A`oodhu billah min ash-Shaytani 'r-rajeem Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem. Allahuma salli `ala Sayyidina Muhammad (s), hatta yarda Sayyidina Muhammad (s)!
Allah Allah, Allah Allah, Allah Allah, `AzeezAllah!
Allah Allah, Allah Allah, Allah Allah, SubhaanAllah!
Allah Allah, Allah Allah, Allah Allah, SultaanAllah!
انَزِّلَ النَّاسَ مَنَازِلَهُم
anzila 'n-naasu manaazilahum.
Give people the respect they are due.
(Narrated by Muslim without chain in the introduction to his Sahih. Sakhawi said in al-Jawahir wa al-durar this is a fair (hasan) hadith, and al-Hakim said it is sahih in Ma`rifat `Ulum al-Hadith and he said Ibn Khuzayma narrated it.)
Prophet (s) said, "Give everyone his right." It means to respect people at their level, which means not in dunya but in akhira; give everyone what they really deserve and don't look at people from one perspective, no. People differ from one to another, so according to their level--their sincerity, piety and humbleness--give them respect. It also it means besides this, those in the community who always did their best for Islam, and even their best for normal life, helping others, even if they are non-Muslims, you have to give them the respect due to them. (...)
Here is an example of the respect Prophet gave to others. One time he was sitting and a leader of a tribe came, and many members of the tribe were visiting the Prophet (s). As soon as that leader came in the Prophet (s) said his famous hadith, qumoo li-sayyidikum, "Stand up for your leader/master," which implies to stand up for your teacher, your father, your mother. It means give respect; that is important. So the Sahabah stood for that leader as standing is a sign of respect. Today people say you are committing shirk if you stand for someone, and I see when an elderly person comes some remain sitting and they shake hands or greet while sitting. In our tradition humility and respect are important as the Prophet (s) respected everyone, so our duty is to respect everyone.
Sayyidina Bayazid al-Bistami (q) said, "I respect the young one as he has less sins than me and I respect the elderly one as he worshipped more than me." In both cases he made himself the target. It means, "If I don't respect the younger I am making a mistake as he has less sins so he is better than me, and I respect the older one as he has done more `ibadah than me." That means don't give yourself an excuse, don't praise yourself!
فَلَا تُزَكُّوا أَنفُسَكُمْ
fa laa tuzakkoo anfusakum.
Don’t give a high evaluation of yourself. (53:32)
You don't know whom Allah (swt) likes and whom He will guide in the future, so respect everyone, Muslim and non-Muslim. In the mid-1990's we had a center in Northern California for dhikr, qasidas, suhbat, and martial arts, and mostly converts came there. You don't know whom Allah will guide. One person came, and I mentioned that story before, to show that don't give your opinion quickly about people because they might be better than you in Allah's perspective. If Allah wants to send everyone to Paradise, can anyone ask why? If Allah wants to send everyone to Hellfire can anyone ask why?
Once Sayyidina Abu Bakr (r) was crying and the Prophet (s) asked, "Yaa Abu Bakr! Why are you crying?" For a long time he had disappeared from his house and they were looking for him, whereafter the Prophet (s) found him sitting in the Ka`bah, crying.
Prophet (s) asked, "Why are you crying?"
Abu Bakr (r) said, "Yaa Rasoolullah! Once you said, 'O Allah! Don't leave me to my ego for the blink of an eye.' O Prophet of Allah! If you are saying this, then what will happen to us? That's why I am crying."
Prophet (s) said, "Yaa Abu Bakr! Allah mentioned you in Holy Qur'an as my saahib, friend. You were in the cave and he named you 'siddiq.'"
إِذْ يَقُولُ لِصَاحِبِهِ لاَ تَحْزَنْ إِنَّ اللّهَ مَعَنَا
Idh yaqoolu li-saahibihi laa tahzan inna Allaha ma`ana.
And he said to his companion, "Have no fear, for Allah is with us." (Tawbah, 9:40)
Sayyidina Abu Bakr (r) said, "O Prophet of Allah! If tomorrow Allah says, 'I made you siddiq, but now I'm taking that away from you,' who can say no?"
