Mp3 of Lecture:

Transcript

In the brief Khutbah today, as you all know, it’s the final farewell Friday sermon of the month of Ramadan, the month of the Qur’an. I figured it would be appropriate to share some realities in regards to the Book of Allah, and our times, and the attitudes that Muslims and Non-Muslims have towards Allah’s Book, and what needs to be done about it Insha’Allahu ta’ala.  First and foremost, I want to share with you something you already know: we live in a religiously pluralistic society; a society in which many different people follow many different religions. You have people of different faiths at your work, people of different faiths at your school, at your college, at your university, in your neighborhood, pretty much everybody else. It’s a diversified society in terms of religion.

And when people live in such a society, there are certain ideas that aren’t even said, but they creep into the thought process of the people, and this is something that creeps into the thought process of the Christian, the Jew, the Hindu, the agnostic, whoever, and even sometimes the Muslim. And this idea of, you know, part of getting along with everybody, and part of, sort of, respecting everybody else, one of the ideas that is pumped into a pluralistic society is that all these religions – people follow these different religions because they come from different backgrounds. They come from different cultures. You’re from Morocco, and you’re from Spain, and you’re from, you know, Egypt, or you’re from Bangladesh or something, that’s why you’re Muslim. You know, I’m from the Philippines, I’m from Sri Lanka, or wherever else, and that’s why I’m a Buddhist, or that’s why I’m a Hindu, or that’s why I’m a Catholic, or that’s why I’m a Protestant, etc.  So really, we’ve just learned to accept religious differences almost as though they are cultural differences, right? So this idea is presented that religious differences; there’s no distinction between them – it’s just, you could think of it like another cultural difference. So the fact that you fast, in the month of Ramadan, and your neighbors know that you fast, they think that it’s such a cool thing to do in their culture. The first thing that comes in their minds isn’t religion; the first thing that comes in their minds is these Eastern people, these brown people, these yellow people, these colored people, they fast: it’s a thing they do out there, right? That’s what it is. And you know sometimes the Muslims themselves, especially the youth, start thinking like that: “Yeah, we are Muslim because we were born in a Muslim family” or “that’s our heritage; that’s how we are. These are the kinds of things we do because we’re from that background.” And the idea and the conviction that we are Muslim because it is the truth; it has nothing to do where we come from or what our parents are. The fact that the Deen of Allah, Islam, is the truth – that idea becomes diluted. It gets reduced to just a culture, gets reduced to just a religious heritage – that’s all it is. And when you lose sight of the fact that this is the truth, then you don’t feel the urgency to want to share the truth with others. You’re okay with the fact that somebody else is whatever other religion, and you are this religion; it’s just traditional differences. You know, these are differences of heritage. But when you’re convinced this is the truth, and then when you’re convinced of that, you know everybody else – what they have is falsehood – then you feel a sense of urgency to want to share the truth with others.   

If there is a building on fire and you’re the only one who knows it’s on fire, it’s only decency that you would want to let other people know: “Listen, we need to get out of here; it’s on fire.” There’s a sense of urgency that creeps up into you. But this sense of urgency is gone; it’s gone because we don’t associate the Deen of Allah, the Book of Allah, the legacy of His Messenger (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) as being the ultimate truth that demands to be shared with humanity. That’s one problem: a change of attitude needs to take place. Here’s another change of attitude that I want to talk to you about. Those of us who do work in the field of Da’wah, or organizations, groups, writers, websites, etc., dedicating to spreading and, you know, enlightening the people of Islam in whatever capacity – may Allah help all the efforts of Da’wah, big and small, local and national. May Allah help all of them and put Barakah in their work and accept the work from them, and may Allah make all of us contributors to the work of Dawah in all lands, including this one. Now, having said all of that, the work of Da’wah, of sharing the message of Islam with the larger society – let’s just talk about it in the American context briefly. This work has a few obstacles in front of it, and this work has right now been reorganized, and it’s been shaped not according to our liking or according to the principles of our Book in our legacy, but according to a different agenda. And this is what I wanted to bring before you. You know, in the Prophet’s time (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam), the Qur’an was the main vehicle of Dawah. The Messenger (alayhis salaatu wa salaam) was commanded, “وَاتْلُ مَا أُوحِيَ إِلَيْكَ مِن كِتَابِ رَبِّكَ- Read what has been revealed to you from the Book.” Read it onto the people. Recite it onto them. “فَذَكِّرْ بِالْقُرْآنِ مَن يَخَافُ وَعِيدِ. Remind by means of the Qur’an.” Makkan Surah, right? Who are you reminding by Qur’an? Whoever fears the promise; even if a disbeliever has some fear of the promise, they will be reminded by the Qur’an. The Qur’an was a means by which the message of Allah was delivered to people. You know, when this message was delivered, some people didn’t want to hear it; some people wanted to distract this conversation. They didn’t want to have this conversation that’s the central message of the Book. So they started this tactic, you can call it irrelevant questions, they started asking the Messenger (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) questions that are almost tangents so that he would be so busy answering those questions, he never gets to talk about what he wants to talk about. So they would say to him, “We will believe in what you have to say, but just answer this: who sends you revelation? Which angel? What’s his name? If you just tell us that, we’ll believe”. So the Ayaat come down and he answers properly and he says, “Jibreel”, and they say, “Well, we don’t like him actually. Let’s ask you another question. How about this: who are the people of the cave? If you just answer that, we’re going to believe.” So the Qur’an answers, “أَصْحَابَ الْكَهْفِ”, right? We recite this in Surah Kahf. So now, when that answer was given: “Well no, we have another question actually: what is the Ruh? Where does it come from? Who’s Dhul-Qarnain?”

Are these central questions? You have to understand the central idea was believe in this Messenger, the central concept was ‘La Ilaha Ill Allah”, the central concept was don’t change with your tongue the book that Allah had revealed to you – don’t hide what Allah had sent to you; that was the message. They don’t want to accept that message, so what’s the easiest tactic? Change the conversation by changing the questions. It’s a very clever tactic, it’s very clever, and you know, it’s even used today; you go on a TV – it’s a TV interview – and the host, the guy who’s hosting the show, and there’s an expert, some scholar, whatever area. Maybe it’s a historian, maybe it’s a political scientist, whatever. That historian will never get to say what he wants to say because the host keeps on changing the question; he controls the entire conversation. What I’m trying to get across is that whoever controls the questions controls the conversations. This is true in media, this is true in Da’wah; this is true in discourse in general. Whoever controls the questions controls the conversation. The thing in the Qur’an is that Allah did address some of their questions and then He stopped. Then Allah started asking questions himself because Allah (Azza wa Jal) himself takes control of the conversation – “أَفَلَا تَعْقِلُونَ? Why don’t you think?” “أَمْ لَكُمْ كِتَابٌ فِيهِ تَدْرُسُونَ? Do you have a book that you study from? هَاتُوا بُرْهَانَكُمْ Bring it forward!” Asking questions and making demands from the people who disbelieve.

