Ateneo Muslims Spiritual Retreat

Al Qalam Institute

Ateneo Muslims’ Spiritual Retreat I’tikaf (Intimacy with God)

Mussolini S. Lidasan June 2014

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Introduction

Al Qalam Institute for Islamic Identities and Dialogue in Southeast Asia is a resource center of

the Ateneo de Davao University. It aims to provide materials for enhancing the curriculum of

values education among the Muslim students of the university. The institute is also a research

centre. It aims to come up with a research agenda regarding Islamic identities in Mindanao in

line with intra and inter faith dialogue for nation/nations building. Also, it aims to support the

university in conducting community outreach programs in building relationships towards the

Muslim communities in Southern Mindanao.

One of the mandates of this Institute is to provide opportunities to students intra and inter-faith

learning and dialogue and help our Muslim students to become good Muslims by understanding

their faith and the essence of Islam.

The Ateneo de Davao Muslim Retreat for college and high school students is called I'tikaf. This

process follows the principle of Islamic tradition of of spiritual retreat.

The literal definition of the word I’tikaf is to stay in a particular place, however in the definition

of the faith of Islam, this word means to stay in the Masjid for a particular time period in the

worship of Allah(SWT) while maintaining certain conditions, which shall be covered later on in

this article.

In the state of I’tikaf, a person can stand, sit, sleep, etc.;and there is not one particular ‘form’ that

this retreat must be carried out in (unlike the Islamic prayer (salat) which has a specific form to

it).

What is important in this period is to obey the commandments of Allah(SWT), to refrain from

the things which He has prohibited (both in life in general and in this three day sojourn) and to

be in the service of Him.

Conditions of I’tikaf

There are a few conditions for the person who wishes to partake in the Divine blessing of I’tikaf:

1) Intelligence (Aql):

2) Thus, the person must not be mentally unstable;

3) True Faith (Eiman):

Thus, although a Non-Muslim can perform the I’tikaf and it may be correct from the

point of view of the outer actions, however to earn the Divine Reward, he or she must be a

true believer;

4.) Intention (Niyyat):

I’tikaf must be performed for the purpose of seeking closeness to Allah (Glory and

Greatness be to Him) and not to show off or due to societal or family or peer pressure;

5.) Fasting (Sawm) During I’tikaf:

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The person who is not able to fast, for whatever reason, is deprived from the Divine grace of

being able to perform I’tikaf. He or she may still gain a reward from Allah(SWT) for having the

intention to perform this act of worship, however can not directly participate in this act as will be

mentioned.Therefore, if a person is a traveler or one who is not able to fast due to some danger to

his life, he cannot partake in I’tikaf. However, if the traveler who wants to perform the I’tikaf

makes an oath that he will fast for three days on a trip, then he can perform the I’tikaf even

though his salat may be prayed as that of a traveler.In addition, if one needs to perform any sort

of fasting whether it be obligatory, recommended, a penitence for a missed fast, on behalf of

someone else, etc then one’s I’tikaf will be correct with the performance of this type of fast.

6.) Permission:

One must have the permission of the person whom he needs to gain permission

from to carry out this act (guardian, husband, etc.) to ensure the correctness of the I’tikaf.

7.) Place:

One must stay inside the Masjid for the entire period for his I’tikaf to be correct

(the rules of this will be explained in more detail later.)

Time Period (Length) of the I’tikaf

The person performing I’tikaf must stay in this state for a minimum of three complete days from

sunrise of the first day until the sunset of the third day.

For example if he starts I’tikaf on Monday at Fajr time, he must complete it until Wednesday at

Maghrib time. The first two days of I’tikaf are recommended and if a person wishes, he may

leave after this period and end his I’tikaf, however if he completes two full days of I’tikaf in the

Masjid (until the Maghrib of the second day), then it becomes obligatory upon him to continue

his fast on the third day and to stay in the Masjid for the remaining period of his I’tikaf –

meaning till the time of Maghrib of the third day.

Similarly, if a person goes into I’tikaf for 5 days, the 6th day becomes obligatory; and if he goes

into I’tikaf for 8 days then the 9th day becomes obligatory and so on.