So you can't judge as Allah will give and He will take, but Allah's generosity is that He gives but He doesn't take. We have a place for dhikr in California and one Saturday a very old man in his 90s came. I was sitting on the floor doing dhikr and subhat, but he could not sit on the floor so they put him on a chair. After we finished they introduced him as a Christian who heard about our gathering and he was looking for spirituality. We shook hands and he was happy. The next week he returned each week for four weeks and then he said, "I want to take shahadah." Perhaps he was 95 years old and he asked how to take shahadah. So he took shahada and he wanted to know about Islam. In subsequent weeks he didn't come and so we sent someone to inquire after him, and we learned he had died. Now what would you say about that person if you saw him before he became Muslim? Had you judged him, you would say that person was going to Hellfire; that is why we don't judge. When he became Muslim at 95 years of age, Allah (swt) guided him and granted him an opportunity. So what happened?
الإسلام يجب ما قبله
al-Islam yajib ma qablahaa.
Islam waives what came before.
When a non-Muslim accepts Islam, everything is forgiven. That 95-year-old man went to Paradise, for sure. And what is the difference between being Muslim and non-Muslim? It is one sentence: ash-hadu an laa ilaaha illa-Llah wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan Rasoolullah. That is the difference. When you say "laa ilaaha illa-Llah Muhammadan Rasoolullah," that is what differentiates you from a non-Muslim. Obligations are another issue, but if you say "laa ilaaha illa-Llah Muhammadan Rasoolullah" you are Muslim, and no one can say you are not, even if you are not praying or fasting. You will be asked about the obligations, but no one can say you are not a Muslim. That is why it is not right to judge others. If you want to judge people, Allah (swt) will judge you and give you difficulty on Judgment Day. If Allah sends everyone to Paradise, be happy, as then at least you will be among them. Don't judge Allah's servants or Allah will judge every issue in your life!
Grandshaykh 'Abdullah al-Fa'iz ad-Daghestani (q) told this story which occurred in a town named Gunekoy, currently known as Yalova, about three hours from Istanbul, where there was a Jumu'ah imaam. He was very respected and every Friday he gave the khutbah, which was always nadheeran, difficult, from an extreme view, and not basheeran, leaving a way for mercy.
Unfortunately, today's Muslims and their leadership are against each other: citizens are against their leaders and the leaders are against their citizens. Either the leader is a tyrant or the people want to establish their own agendas. Today Muslims have formed so many political parties.
Allah (swt) said:
wa hazama al-ahzaba wahda.
He destroys the parties by Himself!
"He is the one who destroyed all these parties." There is only one party: laa ilaaha illa-Llah Muhammadan Rasoolullah! Do you accept? Allahu Akbar! But unfortunately, we are becoming many parties. There are two extremes among the Muslims now: to follow such liberal policies as to make everything accepted, or to be so strict that they make everything prohibited. There is no middle way for them.
Prophet (s) said:
nahnu ummatu wasata.
We are a nation of the middle.
In today's terms, this means the Muslim view does not lean too much left or right. But today we see very extreme views, ! Very few are on the moderate line.
So that imaam, like many imaams around the world...and the only thing with this imaam is that he's pious, sincere, but always likes to scold people.
Allah (swt), as did the Prophet (s), said in a Holy Hadith (Qudsi), which means it is revealed from Allah (swt):
إن رحمتي سبقت غضبي
Sabaqat rahmatee `ala ghadabee.
My mercy overcame My wrath.
Allah (swt) is telling us, "Be on the moderate way." Mercy is the moderate way; therefore, if you are not on the moderate way you are not merciful. The opposite of being merciful is to be tyrannical. Don't be tyrannical! Today children are tyrannical with their parents, parents are tyrannical with their children, and husband and wife fight with each other. That is not a moderate life. If you follow the moderate way you will be saved. That is why you must listen and don't open your mouth; then you will save your household from problems. People like to argue: husbands with wives, wives with husbands, children with mothers, mothers with children, children with fathers, fathers with children. The Prophet (s) teaches us patience.
Allah (swt) has Ninety-Nine Beautiful Names and Attributes, but what is the last Name of the Ninety-Nine? As-Saboor, "The Absolute Patient," Whose patience never ends. Allah is saying to you, "O My servant! I am The One Whose patience never ends. Be part of that patience by being patient on others." We are not patient!