However, now we’re living in times when we are not the ones – the Muslims are not the ones, the Da’ees are not the ones asking the questions. Questions are being asked of us. “Hey, how come Islam condones terrorism?” “How come you people hate women so much?” “How come you do this? How come you do that?” and we’re put in a position that we’re constantly telling people, “No, No, No. Islam is not this. No, Islam is not that. No, Islam is not that either. And it’s not this either. And no, this is not what the Qur’an actually says. And this is not the Sunnah.” So we’re so busy telling the people what Islam is not, that we don’t get to tell them what Islam is. We never get a chance to speak because the questions are not in our control.

We have to understand the Ayah I recited before you from Surah Anbiya is a very powerful Ayah. In this Ayah, He depicts the message of this Deen and the book of Allah and this truth, this La Ilaha Ill Allah, this Muhammadar Rasulullah (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) that is running in our blood. This truth. Allah gives it an image – sometimes in the Qur’an, a lesson is taught by means of drawing a picture in your mind. Allah says, “بَلْ نَقْذِفُ بِالْحَقِّ عَلَى الْبَاطِلِ” – “We spear the truth against the falsehood”. The image being drawn is that the Truth, Islam, is like a spear. Truth is like a weapon, and its being hurled, its being launched against falsehood, who is a guy running away from the spear obviously. So who’s on the offensive? The spear! And who’s running away? The falsehood! Compare that to our times; who’s actually running after who? It’s like the guy is running after the spear; it’s the other way around. We’re on the run. We’re not the one asking the questions. The tables have been turned. Then Allah describes, “فَيَدْمَغُهُ – Then the spear dashes the skull of falsehood in.” Now, this is a very graphic image in the Ayah; Allah doesn’t just say, “Truth defeats falsehood.” Truth kills falsehood; it bashes its skull in; its brains get bashed up. In other words, what we’re learning is that truth has no tolerance for falsehood. Islam has no tolerance for ideas that are contrary to the truth. We’re not saying we’re intolerant of Non-Muslims – that’s not what we’re saying. We are saying truth cannot stand falsehood. Truth has no tolerance; no, it cannot stand next to it and be okay. If it sees it, it has to bash its skull in it. That’s what it has to do. That’s what it must do by definition. In other words, truth is incredibly offended by the existence of falsehood. It’s offended by the existence of falsehood. And we are in a time now that falsehood is offended by the existence of Islam. It’s offended by the existence of the truth.

This is one problem that I wanted to share with you. But add to this one more thing. The elders among us, those of us that come from the Muslim countries especially – maybe they were attending Halaqaat when they were younger. They were in the company of scholars when they were younger. They built this love and affection for the Deen as they were growing up. So they have this غيرة for Islam, they have this chivalry towards Islam. They have courage and this confidence for the Deen. But that confidence does not exist today amongst their own children. It does not exist today among our youth. Our youth are only at the Masjid because we drag them here. They’re only at Sunday school because you left without them. They’re not here. They’re not at the Halaqaat; the Halaqaat are filled with people with grey beards and white beards. They’re not being attended by the sixteen-year-olds and the fourteen-year-olds and you know what? When they go to school, they are learning that ‘Izlam’ worships the moon-god; that is what they are learning in public school. I was listening to a preacher – you know, I live in Texas, and there’s a lot of Christian talk radio shows. And now, there are actually talk radio shows dedicated to the Muslim audience; they want to talk to Muslims, want to bring them from darkness to light and they want to bring them to Jesus. They’re talking to Muslims and they’re inviting them to call in. They actually have a supposedly Qur’an expert on the radio show: “We want to share our faith with you. We understand you think, you know, that believing that Jesus is the Son of God is Shirk, and they know these terminologies, and they can quotes Ayaat from the Qur’an.

They’re actually out there to give the message of Christianity to Muslims, right? And I’m listening and their evidences are almost, WAllahi, laughable. They are laughable, but you know, I also got very scared when I was listening. I called in to see just what happens and they hanged up on me, but I was very scared – you know why? What’s the biggest weapon these people have? What’s the biggest weapon those who call to falsehood and instead of falsehood being on the run, now it’s attacking the truth, right? What’s the biggest weapon they have? The biggest weapon they have is the ignorance of the Muslims. The biggest weapon they have is that we don’t know our Deen. Our kids don’t know their Deen; they don’t have the confidence that this is the truth. Instead, and this is the point that I want to actually conclude with because this is the heart of the matter, what I want to share with you. I don’t just want to bring the problem before you; I want to share with you how do we get to a solution. How do we start fixing things too?

Look, in our times, if you want to learn something about the Qur’an, of course you ask the ultimate Shaykh…Google, right? You put in ‘Qur’an’ or whatever, and you want to learn something about the Qur’an and a bunch of hits come up. You know, on the internet, in the media, on YouTube, whatever else, there is far more literature, and media, and content available against the Qur’an and attacking the Qur’an. There’s far more against the Qur’an and very little in comparison available in defense of the Qur’an or pro-the-book-of-Allah. The criticisms far outweigh the appreciation of the Book of Allah. I want to share something else with you: for a millennium and a half, this Ummah and its scholars that span every continent, every continent, they have been obsessed with the miraculous power of this Book. They have been obsessed with the Qur’an’s incredible majesty and how it can’t possibly be the words of a human being. Thousands upon thousands of scholars have given their entire lives studying the miracle of the Qur’an in the Muslim tradition. And then, for the last three to four hundred years, the Christian tradition (move up Insha’Allahu wa ta’ala; the crowd is filling up, so move as much as you can). In the Christian World and the European World, the Qur’an started being studied formally about four hundred years ago; they started studying Islam. Why did they start studying Islam? So that they can defeat the new enemy, that was the idea, right? So they have been writing critical works against the Qur’an for about four hundred years now in the Christian World basically, ok?

 If you try to, say, we’re not even talking about the non-Muslim, let’s just talk about the Muslim – if the Muslim wants to learn something about the Qur’an, do they have today, more access to what has been written by our own scholars about the Qur’an, or do they have easier access to what is the attacks on the Qur’an? They have easier access to the attacks on the Qur’an. Even the Muslim today says, “How come this Ayah says, “One day is equal to fifty thousand” and that Ayah says, “One day is equal to one thousand”? How come He says over here this, how come he says over here that? The Muslim is asking these questions. The Muslim is saying how come this doesn’t make any sense, about the Quran. We have reached that point. We have reached that point. Here we were, supposed to poke questions to others, and now our own are asking questions about their own Book. That is the reality in which we live. How do we counter this reality? How do we produce youth, especially youth, young men and women, that we are so scared, so defensive, right? One of the things before I conclude this Khutbah is the impact of this mentality. This mentality that we have to constantly answer and defend ourselves, right? Instead of Islam being on the ideological offensive, it’s on the defensive constantly. What is the consequence of that? We have the idea that we have to protect our children from the Fitna of the outside world, right? This is Haraam, and that’s Haraam, and how are we going to raise our children when we’re scared to death about what’s going to happen to our kids – isn’t that the case?

