SABAH Islamic Center
[Brief introduction by Imam Senad Agic in Bosnian.]
Introduction by Dr Abdul Karim Tourk
As-salaamu `alaykum. Mashaa-Allah, Imam Senad is so humble with those kind words. We know Shaykh Hisham doesn’t like too much of a long introduction. For those of you who may not be familiar with him, he has been a preeminent Islamic scholar in our time and was raised from an early age in the highest levels of Islamic knowledge in Lebanon, where his uncle was the mufti in charge of fatwas of that Islamic country. From the beginning, he had a very strong basis in Shari`ah and has come a long way in bringing the practice of Mawlid back into acceptance in America, where it was forgotten.
Mashaa-Allah, the Bosnians have always upheld their traditions and I remember twenty years ago or more, the only masjid in America and the Chicago area that was making Mawlid was Imam Senad’s congregation. They were the only ones that kept their traditions so strongly, along with a few others from the Indian and Pakistani communities, but hardly anyone was celebrating Mawlid.
When Shaykh Hisham came to America, he saw this situation in which not only were people not celebrating it, but they were criticizing it. When you have Islamic knowledge, you are obligated to teach people and, therefore, he knew he had an obligation to speak up for the sake of Mawlid and for correct Islamic beliefs. With his teacher’s support and instruction, Mawlana Shaykh Nazim, may Allah bless him and have mercy on his soul, Shaykh Hisham began to revive the practice of Mawlid and the correct Islamic teachings in America. So as we see today, after twenty-five years Mawlid has spread everywhere.
Those who are young won’t even remember those times when it wasn’t allowed to be practiced, but across the whole country and even the whole world, millions of people now have the proper understanding and love of the Prophet (s) as the foundation of their religion. The Prophet (s) said, “You don’t believe until you love me more than you love yourself, more than you love your family, more than you love anything else.”
So this is the essence of Islam and, alhamdulillah, we’ve been blessed by Mawlana Shaykh Hisham to have a taste of that, to learn from his example and teachings, and to be here to celebrate Mawlid with him as he has been celebrating with Imam Senad for many years. This is another wonderful opportunity for us. Without further ado, I’d like everyone to please give your best attention and highest praise for Mawlana Shaykh Hisham Kabbani.
Shaykh Hisham Kabbani
Alhamdulillah. Alhamdulillah, nasta`eenahu wa nastaghfirahu wa nastahdee wa na`oodhu billah min shuroori anfusina wa min sayyiaati `amaalinaa. Man yahdillah fa laa mudilla lahu wa man yudlil fa laa haadiya lah. Wa nashhadu an laa ilaaha illa-Llah wahdahu laa shareek lah, wa laa matheel lahu fee `uloowi shaanihi wa `azheemi sultaanih. wa nashhadu anna Sayyidina wa Mawlana Muhammadan `abduhu wa habeebahu wa rasooluh. Amma ba`ad.
As-salaamu `alaykum wa rahmatullaahi ta`ala wa barakaatuh. O Muslim brothers and sisters! Do you believe in miracles? This is really is a miracle, the proof for us and for the church it was before us, both sides. I was surprised and astonished. May Allah bless those who kept it clean until today and we hope we keep it clean forever. There is nothing to say except Allahumma salli `alaa Sayyidina Muhammad. We are here to celebrate Prophet (s), to observe his miracles, his powers. I will not be too long, but will bring something to show and convince us that Prophet (s) is as he said:
أنا حيٌّ في قبري
I am alive, fresh in my grave.
من صلى علي مرة صلى الله عليه بها عشرا
Whoever prays on me one time, Allah prays on him ten times. (Sahih)
“Whoever makes salawaat on me, Allah sends my soul back to my body to say salawaat back to that person.” Imam Suyuti (r) said that Prophet (s) is alive with his body in his grave because everyone around the clock, around the world is making salawaat on Prophet (s). It means that every moment millions of people are making salawaat, so does his soul stay within his body? We say that he is here. I’m not saying something wrong, because Prophet (s) said:
قال رسول الله ص حياتي خير لكم تحدثون ويحدث لكم ومماتي خير لكم تعرض علي أعمال لكم فإن وجدت خيراً حمدت الله وما وجدت غير ذلك استغفرت لكم.
