Sincerity in the heart

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

Allah tells us in Surah Hujuraat;

 

The desert Arabs say, “We believe”.  Say, “Ye have no faith; but ye (only) say, 'We have submitted our wills to Allah, for not yet has faith entered your hearts.  But if ye obey Allah and His Messenger, He will not belittle aught of your deeds: for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.  (49:14)

It is easy to say something with the tongue, whether it is meant or not.  Islam doesn’t want that from us.  Instead our total personality must be in complete submission to Allah and only then will you be a true believer. 

Allah says about some people; In their hearts is a disease; and Allah has increased their disease:  (2:10)

Why is this?  Because they say they believe but do so for some ulterior motive.  Those are not from amongst the true believers.  Instead we must concentrate on true submission to Allah from our heart.  As Prophet Muhammad (pboh) is reported “there is a piece of flesh in the body if it becomes good (reformed) the whole body becomes good but if it gets spoiled, the whole body gets spoiled – and that is the heart” (Bukhari).

Sometimes we hear people say ‘that person doesn’t have heart’.  It means that the person being described doesn’t have love and compassion etc.  These qualities don’t come from the tongue.  True love comes from the heart.  This is why Islam emphasises that we bring the faith into our hearts. 

Look at what Allah did when He wanted Prophet Muhammad (pboh) to begin preaching the Deen.  He caused Jibrael to impress the Qur’an in the heart of Prophet Muhammad (pboh) on the night of the first revelation.  So when he spoke to the people it was not only coming from his mouth but his heart as well. 

Culture and cultivate your heart to have true submission and God consciousness and only then you would have really achieved something.  If you have Allah in your heart and you are submitting to Him only then will you find peace and tranquillity.  This is possibly why He says

 

“Those who believe, and whose hearts find satisfaction in the remembrance of Allah; for, without doubt; in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find satisfaction.”  (13:28)

You can have everything of this world but have no peace of mind.  When you culture and nurture your heart to have true submission to Allah you will find peace and contentment.  And you will also get closer and closer to your Lord.  If you have no peace and contentment then something is wrong. 

Understand also that when you think of, or do evil, it will impact upon your heart.  Even if no one is aware of it you are putting stains on your heart.  We need to all the time keep looking at our hearts and work upon it to ensure that we have sincerity and purity. 

And this is where our zikir and meditation can help.  By engaging in spiritual mediation you will know if you are engaging in something wrong; if so, you will feel a ‘heavy heart’.  And if you are engaged in good or surrounded with good you will feel a difference in your heart.  Insha Allah your heart will aid in guiding you. 

Our mission is to make our heart bright and shinning and full of sincerity and purity; else we are just like the Bedouins who Allah spoke of.

Keep your heart clean and pure and strong in Allah’s remembrance and let Him take care of our affairs insha Allah.

The video presentation of this discourse can be accessed at

http://www.youtube.com/markazalihsaan

Be prepared for your resurrection

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

 

Part of our beliefs is that one day we will be resurrected, after we’ve gone from this world and our bodies have been decayed.  All human beings, since the time of Prophet Adam (as) and the billions that followed will all be resurrected.  Some people have a problem in comprehending the resurrection and its possibility.  To this Allah says beautifully in the Qur’an;

 

O mankind! if ye have a doubt about the Resurrection, (consider) that We created you out of dust, then out of sperm, then out of a leech-like clot, then out of a morsel of flesh, partly formed and partly unformed, in order that We may manifest (Our power) to you; and We cause whom We will to rest in the wombs for an appointed term, then do We bring you out as babes, then (foster you) that ye may reach your age of full strength; and some of you are called to die, and some are sent back to the feeblest old age, so that they know nothing after having known (much), and (further), thou seest the earth barren and lifeless, but when we pour down rain on it, it is stirred (to life), it swells, and it puts forth every kind of beautiful growth (in pairs).  (22:5)

 

Allah has given many eye openers in nature that demonstrates resurrection.  In the ayat quoted above Allah draws reference to the dry parched earth.  It looks lifeless with the plants and tress withering away.  However when Allah causes the rain to fall the greenery comes back.  This is easy for Allah and so too is the resurrection of human beings.

 

Allah was very descriptive in the ayat mentioned above regarding the process of human existence.  Each and every one of us started life as a microscopic grain of sand.  Do you think a grain of sand would decay?  No it would not as is would form part of the earth.  We were all created from this microscopic grain of sand and then Allah caused it to grow into a sperm and further caused the sperm to fertilise an egg and thereafter caused it to grow into a human being.  How great is Allah?

