Isha Suhbah at Simply Islam
A`oodhu billahi min ash-Shaytani ‘r-rajeem. Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem
Nawaytu 'l-arba`een, nawaytu 'l-`itikaaf, nawaytu 'l-khalwah, nawaytu 'l-`uzlah,
nawaytu 'r-riyaada, nawaytu 's-salook, lillahi ta`ala al-`Azheem fee hadha 'l-masjid.
أَطِيعُواْ اللّهَ وَأَطِيعُواْ الرَّسُولَ وَأُوْلِي الأَمْرِ مِنكُمْ
Atee`oollaha wa atee`oo 'r-Rasoola wa ooli 'l-amri minkum.
Obey Allah, obey the Prophet, and obey those in authority among you. (Surat an-Nisa, 4:59)
As-salaamu `alaykum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh. First, we have to put our foundation for direction as with no foundation it will fall apart like a cliff. The first is, “Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem,” that we have to establish in every meeting, every sitting, every halaqa, as it has a relationship. If you don't have a relationship with a teacher, it becomes like a university where everyone goes to class and at the end it is still a Turkish bath. Allah (swt) put the foundation in Holy Qur’an and told us to follow it:
وَمَا آتَاكُمُ الرَّسُولُ فَخُذُوهُ وَمَا نَهَاكُمْ عَنْهُ فَانتَهُوا
Leave what Prophet (s) forbade and take what he ordered. (Surat al-Hashr, 59:7)
Whatever Prophet (s) gives you take without question! That is the foundation, only for Prophet (s), not for anyone else. Allah is saying, “I gave Prophet (s) what the whole Ummah needs, so whatever he gives it is from Me!” Taqleed an-Nabi (s). Allah (swt) praises Prophet (s) and gives him honor for the whole universe to follow Sayyidina Muhammad (s), He didn’t say “wa maa ataakum `Isa fakhudhoohu,” or “wa maa ataakum Musa fakhudhoohu,” for Prophet (s) He said “wa maa ataakum ar-rasool, he is the Messenger.” He said, “Fakhudoohu,” immediately, no question! Allah (swt) distinguished between what He gave His Prophet (s) and what he gave the Ummah. What He gave Prophet (s) is perfection, a complete full moon. What He gave the Ummah is one ayah upon which to build their foundation, which is very important.
وَفَوْقَ كُلِّ ذِي عِلْمٍ عَلِيمٌ
Above every knower is a (higher) knower. (Surah Yusuf, 12:76)
It means, “Don't come to Me and say that you know `ilm as there is another knower above you, but there is no one above Sayyidina Muhammad (s)!” This does not mean Allah is belittling you or `ulama, but He wants them to not follow their ego and desires.
فقل لمن يدعي في العلم فلسفة حفظت شيئا وغابت عنك أشياء
Say to the one who claims a special knowledge, “You have learned something, but are ignorant of much more.” (Famous poem of 9th century Arab poet Abu Nuwas)
It means, “Above your `ilm there is yet another one and another.” So where do you stand? We stand on nothing! We ask for Rahmatullah and the support of Prophet (s), so to establish this you need to say just as you are in need for `ilm, the speaker is also in need for that `ilm. As you are asking to come and listen, the speaker has to also come and listen and then he will be inspired through his heart. He also is in need to follow what he says, not only to have others follow and make himself exempt.
Don't say, “My SimplyIslam,” or, “for me,” or, “my this or that place.” No, it's not yours or from you, Allah (swt) opened and gave that place, Allah is running after a servant to give him, as He said:
يقول الله عز وجل:أنا عند ظن عبدي بي ،وأنا معه إذا ذكرني فإن ذكرني في نفسه ذكرته في نفسي، ومن ذكرني في ملأ ذكرته في ملأ خير منه، ومن تقرب إلي شبراً تقربت منه ذراعاً، ومن تقرب مني ذراعاً تقربت منه باعاً، ومن أتاني يمشي أتيته هرولة
I am as My servant thinks I am. I am with him when he mentions Me. If he mentions Me to himself, I mention him to Myself, and if he mentions Me in an assembly, I mention him in an assembly better than it, and if he draws near to Me a hand’s span, I draw near to him an arm’s length, and if he draws near to Me an arm’s length, I draw near to him a fathom’s length, and if he comes to Me walking, I go to him running! (Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmidhi and an-Nasaa’i)
أَنَا جَلِيْسُ مَنْ ذَكَرَنِي
I sit with him who remembers Me. (Hadith Qudsi. Ahmad, Bayhaqi)
Allah (swt) said, “When that servant remembers Me, I am The One remembering,” finished, no question mark! “I am sitting with the one who remembers Me.” Allah sends difficulties so that you may remember Him. When you are in difficulty, every cell of your body says, “Yaa Allah, yaa Allah,” but you don't hear it. When someone gets sick, every cell of their body is saying that. Allah sees and hears everything! Allah gave us a chance here in dunya, but one day that chance is going to finish! We are running after how many cars we have or how many turbans we have, but you will be leaving everything and going (will die).
