Peace be upon you, our people, respond to the call of Allah
Prof. Dr. Iyad Qunaybi
Prof. Dr. Iyad Abdul-Hafeez Qunaybi, a professor of pharmacology. He holds a PhD from the University of Houston, USA, with first-class honors. He conducted his doctoral research at the Texas Medical Center. He is a participant in two patents in the field of wound healing and dozens of therapeutic researches published in international journals.
He has a website, FixPharma.net, for medical and pharmaceutical lectures. He published the book PharMedTerm for medical and pharmaceutical terms. He is one of three academic reviewers for one of the most widely circulated pharmacology books in the world, which is the book: Lippincott Illustrated Reviews: Pharmacology in the eighth edition of the book published in 2019. He has a strong connection to the Quran, having memorized it by heart.
He received Islamic sciences through self-effort from a number of scholars and graduated from the debate manufacturing course with first-class honors.
Among his most famous works:
All praise is due to Allah, and prayers and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah. Among the greatest acts of closeness to Allah the Almighty: sweetening the hearts of His servants, spreading glad tidings among them, making them aware of their great responsibility, and strengthening them on the path to Allah, especially in this time when trials have increased and the attack on the Ummah and even on human nature has intensified.
For these noble purposes, this book has come, in which I have recorded thoughts and meanings that I have benefited from for myself and have addressed to my brothers over many years, and I have seen, by the grace of Allah, a good effect from them.
This book comes after our previous book "Having Good Thoughts About Allah," which had a wide circulation and a profound impact, thanks to Allah the Almighty. That book focused more on the difficulties and tribulations that a person faces in his personal life. While our new book here focuses on the concern of the Muslim for what befalls his Ummah and humanity in terms of injustice and oppression. It is thus a complement to the subject of "Having Good Thoughts About Allah."
The book has three main themes:
We have structured the book in the form of stations, with no sequence or connection between them, but rather they are like spiritual meals. Therefore, we advise the esteemed reader to read one station each day to be the provision of his soul for that day, and we do not advise at all to read it in one sitting or a few sessions. For that reduces its benefit, as it is not primarily an informational book.
May Allah accept this work from us and make it purely for His noble countenance, and may it be a means of salvation for Muslims in this world and the Hereafter. And Allah is the granter of success.
Prof. Dr. Iyad Qunaybi
How many of us say to ourselves: The day I turned to Allah, I found my soul joyful. I touched the flame of revelation, the pure essence of human nature. It was the light that illuminated my heart. The first tear with the recitation of the Quran, the first journey of Umrah, the first night I stood in prayer for Allah... I found myself, which I had long sought in the depths of my being! These things meant a lot to me. My map was: (I), and (I) drank from the spring of life every day after years of heedlessness, feeling the rain, comfort, and longing...
Then... (I) realized that I am part of the Islamic Ummah, so my eyes opened to the calamities of the Ummah! Here, the emotion and life of the heart reached their peak! I began to feel for all my brothers and sisters on earth, filled with love and compassion for my oppressed brothers, jealousy for the sanctity of my oppressed sisters, and tenderness for the displaced children. My map became (the Ummah)... My ambitions: to save the Ummah... Nothing but that could quench my thirst! And despite the pain, I was in those days at the peak of the life of the heart, its tenderness, the height of its ambition, and the ardor of its hope.
But slowly... a dangerous transformation occurred! I did not find a roadmap for the great goal (saving the Ummah). Or perhaps I found it, but my soul was not yet ready to follow it. Here... I got stuck in the middle! I neither saved the Ummah, nor did I remain in the state of tranquility and happiness that I tasted when I first turned to Allah!
What once meant a lot to me in acts of worship no longer means anything to me because it does not lead to the great goal (saving the Ummah) in my view... Fine, does it not benefit my soul and purify it? Yes, but my map is no longer myself; my map is now (the Ummah).
My slogan became: (What does it mean?) (So what?), (All this is of no use)... because everything that once delighted me does not lead to (saving the Ummah). My eyes almost tear up with the Quran or with a story I hear, I almost rejoice because I - finally - will cry again!... But a voice assaults me: (What does it mean?!) And if I cry... will Palestine be liberated?! So my tears are held back.
In my prayers, I want to gather my strength to be humble... Humble?! And then what if I am humble?
I even began to despise the efforts of others!... A preacher tells an affecting story and people interact with it in the comments, so I comment: (May Allah reward you, O Sheikh, but you are in one valley and the Muslims are in another!... You talk about noble morals while our brothers here and there are suffering?!)... Another addresses a doubt so that people may meet their Lord with a sound heart for His Sharia, so I comment: (All this is of no use! Unless Islam has a sting, the doubts will continue to be raised and the tools of the enemies will demolish what we build)! As if I have become a demolition tool myself and I do not feel it?!
In short, I have lost (myself), and I have not saved (the Ummah)! Fine, what is the solution? Should I return to myself and forget my Ummah? And is that permissible for me?
This was a diagnosis of what happens to many of us... A confession of the inner voice that we hear from the depths of our being. This is the state of many of us: we care for our Ummah with a negative concern that hardens our hearts. We neither preserve the joy of obedience as we did at the beginning of our guidance, nor do we save our Ummah.
What should we do? To avoid being stuck in the middle in this way, you need to do the following:
1. Accept Allah's decree with sincere acceptance, not passively: The concern for the state of the Ummah should be a motivation to work to change these conditions. But when it becomes a reason for despair and contempt for acts of worship, it is often accompanied by hidden anger at destiny! Remember that: "If your Lord had willed, they would not have done it" (Al-An'am: 112), and He, glorified and exalted be He, does nothing but with wisdom.
But does this mean that we should not strive to change reality on the pretext that it is predestined? Certainly not. Rather, it means that our sorrow should not be accompanied by a rejection of Allah's decree and a doubt in His wisdom! Be pleased with Allah's decree, then be angry with yourself if you fall short in reforming the reality of the Muslims and be pleased with yourself if you obey.
2. Know the ultimate goal: A great mistake is to make the ultimate goal the empowerment of Muslims on earth and then judge every action that does not lead to it - in your view - as valueless! Rather, the true goal is to please Allah, and this goal is achieved by His obedience, glorified and exalted be He: "Those who, if We establish them in the land, establish prayer and give zakah and enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong" (Al-Hajj: 41). And it is achieved by worship in its comprehensive sense: "And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me" (Al-Dhariyat: 56). The empowerment, the establishment of the Muslim state, and the lifting of injustice from the Muslims are for the preservation of obedience and worship.
Yes, we may differ on determining the best and most rewarding obedience, but we should not belittle an act of worship on the grounds that it (does not lead to the goal)! For it is in itself part of the goal.
This is what distinguishes the Islamic call, which Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) was rebuked for being preoccupied with the leaders of Quraysh over a blind man, saying to him: "Nay, but it is a reminder * So whoever wills, let him remember" (Abasa: 11-12). The answer to the blind man's question about learning Islam was greater in the sight of Allah than trying to convince those who do not want to listen or respond, even though his response could have led to the lifting of injustice from the Muslims. And when the Jewish boy accepted Islam and then died, the Prophet (peace be upon him) was pleased with him because Allah saved him from the fire with him, even though his Islam at the time of his death would not have enabled the Muslims to benefit from him.
We do not want to become like the advocates of worldly calls, making empowerment the ultimate goal and then judging our actions as success or failure based on it! This is an earthly view, even if we thought it was purely heavenly! The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "Do not belittle any good deed" (Sahih Muslim: 2626)... any thing, no matter how small in your view, and whoever belittles his acts of worship and the acts of worship of others is opposing the guidance of the Prophet (peace be upon him), and thereby adding disobedience to the disobedience of abandoning the Muslims that troubles him!
A man removed a thorn from the path of the Muslims and entered Paradise, and a woman gave water to a dog and entered Paradise, and you should not despise matters that Allah has magnified! Teaching people purity, teaching them a hadith, purifying the heart of a servant from doubt, your humility in prayer, your striving for your dependents... all of these contribute to the greatest goal: (pleasing Allah, glorified and exalted be He). So it is not permissible for you to criticize or belittle.
Look at the partial acts of worship as part of your effort to make people worship their Lord and the rise of your Ummah, so that every good word and good deed you see, consider it a foundation to build love for Allah in the hearts of the servants and a part of the project of the rise of the Ummah. Then you will not belittle any good deed.
And what is blameworthy is your claim that these acts of worship suffice you from supporting the Muslims and confronting the disbelievers and hypocrites. So do not blame your acts of worship at that time, but rather blame the incompleteness of them with the other duties. The difference between the two is very important.
What is blameworthy is what is practiced by the evil scholars who divert people from the duty of enjoining good and forbidding evil, supporting the Muslims, and striving for the empowerment of the religion by occupying them with some acts of worship and recommended acts. We must turn this back on them and make these acts of worship a prelude and foundation for launching into the rest of the issues of the Ummah and its rise.
Derive strength from the joy of your obedience to rid yourself of your shortcomings. Beware that your shortcomings do not make you belittle your obedience, or make you belittle the obedience of others. We are not talking about belittling in the sense of minimizing the deed in comparison to Allah's greatness, glorified is He, but about feeling unimportant and hopeless about these acts of obedience! Belittling good deeds is a sin added to the shortcomings in supporting the nation! The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: "Verily one of you may speak a word pleasing to Allah which he thinks to be insignificant, but Allah will raise him thereby to degrees of Paradise to the extent of saying it." (Sunan al-Tirmidhi: 2319)... By what right do you belittle it when it was the cause of eternal, everlasting pleasure?
By what right do you frustrate your work or the work of your brothers without what Allah has stated nullifies the deed? Shortcoming in supporting the religion is a sin, but from where do you have the right to say that it nullifies the deed until you say: "It does not benefit" or "It is in vain"? And you know that the Most Just of judges, may He be exalted, has said: "And We place the just balances for the Day of Resurrection, so no soul will be wronged in anything. Even if it be the weight of a grain of mustard seed, We will bring it forth. And We are sufficient as a Reckoner." (Al-Anbiya: 47). Therefore, so that your heart does not become hard after righteousness, submit to the decree of Allah with a submission that is not passive, and know that the ultimate goal is to please Allah, glorified is He, and that is by obeying and worshiping Him in the manner He has commanded.
3. Know What is Required of You:
"O you who have believed, preserve yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is people and stones, over which are [appointed] angels, harsh and severe, who do not disobey Allah in what they are commanded but do what they are commanded." (Al-Tahrim: 6), "And no bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another." (Al-An'am: 164). And from that is certainly the command of good and the prohibition of evil, lest you be held accountable for the wrongdoing of others. But do not let their wrongdoing discourage you.
Allah, exalted is He, will hold you accountable for your deed, not the results, such as saving the nation... This gives you reassurance, as you are reassured by what you exert, not by what is achieved in reality. Yes, we must review ourselves as to why the results were not achieved, and whether we were remiss so that we may rectify the shortcoming and address the mistakes. But you must remember at the same time that your success is not contingent upon changing reality, but rather it accompanies you step by step with your good following of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
You will say: This is what troubles me! Where do I not know the path of the Prophet to follow amidst these methodological differences. I say to you at the outset: Remember that the matter is not zero or one hundred percent, "And there are degrees among them." (Al-Ahqaf: 19). Your mastery of the acts of obedience that you undertake qualifies you for Allah to enlighten your insight to the path of the Prophet and the best acts of obedience, "And Allah increases those who guide [others] in guidance." (Maryam: 76). The gradual achievements qualify you for the selection of great tasks, and not to falter after selection. How many people have neglected their hearts and their diseases, so when they confronted the support of the nation, their diseases overcame them, and they did wrong and added to the nation's burden, while they thought they were doing well!
Know that one who lacks something cannot give it. Whoever does not govern the building of himself will not save his nation. Strive for the light of your heart so that you may then radiate light upon people. And this requires an open heart... You strive for your humility and your supplications, you rejoice in the laughter of your children, you find comfort in your family and brothers, you master your studies and work.
The makers of the nation's glory have fathers who governed their inner building, so Allah blessed their works (the personality) and they had a share in the general good thereafter. And do not fear, your oppressed brothers will take their full right: "And We place the just balances for the Day of Resurrection, so no soul will be wronged in anything." (Al-Anbiya: 47). And those who have committed injustice against them will receive their recompense until the oppressor will bite his hands and wish he were level with the earth and say, "Would that I were dust!" And your Lord does not forget... "On that Day, no one will punish [as] He [will] punish, and no one will bind [as] He [will] bind." (Al-Fajr: 25-26). All the torment with which they tormented the Muslims will be light compared to the torment they will receive as a recompense for their injustice.
And Allah will honor the oppressed: "So today those who believe from the disbelievers are laughing at the disbelievers on [their] couches, looking." (Al-Mutaffifin: 34-35). As for this world that we are in, it is a place of trial, not a place of recompense... So rise and do not despair, but rejoice and work "And be patient. Indeed, Allah does not allow to be lost the reward of the good-doers." (Hud: 115).
Some people think that religion is associated with sadness and that if they want to be happy, they must forget about their religion a little. This is one of the mistaken concepts that some preachers have contributed to spreading. They use certain statements about our leaders from the righteous centuries, including some narrations that are not authenticated. It is not valid to use such narrations as evidence. We have the words of Allah the Almighty and the words of His Messenger (peace be upon him) that contradict these statements.
What can be proven from the effects of the sadness of the Salaf (early Muslims) is that it means fear. Many interpreters have mentioned this meaning in their interpretations, such as in their interpretation of Allah's saying: "And they say, 'Praise to Allah, who has removed from us [all] sadness'" (Fatir: 34). (Meaning: He has relieved us from what we feared and guarded against from the worries of this world and the Hereafter) (Ibn Kathir). Thus, sadness includes the meaning of fear and vigilance, and in this way, it is the opposite of heedlessness that those who do not account for the Hereafter live in. Or it is the transient sadness arising from a specific cause, not that it is their permanent condition. Indeed, there are situations in which the Prophet (peace be upon him) commanded the display of joy, such as the days of Eid.
Therefore, our speech here is to clarify that sadness in itself is not a praiseworthy or legally required matter. Just as happiness in itself is not blameworthy or an indication of our heedlessness of the Hereafter and lack of concern for the affairs of Muslims.
Someone might say: How can you not want us to be sad? Do you not see the situation of the Muslims? The answer is: Only that sadness is praiseworthy which drives one to act to lift injustice from the Muslims. Otherwise, they do not need our negative sadness, that sadness in which we look at painful images and clips, then sigh and become melancholic, then our lives become bitter, and we feel humiliated and failed by the situation of our nation, and our determination to perform our duties in our professions, studies, and family and social relationships is broken, and we feel hopelessness therein, then our feelings become numb. If our souls yearn for happiness, we feel that we must neglect the concerns of our nation, and even the rulings of our Sharia, and we say: (Enough sadness, enough hardship) - phrases that have come to mean to some: (Enough religion and enough feeling of belonging to the Islamic nation)! They do not then rejoice except in disobeying Allah, because obedience is associated in their minds with sadness and grief. And thus, waiting for a new disaster to come, we will again chew on negative sadness, convincing ourselves that we are still adhering to our religion and nation.
The truth is that with our negative sadness, we do not obey Allah, nor with our happiness that escapes the rulings of the Sharia do we obey Him. In both cases, we do not benefit our nation. We must look at sadness and concern positively as temporary feelings that adjust the course and turn into a driving force to move forward in life with activity, a sense of responsibility, and rising above the trivial. Whenever we incline towards a life of heedlessness, we remember the pains of our nation and rise above the lowly and seek the path of excellence. Until we have covered a distance, we feel elation and rejoice with true joy in its place, joy in obedience, not the hysterical laughter that the heedless release to convince themselves and those around them that they are happy while their hearts are empty.
Sadness is praiseworthy if it turns into fuel that moves in its appropriate channels and pushes you forward. If you do not direct it in these channels and productive works, it will burn you! Sadness is praiseworthy to the extent that you are awake and it pains you when you fall short and spoils the pleasure of disobedience for you. If you disobey, you feel guilt and shortcoming towards your nation and its wounds, so you become sad, and this drives you to obedience, so you rejoice in your obedience. Thus, obedience is associated with joy and disobedience with sadness, not the opposite as we have mentioned!
Sadness is praiseworthy to the extent that you succeed in turning it into wakefulness and beneficial work. This (transformation) is something I have greatly benefited from in my life. I have been exposed to temptations and desires in my life, but the pains of my nation prevented me from straying with the straying. My love for my oppressed Muslim brothers and my burning for them prevents me from falling into what the heedless fall into. I cannot betray them and drown in disobedience and leave them to suffer. Rather, we have been keen in the West to call for the cause and raise the issues of Muslims. And the pain for my oppressed brothers and sisters and the love and compassion for them are among the greatest motivations for our call, which we see bearing fruit, praise be to Allah. We spread the series to plant certainty in the hearts, remove doubts, arouse Islamic dignity, and spread awareness. And in our minds, all this will contribute to lifting injustice from our brothers and sisters and restoring the dignity of Muslims.
One of the greatest blessings Allah bestows upon you is to turn negative feelings into positive driving forces:
It is a religion of positivity, the religion of our Prophet (peace be upon him), who said: "Seek what benefits you, and seek help from Allah and do not be helpless. If something befalls you, do not say, 'If I had done such and such, it would have been such and such,' but say: 'It is the decree of Allah, and what He wills happens.' For 'if' opens the work of Satan" (Sahih Muslim 2664). Yes, 'if' opens the work of Satan, opens for you the door of negative regret, despair, frustration, doubts, and doubt in the mercy of Allah. So seek help from Allah and do not be helpless, and turn every negative event into a positive driving force.
Sadness is not a matter required by the Sharia, nor should it be associated in our minds with religion. The hadith that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was continuously sad is not authentic, and Ibn al-Qayyim said about it in Madarij al-Salikin: "It is a hadith that is not authenticated, and in its chain is one who is not known." And Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, has beautiful words in the tenth volume of the Fatwa, in which he said: "As for sadness, Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) did not command it, but rather He forbade it in some places, even if it is related to a matter of religion." Meaning, do not justify yourself by saying that your sadness is not for yourself, but for the situation of the Muslims. Even this does not justify the dominance of melancholy over you continuously. Note Allah's saying: "And do not weaken and do not grieve, and you will be superior if you are [true] believers" (Al-Imran: 139). This is after the Battle of Uhud and what the Muslims were exposed to of calamities, and yet Allah says to them: "And do not grieve."
And His saying: "And do not grieve over them and do not be in distress over what they devise" (An-Nahl: 127) and His saying: "And do not be grieved by what they say" (Ya-Sin: 76). It is difficult for the Prophet that people disbelieve and reject his call, and the command comes to him from Allah: "And do not grieve over them" (An-Naml: 70) and His saying: "When he said to his companion, 'Do not grieve. Indeed, Allah is with us'" (At-Tawbah: 40). And other verses.
Ibn Taymiyyah said: "And that is because (i.e., sadness) does not bring benefit nor repel harm, so there is no benefit in it, and what has no benefit in it, Allah does not command it." Then he explained, may Allah have mercy on him, that sadness is not sinful as long as it is not accompanied by sin or discontent. Then Ibn Taymiyyah concluded his speech by saying: "But sadness over that (i.e., the calamities of the Muslims) if it leads to abandoning what is commanded of patience and jihad and bringing benefit and repelling harm, is forbidden." Yes, this is the negative sadness that we forbid, the sadness that crushes morale and prevents productive work. This is the sadness that our enemies want for us!
Therefore, one of Satan's goals is to bring sadness to the believers. One of the goals of the Sharia is to bring joy and happiness to the believers. Allah the Almighty says: "Indeed, whispering is only from Satan that he may grieve those who have believed, and there is in him no harm to them except by permission of Allah. And upon Allah let the believers rely" (Al-Mujadila: 10). One of the goals of Satan's allies is to make you fall into sadness and hardship. Allah the Almighty says about them: "They wish what you suffer" (Al-Imran: 118), meaning they wish for you hardship and suffering.
Consider this speech by Ibn Al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him, in "The Path of the Two Migrations and the Gate of the Two Happinesses": The Imam Ibn Al-Qayyim says: The purpose is that the Prophet, peace be upon him, made sadness something to seek refuge from, because sadness weakens the heart, weakens determination, and harms the will. Nothing is more beloved to Satan than the sadness of a believer. Allah the Almighty says: "Indeed, whispering is only from Satan that he may grieve those who have believed." So, sadness is a disease of the heart that prevents it from rising, moving, and striving. The reward for it is the reward for the calamities with which the servant is tested without his choice, such as illness, pain, and the like. As for it being a worship that is commanded to be sought and desired, it is not. So, distinguish between what the servant is rewarded for from the commands and what he is rewarded for from the calamities. (Meaning that the believer is rewarded for the sadness that arises from calamities due to the saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him: "No fatigue, nor disease, nor sorrow, nor sadness, nor hurt, nor distress befalls a Muslim, not even a thorn that pricks him, but that Allah expiates some of his sins by it" (Sahih Al-Bukhari: 5641). But this does not mean that a person should cause himself sadness as worship, nor is it a means of getting closer to Allah.)
And Ibn Al-Qayyim continues, saying: But one is praised for the cause of sadness, its source, and its consequence, not for its essence. (Meaning that sadness may be an indication of the works of the hearts of a believer that he is praised for, not for the sadness itself). So, the believer either grieves over his negligence and shortcoming in serving his Lord and worshiping Him, or he grieves over his involvement in disobedience and sinning and the loss of his days and times. This indicates the soundness of faith in his heart and his life, where his heart is preoccupied with such pain so he grieves over it. If his heart were dead, he would not feel it, nor would he grieve nor suffer. What harm is there for a dead person from a wound? And the more alive his heart is, the stronger his feeling of this pain.
But sadness does not benefit him, for it weakens him as previously mentioned. Rather, what benefits him is to face the journey, strive, and exert his effort. (Meaning that even if the motives for sadness are praiseworthy in this case, which is the awakening of the heart and its feeling of responsibility, he should not stop at the stage of sadness, but rather turn it directly into strength, hope, and launch to make up for his shortcoming with glad tidings and seeking help from Allah the Almighty.)
On the other hand, bringing joy to the Muslim is one of the goals of the Sharia. In the hadith that Al-Albani deemed good, the Prophet made the first act in the most beloved deeds to Allah: "Joy that you bring to a Muslim." Do you find a single verse or a single hadith that commands sadness or praises it? Rather, you find that the Prophet of Allah, peace be upon him, would seek refuge with Allah from worry and sadness: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from worry and sadness" (Sahih Al-Bukhari 6369), and teaches us supplications that remove sadness.
The establishment of Islam cannot be built on the shoulders of sad, depressed, and miserable people! And when we review what our predecessors did, who are attributed with constant sadness by some preachers, when we review their great achievements in short periods, they opened countries, attracted people to the religion of Allah, and excelled in many fields of life... we conclude that it is absolutely impossible that those who did all this were people whose souls were dominated by gloom!
When we review the lives of the most influential personalities in the history of Muslims, we find them described with tranquility of the soul, expansion of the chest, fluency of life, and a calm smile on the lips deeply rooted in the heart... Sheikh Al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, who spent much of his life in prison, indeed died in prison, and his enemies almost killed him, was one of the most zealous for the sanctities of Allah and the most aware of the affairs of the Ummah, and witnessed the massacres of the Tatars. All these circumstances did not erase the smile from his lips. So Ibn Al-Qayyim described his teacher Ibn Taymiyyah, saying: (And Allah knows that I have not seen anyone with a sweeter life than him, despite the hardship of his life and the lack of comfort and luxury, but rather the opposite, and despite the imprisonment, threats, and exhaustion he endured. And he was, despite all that, the sweetest of people in life, the most expansive of chests, the strongest of hearts, and the most tranquil of souls. The radiance of bliss would appear on his face. And whenever fear intensified for us, and our thoughts worsened, and the earth narrowed for us, we would go to him, and it was only that we would see him and hear his speech that all that would leave us and turn into expansion, strength, certainty, and tranquility. And he would say: In this world, there is a paradise that whoever does not enter it will not enter the paradise of the hereafter.)
Our Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "Make things easy and do not make them difficult, give glad tidings and do not create aversion" (Sahih Al-Bukhari 6125)... Generally, people are not attracted to the religion of Allah by anything like seeing the signs of tranquility and contentment on our faces, and nothing repels them from the religion of Allah like the frown and pessimism that some people think is religion! The Muslim is an optimistic person who draws his strength from his trust in Allah the Almighty.
For example, seeing our faces gloomy as if telling people the story of a losing deal we entered into with religion, far be it from Allah!
Joy is what should be associated with obedience and piety, not continuous sadness. Allah the Almighty says: "Whoever does a good deed, whether male or female, and he is a believer, We will surely cause him to live a good life" [An-Nahl: 97].
Glad tidings are what should be associated with obedience. Allah the Almighty says: "But the allies of Allah - no fear will be upon them, nor will they grieve. Those who believed and were fearing Allah. For them is good tidings in the worldly life and in the Hereafter. No change is there in the words of Allah. That is what is the great attainment" [Yunus: 62 - 64].
The bliss of the soul is what should be associated with obedience. Allah the Almighty says: "Indeed, the righteous will be in pleasure. And indeed, the wicked will be in Hellfire" [Al-Infitar: 13 - 14].
Ibn Al-Qayyim said: (This is in their three stages, not specific to the Hereafter, although its completion, perfection, and manifestation is only in the Hereafter and in the Barzakh. So, the righteous are in bliss in this world, in the Barzakh, and in the Hereafter. And the wicked and the disbelievers are in Hellfire in this world, in the Barzakh, and in the Hereafter.)
Yes, joy is what should be associated with obedience and piety. Allah the Almighty commanded joy and forbade sadness. He commanded joy and said: "Say, 'In the bounty of Allah and in His mercy - in that let them rejoice'" [Yunus: 58].
As for the saying of the people of Qarun to him: "Do not rejoice, for Allah does not love the rejoicers" [Al-Qasas: 76], it does not mean blaming joy in general, but the joy of arrogance, pride, and superiority. Allah the Almighty says: "That is for what you were rejoicing in the earth without right and for your exultation" [Ghafir: 75].
Meaning: for your joy that you were rejoicing in the world without what you were permitted of falsehood and sins.
In conclusion, my brothers, Islam is a religion of joy, not the wild, empty, and artificial joy, but the joy of obedience and the permissible. And sadness does not exempt us from any of our duties towards our religion and our nation. So, it is not befitting for us to fill ourselves with more sadness, but rather to launch into serving our religion with high spirits, bright souls, and joyful hearts, and to repel sadness by taking its causes. For you see in some places where sadness is forbidden, mention is also made of what repels it: "When he said to his companion, 'Do not grieve; indeed, Allah is with us'" [At-Tawbah: 40], so we work on what achieves for us the companionship of Allah the Almighty, and thus repel sadness.
"And do not grieve over them, nor be distressed by what they conspire. Indeed, Allah is with those who fear Him and those who are doers of good" [An-Nahl: 127 - 128], so we repel sadness and distress with piety and goodness.
In the Eid prayer area, I looked at the preacher standing on a slightly elevated level with a large number of people in front of him. I imagined a scene similar to the Day of Judgment: I imagined the Messenger of Allah, Muhammad (peace be upon him), and around him his Ummah, those who will enter Paradise.
I said to myself: The Ummah of Muhammad... those who have died from them over the centuries, the people of this time, and those who will come after them... their count is in the billions! If they gather around the Prophet (peace be upon him) in circle after circle... in which circle will I be?
Someone might say: (Will there be a gathering around the Prophet (peace be upon him) on the Day of Judgment?), so I say to you: Have you not heard his saying (peace be upon him): "The one among you whom I love the most and who will be closest to me on the Day of Judgment... and the one whom I hate the most and who will be farthest from me on the Day of Judgment..." There is closeness and distance.
In the beginning of my youth, there was fear of Allah and love for Him in my heart. But the fear was more dominant... and I was overcome by the feeling of falsity and fear of falling into trials. So my Lord, exalted be He, subjected me to trials, and every time He was with me, He would make me patient, surround me with His mercy, bear my burden to the extent that I could bear, and if He strengthened my backbone, He would prepare me for a greater test, and He would place in the depths of the trials comforts, blessings, and good tidings, then He would show to the people from me what is praiseworthy and conceal my weakness...
The awaited moment that I feared did not come... the moment when Allah would abandon me to my sins, slips, and transgressions... but the days pass and I receive from my Lord nothing but more grace, concealment, kindness, and mercy... and I knew that He is more gentle, merciful, compassionate, and wise than I had thought. Until I loved Him for those great attributes and balanced my love for Him with fear of Him, exalted be He...
Just as a child is thrown by his father into fears... he is made to stand on his feet to learn to walk after crawling... he is thrown into the water to learn to swim. And every time he falls, he is helped with a helping hand... so the child loves his father who frightens him to teach him, strengthen his backbone, and raise him in ranks... he walks with fear mixed with a smile and joy on his face, and in his chest, a heart that beats with love for his father, the teacher.
And to Allah belongs the highest example. A lesson I would not have learned, and a love I would not have drunk were it not for the trials... and by Allah, I would not have liked to be healthy and not have received these gifts... O people, love your Lord and trust in His mercy, wisdom, and upbringing for you... And O Lord, to You belongs all praise, filling my insides and my being, and filling the heavens and the earth, and filling whatever You will of anything else. I ask You for Your love, and the love of those who love You, and the love of work that brings me closer to Your love.
Sheikh Muhammad al-Ghazali was asked: What is the ruling on one who abandons prayer? He replied: Take him with you to prayer.
A beautiful answer that needs a moment of reflection. The sheikh was not ignorant of what the questioner meant, for he wanted to hear: (One who abandons prayer is a disbeliever), or (not a disbeliever), or (a sinner)...
But the sheikh directed the questioner to exert his effort in reforming the condition of one who abandons prayer by softening his heart, appealing to him, and frightening him so that he would go with him to prayer.