That Jumu`ah imaam was always warning people of punishment and wrath. Allah (swt) said:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ إِنَّا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ شَاهِدًا وَمُبَشِّرًا وَنَذِيرًا
Ya ayyuha an-nabiyyu inna arsalnaaka shaahidan wa mubashshiran wa nadheera
O Prophet! Truly We have sent you as a Witness, a Bearer of Glad Tidings, and Warner. (Al-Ahzab, 33:45)
It means the only one who can warn people is the Prophet (and other prophets); it is not for people to warn others. Who are you to warn them? Warn yourself, your ego! Do you think you are higher than others? Do you warn your wife? (Yes, often.) Grandshaykh `AbdAllah al-Fa`iz ad-Daghestani (q) is narrating, so don't think these accounts are not correct, because what awliyaullah see you cannot see and what awliyaullah understand you cannot understand. When they say something, it is because they really saw it. Grandshaykh said, "One Jumu`ah day, that imaam began giving the khutbah, warning so much that people were trembling! It was easy to warn them as he was the village imaam who knew what mistakes people were making. So he recited the hadith according to their mistakes and people became tense as none of them could claim they are not committing sins. Al-`aynu taznee, wa ’l-anfu yaznee, wa ’l-uzhun taznee, wa ’l-famu yaznee, wa ’l-yadu taznee, wa ’r-rijlu taznee, "The eyes make adultery, the nose makes adultery, the ears make adultery, the mouth makes adultery, the hands make adultery, the feet make adultery," in their capacity. When you look at something which Allah prohibited, that is a sin. How many forbiddens do you see on your way home, men or women, and you try to keep looking at that?
The Prophet (s) said, "The first glance is for you and the second glance is against you." That means if you saw something haraam and say "astaghfirullah," that is not counted against you, but the second glance is, so they gave you a way out. Prophet (s) said the eye will look at haraam things and it is a sin, and even to smell the nice smell can be a sin! Sometimes you pass by someone who smells very nice and say, "He (or she) smells very nice." That is also a sin. Now perfume companies make perfumes that move with the breeze, to make everyone fall in the trap of Shaytan! How many thousands of perfumes they are selling, all in the way of Shaytan, yet we are not aware.
Every moment, as soon as you open your mouth it sins. That is why Sayyidina `Ali (r) said, "Keep silent, don't open your mouth, don't talk." Do you respect Sayyidina Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (r)? Do you praise him or not? He is the first Caliph of the Prophet (s), the highest. He put a pebble in his mouth for seven years to prevent him from speaking; it was very difficult to open his mouth because if that pebble came between his teeth it will crack them. So Sayyidina Jibril (a) said to the Prophet (s), "It is enough! Tell Abu Bakr Siddiq that Allah gave him the title 'Siddiq,' so there no need to keep that pebble in his mouth any longer."
What can we do, talk or not? It is a struggle between good and evil because we are a mixture of good and evil.
Allah (swt) said:
فَأَلْهَمَهَا فُجُورَهَا وَتَقْوَاهَا
Fa alhamahaa fujoorahaa wa taqwaahaa.
He inspired our good and our evil. (Ash-Shams, 91:8)
That imaam was warning and people were frightened, so everyone went back home and in the early morning before Fajr he called adhan to awaken people for Qiyaam al-Layl. Everyone gathered in the masjid and the imaam's face was covered with a burqah and you could only see his eyes. (...) The imaam ascended the minbar and said, "All my life I was saying 'Allah will punish you, Allah will send an earthquakes, Hellfire and miseries on you,' and today I am saying that Allah is The Merciful and He will send you to Paradise!" He changed 180 degrees. "This night I saw in a dream," and this is hadith of the Prophet (s), who mentioned the same issue that comes in this story. "I saw Judgment Day and I heard a voice calling me to be judged, saying, 'O My servant! Do you want me to judge you according to your `amal or according to My mercy?' It came to my heart that all my life I was a sincere person who only went from my house to the masjid and back, and I did not do anything wrong. So I said, 'O my Lord! Judge me according to my `amal.'" Today many people say to themselves, "I am doing da`wah." Do dawah to yourself first and don't praise yourself or you will end up like this imaam.
"So the angels came put my `amal on the Scale, and the Balance went far down and the other side was empty. And then a voice came and said, 'O angels! Put one of his eyes on the other side of the Scale.' So they took one eye and put on other side. Immediately the eye was heavier than all my `amal! That voice said, "Take him to Hellfire, finished!" And they were taking me to the Hellfire and the flame of the fire was coming on me and at that moment I saw the Prophet (s), saying, "O my Lord! Give that one to me."
