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You Must Know the Greatness of Your Prophet (s)!

Mawlana Shaykh Hisham Kabbani

31 December 2011 Jakarta Timur, Indonesia

Mawlid an-Nabi (s) with Habib Hasan bin Jafar Assagaf

Suhbah at Velodrome Rawamangun

As-salaamu `alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakaatuh.

A`oodhu billahi min ash-Shaytaani 'r-rajeem. Bismillahi 'r-Rahmaani 'r-Raheem.

Alhamdulillahi Rabbi 'l-`Alameen, wa ’s-salaatu wa ’s-salaamu `ala ashrafa 'l-Mursaleen, Sayyidina wa Nabiyyina Muhammadin wa `alaa aalihi wa sahbihi ajma`een.

Nawaytu 'l-arba`een, nawaytu 'l-`itikaaf, nawaytu 'l-khalwah, nawaytu 'l-`uzlah,

nawaytu 'r-riyaadah, nawaytu 's-sulook, lillahi ta`ala fee haadha 'l-masjid.

أَطِيعُواْ اللّهَ وَأَطِيعُواْ الرَّسُولَ وَأُوْلِي الأَمْرِ مِنكُمْ

Ati`oollaha wa ati`oo 'r-Rasoola wa ooli 'l-amri minkum.

Obey Allah, obey the Prophet, and obey those in authority among you. (4:59)

Alhamdulillah, Who has allowed us to gather this night in the love of Sayyidina Muhammad (s) with the Lovers of al-Mustafa, Nur al-Mustafa, may Allah (swt) gather them in Paradise with Sayyidina Muhammad (s), as he is our example and he was the one for whom the angels were ordered by Allah to make prostration to Sayyidina Adam (a) to respect him! We thank Allah (swt) and seek His guidance, and seek refuge in Him from the evil of our selves and our deeds.

This is a gathering of guidance and in it is a big gift from Sayyidina Muhammad (s), because as we remember him the Prophet (s) remembers us. We remember Allah (swt) and He recalls us, and this is a blessing for the haba’ib and especially for Habib Hasan. May Allah (swt) guide us.

All of Islam is built on obedience and love to the Prophet (s). Obedience to the Prophet (s) will bring us to love him, so pray on him all the time! We hope these blessings reach not only Muslims, but non-Muslims as well.

Allah (swt) said:

إِنَّا فَتَحْنَا لَكَ فَتْحًا مُّبِينًالِيَغْفِرَ لَكَ اللَّهُ مَا تَقَدَّمَ مِن ذَنبِكَ وَمَا تَأَخَّرَ وَيُتِمَّ نِعْمَتَهُ عَلَيْكَ

Inna fatahnaa laka fathan mubeena li-yaghfira laka Allahu maa taqaddama min dhanbika wa maa ta'akhkhar.

Verily (O Muhammad), We have laid open before you a manifest victory, that Allah may forgive you your faults of the past and those to follow. (al-Fath, 48:1,2)

Allah (swt) is saying, “We have granted you a great opening to forgive you what you did of former and latter sins.” But the question is, did the Prophet (s) commit any sins for which he needs to be forgiven? No! In fact, Prophet (s) is ma`soom, innocent of sins! He was raised to the Station of Two Bow’s-length or nearer, Qaaba qawsayni aw adnaa, he entered Paradise and Hell and beheld their inhabitants, so how could that refer to him, there is no way! Therefore, meaning of this verse is, “You were raised up and Allah (swt) forgave you for the sins of your Ummah, the servants of Allah; whatever past and future sins are forgiven for the shafa`ah, intercession of Sayyidina Muhammad (s)! Sayyidina Adam (a) and everyone else is under My Flag on Judgment Day!”

You are the Children of Sayyidina Adam (a), asking for his shafa`ah. Prophet (s) will make sajda in the Presence of His Lord and will recite du`a that Allah will open to his heart and Allah (swt) will then say to him, “Raise your head and ask (anything), for you will be granted!” Prophet (s) will ask for the Ummah to be saved and Allah will grant it, as He (swt) says in the Holy Qur'an:

أَلَمْ نَشْرَحْ لَكَ صَدْرَكَ

alam nashrah laka sadrak.

Have We not expanded for you your breast? (ash-Sharh, 94:1)

And that expansion has no limit; it may be that Allah (swt) has expanded his chest as far as Qaaba qawsayni aw adnaa! “We then removed from you your heavy burdens,” which means the heavy burden of this ummat that Sayyidina Muhammad (s) is carrying. And referring to the other verse, “We forgave your ummat whatever it sent forth of sins and what it will send forth.” And we make du’a:

رَبَّنَا آتِنَا فِي الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً وَفِي الآخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً وَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ

Rabbana aatinaa fi 'd-dunya hasanatan wa fi ’l-akhirati hasanatan wa qina `adhaab an-naar.

O our Lord! Give us goodness in this life and goodness in the Next Life, and protect us from the punishment of the Fire. (Surat al-Baqara, 2:201)

What is a hasanah? It is something good, a blessing. If Allah (swt) wants to do good to His servant, He makes him to know His Prophet (s). So it means, “O Allah! Grant us to see Sayyidina Muhammad (s) in this dunya and to see him and be in his company in the Next Life!”

Verily the Prophet (s) is not far from us; n fact, he is present and listening! He is presented with our deeds in his grave. He said, “I am fresh alive in my grave and no one sends salaam on me except that Allah returns my soul to me in my grave and I return their salaam.”

