16 October 1427/8 October 2006
after Fajr and Tahajjud
A`udhu billahi min ash-shaytaan ir-rajeem
Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem
Nawaytu'l-arba`een, nawaytu'l-`itikaaf, nawaytu'l-khalwah, nawaytu'l-riyaada, nawaytu's-salook, nawaytu'l-`uzlah lillahi ta`ala fee hadha'l-masjid
Ati` Allah wa ati` ar-Rasula wa uli 'l-amri minkum
W
e were speaking about tawadu` in the previous session that everything is achieved by humility, humbleness. Nothing can be achieved by arrogance and pride. And Grandshaykh said, may Allah I bless his soul, that my children or my students, that the Beiruti students, the Lebanese students Hisham ? and Adnan ?, they had a lot of arrogance that they never even tried to lower themselves to meet even with a president. They were thinking themselves above presidents. Laa yatanaazaloona an yataqaabaloo ra’iees jamhooriyya.
But he said thru me and thru my teaching, I taught them how to be humble, not to even consider to meet with a president but to consider to meet with the lowest people. That is why he is addressing to us, be thankful to Allah I and call on him and say every day, ya Adheem 100 times. That He is the `Adheem that thru my teaching I brought you to that humbleness that Allah I brought you to his Nearness, because of the humbleness that I have raised in you. So humbleness, he is insisting and showing that humbleness can create a different character. In human beings, that you can and it is the main infrastructure, the cornerstone that you can build on it everything else. Without that stone you cannot build anything. People today are arrogant in their knowledges and arrogant in their teaching.
First of all to learn tawadu` you have to build your understanding that you cannot interpret the words of your shaykh and this is a very important issue. Everything you can interpret, but when the shaykh says something you must not say the shaykh meant this. Take it literally as it is, because Shaytaan comes this way and says the shaykh meant this way, but in front of other he said this but he mean that way. That is first trick of shaytaan tricking us. Take the words of the shaykh literally. No interpretations. Interpretations will take you to a lot of misunderstandings and false signals. “I don’t want to hear any more interpretations,” Grandshaykh said. You have to take my words as I say it. When you reach that level you can interpret. No one has to interpret the words of the shaykh. Take it as it is said. Your signals might be false signals. Which is very important. So when we humble ourselves and don’t say I humbled myself, no when the shaykh mentioned that one is really humble and he achieved that level, then you can build what you want on that stone, cornerstone. Before that everything you are building is going to fall.
أَفَمَنْ أَسَّسَ بُنْيَانَهُ عَلَى تَقْوَى مِنَ اللّهِ وَرِضْوَانٍ خَيْرٌ أَم مَّنْ أَسَّسَ بُنْيَانَهُ عَلَىَ شَفَا جُرُفٍ هَارٍ فَانْهَارَ بِهِ فِي نَارِ جَهَنَّمَ وَاللّهُ لاَ يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الظَّالِمِينَ
Afaman assasa bunyanahu `ala taqwa mina Allahi waridwanin khayrun am man assasa bunyanahu `ala shafa jurufin haarin fa-anhara bihi fee naari jahannama waAllahu la yahdee alqawma dh-dhalimeena.
Which then is best? - he that layeth his foundation on piety to Allah I and His good pleasure? - or he that layeth his foundation on an undermined sand-cliff ready to crumble to pieces? and it doth crumble to pieces with him, into the fire of Hell. And Allah I guideth not people that do wrong. [9:109]
The one who put the foundation of his building on taqwa, is different that one is able to build more and more, but the one who built his building on a cliff that is falling down, with no foundation, is going to fall down into hellfire and destroy himself and those who are with him.
So you have to build it on a very firm foundation. So you cannot build the foundation of others before you build your own foundation. You have to build your own foundation before you build the others’ foundation. The others’ foundations will be burning. If you want to build other people then any problem or any earthquake even if 3 degrees will take you down completely you and the one who taught you. You have to be very careful in the way you build that.
Building on interpretation is not a strong foundation. First you build foundation on literary. The bound must be bound on a very literal solid structure so that whatever later you build on it on top of good behavior will be solid and strong.
The example of this Sayyida Ayesha y. May Allah I reward her. She was teacher for Sahaaba and whatever they needed of learning she was giving them answers. But with all that she has to build her foundation very solid, here we can see how the foundation how it went.