I saw something strange from many Awliya that we met in my lifetime, big `ulama, not only `ulama but, Awliyaullah, rijaalAllah:
مِّنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ رِجَالٌ صَدَقُوا مَا عَاهَدُوا اللَّـهَ عَلَيْهِ ۖ فَمِنْهُم مَّن قَضَىٰ نَحْبَهُ وَمِنْهُم مَّن يَنتَظِرُ ۖ وَمَا بَدَّلُوا تَبْدِيلًا
Among the Believers are men who have been true to their covenant with Allah: of them some have completed their vow and some (still) wait, but they have never changed (their determination) in the least. (Surat al-Ahzab, 33:23)
Their miracles are everywhere, but now where are they? There is too much zhulma, darkness, so Awliyaullah back up; what is Allah's Will is going to happen, what Prophet (s) mentioned in his prediction is going to happen, so they retreat and are watching what is going to happen.
Ibn `Arabi said in his Futoohat that there will come a time, “With my vision I saw Signs of Last Days that people are going to walk on dead bodies and even a child’s hair will turn white from the darkness he will see.” People are going to walk on dead bodies as there will be no place to put their feet! Did you see something like that in your life? Yes, you saw it, all of you! Allah is giving you something to understand the biggest problem coming, He is showing a sign to understand that when Prophet (s) spoke about the Last Days, how it will be like a big earthquake.
إِذَا زُلْزِلَتِ الْأَرْضُ زِلْزَالَهَاوَأَخْرَجَتِ الْأَرْضُ أَثْقَالَهَا وَقَالَ الْإِنسَانُ مَا لَهَايَوْمَئِذٍ تُحَدِّثُ أَخْبَارَهَا بِأَنَّ رَبَّكَ أَوْحَى لَهَا
When the Earth is shaken to her (utmost) convulsion and the Earth throws up her burdens (from within) and man cries (distressed), "What is the matter with her?" on that Day will she declare her tidings, for your Lord will have given her revelation. (Surat az-Zalzalah, 99:1-4)
Everything is going to be in a huge earthquake. Prophet (s) mentioned yuhshar, too much killing, dead people will be thrown in the streets. Who saw that stampede in Mina thousands of people when they were going out of the door of some place and people were walking on dead bodies? That is a sign of what is going to happen on a bigger scale, so don't claim you know something. You are an `alim, which it is good, but don't claim to know everything as there is one above you. So who is the `alim, the one above or down? The one above, and that is why Allah (swt) said, “Above every knower is a (higher) knower.” To establish the relationship between the shaykh and mureed, the shaykh must see that he needs the same lecture the mureed needs.
Allah (swt) says in the Holy Qur’an:
فَلَا تُزَكُّوا أَنفُسَكُمْ
Don’t praise yourself. (Surat an-Najm, 53:32)
If you praise yourself that is from Shaytan, but when Allah praises that is from Rahman. What did Prophet (s) say in the last ayah of Surat al-Kahf? “I am not except someone who receives wahi.”
قُلْ إِنَّمَا أَنَا بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُكُمْ يُوحَى إِلَيَّ أَنَّمَا إِلَهُكُمْ إِلَهٌ وَاحِدٌ فَمَن كَانَ يَرْجُو لِقَاء رَبِّهِ فَلْيَعْمَلْ عَمَلًا صَالِحًا
وَلَا يُشْرِكْ بِعِبَادَةِ رَبِّهِ أَحَدًا
Say, "I am but a man like yourselves, (but) the inspiration has come to me that your Allah is one Allah. Whoever expects to meet his Lord, let him work righteousness and in the worship of his Lord admit no one as partner. (Surat al-Kahf, 18:110).