There is a hadith that on Judgment Day, Allah will send some to punishment, but because of their salawaat on the Prophet (s) they will be saved! So he was saved and taken from Hellfire, but which had already burned his face, his beard, eyebrows and all the hair on his head. Awliyaaullah know these facts. Who was able to see that? That was a miarcle for everyone! When Allah wants to give an example, like that 95 year-old man who took shahada and died, that imaam was an example to show all the people about Allah's mercy! That city was very holy as three big saints had lived there: Shaykh Abu Muhammad al-Madani, Shaykh `AbdAllah al-Faiz ad-Daghestani, and Abu Ahmad as-Sughuri (q)
The people saw the imaam's hair was completely gone, and that is why he had worn a burqah to the mosque that morning. The lesson here is, our duty is not to judge people, our duty is only to respect everyone and pray for everyone, because who is going to be responsible for mercy? Today in the Middle East people are being killed; who is responsible for them? The Prophet (s) said if a wali or king or president, or any ruler or leader is a tyrant, if you cannot change him, pray to Allah (swt) to change his heart to a peaceful one, and do not create confusion, darkness and bloodshed. Who is going to be responsible for the thousands of people dying, including those who disappeared in Libya, Tunisia, Yemen, Bahrain now, Morocco, and Jordan. These are Signs of the Last Days, about which Prophet (s) said:.
ستكون فتن كقطع الليل المظلم
Satakunoo fitanan kaqita`ti 'l-layli 'l-muzhlim
There is going to be turmoil like a chunk of dark nights.
That means huge confusion, when the one who is killed doesn't know why. At that time, the one standing better than the one walking, and the one sitting is better than the one standing, and it is better to sit in your homes and not go out. That advice is for all over the world. When Massih al-Dajjal will appear, as mentioned by Prophet (s) regarding Signs of the Last Days, "There will be fitna all over the world except in three places: Mecca, Madinah, and Shaam." The Anti-Christ cannot enter these places, not in Shaam, because Sayyidina Sayyidina `Isa (a) will descend there at the white minaret mentioned in an authentic hadith, where Mahdi (a) will await him.
There will be an Anti-Christ, but spiritually there are too many conquering the world and this spreads confusion is everywhere. The economic crisis is one of the Signs and many others; earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis are more often and much more powerful. There is too much geographical change, global warming. The Prophet (s) said that cold places will become warm, and now we are seeing this. Don't count centuries, count years. It might happen tomorrow or after tomorrow. If Allah (swt) wants to shake the Earth, can anyone ask Him, "What are You doing?" How many times did earthquakes occur?
Allah (swt) said in Holy Qur'an:
إِذَا زُلْزِلَتِ الْأَرْضُ زِلْزَالَهَاوَأَخْرَجَتِ الْأَرْضُ أَثْقَالَهَا وَقَالَ الْإِنسَانُ مَا لَهَايَوْمَئِذٍ تُحَدِّثُ أَخْبَارَهَا بِأَنَّ رَبَّكَ أَوْحَى لَهَا
idha zulzilat al-ardu athqaalaha, wa akhrajatul ardu athqalaha wa qaala al-insaanu maa laha yawmaithin tuhaddithu akhbaarahaa bianna rabbaka awhaa lahaa.
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 thy Lord will have given her inspiration. (99:1-4)
We hope to see Sayyidina al-Mahdi (a) and Sayyidina 'Isa (a), not to see the others. We ask Allah to keep the Earth peaceful. Unfortunately, awliyaullah are trying to guide who they can, but because we are coming to the end of this dunya they are not being given the authority as before, when one wali in a city could completely change kufr to imaan. In the 20th century that was stopped, because when Sayyidina Jibril asked the Prophet (s) about Islam he said the five pillars, and about Imaan he said the six pillars, and about Ihsaan he said, "One pillar, the religion." And then Jibril asked, "Tell me about the Last Days," and Prophet (s) said, al-sail `alam min al masu'l, "The one asking knows more than the one asked." And he asked, "What are its Signs?" Prophet (s) said, "To see the barefoot naked Bedouins competing in building high-rises," and that is what we are seeing in the Gulf and other desert countries. And he said, yakthur al-jahl, "Knowledge will be lifted up and ignorance increased." And the Sahabah asked, "Will knowledge be lifted up by taking the Qur'an?" And he said, "No, scholars will die and new ones will not come." In the past scholars could control the ego, but today's scholar cannot control the ego and to be a scholar has become a professional job. That means the knowledge Prophet (s) gave the ummah will be misunderstood and changed, yakthur al-jahl, so ignorance will be increased.