 

What is the wisdom in Allah telling us this?  In order to understand about this a little more,  we see what Prophet Muhammad (pboh) said:

 

Abu Huraira narrated, that the Prophet said: “There is nothing of the human body that does not decay except one bone; that is the little bone at the end of the coccyx of which the human body will be recreated on the Day of Resurrection”.

 

That tiny grain of sand which we all began life from does not decay.  It goes back into the earth.  Then upon the command of Allah it will grow back into the person it once was.

 

Understand that this is not difficult for Allah.  The difference the second time round is that we would come out with a bag around our neck that contains all our deeds.  The lighter our bag the more likely our chances are of meeting Allah.

 

It’s important that we understand this because it is an eye opener for us.  What am I doing for the resurrection?  Will I be happy with a bright and beautiful countenance or will I be like a withered rose.  You are responsible for your own future.  What are you doing to ensure that the meeting with your Lord would be a beautiful one?  We all want to meet Him and would like that He is pleased to meet us.

 

Take care of your life and don’t waste it because one day it will be the only asset you have of value for the next phase of life.

 

May Allah enable us to engage in much good throughout our lives so on that Day when all of mankind are brought back to life we will be from amongst those who will be most pleased to meet our Lord and insha Allah He would be pleased to meet us.

 

 

The video presentation of this discourse can be accessed at

http://www.youtube.com/markazalihsaan

Sincere Repentance

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

Prophet Muhammad (pboh) is reported to have said “Whoever says: La ilaha illa Allah (there is no god but Allah) will enter Paradise”.

 

We need to understand that this is the ‘passport’ for entry into Paradise.  We need to also understand that going to paradise is one thing; but when will we actually enter paradise is another matter.  There would be some who would have to go through the Hell fire before they enter Paradise.  Because of their deeds and actions they will have to go to hell first and then through Allah’s Mercy, He will take them out and enter them into Paradise.  However they will be referred to as the Dwellers of Hell.

 

We don’t want to go to hell, no matter how short the stay.  As a result Allah tells us in many places in the Holy Qur’an that we should constantly beg Him for forgiveness.  For example Allah says in Surah Tahriim;

 

O ye who believe! Turn to Allah with sincere repentance: In the hope that your Lord will remove from you your ills and admit you to Gardens beneath which rivers flow, - the Day that Allah will not permit to be humiliated the Prophet and those who believe with Him. Their light will run forward before them and by their right hands, while they say, "Our Lord! Perfect our light for us, and grant us forgiveness: for Thou hast power over all things”.  (66:8)

 

Allah is addressing the believers in the ayat.  Allah also tells us in another ayat ‘if Allah were to punish men for their wrong-doing, He would not leave, on the (earth), a single living creature’.

 

No matter how much we try at the end of the day we are all humans and we may still commit mistakes knowingly or unknowingly.  And no matter how much faith we may have today we all have past records and it maynot be as we would want it to be.  As result Allah advises us to constantly repent.

 

Repentance is not just a mechanical exercise or lip service as some say.  It demands sincerity.  Sincerity means that I am truly sorry for the wrong I would have committed and for soiling my soul with black spots.  And if you repent sincerely Allah says in the ayat mentioned above; in the hope that your Lord will remove from you your ills and admit you to Gardens beneath which rivers flow.

 

Even if you did something wrong don’t let it hinder you from humbling yourself and begging Allah to forgive you.  It’s very easy to make a mistake and Satan has real capacity and power and knows our weak spots and how to work on them.  However one simple thing can nullify all his power and this it ‘I seek refuge in Allah’.

 

Don’t think for example that you can recite plenty Darood or give lots of charity to balance off your wrong deeds.  Try your best to stay away from evil in totality.  We can’t foster good and evil in our hearts at one and the same time.  Keep struggling and working on your nafs and Allah says that He will make our light bright and shinning. 

 

What we do here every Thursday is to firstly seek repentance for our shortcomings and to also strengthen the other dimension of our personality which is to culture our qalb to resonate Allahu.  If you have Allah in your heart, Satan cannot divert you.  It’s a barrier between you and him.  He is always looking to catch you and will use every method possible as Allah has given him permission.

 

The only thing that will pull us through is belief in our Lord.  Today sadly we are seeing that for some people life has no value.  Keep in mind however that those on the straight path, Allah will help and protect them insha Allah.

