Jumu`ah Khutbah at CSCA, Feltham
As-salaamu `alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakaatuh. (Mawlana stands, recites du`a of Jumu`ah Khutbah.)
Allah (swt) said:
لَئِن شَكَرْتُمْ لأَزِيدَنَّكُمْ
Wa la’in shakartum la-azeedanakum
If you thank Me, I will give you more. (14:7)
People may think, “O My Lord! You have given to me and I am happy and thanking You.” Everyone thanks differently and that is okay, but we forget one thing: to thank Him every moment for something honorable we have been given in our lives. Today people ask, “Please pray for me as I have an exam tomorrow,” but does anyone ask, “I have a big exam coming, I don't know when, but please pray that I will answer correctly.” People think their main exam is in school or during a job interview, so they ask for support with that, but who is thinking about the greatest exam and what they will answer to Munkir and Nakeer in the grave? What will you do if you fail to say, “Laa ilaaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah;” what will happen? That is why we have to be aware and thank Allah (swt) that He made us Muslim.
Do you know the story of Sayyidina Musa (a) and the man in the cave? Sayyidina Musa, as all the prophets, liked to go in the desert to look after sheep. He passed a cave and heard something he was unaccustomed to hear: a man reciting and crying. Sayyidina Musa (a) was frightened to approach in case that one may say, “Why are you coming here? This is my territory,” but he approached slowly and heard, “Praise be to Allah (swt), that He has preferred me the best over many of His servants.” The man recited beautifully in Arabic the ayah that came with Prophet (s):
alhamdulillahi ‘l-ladhee fadalanee `ala katheerin mimman khalaqta tafdeela.
Praise be to Allah that He has favored me over many others by a great amount. (cf. al-Israa, 17:70).
Sayyidina Musa (as) saw that man was in sajda. The adab is to wait out of respect, like when you enter a house you wait for the host to greet you. Then Sayyidina Musa (as) was surprised to see that man had no arms and or legs, but he was reciting, “Alhamdulillahi ‘l-ladhee fadalanee `ala katheerin mimman khalaqta tafdeela.” He wondered, how does this man eat and survive? As he stood watching, a deer came to the man, who suckled its milk. The deer came twice daily, in the morning and at `Asr time, and that was his entire rizq. So don’t worry about your rizq; if you wait it comes, and when you struggle it doesn’t come quickly. Rizq is granted to help you raise your family or help others or to do da`wa, not to keep it in your pocket!
He lived like that, and Sayyidina Musa (as) said, “SubhaanAllah yaa Rabbee! How does this man live like this and he is saying, “Yaa Allah! You preferred me over many.”
Allah (swt) answered, “Yaa Musa! Don't doubt what he is saying.”
Then Sayyidina Musa (a) asked the man, “What did He prefer you with?”
He said, “He made me Muslim.”
Sayyidina Musa surrendered.
That is what we should be saying: “O Allah, You made us Muslim!” Also, we are the ummah of Sayyidina Muhammad (s)! Allah (swt) honored us and anyone living is from the ummah. There are two kinds of ummah: Ummat al-Ijaba, who accepted Islam, and Ummat ad-Da`wah, those who have been called to Islam. Those who accepted Islam come together like battalions. Everyone is going to be in the presence of Muhammadun Rasoolullah (s), who represents all humanity!
So Sayyidina Musa (as) saw this man who had no arms or legs, and he prayed, “Yaa Rabbee! Give him Paradise.” As soon as he said that, a hyena came and ate that man! He then said, “Yaa Rabbee! I did not say to kill him, I said, ‘Give him Paradise!’”
Allah (swt) answered, “Yaa Musa! My Paradise is not cheap. I test My servants.”
That man felt no pain and Allah (swt) gave him the strength because he was reciting, “Laa ilaaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah.”
It has been said many times by previous scholars that in the Presence of Allah (swt) on the Day of Judgment, a servant of Allah may not find the kalimatu tayyibah, the best of words, on his scale. He will say, “Yaa Rabbee! Where is it? I recited, “Laa ilaaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah!” Allah (swt) will answer him, “O My servant! Of course you do not see it because it is so huge, the Scale cannot carry it! Neither Heavens nor Earth can contain ‘Laa ilaaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah.’” Allahu Akbar!
The proof is the hadith of the Prophet (s):
التسبيح نصف الميزان والحمد لله تملؤه ولا اله الا الله ليس لها دون الله حجاب حتى تخلص اليه
Al-tasbeeh nusfu al-meezaan, wal-hamdu lillah tamla'uhu, wa laa ilaaha illa-Llah laysa lahaa duna Allahi hijaabun hatta tukhlisu ilayh.
(The Prophet (s) said) "Saying ‘subhaanAllah (glory to Allah!)’ is half the Balance and saying, ‘al-hamdu lillah (all praise belongs to Allah!)’ fills it, and there is no veil between ‘laa ilaaha illa-Llah’ and Allah Himself; it reaches Him directly, (it is not even weighed in the Balance)."
(Narrated by Tirmidhi from `Abd Allah ibn `Umar. Suyuti in al-Jami` al-Saghir said it is sahih.)
That tasbeeh of ‘SubhaanAllah wa bi-hamdihi’ tamlaa maa bayn as-samawaati wa ’l-`ard, “fills what is between Heavens and Earth.” This means there are such huge numbers of angels no one can count them and they praise Allah! “SubhaanAllah!” Say now the word, “alhamdulillah.” It is too heavy to be put on the Scale, so it is still there for you.
