10 August 2012 Fenton Zawiya, Michigan
Ramadan Series / Suhbah after Fajr
A`oodhu billahi min ash-Shaytaani 'r-rajeem. Bismillahi 'r-Rahmaani 'r-Raheem.
Nawaytu 'l-arba`een, nawaytu 'l-`itikaaf, nawaytu 'l-khalwah, nawaytu 'l-`uzlah,
nawaytu 'r-riyaadah, nawaytu 's-sulook, lillahi ta`alaa fee haadha 'l-masjid.
Allahumma salli `alaa Sayyidina Muhammad (s). Allah (swt) `azamat an-Nabi (s), Allah magnified the Prophet (s) with the highest level of magnification, t`azheem, and there are many proofs, but one of them is when Sayyidina Adam (a) committed the sin he made sajda and asked forgiveness for the sake of Sayyidina Muhammad (s). Then question came, “How did you know about Muhammad?” and he said, “Yaa Rabbee! I saw his name written on every leaf in Paradise, on every door in Paradise, if we can say “door” or “leaf” or “trees;” this is how it is mentioned, but it means “on every heavenly element in Paradise his name is written.”
Today they sell you gold coins that feature an image, and you say, "O, this is original, asliyy, not an imitation.” It is pure gold, stamped “.999,” because it has that image of King George or an eagle, a leaf, or anything. So everyone says, "O, this is the very top of the matter," and so they buy it. Allah (swt) didn't put His Name or picture on a gold coin. Allah put His Name with Prophet’s name! Today every Islamic scholar says you cannot have a picture of the Prophet (s), but why? Was there no camera before, or no drawings of him (s)? Because they tried but they never succeeded, not even to begin to draw the Prophet (s) because he cannot be drawn! His reality is veiled, so no one can draw his picture, but you can describe his features, shamaa'il. Only Allah knows the true image of Prophet! Even when the Sahaabah (r) look at Prophet (s), they see a different manifestation than when Allah looks him, as only Allah knows. How can you describe “an-Noor”?
أول ما خلق الله نور نبيك يا جابر
Awwala maa khalaqa-Allahu noora Nabiyyika, yaa Jaabir.
The first thing Allah created is the Light of your Prophet (s), O Jaabir.
Why, is there any other light? Yes, there is Noorillah. So the description is “noor,” and to Allah that is a manifestation that He created the Prophet (s) from His Light, one manifestation or Name that He dressed on Prophet (s). However, whatever form or image the Sahaabah (r) saw is the shamaa'il, but they cannot describe what the Prophet (s) is like in qaaba qawsayni aw adnaa. When Jibreel (a) comes to Prophet (s), he sees him from his reality. Who can carry wahiyy? The Holy Qur'an descended on the Prophet (s)--who can carry that? Only he can carry it, because he is noor:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ إِنَّا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ شَاهِدًا وَمُبَشِّرًا وَنَذِيرًا وَدَاعِيًا إِلَى اللَّهِ بِإِذْنِهِ وَسِرَاجًا مُّنِيرًا
Ya ayyuha ‘n-nabiyyu innaa arsalnaaka shaahidan wa mubashshiran wa nadheeran wa daa`iyan ila Allahi bi idhnihi wa siraajan muneera.
O Prophet! Truly We have sent you as a witness. You are the one who calls people to Allah by His permission, and (you are) a shining lamp. (Surat al-Ahzaab, 33:45-46)
Wa siraajan muneera, a lamp, a sun, a shining moon, and from his light came everything.
When Allah (swt) created His noor He taught it, and the best to be taught is Holy Qur'an, Allah's Ancient Words. Behind every word and every letter are infinite numbers of letters. There was a scholar in Lebanon, my uncle, who was very well known and whose knowledge was like an encyclopedia, and he published an encyclopedia of the letters of the Holy Qur'an in 130 volumes. I remember the volume on the letter “alif” because we printed it for him, although we were not able to print the rest because that was during the war in Lebanon and it was lost when they burned everything. It took him forty years to write that, and his knowledge of the letter “alif” was comprised of 27 volumes, each one consisting of 1,500 pages called, “al-Marja.” And that was only one letter! That is from one scholar; not one wali, but one `alim! So what do you think, if my uncle wrote 27 volumes on one letter, and there are infinite volumes in Heavens! The entire Holy Qur'an is in contained in Surat al-Fatihah.
Sayyidina `Ali (r) said the Prophet (s) said:
قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: «من قرأ فاتحة الكتاب فكأنما قرأ التوراة والإنجيل والزبور والفرقان»
Man qaraa al-Fatihat al-kitab fa kannamaa qaraa bi ‘t-tawraati wa ‘l-injeeli wa ‘z-zaboori wa ‘l-furqaan.
Whoever read the Opening Chapter of the Book, it is as if he read the Torah and the New Testament and the Psalms and the Criterion [the Qur’an].