You know, if we were really producing children of Islam, if we were producing members of this Ummah, carriers of this message, then the entire high school would be scared. “Man, my kid’s Christianity’s going to go away because there’s a Muslim kid in the school.” They would have that kind of confidence. We wouldn’t shake because of what’s around us; everything around us would shake because we are there. That’s the kind of confidence Islam puts into someone when they understand what they believe, when they have the Book of Allah empowering them, right? I know of a case of a brother I know actually that when he was in high school, he had memorized Qur’an before he studied his Deen, and he went into public school. And his parents were told, “Don’t put him in public school. Keep him in an Islamic school, or keep him in a Madrassa” and this and that, but he said, “No, I want to go to a public school”. Ask him why he wants to go to a public school: “Those people need the message” – that’s what he said. That’s a fifteen-year-old kid. And he goes – by the time he graduates from high school, eighteen kids become Muslim in that high school. This is confidence in your Deen. This is what we’re supposed to produce.

We’re supposed to – you know, they say in sports, the best defense is offense, right? The best preservation of our youth is the production of Da’ees. You produce people that carry this message, and deliver this message, and are content with this message, and are deeply confident with this message. You produce that and you don’t have to worry about them, you know, they’re not going to end up at the nightclub, and they’re not going to do alcohol, and they’re not going to have a girlfriend. You’re not going to worry about these things because they have a higher mission in life then. You have empowered them with something greater. When there’s a void of a higher purpose in life, then you have these problems. Then they look for other things to fulfill that void. But our Deen give us purpose. WAllahi, it empowers youth and it puts them on a different scale. It puts them on a different platform than anybody else. You know, we’ve become a people that want to protect ourselves, cut ourselves off from the rest of society. The only justification ‘Ulama have told for you decades now, I’m not the first one to tell you this, the only justification for Muslims living in this land is Da’wah. That’s the only real justification. Before all this hiding away and saying, “Oh my God”, if we’re like that, then there’s a serious problem. If we don’t know how to handle somebody who walks into the Masjid, a Jehovah’s witness, or a preacher, or a guy with tattoos all over his body, walks into the Masjid and we don’t know how to handle it; that’s our problem, not his problem. That’s our problem; we don’t know how to deal with them. We don’t know how to deal with the larger society. And we were here to deliver this message, to carry this message in our speech and our actions. In the four or five minutes that I have left, I want to share with you a couple of things, Bi’idhnIllah, that are hopefully food for thought for you and your family Insha’Allahu wa ta’ala. First and foremost, there are two things about the Qur’an that, at least in the Qur’anic studies, not in the larger Islamic studies, just in the Qur’anic studies, that all families should be aware of. This book is something we should understand, but it’s at the same time something that we should also appreciate. The Qur’an is not something just to be understood, but it is also something to be appreciated. What does that mean? We have to appreciate the fact that this is actually from Allah. We have to appreciate the fact that a human being couldn’t possibly produce this. It couldn’t possibly be from a human – it’s impossible. That cannot be.

Now, how do you come to that appreciation until you become a student of its power and its majesty, until even for the English speaker – you know, the vast majority of Muslims today are not Arabs or Arabic speakers, the vast majority of Muslims. But if you ask the question what is the amazing power of the Qur’an, what makes it so perfect, what makes it so flawless, what makes it so inimitable (it can’t be reproduced), the answer will always be its pristine Arabic. It’s Arabic is so perfect that it cannot be reproduced. Isn’t this the answer that you always get? Now, for the majority of Muslims who don’t know Arabic, are they ever going to benefit from that answer? No. So do we stop there and say well, the natural knowledgeable person comes in and says, “I want to know why the Qur’an’s a miracle” and the Shaykh tells him it has amazing Arabic and it couldn’t be by a human being. The poets couldn’t come up with anything like it. He says, “Well, I want to know how that works. That’s not enough for me. How is it better than Shakespeare? How is it better than any other literature? I want to know more.”

“Well, you have to know Arabic?” “Uhh, I don’t have time to learn Arabic.” “Well, too bad for you.” We can’t do that. We can’t do that, just because we’re living in a time, this Da’wah, this miracle, this beauty of this book. Yes, all the Balagha of the Qur’an cannot be shared with people in any other language. But a lot of it can be. A lot of the beauty and the power and the majesty of this Book can be shared. A lot of the questions can be answered. You know, when the average Muslim is even asking, “How come the Qur’an repeats itself so much? How come it says the same thing over and over and over again? How come a little bit of the story here, a little bit here, a little bit there, a little bit there? And why are they placed so sporadically, right? Muslims are asking these questions. WAllahi, Muslims are asking these questions. “How come for example in the Qur’an, there’s a Makki Surah, there’s a Madani Surah, there’s a Makki Surah – it’s all chronologically all over the place. How come “اقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ”, the first revelation, is not in the beginning – it’s all the way at the end, right? All these kinds of questions, Muslims are asking today, and they have answers, but we have to sit and seek them. We have to sit and actually explore this. And when you do explore this, you will come to the conclusion that this Book, this Book, is superior in terms of its beauty. You will appreciate it – it is superior than any literature ever known to man. You will come to that conclusion yourself. And when you come to that conclusion yourself, then you have the confidence in this Deen that cannot be shaken. You have to have confidence in this Book first. I wanted to share with you in the beginning, I’ll do this in the conclusion now, the Ayahs from Surah Ankabut, “وَقَالُوا لَوْلَا أُنزِلَ عَلَيْهِ آيَاتٌ مِّن رَّبِّهِ” The Kuffar said, “How come no miracle comes to him? How come he just has words? How come the sky doesn’t crack open, water coming out of the ground, or maybe gold being delivered from the sand? Some miracle – show us something! The previous Prophets, you know, a dead guy come back to life, a river parted, some pretty cool stuff happened. How come he doesn’t show us a miraculous sign? Allah says, “قُلْ إِنَّمَا الْآيَاتُ عِندَ اللَّهِ وَإِنَّمَا أَنَا نَذِيرٌ مُّبِينٌ. Allah tells the Messenger to say, “The miraculous signs belong to Allah. And I am only here to clearly warn. I am a clear warner to you.” That’s it. The next Ayah says, “أَوَلَمْ يَكْفِهِمْ أَنَّا أَنزَلْنَا عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ يُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ – Isn’t it enough for them that we have sent the Book to be read to them? We have sent the Book onto you to be read to them?” They asked for a miracle and Allah said, “Isn’t the Book enough?”

