New Year Message for 2026 – (Link to video of Jamil Morris Zahuri reading 2026 New Years Message in Konya)
This New Year message is about developing what Zahurmian inspired us with and what Nuri Baba lived. Zahurmian passed into the eternal realm of the unseen in 1996 Nuri Baba did the same two years later.
It is also about remembering the year that is passing, as well as welcoming the incoming year.
The relationship between the guide and the one guided is a precious one. It is formed in the the unseen but made manifest in this world. The manifestation of the covenant of guidance is in the Baiyat. Which in this world is usually a short formal ceremony.
In this ceremony an oath is taken by two people. One is the guide and the other is the one who seeks to be a disciple. In the case of someone joining the Gudri Shahi, Chishti Order, and indeed the Zahuri Order, Allah, the holy Prophet Muhammed, Hazrat Ali and all the saints of Chishti Order are invoked and in the presence of those great souls the would-be disciple requests guidance from the guide and the guide prays for that person to be received by Allah and the aforementioned souls. There is a commitment on both sides. The Guide is committed to sparing no effort in purifying the individual and the disciple commits to obedience to the guide. In the Chishti Way this is regarded as a relationship which cannot be voided by either party. If the disciple becomes rebellious to his or her guide then they themselves will be affected by that disobedience and may suffer consequences in this world. If the guidance is deemed unsatisfactory by the disciple they may take their complaint to Khawaja Saheb or to Hazrat Ali or even the holy Prophet but they cannot on their own void the relationship.
The key to the importance of remaining within the Chishti fold is the promise made to Khawaja Saheb by the Al-mighty that he would grant salvation to Khawaja Saheb’s followers.
I start with the reminder of this because there is no doubt that the lower nature of some individuals in the form of their Nafs will at times cause them to stray. The reason for the imposition of these rules is because the journey to purification is not easy and is not liked by the Nafs therefore not everything will be liked even though it is good for the disciple. The holy Prophet laughed seeing the unbelievers who were captured in battle. They took this to mean he was proud of his victory but he denied this and said he laughed to see so many people dragged to paradise in chains.
Those who stay willingly in the relationship with their guide benefit from the affection of the guide in many ways both internally and externally. Those who rebel do so only to the harm of their own souls. I have mentioned this only to be quite clear to those who receive guidance.
Before we move on to an account of the last year let us try to summarise briefly the important message Zahurmian and Nuri Baba gave us all. It is essentially the same as that given by Khawaja Saheb and Mevlana and all the great Sufi saints.
It is this: you have within you the capacity for personal spiritual growth, so use that capacity and develop that spiritual growth for the benefit of all mankind. That is the service of God that we must engage in if we are to be His willing servants. With Allah’s help it is possible to be much more than we seem to be. In fact by the grace of Allah it appears possible to return to the honoured position of vice-regent that Adam was given as recorded in Sura Tiin in the holy Quran.
Life can be a dreary affair indeed if we are without inspiration or the experience of true joy and happiness. Once we find our way to real guidance life becomes instead a journey of discovery. The hard times become hidden treasures waiting to be revealed, the good times become the earned fruit of effort; or else the unearned gifts of divine grace that are not easy to explain. When our life attains to this we want above all to share with others our good fortune. Something is born inside us, the child of our heart. Its source is divine but it grows inside us in a way comparable with a physical child growing within a physical mother. Of course it is not actually a physical child usually, it is in fact a ray of the Divine that falls upon the heart.
Just as with proud parents we want to share with others our joy. If we have not reached spiritual maturity then our motivation may be mixed and partly be about showing off. If we have that maturity then our desire is to genuinely share that joy. Our work is to make ourself a suitable vessel for that divine gift and our charity is to share the joy of it with anyone seeking or wanting it.
Sometimes the presence of the divine ray will be confused with the idea of a physical child but it is really something else. When an undifferentiated divine manifestation reaches us it is the tendency of the heart to impose on it a form that is desired by the heart. Even the presence of the guide in a dream may actually be that undifferentiated light moulded by the heart into an image of the beloved guide.
It is like clay that is stamped with a seal or moulded into a shape. The heart’s desire shapes the substance of the light, its substance however remains divine light but the form it takes varies according to the desires of the heart.
