11 June 2017 Fenton Zawiya, Michigan
Zhuhr Suhbah
As-salaamu `alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakaatuh. Prophet (s) said, Idkhaal as-suroor ilaa qalbi ‘l-`abd min al-imaan, “To send happiness to the heart of an `abd is from faith.” It means, try to make people happy. No one is happy, so let us clearly say so! A child coming from the mother's womb cries until the day of death.
As Prophet (s) said, “There is no ease or relaxation with religion.” As much as you do, you ascend. Awliyaullah get tired, but they keep struggling until their final days. Everyone is not happy, and anyone who says he is happy is not saying the truth. Yet the Prophet (s) is saying, “To send happiness to the heart of an `abd is from faith.” If we are not happy and the Prophet (s) said you will be happy by bringing happiness to the heart of a servant of Allah, that will be a great happiness.
So you are happy when you render your difficulties and problems to Allah and Prophet (s) and, therefore, you are not happy when you render your difficulties and problems to Shaytan or listen to him. For sure, every one of us is not happy in dunya and complains because there is no complete submission, whereas the Prophet (s) said, “If you want imaan, make people happy.” So be happy, laugh a little bit, make everyone happy! I am worried that if you are not happy, on Judgment Day you will judge against me that I did not make you happy, so I have to put all my power to make you happy and laugh and smile. So, are you happy? [Yes!] If we are happy, then we are with the Prophet (s), waiting for Allah (swt) step by step. If we are happy, they are happy. If we are not happy, they are not happy because they want us to be happy.
Allah made Prophet (s) help us be happy. The best time in dunya is when you know Allah is happy with you, as then you don’t need anything else. When His Prophet (s), Awliyaullah and `ulama are happy with you, you don't need anything else, and when you are happy with the rizq Allah provided. you are happy all your life. Let us be happy.
Mureeds of Awliyaullah broke the backs of the Wali by finding he is not happy.In Imam Bukhari’s book Adab al-Mufrad, Sayyidina Anas (r) narrated that the Prophet (s) said:
The Prophet (s) will go into sajda on the Day of Judgment and Allah (swt) will open du`as to him that were never opened to him before. Allah (swt) will then tell him to raise his head and ask, and Prophet (s) will raise his head and hands and ask for his Ummah. Allah (swt) will say, “Go and take one-third of them.” The Prophet (s) will not be satisfied and will go into sajda once more and make prayers that were never opened before. Then again Allah (swt) will say, “Ask and you will be given.” Prophet (s) will ask for his Ummah and Allah (swt) will give him another third of the Ummah. Then the Prophet (s) will go into sajda and new prayers will be opened to him that were never opened before. Allah (swt) will tell him to raise his head and ask. Prophet (s) will raise his head and hands and ask for his Ummah. Allah (swt) will then say, “Take all of them, except for that one!” That person will be the worst of the entire Ummah and everyone must think it may be them as we are all sinners from the Prophet’s (s) Nation. Then Allah will ask, “Who gave My Mercy to Muhammad (s)? I did, as I am Arhama ‘r-Rahimeen! I am The Best, Rahmah on Rahmah! Go with Prophet (s) to Paradise without hisaab, giving any account!”
“Allah will give you, yaa Muhammad, until you are satisfied.” Prophet (s) will tell Allah, “Yaa Rabbee, I am not satisfied,” so he will get more for the Ummah. The Prophet (s) made the Sahaabah (r) happy.
One story of Grandshaykh (q), may Allah bless his soul, and it is a real story about a group of non-believers that came to see the Prophet (s), who was with his Sahaabah (r) in a Sahaabi’s house, and they offered him grapes. He (s) lay on his side holding the grapes in his hand, picking and eating, making the Sahaabah (r) happy. They told their stories of what they had faced, and suddenly there was a knock on the door.
They said, “A group of people came to see you. They are not Muslim.”
Prophet (s) said, “Wait,” and he sat up on his knees and said, “Let them enter.”
They entered and saw all the Sahaabah (r) with Prophet (s) in a very serious association, and no one was talking except the Prophet (s). He (s) was dressed in his black jubbah and everyone showed respect, and the visitors were astonished to see this. They came inside wondering how he behaved with As-haab an-Nabi (r), whom they found paid him the utmost respect. No one can be a Sahaabi; you can be from the Ummah, but not from them. We are Ahibbaa, about whom Prophet (s) said, “They are a group of people who will come the End, and who believe in me without seeing me. They are my Ahbaabee and I love them more than everyone. You are my As-haab, but they are my Ahbaab.”