My life is a great good for you: you relate from and narrations are related to you and my death contains good for you as well, for I observe the `amal of my ummah. If I find good I thank Allah, and if I see other than that, bad, I ask forgiveness for you. (al-Bazzaar in his Musnad)
Allah (swt) said in the Holy Qur’an:
وَلَوْ أَنَّهُمْ إِذ ظَّلَمُواْ أَنفُسَهُمْ جَآؤُوكَ فَاسْتَغْفَرُواْ اللّهَ وَاسْتَغْفَرَ لَهُمُ الرَّسُولُ لَوَجَدُواْ اللّهَ تَوَّابًا رَّحِيمًا
If they had only, when they were unjust (oppressor) to themselves, come to you and asked Allah's forgiveness, and the Messenger had asked forgiveness for them, they would have found Allah indeed Oft-Returning, Most Merciful. (Surat an-Nisaa, 4:64)
This is an ayah in Holy Qur’an, so no one can reject it. Also, it has a very deep meaning. “When they oppress themselves they come to you, yaa Muhammad (s).” All of us oppress ourselves, the community, the people and everybody, because we all commit so many sins. A Sign of the Last Days is so many sins like we see today--killing, bloodshed, burning, wars--everything you can imagine is happening, affecting Muslims and a non-Muslims. As a Muslim, when you sin, what do you say? “Astaghfirullah.” What does Allah say in the ayah? “When you sin, come to Muhammad (s).” It means anyone who recognizes he sinned will be regretful and want to be forgiven. Allah is directing and saying to him, “When you oppress yourself, go to Muhammad (s).” [And you may think] “Okay, I’m here, saying, ‘astaghfirullah,’ but does Prophet (s) answer me?” When Allah is ordering, “Yaa Muhammad! Anyone who sins must f’astaghfaroollah, come to you and ask forgiveness,” it means someone is waiting, ready for you to repent! When you sin and say “astaghfirullah,” Prophet is haadhir wa nadhir. present and observing, he is hearing and seeing!
What did Allah (swt) say in Holy Qur’an? Wa law annahum idh zhalamoo anfusahum jaa’ooka, “They come to you (in your presence).” It means then we are in the presence of Prophet (s). So if I say “astaghfirullah,” it means that door is open and I am in the presence of Prophet (s). Jaa’ooka f ’astaghfaroollaah, “They come to you, they ask Allah’s forgiveness,” and it is not enough. F ’astaghfaroollaaha w ’astaghfara lahumu ‘r-rasool. As soon as they make istighfaar, immediately Prophet (s) makes another istighfaar on their behalf! Then la-wajadoo ’Llaaha tawwaaba ‘r-raheema, “they will find Allah (swt) Forgiving and Merciful.”
This is the literal meaning. The interpretational meaning is that you want to find Allah (swt). All people around the world, Muslims and non-Muslims, want to the know the Reality, to know Allah (swt), ma`rifatullah. If you want to know, look at this ayah: it's the same ayah, but I will read it in a different way:
Wa law annahum idh zhalamoo anfusahum jaa’ooka f ’astaghfaroollaaha w ’astaghfara lahumu ‘r-rasoolu la-wajadoo ’Llaaha tawwaaba ‘r-raheema.
If we stop at la-wajadoo ’Llaah, it means, “When they are oppressors to themselves and they ask Allah forgiveness and Prophet makes forgiveness on their behalf, they will find Allah (swt).” Who doesn’t want to find Allah? So when all of us are sinning, it means at the end we are going to find the Reality of our sins and ask Allah forgiveness through Prophet, Sayyidina Muhammad`alayhi afdu ’s-salaat wa-alfu salaam.
Alhamdulillah, the qari, Shaykh Ali Shamsuddin, began this event with Surat ar-Rahman and he recited it very well. He said:
الرَّحْمَنُ عَلَّمَ الْقُرْآن..خَلَقَ الْإِنسَانَ عَلَّمَهُ الْبَيَانَ
Ar-Rahman. `Allam al-Qur’aan. Khalaq al-Insaan. `Allahmahu al-Bayaan.
The Most Gracious. He has imparted this Qur’an. He has created Man. He has imparted to him articulate thought and speech.
(Surat Ar-Rahman, 55:1-4)
He taught the Qur’an, then He created Creation, people, humanity. Ar-Rahman, the Creator `allam al-Qur’an. To whom `allam al-Qur’an, because there was no Creation yet. After He taught the Qur’an to someone whom we don’t know, He created Creation. It is said by many scholars that Prophet (s) was mentioned in this ayah, that Allah taught him the Holy Qur’an before He created Creation. That is why in the Hadith of Jaabir (r), when he asked Prophet (s), “What did Allah create first?” Prophet (s) said, “Allah created my soul first.”
رواه عبد الرزاق بسنده عن جابر بن عبد الله بلفظ قال قلت: يا رسول الله، بأبي أنت وأمي، أخبرني عن أول شيء خلقه الله قبل الأشياء. قال: يا جابر، إن الله تعالى خلق قبل الأشياء نور نبيك من نوره،...
