Suhbat Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani 03-01-2008 Oakland, California, Masjid al-Iman 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 Always whenever I speak I feel bad, Mawlana Zubayr. Because I feel that why I have to speak or to say something when I am someone that not up to that standard? What we talk is something that brings arrogance to the self. That is why I feel bad to talk and this is coming since 3-4 years now that I like to be more listening than talking. Because it is very dangerous when someone talk and does not act on what he says. But someone who is listening he acts or he doesn’t act, he is not as much liable as the one who is giving the advice and not following the advice. So I feel that it is a huge test that our shuyukh are putting us under when they tell you go and guide or go and if we don’t want to say guide, go and advise or go and do dhikr or go and represent us in places where we are not traveling to, or reaching to. For sure awliyaullah cannot reach everywhere but spiritually they can reach everywhere. The Prophet sent his sahaba, his sahabas, everywhere in order to teach and enlighten people about Islamic religion. So also awliyaullah their duty is to send their students everywhere in order to enlighten people. Sahaba can enlighten, yes, people because they have been nurtured from the heart of Sayyidina Muhammad (s). They are the ones that have been honored to be with the Prophet. But today we go and speak and we are not acting on what we are saying, we are not doubled sin, but might be triple, might be more, Allah knows how much we are going to be liable on what we are saying and not acting on it.
Especially those who are on Friday, you know that minbar, what is it? What do you call it, pulpit? This pulpit is very simple, people rush climbing it. Is it not? This is minbar Rasulullah. There is adab and discipline and respect to go on it. It is not like you see them going on it like monkeys on the pulpit. Rushing as if they want to speak from their egos. We are rushing like monkeys, up, up up; all of us. Why? Because we want to show ourselves we know something and we can say something. Is it not? So it is very uneasy to speak where we are not acting on what we are saying. No better to be a sheep than to be a shepherd. A sheep has no responsibility. A shepherd has responsibility. I am saying to those, not to regret later, those who call themselves representatives and deputies. Be a sheep; don't be a shepherd. Sheep no liability. The shepherd is responsible for every action that he puts his people in. that is why sometimes I feel not happy to speak. So I carry the notebook of Mawlana shaykh and Grandshaykh. It is their words not my words. What they say I am conveying. Then no liability. But those who go on minbar of Rasulullah yatashadaqoona fil Kalaam. You know yatashadaqoona; it means they open their mouth so big when they speak thinking that they are something themselves, but only what they are speaking is from their egos.
So it is better to take a notebook and say what I am going to say today. Ataytuka ummatan la … min adh-dhunooba. This is Grandshaykh and Mawlana shaykh notes. Allah said to the Prophet, “I gave you an ummah that don’t get tired from doing sins.” Allah! Good luck for the Prophet with such an ummah. Allah is saying, “I gave you an ummah that don’t get tired of sinning,” sinning or singing? Singing is sinning also. That is the problem with sinning. “And ya Muhammad (s) I don’t get tired of changing their sins to hasanaat. Because of you. Because of you Ya Muhammad (s)!” May Allah give him higher and higher ranks ma la `aynu ra’at wa la uzunan sami`at wa la khatr ala qalbi bashar - what no eye has seen, no ear has heard and has never come to the heart of a human being. Ma la aynun ra’at - what no eye can see, even in paradise you will never know the rank of the Prophet. From now consider that. No one can reach where the Prophet reached. You will be with him and he will be with you but he is in higher position and everyone can see him in different position. Wa la uzunun sami’at - and no ear has heard and never comes ot heart of a human being, sometimes come to heart inspiration, never you though about it, Allah will raise the Prophet. Ataytuka ummatan – I gave you an Ummah they never get tired, running, running, they don’t know where they are running. They want everything and they are not satisfied with anything. They used to run before on donkeys, then on horses, camels, then later cars. They used to have this, the first car you know, correct me if I am wrong, they called it the Ford car. They call it in me countries, Ford Abu tank. The Ford that is like tanaka, like a bucket. Like a bucket from tin that is very rusty. So the first car, the 4 wheels will come down easily when you sit on it. They use this; they are not satisfied with it and then they have faster cars, faster cars, people are always running. “What, where are you running?” “I have an appointment.” There is coming to everyone the day of death. That is where you are running to run after dunya. Then they invented airplanes still running. Then they invented space rockets. Better to be downstairs what are you doing upstairs? Billions they are spending; give to poor people and make them happy. The money they are spending on wars and on spaceships will make the whole world wealthy. I gave you an Ummah that likes to run, not after akhira but after dunya. But I will not get tired of forgiving them.