The youth of the Ummah of Muhammad (peace be upon him) increases my conviction day after day of their goodness, their closeness to righteousness, and their acknowledgment of the rulings of their Lord if the call is presented to them without compromise, without makeup, or without distorting the religion, and at the same time with an understanding of their pains, hopes, and the misguidance they have suffered and are suffering from, and trust in the innate nature that Allah has placed in their hearts.
From many of them come actions and statements very dangerous to their religion. To the extent that the observer may think that misguidance is deeply rooted in their hearts.
But... remove the dust from their innate nature, remind them of the revelation, show them your concern for their well-being, speak to them well, prioritize, arouse in them the love of Allah and His Messenger and the glorification of Allah and His Messenger, not seeking reward from them nor making their desires guide your speech. And then look at the wonders! Aversion to the Sharia turns into love and glorification, and even if their obedience to it is sometimes delayed, they acknowledge that it is due to their weakness...
They have committed forbidden acts and become addicted to them. In a moment, they will swear not to return to them because the love of Allah has become great in their hearts and has overcome their love for them... they may break their oaths and return. But if they are reminded, they will repent and walk in the way of Allah, even if they are lame and broken!
And I, when I see example after example and situation after situation, recall the scene of our Prophet (peace be upon him) when he said: "O Allah, my Ummah, my Ummah" and wept. So Allah sent to him Jibril (peace be upon him) to reassure him: "Go to Muhammad and say: We will please you with your Ummah, and we will not harm you" [Sahih Muslim 202]. We will not harm you: meaning we will not afflict you with what causes you sorrow and harm.
The Ummah of Muhammad will not go astray in a way that harms their Prophet (peace be upon him) with their fate on the Day of Judgment... but in every era of theirs, there will be many who will please Him and even boast to the nations on the Day of Judgment.
Yes, knowing the ruling of one who does such and such and one who says such and such, and whether he has fallen into a nullifier of Islam or not... knowing that is important because legal rulings and transactions are based on it. But it should be the first step in reforming the condition of the erring with the same care as the Prophet (peace be upon him) to whom you belong when he says: "O Allah, my Ummah, my Ummah".
As for standing at the issuance of rulings, it has created a gap and led groups to excess in takfir and tafsiq, and it has not increased the generality of the youth of the Ummah except in burden and aversion.. and it has led, on the other hand, groups to softening and downplaying the importance of major sins and abominations. And the loser in both cases: the youth of the Ummah!
Work for the reform of the Ummah... and be certain that you are victorious... for with you: an innate nature that Allah has placed in their hearts, a preserved revelation that addresses this innate nature, and good news from Allah that this Ummah will not harm their Prophet (peace be upon him) for verily Allah will honor him therein.
"They want to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths, but Allah will perfect His light, even if the disbelievers hate it. It is He who sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth to prevail it over all religions, even if the polytheists hate it" [At-Tawbah: 32-33].
We must rejoice. Yes, we must rejoice! Even if worries enter upon you due to a sudden event, the default state that befits you as a Muslim is to rejoice and not let worries make you forget the many reasons to be joyful. Because Allah has blessed us with the blessing of existence, and He cannot bless us with something that is misery and wretchedness. Therefore, our existence in this life is a blessing that drives us to rejoice... Because Allah chose us from among the masses of humanity to be among His servants and followers of His Prophet peace be upon him, so we must rejoice... Because we think well of our Lord... we must rejoice... Because those who follow the biography of the beloved Prophet peace be upon him can never find a word that suggests despair nor a stance that carries pessimism within it. Rather, it is positivity and looking forward... So we have in the Messenger of Allah a good example, therefore we must rejoice... Because the soul that is constantly accompanied by gloom does not populate the earth nor achieve vicegerency. Therefore, we should not be gloomy, but rather: we must rejoice... Because people will not accept the religion of Allah in droves if they see us, the people of this religion, gloomy. For every person seeks a way of life that brings them happiness and peace of mind. If they do not find it in our faces, our call will not attract them, for one who lacks something cannot give it.
Therefore, it is not befitting for us to turn people away from the path of Allah with the frowns on our faces and the harshness of our features. Rather, we must be joyful and show our joy. It is imperative that we rejoice from the depths of our hearts... Because our enemies want us to be sad, they want to break our spirits, and it pains them to see the features of hope on our lips. And because Allah has written the reward in provoking them, saying about the believers: "And they shall not be grieved nor shall they be humiliated. They shall be honored in the presence of their Lord and shall be provided with speech and forgiveness" [At-Tawbah: 120]. We must provoke them and we must rejoice... Because in our hands is the Book of Allah, which if it were sent down upon a mountain, you would see it humbled and split asunder. How much more appropriate is it that it should clear our hearts and remove our worries and sorrows? It is "a healing for what is in the hearts and a guidance and mercy for the believers" [Yunus: 57]. We must rejoice. Because the Allah who holds the hearts, if He wills to make a servant happy, then all the forces of the earth cannot make him sad. "Whatever mercy Allah opens for the people, none can withhold it" [Fatir: 2]. And we have seen pictures of children whose heads have been shattered and wrapped in medical gauze, yet they smile and raise victory signs. Therefore, we must rejoice... Because the fate of every monotheist is Paradise, even if they are afflicted with what they are afflicted with before that... We must rejoice... Because we await to enter a Paradise wherein its shade will make the most wretched of people say: "By Allah, O Lord! I have never experienced wretchedness, nor have I ever seen hardship." We must rejoice... Because we can be the most honored people on the face of the earth... by obeying our Lord until we become His allies, finding Him facing us. If we ask Him, He will give us. If we seek refuge in Him, He will protect us. And He is the One who permits war against those who oppose us. We have the right to rejoice... Because we are the blessed nation to whom Allah the Exalted said to His Prophet peace be upon him: "Verily, We will please you in your nation, and We will not displease you" [Muslim 202]. We must rejoice... Because the Messenger of Allah peace be upon him would rejoice until his face would light up, and he would rejoice until his face would be radiant like gold, and he would rejoice until his features would sparkle. And we are commanded to follow him... We must rejoice... Because the affair of the believer is all good, and that is only for the believer... We must rejoice... Because the Messenger of Allah peace be upon him said: "Make things easy and do not make them difficult. Give glad tidings and do not repel" [Sahih al-Bukhari 69]. We must be gladdened and give glad tidings, and we must rejoice... Because even if the enemies of Islam surpass us in air superiority, Allah the Exalted is the Dominant over His servants... We must rejoice... Because despair is a trait of the disbelievers: "None despair of the mercy of Allah except the disbelievers" [Yusuf: 87]. And hopelessness is the nature of the misguided: "And who despairs of the mercy of his Lord except the straying ones" [Al-Hijr: 56]. It is not permissible for us to despair nor to be hopeless, but rather we must rejoice... Because smiling at people is charity... We must smile and rejoice... Because Allah the Exalted says: "But the allies of Allah - no fear shall be upon them, nor shall they grieve" [Yunus: 62]. We must not grieve, but rather rejoice... And because He the Exalted said: "For them is good tidings in the world and in the Hereafter" [Yunus: 64]. We have in this world and the Hereafter to rejoice... Because we have a Lord who created us to have mercy upon us, and He does not wish to punish us: "What would Allah do with your punishment if you are grateful and believe? And Allah is Ever-Appreciative, All-Knowing" [An-Nisa: 147]. He is the One who is free from needing us to punish ourselves. Rather, it is our right to rejoice... Because we have a Lord who is Merciful and Generous, who loves us and says to us: "It is He who confers blessing upon you, and His angels [ask Him to do so] that He may bring you out from darknesses into the light. And ever is He, to the believers, Merciful" [Al-Ahzab: 43]. It is the right - by Allah - of one who believes in this Lord of His mercy and this generosity and this love that he rejoices... Because we believe in a Lord whom we can call upon in a moment and He forgives all sins and does not care... We must rejoice...
O bearer of the worries of your nation... smile! I know that this may be difficult with what we are going through, but remember that your frown will not help the afflicted, nor will it repel an enemy, nor will it guide a sinner. Rather, it will make us lose spaces in the hearts of the sons of our nation to the benefit of our enemy and their enemy... Our enemy does to us what breaks every living heart, then observes the frowns on our faces to portray us to people as harsh and rude, saying to them: With the religion and its people is sadness, bitterness, and gloom. I have joy and happiness, so come... He thus obscures the identity of the sons of the Muslims, distorts their minds, and corrupts their morals... Do not give your enemy the opportunity, but rather create the smile, and earn the reward in this creation as you earn it in your concern for the affair of your nation. The rule of the tyrants must come to an end, (and the good end is for the righteous). And finally... Because we have a Lord who commands us to rejoice, saying: "Say, 'In the bounty of Allah and in His mercy - in that let them rejoice'" [Yunus: 58]. It is imperative, without a doubt, and there is no alternative for us but to rejoice...
Many of those who care about their nation in our days live in a continuous state of emergency... to the extent that they cannot engage in long-term work with a focused mind and conviction in what they do... because they always feel, upon seeing the painful news, that (something must be done quickly), (the situation cannot be tolerated), (the flood is coming), (it's our turn)...
If they enter university to specialize in a science, they feel in their hearts that they are (wasting their time)... And if they enroll in a religious course, or read a book on child upbringing, they feel that they are (escaping their responsibility towards their nation), and they say to themselves: The Muslims in this or that country of the afflicted countries are in what they are in, and I am preoccupied with this topic?! What good will it do them? How will it contribute to their salvation?!
And if they play with their children, they feel (betrayal of the afflicted children of Muslims)! And so on... most of the time, they are not content with what they do... and they vent these feelings by keeping themselves busy with the news, even if it is an unproductive preoccupation. They follow, they lament, they curse, they get angry, then... nothing!
The result: paralysis in thinking, a state of emergency that reflects on their psychology and their dealings with their parents, wife, children, and people in general, and on their failure in their studies or work, even on their religion and their relationship with their Lord.. He is not a man of an open, contented mind.. And if he is a committed-looking man, people will stay away from commitment!
And he leaves success and excellence to others whose ideas are confused about the crucial issues in the life of the nation such as the reference of Islam and the necessity of siding with it in its war against the enslavement of the international system of the servants, even the basics of Islam such as the divine existence, the soundness of prophethood and the Quran... those whose ideas are confused or have decided their case in the wrong direction altogether! Or chose to side with the forces of corruption on earth... and these become the leaders of society (the successful) in defining and influencing people. And the owner of the (state of emergency) needs them in his studies, employment, and treatment, and his children read their stories and follow their output and are influenced by their personalities!
How much we need in such a situation to learn from the model of Ibn Taymiyyah and his student Ibn al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on them.
Their era was very similar to ours in many ways... The Tatars from the East (Russia today), the Crusaders from the West (like the Western countries today), the Rafidah, the Qaramitah, and the Hashashin from within the Muslim lands (like the Rafidah sects today) gathered against the Muslims, while the Muslims were at the height of division and strife. And the Tatars tried to deceive the Muslims by enforcing the Yassa, which is considered one of the sources of legislation for Islamic law, as is the case today...
In addition to that, intellectual and doctrinal deviations reached their peak in that era, and they intersect with the (modernist) and (secular) calls today, and the spread of the philosophers' doubts about Islam and they confused the general public as in the skeptical and atheistic calls today.
The situation was difficult and very discouraging. Even Ibn Taymiyyah himself was displaced in his youth with his family; fleeing from the tyranny of the Mongols...
Did Ibn Taymiyyah suffer from (paralysis of thought)? But he confronted all these fronts. And he taught and wrote in everything that benefits the Muslims! Whoever reads a research of his in creed, or jurisprudence, or principles, or exegesis, feels that he is in front of a well-off person who has all the services available to him and has nothing to do but compose and delve into scientific issues, writing with a long breath and deep contemplation, knowing that he was between the imprisonment of the sultans and their threats, the slander of his enemies, and the incitement of the common people against him, and he died in prison.
Ibn Taymiyyah confronted all the intellectual deviations of his time and refuted all kinds of innovators (by the way, he refuted the atheists of his time), and he did not say: (How can I write about this or that matter with the bad situation of the Muslims and the enemies' encroachment on them?) ... He was not afflicted with paralysis of thought, but he left a huge, unique heritage from which Muslims have been and are still drinking and will not dispense with for eight centuries until now, to the extent that he deserved to be called: Sheikh al-Islam.
Of course, Ibn Taymiyyah did not neglect the aspect of jihad, but he himself waged jihad and incited jihad... but before that, he did not sit frozen, neither in the rear nor in the vanguard, belittling work in other aspects of Islam as is the case with most of us today.
And so was his student Ibn al-Qayyim, who you wonder when you read his book "Al-Rooh" when he mentions the tragic circumstances in which these beautiful, profound, and delicate works were written!
Yes.. You must care about the affairs of your nation. But turn this concern of yours into an aspiration, turn your feeling of responsibility into rising above heedlessness.. And consider the reward and service of Islam in every science you learn, and every smile you smile on people's faces even if you are in pain, and in every play you play with your children to strengthen your relationship with them and your influence on them and raise them psychologically healthy. And in giving every right-holder his right...
How many times have I seen this speech as provocative and (distraction) and said: (We want immediate action to save our brothers)?... How many times have I said it with every new disaster for the Muslims?! Do we save them with immediate action in fact? Or is it just emotional outbursts, then you do not benefit them nor do you control yourself and those around you, and you sit waiting for your turn?!
Know that the battle is long. It needs a long breath, project work, and slow building, and that you need all of this a balanced psychology, so do not burn it with (a state of emergency).
Your enemies will not leave you, and they will gnaw at your body and throw stones at your buildings, and they will put obstacles in your way, and they will strive to expose you and your nation to a bow of crises to despair and surrender to the attempt..
Do not let them defeat you! But be patient.. And He will make their evil plot for you: "They will spend it, then it will be a regret for them, then they will be overcome" [Al-Anfal: 36]. And you will be, by the permission of Allah, the decree of Allah the conqueror: "And Allah is dominant over His affair, but most people do not know" [Yusuf: 21].
And because I wish you all the good as I do for myself, I will share it with you: I used to ask myself, when faced with life's obstacles or witnessing the injustice and suffering of others, "Why? Why this fate?" I had no (intellectual convictions) to calm my heart, so I would remind myself of God's greatness and wisdom and say to myself: There must be an answer, even if I don't know it. Then the question "Why?" only occurred to me as a contemplation of what I could know of God's wisdom in His decrees... and I closed the door to questioning God's decrees beyond that! After this turning point, there was great good and benefit to others. This transformation was granted to me only through a severe trial... I learned the meaning of servitude, the station of divinity, and the need of the helpless servant for the Great Lord. A trial in which I understood: "And they thought there was no refuge from Allah except to Him" [At-Tawbah 118], so neither anger saves, nor doubt benefits, but one must seek refuge and submit! God knows how many doors of good He opened for me after that! So if something painful and sad befalls me, I look at what I have fallen short in, take responsibility for my mistakes, defend against trials with lawful means, seek reward, and seek help from God to turn the trial into a blessing... And if I see injustice and oppression in others, only one question occupies me: How can I help them and lighten their burden? The deeds of God: "He is not questioned about what He does, but they will be questioned" [Al-Anbiya 23]. To Him belongs the perfect wisdom and the great glory and the good praise... the important thing is what is required of me? God knows how much blessing I saw in that! And how little work became of great benefit... and how the heart became calm and rested from the side of God the Exalted, and how much of His generosity and kindness I saw, glorified and exalted be He... Before this turning point, I would convince myself of God's wisdom, and defend myself from any questioning of destiny, and the story would end there and I would see that I had won... But now, I no longer need to defend against questions or summon convictions, for the door of questioning His actions is completely closed, it only comes as a superficial obstacle unable to penetrate the heart: "Indeed, those who fear Allah, when they are touched by an evil suggestion from Satan, they remember [Allah], and immediately they see [their way]" [Al-A'raf 201]. And energies are reserved for what is upon me to do, so great horizons were opened to me that were previously hidden, and God made me understand from His wisdom in trials what I had not understood nor occurred to me. To whoever doubts the wisdom of his Lord: all the evidence speaks that your Lord is the Most Wise, the Most Knowing, the Greatest, and the Most Merciful. And what has not been revealed to you of that is due to the shortcoming of your intellect and your little understanding of your Lord... so close the door completely, and release your energies in what benefits, and see how God's gifts will be after that! Satan will attack you to take your hand and plunge you into the swamp of evil assumptions, so repel him, and say: (God is the Most Knowing and the Most Wise, and He is the Most Merciful with His servants... the important thing: what is my role?)... and you will see a great blessing from this way of dealing. You will see that your words and actions have a good effect that you did not expect, and a blessing that you did not imagine would be! Because you did not allow Satan to distract you with doubt in the wisdom and mercy of your Lord, but you were preoccupied with your duty before the decrees of the All-Knowing, the Most Wise, so God fulfilled His promise to you when He said: "No disaster strikes except by permission of Allah. And whoever believes in Allah, He will guide his heart. And Allah is Knowing of all things" [At-Taghabun 11]. "And whoever believes in Allah, He will guide his heart": whoever believes in Allah with His names and attributes, and that He is the All-Knowing, the Most Wise, and nothing happens except for a great wisdom, "He is not questioned about what He does, but they will be questioned" [Al-Anbiya 23]... then he occupies himself with his duty, so Allah guides his heart: He settles it and reassures it, and guides him to what he should do to repel evil and injustice, and guides his heart to the perfect wisdom in trials and painful decrees, which he would not have discovered if he had sat and thought ill and complained about destiny! This is the critical moment when seeing evil and injustice: either you break or you triumph.
You mastered your work, you dealt well, you addressed those around you with the words of God and the words of His Messenger peace be upon him, and yet nothing changed on the surface! Your colleagues, your students, your customers, your neighbors... the one who is negligent in prayer did not become regular in it, the one who is immodest did not cover herself, the one who follows singers and actors did not care about the affairs of the Ummah. Do not be sad, you did not fail! As long as you have done what you did with sincerity and sincerity and good following of the Sunnah of the beloved peace be upon him in calling to God... There is a great success that you may not feel, which is the purification of the hearts around you from deadly (heart works), which are much more dangerous than the apparent sins. She... used to hate the veiled women, due to the media and her family environment... and the more dangerous thing is that the matter became confused for her afterwards, so she ended up hating the veil itself as a religious ritual, and even when she read the Quran once a year during Ramadan, she (did not like) the verses of the veil, or she saw them as outdated! She got to know you, saw another model different from what was printed in her mind, loved you, began her stereotypical convictions to shake, reached a stage of familiarity with the veil and conviction that it is (the right thing)... Now, when she reads the verses of the veil, she feels shy before her Lord and says to herself: (I am wrong, I am weak, O Lord forgive me, O Lord strengthen me). She did not veil herself, but... do you know the size of the shift she has made?! A day when she hated something from the religion of God, one feared for her that she would be among those whom God said about them: "That is because they hated what Allah has revealed, so He rendered their deeds null" [Muhammad 9]... because of her hatred for what God has revealed of the works of the heart that take their owner out of Islam, God forbid. Today, she has become of the people of the verse: "And others have confessed their sins, mixing a righteous deed with another evil. Perhaps Allah will forgive them. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful" [At-Tawbah 102]. Yesterday, there was in her heart what nullifies faith, and today, the day she became familiar with the matter of her Lord and was certain of His wisdom... she is still on a great sin, but it is of what enters His saying: "And He forgives what is less than that for whom He wills" [An-Nisa 116]. So how do you think after that that you have failed?! So are you, my brother, and you have moved a person by the grace of God from despising the righteous (and despising some of the rituals of the religion with them, which is the most dangerous!) to respecting the religion and familiarity with its rituals and feeling that he is the one who is negligent when he opposes them. It may not change on the surface, and for a long time, but the qualitative heart shift may be the difference between eternal fire and eternal paradise! So how do you think after that that you have failed?! But this is one of the greatest successes.
You often find yourself stuck in the quagmire of (low productivity). You wake up, remember that the past days have passed without achieving anything significant towards your goals. You regret wasting time and being distracted. You become disheartened. You say: today will be different. The day passes and it is not different, so your frustration increases, and you enter a vicious cycle - a snowball effect: low productivity, therefore frustration, therefore a demotivated mind towards productivity, therefore days passing without achievement!
In this case, you need to tell yourself: (A new line) I will not get stuck in the quagmires of the past, I will not look back, I will not enter the vicious cycle. And I will look forward and seek help from Allah.
As for myself, I also try to contemplate the benefit of the delays that occur, so I say: perhaps I would have done good work, achieved a lot but with tainted sincerity. Therefore, what is the benefit of much achievement if it is not pure? Perhaps the psychological stagnation increases my reliance on Allah and my certainty of my need for Him, and that without His help - I am nothing. Thus, I increase in sincerity and this delayed work becomes doubled in reward.
Give yourself positive perspectives like these, not to justify low productivity, but to get out of the vicious cycle. You will say: but I did that, and I told myself (a new line) a hundred times...
No problem! Say it a thousand times. Do not enter the vicious cycle and do not look back. And remember the greatest hadith that carries this meaning, which is the saying of our Prophet, peace be upon him: "Be keen on what benefits you, and seek help from Allah and do not be helpless. If something befalls you, do not say, 'If I had done that, it would have been such and such,' but say, 'Qadr Allah (the decree of Allah) and whatever He wills happens.' For indeed, 'if' opens the work of Satan" [Muslim 2664]. Therefore: a new line.
I was visiting a brother who had recently been afflicted with many trials, including the loss of his newborn children, and he had no one else. May Allah be pleased with him, the brother was saying: "Patient and content, and praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds."
I said to him: "You are sad, yes... but it is right for you to find joy with this sadness, joy because Allah, the Exalted, is making you patient, and this means that Allah wanted good for you." He said: "To be honest, I do not find this joy."
Meaning, the brother has Islamic dignity.
There is a very important point, my brothers: A person may be blessed by Allah with worldly blessings and not give thanks for them, so the continuation of these blessings becomes a temptation and becomes a trial for him in the Hereafter. But if Allah, glorified and exalted be He, blesses you with a blessing in religion like our brother here: that He tests you and makes you patient, tests you and makes you content with His decree, glorified and exalted be He, this is not a temptation. Rather, this is a great blessing that you should rejoice in and find joy in... If this has no meaning except that Allah wanted good for you with it.
When Allah makes His essence beloved to you, glorified and exalted be He, He makes His Messenger beloved to you, peace be upon him, He makes His religion and His Quran beloved to you... This has no interpretation except that Allah wanted good for you.
So when you say: "By Allah, sins prevent me from feeling joy for all of this, and I feel that I am not among the people of mercy"... Then beware! This is not a commendable self-accounting! Rather, this is the voice of Satan! Why? Because Satan wants to deprive you of the station of gratitude. Ibn Al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him, in his book "Madarij As-Salikin" said about the station of gratitude: "It is one of the highest stations. It is above the station of contentment and an increase. Contentment is included in gratitude. For gratitude cannot exist without it. And it is half of faith - as mentioned before - and faith is two halves: half gratitude, and half patience."
So when Allah blesses you with blessings in your religion like patience and contentment...
And loving Allah and His Messenger and honoring Allah and His Messenger, you should thank Him. But when you persist in doubting yourself because of your sins to the extent that you doubt that Allah wanted good for you with these blessings in your religion, then you deprive yourself of the station of gratitude!
Satan prevents you from thanking these blessings, but makes you think that Allah is tempting you with them! And so every time you receive a gift from the gifts of Allah, glorified and exalted be He, in your religion, you feel it is poisoned! Why? Because in your view, it is "temptation, not a blessing"!
No, my brother! Allah is the most generous, the most merciful, the greatest, and the most honorable, that His gifts would be poisoned! When He blesses you in your religion, this means that He, glorified and exalted be He, wanted good for you. So beware lest Satan deprive you of the station of gratitude for these blessings. The person who does not understand this concept may become every time Allah blesses him, more suspicious that "Allah is tempting me"!
No, my brother! Rather, Allah blesses you with what indicates His will of good for you, and thus it is right for you to rejoice, find joy, and thank Allah, glorified and exalted be He.
Yes, Allah, the Exalted, is severe in punishment, but notice the great Quranic balance: "Know that Allah is severe in punishment and that Allah is Forgiving and Merciful" [Al-Ma'idah: 98].
This brother I told you about, I mentioned to him an effect from the noble companion Abdullah Ibn Mas'ud, so he was surprised by it. Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "The greatest of major sins: associating partners with Allah, feeling secure from the plot of Allah, despairing of the mercy of Allah, and despairing of the spirit of Allah."
So the brother asked me: "Despairing of the mercy of Allah is great?" "Yes, it is great. For he who despairs of the mercy of Allah thereby diminishes His attributes, glorified and exalted be He, and does not appreciate Allah as He should be appreciated!"
Look at the balance of Islam: among the greatest of major sins is despairing of the mercy of Allah, and at the same time, feeling secure from the plot of Allah. How is it that one feels secure from the plot of Allah? That you commit sins and you feel secure from their effect in this world and the Hereafter; reassured that Allah will not obliterate your heart with these sins and will not punish you for them, trivializing them, or boasting of the acts of obedience you do as if you are immune from them!
While as long as you hate the sin and acknowledge its evil, you are in a good state. And remember the saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him, in the sound hadith: "Whoever is pleased with his good deeds and displeased with his evil deeds, he is a believer" [Narrated by At-Tirmidhi 2165]. Notice: it is not only "displeased with his evil deeds," but also "pleased with his good deeds." It is required that among the signs of faith is not only that you are displeased with what you do wrong, but it is also required of you that you are pleased when you succeed in doing good and obedience, and you rejoice with what Allah blesses you with in your religion like patience, contentment, and submission.
But you find some people fluctuating between the two states. You find one of them in some of his actions feeling secure from the plot of Allah and the side of hope prevails, so he does evil, then the side of despair prevails and he feels that there is no hope for mercy, so he does evil!
So beware of both extremes... And beware of the saying: "I am desperate about myself," for this is a trap of Satan who says to you: "Of course, of course, Allah is merciful, but you do not deserve His mercy... Allah is Forgiving, but people like you will not be guided to sincere repentance until Allah forgives them!"
So do not allow anything to disrupt your relationship with Allah, my brothers, or deprive you of the joy of enjoying His blessings, glorified and exalted be He, upon you in your religion and reaching the station of gratitude.
"He is the One who sends blessings upon you, and His angels [ask Him to do so] that He may bring you out from darknesses into the light. And ever is He, to the believers, Merciful." [Al-Ahzab: 43]
"On the Day they meet Him, their greeting will be, 'Peace.' And He has prepared for them a noble reward." [Al-Ahzab: 44]
Do you read the verses about jihad and martyrdom and wish for them for yourself? Does your heart burn for the state of the Muslims and do you feel helpless? Beware of breaking or becoming disheartened, but rather live your life with the mentality of a mujahid...
Learn the various beneficial sciences, both natural and religious. With the zeal of a mujahid, and the strength of a mujahid, keeping in mind that these sciences are the equipment for your battle, with which you liberate spaces in the hearts and minds of people from doubts and suspicions, from despair and defeat, and establish therein fortresses of love and glorification of Allah that will not crumble.. Rejoicing that your work is no less than the liberation of lands..
Practice your social roles as a father, son, husband, brother, teacher, worker, professional, with the mentality of a mujahid, who excels in all of this and gives everyone their due, and knows that mastering these roles are battles in which he wins. And do not waste your time in side battles or in idle play without purpose.
And remember the saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him, to one who came wanting to jihad: "Are your parents alive?" He said: "Yes." He said: "Then strive in their service."
You are not forced to abandon jihad and betray it to live your life with perfection and joy, just as you are not forced to abandon your life because you have the mentality of a mujahid, but rather integrate between them, and look at the great conquests that Allah will open for you with it if there is sincerity and purity in your heart.
You are not forced to feel deprived because you did not engage in jihad, so you live disheartened, nervous with your parents, your wife, your children, so you disgust them and disgust people, and become a new burden on your nation and a servant to your enemies without you feeling it!
But live your life with the mentality of the mujahideen whom Allah loves: "Humiliated are they over the believers, authoritative over the disbelievers, fighting in the cause of Allah and fearing not the blame of a blamer" [Al-Ma'idah: 54]... A noble mujahid, gentle and kind with the Muslims.
Live, and live with the mentality of a mujahid, and then you will bear and endure what you receive of hardship and stabs in the path of your pursuit and steadfastness, for you are: a mujahid, and the mujahid is struck by wounds and receives stabs while advancing, continuing, and assured, not expecting anything else. How could it be otherwise?! He is a mujahid..
Remember the man who passed by the Prophet, peace be upon him, and saw the companions of the Messenger of Allah from his vigor and activity, and they said: O Messenger of Allah, if this was for the sake of Allah? He said: "If he went out striving for his small children, then he is for the sake of Allah, and if he went out striving for two elderly parents, then he is for the sake of Allah, and if he went out striving for himself to purify it, then he is for the sake of Allah, and if he went out striving for show and boasting, then he is for the sake of the devil" [Sahih al-Jami' 1428].
Yes, live with the mentality of a mujahid, and ask Allah to make that for me and for you a reason to reach jihad with the self and wealth, and to grant me and you martyrdom in His path.
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, was on his mount during a journey. He dozed off after having spent his day and night in work, teaching, worship, and jihad.. He leans from the mount, seen by Abu Qatadah al-Ansari, who comes to support the Messenger of Allah without waking him, and then the matter repeats a second and third time, and Abu Qatadah supports the Prophet gently..
The Messenger of Allah woke up and asked - in the darkness of the night -: (Who is this?) He said: Abu Qatadah. He said: (When was this your support from me?) - meaning from when and you have been supporting me in this manner so that I do not lean? Abu Qatadah said: (This has been my support since last night). The Messenger of Allah said: (May Allah protect you as you protected His Prophet). And the hadith was narrated by Muslim.
What a beautiful supplication! It is not only for Abu Qatadah, but rather everyone who protects the Prophet has a share of it: (May Allah protect you as you protected His Prophet).