When Jaabir (r) asked, “Let my father and mother be sacrificed for you, oh Prophet of Allah! What is the first thing that Allah (swt) created?” the Prophet (s) said, “The first thing that Allah (swt) created is the Light of your Prophet from His Light, O Jaabir.”
(Musannaf `Abdu ’r-Razzaq)
As many Sufi scholars have said that Allah taught Prophet (s) for 70,000 years when he was moved between the Hands of Allah, when Allah created the Noor of Muhammad (s). That is what all of us are mentioning: Wa rafa`na laka dhikrak, Allah has raised the name of Prophet (s). No one can pray without making tashahud, which is remembering Prophet (s) in our salaat: “As-salaamu `alayka, ayyuhan Nabi wa rahamatullahi ta`ala wa barakatuhu.” We send salaam directly to Prophet (s), because he is alive in his grave: as we said before, he is receiving that power to send back to you your remembrance of him and Allah (swt) is raising the name of Muhammad (s) higher and higher!
So we are both happy and lucky to be Muslims! Don’t forget that you came to dunya with nothing and you are leaving dunya with nothing. We have to look forward to what we are going to do in the next moment. Alhamdulillah this gathering here is dedicated to open this event for the love of Sayyidina Muhammad (s) in the month in which he was born. The birth of Prophet (s) is the birth of Islam. And what is happening in the world now? A lot of fights that Prophet (s) predicted 1400 years ago.
إِنَّ بَيْنَ يَدَيِ السَّاعَةِ أَيَّامًا يَنْزِلُ فِيهَا الْجَهْلُ , وَيُرْفَعُ فِيهَا الْعِلْمُ , وَيَكْثُرُ فِيهَا الْهَرْجُ " . قَالَ : قُلْنَا : وَمَا الْهَرْجُ ؟ قَالَ : الْقَتْلُ
The Prophet said, “Just before the Last Hour there will be a time in which ignorance descends, knowledge is lifted up, and harj is everywhere.” He asked, “What is harj?” The Prophet said, “Killing.” (Bukhari, Muslim)
Prophet (s) said there will come a time when knowledge will be lifted up and too much ignorance will prevail.
وأخرج أحمد والبخاري ومسلم وابن ماجة عن ابن مسعود رضي الله عنه: سمعت رسول الله يقول: يكون بين يدي الساعة أيام فيرفع فيها العلم وينزل فيها الجهل ويكثر فيها الهرج
The Prophet (s) said,”Among the Signs of the Last Days is there will be days when too much ignorance will come to the hearts of people and knowledge will be lifted up, and in these days there will be too much fear and too much killing.” (`Abdullah ibn Masood; Bukhari and Muslim)
That is why today there is so much ignorance about Muslims and Islam, because of some people trying to destroy the name of Islam with their bad actions. We have to be very careful. Prophet (s) said:
يوشك أن يأتي على الناس زمان لا يبقى من الإسلام إلا اسمه ولا يبقى من القرآن إلا رسمه ، مساجدهم عامرة وهي خراب من الهدى ، علماؤهم شر من تحت أديم السماء ، من عندهم تخرج الفتنة ، وفيهم تعود
There will come a time upon a people when nothing remains from Islam except its name, nothing from the Qur’an except the form of its letters (calligraphy), mosques will be built but will be empty of guidance, their scholars will be the worst people beneath the sky, and chaos will emerge from them and return to them. (Bayhaqi)
It is a Sign of the Last Days that only the name of Islam will be left. If we are not upholding the teachings, applications and what we worship, then we are losing and becoming like what Prophet (s) said. Today very few read Holy Qur’an as it should be. However, mashaa-Allah, Bosnians have very strong belief in Allah (swt) and love of Sayyidina Muhammad (s) and the pure evidence is tonight, so many coming all the way from every place to attend the opening of this masjid which, inshaa-Allah will be an opening forever! The Bosnian community is very hardworking and devoted. May Allah give you more and make your country better and better.
I appreciate the relationship we have with Imam Senad and other imams of the Bosnian community, because they are very good people. They tried their best to find a place and Allah gave them a place a hundred times better than many others! I was surprised how nice it is; when Imam Senad first told me about it, I didn’t imagine such a beautiful space. May Allah (swt) grant the Bosnian community the best of your life and your children’s lives and raise them well in this country. We are peaceful people calling for Islam, peace and love, not torturing and punishment. May Allah bless you all.
As-salaamu `alaykum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh.
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