So be happy we are Ahbaab an-Nabi, what do we want better then that? You want him to be happy with us and us to be happy with him (s), and of course we are because Allah made us from His Ummah. What is a greater ni`mat than that? All our deeds, tasbeeh, praying and fasting is for Prophet (s) and Allah to be happy with us. Allah already made us from Ummat an-Nabi (s) by the Prophet (s) saying, “There will come a group of people at the end who believe in me without seeing me. You (Sahaabah) believe in me and see me, so of course you will believe and have great love, but they will believe without seeing me. Therefore, they are my Ahbaab.” We are holding on to that Hadith, inshaa-Allah.
So make everyone happy, like Prophet (s) made unbelievers happy and they accepted Islam. Prophet (s) was eating a bunch of grapes from the top, the sour ones, and they thought, “He says he is a prophet and he knows the sweetest grapes are at the bottom of the bunch so why is he eating from the top?”
Prophet (s) immediately read their hearts and smiled. He said to the leader of the group, “Yes, you are right, the sweetest grapes are from the bottom. I am eating from the top because in Islam we leave the best things for our brothers and sisters, so you will eat the sweet grapes and I will eat the sour ones.” It means, “I will carry your load.”
أَلَمْ نَشْرَحْ لَكَ صَدْرَكَ وَوَضَعْنَا عَنكَ وِزْرَكَ الَّذِي أَنقَضَ ظَهْرَكَ
Have We not expanded for you your breast? And We removed from you your burden that weighed so heavily on your back. (Surat ash-Sharh, 94:1-3)
“I will carry that load. That makes you very happy, yaa Rasoolullah. I will make you and your Ummah, those who believe in you, very happy.” Prophet (s) ate the sour grapes and left the sweet ones for us which means he is carrying our burdens. To carry burdens you and Prophet (s) happy with us? [Our hearts.] Who said that? Raise your voice. [Salawaat, Sayyidi.] Allahumma salli `alaa Sayyidina Muhammad! Making Allah happy is to be with His Prophet (s), which is important, because if Prophet (s) is happy then the whole Ummah will be happy and then Allah will be happy. Happiness comes from love: they love Prophet (s), so they are happy. So to get that direction, to love Allah (swt) is to follow the ayah:
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)
It means the big instrument is istighfaar: if there is no istighfaar, sins are not be erased. Through istighfaar, sins will be erased and replaced with happiness, and Prophet (s) is ordered to make istighfaar on our behalf! Jaa’ooka f ’astaghfaroollaaha w ’astaghfara lahumu ‘r-rasoolu, it is an order to Prophet (s) to make on our behalf when we are oppressors to ourselves or to the community, in order to make everyone happy. And Who created us to be from the community of Prophet (s)? Allah (swt)! He loves this Ummah and is lifting our burdens through Prophet's (s) istighfaar.
So the instrument is istighfaar, but how you do it? You know the ney (flute) has holes in it and if you cover one hole one sound comes out, cover another hole another sound comes out, is it not? So we need such an instrument that indicates where to put or not to put our finger so that it makes a beautiful sound. As much as you say “astaghfirullah,” the angels hear and taste it, and take it to the Divine Presence, especially in Ramadan. If you say “astaghfirullah” again, it will have another taste that Awliya feel from their followers, whom they present to the Prophet (s) along with the beautiful sound of their istighfaar. Then Prophet (s) makes istighfaar on behalf of the Awliya, their followers and the Ummah to take them to Paradise. Wa law annahum idh zhalamoo anfusahum jaa’ooka f ’astaghfaroollaaha w ’astaghfara lahumu ‘r-rasoolu la-wajadoo ’Llaaha tawwaaba ‘r-raheema. “Yaa Muhammad! Do it on their behalf. If they come to Me directly, I will send them to you. If they make istighfaar by themselves it is the first level, but if they make istighfaar by seeking your Intercession, they will be at the top of the stairs.”
Doing it on your own has its level, the first step, but if you do it with the intention that Prophet (s) will make istighfaar on your behalf, then every time you do it has a different taste, a different love, a different happiness. So what is our duty? To say istighfaar. When Rabi`a al-`Adawiyya’s (q) husband passed away, she worshipped day and night making istighfaar; that was her daily awraad, astaghfirullah al-`Azheem, and other different ways of making istighfaar that Prophet (s) mentioned.
