Zhuhr Suhbah (2)
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.
Allah (swt) has mentioned to everyone of us to follow the way of the Prophet (s), and Allah (swt) has put a condition that, “If you want to follow the way of the Prophet (s) you have to fulfill a requirement. If that requirement is not fulfilled then it means you are not able to fulfill the way of the Prophet (s), which leads to Me.” And really, to follow the footsteps is not easy. Some can and some cannot.
Those who cannot are of two types: some ignore it and do not follow and some follow, but they struggle. So the first category are those who are able to do it, the awliyaullah, because they have been prepared for that, to be able to pass these obstacles, and they already passed them, and they fulfilled the requirements to be able to follow the Prophet (s). Those who cannot: some of them struggle and some of them completely ignore, they don’t care.
So what is that requirement that leads us to follow the footsteps of the Prophet (s)? It is as many sincere pious servants of Allah (swt) whom Allah has blessed with inspirations, with ilhaam--wahiyy is only for prophets but for normal people there is ilhaam--those whom Allah gave inspiration in their hearts, because they were fulfilling the first requirement to follow the Prophet (s). And this is the famous declaration of Sayyidina Shah Naqshband (q), the head of the Naqshbandi Order that has been called after him, because he spread it everywhere, from Central Asia to India, to China, to the Subcontinent and everywhere. From him spread the famous declaration by imitating the way of the Companions, Ashaab an-Nabi (s), imitating them in following the Prophet (s), and being his Sincere Companions. That is why they are called “Sahaabah”, means Ashaab an-Nabi (s), the Companions of the Prophet (s). Sayyidina Shah Naqshband (q) understood that power and that secret, that everything comes through companionship. The Companions of the Prophet (s) gave their life to the Prophet (s) and to his family, they gave everything to him; they loved him and they loved his family.
So there is a requirement of taking a guide, a shaykh to guide you, as the Sahaabah (r) were guides for the whole ummah. We cannot ignore and say, “There are no guides.” If there are no guides why did Allah (swt) have to send the Prophet (s)? Why it is said in the hadith:
أولياء الله تحت قبابي لا يعلمهم غيري
Awliyaa’ee tahta qibaabee, laa ya`lamuhum ghayree.
My saints are under My domes; no one knows them except Me. (Hadith Qudsi)
So Allah is telling us through the Prophet (s) that there are guides for people. Not everyone is a wali, not everyone is someone that Allah will take forward; it depends on what we are doing and what our `amal is. So then we are in a type of struggle and mixed up. So Sayyidina Shah Naqshband (q) had to make a declaration, that is following the hadith of Prophet (s):
أصحابي كالنجوم بأيهم اقتديتم اهتديتم
As-haabee ka 'n-nujoom bi ayyihim aqtadaytum ahtadaytum.
My Companions are like stars (on a dark night); whichever of them you follow, you will be guided.
(`Abd ibn Humayd, ad-Daraqutnee, ibn `Adiyy, ibn `Abd al-Barr.)
So Sayyidina Shah Naqshband (q) understood that secret, that principalship of accompanying the guide, that Allah (swt) blessed the Sahaabah (r) to follow the Prophet (s) through one principle that we will mention at the end. So Shah Naqshband (q) said, Tariqatunaa as-suhbah wa ‘l-khayru fi ‘l-jami`eeah, “Our way is companionship and the best is in the gathering;” as-suhbah, to be together, because to be together is as the hadith:
يد الله مع الجماعه
Yadullaaha ma`al-jama`ah.
The Hand of Allah is with the congregation. (Tirmidhi)
As-suhbah, association, has to be khaaliya mina ‘l-fitan, free of any fitna, any kind of confusion, meaning, we don’t sit and discuss any backbitings and false rumors and confusion; it has to be free of that as our association is for Allah (swt) and Prophet (s), for naseeha, for advice, not to harm others or to pick on this one or that one, then that is not an association, that is not tariqah, finished. That is like a toy you play with it, like a child when in need to play and when you get bored you throw it. So people who sit in an association and that association is for fitna, is like a person who plays with a toy for some time and when done with it throws it away. That has no taste, no meaning and no value, but the association that Sayyidina Shah Naqshband is speaking of is an association where as soon as people sit together, if it is free of any backbiting or any sin, that Mercy of Allah and tranquility will descend on that gathering and fill the hearts with peacefulness.