In this time when the arrows of the enemies of Islam are directed towards the Sunnah of the Prophet, peace be upon him. In this time when channel after channel after channel is opened. And a person after a person shines, and an ignorant after an ignorant is issued on the channels, and the goal is one: fighting the Sunnah. And sometimes: fighting the person of the Prophet, peace be upon him, hoping through that to uproot the Muslims from their foundations and leave them as feathers in the wind...
Remember, O one who takes the book with strength, O one who spends of your time and effort to learn the correct knowledge and defend it for your Prophet and his Sunnah, that if you are sincere in your intention in all of this for Allah, then you are, if Allah wills, covered by the supplication of the Prophet, peace be upon him: "May Allah protect you as you protected His Prophet"!
A supplication that comforts you in the face of narrowing, mockery, and the tyranny of the oppressors.. So do not be sad, nor fear, for you are protected...
Despite all the pain, I am joyful about what our nation is going through. And one of the reasons for my joy is that these events force the carriers of concern to correct the language of discourse with people.. (Pray, O brother).. (Cover yourself, O sister).. (Stop listening to songs).. (Stop watching series)..
This discourse assumed that those addressed did not have real psychological problems. And what they lacked was hearing the evidence of what should be done or left, and some encouragement to adhere and fear the consequences of negligence. This discourse was deceived by the idea that those addressed are Muslims, children of Muslims, from a nation of a billion and a half, so the issue of certainties was assumed to be settled with them.
And for many years, I felt that this discourse was skipping over the root problem.. The problem of the weakness of certainties in the hearts of people... So it did not bring the desired results.
Now... With the severity of the attack.. Many convictions have shaken... Doubts have surfaced.. The reservoir of a billion and a half is cracking and sedimenting from it those who sediment.. And the reformers complain that those who are supposed to be Muslims are now asking about Islamic laws and doubting them..
Meaning we have returned to square one, and we are now calling a number of (Muslims) to Islam!! Do you understand, my brothers?: This is good! Yes, good.. To return and build the creed from its first building blocks and establish it before launching from it to the rulings of the permissible and the forbidden.. This directs the compass of the preaching discourse that was skipping over the real problem.
And this returns the call to its foundational prophetic stage, which Umm al-Mu'minin Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, described: (The first thing to be revealed of it - meaning of the Quran - was a surah from al-Mufassal, in which there is mention of Paradise and the Fire, until when the people returned to Islam, the permissible and the forbidden were revealed. And if the first thing revealed was: Do not drink alcohol, they would have said: We will never leave alcohol, and if it was revealed: Do not commit adultery, they would have said: We will never commit adultery) [Bukhari: 4993].
We have returned with a segment of the addressed to the certainties: Allah, prophethood, the Hereafter... It may seem painful that we have returned to square one... But believe me, solid construction begins here... Not from deceiving ourselves with the numbers and billions that our Prophet, peace be upon him, described in advance: "But you on that day will be many, but you are like the scum of the flood!"
And this return to square one will have great results, by the permission of Allah, on our faith and the faith of those we call. The important thing is to confront this with zeal, determination, and certainty, to succeed in this test, and to save whoever can be saved... Be joyful, for what we see as evil may be what will stir the stagnant waters of good, extract the treasures from the hearts of the believers, and the final result: good for them and the elevation of ranks, and loss for the disbelievers and hypocrites... They are events that lower and raise.. "The way of Allah with those who passed before" [Al-Ahzab: 62].
With more experiences, it becomes increasingly clear to me that there is much good in the Ummah, and I become more and more disgusted with the negative generalizations that describe people as cowardly, stingy, and unwilling to sacrifice!
There is much good in the Ummah, much more than appears from the rise of falsehood and its people, and the floating of their worthless on the surface. People are ready to give, contribute, and sacrifice, but for a clear, convincing cause. Within them are wells of good and dormant energies awaiting words of encouragement and raising of morale from righteous leaders whose actions do not contradict their words.
The negative generalizations that we sometimes launch at people are often an expression of our failure to raise morale, crystallize clear, convincing causes, and set a good example for them with our actions... So, at that time, we look for a scapegoat to hang our failures in all of this!
We often talk about the hadiths of the end times, where good is very scarce among its people, and we are not yet in that stage, nor have its signs appeared. I say all of this while knowing the widespread corruption in forms and colors in the Ummah, but at the same time, I see with it a deeper, more profound goodness in the hearts of those who appear to be deeply heedless!
Negativity is the last thing the Ummah and its children need! So, work on extracting good with a kind word and a kind deed. If you cannot do that, then you must heed the Prophet's (peace be upon him) saying: "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, let him say good or remain silent" [Sahih al-Bukhari: 6138].
Sheikh Ali Al-Tantawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said: (When the Battle of Maysalun in Syria was in the year 1920 and the French entered Damascus victorious, I witnessed a scene that is still etched in my memory. I was going to school, and we were in the early stages of preparatory school, when I found three armed French soldiers harassing a veiled Muslim woman, reaching out to her, while she screamed in terror and they laughed, and the people were afraid of them, their hearts breaking. Then, a gray-haired grocer (saman) let out a huge scream from the depths of his heart, as if it were not from human voices: What's wrong with you? No religion? No honor? Upon them!
And he leaped towards them in four steps, standing between them, attacking them with his bare hands, and the enthusiasm spread, so the people joined him. And I remember that as a child, I threw my bag of books and attacked with them. And there was no piece of iron with any of the attackers, and the soldiers had rifles filled with bullets, yet they were overpowered and fell to the ground, and the people descended upon them, beating and kicking them, so they did not leave except with torn clothes and broken limbs.
This dormant power is the source of the honor that Allah described the believers with. It is still within us, despite weakness, division, and fragmentation, but it needs someone to awaken it. And this power is only awakened by faith. [From the book "Nour wa Hidayah" by Sheikh Ali Al-Tantawi - Part 1]. Everyone is waiting for someone to ring the bell. So, blessed and honored are those who take the initiative.)
Many of us suffer from (convincing depression), and it has manifestations, such as excessive sleep...
Escaping from long-term beneficial work to reading Facebook and WhatsApp messages... escaping from taking care of what burdens our souls to following short clips. Neglecting to take care of our health. Piling up studies and work tasks... escaping from the feeling of failure in reforming our homes and raising our children to achieving imaginary victories in the (virtual world) through the excitement of people's likes, shares, and comments on our posts, which we ourselves do not commit to much of what is in them!
And in general: escaping from (the beneficial) to (the entertaining). One of the main reasons for this is (convincing depression). It is the psychology that our enemies have worked to instill in us in every way... it is the accumulation of countless scenes of humiliation of Muslims and the feeling of their low value, which the media broadcasts generously under the pretext of reporting reality! At a time when the media and repressive authorities are working together to hide the efforts to reform this reality.
They want to instill in Muslims the psychology of (uselessness), (it's all for nothing), (ruined, ruined), (we are powerless)... The media used to hit us on the head so that we would then moan, confused and scattered, not pressing for beneficial work!
And worse than that, we ourselves sometimes instill this psychology of failure and depression in a way of speech when we blame the heedless for their sins and Muslims for not supporting their oppressed brothers with negative, demeaning criticism whose message is: you are bad, failures!
Do you know, my brothers? I see that we are mistaken when we think that the people of sins are content with this worldly life and are happy with it. Rather, the reason is often their convincing depression, which makes them feel their low value, and the little difference between the life of faith and the life of disobedience... When we reprimand them negatively, we are helping the devil who paralyzes their will to reform themselves and makes them feel helpless and far from Allah.
These people... it is more befitting to address them by restoring their dignity in their own eyes, making them feel their importance and honor with Allah, for they are the children of Adam and then they are Muslims... remind them of Allah's joy with their obedience and repentance, and His support for them to the extent of their support for Him, glorified be He, and that He will grant them success and help them if they seek His help, and nothing will stand in their way. At that time, you will find them then turning away from sins with their noble, noble souls and adhering to obedience automatically!
You will not find in the biography of the beloved Prophet (peace be upon him) a single negative situation where he blamed his companions and did not give them the solution and the way out! Never, not a single situation! And look at his positivity, for example, may Allah's prayers and peace be upon him, after the battles of Uhud and Hunayn regarding what came from the companions in them of mistakes.
We are all in dire need of strengthening the aspects of good and strength within us and restoring our confidence in our relationship with Allah the Almighty so that we build upon what is present after strengthening what is present, and so that we foil the plans of our enemies, the disbelievers, and the hypocrites who "wish you would suffer loss" [Al-Imran: 118], meaning they love for us hardship, failure, and the destruction of psychologies. "And do not be weak and do not grieve, and you will be superior if you are [true] believers" [Al-Imran: 139].
Someone asks me: Is there hope?
I am not worried about the coming of relief. For I see it as I see the rising of the sun every day.. and I go out waiting for it as I wait for a traveler who will return.. and if I do not reach it, then I will leave someone who waits for it and joins its caravan, and I will hand them the flag before I die. My only concern is to save myself and then save whoever I can to the ship of salvation before the flood comes that will carry away the foam.
If we take the means, then Allah the Almighty blesses the little that we were able to do, exhausted ourselves in, and strived in, and He makes miracles for us because - simply - we have pleased Him by taking the means and doing what we could. In the Battle of the Trench, the Prophet took the means to the utmost extent:
And yet, victory came to him from where he did not expect: "Allah has disappointed the disbelievers. They will gain no advantage. Allah sufficed the believers in fighting. And Allah is ever Exalted in Might and Powerful." [Al-Ahzab: 25].
(Phrases we hear and read) (Look how they mock Islam.. There is no power nor strength except with Allah!) (Look how they spread corruption. Allah is sufficient for me, and how excellent is He as a disposer of affairs!) My friend, what did you gain from this speech of yours?
When we see conflicts between a group of believers and a group of their enemies, we often say that the believers were defeated in this round or that victory was delayed for them. Is our definition of victory and defeat a sound one? As Muslims, we believe in the Hereafter and that the doer of good and the doer of evil will not be recompensed in this world. We know victory as defined by Allah the Almighty. Do you remember the verse that defines it? Allah the Almighty said: "Whoever is removed away from the Fire and admitted to Paradise has indeed been successful." [Al-Imran: 185].
We need to keep this meaning in mind when we see the suffering of Muslims. Those who are killed for their faith are, in this sense, victorious if Allah wills. The people of the Ditch were tortured and burned alive, and yet Allah the Almighty said in Surah Al-Buruj, which speaks of their fate: "Indeed, those who have believed and done righteous deeds will have gardens beneath which rivers flow. That is the great attainment." [Al-Buruj: 11].
In the hadith narrated by Bukhari, Haram bin Milhan, one of the companions of the Prophet peace be upon him, was stabbed by a disbeliever treacherously with a spear in his back that came out of his chest, so Haram would put his hand on the blood and wipe his face with it, saying: "I have won, by the Lord of the Ka'bah, I have won, by the Lord of the Ka'bah!" Understand the forms of victory and success in our religion is that you die while holding firm to your religion.
Look at Allah's saying: "And never will Allah give the disbelievers a way over the believers." [An-Nisa: 141]. Whoever is armed with faith, all the forces of disbelief will not find a way to turn him away from his religion, and they can do whatever they want with his body, but his soul is under the protection of Allah who will not give them a way over it. Is this not a great victory?!
Allah the Almighty said: "To admit the believing men and women to gardens beneath which rivers flow, wherein they abide eternally, and to remove from them their misdeeds - and ever is that for Allah a great attainment." [Al-Fath: 5]. It is thus with Allah: a great attainment, and therefore it is truly so: "And Allah says the truth, and He guides to the way." [Al-Ahzab: 4]. And it is thus for the believers in the truth, Glorified is He: a great attainment.
On the other hand, the worst form of defeat is to abandon something of your religion in the face of the cunning and war of the enemies of the religion. What benefit is the safety of your body then if you have suffered a psychological and spiritual defeat?! Hold fast to your religion so that you may be encompassed by Allah's saying: "And do not weaken and do not grieve, and you will be superior if you are [true] believers." [Al-Imran: 139]. So you are the victorious, the triumphant, but note the condition: "And you will be superior if you are [true] believers." This is the condition for your victory and attainment: to live as a believer, so Allah will not give the disbelievers a way over you, and to die as a believer, so you will be removed away from the Fire and admitted to Paradise.
One of the noble brothers has made a commendable effort in raising awareness and defending the religion of Allah the Almighty. He sent me a message informing me about the state of some of the Muslim youth, their ignorance of the religion, and their rejection of its laws. He concluded his speech by saying: "I will not hide from you that I have started to feel despair." I say to this noble brother and to all my brothers and sisters:
There is no place for despair! Rather, I see you as (fortunate) or blessed that we have found Allah in this time to work and rectify what we can and reap the good deeds that Allah is aware of if our intentions are sincere and our path is straight on the path of Allah the Straight...
There is no place for despair! Rather, I see many verses that Allah has revealed to prevent this despair and to instill high morale... Verses that prevent us from feeling regret for the creation... So it is not befitting for us to stop at pain, displeasure, and fear of the future, for everything that happens and will happen is only within the knowledge of Allah, and by His decree, a decree whose wisdom we may know some of it and much of it is hidden from us.
Many verses will make sense to you if you look at them from this perspective:
Perhaps you were wondering: What is the reason for the Quran's frequent mention of this truth - that all the actions of these people are within the decree of Allah? And is it something that Allah is unable to prevent? I say: All these verses call upon you and me: not to despair or grieve, but to seize this opportunity, and thank Allah for guiding you when others have gone astray, and seek His help with an unbreakable spirit, unyielding determination, and unshakable resolve. And look at this reality as fertile ground where you can sow the seeds of the call and see, by the will of Allah, the beginnings of its harvest, and mountains of good deeds with Allah on the Day of Judgment.
With this mindset, I deal with reality, which I acknowledge is difficult. But I see it as an opportunity at the same time, and I turn pain into hope and work, and praise be to Allah that I see the effects of this mindset in my continuous call to Islam, in the interaction of many of the misguided sons of Muslims with what I publish, and in their return after straying, and the increase of my brothers and sisters in pride, steadfastness, and glad tidings. There is no place for despair, but it is a historic opportunity, a gift that Allah has bestowed upon us... out of knowledge, wisdom, generosity, and mercy... so seize it.
Umar ibn Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, entered upon the Prophet, peace be upon him, and found him sitting silently, so Umar said: I will say something to make the Prophet, peace be upon him, laugh. Ibn Hajar commented on the hadith: (It contains the recommendation for one who sees his companion sad to tell him something that removes his sadness and makes him happy).
When we see our brothers sad and we ask them about the reason, they often inform us, and we increase their sadness with negative talk.
What do we gain from increasing each other's sadness? If you (lighten the mood) with your sad brother with appropriate humor that is not a lie, intending to relieve him, then you will be rewarded for that, in addition to winning his heart when he associates you with relieving his sadness. Therefore, earn a reward by making your brother laugh!
It is true that we are negligent, but - for the sake of balance - we must remember the greatness and honor that we are: Muslims. Here - a weak nation - we thought that we are here at the mercy of Allah as well, which weakens our determination and hope in Allah's response to our supplications.
You must hold yourself accountable and purify yourself, not whip yourself and look down on yourself. In you, there is a great advantage no matter how much you sin and err: you are a Muslim who affirms the oneness of Allah, glorifies His law, and does not accept any substitute for it, and this is a great cause of honor and closeness to Allah. So build on the good within you to compensate for the deficiency, and do not look at yourself with contempt.
Brother, do you know what it means to be a (Muslim)? Sister, do you know what it means to be a (Muslimah)? You affirm the great truth for which Allah created the heavens and the earth, sent the messengers, revealed the books, and created Paradise and Hell. Therefore, our Prophet, peace be upon him, taught us that one of the greatest means of supplication to Allah is to supplicate with your oneness, saying: "O Allah, I ask You by my testimony that You are Allah, there is no god but You, the One, the Self-Sufficient Master, who has not begotten and was not begotten, and there is none comparable to Him."
And in the authentic hadith, the servant is brought on the Day of Judgment, and his records of sins, each of which is as long as the eye can see, are spread out for him, then a card is placed with the words: "I bear witness that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is His servant and messenger." The servant says: "O Lord, what is this card with these records?" He says: "You are not wronged," so the records are placed in one scale and the card in the other, and the card outweighs and the records are blown away.
The three who were sealed in the cave and each of them supplicated to Allah with the best of his deeds... they do not thank Allah for these deeds, but it is as if they are supplicating to Allah and seeking His mercy that He has guided them to these righteous deeds, making them feel that they are among the people of His honor and giving them hope in His mercy and companionship. It is not a condition that they were righteous in all their lives, for example, the second one who almost exploited the need of his cousin to tempt her away from herself, had it not been for the piety of Allah in the last moment, and this is not the state of an ascetic worshipper, and yet Allah responded to him and relieved him.
Do we lack righteous deeds to supplicate to Allah with? Repeat to yourself: "I love Allah, I glorify Allah, I am jealous for the sanctities of Allah, I am not as bad as Satan makes me believe to distance me from Allah, but I love Allah and I hope that He loves me."
With great care not to fall into what touches your greatest essence (your oneness) which has spread in this time such as belittling His law or giving precedence to human laws over it and making absolute obedience to other than Him. When you read His saying: "Indeed, the mercy of Allah is close to the doers of good" [Al-A'raf: 56], do not say: Where am I from the doers of good and in so many sins?! But say: "My oneness to Allah and my glorification of His religion is goodness, so I am not completely excluded from this verse, but I must purify myself from my sins so that the mercy of Allah is closer and closer to me."
This is what should fill your heart in seasons of blessings and mercy such as Ramadan and the Day of Arafah, to supplicate to Allah with hope and certainty. Abdullah ibn Al-Mubarak said: I came to Sufyan Al-Thawri on the eve of Arafah and he was kneeling with his eyes shedding tears, so he turned to me and I said to him: Who is worse in this gathering? He said: He who thinks that Allah will not forgive him. And Allah knows best.
Brother Habib called me before the last ten days of Ramadan... to tell me about a matter that caused me distress, so he showed concern and spent a long time advising me with the knowledge he had, even though he was busy because he wanted to complete his preparations before entering seclusion in a (semi-prayer area) with the conditions of the corona. And before that, he said a word that I still remember: "Before I enter seclusion, I want to make a round on the callers to raise their morale!"
How good it is to invest time, how noble it is, and how great it is.
By the will of Allah, and how beneficial are the educational sciences that help in that, which we do not receive in schools or universities! Draw closer to Allah by raising the morale of your brothers, even with a kind word, or listening to them well and showing concern for their problems.. "And Allah is with the helper of the servant when the servant is with the help of his brother."
When I see the astonishing enthusiasm of Muslims towards seasons of blessings such as Taraweeh prayers, despite the intense bombardment on their faith with calls of atheism, doubts, and the poisoning of school curricula... and despite the intense bombardment on their morals through thousands of channels that adorn desires... and despite the intense military bombardment in some countries on their homes and mosques by land, sea, and air... and despite the fact that the forces of disbelief have all gathered, without exception, against the religion of Islam, I realize the greatness of this religion that Allah willed to remain, even if the disbelievers hated it. And I realize its depth in the nature of people, no matter how the devils try to uproot it.
Someone might say: "Do not be deceived by this multitude, for Ibn 'Aqil said: 'If you want to know the status of Islam among the people of your time, do not look at their crowds at the doors of mosques, nor their noise with 'Labbaik,' but rather look at their compliance with the enemies of the Sharia,' meaning their loyalty to the enemies of the Sharia among the oppressors, the rulers, and others." True... but we are in an existential war that aims to uproot Islam and turn Muslims away from their religion completely. We have the right to rejoice in Allah's humiliation of our enemies and their plans, and in the manifestations of the Muslims' love for their Lord and their religion, and the manifestations of life in this nation, which needs those who guide its goodness and you will see from it then the wonder, and nothing will stand in its way... A nation that falls ill but never dies.
What I have as a Muslim is not (hope), but certainty. For hope is the imagination of the possibility of the desired thing happening... But with faith, the desired thing is already happening in all circumstances: "For all His commandments are good, and that is only for the believer." With faith, everything that comes from our Lord is a gift, and the difference between them is only in the wrapping. Trials are a disliked wrapping, and ease is a beloved wrapping, and inside both is a beautiful gift. What I have is not (hope) that can be achieved or missed, but a guaranteed profit... The important thing is that I strive for the pleasure of Allah so that everything that comes to me from Him is good for Him, and this is something I can strive for, without waiting for the unknowns of destiny.
When we hear the Quranic and Prophetic glad tidings of the victory of the religion of Allah, the conquest of Rome, the entry of this religion into every home... we might say to ourselves: "And what does it matter to me if Islam wins 'someday'? I want to be rid of oppression and live in dignity in my time. Do not talk to me about loyalty to Islam and the love of its victory.. this is certainly present in me.. but I also want to be a winner." But it does matter to you! First, realize that this is a battle that is extended in time and place, with rounds and ongoing war... but the beautiful thing about it is that its final result is predetermined with true tidings: victory is yours and your army and your religion. All you have to do is strive to be among (the victorious sect) that extends throughout history and is certainly victorious in the end, and not to be among the deviant factions from the path. The decisive battles in which the Muslims will be victorious are part of it. There is a big difference between suffering in a battle whose end you do not know and doubting that the enemy will prevail in it, and suffering, even dying, in a round of a battle in which you know for certain that the victory in the end is for your army, the army of the victorious sect that extends, and that your death before reaping the fruits is greater for you in reward. Second, these Quranic and Prophetic tidings mean that this nation will never die on any day... no matter how sick and weak it becomes and its enemies almost overcome it. The Muslims will not be extinguished and people from another planet will come to support the religion! If the victory is not in our time, it will be by the offspring of the Muslims. Your role is to struggle, be patient, and persevere in your round, and pass the torch to your children to continue the journey, and instill in them this vision: "And the end is for the righteous" [Al-A'raf: 128], "And indeed, Our soldiers, they are the victorious" [As-Saffat: 173]. In addition to that, Islam is always victorious with the prevalence of its argument and evidence over every falsehood, and the Muslim is a winner with an immediate victory if he dies in what pleases Allah, even if he is killed by his enemy... then after that, eternal life for him in Paradise and eternal life for his enemy in Hell... "So whoever is removed from the Fire and admitted to Paradise has attained [his desire]. And the life of this world is not but the enjoyment of delusion" [Al-Imran: 185]. Islam is victorious.. so what? With every piece of news about the war on Islam, you find someone commenting: "Islam is victorious without a doubt." "Allah is predominant over His affair." "No matter what they do, they will not extinguish the light of Allah." True.. no doubt... and there are tidings in the authentic Sunnah that have not yet occurred, so we cannot say that they were only for the past and that nothing remains but the setting of the sun of Islam, but we are waiting for them.. and Allah will surely make His affair manifest, and the enemies of Islam and those who plot against it will go to the trash heap of history, then Allah will pile them all up and make them enter Hell... we do not doubt that for a moment. But this is not the question! The question is: you and I, O one who says these words.. where will we be or where will our children be on that day?! In the ark of salvation or on the way to the trash heap of history?! Many of us say these optimistic words as if "the problem" will be solved by the victory of Islam... I am sorry to say to you: your "problem" may be the victory of Islam itself! Your problem may be that you or your offspring will be put to the test, and you have not prepared for it nor have you prepared your children, so you will be at that time in the ranks of the enemies whom Islam will sweep away from its path! Many of us may write optimistic words while on their way to the mosque, while their children or those they can influence (live) in a coma, and they shed their Islamic identity daily, they have opened their minds and hearts to the enemies of Islam, filling them with desires, doubts, and suspicions about the religion and disgust for its rulings! On mobile phones, or in the streets with the dogs they bought imitating the Westerners! Do not talk to me about the dormant volcano that will erupt in the hearts of these people when the battle intensifies! The matter is no longer about desires and intoxications that faith suddenly sweeps away as in the stories of the penitents! But the battle has moved to this faith, suffocating and uprooting it from their hearts to turn them into tools of destruction for Islam from within and daggers in its back. Yes. Islam is victorious without a doubt. With honor or humiliation... but the question: in which of the two ranks will we be and our children on that day?! The rank of the honorable or the humble? The believers or the hypocrites? The patient or those who bow their heads to the enemies of Islam?! Will your children be among those with whom Muhammad (peace be upon him) will boast, or will they be regrets for you on the day you realize that you have fattened them for the Fire?! Do not be afraid! The religion of Allah has no problem.. it is the (religion of Allah)! The problem is my problem and your problem to work for boarding His ship when it is victorious: "O mankind, you are in need of Allah, and Allah is the Free of need, the Praiseworthy. If He wills, He can do away with you and bring forth a new creation. And that is not difficult for Allah" [Fatir: 15-17]. And may Allah have mercy on the one who said: "By Allah, victory is above the heads, awaiting the word 'Be,' and it will be, so do not occupy yourselves with the time of victory, occupy yourselves with your position between truth and falsehood."
We often hear: What benefit is there in loving the Messenger of Allah if you are not among those who obey his commands and leave what he has forbidden? I say: It does benefit the Muslim! And it benefits him greatly! We may address the statement mentioned ("What benefit is there in loving the Messenger") to those with steadfast faith to rouse their zeal for obeying Allah and His Messenger. But the battle now is a battle for Islam itself: you are either a Muslim or you are not! We now call upon everyone who claims to be Muslim: The first priority: Achieve the minimum level of faith that will save you from eternal punishment in Hell, by honoring Allah and His Messenger, loving Allah and His Messenger, disassociating yourself from the enemies of Allah and His Messenger, distinguishing yourself from them, not aligning yourself with them, and not supporting them... even if you are a disobedient person, a drinker of alcohol, a consumer of riba, an immodest person, one who disobeys parents, etc. Do not say: "I am a disobedient person, what benefit is there in that?" Rather, it benefits you by placing you among those who have faith in their hearts, saving you from disbelief, and including you in Allah's statement: {And He forgives what is less than that for whom He wills} [An-Nisa: 48]. Al-Bukhari narrated that a man from the companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) named An-Nu'aym was being lashed for drinking alcohol, and he was brought once to be lashed. A man from the Muslims said: "O Allah, curse him, how often is he brought?" meaning to be lashed for alcohol. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Do not curse him, by Allah, I only know that he loves Allah and His Messenger!" (Sahih al-Bukhari 6780). See how this love benefited him. The second step: Turn this love into a motivation for you to obey your Lord whom you love and honor, and your Messenger whom you love and honor, and to rid yourself of your sins, seeking help from Allah the Most High, after you have built upon the first step and strengthened your view of yourself. Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the Prophet of all Muslims, their obedient and sinful one. He is our leader and our beloved. O Allah, keep us alive and let us die upon loving him and supporting his religion, and gather us under his banner.
I see you feel weak, lacking the motivation to act, your view of yourself is shaken, your days pass in vain, you are anxious about the future... You have turned to relatives and friends around you... you have complained to them about your worries, you wanted them to raise your spirits... but you did not find what you sought from them... and you expanded your search circle and asked those who are far and strangers... but you did not find hope from them either! Is that not so?! Then they began to avoid you... because you are no longer a source of comfort for them, but you have become a bore with your complaints, increasing their worries! Is that not so? But you found that everyone is like you! Shaken from within, but the difference is that they pretend to be happy, numb themselves, and fear facing their problems! And you can no longer bear it... You returned from your long search journey and became even more worried! You are torn by feelings: (Why did I break down in front of them? What did I gain from showing them my weakness?! They have all let me down, they did not help me when I needed them!) Then you returned and said: (But they also have their worries as I saw... how can they help me when they are weak from within like I am weak? They -like me- need to strengthen their resolve and raise their spirits). Is this not what happened to you? You want my advice, but rather the guidance of your Lord, the Most High: Do you not recite in every rak'ah {Iyyaka na'budu wa iyyaka nasta'in} [Al-Fatihah: 5]... meaning (We worship none but You and we seek help from You alone, O Lord)? Say it sincerely! Do you want the advice of the Prophet (peace be upon him)? "And if you seek help, then seek help in Allah"... in Allah alone, no one else. Do you want the advice of the Prophets, peace be upon them: {I only complain of my grief and my sorrow to Allah} [Yusuf: 86] as did Prophet Ya'qub, peace be upon him... do not complain to anyone else. At that time: {And whoever relies upon Allah, then He is sufficient for him} [At-Talaq: 3]... Allah alone is sufficient for you. Rely upon Allah with sincerity and cut off hope from everything except Allah alone... do you know what will happen after that? Allah will give you the will again... And He will give you strength again... And He will unleash your energies again... And you will become a beacon for those whom you sought help from yesterday! A role model for them... Reviving their spirits... Strengthening their resolve... Igniting their enthusiasm... And the wheel of life will turn again! This does not contradict seeking advice or encouragement from friends you trust in their wisdom and you believe their words will benefit you, or seeking it from a skilled therapist who fears Allah if you have symptoms of a mental disorder. But our speech here is about the negative disclosure to those who do not benefit from your complaint but may harm you. Keeping silent about your worries to these people is more beneficial and preserves the dignity of the soul and the goodness of your relationship with them.
Why do Muslims face these trials? Where is the happiness that Islam brings to its followers?
The answer: There are truths we avoid facing because we find them burdensome. Avoidance does not help you; it only throws you into confusion and distress, as happened to those who asked this question. Face the truth, submit to it, accept it, act according to it... and Allah will grant you tranquility.
The truth we avoid is that this world is a place of trial, not a place of reward, and that the contract of Islam we have entered into does not promise us that we will not be tested, but rather the opposite.
We have ingrained in our minds that Islam and piety mean the fulfillment of your worldly desires, because our educational system at home, in school, and in the Friday sermon is generally characterized by a lack of sincerity and seriousness in dealing with matters of religion, by focusing on achieving behavior rather than instilling values, and by rushing to reap the fruits while avoiding work for the Hereafter... as a result of weak certainty or the dominance of worldly concerns in our thinking:
"Pray until you succeed in your studies" ... "Give charity until you ward off evil from your wealth" ... "Avoid the forbidden until Allah grants you success in your life" ...