Allah said, “Isn’t the Book enough”, right? They wanted to be convinced, they wanted to see something super natural, they wanted to see something that couldn’t be human, and Allah says, “Isn’t the Book enough?” If Allah said the Book is enough then, then it’s true even now and it’s still enough. We’re not studying it. We’re not spending the time. We are not appreciating its miracle. The Book is still enough. “أَوَلَمْ يَكْفِهِمْ أَنَّا أَنزَلْنَا عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ يُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ ” SubhanAllah, it’s such a powerful message, this Book is such an empowering message, but we have to stop being apologetic, we have to stop being defensive. We have to learn to equip ourselves what that spear, the spear of knowledge of this Deen, of confidence of this Deen, of really standing up and saying, “Yes, we have the truth. We’re not just another religion and please just accept us as another acceptable religion in society.” They’re okay with Chinese Americans, they’re okay with Sri Lankan Americans, and they’re okay with Hispanic Americans, and they should be okay with Muslim Americans then too. They should be, but we’re here for more than that. We’re not just here so that people are okay with us – we’re not just here for that, we’re here for a higher purpose. We’re here to deliver a message, and, you know, in the history of the Prophets, whenever a Prophet got up to deliver the message, they got in trouble. They suffered because they delivered a message – every one of them. So if you are thinking you should be okay here, then think again. If we’re going to do Da’wah and if we don’t do Da’wah, then Allah’s punishment will come. If we don’t do our job, Allah’s punishment will come, and if we do our job, then Allah will test us definitely. He will definitely test us. May Allah (Azza wa Jal) make us capable and strong, to withstand that test. May Allah make us an Ummah that carries the message of Muhammad (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) with confidence. May Allah (Azza wa Jal) infuse into our youth especially, the ones that are surrounded by Kufr and surrounded by Shirk and surrounded by doubt; they’re surrounded by these things, may Allah make them carriers of this message with great confidence. May Allah (Azza wa Jal) infuse into ourselves and our families a love of the Sunnah of the Messenger (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) and a love of learning, and reciting, and remembering Allah by means of His Book.

During the Prophet’s time, there was a man and an orphan that both had gardens next to each other. They’d both loved their gardens, but there was a problem. There was a tree between the gardens and there was a debate on whose tree it was. The orphan loved that tree and wanted it. They went to the Prophet (SAW) to rule on it. After all the measurements and such were made, it was ruled that the tree actually was part of the man’s garden.

The orphan was so sad as he’d loved that tree. The Prophet (S) had a moment of sympathy and told the man that if he would give that little orphan the tree, then he would make du’a to Allah to give the man a garden in Jannah.

In the moment, the man wanted the tree so much, in his  arrogance he refused the offer and kept the tree.

While this was happening, another companion, Abu Darda (R) overheard this and immediately began seeking that garden in Jannah. He asked the prophet (S) if that offer was still up, if he could get that tree for the orphan, would he have that du’a for the garden in Jannah? The prophet said yes.

Abu Darda immediately seized that opportunity and asked the man that if he gave him his own garden, filled with date palm trees and such, would give him possession of that one tree? The man agreed and said he didn’t need that tree, and an extra garden is what he’d rather have.

Abu Darda came home to his garden, where his child was eating dates from the tree and he came frantic saying to drop everything, this isn’t our garden, I’VE SOLD IT TO ALLAH! I’VE SOLD IT TO ALLAH!

That man who’d lost out on the opportunity chose a garden on Earth over a garden in Jannah. Subhanallah, if you noticed, he’s “the man” while the person that seized that opportunity is who refer to as “Abu Darda”. The man’s name wasn’t recorded or remembered, though we remember Abu Darda. This is because he was the one who’d tried to take every opportunity he could to get to Jannah. Are you seizing all of your opportunities?

NOTE: This was only one story of the khutbah, the rest of it was about being thankful to Allah for Ramadan and generally taking a more deep interest in our deen.

SOURCE FOR THE STORY (as referenced by the speaker).

A small anecdotal gem from a small talk I’d heard tonight at the masjid. The brother was visiting from an Islamic institute in Chicago, but unfortunately he didn’t mention the name.

Imagine a large and wide room. It’s filled with a whole set of desks. And sitting at each of those desks are students. And in front of those students are papers. And in each of their hands, are pencils. And they are writing on the paper with a great fury and focus. They are all taking a test. This test is of such a great magnitude that it will determine each of their futures and the rest of their lives.

Now imagine yourself as one of those students. And all that you can muster to write down is your name. After that, you can’t understand any of the questions at all. And you’re stuck, alone.
And all of a sudden, you feel a hand on your shoulder, and you hear the voice of a person who says that they will help you. They will not only help you, but they will give you the correct answers. Not only that but this person says they’ll make sure that you will succeed even after this test. Would you refuse this person’s help?

Many ‘Ulamah classify this test as, the Dunyah (world). And the person coming to your aid is none other than the Nabi (prophet) of Allah, salallahu ‘alayhi wasallam (peace and blessings be upon him). He has received the answers straight from Allah and provides it to you with his sunnah. Will you refuse this answer key to life? Will you neglect it and fail your test? Allahu ‘Alam.

“Don’t Kill The Dream, Just Execute it“.

Kill and execute are synonymous – At the end of the day, do either one of these, and the guy dies (lol). But in this context, it means something else; killing a dream means doing away with it. Executing it means putting it into practice as soon as possible.

Just how to ‘execute’ the dream?

“Goals are nothing more than dreams with deadlines”

Shaykh Safi had mentioned this at a meeting with all the staff and teachers of Al-Huda School, Maryland. One of the reasons that he was mentioning this was because he was encouraging everyone to have a special project of their own that doesn’t necessarily have to do with work – just something that you really enjoy and are willing to put quality time into making it successful. These special projects should however have goals because they are merely dreams with deadlines – To really get things moving, you should have goals so that you can see tangible results and will be more inspired to move on with that special dream.

What is your special dream that you want to benefit the Muslim Ummah with?

A small gem I got from the tafseer talk before ‘Isha tonight. I actually took notes on my iPod touch.

When Quraish’s youth came to kill the Prophet (S) in Makkah, and they surrounded his home, with ‘Ali (R), he picked up a handful of dirt (or dust), then recited the first few ayaat of Surah Yaseen, and then blew the dust into the air. Those particles of dust went in the eyes of the attackers, and temporarily blinded them allowing Muhammad (S) to walk right past them without them seeing him. Those verses protected the Prophet (S) from death and allowed him to escape to Madinah.

What do you think?

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p.s. Thanks to brother Arif, the source for this story is in Ibn Hisham, Vol. Pp. 480-83.

Video can be found here

Who is exempt from fasting? Once we ask this question, we have to realize that the default is that everyone must fast unless they are among the following type of people:
• Mentally incapable

• Children – They have to be adults and in Islam, an adult is one who has reached puberty and is between the ages of 11-14.

• Women who are in their monthly cycles and who are still suffering from the bleedings from childbirth – Unlike children who are allowed to fast and they and their parents get rewarded for it, these women are not allowed to fast; it is actually forbidden for them to do so. They need to make it up after their period is over and that obligation takes place as soon as they have the discharge that finishes their period.

• The travelers – What is travel? It is whatever your culture considers travel, so commuting to work doesn’t mean travel, but rather if you’re going to another town, city, state, or country, etc. If the travel is easy, that doesn’t mean you have to fast; Allah made this religion easy and you can do whatever’s easy for you. Just realize it’s not extra piety for you to fast while traveling, as the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) stated in a Hadith.

Suppose you have a flight at 5 and the Iftar is at 6 – you have to fast while you’re still in the city until 5 and since you have only an hour until you have to break the fast, then it is better for u to fast. If u have a difficult travel, then it’s better for you not to fast and to make it when u get home.

• Sickness – By sickness, it means the type that if you fast, the sickness get worse. The sickness doesn’t have to be life-threatening or severe, but just one that would be impacted by the fast. There are two categories of sickness:

• Temporary sickness – This includes sicknesses such as fever and such. They don’t have to feed the poor but they have to make up the fast when once they feel fine.

