al-Khalīfah and al-Muqaddam.

#FAQ_SSDT
FAQ -3: al-Khalīfah and al-Muqaddam.
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Q- In the Tījānī Path, what is the difference between a Muqaddam and a Khalīfah?
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A- The short answer is that every Khalīfah is a muqaddam but not every muqaddam is a Khalīfah. However, there are many details that can be added here regarding: (a) Khalīfat-al-Batin vs. Khalīfat-al-Zhahir, or the Inward Khalīfah (only one at any given time) vs. the Outward Khulafā’ (deputies), (b) what qualities a Khalīfah must possess, (c) degrees of taqdīm, e.g. absolute (mutlaq) or restricted (muqayyad) and (d) attributes of a Muqaddam.

The answer below is based [1] on what Shaykh Salaheldin, may Allah be pleased with him, wrote in volume I of his book, “The Sealed Nectar in the Biography of the Concealed Pole” [2].
(الرحيق المختوم فى سيرة القطب المكتوم)
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In the section entitled, “The Fiqh of the Tījānī Path”, he (r.a.a.) wrote:
“Know that there are two types of knowledge or understanding (fiqh) for the members of the Tījānī Path.  A principle one (al-Fiqh al-Akbar) and a secondary one (al-Fiqh al-‘Aṣghar).

* Al-Fiqh al-Akbar is a secret that Allah deposits in the hearts of whom He (ﷻ) loves of the members of the Path.  No Angel can record it, and no Satan can corrupt it, since it is concealed from them.

* Al-Fiqh al-‘Aṣghar is the knowledge concerning the conditions of a Muqaddam and a Khalīfah; the etiquettes that an aspirant (murid) must observe towards the Khalīfahs (al-Khulafā’), the Muqaddams, and the fellow brothers and sisters of the Path; plus knowledge concerning the litanies of the Tariqah: what is mandatory and what is recommended; what is permissible and what is reprehensible and what renders the litanies void.
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FIRST: Al-KHALĪFAH
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Al-Khalīfah is the deputy (nā’ib) [3] of Sidi al-Shaykh Ahmad al-Tījānī, may Allah be pleased with him.  And in every age, there is but one Khalīfah.  That Khalīfah receives everything that emanates from the Seal of the Saint (Ḥadrat al-Khatm), i.e. all lights and all secrets, and then distribute them among the spiritual seekers (al-Murīdīn) in accordance to the faculty of their spirits and their readiness to receive. 

This is al-Khalīfah al-Bāṭin or The Inward Khalīfah who is appointed by Sidi Ahmad al-Tījānī (r.a.a.) with the permission of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.
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This type of inward deputyship – al-Khilafah al-Bāṭinah – also known as the Greatest Polehood: al-Khuṭbāniyya al-`Uzhmā (القطبانية العظمى) – was assumed by:
• Sidi Ali Ḥarazim, may Allah be pleased with him.  He was followed by
• Sidi Muhammad ibn Abi al-Naṣr al-`Alawī, may Allah be pleased with him.
• Then Sidi Muhammad al-Kansusi, may Allah be pleased with him.
• Then al-Sayyid al-`Arabi ibn al-Sā’iḥ, may Allah be pleased with him.
• After him came the great Khalīfah, Sifi Hussayn al-ifrānī, may Allah be pleased with him.
• Then Sidi Ahmad Sukayrīj, may Allah be pleased with him, who assumed the post for three years.

It is this Inward Khalīfah (al-Khalīfah al-Bāṭin) who is responsible of guarding and providing for the inner realms (al-Bawāṭin).  He is also known as the General Khalīfah (al-Khalīfah al-`ām).

At any given time, this Inward Khalīfah (al-Khalīfah al-Bāṭin) can be also apparent (Zhāhir), or  remains hidden.  And again, there is only one such Khalīfah at any given time [4].
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THE OUTWARD KHALĪFAH (al-Khalīfah al-Zhāhir)
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Know that the outward khilāfah is not a bestowed license (‘Ijāzah), rather it is about spiritual stations (maqāmāt rawḥāniyyah) that one reaches where Sidi Ahmad al-Tījānī (r.a.a.) becomes one’s constant companion.  In other words, for a true Khalīfah, Sidi Ahmad al-Tījānī (r.a.a.) is never absent, not even for the blink of an eye.

Anyone who reaches this station is one of the true inheritors (al-Khulafā’).  And the one who did not reach this state, then he is not a Khalīfah even if he was given a hundred certificates stating that he is one. He is simply one of the Muqaddams.
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At any given time, there may be more than one outward Khalīfah [5].  But it is not a must that there be a Khalīfah in every country, for this station is rare.  However, there must be Muqaddams in every country to initiate others in the Path.

Finally, it is not a must that the General Khalīfah (al-Khalīfah al-Bāṭin) or an outward Khalīfah be of the descendants of Shaykh Ahmad al-Tījānī, radya Allahu `anh.

IN THE NEXT POST: The conditions that must be satisfied by any outward Khalīfah.

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[1]- Abridged in some parts from the Arabic text.
[2]- The book comes in 5 volumes and is available (in Arabic) for free on the Shaykh’s site ().
[3]- A Deputy or an inheritor (an heir).
[4]- Related post: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Imam.Salah.Lovers/permalink/1931142860503242/

[5]- Translator’s note:
Even though al-Khalīfah al-Bāṭin (The General Khalīfah) is the one providing for ALL of the other Khulafā’, some of the latter may be unaware of the station of that General Khalīfah and so they may deny his position and even attack him.  I asked shaykh Mahmoud Atijany, r.a.a., “How can that happen?” and he reminded of the story of S. Moses, peace be upon him, when he was shown our nation and asked to be its Prophet to which Allah (ﷻ) told him (ﷺ), “Their Prophet will be one of them”.  In other words, the true station of our Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was concealed from Prophet Moses (ﷺ).  In general, those in higher ranks are veiled from the ones in lower ranks.