لا يقعد قوم يذكرون الله عز وجل إلا حفتهم الملائكة، وغشيتهم الرحمة ونزلت عليهم السكينة، وذكرهم الله فيمن عنده"
Laa yaq`udu qawmun yadhkuroona ‘Llaaha illaa haffat-humu ‘l-malaaikatu wa ghashiyatuhum ar-rahmatu wa tanazzalat `alayhimu ‘s-sakeena wa dhakarahumu ‘Llaahu feeman `indahu.
No people sit in a gathering remembering Allah, but the angels surround them, mercy covers them, tranquility descends upon them and Allah remembers them before those who are with Him. (Muslim)
So he understood that secret and said that declaration, as Grandshaykh, may Allah bless his soul, said, “He said it 24,000 times in his life: tariqatunaa as-suhbah wa ‘l-khayru fi ‘l-jami`eeah, our way is association or companionship, wa ‘l-khayru fi ‘l-jami`eeah, and the best is to be together in the gathering,” because the Prophet (s) said:
يد الله على الجماعة
Yadul-Llahi `ala ‘l-jama`ah.
Allah's Hand is over the group. (at-Tabarani)
That means Allah's Mercy is standing, waiting by Allah’s Order to descend or not. If the association is for Allah and His Prophet (s), it will descend. If you backbite and bring an issue that is not appropriate, it will kill that association. So any association that you speak about someone, right or wrong, you have no right because:
الفتنة نائمة لعن الله من أيقظها
Al-fitnatu naa'imatan la`anallaha man ayqazhahaa .
Fitna is dormant and Allah cursed the one who awoke it. (ar-Rifa`ee in his Amalee)
Fitna is dormant, Allah will curse who spreads it out. If you have a problem with someone, keep that problem between you and him, don’t spread it. Why are you spreading it, for what reason? When you spread something, you are bringing the dirtiness that you are going to smell and the people who are sitting around you are going to smell. For what?
الدني جيفة و طلابها كلابها
Ad-dunya jeefatun wa tullaabuhaa kilaabuhaa.
The world is a carcass and those who seek it out are dogs. (wise saying)
You are backbiting for this dunya? You are spreading rumors and making difficulty and problems for this dunya? Grandshaykh (q) always used this example: ad-dunya jeefatun, “This world is a carcass, and those who are students of it--meaning those who run after it--are like dogs, who run after the carcass.” Allah (swt) gave you the sweetness of Islam, the sweetness of imaan, the sweetness of Holy Qur'an and to speak from hadith and Qur’an, that is sweetness, not to throw inside backbiting which are carcasses of people you are attacking for no reason.
So Sayyidina Shah Naqshband (q)...the whole tariqah is based on that, how to polish you. At the end, you have a rock with a diamond inside, and you try to clean it, clean it, clean it and you are fed up with cleaning it every time, so at the end you throw it. How much polishing you need to do to stop all these fitnas in your life? At the end what will you do? You will throw it, you don’t have anything to do with this rock anymore, it is a rock, hit it with a hammer, it is a rock, stubborn, no mind. Always when you close your eyes, backbiting comes, and that is happening with everyone, that is a general problem.
When people sit together, and this is coming from news, `ilaam, media mostly, they throw on us and fill us with all their garbage and make the hearts of people black on each other. So he knew that secret, that reality: tariqatunaa as-suhbah. He didn't say, tariqatunaa al-gheeba, “Our tariqah is al-gheeba.” Sayyidina Shah Bahauddin Naqshband (q) said, Tariqatunaa as-suhbah wa ‘l-khayru fi ‘l-jami`eeah, “Our way is companionship and the best is with the good association.” Today we see it is changed, the declaration has been changed from “tariqatunaa as-suhbah wa ‘l-khayru fi ‘l-jami`eeah, our way is companionship and the best with the people” to “tariqatunaa al-gheeba wa ‘l-khayru ma` ash-shaytan.” This is what it is ending up: our tariqah is always fitna, always gheeba, always people speak about each other and they don’t stop.