 

Prophet Muhammad is reported to have said ‘seek forgiveness and repent more than 70 times a day’.  And He is the Messenger of Allah; therefore if he did it we should try our best to do the same.  And we should always pray for those who have gone before us.  Be generous in this matter and you would have done a service to not only your beloved ones but also ourselves as Allah is Most Merciful and would bless us in the process.

 

We need to always be mindful that life is an onward journey and part of our mission is to send goodness before us.  Begin from now and remove any black sports we’ve stained our souls with by sincerely repenting to our Most Compassionate Lord.

 

May Allah enable us with the capacity to always repent to him daily and may He guide us and protect us from the ills facing society insha Allah.

 

The video presentation of this discourse can be accessed at http://www.youtube.com/markazalihsaan

 

Success through Salaat

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

In the adhan we say Hayyaa alal falaah.  Translated, it means come to success.  What does success this imply?  And how can observing the salaat lead to success?

 

We know salaat to be an institution and one of the pillars of Islam.  Salaat is very important to a believer because Prophet Muhammad (pboh) is reported to have said ‘the difference between us and them (the hypocrites) is prayer’.

 

Allah says in surah Ankabuut;

 

and establish regular prayer: for prayer restrains from shameful and unjust deeds; and remembrance of Allah is the greatest (thing in life) without doubt.  (29:45)

 

If you pray your salaat properly, you will get that internal guidance to become a better person.  For example when the first prohibition alcohol was revealed Allah said;

 

O ye who believe! Approach not prayers with a mind befogged, until ye can understand all that ye say.  (4:43)

 

If a person is intoxicated it will take some time for him to get sober.  Thus at the time when this ayat was revealed if the believers wanted to pray salaat they would have had to stay away from alcohol.  And this is just one impact which salaat had in moulding and culturing the lives of believers.

 

And because the institution of salaat has this impact on us Satan would always try to take the people away from salaat.  For example in once it was brought to Prophet Muhammad’s (pboh)  attention that a man had slept the night till morning (after sunrise).  Prophet (pboh) said, “He is a man in whose ears (or ear) Satan had urinated”.

 

Allah says about the successful ones;

 

By the soul, and the proportion and order given to it; and its Enlightenment As to its wrong and its right; - truly he succeeds that purifies it; (91:7-9)

 

In order to attain success we must strive for Tazkiyah nafs; purification our nafs.  Culture it to the point where our thoughts and action would not bring about any black sports on our soul.  And salaat helps in keeping away black spots and at the same time polishes the soul to keep it bright and shinning.

 

The successful ones are those who strive to keep the light of the ruh shining and bright so that it can permeate throughout the entire personality.  If you stay firm on your daily salaat you will definitely see a change on your life.

 

If you want to beautify your faith make sure you have the fundamentals down.  And everyone can perform salaat.  You don’t need to be a scholar and there are no restrictions in terms of place.  The whole earth is a musala, baring the unclean place.

 

Give importance to and be steadfast in performing it.  Allah made it convenient for us.  A lot of people can’t understand why they have problems in their lives.  Salaat is an institution where we can meet out Lord and talk to Him and beg of Him.

 

And we must understand how fortunate we truly are because we are the only ummah to uphold salaat even though all the Messengers use to pray.  Make use of it and do not treat it as a burden.  You think if you set aside time during the day and night to praise and beg you Lord He would forsake you and let you down?

 

Resolve to yourself that you won’t miss any of the fard salaat.  Some people criticize other who just concentrate and pray the fard rakaats alone.  The important thing is that at least they are praying.

 

Humble yourself and do not be like Satan who refused to submit to Allah’s command. May Allah bless us and guide us and always enable us to uphold this blessed institution of salaat, insha Allah.

Live a life of no regets

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

 

One of the differences with the life of this world and that of barzakh is that in barzakh you will be able to see your past and your future destination.  Here, in this world you can only see your past and present.  We do not know our destination.  Allah says in Surah Yaseen;

Verily we shall give life to the dead, and we record that which they send before and that which they leave behind, and of all things have we taken account in a Clear Book (of evidence).  (36:12)

Nothing will be left unrecorded regarding the activities of an individual.  One of the meanings of ‘that which they leave behind’ is that of Sadaqatul Jariyah.  If your family prays for your or if you left something behind that people can benefit from; these things would be of great benefit to you.