“You love them; you are concerned about the Ummah.” He is concerned about the Ummah and wants them to be saved. When he came to this life saying my ummah, my ummah. It is in seerah of the Prophet. In his life when he was young until he became messenger he was asking Allah “O my Lord what is happening to my ummah.” In his death he was asking “my ummah, my ummah!” In his grave he was asking “my ummah, my ummah.” In Judgment Day he is asking “my Ummah, my ummah.” “Ya Muhammad (s) that mercy belongs to Me; If you love them this much I love them that much.” If in Judgment Day Allah sends everyone to Paradise can anyone stand up and say "no." Who will be happy if He sends everyone to paradise? Sayyidina Muhammad. Big liability and a big responsibility taken away. He is liable and responsible not only for the whole Ummah but for all human begins. Because Allah said, “I sent you as mercy for all humanity.”
What Adam did when he committed the sin? He went into sajda. Allahuma salli `ala Sayyidina Muhammad. You think that Adam is one who will commit a sin? He is a prophet; he is father of humanity. Anyone who says that Adam made a sin doesn’t have a mind. It means he isn’t inheriting from awliyaullah and if he says that he isn’t inheriting from the Prophet . So what to say Adam committed a sin. No. infallible... what is infallible? Don’t make mistakes. Infallible? English teacher? Opposite of us, that is easy. So who did the sin?
Awliyaullah say that we did the sin. We were in the back of Sayyidina Adam , human beings were all there, Allah put them there. And they moved, because they liked what Iblees said, they like Iblees that is why they commit sins. Why do we commit sins? Because we listen to Satan. And what did Allah say? Ati` Allah wa ati` ar-Rasula. We like to obey but we are struggling. O Allah, guide us to obey, we are weak servants. I cannot say but people say “we are crazy. [O Allah,] You created us like that we cannot be other than that. You change us; nothing is in our hands. You put us in a difficult situation and say ‘run, save yourself.’ How can we save ourselves? Shaytan is there, how can we save ourselves?”
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ ثُمَّ كَفَرُواْ ثُمَّ آمَنُواْ ثُمَّ كَفَرُواْ ثُمَّ ازْدَادُواْ كُفْرًا لَّمْ يَكُنِ اللّهُ لِيَغْفِرَ لَهُمْ وَلاَ لِيَهْدِيَهُمْ سَبِيلاً
Those who believe, then reject faith, then believe (again) and (again) reject faith, and go on increasing in unbelief,- Allah will not forgive them nor guide them nor guide them on the way. An-Nisa [4:137]
Thumma aamanoo thumma kafaroo - one day on iman and one day not. So ya rabbee we are asking your help and the help of Sayyidina Muhammad. So the awliyaullah say that we moved the hand of Sayyidina Adam when we were in his back. He didn’t eat, we ate from the tree. So when he committed the sin because of us, he went into sajda. It says that he went into sajda for 40 years and didn’t raise his head. Can we do that? So if we cannot do that what is the worth of our lives then? And we say we are Muslims, we are scholars, professors of Islamic studies. We are religious people, we pray 5 prayers. What is religious? Adam stayed in sajda 40 years. What is for us then, nothing? 40 years and tears were coming from his eyes like a flood. Like a flood and Grandshaykh, may Allah bless his soul, said, “I was into the meaning of that verse of the Holy Qur’an that when Adam ate from the tree after Iblees whispered to him,” he said that “from the secret of that verse he pulled out the meaning behind that sajda for 40 years,” It is mentioned in the seerah, that sajda of 40 year. But what he pulled out is the tears it is also mentioned in the seerah. But he said that he stopped crying after 40 years of tears. Why 40 years of tears? Why not 50; why not 10? He said that every drop coming from his eye represents one human being. He cried tears on the number of human begins that were in his back. He didn’t want to raise his head until each one was forgiven. And that was not due to Sayyidina Adam but due to the light of Sayyidina Muhammad (s) in his forehead. Sayyidina Muhammad (s) kept Sayyidina Adam in sajda until all the Ummah was forgiven. He made sure before coming to dunya that all human beings are forgiven while he was still in paradise.