Ibn `Abbas (r) mentioned when the Jews came to him, and there are two stories here: one of Grandshaykh, and one from the seerah, and they come to the same meaning at the end. The story from the seerah is that a group of unbelievers came to the Prophet (s) and said, “Yaa Rasoolullah,” actually they don't say that, as they are unbelievers, but we say it out of respect; they said, “Yaa Muhammad, when we pray to our Lord we focus, there are no gossips in our heart, no bad thinking in our heart. All of our people are focusing on Allah, on God, but you Muslims who believe in you, as soon as they go in the prayer we know they go everywhere, they don’t know how much they prayed already, three, or five or seven,” and the Prophet (s) didn't answer, he asked Sayyidina Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (r) to answer. The Prophet (s) is delicate and this needs someone strong to give a strong answer.
In Grandshaykh's story, Sayyidina Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (r) said to them, “Does a thief come to steal from a palace or to steal from a shack?”
They said, “Why are you asking, that is not relevant to our question.”
He said, “No, it is relevant, you will get the answer. Where will he steal?”
They said, “Of course the thief comes to the palace to steal.”
Sayyidina Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (r) said, “Yes, that is true, our hearts are like palaces and your hearts are like the shack. Our hearts are like palaces, they are full of Noorullah; Allah sends His Noor there, because the Noor prohibits the darkness. When there is no light it is dark, when there is no Sun it becomes night. So when the Sun disappears from your heart, it is a dead heart. When the Sun comes everything is alive. When Noorullah comes everything is alive, when Noorullah disappears everything is dead. So your hearts are dead, there is no Noor in it. So why Shaytan has to run after them and waste his time? He says, ‘Okay, leave these people; I can get them at anytime,’ but for mu’mins, he tries to run after them.”
Ibn `Abbas (r) relates the story in a different way, with the same ending, that the Jews came to him and said, “Why don't you focus in your prayers, like we focus in our prayers?” And he answered, Sayyidina Ibn `Abbas, who is the biggest muhaddith whom Prophet (s) prayed for, for Allah to open to him a special light for Tafseer al-Qur’an, giving interpretation of Holy Qur'an, he is the biggest mufassir of Holy Qur'an. He said, “Your hearts have nothing in it and ours are full of Noorullah, Light of Allah. So why Shaytan has to go to you to waste his time? He goes after those who are full of light.” So unfortunately the light has been taken away now, there is no light. There is a name but no body, before it was a body with a name. Before, all tariqahs, all Sufi Orders were persisting on their followers to continue in their Shari`ah understanding before taking them as students in Tasawwuf. Imam Malik (q) said, man tafaqqaha wa lam yatasawwaf faqad tafassaq, “Whoever studies Shari`ah without Tasawwuf will be corrupt, will be a heretic,” wa lam tasawwafa wa lam yatafaqqaha faqad tazantak, “and whoever studies Tasawwuf without Shari`ah will become a hypocrite,” wa man tasawwafa wa tafaqqah faqad tahaqqa, “and whoever studies Shari`ah and Tasawwuf will be on the Correct way.” Anyone who behaves as a Sufi person, and behaves as a Shari`ah person has two wings, he can fly. That person has dived in the Ocean of Knowledge. Other than that you are wasting your time.
Sufis do not backbite! Sufis must learn Shari`ah and Haqeeqah, they must combine the knowledge of spirituality, of realities, that was given to Sayyidina Khidr (a) and the knowledge of how to behave, fiqh, the Shari`ah that was given to Sayyidina Musa (a). The Prophet (s) combined them, that is why Islam is perfect: it is a combination of haqaaiq, realities and the constitution, ahadeeth and fiqh, to learn how to behave in your daily life. You cannot take one and leave the other! You can, but then you are not complete; your plane cannot take off, it needs two wings.
In every tariqah the followers study Shari`ah, they must! In the Naqshbandi Order or other orders, everyone must study Shari`ah in order for the teacher to give you baya` or else your baya` is...the shaykh will carry you but you have no knowledge, you are always falling into the trap of Shaytan who will pull the carpet from under you, and you will be lost.