Thus, I’tikaf is for 3 full days and 2 nights which are in between these days and this period must

be maintained. In this ruling, just as that of the daily Salat, the meaning of three complete days

means three periods of Fajr to Maghrib.

Time of I’tikaf

Anytime in which fasting is permissible is an opportune time for I’tikaf and the state of I’tikaf

does not have a specific time related to it.

Of course the “White Days” which are the 13th, 14th and 15th of the lunar month and the last ten

days of the Month of Ramadhan are the best times for this spiritual exercise. Therefore, one can

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not make I’tikaf on the day of `Eid since it is forbidden to fast on that day and similarly, he can

not start I’tikaf two days before `Eid.

It has been mentioned that the Prophet of Islam(S) used to perform I’tikaf in the Month of

Ramadhan in the first 10 days (three days), the second 10 days (three days) and then in the last

ten days (three days) as well.

Permission of the Parents or Guardian

As mentioned previously in passing, I’tikaf performed without the permission of his guardian or

any person whose rights would be taken away if the person was to go in a state of I’tikaf is not

correct.

Thus, it is for this reason that the wife must also take her husband’s permission if her I’tikaf

would infringe on marital rights with his wife.

Similarly, if one’s parents are not happy or are concerned for their son or daughter and do not

permit him to make I’tikaf, then the child is not permitted to go forth for this (recommended) act

of worship.

The Intention (Niyyah) for I’tikaf

The intention for I’tikaf is of three main types.

The most common form is the recommended I’tikaf, however it can also become obligatory

(wajib) if a person makes an oath or promise to Allah ( for the fulfillment of something (and in

that oath he had promised Allah (that he would perform I’tikaf if his prayer is fulfilled).

The third intention which can be made for I’tikaf is that it is being done on behalf of someone

else – similar to how people perform Hajj for their deceased relatives or make up missed prayers

of parents who have passed away or others.

Therefore, it is necessary for the correctness of I’tikaf to specify the intention and the type that

one wants to perform.

There may be different Islamic jurisprudence (Fiqh) of conducting an I'tikaf depending on the

cultural context of the community. For our local context, Al Qalam Institute patterns its I'tikaf

with the teachings of Imam Ghazzali.

AL-GHAZALI, ABU HAMID (1058-1111)

(Notes taken from Al Ghazali biography)

al-Ghazali is one of the greatest Islamic Jurists, theologians and mystical thinkers. He learned

various branches of traditional Islamic religious sciences in his home town of Tus, Gurgan and

Nishapur in the northern part of Iran. He was also involved in Sufi practices from an early age.

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Being recognized by Nizam al-Mulk, the vizir of the Seljuq sultans, he was appointed head of the

Nizamiyyah College at Baghdad in AH 484/AD 1091. As the intellectual head of the Islamic

community, he was busy lecturing on Islamic jurisprudence at the College, and also refuting

heresies and responding to questions from all segments of the community. Four years later,

however, al-Ghazali fell into a serious spiritual crisis and finally left Baghdad, renouncing his

career and the world After wandering in Syria and Palestine for about two years and finishing the

pilgrimage to Mecca, he returned to Tus, where he was engaged in writing, Sufi practices and

teaching his disciples until his death. In the meantime he resumed teaching for a few years at the

Nizamiyyah College in Nishapur

Al-Ghazali explained in his autobiography why he renounced his brilliant career and turned to

Sufism. It was, he says, due to his realization that there was no way to certain knowledge or the

conviction of revelatory truth except through Sufism. (This means that the traditional form of

Islamic faith was in a very critical condition at the time.) This realization is possibly related to

his criticism of Islamic philosophy. In fact, his refutation of philosophy is not a mere criticism

from a certain (orthodox) theological viewpoint. First of all, his attitude towards philosophy was

ambivalent; it was both an object and criticism and an object of learning (for example, logic and

the natural sciences). He mastered philosophy and then criticized it in order to Islamicize it. The

importance of his criticism lies in his philosophical demonstration that the philosophers’

metaphysical arguments cannot stand the test of reason. However, he was also forced to admit

that the certainty, of revelatory truth, for which he was so desperately searching, cannot be

obtained by reason. It was only later that he finally attained to that truth in the ecstatic state

(fana’) of the Sufi. Through his own religious experience, he worked to revive the faith of Islam

by reconstructing the religious sciences upon the basis of Sufsm, and to give a theoretical

foundation to the latter under the influence of philosophy. Thus Sufism came to be generally

recognized in the Islamic community. Though Islamic philosophy did not long survive al-

Ghazali’s criticism, he contributed greatly to the subsequent philosophization of Islamic theology

and Sufism.