And so all around the world people are sending their salaams on the Prophet (s) and, therefore, every moment Allah is sending back the soul of the Prophet (s) to him in his grave and he is returning the salaams of those reciting praise and greetings on him. Imam as-Suyuti (q) said, “Based on this, we know that Allah (swt) has returned his soul to him permanently in his grave.”

It means, praise the Prophet (s)! We say, “O Allah! We send praisings on your Prophet (s)! O Mercy to All the Worlds! We are calling on you from Indonesia! O Prophet! May Allah (swt) pray on you from pre-Eternity to post-Eternity!”

Allah (swt) said in the Holy Qur'an:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ وَمَلَائِكَتَهُ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا صَلُّوا عَلَيْهِ وَسَلِّمُوا تَسْلِيمًا

inna-Llaha wa malaa'ikatahu yusalloona `ala 'n-nabi, yaa ayyuhal-ladheena aamanoo salloo `alayhi was sallimoo tasleema.

Verily, Allah and His angels send praise on the Prophet. O Believers! Pray upon him and greet him. (al-'Ahzaab, 33:56)

This means Allah (swt) is praying on the Prophet (s) and ordered all His angels-- those He created, those He is creating, and those He will create--to praise Prophet Muhammad (s)! Allah is al-Khalaq, “The Creator,” which means He continuously creates new things and new angels, and each new angel is ordered to pray on the Prophet (s), an order they fulfill every moment! They each have their own unique tasbeeh that differs from any other, so there is no repetition.

You must know the greatness of your Prophet (s)! How did Allah (swt) magnify him? Sayyidina Musa (a) was Kaleemullah, “Who Spoke with His Lord,” and he requested, “Yaa Rabbee! Let me see You!” Allah asked, “How can you ask this? The Creator is outside this world and Heavens, and has no place and no time beyond all that! O Musa, you will not see Me, but I will give you a chance. Look at the mountain and if it stays in its place, then you can see Me.”

A mountain is huge and massive. As mentioned in the tafseer, “When Allah sent His tajalli of His Beautiful Names and Attributes and the greatness of Sayyidina Mustafa (s) on that mountain, it came crashing down, shattered. Sayyidina Musa (a) fainted and fell down, as he was shocked.”

فَلَمَّا تَجَلَّى رَبُّهُ لِلْجَبَلِ جَعَلَهُ دَكًّا وَخَرَّ موسَى صَعِقًا

Falammaa tajallaa Rabbuhu li 'l-jabali ja`alahu dakkan wa kharra Musa saa'iqaan.

But when His Lord revealed His Glory to the mountain, he made it crumble to dust and Musa fell down. (Surat al-A'raf, 7:143)

Allah (swt) sent that tajalli on the mountain through His Ancient Words and that is because Sayyidina Musa (a) continuously sought wisdom, so Allah sent him to meet with Khidr (a). When the tajalli appeared, the mountain came crashing down.

Allah (swt) said in another verse:

لَوْ أَنزَلْنَا هَذَا الْقُرْآنَ عَلَى جَبَلٍ لَّرَأَيْتَهُ خَاشِعًا مُّتَصَدِّعًا مِّنْ خَشْيَةِ اللَّهِ

law anzalnaa haadhaa al-Qur’ana `alaa jabalin la-ra'aytahu khaashi`aan mutasaddi`an min khashyatillah.

If We had caused this Qur'an to descend upon a mountain (O Muhammad), verily you would have seen it humbled, rent asunder by the fear of Allah. (Al-Hashr, 59:21)

“If We were to reveal this Holy Qur'an to a mountain, it would be crushed and destroyed, turning to dust out of fear of Allah.” But Allah sent the Holy Qur'an on the heart of Sayyidina Muhammad (s), who did not fall apart!

Yaa ummat an-Nabee al-Mustafa! You are the lights of al-Mustafa and an-Nabee (s). Allah (swt) has sent down the Qur'an on the Prophet (s), who has given it to you. Whether you accept it or not, you are the carriers of the Holy Qur'an and obliged to give respect to Holy Qur'an and to the descendants of the Prophet (s)!

Muhammad al-Busayri (r), author of al-Burda ash-Shareefa and a Knower of the realities of the Prophet (s), said, “All are taking from the Prophet (s) and all have a specialty from him, not just the servants, but even the planets and stars! Verily, all of Creation is created from the Light of Sayyidina Mustafa (s)!”

We will end with this reminder:

قُل لَّا أَسْأَلُكُمْ عَلَيْهِ أَجْرًا إِلَّا الْمَوَدَّةَ فِي الْقُرْبَى

qul laa as’alukum `alayhi ajran illa al-mawaddata fi ’l-qurbah.

Say (O Muhammad), "I do not ask you for a reward except the love of my Family." (ash-Shura, 42:23)

All these habaa’ib are the descendants of the Prophet (s). They are in every part and every corner of the world, and our obligation is to respect them. May Allah (swt) support them as they are a blessing and good for our ummah!

Ash-hadu laa ilaaha illa-Llah wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan rasoolullah! Laa ilaaha illa-Llah, laa ilaaha illa-Llah, laa ilaaha illa-Llah!

O Allah! Make the first of this night a restoration, and make its’ middle joy, and make its’ ending salvation. O Allah! Make the first of it mercy, the middle of it bounty, and its last part blessings and forgiveness! Yaa Sayyidee! Yaa Rasoolullah! Look to us and reach us!

Wa min Allahi 't-tawfeeq, bi hurmati 'l-habeeb, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.

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