A`oodhu billahi min ash-Shaytani ‘r-rajeem. Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem. Kalimataan khafeefataan `ala al-lisaan thaqeelataan fi ’l-meezaan habeebataan li’r-rahmaan: SubhaanAllah wa bihamdihi subhaanAllahi ’l-`Azheem.
Islam is the message of Allah (swt) and Allah said in Holy Quran:
اَ يُكَلِّفُ اللّهُ نَفْسًا إِلاَّ وُسْعَهَا لَهَا مَا كَسَبَتْ وَعَلَيْهَا مَا اكْتَسَبَتْ
Laa yukallifullahu nafsan illa wus`ahaa lahaa maa kasabat wa `alayhaa maa ’ktasabat.
On no soul does Allah place a burden greater than it can bear. It gets every good that it earns and it suffers every ill that it earns. (Surat al-Baqarah, 2:286)
Allah doesn’t expect or require more than a person can carry. What you can carry is what Allah wants; don’t overload yourself, as Allah said, “On no soul does Allah place a burden greater than it can bear.” Allah will not, He is Ahkamu ‘l-Haakimeen, He is the Best of Judges, if we can say that in translation. He is the One that His decisions are to be fulfilled and He said, “Don’t overload yourself, do your capacity, but do it every day.” Don’t be one who does it one day and not the other, like someone who eats one day and one day he doesn’t eat as it’s not healthy for the body as you have to eat everyday.
Ajallu ‘l-karamaat dawaamu ’t- tawfeeq, always Grandshaykh mentioned, may Allah bless his soul, and may Allah give Mawlana a long life, Ajallu ‘l-karamaat dawaamu ’t- tawfeeq, that after Prophet (s) there is no miracle, but there is a sort of a meaning of a miracle, and what is it? Ajallu ‘l-karamaat dawaamu ’t- tawfeeq, “To keep doing what you are doing every day,” don’t stop it because if you stop it, it is not considered successful. If you want to be successful in dunya, do your obligations correctly and add on them as your capacity can accept.
Not everyone is a wali; among the Ummat an-Nabi (s) how many are awliyaullah? Ummat an-Nabi (s) are the ones who are living on Earth, they are the ummah. There is Ummat ad-Da`wa, those who have not yet accepted Islam but they being advised about Islam, as Prophet (s) came for everyone, so they are Ummat ad-Da`wa; Prophet (s) has sent them The Message but they did not accept, and Ummat al-Ijaabah, those who accepted and are Muslims. So today there are 1.5 billion Muslims around the world: those who accepted the da`wa and those who did not accept are the remainder. Allah (swt) does not require from anyone of us except to do our five obligations, our Five Pillars of Islam. The First Pillar in Islam is Shahadah: ash-hadu an laa ilaaha illa-Llah wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadu ‘r-Rasoolullah, Iqamatu-s salat, wa eetaa'u-z zakat, wa sawmu Ramadan, wa hajju‘1-bayti. There are the Five Pillars within the first category and then the Six Pillars in Imaan and then the last is Ihsaan, “Moral Excellence.”
So Allah (swt) doesn't require from everyone more than he can carry. Awliyaullah can carry. Prophet (s) used to pray all night until his feet were swollen and Sayyida `Ayesha said, “Yaa Rasoolullah, you are praying until your feet are swollen, why? Allah has forgiven you, you are infallible, you have no sins.” He said, “You don’t want me to be a thankful servant to Allah (swt)?”
So awliyaullah can, and mureeds can do more than common people; the followers of awliyaullah can do more. There are 41 tariqats and too many awliyaullah. How many awliya do we know of? there are 124,000 walis. They are everywhere, but they are in a pyramid structure; on top of them is one sultan and there are branches. For us, the Naqshbandi Order, our sultan is Mawlana Shaykh Nazim, may Allah give him long life. Among all awliyaullah they have a sultan and among the 124,000 they have one sultan and that sultan is also Mawlana Shaykh Nazim, may Allah give him a long life. But it doesn’t mean that we throw all other awliya, no. There are many who are in different branches and are filling the Earth. There are 124,000 out of 1.5 billion, which is a small number, but they can do more than what we can; we cannot do like them, but what we have to do is, if I am doing dhikr of “Allah, Allah…” 1,500 times daily, then keep it! If I go to 5,000 times daily and it is heavy on me, then I keep to 1,500 but don’t lose it, keep it every day.
