Hizb of the Sword

Hizb of the Sword

About this Hizb, Sidi Fakhr al-Din (RA) said: "This is the highest praise of God there is." He mentioned that this invocation (Hizb) belonged to the Prophet (SAW), who  entrusted it to Imam Ali (S). He said in essence that the Messenger of God (SAW) dictated the Hizb to Imam Ali (KAW), who wrote with his own hand. When our master, Ali (SA) retired  (for the night,) a king of the jinn introduced himself secretly and grabbed Imam Ali’s copy .... Why did he do this?

The answer can be found in the same circumstances that led the Prophet (PBUH) to teach this hizb to Imam Ali. The Prophet ordered the latter to fight the jinn at the  well of Alamayn. The case was so serious in the eyes of the Prophet (SAW) that he asked the angel Gabriel to bring him the Hizb of the Sword (al-Hizb al Saifi). After receiving it, he taught it to Imam Ali. He named the Hizb, “Hizb Yamani”, i.e. the Hizb that is like a shield that we hold in our right hand.

It was later that this Hizb was renamed “Hizb al-Sayfi”, for the one reciting it is surrounded by angels carrying swords, like rays pointing out of the Sun, protected against all temptations of evil.

 The Shaykh (RA) said,

Refuge and asylum for the fugitive am I

Against mighty tyrants shall I protect

My way is of all ways the surest

For never has on my path pray to hunter fallen

By perfect Faith is love protected

Against every jinn and all rebels shall it guard you

The author of al-Ithaf khall al-halli wafiyy bi-al-Faz al-Hizb al-sayfîyy "The al-Shanâwî  (RA) reported an oral  tradition dating back to the Prophet’s (PBUH) time: '' Whoever recites this invocation shall walk among his enemies without them being able to do him harm.  Jinn and devils will flee from his way '. " He also said: '' For whoever recites it with diligence, ie the Hizb al-Sayfi, God will create an entity of great beauty. At the time of his death, this entity shall come to him and he will  be amazed by its beauty. He shall glorify God, and his soul will be released from his body without any pain or suffering. When he is put in the grave, God will make the interrogation by the two angels, Mounkir and  Nakir, an easy one. In heaven, he shall be granted that, which no eye has ever seen, nor ear has ever heard, nor anything that man’s imagination can conceive. His face shall shine with light, and it will confer upon him an air of majesty and respect, so that whoever gazes upon him shall say "What kind of saint is that? "And someone shall answer:" It was a servant who devoted himself to reading this invocation "They will say:" even if we do so. " God then put it under His shadow. And they will say:” Wish we had done the same.” And then shall Allah place him under His shadow.

Part 2

Sidi Fakhreddin says in his book “Jawahir” that Hizb al Saifi contains 12,000 benefits, half of which are for this life and the other half for the afterlife.

The same is to be found in “ Ithaf.”:

Many sheikhs have avidly sought Sidi Fakhreddin’s permission to read Hizb al-Saifi,  but he always turned them down. Sidi Ibrahim al-Dassouqi ordered him to read it, but he replied that he could not, because the text was too long, and ought to be preserved in a book, and that it was a difficult task.  Sidi Ibrahim replied:” It is not so. It is something special and sublime indeed, for the Hizb al-Saifi may belong to only one tarîqa at a time and it is we who have received permission to read it and, it is essential that you do.” Sidi Fakhreddin says: "And yet, I still refused." Sidi Ibrahim then ordered him to ask other walis about the matter ". He said: "I then asked a wali of Tariqa Qâdiriyya who told me that he personally read the Hizb al saifi 21 times a day, and 41 times two or three times a week.”

"Then, says the sheikh, I consulted a wali from among my own ancestors, who had brought the tarîqa from Morocco. He was short, weak  and had  a disproportionately large chin. I asked him about it and he said he read it 41 times a day. I was astonished by this, and felt guilty, Sidi Ibrahim al-Dassouqi then blamed me by saying: '' I asked you to read it three times, and this seemed too much, though we all read it 41 times a day and sometimes even more. I accepted this time, and I admitted my mistake. I later came into possession of all versions of the Hizb al-sayfi: that of Sidi Ahmad al-Rifa'i, Gilani, Tijani, of Seyyid Ahmed ibn Idris. Then, one day I stumbled upon a specific version of a portion of one of the previously mentioned versions. I asked permission to read it, but Ibrahim al-Dassouqî said: “Read like this!”

I asked him:” what version you read? Is this it?”

He answered:” I do not read it.”

I said: “Why then do you recommend that I do?

He answered:” Because it is essential to all awliya, and all  tarîqas.”

I asked:” Did you read Ahmad al-Rifa'I’s version?”

He answered:. “No !”

I said:. “Did you read Sidi 'Abd al-Qadir al-Gilani’s version?

Again he said: “No”

I asked: “How about Sayyid Ahmad al-Tijani’s?

He said:” No”

I asked: “The one who was in  Imam Ali’s well?

Again:. “No”

“Sayyid Ahmad ibn Idris”

“No”

So I said:. “I do not know any other versions. Which one do you read?

He said: “No, you are mistaken!”

I asked:” What do you mean?”

He answered:” The version that Seyyid Ahmad ibn Idris read what mine”.

I said:. “And why do you want me to read it?”

He answered:” This was given to me by my maternal uncle Al-Shathuli when I was but less than a year old. I have been reading it ever since whenever I needed to”

I said:” Then I shall read it; but tell me where the angel signs are and what the rule is.”

He answered: “You shall find them in the book.”

I said: “I apologize and I will read now, O Sidi Ibrahim!”

Then he started a detailed explanation about the angels of Hizb al-Saifi, mentioning their names, descriptions and occupations. Glory to God!

Among the benefits of reading the Hizb al-Sayfi in this life: it is read in a special manner, on salt, under the supervision of our spiritual guides, as a way to fight temptation, evil spells and other similar diseases. Praise to God!