ALCHEMY OF HAPPINESS

(One of the best writings of Al Ghazali)

Ghazzali was a practical mystic. His aim was to make men better by leading them from a merely

notional acquiescence in the stereotyped creed of Islam to a real knowledge of God. The first

four chapters of The Alchemy of Happiness are a commentary on the famous verse in the Hadis

(traditional sayings of Muhammad), "He who knows himself knows God." He is especially

scornful of the parrot-like repetition of orthodox phrases. Thus alluding to the almost hourly use

by Muhammadans of the phrase, "I take refuge in God" (Na'udhib'illah!), Ghazzali says, in the

Ihya-ul-ulum. "Satan laughs at such pious ejaculations. Those who utter them are like a man who

should meet a lion in a desert, while there is a fort at no great distance, and when he sees the evil

beast, should stand exclaiming, 'I take refuge in that fortress,' without moving a step towards it.

What will such an ejaculation profit him? In the same way the mere exclamation, 'I take refuge in

God,' will not protect thee from the terrors of His judgment unless thou really take refuge in

Him." It is related of some unknown Sufi, that when asked for a definition of religious sincerity,

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he drew a red-hot piece of iron out of a blacksmith's forge, and said, "Behold it!" This "red-hot"

sincerity is certainly characteristic of Ghazzali,

The four chapters of this book will form part the 1st four modules of Ateneo Muslims Spiritual

Retreat. They may be summarized as follows:

1. Knowledge of Self;

2. Knowledge of God;

3. Knowledge of the world;

4. Knowledge of the Hereafter.

The fifth module for the spiritual retreat is taken from the book of Shaykh Muhammad Mawlud

alYa’qubi al-Musawi al-Muratani entitled, Purification of the heart.

PURIFICATION OF THE HEART

(As summarized by Shayk Hamza Yusuf)

Almost universally, religious traditions have stressed the importance of the condition of the

heart. In the Muslim scripture, the Day of Judgment is described as a day in which neither wealth

nor children shall be of any benefit [to anyone], except one who comes to God with a sound

heart (QURAN, 26:88-89).

The sound heart is understood to be free of character defects and spiritual blemishes. This

“heart” is actually the spiritual heart and not the physical organ per se, although in Islamic

tradition the spiritual heart is centered in the physical. One of the extraordinary aspects of the

modern era is that we are discovering aspects about the heart unknown in previous times,

although there were remarkable insights in ancient traditions. For instance, according to

traditional Chinese medicine, the heart houses what is known as shen, which is spirit. The

Chinese characters for thinking, thought, love, the intention to listen, and virtue all contain the

ideogram for the heart.

In nearly every culture in the world, people use metaphors that directly or indirectly allude to the

heart. We call certain types of people “hard-hearted,” usually because they show no mercy and

kindness. Likewise, people are said to have “cold hearts” and others yet who are “warm-

hearted.” We speak of people as wearing their “hearts on their sleeves” because they do not (or

cannot) conceal their emotions from others. When someone’s words or actions penetrate our

souls and affect us profoundly, we say that this person “touched my heart” or “touched the core

of my being.” The Arabic equivalent for the English word core (which originally in Latin meant

heart) is known as lubb, which also refers to the heart, as well as the intellect and the essence of

something.

The ancients were aware of spiritual diseases of the heart. And this understanding is certainly at

the essence of Islamic teachings. The Quran defines three types of people:

a. al-mu’minūn (believers),

b. al-kāfirūn (scoffers or atheists), and

c. al-munāfiqūn (hypocrites).

