Habib Ahmad Bin Zayn Al Habsyi

His Lineage

He is al-Imam al-Habib Ahmad bin Zayn bin 'Alawi bin Ahmad Sahib al-Shi'b bin Muhammad bin 'Alawi bin Abu Bakr al-Habashi bin 'Ali bin Ahmad bin Muhammad Asad Allah bin Hasan al-Turabi bin 'Ali bin al-Faqih al-Muqaddam Muhammad, bin 'Ali, bin Muhammad Sahib Mirbat, bin 'Ali, bin 'Alawi, bin Muhammad Sahib al-Sawma'ah, bin 'Alawi, bin 'Ubaydullah, bin al-Imam al-Muhajir il-Allah Ahmad, bin 'Isa, bin Muhammad al-Naqib, bin 'Ali al-'Uraydi, bin Ja'far al-Sadiq, bin Muhammad al-Baqir, bin 'Ali Zain al-'Abidin, bin Husayn al-Sibt, bin 'Ali bin Abu Talib and Fatima’ al-Zahra, the daughter of our Master Muhammad, the Seal of the Prophets.

Zanbal Tarim

His mother was the pious Sayyidah Sharifah Fatimah bint 'Ali bin 'Aqil Ba Harun Jamal al-Layl.

The name “al-Habashi” was given to Habib Ahmad’s ancestor, Sayyid Abu Bakr bin 'Ali, who spent around 20 years in Habashah or Ethiopia calling to Allah and was thus named after the place in which he resided.

His Life

Habib Ahmad was born in the town of al-Ghurfah, between Seiyun and Shibam in 1069 (1658), and it was there that he grew up. From his early days, his heart was attached to his Lord and he had no leaning towards material things. He memorised the Qur’an at a young age and began the pursuit of knowledge, firstly at the hands of his father, who held him in great respect. His thirst for knowledge next led him to seek out the scholars in the various towns of Hadramawt. He would go on foot to Shibam, Seiyun and Tarim. The only provisions that he would take would be dates, which he would eat for lunch and dinner on his journeys. One of his greatest teachers was Habib Abdullah bin Ahmad Balfaqih in Tarim, who taught him numerous books in the inward and outward sciences. He also benefited greatly from Habib Ahmad bin 'Umar al-Hindawan and Habib Ahmad bin Hashim al-Habashi. He exchanged letters with the Hanafi scholar, al-'Allamah Hasan bin 'Ali al-'Ujaymi, who gave him permission to narrate hadith through his chains of connection.

Habib Ahmad’s greatest teacher, however, was Imam 'Abdullah bin 'Alawi al-Haddad. Habib Ahmad first met Imam al-Haddad while still a child on a visit to Tarim with his father. The Imam placed his hand on Habib Ahmad’s head and informed his father that he was a blessed child. From the age of twenty four, Habib Ahmad took the Imam as his shaykh and focused all his ef-forts on receiving from him. He placed himself completely under the Imam’s direction and guidance and exemplified the etiquettes of the seeker with the shaykh. He was, as the saying goes: ‘like a dead person in the hands of the one who is washing him.’ Habib Ahmad kept his company as much as he could, and could hardly bear to part with him. He complained of this once to Imam al-Haddad, who told him that he also found difficulty in parting with Habib Ahmad. Imam al-Haddad also told him that his being apart from the Imam strengthened his longing for him and enabled him to receive more from him. Habib Ahmad often accompanied the Imam on his visits to the Prophet Hud . When they were on the road he would walk directly behind the Imam “so that his heart would be in line with my heart. I knew that Allah’s gaze was upon his heart so I hoped to receive Allah’s gaze at the same time. I would imagine that my heart was an empty vessel placed under a vessel that was full, ready to receive the spiritual assistance that flowed forth from that vessel.” He had such veneration for his shaykh that he based his words and ac-tions on his example. He said: “We only give preference to the speech of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger over his speech and actions. As for other scholars, if one hundred scholars held one opinion and he (Imam al-Haddad) held another, I would only follow his opinion because he is the Imam and Re-newer (majaddid) of this time.” He also said: “Were he to bring the dead to life in front of me, this would not increase my belief in him in any way be-cause I see him constantly bringing to life those who have died from igno-rance and heedlessness through the light of knowledge and wisdom.” Habib Ahmad studied around seventy books in various sciences at his hands and was studying al-Muwatta’ of Imam Malik with him when the Imam passed away. In spite of this, Imam al-Haddad said of him that Habib Ahmad did not need to study all these books at his hands but that he did it merely seeking blessings (tabarruk).

