Idries Shah repeatedly pointed out that Naqshbandi Sufis transmit their developmental teaching in a radically different and more realistically efficient manner than any other spiritual groupings or organizations on Earth, even among the other Sufi orders.  He spelled this out quite acutely in the following paragraphs from his book, Knowing How to Know, (Octagon Press, 1998):

“In talking about this special communication system, we must be careful not to become excited or emotionally involved with it, because this will interrupt it.

It is in two parts.  The first part is that we give a task or an assignment or an activity to a group of people, and we ask them to follow that activity until we ask them to stop it.

This activity which we have designated for them contains all the requirements for that group of people up to the point when we want to stop their activity, or change it.

This is the first thing – the work, the elements are contained in the ambience, in the activity: that is the first communication.  The atmosphere in which they work is communicating with them through the objects with which they are working.

In other words, the situation in which we put the people contains the elements, or half the elements which they need.

It is just the same as if we sent you on a journey somewhere, and we gave you some food and that food was sufficient for that journey.  This is the first communication element.

The second communication element is that when the group is operating correctly in accordance with the requirements and in the proper balance without too much emotion, and without too much intellectuality, there is a direct communication among all the people connected with this work, and that communication is telepathic.”

The disciples do not learn by being taught, but by being put in situations where they can learn.  The significant secrets are transmitted telepathically, which requires tremendous sobriety, calm and non-emotional but deep receptivity in the Silent Language of the Heart.

Learning by telepathy in pragmatic situations is not socially or emotionally exciting and can test the patience and endurance of even the most sincere and dedicated student.  Those who feel they need a great deal of regular personal attention from the Guide are not acceptable in the learning situation, which is why so many who have been dismissed (or denied entry) have often gravitated to come-one-come-all spiritual groupings where exotic ceremonies and group chanting take place, coupled with being given a great deal of personal attention from the leader and his associates.  Most Naqshbandi circles contract their smaller and smaller membership toward quality of participants, whereas other circles expand their greater and greater membership toward quantity of participants.  “How many people might come?” is a question of the immature.  “How many people have to leave?” is a question of the mature.

Not all telepathic learning in pragmatic situations will remain strictly under the control of Islamic Naqshbandi Sufi Elders.  There is a cosmic transition taking place on the Earth which is opening up secret contacts with advanced Extraterrestrial Teachers who, like the Naqshbandi teachers, teach by telepathic communion those human students on Earth who can receive it and work with it in situations arranged on Earth for such learning and development.  The Sarmoun Work is the bridge between Naqshbandi learning situations and Cosmic learning situations.  Therefore, Sufi telepathic teachers are not the only valid telepathic teachers on Earth at this time.  A huge transitional shift of developmental orientation is being prepared behind the scenes at this time.

It is already becoming increasingly erroneous and unnecessary for Western students of The Way to exclusively identify themselves with a conditioned culture of Central Asia.  This kind of authority-clinging self-lobotomy in denial of Cosmic and Universal Telepathic Communion and Learning is no longer The Way if it ever was….But, and this must be said, raw emotionalist groupings in non-telepathic and non-pragmatic situations will still continue to stupidly proliferate.  Because of this, Naqshbandi principles will remain all-important, though not Naqshbandi forms or cultural fixations of petty but committed human brains.

The Supreme Guiding Spirit is cosmic, universal Superconsciousness.  That Being pervades the Omniverse of multiple Timespace Universes, Galaxies and Stellar-Systems-of-Planets.  Local regional names of the Supreme Guiding Spirit, such as “God”, “Allah”, “Vishnu” and so on, are pathetic and stupid for the most part, which will become increasingly obvious when human beings of the Earth begin to learn the Cosmic Language of Space, AUI.

There is no Supreme Guiding Spirit but The Supreme Guiding Spirit.

As the future unfolds, we must be more than Sufis, but never less than Sufis.