Where are we going to give lectures, when you see these meanings coming? The whole speeches of the world today is like alphabet, only letters when you see these awliyaullah pulling these secrets from the heart of the Prophet, to give it to us on a plate of gold. When everyone has been forgiven, the light of Sayyidina Muhammad (s) is there. When that light moved Adam moved. Why they were forgiven? Allah said, “they will be sinning, (singing?). They will be committing sins, they don’t get tired and I don’t get tired of forgiving them.” But there must be a cause to forgive them. What Sayyidina Adam did? He noticed the light of Sayyidina Muhammad in his forehead. And he looked in paradise and he saw the name of Sayyidina Muhammad (s) there. It is on everything. There was not one place he didn’t see the name of Sayyidina Muhammad (s) there. I was saying yesterday this is a bottle of water. If your name is written on that bottle, what does that mean? It means that it belongs to you; no one can take it. You go today to buy a house and they have a title company, they write your name on the house. It belongs to you; no on one can take it. Who owns paradise? His name is everywhere so it means he owns it. In every place that Allah created for human beings as He described them as palaces and jannaatin. It means he owns it, his name is there.
Man bana lillahi bana Allahu lahu qasran fil jannah – who builds a mosque for God, God will build him a palace in paradise. But all the palaces are owned by the Prophet. Any palace created, the name of Muhammad (s) is there. Sayyidina Adam was turning right and left and finding the name of the Prophet there. Even on saaq al-`arsh. Even on the side of the Throne his name was there. It means that the Prophet owns paradises. His name is there. Allah asked Adam “How you knew the name Muhammad (s)?” He said, “Wherever I turn in paradise his name is there.” So what is the Prophet going to do with all these paradises that Allah gave him and his name is there? He gives it to the Ummah. What is paradise? Jannatu `adnin. Is it beyond this universe or in this universe? It is beyond this universe. Because Allah appears in jannah on Judgment Day. Especially to mu’mins. Allah will not appear in dunya . This is faaniya; it is going to be extinguished, gone. So it means they are beyond this universe. What they see thru Hubble telescope the edge of the universe at the very least what they know about this universe they calculate there are 6 billion galaxies as. And every galaxy has 80 billion stars. And one star is how much?
One day one person called me and said, “come I want to show you something on the internet.” I looked and then he was navigating, navigating and zooming and in and in and going for hours and hours. I said "what is this?" He said “this is sky Google.” Not earth Google. Now on Google everything on earth you can see. Now they have Google for skies. He put one constellation; one only. And we were zooming in on it and zooming, and it takes hours and hours and hours and you begin to see more and more and more. You see how huge it is. And still we are in one constellation in our galaxy. What about the others?