• Permanent sickness – This includes diabetes, cancer, and other types of sicknesses that remain permanently. A permanent sickness can also mean one who is very old and weak. For these people, they should give food to a poor person per day. They can give a meal per day or they can calculate all the 29/30 meals and give them all out on day. It is also permissible to feed one person 30 meals and it’d be ok. The best thing to give is food and the type of food that should be given is what is regular according to your culture; If chicken and rice are a normal meal, then that is what you should give. However, if that is considered a luxury in that culture, then that definitely is not what you have to give. You should basically give staple food – in some cultures, its chicken and rice and for others, its lentils and bread. As there is no end to these sicknesses, these people do not have to make up the fast.

• Pregnant women and breastfeeding women – Muslim sisters, realize firstly that just because you’re pregnant or breastfeeding doesn’t get you off the hook. Only if you feel that the fast will make it difficult on you or that a Muslim reputable doctor tells you that the fast will have adverse consequences on you or your child, then you’re exempt from the fasting. There is difference of opinion on whether they should feed someone or if they should make it up for that missed fast – my personal opinion is that they should make it up.

Ramadan is on the verge of leaving us.  How many people do you know who prayed last Ramadan who are not with us this Ramadan?

Surah Al Baqarah v. 153:  Siyam has been prescribed for you as it was for those who came before you so that you may obtain piety.

This is the month of siyam, Quran, forgiveness.  Hadeeth of the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam):  A man will come on the Day of Judgment with another man and will want to take back what the other man took from him.  Allah showed him a palace in Jannah in said that if he forgave the other man, then it would be his.  The man said he forgives the other man, and Allah told him enter Jannah.  Then Allah said that He is the most forgiving, so take the other man’s hand and enter Jannah.

We were just talking about the man who forgave the other, and Allah told him to take his brother’s hand and go to Jannah.  If Allah forgives, then will not you?  Why wouldn’t you?

As the amal increase in this blessed month, they multiply and likewise the bad deeds multiply as well.  Ibn Abbas (radhi Allahu ‘anhu) said something interesting.  It is not a hadeeth of the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) but is only mentioned by Ibn Abbas (radhi Allahu ‘anhu).  Ibn Abbas said:  “The inner sins are greater than the outer sins.”  The sins starting with the heart are greater.  The sins done with the heart are greater than those done with the physical faculties.  For instance, if you are talking to a girl on the phone and all of a sudden your mother or father comes in and your heart starts beating and you change the conversation.  In fact, the heart that starts beating:  the sin in itself is greater because you are not afraid of Allah when you were doing something haram.  That particular sin is greater than the sin itself.

Allah is watching us not only in Ramadan.  Ramadan is a training we have to endure so that we can get ready for other things.  Jaabir ibn Abdullah used to say to let your tongue fast and your physical faculties also fast along with you.  You leave a lot of halal things in Ramadan.  You leave halal and do haram.  In Ramadan you leave that which is halal and without realizing end up doing haram and eat the haram meat of people by doing gheebah and nameemah.

Let us take a 24 hour trip on how to live Ramadan from morning to evening.  A day in Shari’ah starts from salat al fajr until maghrib, and the night starts from maghrib until fajr.  This is a very practical talk.  First, we will have a goal.  The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) said: “Allah will save souls from Hell fire throughout the month of Ramadan” (Ibn Hibban, Al Hakim, Ibn Majah, Al Bayhaqi).  Every night souls are saved from Hellfire.  May Allah make us of those whose souls are saved from Hellfire.

Let us go on this trip from morning until evening.  The adab of fajr should find you inside the masjid especially the brothers.  Hadeeth in Sahih Muslim:  For the women, praying in the home is better than the masjid, but do not prevent women from going to the masjid.  Nowadays, women should go to the masjid for taraweeh and to benefit.  So the adab of fajr is to pray it inside the masjid.  Make sure that you are in the masjid before the adhan of salat al fajr.  One of the salaf said, “For the past 40 years, any time that the mu’adhin would make adhan, he would find me inside the masjid.”  There are so many benefits of being inside the masjid before the adhan.  First of all, I want to give you this example of a person (not you brothers and sisters, but a person who does not fear Allah) who has a meeting with a girl or a girl who has a meeting with a boy, and the boy sits in front of his mirror for half an hour an preparing himself and dressing up and then checks and goes back to the mirror to make sure he is looking cool.  He is getting ready to go and meet this person whom he loves.  You all claim that you love Allah and are going to His masjid and going to meet Him, then how would you go and meet Allah?  How is your heart?  The person’s heart starts beating faster the closer and closer the time comes to meeting the girl.  Do you prepare yourself to go to the masjid and meet Allah?  Or do you prepare to go for the last rak’ah?  There are constantly people who are late for the salah and try to get what they can get, but this person has missed a lot of benefits by being early in the masjid.

There is a beautiful hadeeth of the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) reported by Bukhari and Muslim and narrated by Abu Hurayrah (radhi Allahu ‘anhu) that the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) says:  “If people knew what reward is in the call (i.e. the adhan) and the first row, and there is no other way to settle the matter other than drawing lots then they will draw lots for it.”  This means that if people all come on time and try to get into the first row, but there is only limited space, then they will draw lots for the first row.

Try to get into the right side of the row because a hadeeth in Tabarani talks about this and is reported by Ibn Hajr in Fath Al Bari.  Aisha (radhi Allahu ‘anha) narrated that the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) said:  “But Allah and all of his angels send all of their salaams and make du’a for those who pray in the right side of the row.”  There is more reward in praying in the right side of the row.  How do you get this?  By being in the masjid early.

Another benefit:  Obtaining the first takbeerat of the salah.  If you come late, you will not benefit from this.  Anas (radhi Allahu ‘anhu) narrated that the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) said:  “Whosoever prays forty days in jama’ah without missing takbeerat al ihram, Allah will give him two declarations of immunity / innocence:  one from the Hellfire and the other declaration of innocence from hypocrisy.”  Imagine, may Allah forbid, you go into court and worried about the case and are so scared and know that you are innocent so you hire the dream team of lawyers to defend you and in the end the judge comes back and says you are innocent, how would you feel?  How would you feel if Allah gives you two declarations of innocence?  A declaration of immunity from hellfire and a declaration of immunity from nifaq all from praying forty days in jama’ah and not missing takbeerat al ihram.

Salat al jama’ah is above all other salah by 25 / 27 levels.  Another benefit is that if you come early to the masjid, you can pray the nawafil between the adhan and the iqamah.  If you come early for salat al dhuhr and pray the sunnah as soon as you hear the sunnah:  Umm Habiba (radhi Allahu ‘anha) narrates that the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) says in a hadeeth reported in Ibn Majah and At Tirmidhi: “Whosoever prays 4 rak’at before and after dhuhr will be saved from Hellfire.”

Another benefit: The du’a between adhan and iqamah is granted and answered, so when you hear the adhan and then do the sunnah and sit waiting for the iqamah, make du’a because it is granted at that time.  The supplication is answered at that time.  When you hear the adhan, send the salat on the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam).  Whosoever says the du’a of the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) will receive the intercession of the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) on the Day of Judgment. [Found in hadeeth in Bukhari].