This is parallel with the nature of the holy prophets who as the holy prophet Muhammed says are one – “even prophet Yunus”. It is to say that their souls are one substance. Their separate forms we must conclude derive from the circumstances in which they lived and the needs of that time. The form of prophet Moses being different from the form of Prophet David or prophet Noah because the needs of the time and circumstance differed.
In the individual soul the same pattern exists, that is to say the divine light is given form by the circumstances of the individual but its substance is still the divine light. Thus a woman who is affected by a strong maternal instinct sees the divine light in the form of a baby. If the woman has not the circumstance of conceiving an actual physical child it is necessary to recognise this as tifle or the sign of a spiritual state or of a spiritual enhancement.
There has however been a recorded instance when that infusion of spirit did become an actual physical child. That case is of course Hazrat Isa, Lord Jesus.
The guidance of religious prescriptions is hugely valuable in preparing ourselves for receiving that inner joy but it is the joy itself that is the purpose of those proscriptions and prescriptions. The holy Quran tells us that the Divinity says “ We do not send (religious ordinances) to make life difficult but to make it better”. The Grace of Allah is so extraordinary, His mercy so profound, that we must wonder when we see so many people ignoring or denying it.
The presence of the divinity is felt in the joy we experience within us. Its source is not excitement like that felt by a football fan whose team has just won. That is merely a shadow of a shadow of real Joy. True Joy is something independent of external circumstances. Love is the most direct way to that joy thus when we are distracted from real love we must return to it time and time again till we know for sure we cannot live without love.
People become addicted to drugs or to mobile phones or to sex or to TV or to the internet or social media or to cars or to wealth or possessions or to the show of piety; let us determine instead to become addicted to divine love. It can give quality to life in a way that nothing else can. The love that is real, the love that endures, is the love whose source is our Creator.
Affections for this or that may show us the way to real love, but the objects of love are left behind when real love makes its home in our heart. Real love knows no material object, it exists within us and within itself. It is perpetual and unchanging in its essence. It is our true Home. As the Masnevi says, “Everyone who finds himself far from his Home longs for the time he was united with it”.
Thus in effect the guide says to us, often wordlessly, “Come let me show you the way Home”.
2025
As in every year 2025 had its great moments and its difficulties. The difficulties often lay the groundwork for the good moments. The good times give point and purpose to the difficulties.
January 2025 found us in our much loved Konya. The home of Shems Tabrizi and Mevlana Rumi and many other saints. We had already celebrated the Seb I Urus of Mevlana in December but now in January came the Urs of Khawaja Saheb in Ajmer. Though we were not able to be there physically our celebrations in Konya mirrored as much as we could the celebrations in Ajmer. We had a flag ceremony that involved us marching round Zahuri Manzil behind a flag, and following on we had ten days of celebration that included listening to recorded Qwaali as an act of meditation. At times there was Zikr and Quran recital. There were many people staying either in Zahuri Manzil or nearby Nuri Manzil. Naz was here along with Nur and her daughter Raz and Nur’s other sisters and parents.
Nazanin turned twice during Urs and took responsibility for collecting money contributed during Qwaali for giving to orphans in Kirman. Jeyran’s family were present including Fistik (Sherrin) and her mother. Her father stayed in a hotel in Konya. Katti joined us from time and was much loved by Raz who always insisted she sat next to her. We had joint meals around two round tables in Zahuri Manzil. Yahya was here, sometimes driving or helping with practical tasks. Samaneh was present as was Kara and we were joined by Rehanna a murid of Zahurmian from America who told us the atmosphere reminded her of Ajmer during the time of Zahurmian.
Later there was a short ceremony to formally make Nur and Naz Caliphs of the order. Yahya was made the Imam of the order. Later in the year when Maryam from Shiraz came to Konya she was formally made a third Caliph. The Caliphs have the power to make murids with Jamil’s approval. There is no limit to the number of Caliphs.
We discovered an indoor shopping Mall called Enteppe which had a playground for children that Raz liked a lot. On one occasion we ate there sitting round a large table in the dining area. We have visited Enteppe several times at the urging of Raz.
