Sultan Bahoo The Life and Teachings/Talib-e-Maula (Seeker of Allah)
Talb (seeking) means having the desire and determination to acquire something special. Talb is a strong passion which motivates a person to do anything to achieve his goal and fulfill his desire. The one who strongly wishes to get Pehchan (recognition), Deedar (Vision) and Marifat (mystical knowledge) of Allah, his desire is called Talb-e-Maula (desire to find and see Allah) and he himself is called Talib-e-Maula (the Seeker of Allah), and is also referred to as Salik (traveller of the mystic path), Talib or Murid (disciple).
There are three categories of people in this world on the basis of their wishes and intentions:
1. Taliban-e-Dunya (Seekers of the World): Those who use their knowledge and skills, expertise and main and might to attain the worldly success and pleasures, and consider this as the aim of their life to the extent that even the aim of their invocation and contemplation, prayers and devotion, recitals and all other mystic exercises is to acquire and increase worldly assets and respect. For them, the gain of worldly respect and pleasures is the real success.
2. Taliban-e-Uqba (Seekers of Paradise): Their aim is to make their life of the hereafter happy. For them, the real success is to get rid of the fire of Hell and to get hold of houries and the bounties of the paradise. All their devotions, mystic exercises, piety, fasting, prayers, Hajj, Zakat, invocations and glorifications are meant only to gain a happy life in the hereafter. For them, this is the only objective of life and the true success.
3. Taliban-e-Maula (Seekers of Allah): All their prayers and struggles are meant only to seek Deedar (Vision), Qurb (Closeness) and Visal (Union) of Allah. Neither are they the seekers of pleasures of this world nor of the bounties of Paradise. They are the Seekers and Lovers of Allah only. They give up the desires of both the worlds for their desire of Deedar-e-Elahi (to behold Allah).
Sheikh Akbar Mohi-ud-Din Ibn-e-Arabi Rehmat-ul-Allah Alayh says:
“Only he is worthy of Divine Knowledge and meeting Allah who is strong enough to be a Seeker of Allah only. Neither is he a seeker of the world nor of the hereafter. (Fasoos-al-Hakam)
Hazrat Sakhi Sultan Bahoo Rehmat-ul-Allah Alayh has thoroughly discussed the matters of the seekers of the material world, paradise and Allah. According to his point of view, common people of this world are the seekers of the material world i.e. Taliban-e-Dunya; special people like the pious worshippers and devouts are seekers of the hereafter i.e. Taliban-e-Uqba; and the most special ones like the Prophets, Saints, Faithful and Virtuous ones are the True Seekers of Allah.