Now you are inside the masjid before fajr and hear the adhan and pray the sunnah of the two rak’at and then recite the Quran.  In Surah Al Isra v. 78, Allah says: “The Quran that is recited in fajr is witnessed by Allah and His angels.”  The ulema by consensus say that here in this ayah, the meaning is the Quran recited in salat al fajr.  Do not miss salat al fajr, especially in a masjid and in Ramadan.

Many of us in Ramadan pray the sunnah and leave the fard when praying taraweeh.  We pray taraweeh in huge numbers but leave salat al fajr in jama’ah.

In Vallejo, a friend of the Shaykh said he went to Palestine and to Bayt al Maqdis and was taking pictures.  A rabbi came to him and asked him where he was from.  The rabbi asked how the Muslims are in that country in terms of prayers and asked if more Muslims are going to the masajid.  The man said there are many who go to Friday prayers.  The rabbi asks about the other prayers and said, “How about the early morning prayer?”  The man said only one row or half depending on the masjid.  The rabbi took him to an old school where there were many Jewish children learning Torah, and the rabbi said something in Hebrew, and all the children started jumping up and down.  The man asked the rabbi what he said.  The rabbi said, “I remember when your Prophet was sick and before he died, he could not pray in jama’ah for five days.  Remember the day when he stood up in the fajr prayer and looked at the masjid and it was crowded and smiled and was happy that your nation was in good shape.  You are now telling me the masajid are not crowded, which means to us that we still have the upper hand on the Muslims.”  Salat al fajr!

After you pray salat al fajr, you sit.  Do not say one salaam in the masjid and the other from your car. You have been standing before Allah and praying.  Sit after the prayer in your place and say the adhkar of salah.  In the Fortress of the Muslim, they have the du’a to recite after salah.  After fajr, say ten times:  “la ilaha ilAllah wahdahu la shareekah la, lahul mulk wa lahul hamd wa huwa ‘ala kulli shay’in qadeer.”  Open the Fortress of the Muslim after the salah and recite the adhkar.  Recite ayat al kursi.  This is all done sitting facing the qiblah.  Then recite Surah Al Ikhlaas, Sural Al Falaq, and Surah An Nas three times. Then you can do the adhkar of as-sabah.  When you do this adkhar, engage your hearts!  Engage your hearts on the pleasure of Allah.  The trees, oceans, and mountains all make dhikr of Allah.  Look at your hand.  SubhanAllah!  Breathe.  SubhanAllah!

Keep Fortress of the Muslim and a pocket size Quran with you everywhere you are.  If you have spare time, start reading the Quran.

There is a lot of benefit staying inside the masjid and reciting the Quran and then praying the two rak’ah which have the reward of Hajj and umrah.  Don’t forget to recite at least ½ a juz of the Quran.  You want to complete the recitation of the Quran in Ramadan.  It is not too late and you can do it!  This was the habit of the salaf that they would finish the Quran.  Allah blessed their time and their life so that they would come close to Him.  Try to complete the recitation at least once.  How would you do this?  Recite ½ a juz in the morning and another ½ after salat al asr or whenever you can.

Do not miss salat al-dhuha.  The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) called it the salah of the obedient.  Reported by Imam Ahmad in his musnad:  Abu Hurayrah (radhi Allahu ‘anhu) narrated that the Prophet would never miss the salat al-awabeen, which was salat al dhuha.  This is all training and the best training is in Ramadan.

Try to pray salat al dhuhr inside the masjid.  Try to be there ahead of the adhan so that you can benefit.  If you are at work or school, then try to pray the sunnah and say the adkhar after the salah.  Then pray the sunnah after salat al dhuhr.  You can do this regardless of where you are.  Make time to do this.  You are comforted in the remembrance of Allah.

Asr approaches.  Get ready for salat al asr.  The hadeeth of the sunnah of salat al asr:  “Whosoever prays four rak’at before asr benefits from the Mercy of Allah.”  Always make du’a.  You have no time to waste!  You do not know if you will make it to the next Ramadan, so take advantage of this Ramadan.  Say the adkhar of the evening.

Before maghrib, try to complete the recitation of the juz of the Quran.  As soon as you hear the adhan, rush to iftar.  Make du’a and say the du’a of breaking the fast.  Have dates with you at all times and extra dates with you.  Give dates to other Muslims.  Ask Allah to accept your fasting from you.  Pray salat al maghrib.  Sit and say the adhkar.  Pray your sunnah and then go back and eat.

When we eat, there is something we tend to forget.  Allah says in Surah Al An’am v. 99: “Feast your eyes with the throat…”  Many Muslims do not have anything to break your fast with while Allah has left you with so much food.  Thank Allah for this blessing and eat, but do not knock yourself out.  Leave 1/3 for food, 1/3 for water, and 1/3 for air.

Now that you have eaten, you may want to take some rest.  Then get ready for salat al isha in jama’ah.  Make family circle time, which is very important.

Go to the masjid and sit down and wait for the salah.  You can make du’a or read the Quran.  Time is very precious, and you have no time to waste!

Once you have prayed, then you go back home.  Do not stay up too late!  Many youth are addicted to staying up and when they wake up for fajr, they are sleepy.  Before you sleep, make wudu.  Pray another two raka’ah or so and recite Surah Al Mulk before sleeping.  Ask your spouse for forgiveness before sleeping.  Say the du’a before sleeping.  Recite ayat al kursi, which is very important!  Do not miss out on this before sleeping!  Allah will send an angel who will guard you the entire night.

Go to sleep with the niyyah of qiyam al layl.  This is one of the times when the du’a is granted.  Eat suhoor before salat al fajr.  The sunnah of suhoor is to make it as late as you can right before the adhan of salat al fajr.

This is your 24-hour day in Ramadan.

Some quick advice:

• Have sincere intentions to Allah in Ramadan.
• Repent!  Repentance is also for the believers. “O you who believe, repent to Allah.”
• Be happy in the month of Ramadan.  The sahabah used to be extremely happy in this month.
• Pray inside the masjid in jama’ah in Ramadan.
• Try to help people break their fasts.
• Thank Allah for the bounties He has blessed you with.
• Do not miss out on any obedience that you can do:  give charity, pray in the janazah, visit others.
• Make sure that your tongue is busy with the remembrance of Allah.
• Do not waste time in Ramadan.
• Make sure your heart and physical faculties are fasting in Ramadan.
• Ask Allah every night to save you from Hellfire.
• Give charity every day in Ramadan.
• Enjoin good and forbid evil.
• Strive to be good.
• Strive to tie your bonds of kinship.
• Bring happiness to the hearts of the Muslims.
• Be in the service of your brothers and sisters.
• Be generous.
• Strive to be good to your neighbors.
• Do not laugh too much in Ramadan.  Why?  Too much laughter kills the hearts.
• Stay away from arguments.
• When you talk, only talk good or be quiet.
• Increase the recitation of the Quran.
• Pray taraweeh in the masjid.
• Pray qiyam al layl.
• Say the qunoot and make sure you say a long du’a and have a long qiyam.
• Stay away from the masajid where there is bid’ah.
• Pray with devotion and concentration.
• Increase in the nawafil.
• Seek the best times when the du’a is granted.
• Seek istighfar early in the mornings before fajr.
• If you can make umrah, then do it because umrah in Ramadan is equivalent to Hajj with the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam).
• Mix your ibadat in Ramadan.  If you keep doing one thing, you may get bored, so if you try to do different things, then you will not be bored.
• Beware of the ignorant who want to argue with you or waste your time.
• Beware of intermingling.
• Increase your ibadat in the last 10 days.
• Seek laylat al qadr.  Ask Allah to make you of those to witness laylat al qadr.
• Decrease from eating in Ramadan.
• Train children to fast in Ramadan.
• Beware of the human shayateen.
• Have patience and perseverance.
• Be aware that you are fasting on halal and not breaking your fast on haram.
• Fast as if this is the last Ramadan in your life.
• Ask Allah to let you enter Jannah through the gate of Ar-Rayan.