This period also saw the birth, so to speak, of the ‘Soul Sisters’ which consisted of Nur, Naz and Jeyran accompanied by Yahya doing Zikr. With the technical help of Kara they made three CDs of their music, one dedicated to Mevlana another to Hazrat Abdul Qadir Al Jillani and a third dedicated Khawaja Saheb. The songs they sang were of poems about or by those great saints. The quality of the productions and singing was excellent as was the Zikr supporting it. They are also available online.
Following the Urs, Jamil, who was accompanied by Yasi, had to return to the UK to deal with problems related to property there. Yasi was an invaluable help and between us we purchased a printer. Nur and Naz and Raz returned to Iran and as well as dealing with a medical problem for Raz they attended a family wedding in Bandar Abbas during which Raz was a glamorous bridesmaid.
In England there were numerous Urs during the month of Ramadhan in March and these were held in Zahuri Manzil there. This included Saeenji Saheb’s Urs, Hazrat Ali’s Urs and Nawob Saheb’s Urs. After Ramadan there was the Urs of Qazi Saheb. Jamil as usual read the entire holy Quran on line in Arabic mostly from Polygon Court. At times Bahar and her family joined us and Ali, Riaz and his family, Baby, Humaira and Abbas and their children. Of course Mikail and Hussam were also present. On April 8th and 9th we celebrated Zahurmian’s urs according to the western calendar. It was a busy month indeed.
Work on the property issues in Southampton is continuing.
At the end of May Jamil returned to Konya and was met there by Nur, Raz and Jeyran. Later Naz joined us and also Yahya, Kara and Laila. In the middle of June there was a brief war between Israel and Iran. This prevented flights to Turkey.
In March Yahya went for a week to Baghdad and in late summer his book on Baghdad came out with excellent photographs. It inspired the thought to publish similar photographic essays on Konya And Shiraz and later to attempt, if Allah wills, to do a photographic record of the major shrines in Turkey. A book on the shrines in Khorosan in Iran is also being considered. Even the idea of doing a book on the most important shrines in Delhi has been suggested. Our gratitude must go to Kara for all her work in the preparation of the books and to Laila for helping with the printing.
The Shiraz photographic book is out by Allahs grace. Much thanks to Maryam and especially Kara for her technical work in producing it. Most of the photographs are the work of Nur who had taken the pictures some time ago. Work on photographing the the Konya shrines is well underway.
Maryam of Shiraz had a launch of her Farsi book on the saints of Shiraz. This launch was on line and we were thus able to attend in that way. Congratulations to her and Hussain her husband. We await the publication of the English version by Jamil Chishti who published the book on Hafiz.
Jamil resumed medical checks for his blood disorder in Konya. He was very limited as to visiting the shrines over the summer as the heat was intense and it was medically recommended to avoid it.
Three more booklets were written and two so far have been published. One is about managing depression doubt and diffidence the other is called “Learning How to Live”. Work on Jamil’s autobiography is on-going.
During the year Raz started attending a private kindergarten several days a week. This lasted for several months. Nur was invited to teach English there but is not allowed to take paid employment by law. Instead “Little Stars” was set up. It is the name given to a small voluntary school set up by Nur to teach English to Turkish children in the area. Nuri Manzil was converted with posters and special carpets and various teaching aids to be suitable for the children. In the garden there is a trampoline slide and swing accessed by some new steps built by Yahya. Presently about 6 children attend for just a few hours a week. They appear to enjoy it. There are no fees for children attending but if parents wish they can contribute for overhead costs like lighting and heating but it is not compulsory.
Nur undertook an online course and has now become certified and recognised English teacher for foreigners. TEFL. The course is based in the UK and is quite demanding but Nur managed to pass all the parts.
On the 30th of September we celebrated the birthday of Mevlana. During the preceding week we attended a number of concerts in Konya celebrating this. Perhaps the most memorable was a live Pakistani Qwaali performance of great power in the Sultan Velid hall. Maryam and her husband visited for this week. We also had sessions on line from Zahuri Manzil.
Jamil celebrated his 79th birthday on 13th October on line. There were some problems with renewing Jamil’s visa and that issue is now in the hands of a lawyer.
