Sidi Muhammad Sa'id al-Jamal ar-Rifa'i as-Shadhili, the Guide of the peace, the mercy, and the love. The guide to the way of Allah through the Sufi path of the Shadhdhuliyyah Tariqah, founded by as-Shaykh Ali Abu-l-Hasan as-Shadhili in Egypt in the thirteenth century. The Shaykh is a descendent of the Prophet Muhammad, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, through his ancestor, Shaykh Ahmad ar-Rifa‘i. 

He was born in Tulkum in the Holy Land in 1935. He is the spiritual inheritor through the Shadhili line from his Guide and Master, Shaykh ‘Abdu-r-Rahman Abu-r-Risah of Halab in the land of Syria, and is one who has kept Sufism alive and at work as an institution and a school of thought and spiritual knowledge. In 1997 he restored the 1000 year old Sufi Council that served in the Holy Land. He was the Head of this Council in Jerusalem and the Holy Land and has been a teacher and central figure at the Masjid al-Aqsa or the Dome of the Rock for many years.

The Shaykh lived on the Mount of Olives in the Holy City of Jerusalem since the year 1959. The teaching from his spirit is very deep and for all those who have a heart and who listen with this heart. His teaching sheds an entirely new light on the reality of Sufism and the significance of carrying this message to everyone in this time.

For many years the Shaykh was a teacher at the sacred sanctuary of al-Aqsa in Jerusalem. (This mosque is linked by all Muslims to the Holy House in Mecca in the tradition of the Night Journey (al-Mi‘raj) of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him. During this Night Journey the Prophet was taken from the Ka‘ba in Mecca to the al-Aqsa Mosque and from there to the heavens).Sidi was well known to many people both in Palestine and in other countries in the world. Not only was he a teacher and counselor for all those who come to be at al-Aqsa, but he was also its custodian. Through his hand and leadership in these times this Sacred Precinct, has been preserved, in the face of many efforts to destroy it, as a place of prayer. Muslim people come from all over the world to visit the Holy City of Jerusalem and to take the blessing of the praying in this Mosque. The Shaykh has students and followers in the Holy Land as well as in America and Europe, but it has only been since 1993 that the order came to his heart to travel to visit other countries. At the same time Allah gave him the order to take the teachings to those in every part of the world who are sincerely seeking for the truth of their existence, the meaning of their life, and the healing of their wounds. Up until then, the teaching had been reserved only for study in his Zawiyah in Jerusalem.

Shaykh Muhammad Sa‘id al-Jamal was a distinguished person of international stature. For over forty years he lived in the Holy City of Jerusalem and worked consistently with great patience to keep the peace between the people there. 

He began his career at a very young age as an uncompromising man of God, who had no fear of anyone but God, and because of this, he took a stand facing governments any time they tried to overlook God in their actions or disrespected people's right to worship God. Being a judge of the courts, he was a government employee; at the same time that he gave weekly sermons in al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem. He has been the spiritual counselor to the people of the Holy Land and to all those who have visited over the past forty years, and he has given his life as a sacrifice to this work.

He made monthly journeys all over the Holy Land to help the poor and to make sure that everyone had food and clothing. There were always lines of people at his home and at his office because they knew that they could find real help from him. 

The Shaykh opened a Sufi Center in an old building on the road to Jericho, which holds the Prophet Moses' tomb, may the peace and blessings of God be with him. This center became the head of the Sufi operations of aid. It has also been used to rehabilitate drug users and dealers. 

In 1994 he made his first visit to America and continued to be invited here each year to give seminars and teachings at schools and centers across the United States. The Shaykh is not a teacher for a few who follow a spiritual path; he opens his heart to help everyone from any country or nationality, and he has helped people from all over the world. The real beloved of God works for all those who are suffering and who need food and clothes in all this world. Sidi was a leader who helped to keep peace no matter what the cost and who served humanity without prejudice.

Sidi passed away in November 2017, may the peace and mercy of God be upon him.

I encourage you to take from his teachings with your whole being. Learn the practices and discipline yourself through them. Read and write Sid’s books. Connect with your local community and attend gatherings. Join the various list serves (belovedbeloveds.groups.io) and your local groups). Sign up for email updates and events at the University of Spiritual Healing and Sufism (sufiuniversity.org) and Shadhiliyya Sufi Communities (suficommunities.org). Call in and take part in the various teleconference calls that are happening every day (see resources link at suficommunities.org website for updated schedule of all the different calls that are available). Receive a spiritual healing session from a graduate of the University of Spiritual Healing and Sufism in order to help clear away any blockages that may be keeping you from deepening your connection with God. The more you put into this practice the more you will gain from it. 

The biographical information is courtesy of Sidi Muhammad Press, www.sufimaster.org.

For more about Sidi’s history and stories from his life see the book titled “The Guide” available at Sidi Muhammad press or through the Sufi Center gift shop on line at suficenter.org.

God says, “Be My reflection in everything that you do. I have given you Myself and you can see Me in every human being. Give anyone love and mercy, if that is what he wants, and know you are giving it to Me.” When you find the love, you find yourself. The secret of God is in the love. If you want to go beyond all that you have been to find the secret of God, then I am your brother to take your hand and guide you from the darkness to the light and to the garden." Sidi.