There are phrases we see as having little impact: "So that Allah may be pleased with you," "So that you may enter Paradise" ... So we support them with worldly motivations, or make their outcome worldly: "May Allah be pleased with you and grant you success in your work or studies!" Although these worldly motivations are not an essential part of our contract with Allah.
"Does this mean what we have learned about our religion is wrong?!" Yes, it was wrong... and this is not the fault of Islam, but rather the fault of our educational and intellectual system.
When the Prophet, peace be upon him, made a covenant with the Ansar before the migration, he said: "Pledge allegiance to me on hearing and obeying in times of activity and laziness, in spending in times of hardship and ease, and on enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong, and that you stand for Allah, fearing no one's blame, and that you support me if I come to you, so that you prevent me from what you prevent yourselves, your wives, and your children, and for you is Paradise." He said, so we stood up to him and pledged allegiance, and he took the hand of As'ad ibn Zurarah - who was the youngest of them - and said: "Slowly, O people of Yathrib, for we have not set out to him except knowing that he is the Messenger of Allah, and that his expulsion today is a departure from all the Arabs and the killing of your best, and that the swords will be drawn among you. Are you a people who can endure that, and your reward is with Allah? Or are you afraid of yourselves, hiding something? Then clarify that, for it is an excuse for you with Allah." They said, "Remove it from us, O As'ad, by Allah, we will never abandon this pledge nor take it away forever." So we pledged allegiance to him, and he took it from us and gave us Paradise in return. (Narrated by Ahmad 14456).
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, when he would motivate the Companions to do something, would say: "Whoever does such and such will have Paradise."
Often, we avoid this serious image that only the people of certainty can bear.
It is a path with few adornments, but it is great, giving your life meaning, and the nobles would not accept anything else in its place.
{Indeed, Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and their properties, for them is Paradise} [At-Tawbah: 111]... This is the guarantee for every believer: Paradise.
When you embraced Islam... did you not know this? Was Islam a surprise to you with something other than what was agreed upon? Did Islam add clauses after the agreement and signing?!
When you said: "I have accepted Allah as my Lord and Islam as my religion," did you not know that Allah the Almighty said: {You will surely be tested in your wealth and yourselves} [Aali Imran: 186]?!
Did you not know that Allah said: {And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits, but give good tidings to the patient} [Al-Baqarah: 155]?!
Did you not know that He said: {And We will surely test you with something of fear and famine and a loss of wealth and lives and crops, and give good tidings to the patient} [Al-Baqarah: 155]?!
Did you not know that He said: {Or do they think that they will be left alone, saying, "We believe," and they will not be tested} [Al-Ankabut: 2]...
Did you not know the condition of the Prophet and his Companions in the Meccan period?!
Did Islam surprise you with something other than what was agreed upon, so that you doubt and are displeased?!
You will say to me: Does this mean that Islam has no effect on the happiness of this worldly life?
Yes, the believing community is promised empowerment on earth and a change from fear to security... As for individuals, how many of them suffered in the time of the Prophet, peace be upon him, and died before they saw victory, and they have a reward in the Hereafter for their weakness... And yet, they also had worldly bliss, which is the bliss of the souls and hearts.
Look at the verses that promise the believer a good life: {Whoever does a good deed, whether male or female, while he is a believer - We will surely cause him to live a good life} [An-Nahl: 97], and His saying: {For them is good tidings in this world and in the Hereafter} [Yunus: 64].
These are two verses in two Meccan surahs (An-Nahl and Yunus)... during a period of persecution of the Muslims... And yet, did the Companions find these verses difficult to understand? Did they say to the Messenger of Allah, "Where is the good life when we are being killed and tortured?"
Rather, they read the verses and understood them and knew that they did not contradict their reality because of the bliss they found in their hearts. A life of contentment, patience, accountability, longing for the Hereafter, yearning for Allah, satisfying the soul for His sake, having good thoughts of Him, and certainty of His companionship.
This is the bliss that turned the magicians of Pharaoh from deceivers into friends who do not care about Pharaoh's threats, but say to him: {We will not prefer you over what has come to us of the clear proofs, and He who created us, so judge between us with truth, and you judge only with what you know of the worldly life * Indeed, we have believed in our Lord that He may forgive us our sins and what you compelled us to of magic. And Allah is better and more enduring} [Ta-Ha: 72-73].
The skeptical clay people will mock us and say, "Look at them, enduring themselves with such things..." And there is no wonder, for they have not tasted this bliss, so how can they understand?! Allah says: {But most of the people do not know * They know the outward aspects of the worldly life, but they are heedless of the Hereafter} [Ar-Rum: 6-7].
They have the outward aspects of food, clothing, adornment, and boasting... a beastly life.
And on the Day of Judgment, they will know that it was not life at all, and that what we endure is life: "(He will say, 'Oh, I wish I had prepared for my life')"... meaning the true life in the Hereafter.
{So be patient. Indeed, the promise of Allah is truth. And let them not weaken you who are not certain} [Ar-Rum: 60].
In the Fajr prayer hall, my attention was drawn to Allah's saying: {That is because Allah weakens the plots of the disbelievers} [Al-Anfal: 18].
Meaning, He weakens them...
Do not worry too much about the plots of the disbelievers, their studies, their planning centers, their conferences, their conspiracies, their arsenals, and their budgets to turn people away from the path of Allah.
All you have to do as a Muslim is to act with insight.
And Allah weakens their plots.
Dear brothers, when one of us is afflicted with sorrow, one of the greatest blessings Allah bestows upon him is to guide him to self-reflection and correction of his mistakes, rather than being preoccupied with complaining about others and blaming them.
On social media, we may feel distressed and worried due to our interactions with some people and hearing their harm. Let us see the reasons for this in the light of the Quran and the Sunnah:
1- Lack of Sincerity: One of us may habitually seek to derive self-boosting from the likes, shares, and positive comments on the materials he publishes, forgetting to renew his intention and invoke sincerity, making the pleasure of Allah the main motivator. He should strive to hit the truth and be among those whom Allah mentioned: {And they do not fear the blame of a blamer} [Al-Ma'idah: 54].
If we fall short in this, our hearts will be distressed when we hear what displeases us from some people, for we have accustomed them to excessive kindness from people. Just as we were pleased with those who praised us for what is not in us, we are repaid by those who blame us for what is not in us!
2- Preoccupation with Guarantees Rather Than Commands: Allah commanded His servants with commands and guaranteed them guarantees. The happy one is he who is preoccupied with the command, believing that Allah is the most truthful guarantor. The deprived one is he who is preoccupied with what Allah guaranteed him from what He commanded him, thus losing both!
Allah the Almighty said: {Indeed, Allah defends those who have believed} [Al-Hajj: 38].
The command is to be among those who have believed, and the guarantee is that Allah will defend you.
And our Prophet peace be upon him swore by three things, one of which is: "And no servant is wronged but he is patient with it except that Allah will increase him thereby in honor."
The intended patience is the beautiful patience, not the patience that is accompanied by much complaining and saying and preoccupation from beneficial invitation.
So, occupy yourself with what Allah has commanded you and trust completely and believe that He will defend you at that time.
3- Disobeying Allah's Command to Ignore the Ignorant: Of course, not everyone who opposes us is ignorant, but some have ignorance in their manner, as they rely on insults or attacking intentions. What did Allah command us to do with these people?
{And take patience and enjoin good and turn away from the ignorant} [Al-A'raf: 199].
Allah the Almighty knows that he who enjoins good will inevitably be exposed to the ignorant, so He followed this command with His saying: {And turn away from the ignorant}.
Your narrow-mindedness may be a punishment for disobeying Allah's command, as you strive to please the ignorant or occupy yourself with following what they say about you and responding to them.
And He the Almighty said, describing the servants of the Merciful: {And when they pass by vain discourse, they pass by with dignity} [Al-Furqan: 72]. And the passing of the dignified requires that the person does not stop at every one who harms him and takes from him.
Whoever disobeys Allah's command in this will be tested with the dominance of the ignorant's harm over his thinking, so he becomes directed in what he says and does by seeking the pleasure of people and avoiding their harm. And since the pleasure of all people is an unattainable goal, and what pleases some displeases others, the seeker of their pleasure will stumble and hesitate, and his speech will be shy and fearful of reactions!
And whoever turns away from all this and makes the pleasure of Allah his goal, Allah will make his speech eloquent and acceptable and influential.
And I advise everyone who has a page with frequent interaction to seek the help of one of the followers to remove the harmful speech before he reads it and works in himself and turns him away from the good he is in or affects his intention, while keeping the scientific objections and serious discussions.
I ask Allah to grant me and you righteous intention, correct speech and action, and occupation with His command, glorified and exalted be He, and to employ me and you in His obedience and make us among His supporters.
One of the concepts that need correction is considering the multitude of enemies as evidence of the correctness of the methodology. This rule is not absolute but is restricted by the type of enemies and the reason for enmity.
It is true that Warqa bin Naufal said to our Prophet peace be upon him: (No one has ever come with what you have come with except that he was harmed). And it is true that some people have sick souls that hate the truth because it withdraws their privileges and exposes their falsehood or opposes their desires that they are enslaved to.
However, when Muslims also hate me, then I must blame myself! It is dangerous at that time to assume that this hatred is (a healthy phenomenon) indicating that I am on the clear truth! It is dangerous to assume that they are repulsed by me because of my righteousness or the correctness of the methodology I carry, while some are repulsed by me because of my harshness and gloomy face, and some because of my shortcoming in my work or the contradiction in my behavior and my falling into sins that I belittle while exaggerating the mistakes of others, and some because I held onto one side of Allah's religion and left the side of morals, and some because I mistrusted people or did not appreciate the good aspects in them, and some because I mixed my victory for myself with my victory for the religion, and some because I did not take care of my appearance and considered that asceticism out of ignorance of the Sunnah, and some because of a misunderstanding that I could have explained but my arrogance prevented me.
It is dangerous to overlook all these reasons and laugh at myself and convince myself that all of them are only annoyed by the light that I carry! And that they only hate me because of my righteousness!
The original rule for the carrier of the call and the one concerned with Islam is that he should be loved and liked by Muslims. Allah the Almighty said: {Indeed, those who have believed and done righteous deeds - the Merciful will bring them affection} [Maryam: 96].
And in the hadith narrated by Al-Bukhari and Muslim that the Messenger of Allah peace be upon him said: "When Allah loves a servant, He calls Gabriel: 'Indeed, Allah loves so-and-so, so love him.' So Gabriel loves him, then Gabriel calls the people of the heaven: 'Indeed, Allah loves so-and-so, so love him.' So the people of the heaven love him, then he is granted acceptance on earth" (Al-Bukhari 6040, Muslim 2637).
And in the hadith that some scholars deemed good: (The believer is affectionate and affectionate, and there is no good in he who is not affectionate and affectionate, and the best of people are the most beneficial to people).
On the other hand, our Prophet peace be upon him said, disapproving of the imam who prolonged the prayer: "Among you are those who are repulsive" (Al-Bukhari 702, Muslim 466).
It is true that our Prophet peace be upon him said: "Islam began as something strange, and it will return as it began strange" (Sahih Muslim 14).
However, this strangeness is a temporary state that the Muslim does not persist in, but rather strives to reform it. For our Prophet peace be upon him defined the strangers as: "Those who reform what the people have corrupted of my Sunnah after me" (Sunan Al-Tirmidhi 2630). And he did not say: those who seclude themselves and consecrate strangeness from people with their wrong behavior.
So if the days pass and the people do not increase except in enmity and coldness towards you, know that the defect is not only in them!
The carrier of the call is not required to flatter at the expense of his religion and pacify the people by concealing the truth or deviating from it. However, at the same time, he is required to be lenient with the people in presenting his call and to abandon the chances of himself to make the people know that he does not triumph for himself but for the religion of Allah the Almighty. And then, if the wicked people and the disbelievers oppose him, the majority of his brothers from the Muslims will love him and gather around him and their tongues will be busy with supplication for him... and there is no wonder, for he is among those promised that: {The Merciful will bring them affection} [Maryam: 96].
Frequently, Eid al-Fitr or Eid al-Adha coincides with the persecution of Muslims in one of the countries. The rest of the Muslims then ask: "How can we be happy on Eid with this?"
We say: Be happy, indeed, show your happiness on Eid. Because Allah, who commanded us to care about the affairs of Muslims, is the One who has legislated for us to be happy with our obedience. Allah says: "And complete the Hajj and 'umrah for Allah. But if you are prevented, then [offer] what can be obtained of sacrificial animals and do not shave your heads until the sacrificial animal has reached its place of slaughter. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And do not shave your heads until the sacrificial animal has reached its place of slaughter. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. 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And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what you can afford. And whoever of you is ill or on a journey, then an equal number [should be sacrificed] from what
When I talk about the Muslim woman in the series "The Woman" and say that I "inflate her head" (make her bigger than her worth), some people comment objecting to that, and their summary is: "Don't inflate her head."
So I say: Yes, I want to inflate the head of the Muslim woman and the Muslim man and the Muslim child and the Muslim girl... and I do all of this with truth.
I want to make all Muslims feel the greatness of their value as Muslims, and the huge difference between them and other humans...
Then, after that, we talk about our rights and duties towards each other...
But first, we must restore our scattered entities... and instill in the Muslim and the Muslim woman self-esteem and pride in the Islamic identity and a positive view of themselves...
Especially in this time when the media works to make Muslims feel the cheapness of their blood and their humiliation, even among ourselves, except for those whom my Lord has mercy upon...
In this time when some of the prominent figures among the Muslims spread the inferiority complex, self-deprecation, and admiration for the dominant nations, and blur the line between Islam and disbelief under the title of "tolerance and respect for others," with the result that the Muslim feels that his monotheism and Islam are nothing and do not give him any advantage in this world or the hereafter!
And even the unaware preaching discourse often completes the process of destruction by excessive blame and reproach without reinforcement and encouragement!!
One of the greatest things I can do to get closer to Allah the Almighty is to remind the Muslim that he is important, of great worth to Allah by his faith, and that Allah has honored his belongings, making his blood, honor, and wealth sacred, like the sanctity of the sacred day in the sacred month in the sacred land... because he is important...
Remind the Muslim woman that Allah has poured His wrath upon those who belittle her honor: "Those who slander chaste, unaware, believing women are cursed in this world and the hereafter, and they will have a great punishment * On the Day when their tongues, their hands, and their feet will bear witness against them for what they used to do * On that Day, Allah will pay them in full their deserved recompense, and they will know that Allah is the Manifest Truth" [An-Nur: 23-25]. Terrifying verses for those who touch her honor because she is important...
Remind the Muslims that the Throne of the Most Merciful trembled at the death of a Muslim (Sad bin Ma'adh), and that your tear, O Muslim, is of great worth in the balance of Allah, saving you from the Fire while the earth and all that is on it does not save the disbeliever...
Yes, I want to inflate the heads of all Muslims, for the vision we set before our eyes and theirs is a great one: succession on earth and leadership of nations in all fields, calling people to enjoy with us the religion of Allah, and saving humanity from deviation and slavery to criminals to the vastness of this world and the hereafter.
A great mission that needs great souls that value themselves and feel their honor before Allah, not affected by their humiliation before the disbelievers nor before the hypocrites and the defeated... "And to Allah belongs all honor, and to His Messenger, and to the believers, but the hypocrites do not know" [Al-Munafiqun: 8].
One of the tricks of Satan is that he comes to you and says to you: You are less than to practice calling to Allah. Call yourself first, otherwise, your calling others while you have sins means you are a hypocrite.
The truth is that as long as you belong to the nation of Muhammad, peace be upon him, you are obliged to call: "You are the best nation ever brought forth to humanity, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong and believing in Allah" [Al-Imran: 110].
Although Allah the Almighty knows that this nation will have those who are unjust to themselves: "Then We caused to inherit the Book those whom We have chosen from among Our servants; and among them is he who wrongs himself, and among them is he who is moderate, and among them is he who is foremost in good deeds by permission of Allah" [Fatir: 32]. But all of them are obliged to call. Rather, the excessive one is more in need to practice calling than others: "Verily, good deeds remove evil deeds" [Hud: 114]. The important thing is to be sincere with yourself, sincere in your intention, calling to something you know, not out of ignorance. And then, this calls for you to rid yourself of your sins and negligence by the permission of Allah, to feel harmony with yourself and live the pleasure of respecting yourself, and calls for Allah the Almighty to aid you with the blessing of your call, which you called seeking His noble face.
I personally had deficiencies... I saw that after I started calling, I got rid of some of them by the grace of Allah the Almighty. When I was in the shade and did not leave an impact, engaging in minor matters was suitable for the small soul. But when Allah willed that we take the path of calling, we saw that these minor matters were traps and shackles that stick to the mud and prevent flying, so it was easy by the grace of Allah to leave them. And there is still a deficiency in the soul that we ask Allah to compel and compel the deficiency of the Muslims.
Brother, sister, do not fall into the trap of Satan, do not humble yourself with negative humility and say: "It is not for someone like me to call others." For this means completing the deficiency with another deficiency! But draw near to Allah with calling so that He may aid you in compelling the deficiency.
Showing your pride in Islam is one of the most important duties in this time. Even if you are deficient, even if you are a woman who is negligent and adorned. Yes... For the war on Islam requires all its sons and daughters to confront it, no matter what sins and transgressions they have...
The international system and its tentacles in the lands of the Muslims strive every new day to erase a landmark of Islam, fight a ritual, attack a sanctuary, impose a law, and distort the pages of curricula, and their goal is clear: "And they will continue to fight you until they turn you away from your religion if they are able" [Al-Baqarah: 217].
What makes them hasten to strip people of their religion or slow down and hesitate? What they see of the remnants of life... If they find the heat of faith, they reduce something of their evil, and if they see cold nerves and dead hearts, they continue.
In the face of this attack, everyone is obliged to confront... even the owners of the greatest sins who are still on Islam, we advise them internally as Muslims, and we intensify our advice to each other as one hand rubs the other to wash their dirt, but we are one front against our enemies.
Show your Islam, show your pride in it, your glorification, love for it, and your readiness to sacrifice for its sake...
Are you a teacher in a school? A doctor in a university? A manager in a company? Start your lessons/lectures/meetings in the name of Allah and the prayer and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah, pray and call those around you from your students/colleagues to pray with you, show your anger if the religion is mocked in front of you or its sanctities are violated, no matter how deficient and sinful you are, for you are not deceiving yourself or cheating, but you are doing something of your duty in showing your religion, even if you are deficient in other aspects...
Are you a student? Show the rituals of the religion even if you are negligent, a drinker of alcohol, a disobedient to parents, an adorned woman... all of this and you show the rituals of the religion?
Yes, you may say: But the one who is proud of his religion and glorifies it does not do these sins that you mention...
Yes! Good and evil, righteousness and corruption can coexist in one person... "And for all are degrees of what they have done" [Al-An'am: 132]... You show the religion not to convince yourself that you have done what is required of you and exempt yourself from leaving sins, but you have excelled in one aspect and corrected in one aspect, so you hope that Allah will catch up with you with His mercy and aid you in correcting yourself, and that you will be among the people of His saying: "And others have confessed their sins, mixing righteous deeds and evil deeds. Perhaps Allah will forgive them, for Allah is Forgiving and Merciful" [At-Tawbah: 102]... And do not pay attention to the mockery of the mockers nor to the saying of those who say: "Have you become a sheikh/sheikha?!"... But hold on and spread the spirit of pride and see how you will rise with it by the permission of Allah.
Allah has legislated for us the raising of the Adhan, the Takbeer of Eid, and the joy of Eids to show the religion and to know Him, glorified be He, that this is what raises the spirits, spreads pride, and strengthens faith. The enemies of Islam want us to live as strangers in our own lands... So do not obey them and know that you are the ones who are obedient to Allah, and they are the intruders... "Indeed, the earth is Allah's. He causes to inherit it whom He wills of His servants, and the outcome is for the righteous" [Al-A'raf: 128]. So show your religion.
Dear brother, a doctor with an exceptional mind, who obtained advanced degrees from foreign universities in locally rare specialties, was offered high-paying job opportunities in Arab and foreign countries. However, he remained by his parents' side, fulfilling their request, and turned to the health sectors through which he could serve the general public. He once informed me that he had been promoted to a position that would allow him to serve a larger number of the country's people. His mother and father asked him: "Does your salary exceed the aforementioned amount?" To see if his efforts were appreciated at least to some extent, for I know that salaries are low. He replied to me with this impactful message: "I don't think it does. Here is the place of thanking Allah... then thanking my father. My father is a partner to me in all of this... He advised me: Look to the interest of your mother, your country, and your people, and I will suffice you... We are in the position of sacrifice, Doctor... Sacrifice in a different context... We ask Allah for acceptance and assistance... Your prayers."
What a great concept! Sacrifice of high positions and income for the service of the nation... Sacrifice in a different context that does not occur to us! And how beautiful is a father who fills this gap by dedicating his son to the service of his nation... It drove me to say to my friend: Accept your father's hand... A lesson for all of us... And according to my friend and his father, they have a generous Lord who is aware of their sacrifices and will not let the reward of good deeds be lost.
At every stage of life, there are excuses for neglecting the hereafter, learning religion, supporting it:
See, when will one think about the hereafter? When will one learn and support our religion and serve it? When will one build a methodological culture? When will one call to Allah with insight?
(Well, and my striving, my studies, my marriage, taking care of my children... Isn't all this what Allah loves?)
Yes, if you are in all this while keeping in mind the ultimate goal of Allah's pleasure and the elevation of the religion, so that all your actions are regulated by Allah's guidance and dedicated to this goal, with balance and giving everyone their due. This is the matter that does not bear delay and should not be neglected in any stage of life.
Imagine with me a nation of people trapped in a huge castle with a door... The door has a key... The key is in one of ten holes in the castle wall... So why don't they retrieve it? I will tell you: The other nine holes each contain a scorpion that delivers a fatal sting! And they know this... So everyone is afraid of the experiment.
The first one stood up and reached his hand into the first hole with strength and courage... He was stung by a scorpion... And he fell dead!
The second one stood up and learned from the first's experience: The key is not in the first hole... He put a cloth on his hand and reached into the second hole... The cloth did not protect him from the scorpion's sting... And he fell dead!
The third one stood up... Then the fourth... Then the fifth... Each of them tried to protect his hand from the scorpion's sting with whatever means available, but he was still stung... And in all this, the people watched as those who fell dead... Some mocked, some called the attempts foolish and reckless, some envied themselves for surviving because they did not try! And some pitied them..
In the end, after nine deaths, the tenth reached his hand and retrieved the key from the tenth hole, and opened the castle amidst the people's applause and admiration for him!
In reality, who achieved this victory? Is it the tenth alone as many assume? Or do the first nine have a greater share in the victory than his share? Was not the first who chose from among ten holes the greatest (achievement) compared to the one who chose between two or three at the end? And this in turn is a greater achievement than the one who reached his hand into the last remaining hole?
Our nation is in its great captivity... The real failure is the one who does not even try so as not to be stung, and prefers to remain he and his nation in prison! And look at the glory that tries - with insight and good following - and succeeds by all measures, and shares in the victory that will appear, even if after a while.
But with two conditions:
There is no place for despair with faith.
One day, I received a message from a young man who said: "Can you talk in a video to the youth about wasting time on foreign films and series for hours? This is not just about pubg. Most of my friends consider films a fixed part of their day. They boast about the number of films and series they watch! One of my classmates said last week that he finished a series with 300 episodes!! Another one doesn't leave the house without carrying several films to entertain himself during his commute to the university! The biggest disaster is the one who brings and distributes films to them and is happy that he has brought new films and series. Seeing these scenes, my heart aches by Allah! Even by chance, the last committed friend I know was sitting next to me listening to a film during the commute. By chance, I looked and found the film was based on a vulgar scene! There is no power nor strength except with Allah." End of the brother's message.
Well... I know that some of the youth to whom these descriptions apply listen to me. I would like to address them with a message: Look, my brothers... I will speak to you with the words of the best of people towards you: The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, who said in the authentic hadith: "If people sit in a gathering where they do not remember Allah, nor send prayers upon the Prophet, then they will have regret on the Day of Judgment, even if they enter Paradise for the reward." [Narrated by Abu Dawood 4856].
Imagine! We can sit and talk for a quarter of an hour or half an hour about something permissible... types of cars, the high prices... anything... but in our hearts, we are heedless of remembering Allah the Exalted and sending prayers upon His Messenger, peace be upon him, in this gathering.
On the Day of Judgment, when the records of deeds are laid open and we see the difference in the ranks of people, and we see that: "So whoever does an atom's weight of good will see it, and whoever does an atom's weight of evil will see it" [Surah Az-Zalzalah: 7-8]. At that time, you will regret this quarter of an hour in which you did not remember Allah and send prayers upon His Messenger, even though you did not commit any sin in it.
Therefore, our Prophet, peace be upon him, out of compassion for us, taught us to say at the end of our gatherings: "Glory be to You, O Allah, and praise be to You. I bear witness that there is no god but You. I seek Your forgiveness and repent to You." So that our gatherings are not devoid of the remembrance of Allah.
Imagine when you spend hours, not in something permissible without the remembrance of Allah, but in something forbidden, watching series filled with what angers Allah the Exalted. Are you not afraid for yourself of regret and remorse on the Day when Allah said: "And warn them of the Day of Regret, when the matter will be decided, and they are in heedlessness and they do not believe. Indeed, it is We who give life to the earth and to ourselves they will be returned" [Surah Maryam: 39-40].
Look at the name: the Day of Regret...
Also among the names of the Day of Judgment: the Day of Mutual Loss: "The Day they are gathered together is the Day of Mutual Loss" [Surah Al-Taghabun: 9]... and this is an ayah from a surah named after it. What does mutual loss mean? It means it will be shown to the people that they have been deceived. The deceived one is the one who pays a lot and gets little. You pay ten thousand for a car worth five thousand... we say: you have been deceived in it.
Similarly, on the Day of Judgment, it is as if you have paid your life, which could have bought you a high rank in Paradise, but you did not get Paradise at all, or you got a lower rank in it. And in the authentic hadith, our Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "In Paradise, there are one hundred degrees, the distance between each two degrees is like the distance between the heaven and the earth, Al-Firdaus is the highest of Paradise, its middle, and above it is the Throne of Ar-Rahman, and from it the rivers of Paradise gush forth. So when you ask Allah, ask Him for Al-Firdaus" [Narrated by At-Tirmidhi 2530].
I know one of the callers from Marsa whose guidance was delayed until he reached the late twenties of his age, and he holds a PhD from the Faculty of Agriculture at Al-Azhar University. Sheikh Mubarak Al-Wadaei, one of the scholars of hadith, came to Marsa. This doctor began to move with Sheikh Mubarak between the mosques to listen to his lessons. After one of the lessons, he asked Sheikh Mubarak: "Sheikh, what is the ruling on watching football matches?"
The Sheikh said: Narrated by Al-Bukhari...
Our friend says: (I said to myself: Allah! Did Al-Bukhari narrate a hadith even about watching football?). The Sheikh continued: Al-Bukhari narrated from Abdullah ibn Abbas that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: "Two blessings in which many people are deceived: health and free time." [Sahih Al-Bukhari 6412].
The doctor said: (When I heard this, I prostrated on my knees and cried!). Your health, your free time... if you spend them for nothing, then you are deceived.
In the hadith authenticated by Al-Albani through its various routes, our Prophet, peace be upon him, said about a man in his grave: "Two light prostrations from what you consider insignificant and supererogatory will add to his deeds more beloved to him than the rest of your world."
Meaning, when one of us dies, the truths are revealed to him. If he were to return to life and be told: What do you think? Do you pray two prostrations? Two light prostrations (from what you consider insignificant and supererogatory)... meaning you may have entered the mosque, looked at the clock, and after three minutes, the prayer is to be established... you say to yourself: (Should I pray the greeting of the mosque? Or is there no time? Just let me pray two light prostrations)... and you will earn the reward of these two prostrations.
If you were given the opportunity to live after death and were given the choice between these two prostrations or living a long life in this world to enjoy, then no! You would choose the two prostrations. Why? Because you will see after death that the world is fleeting, its pleasures are vanishing, while the two prostrations will benefit you "On a Day when neither wealth nor children will be of any use except for him who comes to Allah with a sound heart" [Surah Ash-Shu'ara: 88-89], thus they will make it easy for you to stand on the Day of Judgment, which is fifty thousand years in measure as in Sahih Muslim.
The two prostrations may weigh heavily on your scale and admit you to Paradise in which the Prophet, peace be upon him, said as in Al-Bukhari: "The bow of one of you or the place of one's foot in Paradise is better than the world and all that is in it."
Well, look a bit... not all of you... you and you and you... some of you... open your eyes! You say to yourself: (In fact, I am not sure that these verses and hadiths are authentic. What tells me that the Messenger is truly the Messenger of Allah? What tells me that the hadiths are preserved? What tells me that the Quran is from Allah? Maybe some of the YouTubers who are skeptical are correct and Islam is a human invention and... and...).
Oh no... look how you waste your life and then lend your ears to these funded ones from our enemies to divert you from your religion! You have not exerted effort nor spent time studying your religion, nor in learning critical thinking so as not to be deceived by them, then you exposed yourself to the temptations of desires, so doubts and desires have gathered against you!
Remind you of great and frightening verses in Surah Al-Hadid... "On the Day you see the believers, men and women, their light running before them and on their right, [they will be told], 'Good tidings for you today of gardens beneath which rivers flow, wherein you will abide eternally. That is the great attainment.'" [Surah Al-Hadid: 12]. Look at this beautiful scene! The Messenger, peace be upon him, and with him the believers enter Paradise surrounded by light.
But on the other hand, there are people whose condition is completely different!: "On the Day the hypocrite men and hypocrite women will say to those who believed, 'Look at us and make us see the light!' They will say, 'Go back behind you [to the Fire]. Seek light if you should [be able to]'" [Surah Al-Hadid: 13]. Oh people, the world is oppressing us, walk a little so that we can benefit from your light.
"No, no! Everyone takes his light from his deeds. We have acquired light from going to the mosques in the darkness... we have acquired light from reading the Quran and learning our religion, lowering our gaze, and listening to what angers our Lord."