Nuri Baba’s Urs was celebrated by us on the 19th October. It consisted of washing his grave with rose water and putting flowers and incense there and some Quran recital and a short Zikr. An on-line Mehfil was held and it included as well as Zikr some live Qwaali by Nur and others. There was reading of the holy Quran completed for his Urs. The whole occasion was inspiring beyond expectations. In November we celebrated the Urs of Ali Yurtash Baba in much the same way. Later Nur Raz and Jamil went to visit Ali Babas Wife, daughter and her son.
The development of live Qwaali has been an important step in the development of the order. Before this we relied only on recorded Qwaali which was of course excellent. In particular the wonderful music and singing of the Sabri brothers and also the extraordinary music of Nusrat Fatih Ali Khan. The development of the soul sisters singing together, however, led to the development of our own live Qwaali. Nur played a major role in this aided by her sister Naz.
Jeyran, Kara, Samaneh, Sherrin, and others have also all played a significant role. Yahya purchased harmonium in Tehran, part funded by Yasi, and brought it to Konya. This added an extra dimension to the music which became most inspiring. Yahya lives and works in Bastam very close to the shrine of Bayazid Bistami.
Another important step in the development of the order has been the opening of Zahuri Gardens in Kerman by Yasi. They now also offers Langer on some Fridays. Langer is free food for the poor. Yasi is to be congratulated on her efforts to extend this aspect of the work of the order and her other contributions.
The weekly on-line sessions have continued during this year. They were based in Southampton when Jamil was there, or in Konya. They consist of a two hour Zikr and recorded Qwaali session on Sunday evenings, a shorter Session on Fridays, and Masnevi sessions on Wednesdays, in which book 5 is currently being read by Jamil in Nicholsons English translation, and in the Farsi original by Maryam of Shiraz. On Monday evenings at two weekly intervals we have been discussing with Maryam’s group in Shiraz their reading of book one of the Masnevi for the second time.
In the Autumn Farhana went India to stay with relatives she attends all the on line activities and recites the Fatiha of the order on the 5th or 6th of each Islamic month. Yahya recites a Fatiha for Hazrat Abdul Qadir Al Jillani on the 11th of each month. Naz of course is expecting a son early in the New Year and our prayers are with her and her as yet unborn son.
For the Urs of Mevlana in December Samaneh and later Jeyran and Yahya and Marjan came to Konya in November and played a very active part in helping us prepare Zahuri Manzil for the the Urs. Surely the flat has never been so clean. Yahya donated a Cannon printer which is particularly helpful for the “Little Stars” school. Anna arrived next and her brother also came to Konya. Maryam Nazari joined us too and Kara, Laila, and Kia. We had some guests and one lady called Sabda stayed for the Urs of Khawaja Saheb.
I haven’t mentioned Raz very much so far yet, but her importance in our order can hardly be overstated. She is not yet of an age to be able to read this but she has shown so many signs of being a very special gift to us all. Like anyone of her age she is capable of childish behaviour at times but she also shows signs of truly remarkable potential. Nur and I witnessed her twice performing a genuine turning in Dergah. Usually people who turn there are specially trained by learning simple steps. Sometimes this can be impressive but Raz’s turning was a whole level beyond that. It lasted only a few seconds but it was true ‘turning’ without any doubt. Others did not see it but it was exceptional. I cannot sufficiently thank Mevlana and the saints for this Gift. May Allah always protect and help her. I never expected to see turning like that in one so young. During Khawaja Saheb’s urs she also participated with her own brand of turning.
She learned some verses such as Darud with no training from anyone. In Seb I Urus she performed the entire Darud though we were unaware she knew it all. Her English is extremely well developed and of course she knows Farsi very well. We are encouraging her to learn Turkish but that is rather slower as most of her exposure is to English and Farsi. She is being home tutored in music, ballet and Turkish by her mother and she participates in the “The Little Stars” school English sessions.
We had some sad news that Gulnar Elschott a long time murid of Zahurmian and wife of Siraj was in poor health but we are glad to report from Siraj that she is in full recovery.
During Seb I Urus of Mevlana we had various guests in Zahuri Manzil. The first few sessions we went to the Dergah of Nuri Baba but in the last few nights when it became crowded we had Zikr and singing at home. This included some live Qwaali style singing. We found a space in Mevlana’s shrine for the actual formal urs completion and met various people there including some of Nurs relatives.