Grandshaykh said that Prophet e one time was going to the mosque. Allah I said, “khudoo zeenatakum `inda kulla masjidin… musrifeen.” “O human beings, take all your medallions ornaments when you go the mosque, the masjid.” So the Prophet e, this is not interpretation, the literal meaning. The interpretated meaning is have good character. So here we want to see you have to have a solid foundation. So the Prophet e dressed very nicely, put perfumes and going out. Sayyida Ayesha y stopped him. Where are you going? I am going to the mosque. Why are you dressing nicely and combing your hair and putting perfumes. She was the teacher of the Sahaaba. She was teaching them. But her knowledge of the Prophet e is cannot be compared. Whatever she is high, she is the wife of Sayyidina Muhammad e, Umma’l-mumineen, but even though there is no comparison. Yes, she is a wife of Sayyidina Muhammad e, and she is a Sahaaba, and she is teaching the Sahaaba. But compared to other levels and compared to the Prophet’s e level it cannot be compared.
This is the problem in us. Whatever level you have high your foundation is not solid. You don’t want to give interpretation when your foundation is not solid. She said, where are you going and in adab the Prophet e said, “I am going to the mosque,” she said, “Why are you dressing nicely and putting on perfume? Do you still love women, are you going to see a woman?”
She is saying to Prophet e, may Allah I bless her, “O Muhammad e, o Rasulullah e, you don’t get satisfied from women, you want more? Look how you are cleaning and doing yourself and so on.” “Qala laha ya Ayesha y. O my beloved Ayesha y, take the mirror and look who is in the mirror. She took the mirror and looked and she said, I see myself, Ayesha y in the mirror. And he said, ya Ayesha y, the mirror reflect what can be seen in the mirror. And we are mirrors. I am a mirror. So when you are looking at me, with dress nicely and fix myself nicely and everything, and that is the hadith came, al-mumin mirrata akhee—The believer is the mirror his brother. You are seeing yourself, your bad character. You are not seeing me, you are seeing yourself. You still have that sickness there. So though she was teaching Sahaaba, she saw the sickness that is in here. She was not seeing it. She was thinking that she is correct, teaching the Sahaaba, all Sahaaba have respect to her. But from level of Prophet e, he was teaching you have sickness there still, you are seeing yourself, and seeing not me.
So Prophet e left and he was not happy. And Sayyidina Abu Bakr y, Ayesha’s father, found out what she had done, how she made the Prophet e upset. He came to her house and said, why did you make Prophet e upset. She said, always he is dressing nicely and going out, and maybe he is going to see another woman.
He slapped her and slapped her until blood came out. The Prophet e did not do that but the father did that in order to bring her back to herself. So she came back to herself. That slap was to wake her to remember to build her foundation on solid base.
So everything has to have solid foundation so it does not fall down completely. Man tawada`a lillahi rafa`. Whoever humbles himself for his lord, Allah I will raise him up.
And we mentioned about tawada` about shaykh Sharafuddin ?. So when we are not clean, we see ourselves. Your brother will reflect your bad character. You are seeing that wrong, he is reflecting you that bad character. You are the one with that sickness. You are the one who has to straighten up yourself. Symphony is beginning.
You have to correct yourself, whenever you see any misbehavior, that wrong coming, that means you are that kind of character. Not from that person. Always blame yourself, blame yourself, blame yourself. It is true, I am wrong. Don’t let Shaytaan to trick you. Saying I am wali, I am sincere person, no. Leave to your Shaykh. If he wants to say, he says. I am nothing I am trying to learn to be nothing. I am not wali, not calipha, not nothing. Then you will be able to reach a high level. So it is our duty to respect our bros and sisters in order to be able to reach high levels that Allah I will inherit us, when the Prophet e said, adabanee rabbbee wa ahsana ta`deebee from that secret you will be able to learn and inherit. Although the Prophet e gave him and created everything from light of Muhammad e and still Sayyidina Muhammad e is humble to everyone. Allah I created everyone from his light. He has to be given respect by everyone and see himself highest. But he never saw himself highest, he always made himself humble. Even with all respect that Allah I gave him, he is seeing himself like other, say to them I am only a human being like you, but revealed to me, that out of his humbleness.
