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Shaykh Ahmadou Bamba

From his own writing, the Sheikh introduced himself in the follow terms: " Ahmad, the spiritual pauper, son of Ahmad or " Ahmad, the descendant of Habîballah of the family Mbacké or " Mouhammad, Son of his spiritual master Mouhammad

Mouhamad ben Mouhamad ben Habîballâh, SHEIK AHMADOU BAMBA reached us by GOD'S grace at the month of "Muharram" in the year 1272 H. namely 1855, in Mbacké, a locality situated in Baol, one of Senegal's kingdoms.

Found by his grandfather, Baol carries the name of the family Mbacké whose widely-known piety was worth them an influence particular , a respect and later a veneration for GOD'S FACE.

Men of high culture and a strict orthodoxy in the Islamic cultural value assimilation, they made the village of Mbacké an academic center and a spiritual capital.

The SHEIK'S father, Mouhammad MBACKE, named Momar Anta Saly, was an eminent jurisconsult, a religious that taught the KORAN, and the religious sciences; his mother, Mariama Bousso, thanks to her piety, her virtue and her scruple, had the privilege of to answer in the name of " jâratu-l-lâh " (neighbor of GOD).

The parents of the Sheikh have discovered very early in him an innate perfection that resulted in attitudes and habits of piety, of good moral conduct, of devotion, of solitude, of meditation and a behavior loathing the fun, the indecency and the, sinned.

Everywhere the Sheikh passed during his early age, after his assimilation of the KORAN, whether it is for the acquirement of the s sciences or other instruments such as grammar, the prosodies, the rhetoric, etc., one recognized him a Perfection unanimously Spiritual that could result from a light coming from GOD only.

Until the year 1300 H. (1882), He assured the teaching next to his father and his intellectual breadth had allowed him, with the permission of his father to write in some domains of the Religious Sciences and Instrumental to make the knowledge more accessible. To this end, He composed the " Jawharu-n-Nafîs " (the Precious Jewel) that is a versification of the treaty of jurisprudence of Al Akhdari, the " Mawâhibul Quddûs " (the Grants of the VERY HOLY), which is a resumption versified of the work of theology of the Imâm Have - Sanusi title " Ummul Barâhi n " (the Source of the Proofs), the " Jadhbatu-ç-çighâr " (The attraction of the Tee nagers), which is one medicated work especially of the articles of the faith, the " Mulayyinu - ç-cudûr " (The alleviation of the hearts) that takes in versification the " Bidâyal Hidâya " (the Beginning of the Good Direction) of the Imâm Al Ghazâlî; the Sheik write this poem later under the title of " Munawwiru-ç-cudûr " (the illumination of the hearts). The work is about the Spiritual perfection.

Later, He composed a lot of other works in the domains of the Jurisprudence, of the Theology, of the Sufism, of Good education and in other branches as the e grammar.

The year 1301 H. (1883) is the most important fracture of his Hagiography, ,we will say more about it later, of big mutations in his spiritual itinerary and at the time in his intellectual personality; In one word, the year reconverted his feather entirely to the Prophet's service (Peace and Hello on Him).

the glorification of the Prophet's arrival to the world, the exaltation of GOD'S uniqueness, in the service of the Better of the messenger rs, the Prophet's Spiritual Fight, biggest victory of the faith on disloyalty under his aegis (in Bedr), the victory of the submissiveness, in this case the Islam, on idolatry, in a word, the Rehabilitation of the Islam are among of topics his abrassed there after.

THE BEGINNINGS OF THE PRAISES (Muqaddamâtul Amdâh), The acrostic of the Verse " ANYONE OBEYS THE MESSENGER OBEYS (by there) TO GOD " (s.4 v.80), THE GRANTS OF THE PRO FITABLE (Mawâhibu-n-Nâfic), MIMIYA " an anonymous rhyme in " mîm ", THE ATTRACTION OF T HE CS?URS (Jadhbul Qulûb) are some of the Prophet's eulogies he wrote, and which demonstrated his genius literary.