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The believers are described as people whose hearts are alive and full of light, while the scoffers

are in darkness: “Is one who was dead and then We revived [with faith] and made for him a light

by which to walk among the people like one who is in darkness from which he cannot exit?

(QURAN, 6:122)”.

According to commentators of the Quran, the one who was dead refers to having a dead heart,

which God revived with the light of guidance that one may walk straight and honorably among

human beings. Also, the prophet Muhammad said, “The difference between the one who

remembers God and one who does not is like the difference between the living and the dead.” In

essence, the believer is someone whose heart is alive, while the disbeliever is someone whose

heart is spiritually dead. The hypocrite, however, is somebody whose heart is diseased. The

Quran speaks of certain people with diseased hearts (self-inflicted, we understand) and, as a

result, they were increased in their disease (QURAN, 2:10).

The physical heart, which houses the spiritual heart, beats about 100,000 times a day, pumping

two gallons of blood per minute and over 100 gallons per hour. If one were to attempt to carry

100 gallons of water (whose density is lighter than blood) from one place to another, it would be

an exhausting task. Yet the human heart does this every hour of every day for an entire lifetime

without respite. The vascular system transporting life-giving blood is over 60,000 miles long –

more than two times the circumference of the earth. So when we conceive of our blood being

pumped throughout our bodies, know that this means that it travels through 60,000 miles of a

closed vascular system that connects all the parts of the body – all the vital organs and living

tissues – to this incredible heart.

The Prophet of Islam spoke of the heart as a repository of knowledge and a vessel sensitive to the

deeds of the body. He said, for example, that wrongdoing irritates the heart. So the heart actually

perceives wrong action. In fact, when people do terrible things, the core of their humanity is

injured. Fyodor Dostoyevsky expresses brilliantly in Crime and Punishment that the crime itself

is the punishment because human beings ultimately have to live with the painful consequences of

their deeds. When someone commits a crime, he does so first against his own heart, which then

affects the whole human being. The person enters a state of spiritual agitation and often tries to

suppress it. The root meaning of the word kufr (disbelief) is to cover something up. As it relates

to this discussion, the problems we see in our society come down to covering up or suppressing

the symptoms of its troubles. The agents used to do this include alcohol, drugs, sexual

experimentation and deviance, power grabs, wealth, arrogance, pursuit of fame, and the like.

These enable people to submerge themselves into a state of heedlessness concerning their

essential nature. People work very hard to cut themselves off from their hearts and the natural

feelings found there. The pressures to do this are very strong in our modern culture.

We enter the world in a state the Quran calls fiṭra, our original state and inherent nature that is

disposed to accept faith and prefer morality. But we soon learn anxiety mainly from our parents

and then our societies. The heart is created vulnerable to anxiety and agitation (QURAN, 70:19).

Those who are protected from this state are people of prayer, people who establish prayer and

guard its performance with a humble and open heart connected with God, the Lord of all

creation, The highest ranks among people are those who do not allow anything to divert them

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from the remembrance of God. They are the ones who remember God as they are standing,

sitting, and reclining on their sides (QURAN, 3:191).

The second category of disease concerns the base desires of the self and is called shahawāt. This

relates to our desires exceeding their natural state, as when people live merely to satisfy these

urges and are led by them. Islam provides the method by which our hearts can become sound and

safe again. This method has been the subject of brilliant and insightful scholarship for centuries

in the Islamic tradition. One can say that Islam in essence is a program to restore purity and calm

to the heart through the remembrance of God.

This present text is based on the poem known as Maṭharat al-Qulūb (literally, Purification of the

Hearts), which offers the means by which purification can be achieved. It is a treatise on the

“alchemy of the hearts,” namely, a manual on how to transform the heart. It was written by a

great scholar and saint, Shaykh Muhammad Mawlud alYa’qubi al-Musawi al-Muratani, As his

name indicates, he was from Mauritania in West Africa. He was a master of all the Islamic

sciences, including the inward sciences of the heart. He stated that he wrote this poem because he

observed the prevalence of diseased hearts. He saw students of religion spending their time

learning abstract sciences that people were not really in need of, to the neglect of those sciences

that pertain to what people are accountable for in the next life, namely, the spiritual condition of

the heart, In one of his most cited statements, the Prophet said, “Actions are based upon

intentions.” All deeds are thus valued according to the intentions behind them, and intentions

emanate from the heart. So every action a person intends or performs is rooted in the heart.