So Sayyidina Shah Bahauddin Naqshband (q) knew that reality: tariqatunaa as-suhbah wa ‘l-khayru fi ‘l-jami`eeah, “Our way is companionship and the best is in the gathering,” and he knew the importance of the Shaykh, the presence of the Shaykh. We mentioned in the previous suhbah about dhikrullah that if you see a shaykh who is a dhaakir, he is always doing his dhikr, his awraad, his prayers, then follow him, he will guide you; if not, don’t follow him as that might lead you somewhere that you will lose. Look at the Shaykh, halwah fee ghaflah, if he is heedless then he will mislead you. The Shaykh must not be heedless, his heart must be present. Unfortunately you might find in every tariqah representatives who are heedless. Whatever names and title you have, if your association turns into backbiting and nameema, that association is thrown in your face, it is not accepted. That association will become: tariqatunaa al-gheeba wa ‘l-khayru ma`a ash-Shaytan. It’s a new name, it is not the original tariqah, not the way of Mawlana Shaykh Nazim, may Allah (swt) give him long life. That is not his tariqah. Allah (swt) said in Holy Qur’an:
لاَّ يُحِبُّ اللّهُ الْجَهْرَ بِالسُّوَءِ مِنَ الْقَوْلِ إِلاَّ مَن ظُلِمَ وَكَانَ اللّهُ سَمِيعًا عَلِيمًا
Laa yuhibbu ’Llaahu ’l-jahra bi ’s-sooi mina ’l-qawli illa man zhulima wa kaana Allaahu samee`an `aleema.
Allah loves not that evil should be voiced in public except where injustice has been done, for Allah is All-Hearing and All-Knowing. (Surat an-Nisa, 4:148)
Allah (swt) does not like someone to expose everything except if he is oppressed; he has the right to stand in the face of whoever oppressed him. As-saaqitu `ala ‘l-haqq, shaytaanu ‘l-akhris, “The one who keeps quiet from haqq is a deaf and dumb Shaytan.” Anytime you turn your majaalis into majaalis of gheeba and nameema that is not fair for anyone, you are making people to run away from tariqah with such behaviors. I am seeing many, because of some representatives. People are not liking their ways; their way is no Shari`ah, and no Tasawwuf even, only by name. In many tariqahs it is like that, the secret is gone, the secret is in the hand of the Prophet (s), because jahl has to cover the Earth. When the Prophet (s) was asked about Signs of Last Days, he said:
يَكُونُ بَيْنَ يَدَيْ السَّاعَةِ أَيَّامٌ يُرْفَعُ فِيهَا الْعِلْمُ وَيَنْزِلُ فِيهَا الْجَهْلُ وَيَكْثُرُ فِيهَا الْهَرْجُ وَالْهَرْجُ الْقَتْلُ
Yakoonu bayna yadayy as-saa`ati ayyaamun yurfa`u feehaa al-`ilm wa yanzilu feehaa al-jahl wa yakthuru feehaa al-harj wa ‘l-harju al-qatl.
Just before the Hour, there will be days when knowledge will disappear, ignorance will become widespread and there will be much Harj, and Harj means killing. (Ibn Majah)
Ya`umm al-jahl wa yakthur al-qatl wa wa yurfa`u al-`ilm, “Ignorance will be filling the Earth, killing will be everywhere and knowledge will be lifted up,” and this is what we are seeing today: millions are in demonstrations, thousands are being wounded and some are being killed, and that is in the country where it is written on the airport in a stone, engraved on a big sign: idkhuloohaa bi ‘s-salaami aamineen, “Enter here in peace and security,” as it is the country of Sayyidina Musa (a). Idkhuloohaa bi ‘s-salaami aamineen, “Enter in it and you will be peaceful,” but where is that safety now? There is no safety!
And Sham is kinaanatullah fi ‘l-ardh, “The holy place on Earth”, where Allah’s `Arsh is going to descend on the Day of Resurrection, according to the hadith of Prophet (s), it will descend between the graves of the wives of the Prophet (s), the grandchildren and children. It will take place in that land and there are many Ahlu ‘l-Bayt buried there, khaassatan Sayyida Zaynab (r) and many Ahlu ‘l-Bayt. There is going to be the Day of Resurrection. Allah (swt) by kun fayakoon, will make it as big as He wants, no limitation, and the `Arsh will descend there. What is happening there? Killing, killing, killing every day, destroying the country, destroying that city. That is Signs of the Last Days: yurfa`ul-`ilm, knowledge will be lifted up, ya`umm al-jahl, ignorance must fill the Earth. They asked the Prophet (s), “Yaa Rasoolullah! Will the Holy Qur'an be taken up?” He said, “No, but by mawt al-ulama, the death of the `ulama, there is no substitute, there is jahl.”
