He went to Shaykh Abū ꜤAlī al-Fārmidhī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْه. He set aside all his scholarship and rank, emptied his heart, and began acting upon the words of a true murshid.

Tāj al-Dīn al-Subkīرَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْه  said:

Whatever litanies, acts of worship, or spiritual disciplines Shaykh Farmidhī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْه instructed al-Ghazālī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْه to perform, he did so with steadfastness, until Allah Almighty granted him his intended goal.^[1]

صَلُّوۡا عَلَى الۡحَبِيۡب                                     صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلٰى مُحَمَّد

O those who love the Awliyāʾ!  O admirers of Imam al-Ghazālī! Reflect for a moment! If even an accomplished and eminent scholar like al-Ghazālī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْه required a spiritual guide to walk the path of taṣawwuf and ṭarīqah, then we have a greater need for one.

In fact, Allah Almighty states in the 35^th verse of Surah al-Māʾidah:

یٰۤاَیُّهَا الَّذِیْنَ اٰمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللّٰهَ وَ ابْتَغُوْۤا اِلَیْهِ الْوَسِیْلَةَ وَ جَاهِدُوْا فِیْ سَبِیْلِهٖ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُوْنَ(۳۵)

O you who believe! Fear Allah, seek the means of nearness (wasīlah) to Him, and perform jihad in His way that you may attain success.^[2]

Mufti Aḥmad Yār Khan al-NaꜤīmī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْه explains this verse:

Every search has its own door. Everybody looking to buy something specific must locate the right shop. In other words, to find anything, one must go through the correct door. If you seek Allah Almighty, go