There are different levels in tariqah. There is muhibbeen “Lovers” like us and there are Beginners who are higher than Lovers and they begin to put their feet in tariqah. Don’t get upset with me, we are not yet Beginners; a Beginner in tariqah is in a high position, a high level. So we are muhibbeen, we love Mawlana, we come and we sit, but yet we didn’t reach the Level of a Beginner, as without a seclusion you cannot be a Beginner.
After the Level of Beginner is musta`id, ready to receive orders through his heart from the shaykh. After that Level is Mureed and he can be a spotlight; wherever he appears people run to him like the bees run to the queen. And on top of that, awliyaullah begin at the top of the pyramid, which is Sultan al-Awliya. So some of the mureeds, although we call ourselves mureed but also but we are not, we are Lovers still; we are in the first level. Sometimes we do the awraad of the mureed which is 10,000 dhikrullah. You can, but if you cannot do it every day at least you do the first level, which is 1,500. And this is like a miracle, it is called a miracle: awliyaullah call it Ajallu ‘l-karamaat, “The best of miracles,” which is to keep steady in what you have been ordered to do.
So let us keep steady on the way and not moving left or right, but our goal is to go from Lover to Beginner, although Beginner is a heavy station, so let us try that our goal is to become Beginners, which will lead us to musta`id, to be ready. When you are ready all these messages come from the shaykh like lightening, coming and inspiring you with what you have to do. You become like a spotlight. The the beginning of that spotlight might be 100 watts or 200 watts or 300 watts, but when you become a mureed, it becomes like a sun, shining!
Allah to make it easy for us, and Prophet (s) to made it easy for us said two words:
كلمتان خفيفتان على اللسان ثقيلتان فى الميزان حبيبتان إلى الرحمن سبحان الله و بحمده سبحان الله العظيم
Kalimataan khafeefataan `ala al-lisaan thaqeelataan fi ’l-meezaan habeebataan li’r-rahmaan: SubhaanAllah wa bihamdihi subhaanAllahi ’l-`Azheem.
There are two words that are very light on the tongue, yet very heavy on the Scale, most beloved to The Merciful, “SubhaanAllah wa bihamdihi subhaanAllahi ’l-`Azheem.”
Two words that are so light on the tongue that you can say it, thaqeelataan fi ’l-meezaan, very heavy on the Scale in the Day of Judgment. It’s not only two words, but two sentences from the hadith of Prophet (s), kalimataan khafeefataan `ala al-lisaan, “They are two words very light on the tongue but very heavy on the Scale.” What are they? SubhaanAllah wa bi hamdihi, subhaanAllahi ‘l-`azheem. I think everyone recites that at least 100 times daily. Some of you might not do it with the prayer at Fajr, but you can do it anytime. Mawlana Shaykh Nazim and Grandshaykh added “astaghfirullah.”
So how much easy to make your Scale heavy on the Day of Judgment, this helps you. People buy jewels and pay a lot of money, and these are free jewels for Akhirah, jewels of Akhirah, so why we don’t run or rush to buy them? Allah is saying if you want to make your Scale heavy with accounts of good things, recite them. Say, SubhaanAllah wa bihamdihi [SubhaanAllah wa bihamdihi], subhaanAllah hi ‘l-`azheem [subhaanAllahi ‘l-`azheem], astaghfirullah, [astaghfirullah]. That will make your Scale heavy and it’s already heavy now! If we repeat it every day, then every day there will be one more load on your Scale. Instead of you being in the First Paradise, with the second load you will be in the Second Paradise, with the third load you will be in the Third Paradise and in infinite Paradises that Allah raises you to every time you say, “SubhaanAllah wa bihamdihi subhaanAllahi ’l-`Azheem.” SubhaanAllah wa bihamdihi means, “Glory be to Allah (swt) for what He has done for us.” What has He done for us? He created us and made us His servants!
Sayyidina Musa (a) (...) used to carry a stick and also Mawlana would carry a stick. So he used to go on a journey to learn from what is around him and one day he was reaching the mountain and he was hearing someone saying something, reciting something. He thought, “There is something beautiful someone is saying, so let me approach.” He approached but he was worried, a fear came to his heart. As soon as he reached the cave, he saw someone in sajda and saying, subhaanAllah, Alhamdulillahi ’Lladhee fadalanee `alaa katheerin mimman khalaqa tafdeela, “Praise be to Allah Who has favored me more than he favored anyone.” And he was repeating and crying, repeating and crying, with a very melodious voice that the heart of Sayyidina Musa...Sayyidina Musa was strong, tough, but his heart began to melt from the beauty of that recitation. It is an ayah from Holy Qu’ran:
الحمد لله اللذي َفَضَّلنْيْ عَلَى كَثِيرٍ مِّمَّنْ خَلَق تَفْضِيلاً
Alhamdulillahi ’Lladhee fadalanee `alaa katheerin mimman khalaqa tafdeela.