Prophet (s) is Muhammad al-Amin, "the Trustworthy," he is the only one to be trusted by Allah (swt), the highest to be trusted, so when he says something that is 100% correct. He said yakthur al-jahl, "too much ignorance" will fill the Earth. He predicted that 1400 years ago and entrusted the ummah with it. They are changing it, and there will be too much difference among the ummah, too much ignorance about Islam. Tomorrow you will see a hearing in the US Congress about radicalization of Islam, because there are too many divisions. Prophet (s) predicted that; he didn't leave anything without explanation. "Competing in high-rises," they are doing that. "Radicalization" means when they split Islam into too many different opinions, they become so extreme. So the west doesn't look at the good ones, it looks at the bad ones. One bad apple in a basket spoils the rest. Look at the greatness of the Prophet (s)! The head of that hearing is Rep. Peter King. His name is to give you understanding of how the Prophet (s) can see from 1400 years ago, that one whose name is "King;" it means he represents a king. If you say "The king is speaking tomorrow" it immediately gives you a different perspective.
Prophet (s) said, scholars will die and will have no substitute. Scholars today have nothing valuable to say so all people are correcting us; instead contemporary scholars accuse the media of "Islamophobia." Islamophobia in our own home; fix the Islamic belief first, don't divide Muslims! You divided the whole Islamic ummah and now you come speaking about this one and that one, coming against Islam. No, it is you, the Muslims, who gave Islam a bad name and you cannot stop ignorance, which is coming as the Prophet (s) said. Even if you erect hundreds of mosques around the world, that will not stop it! Prophet (s) is as-Sadiq, "the Truthful One," the al-Masduq, "the Confirmer of Truth." Whatever he said has to happen! He said, "My ummah will divide into seventy and more divisions." He knows what he is saying. How many divisions we are today? Confusion is filling the Earth. Whatever committees and organizations and foundations you form, the situation is only going to get worse, as the Prophet (s) said:
يملأ الأرض قسطا وعدلا كما ملئت ظلما وجورا
yakhruju waladin min awalaadee yamla al-ard qistan wa `adlan kama muliyat zhulman wa jooran.
One of my grandchildren will come and fill the Earth with good things and justice.
So (at that time) there will be no complaints from anyone.
Prior to that time the Earth was filled with oppression; zhulman wa joora means someone blames you for something you have nothing to do with. And that is what is happening today: the Muslim majority are blamed for what the minority did, and still these organizations are blaming "Islamophobia." Look at your own home! They say, "integrate" with American life, which is okay, but first Muslims must integrate with each other. If one goes from one mosque to another they argue; they establish one mosque for Egyptians, one for Pakistanis, etc.
May Allah (swt) save the believers, and save Islam from the talk of unbelievers, the ignorant Muslims who don't know Islam! Muslims are being put together under one banner: Laa ilaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah.
May Allah (swt) bless us and may Allah (swt) forgive us without looking at what we are doing. I was saying last week on Saturday that Allah will call on Judgment Day one person and open His ninety-nine books, records, and order angels to open what that one did in his life, and every record is bigger than from east to west, min ash-sharq ila ’l-gharb recorded by angels. They put that on the Scale, and the sins are so heavy that it takes the Scale down! That man or woman, that person will tremble, not knowing what Allah wants to do. Then suddenly one small paper with "laa ilaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah" written on it will be put on the other side of the Scale. That person recited one time in his life "laa ilaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah" and that will make the side heavier than all his sins and he will be saved from Hell and taken to Paradise! So you can say "laa ilaha illa-Llah" hundreds of times, but if you don't say "Muhammadun Rasoolullah," it is not enough. If you say that, it is enough to go to Paradise.
So on Judgment Day, Allah calls His servant and looks at His servant's Balance, and He knows that servant was saying "laa ilaha illa-Llah," but it is not there. How is it going to be there when the Prophet (s) said that whoever says "subhaanAllah, alhamdulillah" fills the Balance? If "subhaanAllah, alhamdulillah" fills the Balance, then "laa ilaha illa-Llah" is more than the Balance which is bigger than Earth and Heavens, so Allah will judge His servants with a Balance bigger than Earth and Heavens! Therefore, if you say "subhaanAllah, alhamdulillah," it fills a Balance larger than Heaven and Earth. So what about, "laa ilaha illa-Llah?" Say, "la ilaha illa-Llah Muhammadun Rasoolullah!"
Wa min Allahi 't-tawfeeq, bi hurmati 'l-habeeb, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.
[du`a]