Never forget one thing, Allah does not only record the good that you do but He also records those things that you did and that you left behind that were of no value to anyone including yourself. 

Allah says;

What is with you must vanish: what is with Allah will endure and We will certainly bestow, on those who patiently persevere, their reward to the best of their actions.  (16:96)

Allah records those things that would be of benefit to us that we send before and that would continue to benefit us after we leave this earth.  He also records those things that we left behind that would have caused harm to others and were valueless.

Prophet Muhammad (pboh) is reported to have said on the Day of Judgment the deeds of man would be divided into two, that which was done for Allah and that which was done for the world. 

More importantly of barzakh is regret that some people would experience when they see their destination;

And spend something (in charity) out of the substance which We have bestowed on you, before death should come to any of you and he should say, “O My Lord! Why didst Thou not give me respite for a little while?  I should then have given (largely) in charity, and I should have been one of the doers of good”.  (63:10)

When certain people go in Barzakh and they see the benefit and loss suffered they would plead to Allah to go back and only then would they be the most righteous, charitable etc.

This is an important lesson for all of us!  Don’t wait for when reality comes to you to transform your life.  When Pharaoh was drowning and he saw death fast approaching he shouted I believe in the God of Moses.  All the along he paid no heed to the numerous signs Allah sent to him.  Only when he saw his end nearing and he remembered the type of life he lived in the world, and the misery of the stay in barzakh then he believed.  Don’t wait to be like that!

The Message is clear.  This is possibly why the Qur’an is called Kitabal Mubin.  Everyone can understand the dos and don’ts.  You don’t need a scholar to explain to you.

Don’t wait until it’s too late.  That should be out of the question for believers.  Don’t sacrifice everything for this world.  Remember Allah records what is sent before and what is left behind.  Don’t fall into the situation that the unbelievers would find themselves in, as Allah says in Surah Naba;

The Day when man will see (the deeds) which his hands have sent forth, and the unbeliever will say, “Woe unto me!  Would that I was (metre) dust!”  (78:40)

Try to strike an appropriate balance in this world so that when death comes you will be prepared and not be in a state of regret when placed in Barzakh.  We want to be from amongst those who will be happy to meet our Lord and He would be happy to meet us, insha Allah. 

I always say that the time to improve and make amends is now; don’t procrastinate.  None of us are guaranteed tomorrow.  We beg Allah to help us and bless us to be alert to making the best use of our life in this world and to have no regrets when we depart for the next.

Increasing your faith in Allah

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

Two beneficial formulas that are taken from the traditions of Prophet Muhammad (pboh) are;

Reciting Surah Kalf every Friday morning; Allah will protect you for the coming week.  The second formula is that of reciting Surah Yusuf every night before your go to bed.  Insha Allah, Allah would protect you from any pain at the time of death and would also enable you to overcome any enemies’ in this life.

Allah says in Surah Baqarah;

 

Allah is the Wali (Protector) of those who have faith (2:257)

A wali is a person’s closest, most senior elder.  Someone who you love, someone who you could go to and he will take care of you and he would never, at anytime let you down.  And if Allah says that He is your Wali what a great thing that is. 

This statement has so much of meaning.  One of which is that Allah takes one out of darkness into light.  One ways is through knowledge.  Another is through guidance.

The more intense your belief in Allah gets the closer you will feel that you are to Him.  You will begin to ascend and your personality will become different and more refined.  And this is one of the lessons that we can take from the Mir’aj.  Through faith and perseverance Prophet Muhammad(pboh) ascended so high that he became the beloved of Allah. 

This is why it is not easy to translate Ayat an-Nur;

Light upon Light!  Allah doth guide whom He will to His Light: Allah doth set forth parables for men: and Allah doth know all things.  (24:35)

One way of removing the darkness from your personality is by letting the Light of Allah to brightening your personality.  And this is what we try to achieve through our spiritual exercise of muraaqaba.  And through this your faith would grow and your closeness to your Lord would also increase.  And insha Allah you would spirituality ascend.  

There is no ending to spiritual experiences and it’s something that cannot be explained through contemporary reason and logic.

Remember a person will only achieve what Allahwills for him.  But He allows a bit of free will through which we can cultivate remembrance for Him, standing, sitting and lying on our sides.  This can be achieved when our qalb makes Zikr even if we are physically engaged in other matters.  Perhaps this is one reason why the Prophet (pboh) is reported to have said that even when the Messenger is asleep his heart remains alert.