Imam al-Haddad held him in the highest esteem, and said: “I hope that you will be greater than Imam al-Shafi'i in outward knowledge, not to mention in inward knowledge.” Imam al-Haddad directed people to seek knowledge and spiritual direction from Habib Ahmad. He said to one of his students: “You must go to Sayyid Ahmad bin Zayn al-Habashi, for he is a scholar, an ascetic (zahid) and a sufi.” This was indeed great praise from the Imam, for all praise-worthy qualities can be found in these three attributes. When the Imam died in 1132 (1719), many of his students took Habib Ahmad as their shaykh. It was as Imam al-Haddad predicted: “You will see the people of Tarim coming to visit you in your town in droves seeking spiritual assistance from you.” Habib Husayn, the son of Habib 'Umar bin Abd al-Rahman al-'Attas, said of him that everything that Imam al-Haddad possessed can be seen in perfection in Sayyid Ahmad bin Zayn al-Habashi.

Habib Ahmad’s whole time was spent in obtaining knowledge and spread-ing it. His immense thirst for knowledge did not wane as we grew older, but rather it increased. His great student Habib Muhammad bin Zayn bin Sumayt said: “I read one hundred pages to him in one sitting and he did not become bored, but rather asked me to read more.” Habib Ahmad said of himself: “After I reached the age of seventy, no desire remained in me other than the desire for knowledge.” He was once sitting with around one hundred books around him. He said: “Were all these books to be destroyed, I would have brought out all that is in them from my chest.” His knowledge was not con-fined to the sciences of the Sacred Law. He was also a master of medicine and people would come to him seeking remedies.

Like his predecessors, his utmost concern was acting upon his knowledge and benefiting others by it. He said: “We do not mention any piece of knowl-edge except that we have first acted upon it, and everything we say in the way of admonition, we intend addressing ourselves first.”(Many of the pious prefer to use the plural ‘we’ in their speech to avoid using the singular ‘me,’ thus praising the self and falling into the mistake of the Devil, who said: “I am better than him.”) He would travel through the villages and towns of Hadramawt calling people to Allah and teaching them their religion. He preferred to call people away from acts of disobedience in an indirect manner, knowing that this was more likely to find acceptance in people’s hearts. On one occasion Imam al-Haddad wrote to him saying that he was extremely happy with his efforts in calling people to Allah and teaching beneficial knowledge.

He authored a number of works. His twenty volume Safinah covers a vast array of inward and outward sciences. He authored several commentaries on Imam al-Haddad’s poems, which the Imam himself approved and named. The most famous is his commentary on the Imam’s 'Ayniyyah, in which he compiled biographies of many of the great Imams who represent the Imam’s chain of spiritual connection back to the Messenger of Allah . He composed a number of small treatises on aspects of the spiritual path. His al-Risalah al-Jam'iah (Literally “The Comprehensive Treatise.” Translated into English with notes by Shaykh Abdalaziz Ahmad under the title “The Essentials of Islam.”) covers individually compulsory knowledge from tenets of faith and the five pillars of Islam to the foundations of the spiritual path. No doubt due to the sincerity of its author, this small book found acceptance and continues to be a foundational text in many parts of the Muslim world, and several lengthy commentaries have been written on it. Habib Ahmad says in his introduction that he hopes that anyone that acts upon what is in it will become one of the people of true knowledge inwardly and outwardly. His prayers upon the Prophet , poems and some of his letters and speeches have also been collected.

He had a love for the remembrance of Allah and established gatherings of remembrance which continue to this day. Among them are his hadarah in Masjid al-Baha’ every Thursday night and another hadarah on the last Sun-day of every month which is read next to his grave. He would read la ilaha ill’Allah seventy thousand times a day and loved to listen to the poetry of Imam al-Haddad, Imam Abu Bakr al-'Adani, Imam al-Sudi, Imam Ibn al-Farid and Shaykh 'Umar Ba Makhramah.

He had a strong attachment to the pious and to their places of worship. If he heard of pious people in any place, he would travel great distances to visit them. He would regularly pray in the mosques of Tarim and visit the graves of his ancestors throughout the Hadramawt Valley and beyond, especially Imam al-Muhajir and his great grandfather, Habib Ahmad bin Muhammad al-Habashi, both buried in al- Husayyisah.

Just as Habib Ahmad had a great concern for the slaves of Allah, he had a similar concern for the houses of Allah. He built seventeen mosques, most of them in and around al-Ghurfah and Shibam, and restored several others. This led Imam al-Haddad to say to him: “You are the father of the mosques (‘abu’l-masajid’).” Habib Ahmad insisted on paying those building his mosques the best wages and said that anyone that did not do so was lacking in spiritual ambition (himmah) or in sincerity. He also spent large amounts of money on the upkeep of the mosques. All of these mosques are still in active use.