So where we are in these heavens that Allah mentioned in Holy Qur’an and holy hadith that Allah gave to the Prophet? That is part of the rahmat. Wa ma arsalnaaka illa rahmatan lil-`alameen. That means he is that generous one. He is that generous one that doesn’t care for himself; he only cares for the Ummah. What Allah gave to him he doesn’t care what happens to him, he only cares for the Ummah. And Grandshaykh said this and everyone was stunned when he said that. He said that “In the Day of Judgment when Allah judges everyone and he says, ‘ya Muhammad (s), I am giving you shafa’a. Whom you like send to paradise and whom you don’t, do whatever you want.’” And Grandshaykh said, “From the secret from the heart of the Prophet I am seeing that in the Day of Judgment and I am looking deep where I am allowed.” Awliyaullah are allowed to see, as Muhammad (s) al-Busayri said, gharfan min bahri aw rashfan min a diyami - Either they are taking in buckets from ocean or in handfuls. [He said:] “I am looking from my pipe and it appears that reality that in the Day of Judgment before Allah gives the shafa’a, he says, ‘ya Rabbee you made me the seal of messengers. And you, I asked you not to leave me to my ego for the blink of an eye.’” That is Sayyidina Muhammad who said, “O Allah don’t leave me to my ego for the blink of an eye. “ How much we are left to our egos. The Prophet is asking "O my Lord don’t leave me to my ego for the blink of an eye or I will be in a wrong situation." That is Sayyidina Muhammad who doesn’t commit any sin. “Whatever you gave me, you took me to Isra and Mi’raj and you dressed me with your Beautiful Names and Attributes and you made me rahmatan lil-`alameen and you made me to intercede for human beings. Ya Rabbee, you made the most tested of prophets and I was all my life tortured and abused by my tribe and all the people around me.” And people today come and say “I have this problem; this one spoke bad about me or that one spoke bad about me. I lost my job. I want this I want that. I lost this, I lost that.”
Look at what happened to the Prophet . He said, “whatever You gave me my Lord, I am standing now and whatever You dressed me from that Beautiful Names and Attribute al-Kareem I am giving whatever you gave me of Paradises I am giving to everyone standing here on Judgment Day. “ And he said, and this is very important, and it is very delicate if we don’t understand that. And he said that without any doubt, some people say I want to give you this and I want to give you that. It is not I want to give, but on the other side I am showing generosity and rewards. Prophet without it coming to his heart that, who was ready, "even you send me, ya Rabbee to hellfire, I am coming and giving all to the ummah and I am giving myself up and you send me wherever You like. "This is before shafa’a even. And this is … and Grandshaykh and Mawlana Shaykh Nazim taught us to in every du`a, to share every du`a, to share us in the worship of the Prophet his fasting, his prying, his contribution, his delivering the message, his da’wah, his hajj, his nawafil in every moment of his life, to share his ibadah in that. Make us participants in his ibadah. That he said is a very acceptable way of du`a, then if that has been confirmed, it will be as if the ibadah that the Prophet did you will be sharing with that and you will be dressed with that and on Judgment Day you will be dressed with the `ibadah that is from the Prophet. Our ibadah we wish it to be accepted. Don’t think our ibadah is accepted.
وَقَدِمْنَا إِلَى مَا عَمِلُوا مِنْ عَمَلٍ فَجَعَلْنَاهُ هَبَاء مَّنثُورًا
And We shall turn to whatever deeds they did (in this life), and We shall make such deeds as floating dust scattered about. [25:23] We come to what they have done and throw it in their faces and make it as if it is nothing. Our `ibadah we must not say “O my Lord we prayed for you five prayers we did this and we did that.” No that is for you. One day Sayyidina Musa said, “O my Lord I did this for you. I prayed for you and I fasted and I called people to Taurat. He said that is for you not for me. What then I have to do my Lord. Forgive them; don’t keep that irritation between your brother and sister. Man `afa wa aslaha fa ajruhu `ala Allah - then you are doing for me. May Allah forgive us and may Allah support us. And may Allah grant us the love of Sayyidina Muhammad (s) and the love of you ya Rabbee. And we are very happy and we send our salaams to awliyaullah to the Prophet alfa lf salat was-salam alayk ya Rasulullah. Alf alf salat was-salaam alayk ya shafi` al-mudhnibeen. Alf alf salat was-salaam `alayk ya Abu Batool; Alf alf salat was-salaam `alayk ya Rasulullah (s) al-malaahim; Alf alf salat was-salaam `alayk ya Tahir, Alf alf salat was-salaam `alayk ya Maahi, alf… wa rahmatullah wa barakatuhu… wa afaadAllahu `alayk ma la `aynu ra’at wa la udhunin sami`at wa ma khatar `ala qalbi bashar.