His father's passed away, intervening one night of Tuesday of the month of muharrami of the year 1300 H. (1882) at Mbacké of the Cayor, not only came to remove him the tutelage of the one that he obeyed religiously, but was going to reveal his true mystical and spiritual physiognomy. The stage of devotion to GOD that he reached, in spite of the hostilities that people showed to him at his time, demonstrate without ambiguous his adherence to the circle "of GOD'S men". The Sheikh was not the slave of the futilities of this bottom - world, nor of the domineering colonial authority, nor of the one of the pagan chiefs of the o ld local aristocracy.

This attitude of a solitary Man, denouncing arbitrariness and the corruption wherever they might come from, and recognizing the Authority of the MASTER of the worlds (GOD) only, was going to mark his life. In answer to the dignitaries after his father's funeral prayer, suggested him to accept to occupy the function the king's counselor, he declined the offer of the profit of the kindness of the sultans. He wrote:

" Lean toward the doors of the sultan is what they suggest - in order to get the grants that would be sufficient forever ".

"GOD is sufficient to me - was my answered - and I restrict myself to HIM, and nothing satisfied me if it is not my Religion and its Science ".

" I only fear my KING, and I only carry my hopes to HIM, because HE protects me and enriches me"

" How would I put my destiny between the hands of those who are incapable to ad just their fate?"

Pact of allegiance, for GOD's FACE, and the latter ordered him to call his disciples in this way. The Mouridism was born. It was in Mbacké Cayor.

So the exclusive cult that it professed became public, because the Sheikh began to impose it to his disciples; this is why he became the hostile to the colonial power.

Not only the crowds flowed toward him, but he founded the City of TOUBA to better serve with Touba his GOD. In his spiritual ardor, he wanted to reach the rank of the mates, servants of t he Prophet, which was given to people who died in Bedr.

This " supreme" degree [KORAN S.9 V.20], KORAN speaks regarding the place of the e mates, is reachable by the sacrifice one's blood in order to raise GOD'S voice.

Because of the Pact of allegiance abrogated him of versed blood, the Sheik went in the way of the spiritual fight, which compromised the sacrifice of the soul and goods n order to reach the highest (GOD).

In 1312 H. (1895), in his spiritual meditation (Ictikâf), the Prophet told him that the versed blood was abrogated and to reach this rank one must bravely be successful a sum of heavy tests to the exclusive load of the candidate. The pact was concluded and the DIVINE Decree put him in confrontation with his contemporary enemies for more than thirty two years during which he braved the exiles, the brimades, the persecutions, and the banishments, to firm up in the profession of GOD'S uniqueness, recognizing the one Only GOD and GOD exclusively. He left from it exalted with success, and from that fight, he impetrated the rank of SERVANT PRIVILEGE of the PROPHET.

As much the unfaithful power wanted, through the exile in Gabon, in Mauritania, the persecutions, the residences supervised in Thiéyène and Diourbel, to corrupt the Moslem faith, as much the Sheik, in inviolable mystery and his independence in the cult returned to GOD, cleared the Islam in its most authentic shape.

Everywhere in the country, the Sheik invigorated the Moslem faith, given back to the populations, without the blood, their dignity and their personality. He introduced the more most naturally customs, the submissiveness exclusive to GOD and no to an any other authority. Thus, the Moslem Community recovered its soul.

From the year 1313 H. (1895), the stage of the fight against disloyalty was mar ked by the production of inestimable eulogies towards the elected, the purest (Al Muçtafâ ), the Chosen the Best (Al Mukthâr), of the writings of action towards GOD and his Prophet (Paix and Hello on Him), of Wisdoms, of hagiography, and of prayers initiatiques, incantatory and mystical.

" Those that will have feared their LORD will be driven by groups toward the Paradise. When they will be in view of the doors, these will open up all big, the employees will tell them: " That the Peace you follow! you were so virtuous, so pure. Enter in this Home for an eternal " stay . The voices some blessed will rise in chorus: " PRAISE TO GOD!