Today too many jahls around, ignorance from people calling themselves names, but in reality what they have done is harming tariqah. I know many people, big scholars around the world who say, “We love Mawlana Shaykh Nazim a lot,” they say, “He brought so many to Islam.” No one brought to Islam as many as Mawlana Shaykh Nazim, may Allah (swt) give him long life. (Ameen!) But between those who consider themselves “representatives”, they do things that are not acceptable. What I mean by this is, if that is between them and Allah (swt), that is okay, they do whatever they like, Allah may or may not forgive them; Allah yuhibbu ‘s-sittr wa huwa ‘s-sattar, “Allah likes to cover the sins of His servants, He is as-Sattaar, He is the Veiler,” but if you have a problem between two people, there is one oppressor and one oppressed, then on the Day of Judgement Allah (swt) has to take the right of the oppressed from that oppressor before He judges him for His own rights.
Therefore, if anyone backbites in an association, in a masjid, in a zawiya, in a place where it is forbidden to speak about people, now between you and Allah you do whatever you like, it’s up to you, it is free. Huqooqu’Llah `azza wa jall wa huwa yatasarraf bihaa, Allah (swt) with His rights He will deal with it, He is not like us, He will forgive, but the rights of the people are one to one. That is the problem. So when an association turns into backbiting, someone has to stand for haqq, and those who stand for haqq Allah (swt) supports them, although the oppressor doesn't like that, he might be oppressing more on them, but Allah (swt) is rewarding them. On Judgment Day Allah (swt) takes from the oppressor his hasanaat and gives to the oppressed ones. Those who expressed their feeling and their love, but they have their reservation on some issues, you don’t go and attack them in an association, in a gathering of tariqah, or a gathering of dhikr or a gathering of Shari`ah or fiqh, that is not acceptable. It is an order from the Prophet (s); it is an order of the Prophet (s) that we have to stand for haqq.
When he asked the Sahaabah (r), maa huwa afdal ul-jihaad, “What is the best of jihad?” Is there anything higher than jihad? There is nothing higher than jihad, but the Prophet (s) put something higher than jihad under the title of jihad. “The best of jihad, the best struggle, the best to defeat the enemies, which is higher than that is kalimatu `adl or kalimatu ‘l-haqq, a word of justice or a word of Truth, `inda sultaanin jaa'ir, in front of a king or emperor who is a tyrant.”
أفضل الجهاد كلمة عدل عند سلطان جائر
Afdal al-jihad kalimatu `adlin `inda sultaanin jaa'ir (in another version, aw kalimat al-haqq).
The best jihad is a word of justice (or a word of truth) before a tyrannical king.
(Related from Abi Sa`eed al-Khudree in Tirmidhi’s Sunan)
For a sultaanin jaa`ir, a tyrant king you have to express your rights, or you can leave it to Judgment Day, but it is jihad for you if you say it in front of a tyrant king or leader. That applies to anyone who makes fitna for nothing, for a little bit of flattering himself, and people flattering him, he goes along without checking the reality, and sitting like an emperor, saying things falsely, attacking people with no reason and using tariqah to do that and using Shari`ah to do that. That person, and those who do that are wrong, they have to come back and ask forgiveness from everyone that they have attacked wrongly, even attacked correctly. Don’t you know that Allah is as-Sattar, Allah is the Veiler, He covers your sins, covers your mistakes? Allah (swt) does not like someone to say anything bad about anyone. I never saw Mawlana Shaykh Muhammad Nazim al-Haqqani, may Allah give him long life, say anything against anyone. They follow the way of Prophet (s). The Prophet (s) never in his life said, laa, “No” to anyone, so we must not say, “No.” Many without feeling think they are doing right. No, the eyes of people are open, they have intelligence, they have eyes, ears and wisdom. How many times did Grandshaykh say, may Allah bless his soul, and Mawlana Shaykh Nazim say, may Allah give him long life, the story of Sayyidina `Ali (r) to the Sahaabah (r)? Sayyidina `Ali (r) was like the queen of the bees, all the Sahaabah (r) ran to his knowledge, where the Prophet (s) said:
أنا مدينة العلم و علي بابه
Anaa madinatu 'l-`ilmi wa `Aliyyun baabuha.