قُلْ إِنَّمَا أَنَا بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُكُمْ يُوحَى إِلَيَّ أَنَّمَا إِلَهُكُمْ إِلَهٌ وَاحِدٌ فَمَن كَانَ يَرْجُو لِقَاء رَبِّهِ فَلْيَعْمَلْ عَمَلًا صَالِحًا وَلَا يُشْرِكْ بِعِبَادَةِ رَبِّهِ أَحَدًا
Qul innama ana basharun mithlukum yooha ilayya annama ilahukum ilahun wahidun faman kana yarjoo liqaa rabbihi falya`mal `amalan saalihan wala yushrik bi `ibadati rabbihi ahadan
Say: "I am but a man like yourselves, (but) the inspiration has come to me, that your Allah I is one Allah I. whoever expects to meet his Lord, let him work righteousness, and, in the worship of his Lord, admit no one as partner. [18:110]
So what Sayyida Ayesha y said in front of the Prophet e is like what? Her knowledge is nothing in front of Prophet e and she fell into that mistake. No one can reach and understand the highest level of Sayyidina Muhammad e.
No one knows since when was the beginning. From that time, which no one knows, the Prophet e has been raised up, raised up, raised up. So when Sayyidatina Ayesha y said that to him he kept quiet. Al mumin mirrat al-mumin ya Ayesha y. So the after came and gave her the lesson. How much we have to have lessons and learn. Whoever walks straight forward on the straight path has nothing to fear in dunya and akhira. He sent us to dunya in order to give us keys to our trust. That is why we have been sent here. Or else we would have stayed in paradise. We would not have understood the key to our trust if we stayed praise. He want to send to dunya in order to understand the importance of the key.
No one can reach according to his amal. Our amal cannot take us anywhere. But obedience to Allah I and to His Prophet e and to our teachers will take us where people cannot go.
He Grandshaykh, may Allah I bless said, “That if a human being spent all the wealth that Allah I gave to him he must not be regretful that he spent his wealth in the way of Allah I. Even if all the wealth of dunya, and you spent in the way of Allah I, don’t think it is something to regret upon. That is written for you and the way for your trust to be opened.”
But when you lose hope of finding the trust. When you are still asking, “I want my trust I want my trust,” then you will not get it. When you lose hope of getting the trust then slowly the shaykh will give you. So you have to decide you want something or you don’t. If you want something you never get it. This is the way of Allah I. Normal people worship for reward. When you go higher in level you worship because He is your lord you love Him, you worship Him for His love. The higher level is worship for the love of the Ummah. O Allah I they are Your creation. I worship that you make me the scapegoat for all of them. Like Bayazid al-Bistami ? [who said], “Let no one enter the fire and make me the one to be saved.”
When you make ablution and you make prostration, who is the One to whom you make sajda? Look he is in prostration. To whom are you making prostration when you make ablution. Are you making that prostration to Allah I or you are making the prostration to wealth to money, to dunya? You have to think. You have to know, “Am I really doing for Allah I?” That prostration is the key for your key to open. If not then your trust will not open. And don’t tell me anyone has his trust open. We are on that way, trying. Insha-Allah one day Allah I will open. He is generous. He will open for everyone in the grave. But ya Rabbee, we are not asking for you to open in dunya, like a reward, but You are generous, the Most generous of the generous, if You open You are not losing anything, make people happy. Make Your servants happy. Allah I you don’t know with what `amal you do Allah I open for you everything. Like Sayyidina Imam al-Ghazali.
In the time of Sayyidina Abdul Khaliq al-Ghujdawani ? there was an epidemic, waba, because of that plague 100s of 1000s going to die in that area. He looked at all his students hearts’ to find someone that can be able because of that person to lift that affliction. He looked, he looked, he looked right and left and I am sharing this with you. He looked and he didn’t find except two brothers like Shaykh Adnan ? and Shaykh Hisham ?.
He said, “He looked and looked and he didn’t find except two between all his students like Adnan ? and Hisham ?. And they have two big oxes they own oxes.”
Everyone in that time owns only that ox that is for plowing that they use it for their daily work. He said, “O my children I didn’t find except you.” He called them and said, “O my children there is a big plague coming and I am asking Allah I to take away that plague and in order that I will be able to take away that plague, Allah I showed me thru a vision Sayyidina Muhammad e saying to me, ‘Ya Abdul Khaliq ?, let someone slaughter his ox and then bring that to me and I will write on the skin of the ox some verses of holy Quran,’ and I didn’t find anyone except you two capable of doing that. So I am asking you to bring your oxes each one of you, and la aqdir an ukaliffu ghayrakum. I cannot ask anyone to carry that task except you both. So go get your oxes and come.”
These two were fana fish-shaykh. If the shaykh tells them, “Slaughter yourself,” they will slaughter themselves for the sake of the shaykh.
And I will stop here and continue today. Today no symphony. If he was there he would make a symphony, Faiz al-Haqq. May Allah I forgive us.