That is Surat al-Fatihah, which Allah (swt) described, and some scholars say it is more than “al-Qur’an” because it is mentioned:
وَلَقَدْ آتَيْنَاكَ سَبْعًا مِّنَ الْمَثَانِي وَالْقُرْآنَ الْعَظِيمَ
Wa laqad ataynaaka sab`an mina ‘l-mathaanee wa ‘l-quraan al-`azheem
And We have bestowed upon you the Seven Oft-repeated (verses) and the Grand Qur'an.
(Surat al-Hijr, 15:87)
It is as if whoever recites it has been donated the weight of the earth in gold, and not only the wealth of the earth but of the entire universe, whatever exists other than the Creator, because Allah (swt) created creations we cannot see. If the universe were all gold and someone donated all of that in jihad, which means any kind of struggle, for every verse of Surat al-Fatihah he recited it would be as if he had donated the entire universe’s weight in gold in the Way of Allah. Because of this, Allah (swt) forbids his body to be burned by the Hellfire.
That is why, if you say, “Alhamdullahi Rabbi 'l-`Alameen,” that is one ayah. In some madhdhabs they say to read each ayah separately, but Hanafi School says you should connect them, Shafi`i and Hanbali read with breaks, and some say to read the Basmalah with the verses of Surat al-Fatihah in sequence without a break and Allah (swt) will give you Hoor al-`Ayn, the virgin maidens of Paradise. (Takbeer)
It is mentioned by Abi Sa`eed al-Khudree (r), marfu`an, in his tafseer on Surat al-Fatihah, that Allah (swt) sent punishment and revenge on people and on the earth because of too many sins, and on jinn as well. Do you think jinn don't have punishment? They do, and they are locked in special houses made of noor and they cannot come out because they are chained with the secret of that noor. It is a special light that comes from fire, which is not an-Noor, but the light from that fire chains them in a prison from which they cannot escape. Allah (swt) sends His Punishment on earth and when a young boy or girl reads one verse from Surat al-Fatihah, Allah (swt) will take all that punishment away from that group of people for forty years, because of one child reading one ayah! So don't be lazy, teach your children to read Surat al-Fatihah!
It was related that the Prophet (s) said:
من أتى منزله فقرأ الحمد لله سورة الفاتحة وقل هو الله أحد نفى الله عنه الفقر وكثر خير بيته حتى يفيض على جيرانه
Man ataa manzilahu fa-qaraa al-hamdu lillaahi surat al-Fatiha wa qul huwa allahu ahad nafa’Llaahu `anhu al-faqr wa kathar khayra baytihi hattaa yafeed `alaa jeeraanih.
Whoever comes to his house and recites “All praise be to Allah” Surat al-Fatiha and Surat al-Ikhlaas, Allah (swt) will take poverty from him and give him many provisions in his house until it spreads to his neighbors.
That means there is no limit to what Allah (swt) will send to you, both physically and spiritually, as He sent to Sayyida Maryam (r):
كُلَّمَا دَخَلَ عَلَيْهَا زَكَرِيَّا الْمِحْرَابَ وَجَدَ عِندَهَا رِزْقاً قَالَ يَا مَرْيَمُ أَنَّى لَكِ هَـذَا قَالَتْ هُوَ مِنْ عِندِ اللّهِ إنَّ اللّهَ يَرْزُقُ مَن يَشَاء بِغَيْرِ حِسَابٍ
Kullamaa dakhala `alayha zakariyya al-mihraaba wajada `indaha rizqa. qaala yaa maryamu anna laki haadha qaalat huwa min `indillaahi inna Allaha yarzuqu man yashaa'u bi-ghayri hisaab.
Whenever he (Zakariyya) entered her prayer niche, he found with her provision. He said, "O Mary! From where does this come to you?" She said, "From Allah, for Allah provides sustenance to whom He pleases without measure." (Surat Aali-`Imraan, 3:37)
Every time Sayyidina Zakariyya (a) entered her niche, he found provision there.What is the best rizq? To be in the presence of Allah (swt) and the presence of the Prophet (s). The best provision is to be in the presence of the Prophet (s), so that was coming to her and Sayyidina Zakariyya (a) was able to detect that presence. In the time of Mahdi (a), one bite will be enough to sustain you for forty days without snacks or three meals a day!
So the greatness of the Prophet (s) is that he is in mahal tajalliyaat al-haqq bi Surat al-Fatihah, the place of manifestation of Surat al-Fatihah that comes on him. It is mentioned as “saba`a al-mathaanee” because it has seven verses, and there are seven Hellfires and every verse will close a door to Hellfire: the first closes the first Hellfire door, the second closes the second, and so on, until the seventh verse closes the seventh door. Therefore, there is no way the nineteen angels of Hellfire can find a way to take you in. That is why “Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem” must be read on everything, because it consists of nineteen letters, each of which will shut one door that will no longer be able to open for you. So when you connect “Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem” to Surat al-Fatihah, each letter will close one door and each ayah of Surat al-Fatihah will lock it.