I am the City of Knowledge and `Ali is its Door (or Gate). (al-Haakim, Tirmidhi)
“I am city of knowledge and Ali is its door.” How many times Grandshaykh, may Allah bless his soul, and Mawlana Shaykh Nazim, may Allah give him long life, spoke about that story of Sayyidina `Ali (r) who said to the Sahaabah (r) that, “All of Holy Qur'an is based on one issue: makhaafatullah, the fear of Allah.” Don’t you have fear of Allah (swt)? When he says, “Makhaafatullah, the fear of Allah (swt),” don't those who backbite fear Allah (swt)? As I said, if you do a sin it is between you and Allah (swt), but if you involve the rights of someone, oppressing someone, then Allah (swt) will not forgive that right; He might forgive His Judgement on other than the right of the oppressed, but He has to take all the hasanaat of the oppressor and give to the oppressed and give all the sayyi`aat of the oppressed to the oppressor. Think well! Did you leave your mind?
So Tariqah is not gheeba. Tariqatunaa al-gheeba wa ‘l-khayru ma`a ash-Shaytan: is this the tariqah that Sayyidina Shah Bahauddin Naqshband (q) mentioned, or did he say, Tariqatunaa as-suhbah wa ‘l-khayru fi ’l-jami`eeah, “Our way is companionship and the best is in the gathering.” Our way is associations and suhbah is the sweetness of the association, the love of the association. You cannot be in one place giving tasteful speeches and in another private place you attack and backbite, that cannot work, or then you are a hypocrite. Why don’t you continue speaking nicely? Why do you want to jump into backbiting? Did you not hear the hadith of the Prophet (s):
إذا أراد الله بعبد خيرا جعل له واعظا من قلبه
Idha araada-Llaha bi-`abdan khayran ja`ala lahu waa`izhan min qalbih.
If Allah wants goodness for a servant of His, He will make for him an advisor in his heart.
(Imam Ahmad)
All of us heard the hadith of Prophet (s), “If Allah loves someone He will give him a guide in his heart,” meaning He will inspire him to guidance, He will not inspire him for backbiting. So that’s where we can balance that person or these people. If Allah loves you, loves a group, loves one, two or ten, then Allah (swt) makes a guide for them within their hearts, He will inspire them through their life. But Allah (swt) does not guide you to backbite; if you are backbiting then it means Allah is not guiding you from your heart, but it means Shaytan is guiding you and is filling your heart with satanic rumors and fitna and backbiting, which means Allah does not love you. If Allah doesn’t guide you, it means He doesn’t love you; if He guides you, He loves you.
So anyone who backbites, and this is a sickness that is contagious and spreads everywhere today, every family speaks against each other. Don’t look outside the family, look inside your house: they backbite each other, they have fitna against each other, and we are in a big house, a compound of the tariqah; tariqah is the big house for every mureed. Instead of looking to the role model, Mawlana Shaykh Nazim, may Allah give him long life, they look to those who claim they are representatives. I am not saying... the Shaykh will pick whom he likes: he likes to pick his son we accept, he likes to pick someone else we accept, whomever he picks we have no problem with that, let that be known, we have no problem with that. Whom he decides on, it is his choice. Our choice is to accept and follow, we have no problem with that. The problem we have is those who think themselves that they fit to that position and create backbiting and rumors and fitna, and cheating and deceiving in many ways, and there are too many of that, that is haraam. That means there is no love.
So go back to the beginning of the lecture. It means if Allah (swt) doesn't love a person or persons, He doesn't guide them or makes someone to guide them through their hearts. If there is no guidance through your heart, it means there is no love to you from Allah (swt). Allah loves His servants and He said in the Holy Qur'an to follow Muhammad--it is a condition there--and to come to him and to follow his ways you have to have love to Allah (swt)!
Allah (swt) said:
قُلْ إِن كُنتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللّهَ فَاتَّبِعُونِي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللّهُ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْ وَاللّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
Qul in kuntum tuhibboona 'Llaaha fattabi`oonee yuhbibkumullaahu wa yaghfir lakum dhunoobakum w 'Allaahu Ghafooru 'r-Raheem.