All praise be to The One that honored me over many of whom He honored.
(Du`a based on Surat al-Israa, 17:70)
If we say now to all of us here, with what Allah favored us? [Made us Muslims.] That is the best, with what else? Health, with what else? Prayers, made us `abd, created us and gave us everything. So Sayyidina Musa (a) was listening and that person was reciting, alhamdulillahi ’Lladhee fadalanee `alaa katheerin mimman khalaqa tafdeela. He thought, “Why is this man saying that when there is nothing much here and no one comes to help him?” And then he found a deer coming, a female deer coming and raising her leg and the man was sucking the milk. That was his food! Allah was sending to him every 24 hours that deer that would give him milk. Allahu Akbar!
وَاللّهُ يَرْزُقُ مَن يَشَاء بِغَيْرِ حِسَابٍ
And Allah gives provision to whom He wills without account. (Surat al-Baqarah 2:212)
When he finished sucking the milk, he was laying on his chest and then he sat, he pushed up his back and sat, and Sayyidina Musa (a) was astonished. That man had no limbs, no arms, no legs, only his body (torso), stomach and head. Allahu Akbar!
Sayyidina Musa looked at him and said, “Yaa `AbdAllah, Allah’s servant, I am surprised.” He was Sayyidina Musa and could say anything he likes! “I am surprised with what Allah favored you with, no arms, no legs..in what are you better than many? You are not better than anyone, everyone living has arms and legs except you, so what Allah favored you with?”
He was...in the old times they used to live long, he was from the time of Sayyidina Ibrahim (a) and he was a believer of Sayyidina Ibrahim (a). He looked at him and said, “Yaa Musa,” he knew him. “Yaa Musa! Allah favored me more than anyone.”
He asked, “With what?”
The man said, “Because He made me Muslim!”
That is the biggest ni`mah that Allah has given to me! Allah gave us ni`mat al-Islam, to all of us, without anything from us! He dressed us with Islam, with imaan, so that requires us to say, “Shukran yaa Allah,” thanking Allah (swt), not only eating and drinking and sleeping, but thanking Him!
لَئِن شَكَرْتُمْ لأَزِيدَنَّكُمْ
La-in shakartum la-azeedanakum.
If you thank Me, I will give you more. (Surah Ibrahim, 14:7)
“What I give you more, inAllaha yudafi`oo anilladheena aamanoo, Allah (swt) defends the believers.” If you are really a believer, Allah will defend you. Defend you from whom? From Shaytan! Make Shaytan to run away from you by saying, “Shukran yaa Allah.” If you thank Allah (swt) for His Favors, Allah will defend us when we are falling into sins by forgiving us and that will make Shaytan angry. Why is Shaytan angry? When he saw Bani Adam being forgiven. He is happy when we do a sin and he is sad and angry when Allah forgives us! That is why Allah (swt) says:
قُلْ يَا عِبَادِيَ الَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا عَلَى أَنفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا مِن رَّحْمَةِ اللَّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
Qul yaa `ibadiya ’Lladheena asrafoo `alaa anfusihim laa taqnatoo min rahmatillaahi inna Allaaha yaghfiru ’dh-dhunooba jamee`an innahu huwa ’l-ghafooru ‘r-raheem.
Say, "O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah, for Allah forgives all sins for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” (Surat al-Zumar, 39:53)
Allah is saying to Sayyidina Muhammad (s), qul!, which means, “Yaa Muhammad, say, ‘O believers! Don't lose hope of Allah’s Mercy. Allah will forgive all sins, but come to him, come and ask.’” Inshaa-Allah we will explain tomorrow how to come and ask. How to ask?
Wa min Allahi 't-tawfeeq, bi hurmati 'l-habeeb, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.
If anyone wants to see...this is a story I was surprised that he mentioned from Tafseer al-Qur’an about Sayyidina Musa (as). And I went to India and I was thinking to myself, “Where can you find such a person?” I was in India and I was surprised to see such a person looking at me among the crowd and smiling at me when I was passing, as if he was telling me, “Your shaykh ordered me to show myself to you. Your teacher, Mawlana Shaykh Nazim, is ordering me to appear to you.” And he looked and smiled! If anyone is interested to see his picture, you can ask him (a mureed), he has it on his telephone. You can see someone without limbs, without arms or legs, only the body and a head.
Wa min Allahi 't-tawfeeq, bi hurmati 'l-habeeb, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.
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