Then comes the critical and frightening moment: "And a barrier will be placed between them, with a gate within it. Inside there will be mercy, and outside it, punishment" [Surah Al-Hadid: 13]. On the side of the believers, mercy, and on the side of the hypocrites, punishment.
They call them, "Were we not with you?" [Al-Hadid: 14] Those behind the barrier call out to the believers: "Were we not with you in this world?" The believers respond... "They said, 'Yes, but you tempted yourselves and waited and hesitated, and false hopes deluded you until the command of Allah came, and you were deluded by Allah with delusion. So today, no ransom will be taken from you nor from those who disbelieved.'" [Al-Hadid: 14-15].
The first description of destruction is: "You tempted yourselves..." You exposed yourselves to temptation... looking at what is forbidden and listening to what is forbidden, and you know the saying of Allah the Most High: "Indeed, the hearing, the sight, and the heart - all of these will be questioned about them." [Al-Isra: 36].
You stained the mirror of your heart, which Allah created pure, so you began to see truth as falsehood and falsehood as truth, and hypocrisy entered the heart.
"But you tempted yourselves and waited and hesitated." You doubted the religion.
"And false hopes deluded you." You followed your desires and wished upon Allah false hopes and said (Allah is Forgiving, Merciful), as He said, the Most High: "Then We raised up after them a generation who inherited the Scripture, but they took the fleeting enjoyment of this world and said, 'We will be forgiven.'" [Al-A'raf: 169].
Allah is Forgiving and Merciful, but He also said: "Know that Allah is severe in penalty and that Allah is Forgiving and Merciful." [Al-Ma'idah: 98].
So when you expose yourself to temptations, then your heart hardens, and you begin to find it burdensome to read the Quran and hate some of the rulings of Islam and love sins, remember that it is you who did that to yourself: "(But you tempted yourselves)."
In the great hadith qudsi narrated by Muslim, the Lord of Might, may He be glorified and exalted, says: "O My servants, it is only your deeds that I account for you, then I repay you for them. So whoever finds good, let him praise Allah, and whoever finds otherwise, let him blame no one but himself." [Sahih Muslim 2577].
I do not want you, young people, to regret... I have wasted much of my life in my youth, then I regretted it, and I tasted the bitterness of regret. So I do not want you to taste it.
Returning to the young man's message: he says that some young people boast about the films they attend. Mention to him the hadith narrated by Al-Bukhari that our Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "Every one of my nation will be forgiven except the open sinners. And from the open sins is that a man does something at night, then he wakes up and Allah has concealed it for him, so he says, 'O so-and-so, I did such-and-such last night,' and he sleeps while Allah has concealed it for him, and he wakes up and exposes what Allah had concealed for him." [Sahih Al-Bukhari 6069].
Someone may say: "Why? What have I done to deserve this? What did I do when I watch these films?"
Oh! If you do not consider watching films, seeing nakedness, and being attached to the wicked and moving your emotions with what angers Allah... if you do not consider this a sin that you should be ashamed of, then this is a sign of the death of the heart! If you do not feel ashamed of that, then know that faith has been lifted from you. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "Modesty and faith are companions. If one of them is lifted, the other is lifted." [Narrated by Al-Hakim 58].
Are you arguing that it is not a sin and a great evil? Fine, imagine if the Prophet, peace be upon him, was sitting next to you and you were holding the mobile phone and watching this film. By Allah, would you see that there is nothing wrong with it and that everything is normal? Would you argue with the Prophet, peace be upon him, that this is forbidden and evil? Allah is more worthy of your shame.
Are you ready, before watching these films and series, to say (Bismillah)? Oh, what a pity! If we are forced to argue about these things, then this is a sign of the death of the heart! So hurry to revive your heart.
The brother also says in his message that some young people carry films to watch on the way, as if it were a kind of utilizing time!
I will tell you something, my brother: this half hour or hour on the way... this builds your character. Thanks to Allah, I have learned and much of the religious sciences, history, subtleties, and much of what benefits me in my religion and worldly life, I have learned in transportation and while driving the car.
Many brothers ask me: "Brother, how did you combine some religious knowledge and knowledge in pharmacy and missionary activities such as preparing for lectures?"
The matter is not a knot, people... In my youth, I wasted a lot of time. But when one is healthy, praise be to Allah, I have become more keen to utilize my time so that no hour passes except that it benefits; not necessarily reading and supplication... but even when I play with my children or go out on an outing with my family, I count the reward for that, and I do not waste my time in what does not please Allah, may He be glorified and exalted.
The owner of the message says that there are some young people who distribute the latest films to their friends.
I mean, my friend, are you eager to be a continuous charity for you after your death? I remind you of the saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him: "Whoever calls to guidance will have a reward like the rewards of those who follow him, without that diminishing their rewards in the least. And whoever calls to misguidance will have a burden of sin like the sins of those who follow him, without that diminishing their sins in the least." [Narrated by Muslim 2674].
Are you ready to meet Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, with mountains of evil from the effect of those whom you have guided to evil? People, "But whoever brings an evil deed will not be recompensed except by the like thereof." [Az-Zalzalah: 8]... a grain, a grain! So think when you are the cause of your friends looking at what is forbidden and the things that harden the heart and make them love disbelief, wickedness, and disobedience and make them heedless of the remembrance of the Most Merciful.
Ibn Al-Qayyim said: "The slave has a Lord to whom he will be presented, and a home in which he will dwell, so it is appropriate for him to please his Lord before meeting Him and to prepare his home before moving to it."
And remember, my brothers, in conclusion: "No people sit in a gathering in which they do not remember Allah and send blessings upon the Prophet, peace be upon him, but they will have regret on the Day of Resurrection, even if they enter Paradise for the reward."
O Allah, O Most Merciful of the merciful, Lord of the worlds, guide the youth of the Muslims and gather us with them in the shade of Your Throne on the Day when there is no shade except Yours, and do not make us regret on the Day of Regret, and do not make us losers in our health and in our youth and in our times, for You are the Most Merciful, the Generous, the Great.
Dear beloved, those following along have seen the wonderful response from the youth regarding the advice we gave about utilizing time and avoiding TV series. Many of you, young people, have made a covenant with Allah to stop watching what displeases Him. Some of you said you deleted hundreds of gigabytes of films you had collected, while others removed Netflix from your devices. May Allah bring you joy and bless you. This is truly great and beautiful. The softening of hearts is a sign of good things to come for the nation of Muhammad, peace be upon him, by Allah's will.
This talk is to help you remain steadfast so you do not weaken again. Also, many of you said, "I will try to stop watching the forbidden." The word "I will try" often means, "I will attempt to obey Allah!" Because when you say, "I will try my best," you know that "Allah does not burden a soul beyond its capacity" [Al-Baqarah 2:286]. If you seek help from Allah, you will be able. But let me help you understand yourself a bit: "I will try" may mean "I will experiment." That is, if I do not feel boredom, sadness, and dryness after leaving TV shows, anime, and wasting hours on games, I will continue to obey Allah. If I feel the good life you speak of after obeying Allah, I will continue. But if I get bored or my life becomes dry, I will have to return to it. And for your sake, those who think this way, I share this word. For this talk is to strengthen those who have come and to encourage the hesitant.
Listen, young people... what you need are two things: burning the ships and attaching to the beloved.
What does this mean?
First, regarding burning the ships: It is said that when Tariq bin Ziyad conquered Andalusia, he burned the ships he and his soldiers came with and told his soldiers, "The enemy is before you, and the sea is behind you." That is, do not think of fleeing. There are no two options: fighting the enemy or fleeing... because there are no ships. Fleeing means drowning in the sea. So fight the enemy, for that is better for you. Now, the part about Tariq bin Ziyad drowning the ships seems historically inaccurate. But we mention it to tell you: with Allah, burn your ships.
Burn your ships. If you want Allah to compensate you for what you have left for His sake and make your life good, do not think of the option of returning. Do not keep the line of retreat. In the foreign proverb, they say, "Don't break the bridges." That is, keep the line of retreat. But with Allah, no... when you submit to Him, break the bridges that can take you back to His disobedience.
I was attached to music... and I do not want to discuss the ruling on music here. Music is certainly not comparable to films and series, which are complete packages of prohibitions and heart-corrupters.
But the point here is simple: I became convinced that I should leave music for the sake of Allah, that it was hindering me on my path to Him. People used to use tapes back then. So remember when I held a tape with more musical pieces I loved, I broke it with my own hands, as a declaration of burning the ships... a declaration of breaking the bridges that would take me back to something I was convinced was forbidden. And by Allah, He replaced it with something better.
Therefore, I commend the youth who told me, "I deleted/erased/cancelled the films and their channels." May Allah bless your hands and honor you.
When Allah revealed, "O you who have believed, indeed, intoxicants, gambling, [sacrificing on] stone alters [to idols], and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it that you may be successful" [Al-Ma'idah 5:90]... what did the Companions do? They broke the containers of wine, and it spilled into the streets. Islam prohibits wasting money in general. But this breaking was like a declaration to break the attachment to wine and remove it from the hearts of the Companions.
Islam means submission to Allah... there is no such thing as keeping a line of retreat. There is no such thing as one foot forward and one foot back! Rather, it is rushing towards Allah without looking back, and you are certain that He, glorified and exalted, will not let you go astray, for you are certain of His mercy and wisdom, glorified and exalted be He... "And We made from among them leaders guiding by Our command when they were patient and were certain of Our signs" [As-Sajdah 32:24].
The story we know from our childhood... strange but true, it is in a hadith narrated by Al-Bukhari and Muslim. A man who killed ninety-nine people came to a monk and said, "Can I repent?" He had killed ninety-nine people! The monk said, "No... there is no repentance for you."
No repentance for me?! If so, (destroyed, destroyed!)... he killed the monk, completing the hundred!
The man felt within him that Allah is more merciful than to turn him away and not accept his repentance... but he did not know what to do... he asked about the most knowledgeable person on earth, and he was directed to a scholar: "Can I repent?"
"Yes, and who can prevent you from repentance? Go to such and such a land, for there are people who worship Allah. Worship Allah with them. And do not return to your land, for it is a land of evil."
You know how the hadith goes: he went out and died on the way, and the angels of mercy and punishment disputed over him. Allah, glorified and exalted, changed the geography of that land so that the man would be closer to the land of the righteous and enter his mercy.
The point here: this man... did he go to the land of the righteous on an exploratory trip to see if he liked it? Never! Rather, he went out sacrificing his home, his company, and his past, determined, it seems, to fulfill the command of the scholar: "Do not return to your land, for it is a land of evil." He would not return to disobedience. A man who burned his ships and submitted to Allah sincerely. He did nothing but be certain of Allah, His mercy, and that He would not let him go astray... so Allah forgave him even though he had killed a hundred people.
When you draw near to Allah with this sincere intention, what happens? You get the answer in the great sacred hadith narrated by Al-Bukhari and Muslim. The Most Merciful, glorified and exalted, says, "Whoever comes near to Me a hand's span, I will come near to him an arm's length. And whoever comes near to Me an arm's length, I will come near to him a fathom's length. And if he comes to Me walking, I will come to him running" (Sahih Muslim 2675).
Oh brother, what beauty is this?! What beauty is in our religion?! What mercy, generosity, and divine affection is this?! By your Lord, after this, will you test His obedience as an experiment?! Or will you throw yourself at the doors of His mercy with trust, submission, love, and glorification? Struggling to cut ties with the forbidden? Remember the words of your Lord, glorified and exalted, in the sacred hadith narrated by Muslim: "O My servants, all of you are astray except those whom I have guided, so seek guidance from Me, and I will guide you." Your Lord, who accepts you and commands you to obey Him, says to you: seek help from Me. "And whoever relies upon Allah, then He is sufficient for him" [At-Talaq 65:3]. The highest level of reliance is to rely on Allah to help you obey Him.
If you say to yourself: "I will (try) to obey Allah and leave His disobedience..." then allow me to tell you: "(You will fail the experiment! And the reason is known from your statement! Allah is certain of Himself, and He does not experiment)."
You will not taste the sweetness of faith if you want to (experiment) with righteousness for a period, driving sins from your heart but saying to them: "(Stay close, for I may need you again if my life dries up and I do not get what I hope for in comfort in my relationship with Allah)!" Then you give religion a chance, and you sit waiting for it to bring breakthroughs, revelations, and inspirations... until if nothing of that happens, you excuse yourself and say: "(I tried religion and it did not bring me happiness)!"
No! Turning to Allah is not an experiment.
"And those who, when they do an evil deed or wrong themselves, remember Allah and seek forgiveness for their sins. And who forgives sins except Allah? And they do not persist in what they did while they know." [Al-Imran: 135]... So there is no persistence in the forbidden nor justification for the forbidden.
But to befriend these thieves (attachment to sins)... and keep them close... and give religion a "temporary chance"... and expect Allah to fill your heart with faith... I fear that this involves belittling Allah and having a bad opinion of Him. "And they did not estimate Allah with the true estimate." [Al-An'am: 91].
So this is the first reminder for those who said, "(We will leave the forbidden)" so that they may continue, and for those who hesitate until they accept:
Burn the ships with trust, faith, and submission to whom you are turning to, Glorified is He, and drive sins from your life, and deal with their attacks on you as thieves, seeking Allah's help against them.
This may be the most opportune time for us to engage in actions that significantly impact our nation and weigh heavily on our scales with our Lord. How?
A psychological defeat has settled in the hearts of a broad segment of Muslims, accompanied by doubts and suspicions. Many of our youth lack even the most basic religious information and are completely devoid of intellectual immunity. Information that may seem basic to you could completely change their lives and their perspective on matters, with a bit of follow-up and care for them.
This is a form of jihad in every sense of the word. Those burdened with responsibilities have long complained about their longing for jihad and the difficulty of its means. Here is the path open before you! So, where are the determined?
Your concern for one of the youth, discussing with him, building certainty in his faith, removing his doubts, raising his morale, guiding him, could be the reason for saving him from eternal damnation in the Fire! And turning him into another soldier of Islam. If you leave him, he will fall prey to the devils of jinn and mankind and become a new enemy of Islam and a new dagger in the back of the nation.
Do not underestimate any good deed, for our Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "Do not belittle any good deed" [Sahih Muslim 2626]. Our nation is like a patient riddled with wounds, but we have a guarantee from Allah that he will not die. Any beneficial medicine you can offer will contribute to his recovery and restoration of his strength, even if it takes time.
There was a discussion between me and one of the brothers whom I love for the sake of Allah. He expressed to me a concern that discourages him from calling to Allah and trying to reform reality, and this concern itself comes to me, and I think it comes to many of you, esteemed ones:
(Why should I speak? Why should I try to change? My words will not make a big difference... Others are better than me... So-and-so is more pious than me in my estimation, another is more knowledgeable than me, and the third is more sincere in my estimation. Will Allah open for me what He has not opened for them?! Will He make my words have a greater impact than He has made for their words?! On what basis?)
Yes, this concern used to come to me, sometimes it would overwhelm me and discourage me from writing articles, recording episodes, and series, and sometimes I would overcome it and proceed on my way...
I said to the brother, and I say to everyone who has such a concern, the same thing I learned to address myself with:
It's not your concern! Allah opens for whom He wills what He wills, and He guides whom He wills to what He wills. So-and-so and so-and-so may be better than you, more knowledgeable, more sincere, and closer to Allah and of a higher status with Him, but He may open for you or for any of His servants with mercy and guidance, and bring about good through your hand that He did not bring about through the hand of those who are better than you.
What you think (as humility) in this case is a whisper of Satan if it discourages you from conveying this good to others! A hidden entrance from the entrances of Satan to yourself, so beware of it!
What zeal for the religion and jealousy for it, what intention of good for the people and pity for them from falsehood, what moment your heart is filled with love for Allah and His Messenger and His Book and His Shariah, so that you are driven to a good word and a good call, then the life of your heart is a light that Allah has blessed you with, it is not your right to stop it with you! But rather, radiate it to others.
Yes, it is not your right (and I do not say this as a fatwa of prohibition, but as an exhortation of encouragement), it is not your right to stop the good with you.
So, leave the discouragement that Satan clothes you with the garment of humility! But rather, commit yourself to two things:
You must sometimes relax and sometimes be neglectful. However, there is a difference between feeling that you have descended from the peaks of the mountains that Allah has chosen for you, so you do not delay in feeling the reproach of the soul and the sting of shortcoming, so you ascend again... and continuing to sit in the depths and only occasionally reaching the heights of glory...
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "Every action has a period of intensity, and every period of intensity has a period of relaxation. Whoever's period of relaxation is to the Sunnah has been guided, and whoever's period of relaxation is to other than that has perished" [Reported by Ahmad 6958].
"Every action has a period of intensity," meaning: activity and desire, "and every period of intensity has a period of relaxation," meaning: weakness and lethargy. So, lethargy of determination sometimes cannot be avoided. But the important thing is not to descend during this lethargy below the Sunnah, which here means the guidance of the Prophet, peace be upon him, in adhering to the obligatory duties and avoiding the prohibited. The wise servant utilizes the period of his determination and activity to soar high, so that when he relaxes, he does not descend below the minimum required.
When I look at the good that Allah the Almighty has brought about through the hands of the Kuwaiti doctor Abdul Rahman as-Sumait, may Allah have mercy on him, I say: Glory be to Allah!
Many, when they see what is happening in the world of famines, ask: (Why, my Lord?!) While Dr. Abdul Rahman as-Sumait, may Allah have mercy on him, asked: (What do You want me to do, my Lord?) The suffering and calamities that cause some to be angry or doubt are the same that drove as-Sumait to descend into the field, treating the poor with the medicine he learned, calling them to Islam, giving them water, feeding them, opening schools and mosques for them... So, Allah brought about a great blessing through his hands. What is a cause of doubt or disbelief for some is a cause of great reward and conquests, by the will of Allah, for others.
The key is to understand the position of servitude, so you learn that He does not ask about what He does, and you ask the right question: What do You want me to do, my Lord... "That is the bounty of Allah; He gives it to whom He wills, and Allah is all-Encompassing and all-Knowing" [Al-Ma'idah: 54].
The sincere caller does not mislead people into thinking that qualifying for calling to Islam is a complex matter that requires memorizing texts, understanding commentaries, and mastering Islamic sciences... nor does he boast about what distinguishes him from others in this regard to convince them that they should revere him and follow his opinion.
The sincere caller inspires people and makes them feel that calling to Islam is an easy matter within their reach:
Whoever does this, Allah will open for him and bring about through him good that He does not bring about through many of the scholars. These are easy but difficult matters, for they are within the reach of most people, but few are those who persevere in them.
To be a sincere caller, do not say to people, "Bring me forward, for I have attained what you have not attained..." but rather: "Come to the field, for you are the people of calling, so let us cooperate in its requirements."
"And [by] the time, indeed, mankind is in loss, except for those who have believed and done righteous deeds and advised each other to truth and advised each other to patience." [Al-Asr: 1-3].
"You are the best nation produced [as an example] for mankind. You enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and believe in Allah." [Al-Imran: 110].
And as we confront the flood of corruption and the fight against the Islamic identity, we will pay the price for walking against the current, and we will be afflicted in our wealth or jobs or comfort and tranquility... but with that, we rein in evil, with courage in the truth and without boredom from enjoining good and forbidding evil, so that we leave for our children and daughters a cleaner society in which they practice their religion, which they would not have enjoyed if their parents had lowered their heads and let the flood of corruption advance without opposition.
Choose for yourself, either to remain silent and leave for those who come after you difficult days in which their religion is lost, so that you will be a means of their entering the Fire from where you thought you had fulfilled your duty in feeding them, clothing them, and staying with them! Or they will say - if they choose the path of righteousness and the great hardship that accompanies it -: "Would that our parents and mothers had not given birth to us!"
Or you confront the flood, and they will say: "May Allah have mercy on our parents and mothers! They took upon themselves the arrows of the corrupters, and delayed the advance of the flood, so that we may enjoy something of our religion and its rituals."
Allah the Almighty says: "And those who fear that they will leave weak offspring behind them, let them fear Allah and let them speak words that are right." [An-Nisa: 9]. If you fear for your offspring, the greatest thing you can offer them is the fear of Allah, including enjoining good and forbidding evil, the right speech, and the word of truth in the face of the corrupters, even if it costs you dearly.
Events occur that reveal faces of good in the Ummah... and yet, if the Ummah wants victory, there are sunnahs that cannot be bypassed. "Expect good and you will find it" is not a hadith nor even a correct principle. Rather, the correct principle is: "Work for good and expect it, and you will find it."
Either we are weak in taking the means and then content ourselves with watching events without serious effort to influence them, and yet some of us encourage each other with the approach of victory, this is blameworthy reliance and negligence, not good opinion of Allah as some think. And the incapable one is he who follows his desires and wishes upon Allah what is not possible. And we have experienced before that those who contemplate without action, their souls deteriorate later, and they doubt the promise of Allah!
I say this because of what I see of the state of contemplation and commenting on near dates, which prevails among many, even at the level of some callers, may Allah forgive us and them. Any group that strives to raise the word of Allah and defend the oppressed, upon them is the reward of Allah, but it is not permissible to consider them as representing the entire Ummah and think that they will bring victory to an Ummah that has not supported the religion of Allah as it should be supported.
It is necessary to remind of these meanings before someone says: "How is this?" - why did what we hope for not happen? "Say, 'It is from yourselves.'" [Al-Imran: 165].
Does this mean that we will not pray in Al-Aqsa soon? No, this means not to wait for someone to say to us: "We have liberated Al-Aqsa for you, come and pray in it!" This means not to be in the position of spectators from afar, but to seek the way to support the religion of Allah as we are able. As it is said: The help of Allah is near, but it is we who approach it or distance ourselves from it. "Indeed, the mercy of Allah is near to the doers of good." [Al-A'raf: 56]. And the equation is clear: "If you support Allah, He will support you." [Muhammad: 7].
If we maintain the momentum when the souls of the Muslims awaken, and our aspirations do not wane as they usually do, and we turn hope into repentance, awakening, work, and aspiration as Allah has commanded, then the help of Allah is near, and Allah blesses at that time and prepares the means and strengthens us and raises us. Our last concern at that time is the strength of our enemies and their superiority, for Allah will outwit them and nullify their plots. And at that time, we will not be of those who exclude victory and see its delay until such and such of the long times.
When events occur that ignite the feelings, you see from the youth who stand firm or are about to repent because they feel the nearness of relief. But he becomes lazy and returns to what he was if he feels that victory has its sunnahs and causes that he must take and exert effort for. So we say to him: "And whoever turns back on his heels will not harm Allah at all; and Allah will reward the grateful." [Al-Imran: 144], "And if you turn away, He will replace you with another people; then they would not be like you." [Muhammad: 38].
Come! Approach and do not turn away, and make your repentance one of the causes of the victory that Allah will permit one day, and we are certain of that, and to Allah belongs all praise. What we need to work on is to invest the events that ignite the feelings of the Muslims, we invest them for the spiritual charge, raising the aspirations for work, distinguishing between truth and its people and falsehood and its people, and supporting the oppressed as we are able, with patience, determination, and high aspiration. You need to have a project with which you serve your religion. How? From where do I start? Can I?
By Allah, my brothers, I see with my own eyes how it is possible to greatly influence the love of people for their Lord, their glorification of Him, and their pride in their religion. We see from Allah blessing in all of this. And it is the beginning of the path to victory.
The key to all of this is that the concern for your religion is cast into your heart, the awakening that has no negligence after it, so you strive against yourself and your desires, and Allah will show you the ways that lead: "And those who strive for Us - We will surely guide them to Our ways. And indeed, Allah is with the doers of good." [Al-Ankabut: 69].
In conclusion: The question: Will we pray in Al-Aqsa soon? is not a question about information that has no role for us, like when will a meteor pass through the sky! But we are part of the answer. O Allah, help us in obeying You so that we may deserve Your victory.
This question is similar to: "What should I do for my son on the fourth floor of a building?" The answer is simple: to build the first three floors.
"But the matter is more urgent than that... they may demolish it at any moment!"
"I do not know of a fourth floor built in haste before its sisters! The occupation of Al-Aqsa has important symbolic significance. It was not desecrated except after the souls of the Muslims were desecrated with desires, doubts, heart diseases, and negligence, so their entity collapsed and their word was divided.
What is happening to Al-Aqsa is indeed a humiliation for the Ummah, but it is a result, not a cause... and it is one of the forms of humiliation that our Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Allah has imposed humiliation upon you that He will not remove until you return to your religion." [Narrated by Abu Dawud 3462].
Just as the occupation of Al-Aqsa was the culmination of the occupation of the souls and lands of the Muslims, so its liberation will not be except the culmination of the efforts to free themselves from this enslavement. And we ask Allah to make us of the soldiers of these two liberations.
In many Muslim countries, people still accept sincere, honest Islamic preaching that seeks only to support the religion and do good for people. This is our opportunity to call to Allah the Exalted, being jealous for His religion, not desiring what people have nor fearing them. A day may come, as it has come to some countries, when accumulations do their work, and people no longer accept this preaching. Someone may give you a pamphlet out of love for Allah, and they return it rudely... You advise them, and they respond with mockery... You offer to do something, and they refuse because of your religious appearance... You go to a public place, and they look at you with mockery or skepticism...
At that time, you may become active in calling to Islam after laziness and lethargy, but this activity will be somewhat to protect your personal being! Before, you were not moved to see Allah's prohibitions being violated, His limits being transgressed, His religion being abandoned, and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace be upon him) being turned away from. But what moved you was people's dislike for you, their bad treatment of you, and their closing doors in your face... You were moved because you felt that you were attacked (in the core of your personality).
Be completely sure that calling to Allah for His sake, being jealous for His religion, with sincere intention, is the greatest blessing and the best fruit of your call to Him at that time and for your own sake (together)! Be completely sure that people feel the difference in the divisions of your face and the tones of your voice, no matter how much you try to hide it!
Be completely sure that you will be shaken within yourself on that day, looking at yourself with a lowly look, fearing people, after it was possible for Allah to cast His awe in their hearts if you had worked for His sake in days of ease. All of this is if you choose the option of calling to Islam. If Satan exploits your weakness to distance you completely from calling to Islam for your own sake, or he may lure you to leave your straight path and become one of the heedless!
When there is a circle available for calling to Islam with a radius of a meter, we should not confine ourselves to half a meter! The time we waste in days of ease in what does not benefit, we will regret it tomorrow.
How many Muslims in Western countries have limited themselves in calling others and have been preoccupied with the world, so that when events occur that put Muslims in the circle of accusation, they become active in defending themselves and speaking about the virtues of Islam, sometimes with some embellishment and forgery to suit people's moods! "And if they had done what they were advised to do, it would have been better for them and stronger in establishment" [An-Nisa: 66]. And if they had called to the religion of Allah without desire or fear of people, it would have been more deserving of acceptance with Allah and then with people, and it would have been more deserving of their respect.
Hasten now, call to Allah for Allah... only... and (know Allah in ease, and He will know you in hardship). This message is not just for the (committed) men and women, but for everyone who loves Allah and His Messenger and is jealous for His religion.
Some of us are tested for the sake of Allah... and this test has a deep effect on him: withdrawal from enjoining good and forbidding evil, and lethargy in confronting falsehood and its people... and he sees this withdrawal as (wisdom). Days pass, and he sees Allah's prohibitions being violated more and more, His limits being transgressed, His religion being abandoned, and new generations being corrupted in their innate nature... and he finds himself at a crossroads:
Either to continue with the new negative life until the flame of jealousy for Allah's religion in his heart is extinguished, until its flame is extinguished, and the meanings of dignity, fatherhood, and rejection of humiliation are gradually removed from him... and he becomes part of the vortex of life with those who are involved... he submits outwardly, but dies inwardly little by little, and life loses its taste and meaning.
Or to prefer the life of his heart, his anger for Allah, and his victory for His religion. Here, some matters must be considered:
Knowing the difference between courage and recklessness..
And it is not appropriate for one who chooses determination for himself to deprive people of taking the concessions..
As the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "It is not appropriate for a believer to humiliate himself." They said: "How does he humiliate himself?" He said: "He exposes himself to tribulation that he cannot bear" [Sunan at-Tirmidhi 2254].
And he should consider those who depend on him and who are responsible for them and not burden them with what they cannot bear.
At the same time, he understands the difference between wisdom and submission, and does not resort to the world, giving his back to serving his religion, and letting jealousy slip from his heart under the pretext of wisdom. The believer cannot live without dignity and honor.. and the truth of the farouq Umar when he said: "Courage and cowardice are instincts in men, so the courageous fights against whom he knows and whom he does not know, and the coward flees from his father and mother" [Reported by Ibn Abi Shaybah]. O Allah, gather for us safety and the life of the heart.
Some are stingy with denial by the tongue despite their ability to do so and think that denial by the heart is sufficient. While the hadith says: "Whoever among you sees an evil, let him change it with his hand. If he cannot, then with his tongue. If he cannot, then with his heart, and that is the weakest of faith" [Sahih Muslim 49]. Notice His saying (peace be upon him): "If he cannot." It is not permissible to descend from one rank to another except in the case of inability.
The cultural gap with university students is one of the phenomena that educators and reformers should be aware of. What you think is obvious to everyone may not be the case for most of them! From my nature as a university professor who has taught at several private and public universities and given cultural lectures there, I have noticed this phenomenon clearly.
In one of the short tests, the question was: Which of the following anticoagulant drugs can be given orally? I put a correct option (warfarin) and other options, and I put with them (Stalin), the infamous communist leader (or the one I thought was known!). And there was someone who chose (Stalin) as the answer! When I mentioned that to another batch as a joke, I was surprised that the students did not know who Stalin was!
At another university, I spoke about positivity, and I quoted the hadith: "Seek what benefits you" which was one of the basics of what I learned, and one of the most famous hadiths. I was silent for the students to complete the hadith, but they did not complete it... Perhaps some of them were afraid, but it was clear that it was not one of the basics as it is clear to me!