After her husband’s death she was alone and when her waiting period ended, the `ulama told her, “You have to marry.”
She said, “I am busy, I don’t have time to get married.”
They said, “What are you busy with?”
She said, “With istighfaar. I don't find a minute in when I am not making istighfaar. I sleep with it, awake with it, I eat with it, I pray with it, and I fast with it. Every `amal I do is with istighfaar.”
They said, “One istighfaar is enough.”
She said, “No, for me it is not enough! If Allah made the day longer than 24 hours, I would appreciate the opportunity to make more istighfaar in a day! If you can answer one question, I will marry.”
They said, “Of course, it is our duty to answer.”
She said, “When the Angel of Death comes to take my soul, will he come with mercy or punishment? Give me an answer to put my heart at ease.”
All of us are unhappy inside, but istighfaar will make us happy because all the load on our shoulders will be erased. She saw that her happiness is from istighfaar. She said, “If you guarantee that when the Angel of Death (a) comes it will be with mercy, then I will be happy and will marry.” What were they going to say? They could not lie.
They said, “We don’t know.”
She said, “Okay, when Munkar and Nakeer come to ask me their questions, ‘Who is your Creator? Who is your Messenger? Why did you do this and that?’ will they come with punishment or love? If you can answer that, I will follow your order.” How could they answer?
When Sayyidina `Umar (r) died, they buried him. May Allah make our grave a paradise with Sayyidina `Umar, Sayyidina Abu Bakr, Sayyidina `Uthman, Sayyidina `Ali (r) and with Prophet (s), which is biggest ni`mat. Why are we coming here, for what? In order to make make istighfaar and get that ni`mat to be with them in dunya and Akhirah! Yaa Allah, yaa Sattar, Anta ’l-Tawwaab ar-Raheem! Anta ‘l-Ghaffar al-Dhunoob!
Sayyida Rabi`ah (q) said, “Make me happy! Tell me the two angels Ankar and Nakeer will come with mercy, and I will follow you. If you don't know, why are you coming to me, asking me about how I spend my time? I am busy making istighfaar as I don't want to go to Akhirah and my tongue is not wet with dhikrullah, as the Bedouin asked and, Prophet (s) told him, ‘Make your tongue wet with dhikrullah.’ I want that! Aside from the Angel of Death, and Munkar and Nakeer, on the Day of Judgment when Allah calls me, ‘O My servant, Rabi`ah al-Adawiyya, come to be questioned!’ is He going to question me with mercy or punishment?”
Who can stand and say, “Yaa Rabbee, don’ question me!” Who can speak there? No one other than Prophet (s) can stand in that mawqif, situation. If those `ulama had answered Rabi`a al-`Adawiyya (q), “Prophet (s) will be your lawyer and Intercessor,”she would have married! But they were ghafil, heedless and they didn’t realize that, so they replied from their minds, but not from their hearts. If they had admitted Prophet (s) will intercede for her, they would have convinced her to marry.
وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ إِلَّا رَحْمَةً لِّلْعَالَمِينَ
(O Muhammad!) We have sent you not except as a Mercy for all the Worlds. (Surat al-Anbiyaa, 21:107)
If Allah has sent Prophet (s) as the Mercy to Humanity, Who owns the mercy? Allah owns it! Ar-Rahmah min ‘indi ‘Llah azza wa jall, la-Hu! He can give it to you and to anyone, but it is in His Hands. He (swt) said, “I have sent you as a Mercy to Humanity.” Why didn't the `ulama say that?
وَفَوْقَ كُلِّ ذِي عِلْمٍ عَلِيمٌ
Above every knower is a (higher) knower. (Surah Yusuf, 12:76)
If a group with higher rank than those `ulama had answered Rabi`ah’s questions, they would have relieved her from being alone without a husband! They would have said, “ Prophet (s) will intercede for you and for all the Ummah.” But unfortunately, these `ulama said, “We don't know if Allah will judge you with punishment or with mercy,” so she said, “Okay, then I am busy now, leave me alone.”
Prophet (s) said:
من حوسب عذب
(Yaa `Ayesha!) Who will be judged will be punished for sure. (Bukhari)
The one who will be judged will be punished, so ask Allah to forgive without judging you. We Muslims are fighting and cursing each other, doing what Allah doesn’t like. Throughout the Middle East, they are all fighting each other, how many groups now? So many. They bring unhappiness to humanity and Allah said to bring happiness! Subhaan-Allah.
