A doctor, a PA, a Hakim, and a Wali entered the room. Everyone welcomed them. You can see the hope in their eyes that perhaps this is the answer to the prayers they’ve been making. We looked at each other and understood: this is going to be a long session…

Abu Munir is an inheritor of the beautiful Damascan tradition of spirituality and service. He was the companion and personal servant of Sheikh ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Shaghouri, the renowned Shadhili master of Damascus, whom he served for decades. He then became the personal servant to Sheikh ‘Abd al-Rahman’s successors, Sheikh Mustafa al-Turkmani and Sheikh al-Shukri al-Lahafi.

Abu Munir’s way was that of service, unconditional love, humility, and tireless concern for others. He told me once that his teacher, Sheikh ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Shaghouri once said, in so many words, to ‘steal moments of the day to be with the brethren lest time slips by.’

And thus, we did. Every day after the morning prayer, we would drop in Abu Munir’s house to steal moments of the day to spend time with one another. Those were precious times. It was sometimes short and sweet, maybe half an hour. And sometimes, we would completely forget that time existed until someone in the gathering noticed that four hours had gone by! We would talk about any and everything. Often, though, one of his visitors would ask Abu Munir a question. Perhaps a question about life, about the Spiritual Path, about how Sheikh ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Shaghouri or others of the Awliya were, or about advice on some matter the person was struggling with. Without fail, Abu Munir would almost immediately bring out a story to answer the person’s concern or to illustrate how the scholars and Awliya from Syria would have done things. Sometimes we did dhikr or recited some Sura together. Various and random people from the neighborhood would come to these morning sessions. But whoever attended, they would always leave having gained some insights, perspectives, and blessings.

For most of these sessions in early 2019, there were three that were the most consistent: Dr. Hussein Haider, Hakim Shabaz, and myself. Depending on who attended, the conversations varied. But as the majority of us were medical people, the conversations naturally shifted to the topic of health. And without knowing it yet, we would let loose a powerful force that would benefit a great many!

It would start with a visitor people would least expect.

Meet Khaldoun, the lawyer. From his appearance alone, he had a presence. He was tall and stocky with a long beard and wore a tall white turban wherever he went, even in the courtrooms. It would be easy to imagine someone who did not know him getting intimidated. But once you did, you realized he was just a big teddy bear you wanted to hug. Usually the jokester of the group, he could dispel the tensest of situations with a witty remark putting everyone at ease with a giggle.  Originally Jordanian, he had been living in Damascus for several years with his family. He came to Jordan with the group of scholars who had taken up residence in the neighborhood, fleeing from the war in Syria, of them Abu Munir. He took the Spiritual Path from Sheikh ‘Abd Al-Rahman al-Shaghouri (R) when he was eighteen. Living around the corner from Abu Munir, he would drop in from time to time after the morning prayer. He told us a few times humorously that when he took the Spiritual Path from Sheikh ‘Abd Al-Rahman Al-Shaghouri (R), he was ready to do and implement anything. “Anything!” he said, “except for food.” He was a foodie at heart. He knew it. We knew it. And we all knew that we all knew it. He was openly proud of it with absolutely no insecurities. It was just the way he was. 

One morning, he came in late as our session was underway at Abu Munir’s. Saying his greetings, he quietly sat down and listened intently to the health conversation. He was an intelligent person, and his frequent questions and engagement showed it. By the end of it, something changed in him. He did the unexpected. Right then and there in front of everyone, he calmly resolved to go on the diet regimen we just happened to be speaking about.We were all surprised. Of all people, Khaldoun?! I’m sure people doubted the seriousness of his resolve, given his humor and all. I guess only time will tell. 