Imam Mawlud realized that the weakness of society was a matter of weakness of character in the

heart, Imam Mawlud based his text on many previous illustrious works, especially Imam al-

Ghazali’s great Ihya’ Ulum al-Din (The Revivification of the Sciences of the Religion). Each of

the 40 books of Ihya‘ Ulum al-Din is basically about rectifying the human heart.

If we examine the trials and tribulations, wars and other conflicts, every act of injustice all over

earth, we’ll find they are rooted in human hearts. Covetousness, the desire to aggress and exploit,

the longing to pilfer natural resources, the inordinate love of wealth and position, and other

maladies are manifestations of diseases found nowhere but in the heart. Every criminal, miser,

abuser, scoffer, embezzler, and hateful person does what he or she does because of a diseased

heart. If hearts were sound, these actions would no longer be a reality. So if we want to change

our world, we do not begin by rectifying the outward. Instead, we must change the condition of

our inward.

Everything we see happening outside of us is in reality coming from the unseen world within. It

is from the unseen world that the phenomenal world emerges, and it is from the unseen realm of

our hearts that all actions spring.

The well-known civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. said that in order for people to

condemn injustice, they must go through four stages. The first stage is that people must ascertain

that indeed injustices are being perpetrated. In his case, it was injustices against African

Americans in the United States. The second stage is to negotiate, that is, approach the oppressor

and demand justice. If the oppressor refuses, King said that the third stage is self-purification,

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which starts with the question: “Are we ourselves wrongdoers? Are we ourselves oppressors?”

The fourth stage, then, is to take action after true self-examination, after removing one’s own

wrongs before demanding justice from others.

We of the modern world are reluctant to ask ourselves—when we look at the terrible things that

are happening—”Why do they occur?” And if we ask that with all sincerity, the answer will

come resoundingly: “All of this is from your own selves.” In so many ways, we have brought

this upon ourselves. This is the only empowering position we can take. The Quran implies that if

a people oppress others, God will send another people to oppress them: We put some oppressors

over other oppressors because of what their own hands have earned (6:129), According to

Fakhruddin al-Razi (a 12th century scholar of the Quran), the verse means that the existence of

oppression on earth may be caused by previous oppression. By implication, often the victims of

aggression were once aggressors themselves. This, however, is not the case with tribulations, for

there are times in which people are indeed tried, but if they respond with patience and

perseverance, God will always give them relief and victory. If we examine the life of the Prophet

in Makkah, it’s clear that he and the community of believers were being harmed and oppressed,

but they were patient and God gave them victory.

Within 23 years, the Prophet was not only free of oppression, but became the leader of the entire

Arabian Peninsula. Those people who once oppressed him now sought mercy from him; and he

was most gracious and kind in his response. Despite their former brutality toward him, the

Prophet forgave them and admitted them into the brotherhood of faith.

This is the difference between someone whose heart is purified and sound and one whose heart is

impure and corrupt. Impure people oppress, and the pure-hearted not only forgive their

oppressors, but elevate them in status and character. In order to purify ourselves, we must begin

to recognize this truth. This is what this book is all about—a book of self-purification and a

manual of liberation. If we work on our hearts, if we actually implement what is suggested here,

we’ll begin to see changes in our lives, our condition, our society, and even within our own

family dynamics. It is a blessing that we have this science of purification, a blessing that this

teaching exists in the world today. What remains is for us to take these teachings seriously.

So let us go through what is explained here by this great scholar and learn of the diseases of the

heart, examine their etiology (their causes), their signs and symptoms, and, finally, how to treat

them. There are two types of treatments: the theoretical treatment, which is understanding the

disease itself, and the practical treatment, which focuses on the prescriptions we must take in

order to restore the heart’s natural purity. If we apply the techniques that have been learned and

transmitted by the great scholars of the vast tradition of Islam, we will see results. But just like

medicinal prescriptions, the physician cannot force you to take it. The knowledgeable scholars of

spiritual purification have given us the treatment, as they have gleaned it from the teachings of

the Quran and the exemplary model of the Prophet. The teachings are available. They are clear,

and they work. It is then up to us to learn and apply them to ourselves and share them with

others.