The Urs of Khawaja Saheb began very shortly after the closure of Seb I Urs of Mevlana. We visited Shems and Mevlana and Nuri Baba to ask their blessings on us celebrating it in Konya. The quality of the Qwaali produced for the Mehfils was extraordinary and surely inspired by the saints involved. Nur composed the music whilst the poems were from or about Khawaja Saheb or the Chishti saints. One was a Qwaali based on the 99 names of the holy Prophet by Zahurmian. Nur was the leader with excellent support from Jeyran, Sameneh, Laila, and Kara. The quality was extraordinary and doubtless inspired. Recordings were made by Kara. The Urs are programmed to close just before the New Year. Before that closure Christmas was also celebrated around a Christmas tree, with gifts all round but specially for Raz. The Qwaali used the money used their money to buy a drum which was subsequently used in the music sessions.
The Role of Mysticism in the Modern World
Now we again review and reconsider the purpose of the mystics which is also our purpose.
The big wide world goes on its not-so-happy way and it seems there is little that a small group of individuals like us can do to influence it. If by this you mean making overt financial or political or military changes of course you are in a sense right but that is not justification for despair nor is it our primary purpose.
“Who despairs of the Mercy of Allah except the unbelievers?” the Holy Quran asks. The change the mystics seek is change to individual hearts and minds. Allah in His infinite Mercy time and time again sends help to a struggling and desperate mankind. This includes the Abrar and the Abdal. The saints, following on from the Prophets, are part of that help. By working assiduously on our own purification, inspired by the saints, we change not only our own patterns of of thought and action but also the thoughts and behaviours of those around us. Political changes whether by revolution or democracy will change little if they do not affect the hearts of individuals. It is up to us to change our own lives with the help of the Saints. If we change ourselves within by conquering our own Nafs Al Amarah then that will be reflected by society. The holy Quran says that we must make a step towards Allah and He will make a thousand towards us. Allah with His infinite power can change the state of mankind. Our business can only be in serving Him Who does not need our service. That service can only be in doing our utmost in the service of man.
The important thing is that we don’t see our spiritual development as something for ourselves alone. It is part of the development of humanity. There is, according to Shah Wali Ullah, a soul governing humanity just as there is a soul governing the animal kingdom or one governing the vegetal kingdom and another the mineral kingdom.
There is change and development in these souls, thus the needs of the human soul have developed. It does not require the extreme asceticisms it once did. The modern Sufi rather than living in isolation in the jungle now functions as part of modern society. This of course has its own challenges. Nawob Saheb the guide of Zahurmian tells us we must be in the world but not of it. As Hazrat Sarmad puts it we must be at the same time in the mountain and in the multitude.
Nor do we need to look on our serving mankind’s needs as something other than serving the Divinity. There is no reason for pride in serving man if we do it in the sense of really serving God.
Maybe this seems at time far fetched! We have our own problems to deal with they are urgent and difficult, what have we to do with the state of mankind? Despite this we live in an environment that affects us mentally, emotionally spiritually, financially and physically. If we cannot do much about the external environment directly we can still change ourselves from within. By doing this assiduously those near to us, to whom we have connection, who are our human environment, will benefit as well as ourselves. Thus we create a circle of hidden joy, in some cases it will be unconscious but it is real. Time and time again it needs replenishing but it is there.
To live in that ‘circle of joy’ is our hope and aspiration. Life is not meant to be a sorry tale of woe. There is a source of hidden ecstasy within us we must seek it and find it and live in it and live it. It is written that the sincere seeker is a finder.
There is no end to the power of love to give new life to us, There is no limit to the taste of joy if Allah will grant it to us, The power to make us whole again is in His hand alone, Between His two fingers our softened heart is, Allah help us.
And now finally at the very tail end of the old year on 29th December a promise for the future as our beloved caliph Naz gives birth in Kirman to a son, Noaha, congratulations to her and to her husband Sina. Welcome Noaha.
May Allah in His infinite Mercy let flow His love into the hearts of each of us. A happy and blessed New Year to you all.
Jamil Uddin Morris Zahuri Konya
December 2025