He would spend freely on the poor and needy, not caring whether he had enough for the next day. He said that if he was blessed with a pious intention he would act on it instantly, without looking at the consequences. A sufi is ‘a man of the moment’ and this was his state. He advised seekers that if they were blessed with presence of heart in a specific dhikr they should continue read-ing it, and not be confined to their regular adhkar, since this was an opening from Allah which should be capitalised upon.

He had absolutely no attachment to worldly things, and Habib Muhammad bin Zayn bin Sumayt said that in all the years he spent with him he never heard him talk about this ephemeral life and he had no regard for those who were attached to it. He was severe in his condemnation of oppressive rulers and those that served them. People came to him asking him to intercede for them by writing to such rulers but more often than not he would refuse, say-ing that he would “write to the heavens,” meaning he would pray for them. He had the utmost faith in the power of prayer, and said that if someone ful-fils the conditions and abides by the etiquettes required, then supplicating alone is one of the best paths to Allah. He preferred supplication over all types of worship, both acts of worship of the heart and body. Habib Ahmad’s heart would be filled with hope and a good opinion of Allah when he asked and with the knowledge that nothing is too great to ask for in the sight of Allah. He would always direct people to this path, saying: “If the one asking is not worthy of asking then the One being asked is worthy of answering.” He said: “All good is found in realising that you have no strength or power of your own and in submitting you affairs to Allah.” He taught people that the best means of facilitating their provision was through being content with what they had been apportioned and relying upon Allah and not upon people.

His state was brokenness in front of Allah. When he first became known as a scholar in al-Ghurfah he and some of his students were attacked and abused. After this, sadness could be seen on his face for some time. He said: “Do not think that this is because of what happened to us. Rather we see it as evidence of a lack of truthfulness and a sign that Allah gave these people power over us because of our wrongdoings.” He would always forbid people from asking Allah to take retribution on those that wronged them. Instead, he would en-courage them to pray for them.

He said that if someone is unable to find presence (hudur) in their prayer, they should witness their weakness and inability while in the prayer. He said: “Perhaps witnessing this weakness is more beneficial than actually being pre-sent, and witnessing this weakness is in fact being present with Allah.”

He was extremely scrupulous in his dealings. When he came to pay his zakat he would pay out two or three times more than the compulsory amount. He said of this: “All our wealth and everything we possess belongs to Allah.”

His Death

After living most of his life in his home town, al-Ghurfah, he moved to near-by Khala' Rashid. Here he built a house and a mosque known as Masjid al-Baha’, established gatherings of knowledge and remembrance and received his students and visitors. As a result of his settling there, the town became a safe haven, and is known to this day as ‘al-Hawtah’ or ‘Hawtat Ahmad bin Zayn.’ In his old age he lost his eyesight and someone would have to lead him from his house to the mosque. People would crowd to kiss his hand on his way back to his house. One day the man leading him, out of sympathy for him, led him a different way to avoid the crowd. Noticing that he had arrived at his house quickly without meeting anyone, Habib Ahmad asked what had hap-pened. When the man explained that he had led him a different way to avoid the people, Habib Ahmad rebuked him and told him not to do it again. He said that he sought spiritual assistance from every person that kissed his hand and he did not wish to be deprived of that assistance.

He continued his life’s work until death came to him at 'Asr on Friday, 19th Sha'ban 1144 (1732), while his tongue was moist with the remembrance of Allah. His son, Habib Ja'far al-Sadiq, later built a large dome over his grave to accommodate visitors. Habib 'Umar bin Zayn bin Sumayt said that the one who is unable to visit the Prophet Hud should visit Tarim, and the one who is unable to visit Tarim should visit Habib Ahmad bin Zayn al-Habashi, be-cause everything that those buried in Tarim possess can be found with Habib Ahmad bin Zayn.

Habib Ja'far, known as ‘al-Sultan’, continued his father’s work in the best way, calling people to Allah, teaching them and gathering them to remember Him. Likewise Habib Ahmad’s daughter, Hababah Salma, was famous for her piety and efforts in teaching people and bringing them to Allah.

Among Habib Ahmad’s greatest students was Habib Muhammad bin Zayn bin Sumayt, to whom we are indebted for writing his biography and record-ing his speech. His book, Qurrat al-'Ayn is an example of how a student can excel in serving his shaykh by recording his words and states in great detail so that others can continue to benefit from him. Habib Muhammad said that he was not jealous of anyone of the earlier generations because he had kept the company of Imam al-Haddad and Habib Ahmad bin Zayn al-Habashi.

The source of book "Imams of the Valley" Dar al-Turath al-Islami (DTI)