It is not the place of the witness to lament the cultural gap, but to consider it an opportunity for educators and reformers: what you think is obvious may not be obvious to many... So do not monopolize any useful information that can be spread and taught.
You may think that communism has fallen from the consideration of (everyone) after the crimes of Stalin, who killed, displaced, and tortured tens of millions, while some around you are affected by the remnants of communist or socialist calls. You may think that the correct hadith you know is known by (everyone), and that is not the case. It is true that I was sad that day when the students did not know the hadith (Seek what benefits you, and seek help from Allah and do not be helpless, and do not say if I had done so, it would have been like this and like that, but say: It is the decree of Allah and what He wills, He does). But I enjoyed it afterwards while dictating the hadith to them and asking them to write it, remembering the Prophet's (peace be upon him) saying: "May Allah beautify the affair of a man who hears something from us and conveys it as he heard it, for there is a conveyor who is more attentive than a hearer" [Reported by at-Tirmidhi 2657 and he said it is good and authentic]. And His saying: "Convey from me even if it is an ayah" [Sahih al-Bukhari 3461]. It has also happened that I learned from others what I was surprised that I did not know before. We should not belittle anything we know, brothers, as long as it is reliable and beneficial... and we should not stop at lamenting the simplicity of the culture of many, but let us teach and learn, for lighting a single candle is better than cursing the darkness a thousand times.
You may have many sins... This should not stop you from defending your Islam when you see it and see the children of Islam being targeted. Rather, your defense of it may be the reason for which Allah forgives your sins and guides you to His obedience, casts His love, glorification, and attachment to Him in your heart, and grants you the honor of Islam. "Verily, a servant may utter a word pleasing to Allah, for which he will be raised many degrees" [Sahih al-Bukhari 6478]. Not only degrees in the Hereafter, but also in this world.
Show your love for Allah and His religion, denounce evil, do not let your sins prevent you, and do not care about the mockery of mockers and the discouragement of discouragers. For Allah is more worthy to be pleased... "And to Him is your return" [Hud: 34].
One of us sometimes wishes for an extraordinary honor, especially the afflicted, to feel that Allah is with him. But upon reflection, as our scholars have said: (Uprightness is the greatest honor).
When you, O upright Muslim, are steadfast in this difficult time, the devils of mankind and jinn "plot by night and day" [Saba: 33], and some circles and centers are plotted against three (times) so that not an hour passes without action!
And the matter does not stop at the limits of human capabilities, but: "And indeed, the devils inspire their devotees" [Al-An'am: 121], as it is said: the devil thinks for them!
And they spend billions in media and have hundreds of strategic planning centers around the world with huge budgets whose top priority is "to turn away from the path of Allah" [Al-Anfal: 36]... And they spend billions in military wars: "And they will continue to fight you until they turn you away from your religion if they are able" [Al-Baqarah: 217]... And they are aided by people from your own kin and with Islamic names like yours who dress up the truth with falsehood and use the Quran to distort words from their places.
And you, with all of this, are steadfast on your religion, upright on the command of Allah! What greater honor do you want than this honor?! And what greater miracle do you want than this miracle?! "And if their evil plot could cause the mountains to move" [Ibrahim: 46], (a well-known, correct reading with the dammah on the lam for "to move")... And yet their evil plot has not removed faith from your heart! Your faith is more firmly rooted and heavier than the mountains! Therefore, steadfastness on uprightness is the greatest honor.
The origin of the article's idea is from a conversation with a brother who was my companion in a difficult situation when I told him that I love to see a prophetic vision of Allah's companionship, and he reminded me, may Allah reward him with good, with this saying: (Uprightness is the greatest honor).
One of us is often deceived by his religious condition (being stable)... Although he is deficient in acts of worship, humility, supporting the religion, seeking beneficial Islamic knowledge, refuting doubters, and bringing people closer to their Lord... And despite his work tainted with the forbidden, his forbidden glances, her negligence in her hijab, and the rules of interaction between the sexes...
Despite all this, Allah has not tempted him away from his religion, for he is still praying, fasting, loving Islam, and avoiding major sins (assuming that the deficiency in the past is not from major sins)... Therefore, Allah has not deprived him nor punished him in his religion for his deficiency.
This wretched one is oblivious to a great deprivation that he is in! He could have been (something influential) in the history of humanity... He could have been one of the supporters of Allah in his land, reviving a Sunnah every day, killing a fitnah, refuting a doubt, suppressing falsehood, awakening a heedless one, bringing a distant one closer, spreading guidance, and reviving souls that ignorance and desire had killed.
He could have been remembered by Allah in the highest assembly and celebrated by the people of heaven for what they see of his support for Allah and Allah's love for him. He could have been one of the foremost, the truthful, the close ones... He could have been one of those who enter Paradise without reckoning or punishment...
He could have been a turning point in history, and Allah could have written for his effort acceptance and a blessed effect until the Day of Judgment... He could have been all of this... but he was content with less, or rather, these noble deeds did not even cross his mind, or they did for a while and then he forgot them!... And he remained for years struggling with delaying the Fajr prayer, the desire to overeat and what follows it of laziness and sleep, and the temptation of female colleagues in study or work!
While others support Allah with religion and rise in degrees in the highest heavens and eternal pleasure of the Lord of the worlds descends upon them... And they have reserved a seat for themselves in the highest paradise... If this is not deprivation, then what is deprivation?! And if that is not punishment, then what is punishment?! He may enter Paradise in the end, but after the bitterness of feeling cheated on the day that Allah has named: "The Day of Mutual Deprivation" [Al-Taghabun: 9].. The day in which the wrongdoer regrets his wrongdoing, and the doer of good regrets that he did not increase his good deeds.
There are great horizons waiting for you... So do not let negligence prevent you from them. There are heavenly delights, so do not be content with a substitute. There are high stations, so do not be satisfied with the lower. And life is short, so do not be deceived by the length of hope. O Lord, catch us with Your mercy before we regret.
When you are affected by others' opinions about you, their words, and their blame... When you lose your compass: you do something, or take a stance, the praisers praise you and you are pleased, the blamers blame you and you regret it, you take another stance to correct the situation, others blame and criticize you for what they praised you for yesterday, you become scattered in your mind and thoughts and do not know what to do...
At that moment, read the words of Allah the Almighty: "O you who have believed, whoever of you abandons his religion, Allah will bring forth [in his place] a people He will love and who will love Him, humble toward the believers, powerful against the disbelievers, striving in the cause of Allah and fearing not the blame of blamers. That is the favor of Allah; He bestows it upon whom He wills. And Allah is all-Encompassing and Knowing" [Al-Ma'idah: 54].
"They love Him": And if Allah loves His servants, He shows them the subtleties and signs of that love, with which the servants find immense comfort. Feeling that love is the source of their reassurance, steadfastness, and strength. They are ready to do anything to preserve it and firmly reject doing anything that would make them lose Allah's love and the feeling that He is with them.
"They love Him": A love that fills their hearts, not rivaled by thoughts of what people think of them, nor do they prioritize pleasing anyone or averting their anger and blame. Rather, their love for Allah governs their feelings, stances, and perspective on everyone and everything. Their love for others or hatred for them is based on this. It is a dominant, ruling love, with no rival or competitor.
"Humble toward the believers": Because their love for the believers is subordinate in their hearts to their love for Allah the Almighty. Their humility toward the believers is evidence that their disregard for blame is not out of arrogance or pride.
"Powerful against the disbelievers": Even if the disbelievers appear victorious and have power, the love of Allah in the hearts of the believers is a source of superiority and confidence. Their spirits do not yield, nor do they break.
"They strive in the cause of Allah": With their hearts, tongues, and hands. They strive against the disbelievers, hypocrites, their falsehood, and corruption, knowing that their striving may be against the current and may expose them to many sacrifices.
Yet: "And they do not fear the blame of blamers": This blamer may be from among the people of falsehood, blaming you to abandon you, make you regret, or mock you. Or he may be from among the loving Muslims, blaming you for what you (lost) while you are denouncing evil or fighting falsehood, blaming you out of love and concern for you. Nevertheless, all this blame, whoever its owner and whatever its motive, does not affect the stances of the sincere believers, nor do they fear it, nor does it cause them regret or retreat if their stances are derived from the love of Allah, and if their sacrifices are for His sake and seeking His noble countenance, even if the blame comes from a loving, concerned, and eager person for them, but he is wrong in blaming them in the balance of Allah.
Therefore, notice the generality: "The blame of blamers." Firmness and disregard for blame are evidence of their certainty in the religion for which they sacrifice, and evidence of the strength of their resolve.
"That is the favor of Allah; He bestows it upon whom He wills": That is the heart's attachment to the love of Allah, so that its unity is not scattered, nor does it tear apart in an attempt to please this one and that one, nor does it regret the blame of this one and the reproach of that one. Rather, the believer becomes the one who guides and influences the stances of the blamers and corrects their course, and they will one day praise him for what they blamed him for yesterday. All of this is a favor from Allah. How blessed is he who seeks it and is granted it.
"And Allah is all-Encompassing and Knowing": Encompassing that rises above being affected by momentary situations of people's love, hatred, praise, and blame, and knowing the consequences of certainty and the depth of Allah's love in the hearts of the believers.
Who will help me against Allah if I disobey Him?! In his argument with his people, Saleh, peace be upon him, said: "Who will help me against Allah if I disobey Him? You do not increase me except in loss" [Hud: 63]. This is what every sincere caller should say to the oppressors who bargain with him through enticement and intimidation to soften their corruption and enslavement of people and distort his call to suit their whims: Who will help me against Allah if I disobey Him and obey you and soften for you?
Who will help me against Allah if I disobey Him and He punishes me by depriving me of His guidance and blinding my insight, so that shameful acts come from me that make me fall from His sight and from the sight of people forever? Who will help me against Allah if I disobey Him and He inflicts upon me a chronic, debilitating disease that I wish for death but do not find it? Who will help me against Allah if I disobey Him and He unleashes you upon me, O oppressors, so that you oppress me even though I have appeased you with the wrath of Allah? Who will help me against Allah if I disobey Him and He hastens my death with an evil end, and I stand before Him with no defender from you nor any helper, so what will I say to Him on that day and with what face will I face Him?
What benefit will you bring me in all these situations? But "You do not increase me except in loss" you will not increase me except in loss... I and you are subdued to Allah "The Subduer over His servants," so go and bargain, entice, and threaten those who do not know this truth about themselves and about you!
We often mention that those who fall into temptations and desires have their hearts dominated, but this is only half the truth! The other half, which is no less important: those who resist them receive an immediate reward: the white spot!
When you are exposed to temptation, there are two outcomes, no third: either the white spot or the black spot. There is no third possibility that neither benefits nor harms you! Here is the immediate reward! When you resist desire and temptation, do not only restrain yourself for the reward of the Hereafter, nor only because whoever leaves something for Allah, Allah will compensate him with something better later, but there is an immediate white spot, qualifying you to become one of the owners of the white hearts who distinguish right from wrong in this confusing world, who feel the pleasure of attachment to Allah the Almighty, in whom Allah pours His intimacy, longing for Him, love for Him, His religion, His Book, His Messenger peace be upon him, and love for the Muslims in Him, glory be to Him.
When you see that Allah the Almighty exposes you to temptations and makes you patient with them, know that He wants you for a honor in religion that requires a white heart. This does not mean, of course, that we hover around desires and plunge into them, but that we are patient if we are confronted. On the other hand, remember that accepting temptation and enjoying it is an immediate punishment: a black spot that deprives you of the noble feelings mentioned, and in their place comes confusion and bewilderment in the temptations of desires and doubts.
These meanings are explained in a hadith narrated by Imam Muslim that the Messenger of Allah peace be upon him said: "Temptations are presented to the hearts like the mat, strand by strand" meaning intertwined, many following one another like the intertwining of the mat. "So any heart that absorbs them, a black spot is placed in it" meaning the heart that accepts them and does not defend itself receives a black spot. "And any heart that rejects them, a white spot is placed in it" the one who resists them and rejects them and is patient with them receives a white spot. "Until it becomes two hearts: one white like the pure white mountain, so no temptation harms it as long as the heavens and the earth endure" the heart of the one who is patient with temptations becomes white little by little, as white as Mount Safa, so he gains strength and immunity against the temptations that will be presented to him later, even if they are greater than the first. "And the other black, charred like the pitcher upside down" the heart becomes black in color, the color of ashes. "Like the pitcher upside down" meaning like the jar turned upside down on its mouth. If you come with a complete water tank full of cubic meters of water and try to pour some of this water into this upside-down pitcher, how much will enter? Not a single drop! Similarly, the heart that accepts temptations and does not defend itself and is stained with blackness reaches a stage where it is like this upside-down jar... perhaps you come to him with verses, hadiths, poetic verses, companions' stances, and influential stories, and not a single hair on his head will be shaken! Because he has become inverted, Allah forbid. "He does not recognize good nor denounce evil except what his desire absorbs" (Sahih Muslim 144). His motive in life and his measure for judging things becomes desire alone.
When you resist temptations and protect yourself from them, remember that you have protected yourself by the grace of Allah from this terrifying fate, and you have received an immediate reward with the whiteness of your heart, so do not forget it or neglect it.
There is a difference between memorizing a verse or a hadith on one hand and believing in them on the other. There is a great hadith... when you believe in it, you walk on the earth with your heart suspended from the Throne, hoping for none but Allah, fearing none else... because you are convinced that your manager at work, your colleague who schemes against you, your university professor, any government employee who tries to burden you with financial obligations, your wealthy relative, your lovers and haters, supporters and opponents, and even your enemies and enviers—all of them, without exception, on the ground and on the pages of social media... and the billions of people... all of them are subjugated slaves to Allah the Almighty. Their hearts are between two of His fingers, glorified be He. They can only benefit you with His permission and can only harm you with His permission.
If you seek goodness, then ask it from the Almighty over His slaves, and if you fear the harm of the slaves, then seek refuge with their Lord, glorified be He. These are truths... the verses in it are clear, not ambiguous nor abrogated, and the hadiths in it are authentic. The role is upon you to believe in them, and then how can any of these subjugated powers frighten you or tempt you or buy your conscience or find a way to your heart to divert your intention from sincerity to the Almighty and make you fall into showing off or groveling to the subjugated?
These are truths... if you believe in them, your fragmented heart will gather, its beads will align, and its disorder will be set right upon Allah, glorified be He. I remember a day when I passed through a difficult and frightening situation many years ago... then suddenly I remembered this hadith... as if it knocked on my being to gather my scattered heart... to gather it upon Allah alone.
These are great words that cause a revolution in one's being... the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, taught them to a child (Abdullah ibn Abbas) as he rode behind him on the mount... to build his character with them. It is upon us, the adults, to rebuild our characters upon them... for we have missed much, and we have wasted much of our lives, thoughts, efforts, and health due to our negligence of the hadith, which we may have memorized... but this time we need to... believe in it! It is the saying of our Prophet, peace be upon him: "O boy, I will teach you some words: Guard Allah, and He will guard you. Guard Allah, and you will find Him in front of you. If you ask, ask Allah, and if you seek help, seek help from Allah. Know that if the nation were to gather to benefit you with something, they would not benefit you except with something that Allah has already written for you. And if they were to gather to harm you with something, they would not harm you except with something that Allah has already written upon you. The pens are lifted and the pages are dried." [Sunan al-Tirmidhi 2516].
Whenever your self calls you to disobedience... remember: your wounded nation awaits someone to carry its burden and seek the path of its honor! Your disobedience and negligence make you a new burden on your nation... fear Allah... for the burden is about to break her back!
The words above were the cause of a nice story that one of the brothers sent to me, saying: (A while ago, a friend of mine told me a wonderful story in which you were a part, so I wanted to narrate it to you today): He said to me: (A Palestinian youth knew a married woman, and a relationship began between them on social media, exchanging messages and calls, and she would ask him to come to her, but praise be to Allah! Whenever he intended to come, something would prevent him and he would not be able to! Like this every time! Until one day, he informed him that her husband had traveled and left her alone at home, so she asked him to come, so he encouraged himself, stopped a taxi, and set off towards her, and on the way to her (and to fornication) - imagine what he remembered, Dr.?! - He said: I remembered the saying of Dr. Iyad Qanibi: [Whenever your self calls you to disobedience, remember that your wounded nation awaits someone to carry its burden and seek the path of its honor, and your disobedience and negligence make you a new burden on your nation... fear Allah, for the burden is about to break her back!] So he woke up, returned, and blocked the woman and deleted her).
Look, Dr., how a single word rebuked the heart of a believer and prevented him from disobedience... continue, O beloved father, for you are on the frontline!
I say: Do you see why we should never despair? Do you see why I deeply believe that words have an impact and that we should work tirelessly and without fatigue? Do you see why I love the nation of Muhammad, peace be upon him, and do not lose hope in its children, no matter how far they seem to have gone? For this, we spread the issues of our nation, so that the burden may turn into resolve and the forbidden may be lifted. O Allah, strengthen this servant of Yours, bind his heart, and provide for him and all the Muslim youth and girls with the lawful.
May Allah bless me for missing my flight back from Istanbul to Jordan, so I went to a friend's house to wait for the next one... In my conversation with his 16-year-old son, I asked him, "Do you struggle with the temptation of women here, my friend?" He said, "A lot." I told him, "I will share my experience with this matter and what Allah has honored me with." And I am repeating what I told him to my brothers and sisters for the benefit of all.
First, young people, a Muslim should not expose himself to temptation... meaning, do not go to a place full of temptations and say, "I will resist." Do not test your faith in this way. How many people have slipped and gone astray by exposing themselves to temptations. And the hypocrites will be told on the Day of Judgment: "But you have tempted yourselves" [Al-Hadid: 14]... meaning, you exposed yourselves to temptation until you were tempted. But suppose you actually needed to be in a place full of overwhelming temptations... how should you behave?
I was in the university during my bachelor's degree and then in the work phase in Jordan before pursuing my PhD... my exposure to temptations was minimal... the need to interact with the opposite gender was low, and if any interaction occurred, I would lower my gaze and be preoccupied with my studies and work.
I received a scholarship to pursue my PhD from the University of Houston in America. The nature of the scholarship was to study the PhD at very low tuition fees and receive a salary from the university in exchange for working as a teaching assistant. My job as a teaching assistant meant the need to interact with male and female students, where I supervised a laboratory in which students and female students were divided into groups. The doctor in charge of the laboratory and I would give them cases of diseases at the beginning of the laboratory, then give them the opportunity to discuss and search for the best treatment for them. During this, the students would ask us some questions, and we would answer and direct them to the appropriate sources. Then, a representative or representative from each group would give a presentation, explaining the treatment method, and we would evaluate the performance. Sometimes, a visitor or visitor from those working in the Pharmacy Doctor sector would come to recommend to the students the prospects of the profession.
During this, I would perform my duty, lower my gaze, deal formally, and provide assistance... what happens in this case is that some Westerners, if they see this abstinence and morality from you, will have curiosity, and sometimes a desire to break this state of pride in you. It is as if it is a challenge for them to break this arrogance.
I was exposed to attempts of this kind. My response was to turn to my Lord, glorified and exalted be He, saying: "But keep away from me their cunning, and if I were to touch their cunning, I would be of those who go astray" [Yusuf: 33]... I sought refuge with Allah from my surroundings and my strength and asked Him for steadfastness, glorified be He. This is first.
Second: I fled from temptation by fleeing... a person may laugh at himself and say, "What should I do, my Lord?! I am forced to deal with them," and be happy that temptation has come to him and imposed itself on him. I did not do that, nor did I laugh at myself. But I exchanged the laboratories where there were attempts to get close with a colleague in the PhD program so that I would perform a task in which I would distance myself from places of temptation. The believer does not hover around temptations, but if they come to him, he flees from them.
I lived in America next to a mosque with a beautiful Islamic atmosphere... but the residence was not all Muslims... on my way from the parking lot to my apartment, I would pass by a swimming pool, and this continued for years. I did not pay attention to this pool and what was in it. This was thanks to Allah alone and His guidance.
Do you see, young people, I have flaws, shortcomings, and weak points, and I am not perfect, by Allah. But the temptation of desires, in particular, I was very cautious of it because I fear that it would cloud my heart because of it, so I would reach a stage where I hate the religion of Allah and be deprived because of it of being like those whom Allah said to: "But Allah has made faith pleasing to you and made it beautiful in your hearts and made disbelief, wickedness, and disobedience hateful to you" [Al-Hujurat: 7].
I could have told myself: "Minor sins that I can atone for with good deeds." But no, because I realized that with the evil of these minor sins, my heart could be misguided, and I could fall into major sins of the heart, such as hating what Allah has revealed. This happened to a number of Muslims in the West, whose temptation began with desires and then turned into doubts. The mirror of his heart was tarnished, so it no longer showed things as they are. He no longer saw Islam as beautiful nor disbelief as ugly. "So when they deviated, Allah turned their hearts away. And Allah does not guide the defiantly disobedient people" [Al-Saff: 5].
This is what I feared greatly and avoided. And on the other hand, I have weak points and ask Allah for forgiveness and well-being. While lowering my gaze amidst temptations, I felt the words of our Prophet, peace be upon him: "Temptations are presented to the hearts like reeds one by one. Any heart that accepts them will have a black spot, and any heart that rejects them will have a white spot, until they become two hearts: one white like the white of the rock, which no temptation will harm as long as the heavens and the earth exist, and the other black, inverted like a pitcher, perforated, not recognizing good nor denouncing evil, except what it has absorbed from its desires" (Sahih Muslim 144).
Continuous temptations came... I rejected them.. and after that, I felt immune as if I had received strengthening doses continuously. And I believe that Allah, glorified and exalted be He, has rewarded me with much good for what I left. The student who lives in an environment full of temptations, lowers his gaze, and abstains, is more likely to release his energies in useful sciences, excel in them, and surpass the people of other religions or atheists who do not have these meanings. And Allah has honored us with this, and then He honored me with the righteous daughter of Allah. And we ask Allah not to deprive us of His blessings because of our flaws and shortcomings.
When you protect your hearing and sight, you protect your heart: "Indeed, the hearing, the sight, and the heart - all of those will be questioned about it" [Al-Isra: 36]... You protect your heart from the stains of sin entering it through hearing and sight, so that the mirror of this heart remains pure, and this makes it more likely that you will see things as they truly are: "O you who have believed, if you fear Allah, He will make for you a criterion" [Al-Anfal: 29]... A criterion by which you distinguish between truth and falsehood. May Allah, glorified and exalted be He, bring you the light of love for His religion, His Book, and the call to it. Of course, lowering the gaze and abstinence is one of the causes, not everything, but it is an important cause.
Imagine if the poor servant, when temptations swarmed around him, if he had slipped a little and followed this slip, would Allah use him to call to Him, glorified and exalted be He, and point to Him?! The suffering of lowering the gaze turns into pleasure, the pleasure of superiority over the forbidden, the pleasure of victory over Satan and the soul that incites to evil, the pleasure of sacrifice for the sake of Allah and presenting His love and glorification over fleeting pleasures. Then the matter becomes easier and easier by the permission of Allah. "And Allah increases in guidance those who have been guided" [Maryam: 76].
I mention this to you, young people, not to boast, but because our Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "None of you truly believes until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself" (Sahih al-Bukhari 13), and I, by Allah, love for you what I love for myself. I know, young people, that temptations are severe these days... but remember: when you lower your gaze, you are not doing so out of compliance with dry, rigid rules, but you are dealing with the Lord of Honor, the Wise, the Knowing, who sees you and hears you "He knows the treachery of the eyes and what the breasts conceal" [Ghafir: 19]. He did not command you to lower your gaze except that He knows that you are capable of it: "Allah does not charge a soul except with what it can bear" [Al-Baqarah: 286].. You are dealing with the Kind, the Generous One, who, if He sees you endure for His sake, will love you, honor you, and give to you.
Delaying marriage is not a natural state. Among its causes are injustice and deliberate corruption in the lands of the Muslims. We must work to reclaim our usurped rights and establish the law of Allah, so that youth and young women may find comfort in lawful marriage at an appropriate age. We must encourage facilitating marriage with psychological, scientific, and educational preparation for it. Until then, we remember the saying of Allah the Most High: "And let those who find not the means to marry keep themselves chaste until Allah gives them means out of His bounty" [An-Nur: 33].
You are either part of the problem of the Ummah or part of its solution. If you do not lower your gaze, you will be part of the problem of the Ummah and affected by it. How beautiful it is to be a solution to the problem by calling to Allah to help Muslim women who are exposed to temptation to obey Allah and cooperate with their believing brothers to restore the glory of the Ummah.
Of course, you may be deficient in this aspect but good in another. Even if you are deficient, do not despair and remain resisting yourself and the devil, seeking help from Allah. I always advise in this regard the series on managing sins by our brother Dr. Ayman Al-Balawi.
O youth, all the beauties of this world do not equal the beauty of being a cause for the guidance of a young man or a girl and their return to Islam or to the obedience of Allah the Most High. These pleasures are not comparable to the forbidden pleasures. How about meeting Allah the Most High on the Day of Judgment, Allah the Beautiful, whose noble face is the highest bliss in Paradise. Do you want this bliss? Strive for it in this world and lower your gaze.
Lowering the gaze is not easy, but: "Verily, the merchandise of Allah is precious, verily, the merchandise of Allah is Paradise." Paradise... eternal happiness that never ends... no death with it, no sickness, no sorrow, no fatigue, no fear, no anxiety. Do you want it without any effort or sacrifice?
Our Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "A morning journey or an evening journey in the cause of Allah is better than the world and what is in it," meaning, an expedition in jihad is better than the world and what is in it, "and the space of a bow or an arrow's length from Paradise is better than the world and what is in it." What does this mean? Now, the bow with which arrows are shot; notice that what is between the bow and the string is only a few square centimeters, and this amount in Paradise is better than the world and what is in it! Similarly, the space of a foot in Paradise. - (Strange!) - No, it is not strange. Why? Because this amount in Paradise is permanent and does not perish, while the world is perishable and fleeting.
Then our Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "If a woman from the women of the people of Paradise were to look at the earth, she would illuminate what is between them, and she would fill what is between them with fragrance, and her veil - meaning the headscarf - is better than the world and what is in it" (Sahih al-Bukhari 6567). This piece that she wears on her head as an adornment is better than the world and what is in it! You are either a believer that Muhammad, peace be upon him, is the Messenger of Allah, informing about his Lord, the Most High, with truth and sincerity. This speech will then help you in your journey of lowering the gaze in your life. But if you doubt, return to strengthening your certainties. This was what I said to the son of my friend. And by the way, this is a reminder that we should be frank with our teenage children, ask them about what they are exposed to, show them understanding, give them solutions, and remind them of the great rewards with Allah.
What about our daughters? Is this speech only for the youth? I know, my daughters, that some of you also suffer with lowering the gaze and preserving yourself in the atmosphere of temptations. And all that I said to the youth I say to you: the advice is to avoid the places of temptation from the beginning, not to hover around the temptations, nor to make excuses that they came to us, and remember the great rewards in obeying Allah the Most High.
Umm Salama, may Allah be pleased with her, said: "O Messenger of Allah, the women said: 'We do not see Allah the Most High mentioning except men.'" So Allah the Most High revealed a verse that clarifies that the rewards mentioned are for men and women, and He said: "Indeed, the Muslim men and Muslim women, the believing men and believing women, the obedient men and obedient women, the truthful men and truthful women, the patient men and patient women, the humble men and humble women, the charitable men and charitable women, the fasting men and fasting women, the men who guard their private parts and the women who do so, and the men who remember Allah often and the women who do so - for them Allah has prepared forgiveness and a great reward" [Al-Ahzab: 35]. I ask Allah the Most High to help us all in His obedience, to grant us light in our insights, and to bless the Islamic Ummah with days of glory in which temptations fade away, and in which the comfort of lawful marriage prevails, and in which our nation regains its glory and dignity.
(I was visiting a dear brother who was suffering from a serious illness and enduring severe pain. I read some verses to him, including the end of Surah Al-Imran. One verse stopped me: "So those who emigrated and were expelled from their homes and suffered in My cause and fought and were killed - I will indeed remove from them their evil deeds and admit them into Gardens beneath which rivers flow, as a reward from Allah, and with Allah is the best of rewards" [Al-Imran: 195].
I told him words I wish to say to myself and to my brothers so that we all benefit, especially those who are suffering greatly and whose patience is almost exhausted: Look at the believers mentioned in the verse and the dowery of Paradise they paid, five things:
What was their reward?: "I will indeed remove from them their evil deeds and admit them into Gardens beneath which rivers flow, as a reward from Allah, and with Allah is the best of rewards."
In contrast, what have we done? And what have we offered of these five doweries for Paradise? Have we emigrated? Been expelled from our homes? Been harmed for the sake of Allah? Fought? Been killed? And we want to enjoy a Paradise whose width is the heavens and the earth, where we will have eternal bliss, living there forever without interruption? So if Allah tests us, will we pay a dowery for Paradise and become discontented, narrow-minded, and stingy with the dowery? "Or do you think that you will enter Paradise without Allah knowing those of you who fought and knew the patient?" [Al-Imran: 142]. If we do not endure, then what makes us think we will enter Paradise? (Indeed, Allah's merchandise is precious, indeed, Allah's merchandise is Paradise).
When I see such images, I remember some of those who are counted among the Muslims who get angry at destiny if (when) a car's horn is honked at them or a passing car splashes them with rainwater! Muslims in a devastated country whose homes have been destroyed, their fathers and brothers killed, their children disabled from a young age, then they come and pray in Allah's destroyed mosques in submission, satisfaction, and surrender to their destiny, and they are content with the precious and the cheap for the sake of Allah, while we consider them. Learn, O those who complain about destiny!!
(If you do not like what is happening in the country, then leave it) This statement may be heard by a Muslim who is trying to reform his society and denounce evil, swimming against the current. Those who say it are usually the arrogant, who see themselves as the owners of the earth because the power is in their hands, so allowing you to live under their (rule) is a favor from them! And your opposition to their laws - with your Quranic and Sunnah call - is a crime that allows them to expel you or imprison you, in the manner of those before them: "We will expel you from our land or you will return to our religion" [Al-A'raf: 88]. Notice: "our land"!