Where is ‘SubhaanAllahi wa bi-hamdihi subhaanAllahi 'l-`Azheem istaghfirullah’ that you recite everyday (in the Fajr wazifa)? That will fill all the space between Heavens and Earth, and ‘alhamduillah’ will also fill the Scale. When the Scale is full with your tasbeeh of ‘suhbaanAllah wa bi-hamdihi,’ then recitation of ‘Laa ilaaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah’ will be an extra reward for you. Already you have this universe full of rewards, and the angels will ask forgiveness on your behalf.
That is why it is said, “How will they not be happy when Allah says angels ask forgiveness for people on Earth?” That is why we have to thank Allah (swt) for what He is giving us!
تَكَادُ السَّمَاوَاتُ يَتَفَطَّرْنَ مِن فَوْقِهِنَّ وَالْمَلَائِكَةُ يُسَبِّحُونَ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّهِمْ وَيَسْتَغْفِرُونَ لِمَن فِي الْأَرْضِ أَلَا
إِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
Takaadu as-samawaatu yatafattarna min fawqihinna wa ’l-mala’ikatu yusabbihoona bi-hamdi rabbihim wa yastaghfiroona liman fi ‘l-`ardi alaa innallaha huwa al-ghafooru’r-raheem.
The Heavens are nearly rent asunder from above them (by His Glory), and the angels celebrate the Praises of their Lord and pray for forgiveness for (all) beings on Earth. Behold! Verily Allah is He, the Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Surat ash-Shura, 42:5)
Whoever says “laa ilaaha illa-Llah,” for him the doors of Heavens will open and no doors will remain closed, until the door to `Arshullah is open with your rewards up to that point, on the condition that you don't commit big sins like adultery, drinking, gambling, and you don’t eat pork, whatever there are of kabaair (the major sins).
On the other hand, the Prophet (s) said:
ما قال عبد لا إله إلا الله قط مخلصاً إلا فتحت له أبواب السماء حتى تفضي إلى العرش ما اجتنبت الكبائر
maa qaala `abdin laa ilaaha illa-Llah illa futihat lahu abwaab as-samaa’i hattaa tafdee ila al-`arsh ma ’jtanabati ’l-kabaa’ir.
Whoever says “laa ilaaha illa-Llah,” for him the doors of the Heavens will open until the doors of the Throne open, as long as he didn’t commit a gave sin.
And the Prophet (s) said:
شفاعتي لأهل الكبائر من أمتي
shafa`atee li ahl al-kabaa’ir min ummatee.
My intercession is for (those who committed) major sins from among my nation.
Look at Islam! On one side it gives you higher rewards and on the other if you have committed major sins, the (Prophet) said “My shafa`ah is for the big sinners!” So it is better to repent, say “astagfirullah.”
Prophet (s) said, Sayyidina Musa (a) asked Allah (swt):
Qaala moosa yaa Rabbee `alimanee shayyan adhkurak bihi, “O my Lord! Teach me something that I will remember you with.” Qaal qul la ilaaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah. “Allah said to him, ‘Say, La ilaaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah.’” He said, “O my Lord! Everyone says, ‘La ilaaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah, so give me something special.” He was bargaining!
On the Night of Ascension, Sayyidina Musa (a) advised Prophet (s) to ask Allah (swt) to assign fewer prayers to the Muslims, saying, “Your ummah will not be able to perform fifty prayers a day!” Prophet (s) asked Allah (swt) until He reduced it to five prayers, but it is written for you on the Scale as if you performed fifty!
Then Allah (swt) said:
إن نوحا عليه السلام قال لابنه عند موته: آمرك بلا إله إلا الله فإن السموات السبع والأرضين السبع لو وضعت في كفة ولا إله إلا الله في كفة رجحت بهن لا إله إلا الله، ولو أن السموات السبع والأرضين السبع كن حلقة مبهمة لفصمتهن لا إله إلا الله
...If the seven Heavens and seven Earths are all on the Scale, the side of ‘Laa ilaaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah’ is heavier than that. (Hadeeth Qudsee)
So Allah (swt) has given us a lot, we don't know how much; how can we know? By learning, which is important, instead of wasting our time on computers. If you read the Holy Qur`an or the awraad for half an hour, how much will Allah (swt) reward you? If half an hour is too much, give five or ten minutes! Prophet (s) said:
تفكر ساعة خير من عبادة سبعين سنة
tafakkaru sa`atin khayrun min `ibadati saba`een sannah
To remember Allah (swt) for one hour (contemplate or meditate) is better than seventy years of worship.
This means focus on Islam and feel your shaykh guiding you. In classical Arabic the term “moment” has a different meaning. If you focus for one hour, you will be rewarded with more than seventy years of worship. What do you want better than that? Another hadith says you will be rewarded one year; if you sit one hour and a hundred hours in that spiritual time is one hundred years, that means all your life you will be rewarded for that one hour of contemplation!
O Muslims! Try to steal one hour away from Shaytan and the other twenty-three hours, let us manage our egos, because it controls us. So let us forgive everyone, because forgiving makes Allah (swt) so happy! We say, “Yaa Rabbee! We forgive anyone who harmed us and we do not want revenge.”
Allah (swt) said:
إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ إِخْوَةٌ فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَ أَخَوَيْكُمْ وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ
Innama al-muminoona ikhwatun fa aslihoo bayna akhawaykum w’attaqoo Allaha la`allakum turhamoon.
All believers are but brothers. Hence, make peace between your two brothers and remain conscious of Allah so that you might be graced with His mercy. (Surat al-Hujuraat, 49:10)
Allah rewards the peacemakers, so do you want revenge or Allah’s reward? When Allah (swt) sees you forgiving you don't think He will forgive him? When you forgive, you become a guide for your enemies. Allah loves your good intention. May Allah forgive them and also forgive us.
(Du`a)