So the `ulama left her, but had they opened their eyes on the ayah, Wa law annahum idh zhalamoo anfusahum jaa’ooka f ’astaghfaroollaaha w’astaghfara lahumu ‘r-rasoolu la-wajadoo ’Llaaha tawwaaba ‘r-raheema, “Make istighfaar, but it is not complete unless Prophet (s) also makes istighfaar on your behalf; that will complete everything.” O Ummat an-Nabi, `Ulama al-Ummah, antum `ulama nahnu laa shay`, you are the representatives of the Ummah. May Allah be pleased with him, narjooallah an yukrimahu bi ‘l-Maqaam al-Mahmoud.[1] So for our istighfaar to be accepted, we need Prophet’s istighfaar, and that is why when Awliya give mureeds their awraad, they must wrap up with sall-Allahu `ala Sayyidina Muhammad, salawaat of any type, which preserves it in the safe where it cannot be touched, and it will kept for you in Paradise.
Prophet (s) said to the unbelievers, “We eat from the top of the bunch (the sour grapes) and leave the best, sweet grapes from the bottom for you.” What did they do? They took Shahaadah! Ash-hadu an laa ilaaha illa-Llah wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadu ‘r-Rasoolullah, and one recitation of Shahaadah is enough to take you to Paradise. If there is a convert here and he took Shahaadah and said, “Ash-hadu an laa ilaaha illa-Llah wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadu ‘r-Rasoolullah” and then died, he will get Paradise, as if his mother had given birth at that moment and all his sins will be forgiven. That is for a convert, but you are accumulating more Shahaadah every day you pray, and if you make one Shahaadah just now and you die in the Way of Allah (swt) making people happy, Allah will make you happy and send you to Paradise!
Sometimes people hear noise in their ear, tasfeer, a whistling, is it not? Everyone occasionally hears that, but when it is continuously heard, that is a condition known as Tinnitus. At that moment, an angel in Heaven that Allah appointed to you is mentioning your name, so at that moment say Shahaadah immediately, Ash-hadu an laa ilaaha illa-Llah wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadu ‘r-Rasoolullah, and if something happens to you immediately afterwards, if you die, have a stroke or a heart attack or anything that stops you from functioning, you will begin to see your way to Paradise. If you die you will be in Paradise immediately with no account, because you are clean. Amanaa wa sadaqnaa.
That is why when the Angel of Death (a) calls your name, “Yaa Abdur-Rahman! Come to Akhirah,” at that moment your parents and family try to prevent you leaving, saying,, “Don't die, you can make it! Be strong!” and they perform CPR on you. From one side they pull you to Akhirah and from one side they are bringing you to dunya. “Be strong!” It is okay, but remember you are not going to listen to what they tell you, you will listen to Akhirah calling you, because you begin to see it when you pass through that nafaq, tunnel, after that you will never listen to dunya because then you are facing Akhirah and you want to reach there as soon as possible, because you made istighfaar and Shahaadah here in dunya. So run! When you hear whistling in your ears, immediately say, “Ash-hadu an laa ilaaha illa-Llah wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadu ‘r-Rasoolullah,” as an angel has mentioned your name in Heavens.
So what did the unbelievers do? They made Shahaadah and they thought, “If such a Prophet (s) exists we have to follow him as he preferred us to himself.” Not only we follow him (s), but millions, billions, trillions...no one knows how many, because all the Creations are following him (s). Whatever Allah ever created, as there is no end or beginning, it’s always there. All His Creations are following Prophet (s), and are part of them and will be saved. What is better than that? I don’t think there is anything better than that istighfaar. That is why Prophet (s) said:
كلمتان خفيفتان على اللسان ثقيلتان فى الميزان حبيبتان إلى الرحمن سبحان الله و بحمده سبحان الله العظيم
There are two words that are very easy to say, yet very heavy on the Scale, most beloved to The Merciful, “SubhaanAllah wa bihamdihi subhaanAllahi ’l-`Azheem.” (Bukhari and Muslim)
“SubhaanAllah wa bihamdihi subhaanAllahi ’l-`Azheem astaghfirullah,” ending i, wrapping it with istighfaar as it is clean. So don’t delay it because it is clean and set, and angels are ready to pull it out and take it to Heavens! So recite, “SubhaanAllah wa bihamdihi subhaanAllahi ’l-`Azheem astaghfirullah,” instead of watching TV and all this horrible news of Muslim against Muslim, mu’min against mu’min, what is this? Look into it: all of them are Allah's Creation. Is anything Shaytan's creation? No. Allah (swt) said:
كُنتُمْ خَيْرَ أُمَّةٍ أُخْرِجَتْ لِلنَّاسِ تَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَتَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنكَرِ وَتُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللّهِ
You were the best of Nations evolved for Mankind, enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong and believing in Allah. (Surat Aali-`Imraan, 3:110)
“You are the best Ummah that Allah has sent to humanity!” Allah is promoting us, making us to be happy to be the best Nation, to be the best ones for love and peace, and we are trying to run away to Shaytan’s hands, killing innocent people, for what? How much are they spending on that war on terrorism? Trillions, no limits. If instead they gave that money to everyone on Earth, they would live for hundreds of years in happiness! People are running for rizq and throwing it away for fighting. How are we going to succeed? How are we going to face Allah on Judgment Day or at the time of death? What are we going to say? Are we happy? No, we are not happy, we are unhappy, because we are not able to ride on our Shaytan; we let him loose and he is doing everything against Allah's Orders and we are following him. You fight with your parents, with your wives, your children, and Allah doesn’t like that. May Allah forgive us. There are too many things coming.