When he entered the Ocean of that ayah, he saw the Greatness of Allah's Words, because at the end of that surah it says:
قُل لَّوْ كَانَ الْبَحْرُ مِدَادًا لِّكَلِمَاتِ رَبِّي لَنَفِدَ الْبَحْرُ قَبْلَ أَن تَنفَدَ كَلِمَاتُ رَبِّي وَلَوْ جِئْنَا بِمِثْلِهِ مَدَدًا
Say, "If the ocean were ink (wherewith to write out) the words of my Lord, sooner would the ocean be exhausted than would the words of my Lord, even if we added another ocean like it for its aid."
(Surat al-Kahf, 18:109)
“If oceans were ink, the ink will finish and Allah's words don't finish.” Who is seeking whom, sending more? It means if Prophet (s) is saying, “I am like you, a human being,” look how much he humbled himself, and therefore, we have to accept. He (s) says it because he feels the Presence of his Lord in his heart; he went to Qaaba Qawsayni aw Adnaa, the Greatest Presence and `ulama say he saw Allah (swt) with the eyes of his head. In Sahih Muslim of Imam Nawawi (q) it is related that he went there and came, and then what did he say? “I am like you,” he humbled himself. How is he like us? He wants to build a relationship between him and his Sahaabah (r) and the rest of the Ummah. He humbled himself, making himself like us in order to make us feel at ease. Otherwise, his feet were swollen from so much `ibaadah.
Sayyida `Ayesha (r) said, “Yaa Rasoolullah! You are free of all sins, why are you worshiping until your feet are swollen?” He replied, Alaa akoonu `abdan shakoora? “You don't want me to be a thankful servant of Allah (swt)?”
Are we thanking Allah (swt)? Perhaps we thank Him once, twice or three times a day. Our bodies must say, “Shukran lillah, shukran lillah, shukran lillah” every moment! If you need of something and go to a rich person, when he gives to you, to pay him back you stand at his door and never move. Allah (swt) is giving us everything! I ask someone to tell me one thing: when does Allah send the soul of the child to the womb of the mother? Can anyone, any medicine or X-ray predict when the soul will enter the womb of the mother? No! What is that soul that no one can see? Can anyone see that soul? No! So it means we are `ajiz, helpless, and yet we are still arrogant and not saying, “Yaa Rabbee, what You gave me, give the Ummah.” Who can do that? Sayyidina Muhammad (s) and our shuyookh, may Allah bless their souls, said on the Day of Judgement Prophet (s) saw, ya’tee illa ‘Llah mujarradan min ayyi shay’in, he will come to Allah (swt) leaving everything behind, not even looking at his hasanaat, and will take everything from what he has and dress the Ummah with it, he will give everything to the Ummah:
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, he 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, the Most Merciful of those who show mercy! I am The Best, Rahmah on Rahmah! Go with Prophet (s) to Paradise without hisaab, giving any account!”
He will go into sajda without relying on anything except Allah (swt), and Allah will open for him du`as that he never heard before. What kind of Arabic language will it be, because the language in Paradise is Arabic, but Prophet (s) said, “I will have never heard these du`as before.” The one who knows all knowledges is saying, “I never heard them before.” What kind of Arabic language, what kind of words? Allah will accept that du`a and will say, “Take one-third, and then another one-third and then the rest, except for one.” It means the Ummah has to rely on their Prophet (s), depend on Sayyidina Muhammad (s) by making salawaat, because Allah and his angels are making salawaat on Prophet (s) as His `abd, so is it our duty to make salawaat or not? It is the fastest approach to Allah (swt) as it is dhikrullah!
Prophet (s) humbled himself and Allah raised him, He ordered angels to make salawaat on Prophet (s)! Can anyone be lifted up? Yes, everyone, all of Ummat an-Nabi (s) can have an Ascension according to their level through reciting Salawaat an-Nabi (s)! Why did Allah stop Prophet (s) with Sayyidina Jibreel (a) in the First Heaven, Second Heaven and so forth, why didn’t he take him directly? Why did He order Jibreel (a) to take Prophet (s) to First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Heaven? To see them all, in order to dress him from every Heaven. Whatever Allah has dressed each Heaven with for Ummat an-Nabi (s), Allah will dress Sayyidina Muhammad (s) and all tajalli Allah has dressed him with from the day he was created, with all the anwaar to make him ready to be in His Presence!