Translating belief into action

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

Allah says in Surah Tiin;

 

We have indeed created man in the best of moulds, then do We abase Him (to be) the lowest of the low, - except such as believe and do righteous deeds: for they shall have a reward unfailing then what can, after this, contradict thee, as to the Judgment (to come)?  Is not Allah the wisest of judges?

Allah has created us from the best of the earth, and the most refined light; and He has put us all at the lowest level, i.e. we begin life with nothing in our record; although there is nothing against us.  Allah is Just so we all begin life on a common ground.  What makes the difference?  Those who believe and do righteous deeds.  They are the ones that will ascend to their Lord.

So the extent of your belief and the amount of good in which you will engage will get you closer and closer to Allah.  Allah is Dhil-maarij - The Owner of the ascending stairway.  

 

On the Day of Judgement, some humans will be worst than animals.  Why? Animals won’t have judgement therefore they are not at risk of being thrown in the hell fire.  But man will, and the way of getting out of the abyss is by believing in Allah and doing good.

Believe is one thing.  What must be done is translating this belief into action and only then would you be a truly special person.  And this is where Prophet Abraham (as) shone out.  He dedicated his entire personality to Allah and because of this dedication he ascended so high that Allah made him Khaleelullah – the friend of Allah. 

If we are prepared to utilize the gifts that Allah has blessed us with in a righteous and appropriate manner we too will also attain closeness to Him.  It all depends on our intentions and deeds. 

We beg Allah, in this blessed and holy month that He enables us to translate our beliefs into righteous and beneficial actions that would help us ascend and attain nearness to Him, insha Allah.

Ascending through good

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

 

When Allah created the Universe, the skies and the earth and He thereafter sent man and jinn to reside on earth He made evident that the entrance to and from the skies is like one-way valve.  It means that only certain things can ascend back to Him.  And what are they;

 

To Him mount up (all) Words of Purity:  (35:10)

Nothing but good can pass that barrier.  This is important for us to understand because, firstly it shows that good and evil are not equal.  Even in the place that they are recorded are different.  Allah says;

Surely the record of the wicked is (preserved) in Sijjin.  And what will explain to thee what Sijjin is?  (There is) a Register (fully) inscribed.  (83:7-9)

Good is therefore recorded in the sky and evil, which cannot ascend, is recorded in a dungeon.  That is why on the Day of Judgement some people would raise with nothing to take to their Lord. 

Allah is the embodiment of Good.  This means that impurity cannot ascend back to Him.  There is a barrier that prevents impurity from going further.  We are returning to Him and we have to pass that barrier in order to get back to Him.  So if we don’t qualify ourselves to pass this barrier our meeting with Him would be impossible. 

Allah has shown us the way with the mir’aj of Prophet Muhammad (pboh).  He was so pure and clean that he was able to pass through all the barriers when he ascended.  And he went further than any other creature.  Therefore him being our model and exemplar we must pattern him and strive to remove any form of impurities in our personality.  And Allah gives us the formula in Surah Kahf;

Whoever expects to His Lord, let him work righteousness.  (18:110)

 

Doing good is comprehensive and it applies in every aspect of our lives.  

 

One of the stations in spiritual growth in our meditation is to ascend.  Spiritual ascent is possible but it takes a lot of effort and dedication.  This is why Prophet (pboh) told his Companions “I have returned from the small Jihad (Jihad Asghar) to the big Jihad (Jihad Akbar)”.  The Sahabas enquired “what is the big Jihad?”  Prophet (pboh) said “the Jihad al nafs (inner desires).”

Control of desires, control your tongue and control your emotions.  If you can’t how do you expect to ascend.  The real jihad is to control your nafs.  And if you do you would have qualified yourself to return to and insha Allah meet with your Lord.

All the Messengers of God took great care in what they said and did.  They never acted outside of their mission.

Our mission in this life is to get back to Allah.  Therefore take care in all your doings.  Those who criticize spirituality say spirituality it’s a cult but they don’t know that it’s an effort to purify yourselves and make you conscious of your personality.

It takes time, effort, honesty, dedication and sincerity.  How is it possible for the ruh to ascend while the nafs is fighting to stay down?  We want to be able to pass through these barriers. 

The great Masheikh, Junaid Baghdadi, once asked Allah how can he attain closeness to Him?  Allah responded ‘leave your nafs and come’. 

This struggle won’t be easy and rest assured that Satan would try his best to divert you.  He will even attack you with good which we unfortunately see happening today.  May Allah protect us from Satan and whatever means he may use to divert our focus.

