughout this six-part course, all are invited to learn about Hazrat Inayat Khan’s life story, from his origins as an aristocratic young music professor in western India through to becoming the iconic sage Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan, whose spiritual teachings, a century later, continue to inspire countless people throughout the world. In this spring series, we will delve into Hazrat Inayat Khan’s life and teachings in order to deepen our understanding of the legacy he has bequeathed to those who travel in his caravan and to the world at large. Click here for details and to register.

Sufi Teachings & Suhbat
w/ Pir Zia Inayat Khan
May 25th – 28th, 2023 – The Astana & via Zoom

As we officially return to multi-day gatherings at the Astana, the Inayatiyya’s headquarters in Richmond, Virginia, we invite you to come together with Pir Zia and many friends for three days of teachings, practices, music, spiritual conversation, zikr, tea and sweets. There is no set theme—only where inner guidance might take us. We have space for 50 people in person in Richmond, and for the multitudes of us online. Click here for details and to register.

The Sufi Path of Immortality
Dying Before Death & Living in God w/ Pir Zia Inayat Khan
June 25th – 30th, 2023 – Omega Institute for Holistic Studies

Our physical existence is a transitory interval between the preexistence of the soul and the looming hereafter. For a person of foresight, it is never too soon to step into the worlds that lie beyond. These invisible worlds are the hidden dimensions of what is already before us here and now. Each step takes the soul further on the path of awakening and closer to the Eternal Beloved.

Though the soul is the essence of our consciousness, its life has been long forgotten in a world preoccupied with what is quantifiable. To each aspect of our being – the soul, the mind, and the body – something is due. We are whole only when the soul, mind, and body are present to each other and to the Great Soul, the Great Mind, and the Great Body of which we are a part. Before long the physical body will return to its elements. But the life of the mind and soul will continue. What will have mattered when we are on the point of leaving the physical world? What is our work here, and what remains yet on the horizon? Click here for details and to register.

The Zephyr is a monthly newsletter of Inayatiyya, an interfaith mystical fellowship with branches worldwide. For more gatherings, please visit our Inayatiyya Digital Programs Calendar for Spring 2023.