Q&A

Many people have the question, if the shayateen are locked, then why do we do bad things?  Not all shayateen are locked.  The Shaytan that is always with you is there and the Shaytan who comes to you in salah is there. The human shayateen are always there, and sometimes they are worse!

The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) was the most generous in Ramadan.  In one minute you can make du’a, give sadaqah, make dhikr.  The Prophet said a treasure of Jannah is saying “la hawla wa la quwatta illa billah.”

The currency on the Day of Judgment is good and bad deeds.  You do not want those who you have oppressed to ask on the Day of Judgment for your hasanat.  The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) said the bankrupt is a person who has mountains of good deeds who oppressed others and they take all of his good deeds and there are still more people waiting in line so they give him their bad deeds.  This is the month of forgiveness.  Break the Shaytan’s back and go and ask people for forgiveness.

Dua 1 – Right after Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) gives Ibrahim (alayhis salaam) the glad tidings that he is a friend of Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala), the first thing that Ibrahim asks is, “What about the future generations after me?” This is the mindset of a genius. Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) said, “Nay, My guarantee does not extend to wrongdoers.”

Dua 2 – Ibrahim (alayhis salaam) does not give up and makes a dua that “Oh Allah, make this city peaceful, and provide its children from all types of provision”. In English literature, this would be known as peace and prosperity, and in political science, one learns that the first thing needed for a functioning society is law and order, which is essentially peace. But even in a peaceful society, jobs are also needed, so a society actually needs both peace and prosperity. Ibrahim (alayhis salaam) then adds a disclaimer, “Only provide for the children of mine who believe in Allah and the Last Day”. Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) then says, “I will also provide some for those who do not believe, and then will drag him into the punishment of the Fire.”

Dua 3 – Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) countered his dua twice, but Ibrahim (alayhis salaam) does not give up and makes another Dua (while building the Ka’bah with his son), “Our Lord, accept from us”. In this Dua, Ibrahim (alaihis salaam) made Dua not only for himself, but included his children as well.

Dua 4 – Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) did not respond, which means the Dua was answered. So Ibrahim (alayhis salaam) continued, “And make us in complete submission before you. And out of our children, guarantee that some of them will only submit to You. And for those who are in submission to You, please teach us our rituals. And accept our Taubah (the fact that he is asking Taubah is showing his humility in the case he might have done something wrong).”

Dua 4 – The Dua continues as Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) remained silent as the Duas were being answered, “Appoint from our future generations a messenger from among them.” This was genius because an outsider is looked on as less relevant and cannot be the people’s leader. “A messenger, who will read onto them their miraculous signs, and will teach them their book and wisdom, cleanse and purify them.” The advent of the Prophet Muhammad (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) was the response to this this Dua.

The mentioned passage of verses are all concerned with parenthood. This is the concern of a father who thinks ahead. Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) finished talking about Ibrahim (alayhis salaam) with, “We had selected him in this world and in the Hereafter. Truly, he is from the righteous.”

The Ayah after this talks about Yaqub (alayhis salaam) and his advice to his children; instead of “Do not get less than a 90 in Math”, it was “Do not die except as Muslims.” Furthermore, the fact that it was Yaqub (alayhis salaam) that is in this Ayah shows that the Dua was not only answered for the progeny of Ismaeel (alayhis salaam), but the progeny of Ishaq (alayhis salaam). Yaqub, on his deathbed, says to his children, “What are you going to worship after I am gone?” The children answered, “We will worship your God, and the God of your fathers, Ibrahim, Ismaeel, and Ishaq, and we are Muslims completely to him.”

Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) finishes the passage by saying, “That’s a nation that was already gone. That group earned what they earned. And you will get what you earn and will not be interrogated for what they did.”

Found Over At HalalTube.com

Ramadan Special: Virtues of Ramadan

The Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam), during the time of Ramadan, stood up on a Minbar, called the Companions, gave them a Khutbah, and said,

“Oh people, know that a month is upon you. Know that you witnessing a month that Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala has made sacred, that Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala made obligatory to fast during its days and He has requested that you stand during its nights (it’s not obligatory, but it is rather good to do so).

Locked Up

This month, as said by the Prophet, is one that all of the doors of Hell are shut and chained, and all of the gates of Ramadan are opened, meaning that every opportunity to do good is opened up, you are safe from the fire of Hell, and go to Jannah. This is a month that the Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) has said that all of the evil Shayaateen are locked up, and they are not allowed to go around, whispering evil thoughts and this is a month that every single night, Allah suhanahu wa ta’ala saves people who were destined to go to Hell, and this month has a day that is better that is better than a thousands months. This month is Ramadan.

The Preferred Month

Allah has preferred certain months over others, and Ramadan is the most preferred month in the sight of Allah.Realize that this month has been made very easy as the Shayaateen and gates of Hell are locked, and also realize that 100 percent of the evil deeds that you do in this month is solely from your soul. Therefore, Ramadan is a reflection of your soul.

The Three Ameens

One day, when the Prophet was giving the Friday Khutbah, he was climbing up the pulpit, which had three steps. When he climbed the first step, he said Ameen. Then he climbed up the second and said Ameen. Then he climbed up the third and said Ameen. So the companions were confused and said, “Oh Messenger of Allah, we have never heard you say Ameen every time you climb a step. What is the reason for this?” The Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) said, “When I was climbing the pulpit, Jibreel came to me and told me, ‘Oh Muhammad, anyone in your nation who manages to be alive when Ramadan comes and does not manage to get his sins forgiven, let him perish in the HellFire – Say Ameen!’ So Muhammad said Ameen. Then when he climbed the second step, Jibreel said, ‘Anyone who manages to catch Laylatul Qadr and does not managed to get his sins forgiven, may he perish in the HellFire – Say Ameen!’ So the Prophet said Ameen and when the Prophet climbed the third step, Jibreel said to him, ‘Oh Muhammad, anyone of your Ummah who manages to catch one of them or both, when they are elderly and they need his help and is not able to service them properly and get his sins forgiven, may he perish – say Ameen! So the Prophet said Ameen. So three duas are made – three golden opportunities that even the worst of men can get all of their sins erased by turning to Allah. Two of those opportunities are related to Ramadan – the entire month and Laylatul Qadr. Therefore, if you cannot be righteous in this month, then there is no hope for you because there are no excuses.