Time did tell. Over the next month, he frequented the morning gatherings almost every day, getting more information, clarifying understanding, and getting encouragement. He stuck to it. Over the next few weeks, he had a profound and positive effect on his circle of influence. Family, friends, and coworkers all wanted to know: What is he doing?! He is losing weight. He looks phenomenal. And he says he feels great. This is Khaldoun we’re talking about! You know, the foodie. In four weeks, he lost 45 pounds (20kg)! Even his office at work no longer served coffee or tea, which is a big part of the Jordanian culture. Instead, they made a mixture of herbal tea and offered it to coworkers and clients. His new look and the office’s new practice, almost always sparked up a conversation. Thus, the “nutritional missionary work” (da’wa) spread.

One of Khaldoun’s good friends was an influential T.V. news personality in the small town of Yarmouk, Jordan. The two got to talking, and this story would be perfect for prime time T.V. They decided to do a live interview with one of the members of our team, Hakim Shabaz. In the interview he discussed the same health principles that we would discuss during our morning meet ups. The response from the audience was very positive, and we began getting many calls to treat people and their family members all over Jordan. And so we went, the four of us, from house to house usually on the weekends to help fellow Muslims on their path to health and recovery. Many had common chronic conditions like high blood pressure and diabetes. Some had different forms of cancers at different stages. Yet others had genetic congenital conditions like cystic fibrosis. We saw all ages. Through Allah’s pure generosity, most, if not all, improved significantly through our intervention and advice. 

Meanwhile, Abu Munir reached out to many of his contacts that he knew had medical conditions, most of them being scholars and the righteous, people like Sheikh Yunus Hamdan, one of the scholars given permission (‘ijaza) by Sheikh ‘Abd Al-Rahman Al-Shagouri to teach higher-level Islamic spirituality, Sheikh Ali Hani, one of the foremost scholars in the science of tafsir, Sheikh Muhammad Adel, the lead singer (munshid) in the public Dhikr, Abu Abid, the brother-in-law of the great Sheikh of the Shadhili Path, Sheikh Al-Kurdi (R), and others of the ‘Awliya, like Sheikh Al-’Urabi, Sheikh ‘Aqur, and Sheikh Hammad. We provided them with health guidance, and whoever implemented the advice benefited. 

One of them in particular, Sheikh Ismail Al-Kurdi, the main teacher of Islamic Spirituality in Sarih, Jordan and the son of Sheikh Al-Kurdi (R), benefited tremendously. He struggled with diabetes for a better part of ten years. Like the others, we sat with them and discussed the various health principles. He listened attentively and from there he made a decision. He was going to immediately implement the new regimen. In about a month’s time, his health improved so much that he no longer needed his diabetic medication. I’ll say that again. His chronic condition was cured. He no longer had diabetes. He felt better. He slimmed up. He had more energy. He immediately had his entire family on the new diet. One of his family members had a seizure disorder and was chronically on medication. After the diet, no more. Having the entire family enthusiastically eating healthy was very helpful. They would get up in the morning as a family and make freshly pressed vegetable juice. Sheikh Ismail had a significant influence in the area and so he used his platform to spread the good. All of his students would gather to spend time with one another after the morning prayer. It was the usual custom for Jordanians to drink coffee. Well, no more! Sheikh Ismail immediately ordered the coffee to be replaced with fresh vegetable juice. And so all his students bought juicing machines, and that was that. Almost overnight about two hundred people of his students, family, and friends began eating healthy. He did not stop there. He also went on the local T.V. news to publicly discuss his past medical conditions and his newly found success with this diet. He also had us visit and treat his mother, Sheikh Al-Kurdi (R) wife. 