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Ateneo Muslims' Spiritual Retreat

(Intimacy with Allah (SWT)

Background:

It is indeed a great opportunity for Muslim Filipinos to study in Ateneo schools. The quality

education is highly competitive compared to other schools. The exposure and network build up is

just but some of the benefits they get from this educational institution.

Students and alumni of Ateneo form part of the society and a generation of their own. There may

be less than a hundred Muslim Atenista all over the country who are studying in college of who

may have graduated from an Ateneo school.

The Ateneo Muslims’ Spiritual Retreat is classified in to two types: high school retreat; and the

college students retreat.

a. The Ateneo Muslims High School Retreat is a three (3) day event. A typical day starts at

Fajr prayer with Quran & Prayer workshops and thereafter lessons are held throughout

the day with meals and short breaks. Daily recreational breaks are also in place to ensure

team building activities for the students.

b. The Ateneo Muslims College Retreat is a five day event. More emphasis is given to the

fifth module of Purification of the heart.

Both aims to allow the participants to build solid foundations and to learn with qualified

instructors they can interact with on a personal as well as academic level of Islamic values and

principles.

It is a rare opportunity to live, to eat, to pray and spend intimate time with Muslim brothers and

sisters in an uplifting environment, with knowledge and constant remembrance of Allah.

Lastly, the retreat also aims allow Muslim students to meet other brothers and sisters that they

can relate to and allow them to build bonds of brotherhood and sisterhood, strengthened by their

journey together in understanding the key principles in Islam and implementing them into their

everyday life.

Objectives

This 3 day / 5 day event primarily aims to attain the following objectives:

1. To foster mutual understanding among Muslim students in the light of Islam;

2. To raise their awareness of God and the hereafter as important part of being a

Muslim;

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3. To value and understand the essence of self awareness

4. To live a life with compassion and respect of dignity of Muslims and non

Muslims;

5. To create a culture of dialogue and cultural sensitivity among Muslims and

Christians students of Ateneo.

ADDU’s Mission and Vision

VISION.

The Ateneo de Davao University is a Catholic, Jesuit and Filipino University. As a university it

is a community engaged in excellent instruction and formation, robust research, and vibrant

community service. As Catholic, it proceeds ex corde ecclesiae -- from the heart of the Church.

As Jesuit, it appropriates the mission of the Society of Jesus and the spirituality of St. Ignatius of

Loyola. As Filipino, it prepares students to benefit from, contribute to and engage the global

world.

MISSION.

The Ateneo de Davao excels in the formation of leaders for the Philippine Church and society,

especially for Mindanao. It excels further in the promotion of the faith that does justice, in

cultural sensitivity and transformation, and in inter-religious dialogue, particularly with the

Muslim and Lumad communities of Mindanao. It promotes communities touched and

transformed by the faith, communities of peace and human well-being, culturally resilient yet

able to adapt to the modern world. It promotes social justice, gender equality, good governance,

the creation of wealth and its equitable distribution. It engages vigorously in environmental

protection, the preservation of bio-diversity, and the promotion of renewable energy. It leads in

Philippine educational reform, especially for the peoples of Southern Philippines.

From ADDU’s Vision-Mission, it is clear that what strongly defines a Jesuit University is the

Ignatian spirituality which is central to the formation and education of its students. However,

most if not all of Ateneo’s Muslim students find it hard to relate to the Ignatian spirituality for

two obvious reasons. St. Igantius is a Christian saint. Secondly, the sources of contemplations

in the Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius (SPEX) are drawn from Gospel narratives. Although the

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Gospel (Injil) is recognized as revelation in Islam, the narratives in it are still considered outside

the Islamic tradition.