This is an example, we slept four hours and we woke up to all these boycotts on a Muslim country. We don't want to say who is right and who is not, we are not politicians, but we are sad because the victim is one. Allah prohibited to kill your Muslim brother, especially terrorists who are killing Muslims and they are Muslim. How are we going to stand between Allah’s Hands on Judgment Day? Are we not ashamed? Of course we are ashamed! What to say? No one is responsible. We saw that problem was going to come 25 years ago; I saw it with my eyes in this country and I mentioned to officials that we are going to have a big problem. On 7 January 1999, I gave a speech mentioning what Prophet (s) said in the Hadith, but you were sleeping, you didn’t want to see the truth and listen. Now it happened! You are smart, intelligent people, could you solve the puzzle? May Allah (swt) open all the puzzles and make this Ummah perfect.
Wa min Allahi 't-tawfeeq, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.
Let us eat the sweet grapes and make our life happy, the Allah and Prophet (s) will be happy with us. Now Shaytan is happy with us and is making fitna from ear to ear, filling this Earth with his dirtiness. May Allah protect all of us and our families all around the world. More is coming, this is only a beginning as Prophet (s) said, “There will be too much confusion like chunks of dark nights.” The best way is to keep quiet; we don’t interfere in politics. Politicians will be asked, but not you, you will be saved!
There was one Sahaabi (r) in the time after the Prophet (s) whom people saw twice a day, the rest of the time he sat on top of the mountain Jabal Uhud. He had clean water to make wudu, and did not come down except to eat and pray. But Sahaabah (r) saw something strange: when it was time to pray, he always came and prayed behind Sayyidina `Ali (r), and when it was meal time, he went to eat from Mu`awiya’s table. They asked him what he was doing and he said, “I follow the khalifah, who is also son-in-law of Prophet (s) and husband of Sayyida Fatima az-Zahra (a), about whom Prophet said, “I am the City of Knowledge and `Ali is its Door.” I eat at Mu`awiya’s table because he has all different types of food that no one else can get, more ghee and meat. I am happy at the top of the mountain, I don’t care who fights or doesn’t fight. I eat with the one who has better food and I pray behind the one who is Khalifat i-Rasoolillah and his son-in-law.”
So what is better than that? Let us run to the mountain! That is why Prophet (s) said, “When fitna comes, run to the mountain, run to your homes,” which means run to the cave: it is better to sit at home than to go out in that darkness, which affects us and our families.
May Allah forgive us and bless us. That suhbah is enough for dunya and Akhirah, it only needs a little sprinkle on it!
أَطِيعُواْ اللّهَ وَأَطِيعُواْ الرَّسُولَ وَأُوْلِي الأَمْرِ مِنكُمْ
Ati`oollaaha wa ati`oo 'r-Rasoola wa ooli 'l-amri minkum.
Obey Allah, obey the Prophet, and obey those in authority among you. (Surat an-Nisaa, 4:59)
To make it effective, to activate it, it only needs a little bit spoken on that topic if there is permission, and if not, we can go to sleep!
Bi hurmati 'l-habeeb, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.
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[1] Prophet (s) asked us to ask Allah to grant him that unique maqaam. In Heavens there are millions of maqaams, but Maqaam al-Mahmoud is unique to Prophet (s).