ME AND MAULANA: A PERSONAL RECOLLECTION OF WAHIDUDDIN KHAN - John M. Butt

to start attending his Sunday lectures in person. From 2010 till 2013 I attended almost all the lectures in person and had also opportunities to attend special spiritual classes and meets which were held whenever delegates came from any part of the country. Attending these classes and meets in person gave me the opportunity of Maulana’s suhbat which in my view is one of the most important methods of tazkiya (spiritual purification). The fourth phase of my spiritual journey was my dawah trips with him. With God’s grace I had opportunities to travel with him on several occasions, within and outside India, thus enhancing my learnings to the next level which could have not been possible otherwise. Now I would like to share the effects and impacts of Maulana’s teachings on my life in brief as well as my discovery of him. Maulana’s life was free from contradictions. He was a truly God realized person. He was like a living Companion of the Prophet (PBUH). My thinking was completely negative towards not only Islam but also towards humanity at large before meeting him. But through his training and guidance I can say that Alhamdulillah now I am completely free from all those negative thoughts. He taught me as how to live in God; how to love Him; how to make Him my supreme concern. He taught me the true and real meaning of Shukr (gratitude) which I never found anywhere else. He answered many of the most difficult questions of human history in very convincing and easy manner, for example,