One of Abu Munir’s best friends was a man named Sulayman. Unfortunately for him, he didn’t have the same outcome as Sheikh Ismail. He and Abu Munir knew each other from their two year mandatory service in the Jordanian army. When we met him he was in bad shape. He was pale and could barely walk a hundred feet without significant fatigue. He had coronary artery disease and the inner lumens of his coronary arteries were getting smaller and smaller from the plaque build up, yet he also could not afford to get a stent place. So of course Abu Munir invited him to his house so that we all could see him as a patient. We explained what he had to do. He was desperate, and so he implemented everything he learned. We saw him a month later. It was a completely different person. The healthy reddish hue returned on his face. He was stronger, healthier looking. And he could now walk unlimited distances. Al-HamduliLlah! Great! Well, until that is what happened next. A common misunderstanding that many patients fail to realize is that they did not become unhealthy overnight. It took them years of unhealthy eating and abuse to their bodies for them to develop some chronic condition. And when they decide to get healthy, like going on the Hayat Tayyiba diet, and they see improvement in their health after a few days, they decide to return to their old, poor habits because they think their symptoms or health problems have magically left them. And that is what happened to Sulayman. He went back to his old unhealthy lifestyle and unfortunately paid the price for it. He had a massive heart attack from which he did not survive. May Allah Most have mercy on him. 

This story does highlight several lessons. The main one being that health and well-being for the believer have a higher purpose, which we will speak about in detail. It also highlights the Prophetic saying (Hadith) where the Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) said,

قَالَ رَسُولُ الله ﷺ: عَجَباً لأمْرِ الْمُؤْمِنِ إِنَّ أَمْرَهُ كُلَّهُ لَهُ خَيْرٌ، وَلَيْسَ ذَلِكَ لأِحَدٍ إِلاَّ للْمُؤْمِن: إِنْ أَصَابَتْهُ سَرَّاءُ شَكَرَ فَكَانَ خَيْراً لَهُ، وَإِنْ أَصَابَتْهُ ضَرَّاءُ صَبَرَ فَكَانَ خيْراً لَهُ. رواه مسلم

 “How astonishing are the affairs of the believer! Because all of his circumstances are tremendously good. And that applies to no one except the believer. If good times come to him, then he is grateful, and that is better for him, while if bad times strike him, then he is patient, and that is better for him” (Sahih Muslim).

Had Sulayman continued to live healthy he could have lived longer. Living longer for the believer means that there would have been that much more time and opportunity to do good works. One extra prayer (salah), more supplication (dua), and more remembrance (dhikr) would increase the eternal rank of the person and closeness to Allah Most High in the Next Life. However, that wasn’t the case. So Sulayman returned to his Lord sooner. But is that a bad thing? He returned to his All-Merciful Lord. And that is what the words of the Prophet ﷺ mean. All circumstances for the believer are good. Though there are some circumstances that are better and more beloved to Allah Most High. 

When the news of our excursions reached the spiritual mentor, Sheikh Nuh, he gave us a name. You guessed it! He named us, “Hayat Tayyiba.” In fact, he even generously commissioned an Islamic calligrapher to make a logo for us. (Picture of the original logo here)

This is how most of 2019 went. We would go out as a team and treat our fellow believing Muslims. And then, it was Abu Munir’s inspiration that resulted in a game changer. 

The way Abu Munir explained it is that only a handful of times has he woken up for the predawn, nightly prayer (Tahajjud) where he feels moved to sit down and write, as though an external force is making him. This was one of those nights. Inspired, he woke up for the Tahajjud prayer, sat down, and wrote. He gathered all of the principles of our health conversation and their practical points of implementation from our morning sessions and our patient excursions. He wrote and wrote. By the call to prayer (adhan) of the morning prayer (Fajr) he was done. He had asked one of his family members to type it up and make it into a booklet, adding in towards the end pictures of healthy food alternatives that he himself often had made. He named it,

 الغذاء بين الداء والدواء 

(literally: “Nutrition between sickness and cure”)

(Picture of the original here)

This was a game changer! Now, we could actually give a physical copy to the Arab patients who spoke Arabic as Abu Munir’s booklet, written in Arabic, was short and sweet, easy to comprehend, and focussed mainly on implementation. Many health books go into detailed theory, which although is important, the application of those health principles is the point. The spiritual saint of the past, Abu al-Hasan al-Shadhili (R) said, “The reality of knowing good is to follow it, while the reality of knowing evil is to shun it.” It does not matter what you know more than how much you actually benefit from your knowledge. 

So with this new tool in our tool bag, we became more efficient. We gave it to many patients as a regimen to follow, and many non-patients were able to get their hands on it and benefit. But whoever it was, all benefited.