Three ways to forgive all bad deeds:

So what do you have to do? The Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) mentioned three things and anyone of them will unconditionally forgive all of one’s bad deeds:

1. Whoever fasts the entire month of Ramadan, believing in Allah and hoping for Allah’s reward.
2. Standing up at night in Ramadan  (ex. Taraweeh)
3. The night of Laylatul Qadr.

Ar-Rayyan

One more blessing of Ramadan is that it is the month when you perfect your fasting in it, and you can enter through a special door set aside for those who fast. The Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) said, “In Jannah, there is a special door called Ar-Rayyan” and Ar-Rayyan means that which will give you a lot of water, because the way to get to that is to deprive yourself of water (by fasting).

Ramadan has been put for you to achieve righteousness and piety – this is the ultimate goal; Allah does not benefit when you tire yourself out. Rather, you are the one that benefit. May Allah make us among those whose sins are forgiven in this month, whose fasting is accepted, whose reading of the Qur’an is accepted, and whose Qiyyam is accepted, and may He make us among those who enter Jannah through the gate of Rayyan…

Video can be found at here at HalalTube.com (Please be sure to watch it)

During the Olympics (this lecture happened during that time), one sees that before they do the ‘clean jerk’, they start screaming and barking. Right before tennis players serve, they start skipping around the court. The reason they do this is to enhance and increase their level of alertness and activeness in them.

Surah Nahl

Allah also talks about this energy we have. He talks about the day and night in Surah Nahl:

Faalikul Isbaah – Allah describes this as the sunrise that is totally removing the darkness – when you see the sun rays coming out, all of the darkness just leaves, as if the night was split asunder with a ray of sunlight.

Wa ja’alal laila sakana – And Allah created the night as a time for rest.

Wash shamsa wal qamara husbana – The sun and the moon are two things that are used to measure time.

…so why did Allah create the day and night in separate proportions? If a person does not sleep at night and use it for rest and reinvigoration, you will find this person very lazy the next morning and is very much against the physical nature when one stays up all night and sleeps during the day because we are not nocturnal creatures. Day is for work, and night is for rest. We are not talking about people with night shifts, but people who just choose to stay up at night.

Energy

This whole energy, this Nashaat, is what the Prophet used to demonstrate. If you see when the Prophet entered Madinah, he stayed in the southern part of Madinah for about 14 days. After he stayed there, he started to actively look for a piece of land to build the Masjid and the Bani Najjar said that we would not sell this land to you, but give it for the sake of Allah, but the Prophet insisted to buy the land. They discovered that there were two graves at this location, so they removed the two graves. After the land was ready, the Prophet himself would take the adobe brick and move it. The Prophet could’ve just asked others to do it and excuse himself, but he would move the bricks himself.

Likewise, when the Prophet was with the companions at the battle of Khandaq, you will see how beautiful the Prophet used to encourage the companions. As digging got boring very fast, he would recite verses of poetry to invigorate the companions. He would say (speaking to Allah),

“If it was not because of you, we would never have been guided. And if it wasn’t because of you, we would never have given charity or thought of praying. And send down tranquility upon us. Stabilize and make our feet steadfast when we meet our enemies. Verily, they have transgressed upon us. If they want to cause Fitna, we refuse to allow them to cause Fitna”.

Fajr

When we go to sleep, forget about bed bugs that bite, it’s Shaytaan who bites. The Prophet said,

“The Satan will sit right here, next to the head. And if he sleeps, he will put three knots over the head. And as he ties each knot, he makes sure to tie the knot nice and tight and tells the sleeping person, “You have a very very long night. Sleeeep (tight)! If the person wakes up and remembers Allah (dua when waking up and when Fajr is), one of the knots will be untied. If he makes Wudu, then a second knot is untied. If he prays Salatul Fajr, another knot is untied. Then this person, after doing all three things, will wake up in the morning with full of energy and in a very good mood. Or this person will otherwise will wake up lazy and with a very bad temper.”

Aisha used to describe how the Prophet would wake up during Fajr time. He would sleep in the first part of the night and get up during the very end. If he needed something from his family, then he would help them and then go to sleep. At the time of the Adhan, by Allah, she didn’t say he would stand up, but would JUMP (wathaba) out of his bed and go to Fajr. Aisha, when describing the Wudu he would do, didn’t say that he would do it all nice, but would rather splash all over, to make sure he would do it with force, and if he didn’t have the Janabah, he would do the Wudu of a man.

Falaq and Naas

Back to the beginning of the Khutbah, we spoke about the morning and how Allah splits the night with the sunlight. And there is a surah known as Surah Falaq and Surah Naas. These were brought down by Angel Gibreel because he was hexed by one of the Jews. It was not very severe, but it would sometimes make him confused (ex. if he was clean or impure). When Jibreel brought the Surahs to him, he also showed the location (a well). The Prophet ordered his companions to go destroy the well. Once they did so, the Prophet stood up, refreshed with energy, as if he was relieved from something that was tying him down.

The Companions

If you look at the companions – Umar once saw a man who was just sitting down. Umar immediately asked him, “What are you doing here?” The man said, “I am waiting for the provisions from Allah”. Umar smacked him, beat him, and told him to get up and go do work, which leads to this point of laziness.

When you look in the dictionary for the word Kasal (laziness), you will see that there are many definitions. One of them is to not give something priority and importance, which in it of itself needs importance.

If you looked at the companions, and how they moved from Makkah to Madinah; even though they had nothing, they entered Madinah with an active lifestyle and some would say, “Show me the Sooq” and in three days, they would become successful merchants.

Makrooh

If you look at the Sunnah of the Prophet, it is actually Makrooh (extremely disliked) to sleep after Maghrib because when one sleeps after Maghrib, their sleep goes on and there is a fear of them passing the Isha prayer. Likewise, it is also against the Sunnah for one to stay up for no reason after Isha. After Isha, he would pray Witr and then immediately go to sleep without a word. Hmm, but New York is city that never sleeps…

The companions had said, “We had pledged our allegiance to the Prophet that we would obey him at times of ease and hardship, even at times when we feel lazy and tired. Musa was once asked by one of the Children of Israel on who is the most knowledgeable man in the earth. When Musa replied, “I do not know of any except for myself”, Allah sent him on a journey to seek out a man named Khidr. Musa and his servant went on a journey (active lifestyle), and if you see their experiences with Khidr, it was always a journey and they were always moving.

Ideal Work Schedule

The ideal work schedule is to wake up for Fajr (best time to work is after Fajr as there is Barakah), make dhikr, pray Salat ad-Duha, eat your breakfast, go to work, and take a break at Dhuhr (sleep for about 30 minutes before Dhuhr for reinvigoration).

Jannah is surrounded by the difficult things – one of the characteristics of the 70,000 that will enter Jannah without reckoning is that even if their whips fell from the horse and dropped to the ground, they will not ask assistance from any another.

They weren’t lazy. For them, it was an active lifestyle…