In light of these, the key to unlock the shared spirituality between Muslims and Christians is

that: “Muslims and Christians worship and submit to the ONE and the same GOD.” He is the

same God, as Yahweh or Allah, who revealed Himself in the three great monotheistic traditions

or Abrahamic religions. Al-ilah is the older form of the Arabic Allah. Allah is the contraction

of the definite article al- “The” and ʾilāh–God. Pre-Semitic tribes called their God as ilah or

Elah where the El or Elohim in Judaism is derived from. The Qur’an mentions Abraham, Moses

and Maryam (Mary) submitting to the same God of Judaism and Christianity, religions that pre-

dated Islam. Islam defines these religions as Ahl al-Kitab ---‘People of the Book/Scripture. The

compassionate and merciful God cannot be contained in any single religion for He has revealed

Himself to the three Abrahamic religions. And the same God has generously shared spiritual

gifts to the saints found in Jewish (Tzadik), Islamic (wali), and Christian traditions.

All believers in God can benefit not only from revelation (e.g. Qur’an and the Gospels) but also

from spiritual gifts that can be found in the three traditions. If God then is the single Source of

all spiritual exercises found in the Abrahamic tradition, then all believers in the Abrahamic faith

can share and benefit from the spiritual gifts found in them. The “Spiritual Exercises” (SPEX) of

Ignatius of Loyola is one of those great spiritual gifts. That same God who graced and gave St.

Ignatius the “Spiritual Exercises” is the same God known as Allah in Islam. Being the same God

who graced Ignatius with the SPEX that Ignatius initially shared to his immediate Christians

companions, is it possible that Muslims can benefit too from SPEX given that its source is no

other than the God that both Muslims and Christians submit to? Muslims in the Ateneos could

also benefit from the gift that Ignatius received.

Ignatian Spirituality is the Spiritual Exercises (SPEX). The ‘Spiritual Exercises’ is the basis

of Ignatian Spirituality. In fact, all aspects of Ignatian Spirituality are drawn from the ‘Spiritual

Exercises’ (SPEX). The SPEX Ignatius designed a retreat step-by- step process of

contemplating the incarnation and Christ’s public life, passion and resurrection. These

contemplative experiences serve as the foundation of his Spiritual Exercises (SPEX). The SPEX

outlines a process of prayer and meditation designed to draw a person to conversion, to Christ,

and to total love of God.

Regarding the concern for the use of Gospel narratives as sources of contemplation in a SPEX

retreat, Qur’anic narratives and verses (ayatun) instead can be adapted for Muslim retreatants.

In this regard, a related project to this is a study on what appropriate Qur’anic narratives or

verses to take the place of the Gospel narratives in the Spiritual Exercises. The Ignatian

Spirituality has such universal import. It is not exclusive to Christian students in all Ateneos but

it can likewise be shared with its Muslim students particularly those in Mindanao.

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I’tikāf ( ) for Intimacy with God. I’tikaf is an Islamic practice of retreat or staying in a

masjid for a certain number of days (3-days) in the worship of Allah. “In the state of I’tikaf, a

person can stand, sit, sleep, and so forth and there is not one particular form in which this retreat

must be carried out. What is important in this period is to obey the commandments of Allah, to

refrain from the things which He has prohibited (both in life in general and in this three day

sojourn) and to be in the service of Him.” (Wikipedia) I’tikaf must be performed with the

intention (niyyat) of seeking closeness to Allah. As the Qur’an encourages humankind to

“Prostrate yourself and draw near.” (Q. 96:19) For God is always close to us—closer than the

lifeblood in the jugular vein (Q50:16). By total surrender to God, the soul can realize an

intimacy with Allah.

Schedule of Activity:

Day 0

Time Activity/Session

Assembly

5:00 – 6:00 pm Travel to the retreat area

6::00 – 7:00 pm Arrival/room assignment/settling in

7:00 – 7:45pm Dinner

7:45 – 8:45 pm Salat Al Aisha

8:00 – 9:00 pm Introductory activities

Invocation

Opening Remarks

Admin Notes and Guidelines

Introduction of Participants (3 word description)

Retreat Overview

10:00 pm Lights off

14

Day 1

4:00 – 4:30 am

Salat Al-Fajr

7:00 – 8:00 am Breakfast (with Reading of the Hadith/Sunna)

8:00 – 11:00 am Module 1: Knowledge of Self

Session 1: Who am I?