Say (O Muhammad), "If you (really) love Allah, then follow me! Allah will love you and forgive your sins, and Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Surat Aali-'Imraan, 3:31)
In kuntum tuhiboon Allah, if you love Allah (swt) as you claim, then follow Sayyidina Muhammad (s), fattabi`oo Muhammad, then at that time if you follow Sayyidina Muhammad you are showing the signs of love; if not, you have no love. Is Sayyidina Muhammad (s) telling us to backbite or he is forbidding us to backbite? He is forbidding. So why are we backbiting? Allah (swt) is saying, “If you love Me, follow the footsteps of Prophet (s) and He will love you and forgive you your sins.” He will forgive the sins between you and Him, but He will not forgive you for backbiting someone who now has rights on you because you oppressed him, until He takes the rights of the oppressed from the oppressor, and this is for sure.
We ask Allah (swt) to forgive us and not to make our associations those for backbiting. (Ameen.) Dunya is running, you are leaving and going and not taking anything with you, but the role model will be the role model forever; the good reputation of someone will be his good reputation forever. How much the Prophet (s) was abused? Every moment of his life he was abused, by his family, and because of his love to his ummah, he doesn't want his ummah to be abused, so he said, “Don’t backbite, because you are abusing my ummah.” The Prophet (s) said, “I am the one most abused between prophets, and I don’t want anyone of my ummah to be abused. I am for everyone.” If we are really tariqah people, we do not abuse people by backbiting, there is no benefit. This applies to those who backbite, we are giving awareness to people not to backbite and spread confusion. Didn't we learn that al-fitnatu naa'imatan la`anallaha man ayqadahaa, fitna is dormant, Allah will curse who brings it up?
What is the benefit? There is no benefit in dunya and Akhirah, but there is a disadvantage that people who backbite will be questioned. And those who play with the words--some people may say something, but they don’t play with the words, but those who play with words--they are like the hyena, zi`ab, they play game with the fareesa, the victim, toy with the prey then jump on it. We don't want to be a bad example for other people. Kamaa tudeenu tudaanu, as you judge people you will be judged, no running away. The Day of Judgment is coming, we say, “Yaa Rabbee! Forgive us, forgive them, forgive everyone.” As the Prophet (s) said to Sayyida `Ayesha (r), when she asked about Allah's punishment to those who don't pray, he said, “Don't say that, don’t judge, because man hoosib u`dhdhib.”
من ُحوسب يوم القيامة عذّب
Man hoosiba yawm al-qiyaamati u`dhdhib.
Whoever is reckoned on Judgment Day will be punished. (Bukhari)
For those who are listening on the Internet, man hoosiba u`dhdhib, which means whoever is audited by Allah (swt) for sure will be punished. Ask that Allah (swt) not call you for questioning, for auditing. He will find the smallest sin and make it big if He wants. Sayyidina Muhammad (s) said to Sayyida `Ayesha (r), “O `Ayesha! Pray to Allah (swt) that you are not asked for questioning. For sure anyone asked by Allah Allah will find something for him to be punished.” What about the one backbiting, and he is a tyrant leader? In one situation he says sweet things, where he sees that he cannot say too much on people so he gives them what they like to hear, and in another he is backbiting, he is an intelligent person, he makes plans and knows what to speak and what not to speak before each group. We have to be careful, and ask Allah (swt) to forgive us.
Bi hurmati 'l-habeeb, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.
llahumma fash-had inneee qad ballaghta! Allahumma fash-had inneee qad balaghta! Allahumma fash-had inneee qad ballaghta! “O Allah bear witness that I conveyed the message!”There was a sincere imam in Beirut at a mosque near our house from the Ottoman time and it is still there, and the khateeb there used to say after every khutbah, Allahumma fash-had inneee qad ballaghta, “O Allah bear witness that I conveyed the message.” So I remembered him just now and he reminded me to say that because this will wrap this speech for you. May Allah (swt) guide us to the Right Way. Allahumma fash-had inneee qad ballaghta, allahumma fash-had inneee qad ballaghta, allahumma fash-had inneee qad ballaghta.
Wa min Allahi ‘t-tawfeeq bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.
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