Light for the Seeker: A Daily Litany of Forty Salawat & other Supplications

About the authors

Salih al-Jafari: Salih al-Jafari (1328-1399 AH / 1910-1979 CE) was a scholar, teacher, and Sufi guide whose life was bound to al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo for nearly half a century. He was born in 1910 in Dongola, in northern Sudan, where he memorized the Qurʾan and grounded himself in Maliki fiqh and the foundational sciences before journeying to Egypt around 1930 to study at al-Azhar. He settled in Cairo for the rest of his life. After teaching at the mosque informally for over a decade, he was officially appointed a teacher in 1946 by the Grand Shaykh of al-Azhar, and he continued instructing there until his death in 1979, more than forty years in all. In his later years he served as imam of the Azhar Mosque and became one of its most celebrated orators, his Friday lessons after the prayer drawing crowds of hundreds. His teaching joined Qurʾanic commentary, hadith, and jurisprudence with the cultivation of the heart. Spiritually he followed the way of Ahmad ibn Idris, the Tariqa Muhammadiyya, a method of teachings and litanies rather than a formal order; after his passing the Jaʿfariyya Ahmadiyya Muhammadiyya order was established in his name and spread across Egypt, Sudan, and beyond. A sayyid descended from the Prophet through al-Husayn, he is remembered through his Qurʾanic teaching and his devotional poetry and salawat, including his Burda al-Hasaniyya wa'l-Husayniyya in praise of the Prophet's family.

Abd al-Ghani al-Jafari: Shaykh Abd al-Ghani al-Jafari rahimahullah (d. 2012) was a prominent Egyptian spiritual guide and teacher, following in the footsteps of his father, the celebrated Azhari scholar and imam Shaykh Salih al-Ja'fari (d. 1979), who was one of the foremost scholars and spiritual guides of al-Azhar in the twentieth century. Shaykh Abd al-Ghani became one of the greatest spiritual guides and teachers of his time. Among his lasting contributions was the overseeing of the construction of more than seventy mosque complexes throughout Egypt, as well as in Libya and Malaysia. Most of these complexes include Qur'an schools and provide health care and other social services to their communities. He is the author of "Light for the Seeker: A Daily Litany of Forty Salawat and other Supplications."

About the translator

Samer Dajani: Samer Dajani holds a master's degree in Islamic studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. His scholarly interests focus on traditional Islamic spirituality and the transmission of classical learning. He is the author of 'Reassurance for the Seeker' and translator of 'Light for the Seeker: A Daily Litany of Forty Salawat and other Supplications,' both of which center on the spiritual legacy of Shaykh Salih al-Jafari. His work reflects sustained engagement with Azhari scholarship and Sufi devotional literature.