So recite, “Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem. Alhamdulillahi rabbi ‘l-`alameen. Ar-rahmani ‘r-raheem. Maaliki yaawmi ’d-deen. Iyyaaka na`abudu wa iyyaaka nasta`een. Ihdina ’s-sirat al-mustaqeem. Sirat al-ladheena an`amta `alayhim. Ghayri ‘l-maghdoobi `alayhim wa laa ’d-daaleen. Ameen. Now with Prophet’s barakah, we have shut the seven doors of Hellfire and took away the power from thes nineteen angels of Hellfire so they will not push us into the Fire, because of the barakah of Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem and Surat al-Fatihah!
Surat al-Fatihah is mentioned twice, being called “al-mathaanee,” repeated two times. In the prayers you read it two times because it was revealed two times, once in Mecca and once in Madinah. That is why it is called “al-mathaanee,” the only surah revealed to the Prophet (s) twice. Why it was revealed two times we will discuss later. Was the second time different from the first time? Yes, of course. Does the first time carry a different tajalli than the second time? Yes, and these tajalliyaat were given to the Prophet (s) and awliyaullah were able to extract some of these knowledges, which we will explain later inshaa-Allah.
The verses of Surat al-Fatihah are seven and the doors of Hellfire are seven; anyone who reads it will close these doors. The evidence is when Jibreel (a) said to the Prophet (s), Yaa Muhammad! kuntu akhsha al-`adhaab `alaa ummatik,“I was worried that your ummah would be punished because of too many sins.” Are we living in a time without sins or are there too many sins? You cannot walk in the streets because there is so much haraam! Even the small stores sell alcohol, and even to enter a grocery store that sells alcohol is haraam, but don’t all of us enter these stores? This is just an example, and there are so many other sins that we don't want to mention; everywhere you look these days is filled with haraam. So Jibreel (a) said, “I was worried that your ummah would fall into haraam, but when Surat al-Fatihah was revealed I felt safe for them because I know what Surat al-Fatihah is carrying.”
Prophet (s) wanted his ummah to know about this, so he asked Jibreel (a), “Limaa, why?”
Jibreel (a) replied, “Because Allah said (19:71) and (15:43).”
وَإِن مِّنكُمْ إِلَّا وَارِدُهَا كَانَ عَلَى رَبِّكَ حَتْمًا مَّقْضِيًّا
Wa in minkum illa waariduhaa kaana `ala rabbika hatman maqdiyyah.
Not one of you but will pass over it: this is, with thy Lord, a Decree which must be accomplished.
(Surah Maryam, 19:71)
وَإِنَّ جَهَنَّمَ لَمَوْعِدُهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ
Wa inna jahannama la-maw`iduhum ajma`een.
And verily, Hell is the promised abode for them all! (Surat al-Hijr, 15:43)
Here it says Hellfire has seven doors:
لَهَا سَبْعَةُ أَبْوَابٍ لِّكُلِّ بَابٍ مِّنْهُمْ جُزْءٌ مَّقْسُومٌ
Lahaa sab`atu abwaabin li-kulli baabin minhum juz`un maqsoom.
To it are seven gates. For each of those gates is a (special) class (of sinners) assigned.
(Surat al-Hijr, 15:44)
That is our destination that was promised, that Hellfire has seven doors and they are for everyone. Yes, there are seven doors, but when Surat al-Fatihah came, for anyone who reads it, it closes all of them. How is Allah (swt) going to send you to Hellfire when He revealed to the Prophet (s) that we can close these doors by saying “Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem” and reciting Surat al-Fatihah? Each ayah locks those doors!
Sayyidina Jibreel (a) continued, “Yaa Rasoolullah! No now I feel the ummah is safe, because everyone can read Surat al-Fatihah and it becomes like armor that covers these doors. By this means, your ummah will pass through Hellfire safely, moving along the coverings over every door of Hellfire.”
Sayyidina Hasan (r) said, “Rasoolullah (s) said, ‘Whoever reads Surat al-Fatihah once, it as if he thoroughly read the four Holy Books, the Tawrat, Injeel, Zaboor and Holy Qur'an!” Allahu Akbar!
May Allah (swt) forgive us and may Allah bless us, and insha-Allah tomorrow we will see with what we will continue, because today I was going to mention one thing and it went this way instead. I didn't sit on the chair, because with discussing Surat al-Fatihah we cannot sit high, we have to sit lower.
We ask Allah (swt) to give us from the Prophet (s) the manifestation of humbleness.
Wa min Allahi 't-tawfeeq, bi hurmati 'l-habeeb, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.
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