They say at every level of Heaven, Sayyidina Jibreel (a) knocked on the door and was asked, “Who is with you?” Jibreel (a) replied, “Sayyidina Muhammad (s).” Angels asked, “Has he been invited?” He answered, “Yes.” Then they said, “You may come in.” Does Jibreel (a) need to knock? No, but Allah ordered him to knock in order to teach us:
وَأْتُواْ الْبُيُوتَ مِنْ أَبْوَابِهَا
Enter houses through the proper doors: And fear Allah. (Surat al-Baqara, 2:189)
Go through the right direction, don't override or transgress your limits. Jibreel (a) was able to enter as the head of all angels, but adab is to knock on the door. This is to teach us adab. The angels asked, “Who is with you?” Don’t they know who the Heavens are decorated for? Of course they know, but there is adab here also: Allah (swt) is presenting the Beloved Prophet (s) with everything, dressing him with His Noor. The Second Heaven carries more than the First Heaven, and the Third Heaven carries more than the Second and First, and so on. Allah (swt) dressed him with that. As you go up, the tajalli is stronger. So he went up until he was ready and Jibreel (a) said, “Yaa Rasoolullah (s), I cannot go further. This is my limit, you go.” Jibreel’s (a) limit is different and Qaaba Qawsayni aw Adnaa is different. Both stood at that Presence. That was Jibreel’s (a) territory, not literally, but this example is for us to understand. Jibreel (a) was where Allah assigned him to be and Prophet (s) stood there wearing his shoes, whereas Sayyidina Musa (a) was to told to remove his shoes, Allah did not give him permission.
فَلَمَّا أَتَاهَا نُودِي يَا مُوسَى إِنِّي أَنَا رَبُّكَ فَاخْلَعْ نَعْلَيْكَ إِنَّكَ بِالْوَادِ الْمُقَدَّسِ طُوًى
But when he came to the fire a voice was heard, “O Moses! Indeed I am your Lord! Therefore, (in My Presence) remove your shoes, (for) you are in the sacred valley, Tuwa. (Sura TaHa 20:11,12)
He was not in Heaven, but in a holy valley, yet Prophet (s) was in Heavens with his shoes. Both Jibreel (a) and Prophet (s) used to study the Holy Qur’an, asking each other questions; Prophet (s) asked Jibreel (a) questions and he relayed to him what Allah wanted him to know. But in Qaaba Qawsayni aw Adnaa, Prophet (s) did not ask questions. The Prophet’s blessed face to Jibreel (a) is different than his face to the Divine Presence in Qaaba Qawsayni aw Adnaa. There is complete annihilation in the Divine Presence, no questions, and with Jibreel (a) he can ask for the benefit of the Ummah, which is why he said, li wajhun ma` Allah li wajhun ma` al-khalq, “I have a face with the Ummah and a face with Allah.”
لي ساعة مع الله وساعة مع الخلق
I have one hour with Allah and one hour with Creation. (Risalah Qushayriyya by Imam al-Qushayri)
He (s) is the one we can say is perfect! He built a foundation for Muslims to ascend; the Five Pillars are the basic foundation for anyone to ascend and any Muslim who performs the Five Pillars is going to be dressed with what Allah (swt) dressed the Prophet (s). All of us must try to fulfill what Prophet (s) gave us of the 500 obligations and prevent ourselves from committing the 800 forbiddens. It is very difficult to stop from doing an act that is forbidden, but very easy to do an obligation. It is easy to pray two raka`ats, but very difficult if your self tells you to sin. Can you stop yourself from doing a sin or are you going to struggle? If you keep struggling every day, perhaps you will get sick from running after desires as they are from Shaytan, so it is very difficult to leave them, but if you do Allah will reward you as if you left all 800 forbiddens! If someone tells you to make wudu, you will make wudu as it is not difficult and you will be rewarded. On the other hand, if you stop doing munkaraat, you will be rewarded more. That is why hasanaat erases sins. Allah knows we cannot stop ourselves and He said, “Do hasanaat, it will erase your sins.” Even if you give one dinar to the one at door asking, Allah will erase your sins! So to establish your relationship with the shaykh as his mureed because the shaykh has to make his level according to the mureeds. You cannot make yourself higher or else the ego will eat you from within. Some Awliyaullah are also scholars, but at the same time they went through Maqaam al-Ihsaan to uplift themselves by doing good and dropping the bad.
