Can a Person Have Regular Kashf (Unveiling) with the Prophet (Allah Bless Him and Give Him Peace)?

Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel

Question

A well-known and respected Maulana from the United Kingdom related a story about a Maulana (now deceased) who lived in Makkah and would have kashf while visiting the Prophet’s grave (Allah bless him and give him peace). He’d see him and talk to him in the kashf.

So the Maulana from the United Kingdom asked him to ask the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) what to name the new madrasa he was establishing and to make dua for its acceptance. After two weeks, Maulana in Makkah informed him that the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) greeted him and answered his question about the name of the madrasa.

Is this acceptable? Can we have such beliefs that a person can converse with the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) whenever he wants, and so on?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

I pray you are in good faith and health.

What is Kashf?

Kashf is a light that opens the veil of the unseen to those who have a purified heart by removing bad character traits, constant remembrance of Allah, and self-discipline, resulting in possessing insight of the unseen, where the unknown becomes known and the unseen becomes seen. Below are just a few examples.

Kashf in the Quran – the Three Incidents with Musa and Khidr’s Interpretation (Kashf)

The three incidents revealed to Sayyidina Khidr (peace be upon him) with Sayyidina Musa (peace be upon him). Sayyiduna Musa (Peace be upon him) believed he knew; however, it was revealed to Sayyidina Khidr otherwise, and they are:

• Regarding the interpretation of damaging the boat, Khidr said that he damaged it to make it faulty so that their oppressive, tyrannical king would not seize it.
• Interpretation of why the boy was killed, as the boy was destined to be a disbeliever from the day he was created. Although the immediate suffering for the parents on losing their child is unimaginable, Allah knew it would be worse to have a living child whose heart is spiritually dead.
• In The third story, the wall was repaired by Musa and Khidr without any compensation. This is because the wall belonged to two orphans, and beneath it was some treasure that needed to be hidden and preserved. Allah mentions that the orphans’ father was a righteous man, indicating that his father’s righteousness was a cause for their protection and blessing from Allah.

Kashf of Sayyidina ’Umar (Allah Be Pleased with Him)

The incident of Sayyidina ‘Umar (Allah be pleased with him) is quite well known – when once, while he was in Madina, his army was in battle in a land far away from Madinah. Allah made it possible for him to see his army’s position on the battlefields, and he was able to command them from his spot in Madinah to change their position. He called out to the detachment he had sent out to war, saying, “O, Detachment! Move to the mountain!” The detachment then heard him and moved towards the mountain.

Allah Most High manifested for ‘Umar (Allah be pleased with him) what remained unseen to the rest of those present in that gathering.

If Anyone in the Ummah Is Divinely-Inspired, It Is Umar

Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Before you were nations with divinely inspired people. If such a person were in my nation, it would surely be Umar.” [Bukhari]

Sins Fall Away by Ablution and Prayer

Imam Abu Hanifa (Allah be pleased with him) seeing sins falling down from the limbs of the person performing wudu, as mentioned in the following hadith.

Abu Umama (Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Whenever a man performs his ablution intending to pray and he washes his hands, the sins of his hands fall down with the first drop. When he rinses his mouth and nose, the sins of his tongue and lips fall down with the first drop. When he washes his face, the sins of his hearing and sight fall down with the first drop. When he washes his arms to his elbows and his feet to his ankles, he is purified from every sin and fault, like the day he was born from his mother. If he stands for prayer, Allah will raise his status by a degree. If he sits, he will sit in peace.”

In another narration, the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said, “When a Muslim man performs ablution, his sins are removed from his hearing, his sight, his hands, and his legs. If he sits down, he will sit down forgiven.” [Aḥmad]

Kashf as a Legal Evidence

Kashf is not accepted as legal evidence; it is speculative knowledge and not decisive evidence. However, one cannot negate the possibility of its manifestation by Allah for anyone of His chosen servants as a gift to them, as is the case in the above examples and many examples throughout history to our day. It is permissible to act on Kashf, not necessarily, but on the condition that it does not oppose Quran and Hadith. [Abdul Qadir ‘Isa, Haqa’iq An al-Tasawwuf]

Related:
Sura al Kahf: Musa, Khidr, and Knowledge – Shaykh Walead Mosaad

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I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani