Such spiritual ecstatic states, which the intimates of Allah enter in performing the movements and whirling of their rituals, are means to exite and impel their hearts. This is the food of those who love Allah: it gives them energy in their hard voyage in search of the truth. Our Master the Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wassallam) says,’ The ecstatic ritual of the lovers of Allah, their whirling and chanting, is an obligatory form of worship for some, and for others a super obligatory act of worship- and yet for others still it is heresy. It is obligatory for the perfect man, it is supererogatory for the lovers and the heedless it is heresy.’ And ‘ He is ill natured who takes no pleasure being with lovers of Allah: the poems of the wise which they chant, the season of spring, the colour and perfume of its flowers and the lute and its song.’

The heedless for whom the seeking of spiritual ecstacy is a heresy, and the ill-natured ones who take no pleasure in beauty, are sick and there is no remedy for that sickness. They are lower than the birds and the beasts, lower even than the ass, because even the animal takes pleasure in a tune. When the Prophet David(peace be upon Him) sang, all the birds gathered around him to listen to his beautiful voice. The Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wassallam) says,’ The one who has not experienced ecstacy does not have the taste of his religion’.

There are ten states of ecstasy. Some of these are apparent and their signs visible, and some are hidden and unobservable by others, like the inner consciousness and rememberence of Allah, or a silent reding of the Holy Qur’an. To shead tears, to have deep feelings of regret, fear of Allah’s punishment, longing and sorrow, shame for one’s moments of unconsciousness; when one grows pale, or the face flushes with excitement from states within and from events around one, burning with the yearning for Allah – these and all physical and spiritual anomalies caused by such things are signs of ecstasy.

(chapter 19, On Witnessing Divine Truth through the state of peace coming from abondonment of the wordly and through ecstasy-
interpreted/translated by Shaykh Tosun Bayrak al-Jerrahi al-Halveti)(get the book here http://www.al-baz.com/ourbooks_page4.shtml)
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Muhiyudeen Shaikh Abd Al Qadir Al Jilani al Athari in his Kitab sirr al Asrar wa Mazhar al Anwar.:

Hadrat Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, asked pur Master the Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wassallam) to teach him the easiest, the most valuable, the most immediate way to his salvation. Our Master the Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wassallam) waited for the angel Gabriel (alaihi salaam) to bring the answer from the Divine Source. He came and taught our Master to say La ilaha -’There is no god’ while turning his blessed face to the right, and to say illa Llah -’ but Allah alone’ while turning his face to the left, towards his blessed pure heart. He repeated this Three times; our Master(sallallahu alaihi wassallam himself repeated it three times and thentaught it to Hadrat Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, making him repeat it three times. Then he taught the divine Confession of Unity in the same manner to his Companions. Hadrat Ali was the sirst to ask for it and was the first to be taught.

(get the book here http://www.al-baz.com/ourbooks_page4.shtml)

http://www.marifah.net/articles/hadra-ibnajibah.pdf