It is no wonder that the arrogant are arrogant, but the danger is if this (logic) of theirs seeps into you, O Muslim, and you feel that they are the true owners of the earth and that you are a freeloader with your call! This is a form of psychological defeat.
We must always remember that we - those who obey Allah and call to His obedience - are the people of the earth, and those who want to subjugate people to their whims are the freeloaders, not the opposite. When one of them says (if you do not like the country's laws, leave it), our answer is ready: (if you do not like the law of the Creator of the country and the universe, leave His being)!
If an employer hired you and others to build a house in a garden, then disappeared for a while, you began to build it as he commanded, and the others began to destroy it, then they threw at you the wood and stones and (beat) you with them, saying: (we are more than you and stronger, so we are the owners of the garden, so obey us or leave the garden). You may fear their harm, but you see their action as bullying and their logic as foolish, especially since you realize that the employer is returning and will see what you and they have done, and you will not feel for a moment that you are a freeloader, or that they have (some right) to force you to do what they want!
Allah, the Exalted, has entrusted us with this earth to build it with His law and guidance. So whoever adheres to it is one of its people, and whoever opposes are the freeloaders. With certainty in this matter, I feel the depth of my roots in every land I settle in, even if I go to America or China, and I feel that when I reform my community in a way that pleases Allah, I am only restoring people to their original state, and I do not find any difficulty or hesitation in that.
How many of us leave enjoining good and forbidding evil because he fears being (mocked) by those who are equal and those who are not, and he (is not afraid of being mocked)... he is a person of scientific, social, or financial status, and it is not befitting for him to be ridiculed, or beaten, or lose his job, or be imprisoned...
Here, we are in dire need to remember Allah's saying: {It was not for the people of the city and those around them of the bedouins to refuse to follow the Messenger of Allah and not prefer themselves over himself} [At-Tawbah: 120]. So it is not for a Muslim to exalt himself above enduring hardship that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, endured, as if his soul is more honorable than the soul of the Messenger of Allah.
The Messenger of Allah was harmed for Allah, insulted, beaten, stoned, thrown with the spines of date palms, lied about, mocked, threatened, besieged in the valley, forced to leave his homeland, his daughters were harmed, falsehood was spread about his family, he was hungry, thirsty, and endured hardships, and he is the greatest of humans, the highest in status, the most honorable to Allah, the most refined in feeling, and the noblest in soul, peace be upon him.
So no one of us has a more honorable soul, nor a higher status, nor more refined feelings than the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, no matter his social, scientific, or material status.
Ibn Al-Qayyim said in (Ighathat Al-Lahfan): (And from his tricks - meaning: the tricks of Satan - is that he orders you to honor yourself and protect it where the pleasure of the Lord, the Exalted, is in its humiliation and degradation, such as fighting the disbelievers and hypocrites, and commanding the wicked and oppressors with good and forbidding them from evil, so it seems to you that this is exposing yourself to places of humiliation and unleashing the enemies upon you and their stabbing you, so your prestige is lost and they will not accept from you nor listen to you after that). That is: Satan says to you: if you are humiliated, you will lose your prestige, so people will leave your call! But it is a trick of Satan to honor yourself from the struggles that your noblest prophet, peace be upon him, underwent.
You may fear, you may weaken... and you may have an excuse in some cases, but do not say to yourself (I am not afraid of being mocked)! Do not prefer yourself over the soul of your beloved Muhammad, peace be upon him.
It is a witnessed fact: the lover cannot keep secrets. You see, he wants to confide in his friend, his mother, his brother, or his sister. He fabricates a topic that is not his goal to reach the expression of the love that has fallen into his heart. He waits for his friend to ask and inquire so that he can confide more.
He finds joy in expressing his love... believing that by confessing, he will relieve himself, and behold, the love intensifies more! And for this reason, poems were composed, and poetry was said by those who are not poets!
My point here is not whether this love is permissible or not... whether it led to a pure marriage or a sin... whether he should ignore this love and extinguish its flames if it is not in the right place or if he cannot attain what he desires... but rather, it is a report of a fact: that the lover cannot keep secrets.
So, what about the sublime, devotional, pure love... the love of Allah, the Almighty?! {And those who believe are stronger in their love for Allah} [Al-Baqarah: 165].
Can you imagine loving Allah and then being able to hide your love?! Is it not the truth that this love must manifest? Should you not constantly show this love and find immense joy and pleasure in displaying it? When the topic of distinguishing the Muslim by his appearance is raised, some of us find it a heavy burden! They see it as a difficult "tax" of (commitment)... while the lover finds it a joy that he is driven to. He declares that he loves Allah, the Most High, and He loves His Messenger, peace be upon him.
Does it make sense, O Muslims, that one cannot distinguish between the servant of Ar-Rahman and the servant of the devil... I do not mean the servant of the devil metaphorically, but literally! I mean the sect of the devils' worshippers! Do they not both wear the latest fashions and shave the latest hairstyles and behave similarly unless you examine each one's beliefs?!
Is it conceivable, O daughter of Islam, that you cannot be distinguished from someone who does not acknowledge your Prophet or the Quran?! Is it conceivable that when someone commits an evil act or speaks an evil word in front of people, your love for Allah and your enmity towards His sanctities do not show?
Do not look upon the outward guidance and the display of pride in the Islamic identity as a (difficult) obligation, but rather, it is first and foremost an expression of sincere love. For the lover cannot keep secrets.
Do you think that if your good deeds outweigh your bad deeds, you have escaped punishment? Do you think that if Allah has mercy on you and does not punish you, you have escaped punishment? O wretched one! O wretched one! Opportunities will come to you, each one of which is better than the world and all that is in it:
You could have taken advantage of these crucial moments... Your enmity towards the religion could have ignited in your heart, your eyes could have welled up with tears, your lips could have quivered, and your facial features could have moved, and sincere words could have flowed from your tongue, writing faith in the hearts that opened to you for a moment like a blank page... turning the heedless, the mockers, and the rejecters into a righteous servant of Allah, and their deeds would begin to be counted in the scale of your good deeds, even if you only met Allah with them, you would hope for His mercy.
You could have attained this "honor" - but...! Your sins, which you have taken lightly, gathered upon you... they sat on your heart, extinguished your flames, and tied your tongue! So, lifeless words came out of you that did not affect you, let alone those who heard them! And this historic moment passed, and you lost it, perhaps... forever!
Then you will understand well the meaning of abandonment! You took the sins lightly, and you preferred the desires that the devil adorned over the conquests of the Most Merciful, and you said to yourself: "He will forgive us... we will do good deeds that will overwhelm them... Allah is Merciful, perhaps He will not punish us." And you did not think about the loss of opportunities for honor... and that is sufficient as punishment!
So, do not deprive yourself... for what is with Allah is better. The life of your heart is better and sweeter than the life of heedlessness and the little enjoyment it contains... {O you who have believed, respond to Allah and to the Messenger when he calls you to that which gives you life. And know that Allah is between a man and his heart [i.e., He is observing] and that to Him you will be gathered} [Al-Anfal: 24].
It happened to me that I dream of a nightmare, then I realize - during the dream - that it is just a nightmare, so I relax and enjoy! Because I compare it to the better reality that awaits me upon waking.
The beauty of living with the Quran is that it makes the pains of life seem like this nightmare to you, and it makes you live a beautiful expected reality, which is the reality of the end of the battle of truth with falsehood, and the reality of the eternal life of the Hereafter.
You read in the Quran: {And to Allah belongs all might, and to His Messenger, and to the believers, but the hypocrites do not know} [Al-Munafiqun: 8] and you read: {Indeed, those who oppose Allah and His Messenger are among the most humbled} [Al-Mujadala: 20] so you learn that the humiliation of the believers and the glory of the disbelievers is a nightmare, just a nightmare... it will soon pass and you will transition to the reality that makes the Quran live with you in your current moment!
You read: {Indeed, the righteous will be among [gardens of] pleasure, and indeed, the wicked will be in Hellfire} [Al-Infitar: 13-14].. so you learn that the pleasure of the wicked and the Hellfire of the righteous is a nightmare, just an imaginary nightmare that will soon pass, and you will soon wake up to a real, eternal, everlasting reality, which the Quran makes you live now!
With this feeling - the real one - your pains can turn into pleasure! Because you compare them to the expected reality, you realize the difference, and you await the pleasure of breaking the fast after a long fast. It is a pleasure and tranquility that you will never attain except by living with the Quran... daily. And whoever is deprived of it on any day has been deprived of much good, for he will live the illusory life of the world as if it were reality... {And the worldly life is not but amusement and play} [Al-Imran: 185].
And the more you live with the Quran, reading and contemplating, the more the feeling of reality increases, and the concern for the nightmare decreases. The world is a dream in the literal sense... and a great heedlessness to deal with it otherwise and not to realize this truth except on the Day of Judgment, when it is said to the one who turned away: {Indeed, you were heedless of this, but We have removed from you your covering, so your sight today is sharp} [Qaf: 22].
And all of this does not make the Muslim lazy to work on reforming reality, confronting falsehood and its people, and supporting the oppressed with all his ability, but rather, in all of this, his patience is the reality he lives with his soul, and he belittles the pains knowing that they are: just a nightmare, and it will soon pass....
Many of us ask these days: "Scholars and eminent religious figures whom we used to listen to and trust, whom we learned our religion from, have now turned their backs and changed their principles at this terrifying speed. We see shameful positions from them. If temptation has affected these people, how about us ordinary humans?" This question may also cross your mind. Some might even say more frankly: "If God did not save these scholars from falling into temptation despite their calling to Him and spending their lives for His sake, why should He save us when we do not have their good deeds?"
This question, dear respected audience, may reflect a misconception about God. The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "None of you should die except in a state of good opinion about Allah, the Exalted" [Sahih Muslim 2877]. This is the goal of this article: to have a good opinion about Allah, the Exalted.
Some of these preachers and scholars are falsely accused of falling and abandoning their religion, but this is not the case. Some people look for flaws in the leaders and exaggerate them to justify their own mistakes and sins. This is what the Prophet, peace be upon him, referred to when he said: "O assembly of those who have submitted with their tongues but have not let faith enter their hearts, do not harm the Muslims, do not insult them, and do not follow their faults. For whoever follows the fault of his Muslim brother, Allah will follow his fault, and whoever follows Allah's fault, He will expose him even in the depths of his journey" [Abu Dawood 4880].
Preachers and scholars are not exempt from the prohibition of following their faults, especially if they are not openly displaying them, and if they do not affect their credibility or the impact of their words on others.
On the other hand, there are those among them who actually fall and support the oppressors, mixing truth with falsehood. These people fall into one of two categories:
{So if they turn away, then know that it is only Allah's will to strike them with some of their sins. And indeed, many of the people are defiantly disobedient} [Surah Al-Ma'idah 5:49]. So beware, brother, of thinking that Allah turns the heart of a servant without sin or reason. These people have a temptation that may be greater than their misguided fatwas and shameful positions: it is the doubt that arises in the hearts of those who thought they were righteous, then they see their downfall, and it occurs to them that Allah did not preserve the love for His friends, so He turned their hearts and did not care about the abundance of good they did with their hands!...
Far be it from Allah! {Indeed, Allah does not do injustice to the people in anything, but it is the people who injustice themselves} [Surah Yunus 10:44]. The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: "A man may do the deeds of the people of Paradise in the sight of the people, and yet he will be from the people of the Hellfire" [Sahih Al-Bukhari 4207]. Notice his words, peace be upon him: "in the sight of the people"... His appearance is deceptive and does not reflect what is in his heart.
Allah has given them much respite, but they do not stop nor remember, and they have brought upon themselves hatred when they say to the people what they do not do themselves. {And it is not for Allah to misguide a people after He has guided them, until He makes clear to them what they should avoid} [Surah At-Tawbah 9:115]. Ponder this verse... {And it is not for Allah}: meaning it is not befitting of Him, nor is it worthy of His majesty... {until He makes clear to them what they should avoid}: what they should avoid of the causes of destruction, a general legal clarification to the people, and often it is also with hints, reminders, signs, and admonitions when they go astray...
So if someone falls after all this, the fault is in him, and perfection is in the names and attributes of Allah. Among the names of Allah, the Exalted, is Al-Wadud (The Loving). Allah is the most protective of love, so He would not turn the heart of a sincere, devoted servant like this without sin! {And He is the Forgiving, the Loving} [Surah Al-Burooj 85:14], {Indeed, my Lord is Merciful and Loving} [Surah Hud 11:90].
And Allah is the Appreciative. The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: "A man may utter a word that pleases Allah, which he does not think will reach such a degree, so Allah writes for him His pleasure with it until the Day he meets Him" [Sunan At-Tirmidhi 2319]. Imagine! You may say a word that pleases Allah, for example, you pass by a group of young people doing something forbidden, and you feel angry for the sake of Allah, and you advise them with a simple word of sincerity, and this situation has passed years ago and you have forgotten it, but Allah, the Appreciative, does not forget it, but He may have written for you His pleasure until the Day you meet Him because of these words you said with sincerity.
So what about a preacher who has hundreds of lessons, articles, speeches, and lectures that have spread among the people? Can it be that in all of this he is sincere, truthful, and pious to Allah, and then Allah turns his heart like this without reason? No, by Allah, {So what do you think of the Lord of the worlds?} [Surah As-Saaffaat 37:87]?
Brothers, I have lived and seen... I do not know of anyone who has fallen and failed in the tests except that he had in his days of ease actions and precedents of evil that foretold danger in the future. Otherwise, by Allah, if they were sincere, Allah would have steadied them in times of hardship: {Allah will keep firm those who believe with the word that is steadfast in this world and in the Hereafter} [Surah Ibrahim 14:27].
Do you believe Allah? Or do you believe them? Woe to you, O you who say that Allah has turned them away after they called to Him, you have had a good opinion of the fallen, and a bad opinion of the Lord of the worlds!
By Allah, I have seen with my own eyes the mercy, kindness, mercy, patience, and neglect of my Lord despite my severe shortcoming. So how about those who are higher in rank than that? Would Allah turn their hearts without reason? No, by Allah, I will never believe that! {What would Allah do with your punishment if you are grateful and believe? And Allah is Appreciative, Knowing} [Surah An-Nisaa 4:147].
And here I say it to everyone who hears: "If a setback befalls me in the coming days, by the will of Allah, then I know myself and the diseases of my heart and my shortcoming that deserve this setback, and nothing prevents the setback except the mercy of my Lord. So, O Allah, protect us and end our affairs with the best of endings, and do not leave us to ourselves or to our deeds for the twinkling of an eye, O Most Merciful of the merciful."
Ibn Al-Jawzi, the preacher of preachers, understood the danger of being a cause for people to have a bad opinion of their Lord by making them think that Allah has turned your heart while you are calling to Him sincerely. So he said in a great and eloquent statement in "Sayd Al-Khatir": "I once sat and saw around me more than ten thousand people, not one of them but whose heart was softened or whose eyes were filled with tears."
Do not be surprised, brother, for this man was exposed to trials until he was exiled for five years, nearing eighty years old, and he would bring his own food and wash his own clothes, then he came out and returned to preaching to the people again, and he was among the patient, as we consider. So do not be surprised that people accept him and are affected by his words.
We return to his words... He said: "(I once sat and saw around me more than ten thousand people, not one of whom did not soften his heart or shed a tear. So I said to myself, how will you be if they are saved and you are destroyed?)" meaning, what will be your state, O son of al-Juzi, if these people benefit from your speech and enter Paradise, then you fall into the Fire for the sins that Allah knows about, which He has concealed from them? He said: "(So I cried out with a serious tongue: My God and my Lord! If You decree punishment for me tomorrow, then do not let them know of my punishment... meaning: O Lord, if You are to punish me for sins and heart diseases for which I deserve punishment, I have one request: do not let them know that You will punish me by sealing me with a bad example, or showing people bad visions of me)."
Why, O son of al-Juzi? He said: "(Do not let them know of my punishment, preserving Your honor, not for my sake, lest they say: He was punished for whom he guided)." meaning, lest people say: "(Son of al-Juzi guided us to Allah, then Allah punishes him)." Son of al-Juzi feared that he would be the cause of people having bad thoughts about their Lord, and Allah has concealed from them sins and faults that He knows but they do not.
In conclusion, my brother:
The principles of Islam are clear... the permissible is clear and the forbidden is clear. And know that in the Ummah there are many good scholars and callers, but they are not well-known. Your role and mine is to seek them out and benefit from them. We ask Allah to guide those who have gone astray and to keep us steadfast on the truth until we meet Him.
I received a question from one of the followers who said: "Where is our Lord from the injustice happening in Gaza? Where is the victory, the steadfastness, and the angels who fight alongside the believers? Is it possible that in the end the Jews are right and the Muslims are the wrongdoers? By God, answer me with a convincing answer so that my convictions and faith in everything have become shaken, unfortunately. And may God reward you with goodness."
This message, my brothers, I think represents a number of people, and it shows that we have not yet understood our Islam! There are three points in it that we will respond to:
First: When you ask, "Where is God from the injustice happening?" I ask you: Has God Almighty made a promise and broken it? Did He tell you that this world is a place of reward so that the oppressed must be avenged against the oppressor? Have you not read the Surah Al-Buruj? People believed, and the disbelievers dug a trench for them and burned them alive until death, and yet God Almighty said about these believers: "{Indeed, those who have believed and done righteous deeds will have gardens beneath which rivers flow. That is the great attainment}" [Al-Buruj: 11].
"The great attainment".. those who die in obedience are winners, indeed great winners.. their enemy wanted to turn them away from their religion but could not, so he could only kill them, so they were killed, but after they had defeated him by breaking his will and foiling his plot.
If you have not understood these realities, the mistake is in your understanding of Islam, not in Islam itself. Return to Islam, understand it, and do not speak about the Lord of Glory as if He made a promise and broke it, far be it from Him. He is the One who says: "{And do not think that Allah is unaware of what the wrongdoers do. He only delays them for a Day when the eyes will stare}" [Ibrahim: 42].
And if all of this does not satisfy you, then this is your problem, that you do not want to submit to the truth that this world is a place of trial, not a place of reward, and that you do not want to submit to the centrality of the Hereafter in the life of the believer. It is very strange that you are a Muslim and yet you speak as if the stories of oppression end in this worldly life, then the oppressor and the oppressed become dust with no return and no reckoning! Where is the Hereafter in your calculations? Where is the saying of God: "{You will only be rewarded [according to] the best of what you used to do}" [Al-Imran: 185]? Did God promise that He would not test [us]? On the contrary, He promised that He would test [us] and said: "{You will surely be tested in your wealth and yourselves, and you will surely hear from those who were given the Scripture before you and from the polytheists a great deal of insult. But if you are patient and fear Allah, then indeed that is of the matters [worthy] of determination}" [Al-Imran: 186] and He said: "{That [is so]. And if Allah willed, He could have exacted retribution from them [Himself], but [He ordered that you do so] that He may test some of you by means of others}" [Muhammad: 4].
The people of Gaza and those like them, the oppressed Muslims in the world, are steadfast by the grace of God, and you are here in your place doubting! They are suffering, and despite that, we see the mercy of God in their steadfastness, and you are watching and not suffering like them, and yet your faith is shaken!
Okay, you have abandoned your faith, what good have you done for your brothers? Nothing.. but you become a new wound and a new stab in the back of your nation... While if you occupy yourself with a project that benefits your nation and heals its wounds with call and reviving the spirit of dignity, then you will help them and help the oppressed, even if it is after a while.
Praise be to God, there are brothers following me from Gaza, and children who participated in the Quran competitions that we organized from Gaza. And I draw near to God by making their religion beloved to them so that they remain steadfast until they meet their Lord pleased with them by His permission. And I ask Him to help us to help them and lift the affliction from them and from the nation of Islam.
O you who care for your brothers in Gaza, occupy yourself with their benefit and the benefit of the oppressed, not with objecting to the Lord of the Worlds because you have not understood His religion and have not submitted to the truth that this world is a place of trial, not a place of reward.
Second: Where is the victory? Why do the Muslims in Gaza not achieve victory? Victory over whom? Over the Zionists? The Zionists are merely agents representing the enemies of the Muslims. And in every conflict between the Muslims and their enemies, it is a conflict with all the forces of disbelief, which, although they are divided and differ, they unite on waging war against the Muslims directly or indirectly. Thus, this is a war in which Gaza and others do not represent the Muslim nation.
So, does the people of Gaza pay the price for the negligence of the Muslims? And where is "{And no bearer of burdens shall bear the burden of another}" [Fatir: 18]? But we say: whoever dies from the people of Gaza in faith, then God has chosen him "{And those are the days [of varying lots] which We alternate among the people that Allah may make evident those who believe and [may] take to Himself from among you martyrs. And Allah does not like the wrongdoers}" [Al-Imran: 140]. The believer who is killed in the cause of God attains his full and complete reward, not diminished, but God honors him and bestows favor upon him.
But the rest of the nation has not yet qualified for victory. The nation has not dealt with the reality that it is in a war of faith and disbelief until it deserves victory. Victory has causes, and we as Muslims have not yet given these causes their due. And if the Muslims complain that the matter is not in their hands and that those who rule over them and control their countries do not fear God, then these [rulers] have only been given power because of the sins of the servants "{And if you are patient and fear Allah, their scheming will not harm you at all. Indeed, Allah is encompassing of what they do}" [Al-Imran: 120].
Whoever is killed in faith, and whoever fights in the cause of God so that the word of God is the highest, without mixing in this purpose... this is promised by God with the reward of the martyrs. As for the nation, it has not yet qualified for victory. But many of those who say, "Where is the victory of God?" you see that he himself is a helper to the enemies of Islam, meaning the oppressors and hypocrites out of greed for money and status.. he neglects the education of his children so that they grow up without faith, dignity, or honor, and they become tools in the hands of the enemies of Islam, not mastering their work, increasing the poverty and ignorance of the Muslims.
Then after that he says: "Where is the victory of God?!" Amazing by God!
How much I said the diseases of the country and you are from its diseases And the misfortune is its illness, have you searched for its symptoms O you who carried the axe to demolish it on its ruins Sit down, you are not the one who strives for its revival And look with your eyes, the wolves are toiling in its pools
You may say: "Okay, whatever our shortcomings, we are in a worse state than the Zionists, and that is why they are victorious over us?" I will ask you a question: When the victory was lost in the Battle of Uhud and the polytheists were able to harm the army of the Prophet peace be upon him and the Companions, does this mean that the polytheists were better than the Messenger of God and the Companions? I seek refuge in God.
Okay, why did God not help them? Because victory has causes, and some of the Companions failed
I used to be fond of music, then I became convinced by the evidence that it is forbidden, so I left it despite my love for it.
God willed that I should occupy myself with something better: studying the Prophet's biography by searching for hadiths that describe the Prophet's morals, peace be upon him, his humility, his closeness to his companions, his good treatment of his family, and his playing with children, all this naturally and without affectation.
One day, while preparing a sermon on the topic and clicking on the computer keyboard to extract the treasures of the biography, I remembered clicking in a similar way on a musical instrument.
But what a difference! In the days of music, I enjoyed clicking, but as soon as I finished, I felt spiritual emptiness and futility! Then, when I entered the world of calling to Islam and speaking about the Lord of Glory, His Book, and His Prophet, peace be upon him, the spiritual pleasure grew, and the heart was filled with what benefits throughout the day, and the "clicking" built in my being tranquility and connection with God the Almighty.
The commentator Zamakhshari expresses such a feeling - and it is attributed to others - when he said:
My night vigil for refining sciences is sweeter to me Than the harmony of a singing girl and the sweetness of an embrace. And my inclination in joy for solving a difficult problem Is more delightful and sweeter than the wine of a cupbearer. And the scratching of my pen on its pages Is sweeter than the lute and lovers. And sweeter than the girl's clicking on her tambourine Is my clicking to remove the dust from my papers. O you who tries to arrange my status with hopes, How much is between the busy and the refined! Shall I stay awake all night and sleep in the dark, And then seek after that what pursues me?
We are not less appreciative of beauty, nor are we poor in feeling, and we have a refined sense that is more than those who are led by their emotions, and more. However, in our hearts, there is a treasure that is greater than what they find, and a pleasure higher than what they seek. It is the love of God, intimacy with Him, and longing to meet Him and see His face pleased with us for what we have left for His sake.
We saw that the pleasure of contemplating a beauty that is not lawful for us does not compete with our pleasure, and we knew that God the Almighty is jealous that intimacy with Him should be joined in one heart with intimacy with the forbidden, so there was no choice. And we would not have replaced what is lower with what is better, nor would we have grieved over a forbidden glance that we missed or a slip that we did not persist in. For these are sacrifices we have offered so that the pleasure of the greatest beloved, may He be glorified and exalted, remains: "And do not extend your eyes toward what We have given for enjoyment to [some] of them, the splendor of worldly life, that We may test them thereby. And the provision of your Lord is better and more enduring." (Ta-Ha 131).
Towards a rich man hoping for his pleasure Towards people pretending to them with his deeds Towards what is not lawful for him from women, his heart is attached to them Towards a ruler who flatter him
And even in his prayer, his face and heart are turned away, he did not hide that he is among those whom God described: "But Allah has turned away their hearts because they are a people who do not understand." (At-Tawbah 127).
What will be his condition on the Day of Judgment when he realizes that throughout his life he directed his face to the wrong direction instead of directing it to the One who stands before him now, glorified and exalted be He: "Then they will be returned to Allah, their true Master." (Al-An'am 62), "And if you could but see when they are set before their Lord. He will say, 'Is this not the truth?'" (Al-An'am 30).
Here, he wishes that he had said as Ibrahim, peace be upon him, said: "Indeed, I have turned my face toward He who created the heavens and the earth, inclining toward truth." (Al-An'am 79).
Therefore, do not wonder at His saying, glorified and exalted be He: "And if you could but see when the angels take the souls of those who disbelieved. They strike their faces and their backs." (Al-Anfal 50). For they directed their faces to whom they do not deserve, and turned away from the religion of God and His guidance, so it is right for these faces and backs to be struck! "So direct your face toward the religion, inclining to truth." (Ar-Rum 30).
The believer fears none but Allah. Does this mean that he does not fear the oppression of the tyrants or the enemies in the state of war, for example, or the predatory animals?
Yes, all of this is a natural, innate fear that does not contradict faith, and it has happened even to the prophets, peace be upon them, as with Musa, peace be upon him: "So he left it, fearing and anticipating." (Al-Qasas 21), "He said, 'My Lord, indeed I have killed among them a man, and I fear that they will kill me.'" (Al-Qasas 33).
And your fear contradicts faith in two cases:
This is forbidden. Allah, the Almighty, says: "That is only Satan frightening his allies; so fear them not, but fear Me, if you are [indeed] believers." (Ali 'Imran 175). That is, he frightens you, O believers, from his allies. This is nothing but the whispering of Satan, which is right for you not to pay attention to it.
So, let no fear of anyone prevent you from enjoining good and forbidding evil and conveying the messages of your Lord to the best of your ability and capacity: "Those who convey the messages of Allah and fear Him and fear none but Allah. And sufficient is Allah as an accountant." (Al-Ahzab 39).
If you want to be guided to the truth in an age of difference... then liberate yourself from your view of yourself, your religion, and your history through the eyes of the dominant international system... and rise above the painful pressure of reality...
And be certain that you have a Lord who is victorious over His servants, who holds the reins of the heavens and the earth, who created people to test them, and nothing happens except by His will, then to Him is the return of all people and upon Him is their reckoning...
And that His religion is the absolute truth, without the need for debate around His texts due to psychological defeat...
This is sufficient, by the permission of Allah, to make the pride of Islam flow in your veins... and to receive the speech of Allah and His Messenger with submission and love, finding nothing in your heart that is difficult from it... and to be guided to what Allah wills from you in the sea of confusion and difference... "And whoever holds firmly to Allah has indeed been guided to a straight path." (Ali 'Imran 101).
Those who live with feelings and standards that do not align with the dictates of reality are sometimes called detached from reality. Personally, I consider this detachment a great blessing from Allah, upon me and upon any Muslim who is granted this blessing!
Look at reality: there are people who can restrict your freedom whenever they want, who can track the doors of your sustenance and want to block them so that you submit to them! They are more numerous and powerful than you... They surround you in such a way that it seems no glimmer of hope can reach you from among them!
This is the bitter reality... According to this reality, where does your happiness come from? And where does your sustenance come from?
But you return and remember that this (reality) is in fact (an appearance of this worldly life), a falsehood with no value, an outer shell that the disbeliever is deceived by... You return and connect with the truth... That {whatever mercy Allah opens for the people, none can withhold it} [Fatir: 2], {and He is the Supreme over His servants} [Al-An'am: 18].
And if they wish something for you, they can only wish it if Allah wills it... And if they surround you from every side, Allah (is behind them, encompassing)... You return and remember what our Prophet ﷺ taught us: that if people gather to harm you, they can only harm you with something that Allah has decreed for you.
You return and remember that if Allah wills, He can cast happiness into your heart even while you are at the bottom of a prison, and if He wills, He can test you with depression and lack of motivation even while you are in a grand palace and all the means of well-being are around you!
You remember that if Allah wills, He can guide your wife and children in a moment, and make them a comfort to your eyes, righteous, possessors of good character and religion.. And that the whole world cannot give you this, nor can it prevent it if your Lord wills it...
And if He wills, He can make your wife, children, and wealth a torment for you and a bitterness in your life, and that the whole world cannot reveal that from you...
At this point, your feelings and attitudes are governed by these great truths, not by the falsehood of the world, and the question becomes: (Then from where does my sorrow come?) and (How will I not be provided for?)?
How beautiful is this detachment from a false reality and connection with firm truths! This is not a call to neglect taking the means, but a call for your soul to remain high and not broken, and for your heart to be at ease, fearing none but Allah, and hoping in none but Him. O Allah, perpetuate upon us the blessing of this detachment and make us among the thankful.