أن تعبد الله كأنك تراه، فإن لم تكن تراه فإنه يراك
That you worship Allah as if you see Him, for, if you don't see Him, truly He sees you.(Bukhari)
This means there is a possibility of seeing and feeling His Presence in you, because Allah is putting that condition. Many people have feelings or visions as Allah is inspiring their hearts.
أَنَا جَلِيْسُ مَنْ ذَكَرَنِي
I sit with him who remembers Me. (Hadith Qudsi. Ahmad, Bayhaqi)
“I am sitting with you,” Allah (swt) told Prophet (s) in Hadith Qudsi there is a possibility. People say, “I saw Allah (swt) coming to me,” in a dream, ru’ya, an immense Heavenly Light. If we build our relationship with mureeds as it should be, then we are in a big ni`mah. An example is `Abdul Qadir al-Jilani (q) had a khalifah who was not an `alim but 80 years old and a sincere, pious person. His son was an `alim and a bit jealous, always thinking, “I know 100 times more than my father as I studied Shari`ah, Fiqh, and Hadith! He doesn’t have `ilm, he sits with the mureeds and says anything and everyone gets attached to it. If I speak, the whole city will come to listen to me, as I am an `alim!” This came into his heart when he graduated and he thought, “I need an opportunity to show my `ilm.” His father detected what was going on in his son’s heart; Awliyaullah can do that, so be careful when you are sitting with a wali as they can easily tell whatever you are thinking.
اتقوا فراسة المؤمن فإنه ينظر بنور الله
Beware the vision of the Believer, for he sees with the Light of Allah. (Tirmidhi)
The father wanted him to get rid of these negative thoughts that were always in his head, so the next week he said, “O my son, I am sick today. You go and teach the class instead of me.” The son was very happy, as if his father gave him the whole dunya and Akhirah! Arrogance, desires, anger and hate is what kills us. He ascended to his father's place, sat down and began giving a lecture, but most of the students fell completely asleep as if they were given anesthesia! He got upset and thought, “How did they listen to my father and they are not listening to me?” His father asked, “What happened?” The son told him and the father said, “Yaa waladee, I detected what happened in your heart, which is why I ordered you to give the lecture as I wanted to finish it in one try. This is your ego. You didn't build a relationship between you and the mureeds, you made yourself higher than them. Allah said, ‘Above every knower is a (higher) knower.’ You saw your `ilm and became arrogant. Allah made them all sleep because they got fed up with what you were saying.”
So our duty is when someone is speaking, they have to make sure the listeners are on the same level. Before Shaykh Sharafuddin ad-Daghestani (q) passed away, he said to Grandshaykh `AbdAllah al-Fa’iz ad-Daghestani (q), “I would like you to be my successor, because you are ready. You did a five-year seclusion in a cave with only seven olives and three pieces of bread in 24 hours. I would like you to be ready to take that responsibility.”
Grandshaykh`AbdAllah (q) said, “Sorry, I do not want it.” This is his ijtihad, his knowledge.
Shaykh Sharafuddin (q) asked, “Why don't you want it?”
He said, “It is very simple, this is what I feel. You and the ones before you took the mureeds a long way towards Siraat al-Mustaqeem, but that's it, you didn't take them where you are going to be in Paradise. You took them to a certain place and you cannot transgress the limit to bring them to your status. What is the benefit if they don't reach my status? Therefore, I don't want it, it's a waste of my time. If the whole Ummah, the whole room sitting with me, doesn't reach my level, I don't want it. If you can get me permission like that, I will accept.”
That night Shaykh Sharafuddin (q) prayed istikharah and he saw Prophet (s) saying, “I am very happy, I am very happy, I am very happy (with his request), ‘Give and I will accept”!’ These Awliyaullah want all mureeds to be with them, they don’t want them to be orphans where they cannot see the shaykh to whom they gave their lives! Awliya have to raise mureeds to their status, that is what is difficult.
May Allah (swt) forgive us and bless us.
Wa min Allahi 't-tawfeeq, bi hurmati 'l-habeeb, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.
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