by Moinuddin Christopher Clarke
The Fraternity of Light was founded in 1978 as a 501c3 Religious Organization in the State of Ohio as “a vehicle for people to find their purpose in life, develop mastery in life, and learn methods whereby they can reach peace of mind and bring their life into harmony.” - Amin Sherdil Macko. The Fraternity of Light is also a school of Self-Realization through which one may enter the inner school or path of mysticism.
The inner school is the esoteric school of individual training in the knowledge of truth. It is the physical, intellectual, mental, moral and spiritual development towards the unfoldment of the soul.
- Hazrat Inayat Khan
The Fraternity of Light was founded by Sufi Amin Sherdil Macko after a deep retreat where he was given inward, visionary guidance and authority to do so by Hazrat Pir-O-Murshid Inayat Khan. This direction and authority was confirmed by Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan to Moinuddin Clarke in a meeting in the year 2000, several years after Amin's transcendence. Amin was a friend and contemporary of Pir Vilayat, Sufi Sam (ie. Samuel Lewis), Joe Miller (President of the Theosophical Society) and Shamcher Bryn Beorse.
Amin was a deeply accomplished Yogi in this life and previous lifetimes. This was verified in a meeting in Rishikesh between Swami Rama, of Himalayas and Amin, where Swamiji told him: “you were not of our order, but your cave was just across the valley from ours”. Amin was initiated into Sufism by Pir Vilayat, and until Amin founded the Fraternity of Light, he served the Sufi Order International as a Shaykh and Regional Representative.
Amin went on to found the Fraternity of Light as an independent Sufi Organization within the umbrella of the Sufi Message and esoteric school founded by Hazrat Inayat Khan. One reason he founded the Fraternity of Light was that he wanted and organization dedicated to reaching out to 'everyday people in everyday life', not just those who were spiritually aware. This was something he felt was not effectively being done by other Sufi Orders at that time.
Amin's deepest desire and mission in life was to bring the universality of God, deeper meditative practices, and spiritual teachings into everyday life in a way that was understandable and 'digestible' to every person - he knew these teachings would transform people's lives, but so many could not digest the foreign terms and arduous practices. Amin actually found the answer on how to accomplish this mission when he read the book “The Purpose of Life” by Hazrat Inayat Khan. Here he found, in simple words, deep spiritual insight offered in the “Sufi Message of Hazrat Inayat Khan”.
The Sufi Message brings to the world the message of unity, of uniting in the Father-Motherhood of God beyond all differences and distinctions.
- Hazrat Inayat Khan, Social & Religious Gathekas
Based on this and his own experience and study, Amin developed a class called “Meditation a Transcendental Experience”, he taught literally hundreds of classes through public school 'Life Long Learning' programs. In this way he changed the lives of thousands of people. One of his favorite sayings was the poem by Rumi:
Come, come whoever you are,
Wander, worshipper, lover of learning
Ours is not a caravan of despair,
Come even if you have forgotten a thousand times
Come, Come, yet again come. -
- Mevlana Jelaluddin Rumi
Amin was also very fond of saying: The first lesson on the path of Self-Realization is to Master your Everyday Life, for if you can't bring your everyday life into harmony, how can you have the peace of mind and concentration to reach the deeper transcendental levels of consciousness - without this, something will always be pulling you back.
Amin wrote two books entitled: Opening the Door to Your Life, and Mystics, Mudzubs and Madness: Mysticism is Everyday Life. These books contain powerful practices and mystical concepts explained in plain language. You can find Amin's personal Bio, as written by him, elsewhere on this website.