Sometimes, a type of shirk creeps into the heart of a person when they associate with their Lord, glorified be He, things they hope for benefit from, fear harm from, or think have an effect in the universe with Allah, or think they are beyond His power and sovereignty.
And this has crept into the hearts of many Muslims these days: (We will not be victorious as long as there are airplanes with our enemies! They are capable of deciding any battle and eliminating any victory!)
Pay attention!: If this thinking drives Muslims to take the material means of victory with complete reliance and absolute certainty, then taking the means is required, indeed obligatory, and we should not expect victory without it.
But I am speaking here about (surrender) of the self and doubt in the power of Allah...
Here, remind yourself of Allah's saying: {And there is nothing for Allah to be unable to do in the heavens or on the earth} [Fatir: 44], and His saying: {And you are not to cause failure in the earth or in the heaven} [Al-Ankabut: 22].
If Allah wills something, He prepares its means in a subtle way. Just as He provides for man from where he does not expect, He will defeat our enemy and help us - if we take the means - from where we do not expect: {You did not think that they would emerge, and they thought that their fortresses would protect them from Allah, so Allah came to them from where they did not expect, and He cast terror into their hearts, destroying their homes by their own hands and the hands of the believers. So take admonition, O possessors of vision} [Al-Hashr: 2].
{Those before them had plotted, so Allah came to their building from its foundations, and the roof fell upon them from above them, and the punishment came to them from where they did not perceive} [An-Nahl: 26].
It is narrated that it was said to Omar Al-Mukhtar: (Italy has airplanes and we do not), so he said: (Do they fly above the throne or below it?) They said: (Below it!) So he said: (The One above the throne is with us, so we are not afraid of those below it).
It is true that Al-Mukhtar was killed in the end, but he who had this faith was killed as a martyr (a victory) by the permission of Allah, and Italy withdrew with his jihad and the jihad of his brothers. Their jihad did not lead to the establishment of a mighty Islamic state, no... Allah delayed it for a wisdom, and they laid a brick in the edifice of Islam before they departed, and this edifice must be completed.
In conclusion, Allah has entrusted us with a duty and guaranteed us upon it, so let us occupy ourselves with the duty, not the guarantee: {If you support Allah, He will support you} [Muhammad: 7]. So seek forgiveness from the One above the throne in moments when airplanes, no matter how high they fly, remain flying... below the throne.
An important meaning of Allah's saying: {Allah does not charge a soul except according to its capacity} [Al-Baqarah: 286]. This noble verse is used by some to justify negligence in the matter of Allah.
Among its meanings: that Allah has not burdened you, O Muslim, with a command except that He knows it is within your power to do it, so do not make excuses with incapacity: {Does He not know who has created, and He is the Most Subtle, the Most Aware} [Al-Mulk: 14]. He has not burdened you, O young man, with preserving your chastity and dealing with discipline except that He knows you can do it if you seek His help, and He has not legislated that for you except that He knows what will be of trials.
He has not burdened you, O girl who has not been blessed with a husband, He has not burdened you with controlling your behavior and protecting yourself except that He knows it is within your power. Some burdens are difficult, but: "And whoever is patient, Allah will make him patient" (Sahih al-Bukhari 1469), and He will guide him and rectify his heart.
Therefore, we should not excuse ourselves and evade responsibilities that we are capable of fulfilling, knowing that: {Allah does not charge a soul except according to its capacity} [Al-Baqarah: 286].
You are precious with your faith... don't let them make you forget this truth... even if they put shackles on your hands and blindfolds on your eyes. No matter how they insult you, mock you, or harm your body.
Do not let this affect your view of yourself or your view of them! How can you feel humiliated while in the care of Allah?! "And to Allah belongs all honor, and to His Messenger, and to the believers" [Al-Munafiqun: 8]. How can you give them weight when Allah has humiliated them?! "And whoever is humbled by Allah - there will be for him no bestower of honor" [Al-Hajj: 18]. How can you exploit the price and the merchandise of Paradise?!
Their scales are false, like the falsity of this world that does not weigh with Allah the wing of a mosquito. And on the Day of Judgment, everyone will see the true scale: "And We will set the just balances for the Day of Resurrection" [Al-Anbiya: 47]. What is the benefit of your faith if you do not see this scale in this world also with the light of faith?!
And how beautiful is what brother Habib said: Achieve "La ilaha illallah" in your heart, and be sure of its firmness therein, then look around you.. you will see all things then in their natural size!
"And be from after him a righteous people" [Yusuf: 9]. This is what Yusuf's brothers said, peace be upon him, as they were about to commit injustice.
Their inner voice: (We love righteousness. But we cannot be upright in the matter of Allah and adhere to His Shariah regarding our brother in this state of our father's special love for him. Let us commit injustice once, so that we achieve what we want, so that our minds may be at ease afterwards, and we may devote ourselves to righteousness that erases the evil effects of this injustice).
And this is the (logic) of some of us as well! As he is about to commit an unjust act.. this unjust act may be, for example, slandering a colleague at work, to climb on his back and get the administrative position you dream of.. this unjust act may be cheating and unethical commercial competition to (establish yourself in the market).. it may be cheating in exams to (succeed) in subjects and obtain a university degree..
It may be injustice to Muslims in a workplace arena so that your group's power and influence may increase, and you may use all this afterwards to serve Islam!.. The inner voice of all these people: (I love righteousness and hate injustice, but my mind will not be at ease and settle in the current situation. If I reach the position I dream of, my mind will be at ease and my energies will be released, and my chest will expand, so I will perform good deeds that will overwhelm this injustice, and it will be a page turned... Sorry, my Lord... just this time and that's it)!!
This is a trick of the soul that inclines to evil, with which it suppresses the call of the reproachful soul that warns you of injustice. And whoever gets used to suppressing the call of good in himself and limiting it, may it actually shrink, and the ability to justify injustice may grow on its account... And how can he then be among the righteous people?!
Sometimes, while serving the religion of Allah, we may feel that we are performing a great mission that no one else does in our time, place of work, or country. Therefore, we may feel that we will not go astray with our sins, and we will not be prevented from performing our role, and we will not die before completing this mission because all this will deprive others of our good.
That is, we feel that people need us, and that Islam needs us as well. This feeling is positive and praiseworthy to the extent that it drives us to bear responsibility so that we do not turn away from the world and leave our beneficial missionary role for humanity... A useful feeling to the extent that we rise above the temptations that we are intended to be drawn into, remembering the saying of the speaker: I have prepared for a matter if you had realized it... So, take care of yourself lest you graze with neglect!
But this feeling sometimes becomes dangerous! It becomes dangerous if it drives us to neglect the matter of Allah and to belittle our sins, reassured that Allah will not punish us for that by diverting our hearts or by stopping the door of good that we are performing.
And this (addict) was afflicted with a portion of His saying: "Satan has taken possession of them and made them forget the remembrance of Allah" [Al-Mujadala: 19]. It is a possession whereby Satan takes possession of the servant in exchange for nothing! Not even in exchange for the cheap enjoyment of this world!
And what keeps the servant in this miserable possession: "So they forgot the remembrance of Allah". As if the servant forgot that he has a Lord who can be sought for help to deliver him from what he is in.
O sorrowful addict! Have you not seen that Satan could only come to you from four directions: "He said, 'By what means have you led me astray? I will surely sit on Your straight path for them. Then I will not come to them from before them or from behind them or from their left or their right, and you will not find most of them grateful'" [Al-A'raf: 16-17]. And he could not come to you from above you and prevent you from the mercy of Allah. So why not raise your head and say: (O Lord)? For indeed: "Whatever mercy Allah opens for the people, there is no withholder for it" [Fatir: 2].
And while we are engaged in the battle of temptations in our lives, we may yield to some of them and compromise in them, and say to ourselves: (Just a bit and that's it.. I am deficient and sinful in this, but I will not fall into a greater temptation), and we may mean by the greater temptation falling into major sins or acts of shirk... So we see that we are safe as long as we do not cross these red lines.
We forget in all this that these temptations are tests that prepare for greater tests, and that those who fail in them invite the black spots or black dots on their hearts, which gradually reduce the enormity of the great temptation in their sense, and weaken their faith so that they no longer stand firm before the glitter of these great temptations.
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "When a servant commits a sin, a black spot is marked on his heart. If he repents and seeks forgiveness, his heart is polished. If he increases, it increases until it covers his heart, and that is the Ran (covering) that Allah said: "No! But it is a Ran upon their hearts because of what they used to earn" [Al-Mutaffifin: 14].
It is incumbent upon everyone who hastens to a temptation to ask himself: What are the tests in which he has failed before, so that his mind has gone astray in this greater test than its predecessors?
When you are exposed to the temptation of women, the temptation of money, the temptation of position, the temptation of status... and you tempt yourself with that with some compromise, beware of deceiving yourself and saying: (I am asking for this and I will stand firm against what is greater).. For it is then a black spot that is marked on your heart until it takes away the dignity of faith and your mind goes astray before the glitter of the great temptations and you hasten to them without feeling.
O you who compromise your religion.. O you whose greatest concern is that some may accuse you of extremism, even if they are on falsehood.. Know that there is no better nor greater feeling in life than to feel the love of your Lord, His glorification, His anger, and His jealousy for His religion.. Thus, you will be in harmony with the purpose of your creation.. And you will feel your value and self-respect to the extent of achieving this purpose.. Do not deprive yourself of this position for the sake of the obsession of (What will people say)!.
You are returning to your Lord, coming to Him alone, naked, without an ally.. And all of them will not benefit you.. "The Day when neither wealth nor children will benefit * Except one who comes to Allah with a sound heart" [Al-Shu'ara: 88-89].
A sound heart from presenting the pleasure of people over the pleasure of Allah.. A living heart that is angry for Allah, glorifies Allah, loves Allah. "And Allah and His Messenger are more worthy to be pleased with if you are believers" [At-Tawba: 62].
We all know that Satan makes the forbidden attractive, but we do not remember to the same extent that he also makes righteous deeds and permissible acts seem unattractive to us. This can be understood from the general meaning of what the Quran narrates from Satan's saying: "I will certainly take from Your straight path a portion of Your servants" [Al-A'raf: 16] and from the Prophet's (peace be upon him) hadith: "Verily, Satan has blocked the paths of the son of Adam" and the Prophet later mentioned the path of Islam and the paths of righteous deeds.
Being aware of this helps in understanding some disturbing phenomena. For example, there are many complaints from those who are engaged to girls and those about to marry them that they have lost their attraction towards them. There may be a psychological explanation for this, but it is also good to remember the fact that Satan, who makes forbidden relationships attractive to the youth, at the same time makes the permissible, pure relationship unattractive to him.
A man may be repulsed by his wife even though she is of great beauty, while Satan makes it attractive to him to neglect dealing with a woman who is not permissible to him in the workplace, for example. We must remember that righteous deeds and permissible acts are, in reality, beautiful. Allah the Almighty described them as the good things: "And He has made lawful for them the good things" [Al-A'raf: 157]. So if we see them as repulsive, one of the reasons for this is Satan's uglification of them, while sins and forbidden acts - such as impermissible relationships - are in themselves ugly: "And He has made unlawful for them the evil things" [Al-A'raf: 157]. If we see them as beautiful, this is from Satan.
Understanding this helps us to adjust our feelings according to the realities and to shake off the dust of Satan from them.
Away from the ruling of the niqab and without any reduction in appreciation for the sisters who adhere to the correct Islamic hijab except for the niqab, I find myself compelled to say: Greetings to you, O veiled woman... and especially to the one whose actions match her appearance, who obeys Allah in her behavior, the purity of her heart, and her good character.
Greetings to you, O symbol of modesty and purity, greetings to you who remind people of Allah through your appearance, which is in itself a call in a time of heedlessness, greetings to you as you see the corrupt media trying to defame the niqab, and you endure...
Greetings to you as you see the hats of evil abandoning the niqab, and they intensify against you what they do not intensify against those who are extreme in their adornment, so you turn away from them and endure...
Greetings to you as you see the girls around you striving for adornment and trying to circumvent the hijab, attracting attention... so you conceal the innocent beauty and endure...
Greetings to you as you walk in the university or in society alone, many of your peers have left you, and your inner self says: (Allah is sufficient for me as a supporter), and you endure...
Greetings to you as you hear this state or that institution or that one prohibiting the niqab, while they incite to adornment, and yet you endure...
Greetings to you as you stand firm against this fierce onslaught, weak in body, but your faith is like the towering mountain...
Greetings to you, my lady... and know that people like me learn from you patience, strength, steadfastness, and comfort in Allah, and you have conveyed through your appearance what the pen and mouth of people like me cannot convey.
Greetings to you from me and from thousands of my brothers and sisters who I think share my feelings towards you, feelings of reverence and affection in Allah... And if the poisoned pens, the inflamed screens, the despised hats of evil, and your arrows from a single bow are harsh on you, then we are all your brothers and we ask Allah to complete upon our women, daughters, and sisters as He has completed upon you. Greetings to you, O veiled woman.
When you justify casting your gaze and say: (O brother, I am a human of flesh and blood and instincts... the temptation is severe, it moves the stone... I can't bear it! The temptations are beyond my capacity!) Did Allah the Almighty not know this when He said: "Tell the believers to lower their gaze and guard their chastity. That is purer for them. Indeed, Allah is Acquainted with what they do" [An-Nur: 30]?! "Say, 'Are you more knowing or is Allah?'" [Al-Baqarah: 140]. Does Allah not know your instinctive composition and the strength of your instincts? "Does He not know who created Him, the Subtle, the Acquainted?" [Al-Mulk: 14].
O beloved brother... When you justify casting your gaze with such expressions, it is as if you are saying: (Allah commanded me with what I cannot do)!.. Is this befitting of Allah's wisdom, justice, and mercy? Is this justification not worse than the sin of looking at the forbidden because it contradicts the belief in Allah's wisdom and mercy?
This young Prophet Yusuf (peace be upon him) had all the causes of temptation gathered upon him, yet he said: "Prison is more beloved to me than what they call me to" [Yusuf: 33].
In Surah An-Nisa', after Allah the Almighty mentioned some rulings regarding the relationship between males and females, look at what He the Most High said, and ponder the verses word by word: "Allah wants to make clear to you and guide you to the ways of those before you and to accept your repentance. And Allah is Knowing and Wise. Allah wants to accept your repentance, but those who follow their desires want you to deviate a great deviation. Allah wants to lighten for you [the burden], for man was created weak" [An-Nisa': 26-28]. So because He the Most High knows that you are weak, He has legislated for you these laws that seem to be restrictions, but in reality, they are a lightening and liberation from the shackles of desire and the whispers of Satan. He has legislated them for you out of knowledge, wisdom, and mercy.
There is no limit or restriction on the news, pictures, and clips that hurt your psyche... The global media conveys to us what consolidates grief and sadness from pictures and clips of the persecution of Muslims, while their media does not allow the display of horrific pictures of their fighting.
Many of these painful pictures are not (leaks), but a systematic work to harm your morale, O Muslim, and make you live in a continuous negative sadness. They want you to feel a loss of your value, the value of your Muslim brothers like you, the value of all your belongings, and even the value of Islam that unites you! They want you to hate yourself and be afflicted with frozen thinking and paralysis of will! They want all of that for you so that it becomes easy to control you...
History tells us that the Tatars, at the beginning of their invasion of the Islamic world, did evil deeds in Bukhara and Samarkand, the Muslim cities, so fear entered the hearts of the rest of the Muslims, until Genghis Khan sent a group of twenty thousand soldiers, who roamed among millions of Muslims in the vast Khwarazmian kingdom, killing and plundering, and no one dared to confront them! Beware of breaking! Beware of shackling your soul with their chains and then handing them the key!
Turn these feelings into action, and stop blaming yourself and blaming the Muslims with you! "Allah does not charge a soul except what it can bear" [Al-Baqarah: 286]. ...So look at what you can do and do it, and do not neglect anything of it, and then Allah will employ you in what is higher "And those who are guided, He increases them in guidance and gives them their righteousness" [Muhammad: 17].
Do not fear them, for they are only a test: "That is so. And if Allah willed, He could have given them victory over you, but [He willed] to test some of you through others" [Muhammad: 4]... Allah sees who among us is patient to reward him with eternal bliss: "And We have made some of you a trial for others; will you be patient? And your Lord is Ever Seeing" [Al-Furqan: 20]. And it is not beyond His power to grant us victory over them if we support His religion with all that we can. "Do not be weak and do not grieve, and you will be superior if you are [true] believers" [Al-Imran: 139].
Do you see those who act like the possessed? As if there is a grudge between them and Islam and its Prophet, peace be upon him?! Do you see them as they fight the scholars and preachers, then open the lands of the Muslims to every cawing crow, every pen hostile to Islam, every trivial celebration? They import every ignorance from the East or the West. It does not matter its origin, shape, or cost... the important thing is that it is ignorance they use to corrupt the innate nature of the youth, erase their personalities, obscure their identity, and make them forget their religion...
They hasten in their war against Islam, day by day, hour by hour... as if they are saying: O Muhammad, we will obliterate the landmarks of your religion and turn people back to disbelief in it! Do you see these people? Do not let their movements in the countries deceive you... for if a man blew on a light of the sun to extinguish it, you would know he is a fool, and these "want to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths" [At-Tawbah: 8]!
They will perish, and their plots will perish, and they will be nothing but a page in a great book titled: "So follow some of the ways by which they are led astray. Say, 'I am only a warner.' And there is no blame upon you concerning the guidance of the blind. They will not believe except when Allah wills. But most of them do not know." [Al-Mu'minun: 44]... Behold, they are slipping, about to go to the dumps of history... and they pull people by their heels to slip with them. The important thing is that you beware, lest you be pulled! They may injure you with their claws and hurt you... be patient, for they are perishing, and "the end is for the righteous."
So be patient, and do not despair, "And say to those who do not believe, 'We have done our work, and you are doing yours. And you are waiting, and we are waiting.' And to Allah belongs the unseen of the heavens and the earth. And to Him will be returned all affairs, so worship Him and rely upon Him. And do not be of those who associate others with Him. And do not be of those who disbelieve in His verses. And say, 'The truth is from your Lord, so whoever wills - let him believe; and whoever wills - let him disbelieve.' Indeed, We have prepared for the wrongdoers a fire whose walls will surround them. And if they call for help, they will be helped with water like molten brass, which will scald their faces. How wretched the drink, and how evil the resting place!" [Al-Kahf: 29].
And we see the suffering of Muslims in the afflicted countries, we may overlook a great wisdom from the wisdom of Allah the Most High in prolonging the affliction, which is that He tests His servants with what brings out from them the servitude of humbling themselves to their Creator and submitting to Him, and makes them feel their weakness and the absence of their means, and disciplines them and educates them and softens their hearts, all of that before He supports them. So they come out of the tribulation to victory, strong yet merciful. Noble, yet humble... fierce in the truth, yet gentle. So they do not beguile themselves, nor forget the blessing of Allah upon them, nor oppress the people nor act tyrannically on earth while they are in the euphoria of victory.
Allah shook the hearts of the believers in the Battle of the Confederates, and that was part of the blessing: Allah the Most High said: "O you who have believed, remember the favor of Allah upon you when armies came to [fight] you, and We sent upon them a wind and armies you did not see. And ever is Allah, of what you do, Seeing. [It was] when they came at you from above you and from below you and when the eyes turned away and the hearts reached the throats and you assumed about Allah assumptions. There the believers were tested and shaken with a severe shaking." [Al-Ahzab: 9-11].
And to the extent of this shaking was the submission and resorting of the believers to their Lord, and to the extent of this submission and resorting came the deliverance and honor: "And Allah has already caused those who disbelieved to taste the penalty of humiliation. There is not for them any helper. O Prophet, fight against the disbelievers and the hypocrites and be harsh upon them. And their refuge is Hell - and wretched is the destination." [At-Tawbah: 73].
And likewise on the day of Badr, they were few in number and few in equipment. The Muhajirun had suffered persecution and torture and were forced to leave their homes and families and take refuge in the city. So they were humble in this description, although they were noble in their hearts: so Allah supported them after this humiliation. "And already had Allah given you victory at Badr while you were oppressed. Be mindful of Allah that you may be thankful." [Al-Imran: 123].
While on the day of Hunayn, the Muslims were beguiled by their numbers and took the euphoria of numbers and equipment, so it did not benefit them in any way, "And [remember] when He showed them to you as few in your eyes, and made you [appear] as few in their eyes, and [remember] when He showed them to you when you met as few in your eyes, and He made you [appear] as few in their eyes, that Allah might accomplish a matter already decreed. And to Allah are returned [all] matters." [At-Tawbah: 25]. So they were exposed to loss at the beginning until a small number gathered around the Prophet, peace be upon him, who tasted the bitterness of being left by Allah to their own strength, so they disowned it and knew that they had no helper except Allah, so Allah supported them despite their fewness.
Therefore, prolonging the affliction upon the Muslims has its wisdom, including that they be humbled and submit to Allah, so that when He honors them and supports them and strengthens them, they remember what they were upon from weakness, so they do not forget the favor of Allah lest they perish, nor act tyrannically nor transgress, but they attribute the favor to Allah the Most High, and fear Allah in the peoples they conquer after that.
Good, and what about those who die before this awaited moment of victory comes? These, when they were steadfast and upright and humbled themselves to their Creator and their servitude to Allah the Most High appeared purely, they fulfilled what was upon them and attained what was delayed from those who came after them. Do you not see that Allah the Most High said in the story of the Confederates itself: "Among the believers are men who have been true to their covenant with Allah: of them some have fulfilled their vow [to the death], and some are still waiting: but they have never changed [their determination] in the least." [Al-Ahzab: 23]. So these who did not reach the moment of victory but died steadfast have departed with their deeds sealed with the pleasure of Allah, so they attained what those who are waiting did not attain from a dignity like this from those who reached the moment of victory but do not know with what their record will be sealed. We ask Allah to honor the Muslims and strengthen them after their breaking and humiliation, and to have mercy on those who have passed from them.
One of the worst things you can accustom yourself to is to derive tranquility from the fact that you are (on the truth) because of the multitude of those who agree with you. For more often than not, if you determine that they are right today, they will oppose you tomorrow if you disagree with them in falsehood, even if you are right in both cases. And one of the best things you can accustom yourself to is not to derive tranquility from the fact that you are (on the truth) except by resorting to Allah to guide you to it and striving in seeking it with sincerity, then presenting it to people with wisdom and good admonition, then cutting off your concern with their agreement or disagreement with you. For if you do so, then the tranquility of the truth will be sweeter to you than the euphoria of the praise of those who agree with you. And it does not detract from the blessing of your call that the number of those who agree with you decreases.
The influential figures in history feared that their sins would prevent Allah from using them to support the religion.. and not like those who are struck by amazement and pride at what they have done as if they are favoring Allah because they served His religion!... Nur ad-Din Zangi prostrated at the hill of Harim seeking help from Allah and said: "O Allah, support Your religion and do not support Mahmud (meaning himself) for what is Mahmud but a dog until he is supported" (Book of Ar-Rawdatayn in the news of the two Nuri and Saladin states).. So Allah supported him and with him suppressed the evil of the Crusaders in many places.
And Dr. Abd al-Rahman as-Sami' (may Allah have mercy on him) tells of one of his missionary journeys how he supplicated to Allah saying: (O Lord, do not abandon this religion because of the mistakes I have made) so it was a great opening and many accepted Islam from those he called. And Allah the Most High does not abandon His religion.. but the point is that there is a very noble meaning that we all need: that we fear that our sins may be the reason for our deprivation from being used by Allah in serving His religion..
Serving the religion of Allah is not a favor that one is granted, but an honor that one fears that Allah may deprive them of it due to their sins.. contemplate with me the saying of Allah the Most High in Surah Al-Imran: "And among the prophets are those who have fought with him a great number of companions and have not weakened for what has befallen them in the cause of Allah, nor have they weakened, nor have they submitted. And Allah loves the steadfast." [Al-Imran: 146]. Look at these great qualities! Believers in the prophets, fighting with them, steadfast without weakness, nor feebleness, nor submission.. and yet: "And their saying was not except that they said, 'Our Lord, forgive us our sins and excess [in our wrongdoing] and plant firmly our feet and give us victory over the disbelieving people.'" [Al-Imran: 147] submission and humbling to Allah the Most High and asking Him to forgive their sins.. and their condition: O our Lord, do not deprive us of the honor of serving Your religion due to our sins.. so what was the result?: "So He gave them the reward of the world and the good reward of the Hereafter. And Allah loves the doers of good." [Al-Imran: 148].
Oh youth, oh girls, please preserve your purity! Do not be deceived by the phrase: "I will repent later and Allah will accept!" Even if you attain repentance and repent, there is a bitterness to the sin that may not be erased... Repentance, even if it saves you from the punishment of the Hereafter, is not a guarantee that it will erase the painful worldly consequences, in yourself or in those around you whom you have harmed with your sin... I say this because of what I know about some people... An innocent wife (or husband) contracts a sexually transmitted disease from among the prevalent diseases among the deviants, which surprises him and her! The cause: lowly desires in the past that he repented from but whose effects remain, and he does not know! The effects of the disease did not appear on him, but the viruses remained in his body until he transmitted them to his family and the effects appeared on her after years and may not appear on him... What regret will strike him - if he is sensitive - when he sees this poor woman suffering the bitterness of the disease in her weakened body, and above her and worse than that are the psychological and social effects and a stigma for which she is not to blame! And so is the case of a wife who transmitted a disease to her husband. All of this is if we assume that the one who says: "I will repent later and Allah will accept" will be successful in sincere repentance, while he trivializes the sin in this way! And all of this with the reminder that the believer is deterred by the punishment of the Hereafter, regardless of what may befall him in this world. Therefore, please, oh youth: preserve your purity!
Among the most astonishing types of Muslims are those who discourage themselves from building under the pretext that "the oppressors will demolish what I build, so why build at all"... "They will not leave me", "There is no need to try"! He enslaves himself to his enemies by his own hand and provides them with the cost of the chains!! If the reformers thought as you do, oh wretch, there would be no Islam left on earth. "But I imagined sickness, so weakness afflicted the body And you thought that you had weakened, so weakness entered the bone And man fears ruin as long as he looks at the shroud"
Work and know that all servants are overpowered by the power of Allah, and He, exalted is He, is able to preserve your call and your work and your building and to repel the harm of the oppressors.
Among the most influential moments are the moments of awakening of the persistent sinners in lewdness and sins. Their awakening when their love and exaltation of Allah the Almighty and His Messenger, peace be upon him, are touched. Among them is what Sheikh Abu Hasan Al-Nadwi - may Allah have mercy on him - mentioned in his book "The Path to Al-Madinah" about the Indian poet "Akhtar Al-Shirani", who was one of the most notorious alcoholics. Akhtar used to sit with his peers, alcoholics, and some Arab communist youth who seemed to have learned the language of the people. So when alcohol worked in Akhtar's head, his surroundings would say to him: "What do you say about so-and-so?", so he would compose lewd, obscene poetry and everyone would laugh. And once, one of his communist companions dared to say to Akhtar: "What do you say about Muhammad?" No sooner had this filthy one finished his sentence than Akhtar took a glass and hit him on the head with it, saying: "You lack manners! You direct this indecent question to a sinful man; an admittedly miserable man? What do you want to hear from a corrupt person?" And his body was trembling, and he burst into tears, and he approached this indecent youth, saying in anger and fury: How did your heart dare, oh wicked one, to mention this pure, sacred name? How did you dare to do that, oh lack of manners! Oh lack of shame! You had a wide field for your speech, so why did you enter this sacred fever? Repent to Allah from this indecent question, I know your inner malice very well.
Then he ordered him to be taken out of the gathering, then he stood up himself, and spent the whole night crying; saying: "These atheistic youth have reached this level of indecency and wickedness! They want to snatch from us the last thing we are proud of and live on; love, loyalty, sincerity, and faithfulness! I am a sinful man; there is no doubt about that, I admit my sin, but they are trying to remove the collar of Islam from our necks and hearts, and take us out of the fold of faith, no by Allah; we will not accept that". It is beautiful that the exaltation of Allah and His Book and His Messenger remains in the heart, no matter how much a person commits sins.
Brother, sister, if we are spending the flower of our youth and the period of our burning enthusiasm and our clear mind and our physical strength at its peak... If we are spending all of this in wrestling with temptations, stumbling in their pits and getting up from them... If we are spending it in hesitation about lowering the gaze and praying Fajr on time and contemplating the Quran and wearing the correct hijab and the rules of the relationship between the two sexes and songs and series and films... If we are still revolving around these topics... When will we soar in the sky of closeness to Allah and serving His religion?! When will we speak about the issues of our nation and remove the dust of humiliation from it? Who is there for the drowning nation if we are drowning too?! When will we feel that we have settled our affairs and tamed ourselves and the faith has flooded our hearts so that we can launch towards the heedless and invite them to the spiritual paradise on earth that Allah has bestowed upon us? When will we live the joy of the young children pointing to the mosques instead of learning obscenities in the streets? When will we touch the path of renaissance for our nation with methodological readings that nourish our culture and then interact with it with our surroundings? When will we notice and alert our societies to the conspiracies that are being woven for them by those about whom Allah said: "And they will continue to fight you until they turn you away from your religion if they can" [Al-Baqarah: 217]? When will we take the initiative to be the active and influential ones instead of being a testing ground for others? When will we invite our Christian colleagues and neighbors to the religion of Allah the Almighty before they tie us up on the Day of Judgment?
When will we bear our responsibility towards humanity and feel the cost of belonging to the nation that Allah said about: "You are the best nation ever brought forth to mankind" [Al-Imran: 110]?
Is it not time for us to respond to the command of Allah the Almighty: "O you who have believed, be supporters of Allah" [Al-Saff: 14]? Brothers, enough hesitation, enough stumbling, enough revolving in a vicious circle... Come, let us soar, come, let us launch into the horizons of serving the religion of Allah and the pleasure of attachment to Him so that we may feel the saying of Allah the Almighty: "Or who is he that can give you life, when you were dead, and will give you light wherein you walk?" [Al-An'am: 122].