As the booklet started gaining popularity, it made its way to the spiritual mentor, Sheikh Nuh. Now, if you know Sheikh Nuh, you know that he pays extreme attention to his health. That is an understatement. In fact, since 2010, he has given several presentations on health and fitness based on the latest research. Many of Hayat Tayyiba’s presentations are based on his original series of lectures, and even the phrase “higher health” was coined by him. Needless to say, I personally consider him an expert in health and fitness. He read the booklet and liked what was in it, since the principles therein were sound. They worked. He coined it, “Abu Munir’s diet.” As an advisor to many, he put people on Abu Munir’s diet when they sought health advice. He often just simply gave them the booklet Abu Munir made. But there was a problem. Many didn’t know Arabic. We needed a translation.

Given my involvement in the project, my profession as a license physician associate (PA), and background as an Arabic teacher, Sheikh Nuh had requested me to translate Abu Munir’s work into English, but to tailor it for the western audience. I did just that. The latter part of 2019 was spent researching, compiling, translating, commissioning, designing, printing, publishing and all the other good stuff involved in publishing the book. For health and medical-related issues, I had a team of both eastern and western medical doctors to refer to. For help with proofreading, I had English experts. For questions on Quranic exegesis (tafsir), I had access to world-leading tafsir scholars. For calligraphy, I had access to a world-renowned Islamic calligrapher. And for making healthy alternative meals, we had a team of enthusiastic chefs. One of them was even a photographer who helped take amazing pictures of the food pictures in the book! And access to all of those people in one small neighborhood. Allah Most High really facilitates the translation of the book. 

I really wanted to give the translation its due and provide something special to people: an opportunity to regain their, their family’s, or loved one’s health. 

During the translation, I sought advice from Sheikh Nuh. I asked, “Sometimes the ego (nafs) gets in the way of good works and taints them with ulterior motives that are not for the sake of Allah Most High.” For example, if one intends to do something good like give charity, pray, or help someone in need, but then the nafs turns the initial good intention–for Allah’s sake–into something else, like showing off to people or thinking how good of a person one is. He responded that our intention should be the Hadith, “Allah is ever helping His servant as long as the servant is helping his brother (Sahih Muslim).” And that was that. We liked that Hadith so much that we commissioned the calligrapher to write it out for us, and we put it on the last page, reminding us of our intentions. (Picture of the original here).

Al-HamduLillah! And finally, it happened. In January 2020, we published the book, “Food Between Curse & Cure.” By Allah’s grace, thousands of people have benefited from it. When introducing the book publicly, Sheikh Nuh mentioned, 

“My personal estimate of the book is that if somebody reads it and they followed everything in this book, they could get rid of about 90% of the diseases that plague people today…[It has] a lot of common sense and good suggestions…It’s short, sweet, and valuable.”

In this entire journey, there was one main thing that resonated with me. During our morning sessions and excursions visiting patients, we would discuss the same health topics repeatedly. We knew the information well. But in my own life, was I implementing it? It happened that because of the daily discussions, the camaraderie, the support, the encouragement, we created a subculture amongst ourselves that gently reminded each other and moved us to actually implement the principles in our own lives. Knowing something is quite distinct from practicing it. But the feeling of belonging to a community that identifies itself with certain values or practices with like-minded people made it much easier. We could discuss what we were struggling with. We could see that we weren’t the only ones struggling! We could get advice from someone in the same boat. That to me was one of the most valuable lessons. Islam is a social religion, and we are social beings. We need community support.

This is what Hayat Tayyiba is about. I want to create that community around health, wellness, and spirituality. So for me, this is a mission, and our work has just started.

We ask Allah Most High for success (tawfiq) and to facilitate our work (taysir) in benefiting our fellow Muslims and all people. Amin.

Wa Al-HamduLillah Rabb il-’Alamin

All Praise belongs to Allah, the Tender, Nurturing Lord of All the Worlds

Abdur Rahman