11:00 – 12:00 pm Break / Salat al Duhr

12:00 – 12:30pm Salat al Asr

12:30 – 1:30 pm Lunch

1:30 – 2:30 pm Group sharing

2:30 – 3:30 pm Knowledge of Self

3:30 – 4:00 pm Break and Salat Al Asr

4:00 – 5:30 pm Module 2: Knowledge of God

Session 2: To Whom do I belong

5:30 – 6:00 pm Break Salat al Magrib

6:00 – 7:00 pm Session 3: God’s presence in my Life’s Journey

7:00 – 8:00 pm Salat Al Aisha

Dinner

8:00 – 9:00 pm Group Sharing

10:00 pm Lights Out

Day 2

Time Activity/Session

4:00 am – 4:30 am Salat Al-Fajr

15

7:00am – 8:00 am Breakfast (with Reading of the Hadith/Sunna)

8:00 am – 10:00 am

Module 3: Knowledge of this world

Session 4: The relationships between the human soul, God and

the material world

10:00 am – 10:30 am Journal writing

10:30 am – 11:00 am Morning Merienda

11:00 am – 12:00 pm Deep Group Sharing

12:00 pm – 12:30 pm Salat Al-Dhur

12:30 pm – 1:30 pm Lunch (with Reading of the Hadith/Sunna)

1:30 pm – 3:00 pm Siesta

3:00 pm – 3:30 pm Salat Al-Asr

3:30 pm – 5:00 pm Module 4: Knowledge of the Hereafter

Session 5: My Great Dreams in the Future with God

5:00 pm – 5:30 pm Afternoon Merienda

5:30 pm – 6:00 pm Salat Al-Maghrib

6:00 pm – 7:00 pm Deep Group Sharing

7:00 pm – 7:30 pm Salat Al-‘Isha

7:30 pm – 8:30 pm Dinner (with Reading of the Hadith/Sunna)

9:00 pm --- Lights out

Rest/Retire

Day 3

Time Activity/Session

16

4:00 am – 4:30 am

Salat Al-Fajr

7:00am – 8:00 am Breakfast (with Reading of the Hadith/Sunna)

8:00 – 10:00 AM Session 6: God In My Life

Session 7: Dialogue with Faith

10:00 am – 10:30 am Personal Prayer Period

10:30 am – 11:00 am Morning Merienda

11:00 am – 12:00 pm Preparation to leave for Mosque

12:00 pm – 1:00 pm Jumu’ah (Friday Congregational Prayer and Preaching)

1:30 pm – 3:00 pm Closing Program (Designed for High school students)

3:00 pm --- Home Sweet Home

College Retreat

1:30 pm – 3:00 pm Siesta

3:00 pm – 3:30 pm Salat Al-Asr

3:30 pm – 5:00 pm Module 5: Purification of the Heart

Session 8: Understanding the nature of human heart

5:00 pm – 5:30 pm Afternoon Merienda

5:30 pm – 6:00 pm Salat Al-Maghrib

6:00 pm – 7:00 pm Deep Group Sharing

7:00 pm – 7:30 pm Salat Al-‘Isha

7:30 pm – 8:30 pm Dinner (with Reading of the Hadith/Sunna)

9:00 pm --- Lights out

17

Rest/Retire

Day 4

Time Activity/Session

4:00 am – 4:30 am

Salat Al-Fajr

7:00am – 8:00 am Breakfast (with Reading of the Hadith/Sunna)

8:00 – 10:00 am Journal writing / Reflections

10:00 am – 10:30 am Personal Prayer Period

10:30 am – 11:00 am Morning Merienda

11:00 am – 12:00 pm Closing Program

12:00 pm – 1:00 pm Lunch

1:00 pm Home sweet home

Note:

1. We have to make sure that on the Day 3 is a Friday so that the students can pray for a

Friday Jumaah.

2. Students must bring their own Holy Quran, prayer mat, and pasbih.