Our mission is to return to and insha Allah meet our Lord; and the journey begins from here.  Work to refine your personality so that your ascent to Allah would be easy and in the end successful.

Living for the sake of Allah

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

Allah says in Surah Mu'minuun;

 

Then those whose balance (of good deeds) is heavy, - they will attain salvation: but those, whose balance is light, will be those who have lost their souls, in Hell will they abide.  (23:102-103)

 

The scale that will be used on the Day of Judgement is a special one.  It’s not like our perception of a scale.  Yes, there are two sides; one side to weigh a person’s good deeds and the other for his bad deeds; but the difference according to the ayat above is that if a person has done a lot of good, that side of the scale will move downwards due to the weight.  On the other hand if a person’s evil deeds outweigh the good; that side of the scale will move upwards.  It will not sink.

 

Think of it like a bank account from which you keep withdrawing.  Every time you withdraw it becomes less.  This is the way Allah will weigh your deeds.  It is not like our knowledge of scales.

 

That being said, you don’t need anyone to supervise you in your thoughts and actions.  Allah has blessed us with knowledge and intuition to decipher right from wrong.  You’re the one who will know the true contents of your heart and always bear in mind that one day it will all come to light and placed on a scale.  We want our scale to be on the heavy end and not light as the ayat makes mention of. 

 

The key for true success in this life is that whatever you do always do it for the sake of Allah.  Understand that if you try to live for His sake He will take care of you and never let you down.  One day you will see the reward of this attitude.  It is not easy; but if you can sincerely live for Allah’s sake He will take care of your affairs.

 

Try not to get mixed up and involved with people who openly demonstrate ulterior motives.  Living for the sake of Allah is the key for everything in this world.

 

All of us do wrong at some point in time.  None of us are sinless, but remember, that if you live for the sake of Allah , insha Allah He will overlook your shortcomings.  I truly feel sorry that some people only choose to constantly highlight Allah’s wrath, and being flung in the Hell fire.  Your Lord is so Loving, Kind and Merciful.  He knows that we faulter from time to time and insha Allah He would forgive all of us.

 

Have hopes of your Lord’s Mercy and don’t be despondent.  Have faith in His workings and rest assured that if you sincerely live for His pleasure He will take care of all your affairs insha Allah.

Unconditional obedience

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

In the process of establishing the Israelites as the upholders of the true religion Allah gave them numerous blessings.  For example He sent down from the sky their sustenance.  Everything that they would have needed came from Allah.  So they didn’t have to labour for their wants. 

Even though they received so many blessings from Allah they found it difficult to worship Him at least once for the day.  Even when the Torah was revealed they complained to Moses (as).  They said its either they pray or read from the revealed Book; even though they didn’t have to do anything,

The same was in the case of Jesus (as).  He invited his people (the Israelites) to the way of Allah and they placed a condition of firstly receiving a table of food from the sky in return for their cooperation. 

Allah says about Prophet Muhammad (pboh);

‘Never think that the dua of the Prophet (pboh) is like that of an ordinary man’. 

If he made dua to Allah it would have been granted. 

Even then when the Quraish issued the boycott against the early Muslims they were forced, for more than a year, to live in a valley.  The conditions at that time were so severe that some of the believers ate stones in order to survive.  Even then they never made conditions with the Messenger of Allah (pboh).  And Prophet (pboh) never prayed to Allah for food to fall from the sky for him and his people.

Why?  He wanted to show and demonstrate that if Allah loves you He will take care of you.  Prophet (pboh) wanted to establish the understanding that we all belong to Allah and He can allow/disallow what He wants. 

Thus Prophet (pboh) and his blessed Companions never made conditions and their sacrifice is preserved for us to take pattern from.  And to go a step further the same obedience and reliance on Allah is seen in the fast that we are commanded to keep. 

Fasting is one of the Divine gifts from Allah to His servants.  Fasting helps to establish this unconditional obedience to our Creator.  We are denying our baser selves the material desires out of love for Allah.  And we all try to earn the maximum benefits associated with this great month so we abstain from vain talk and despicable attitude. 

The Israelites wanted to see Allah so Moses (as) took 72 of their priests’ up the mountain and Allah caused them to die and revived them and still they faith was not developed.  The Muslims on the other hand obeyed; once a command was sent down.  They never issued any pre-requisites in exchange for their obedience.

May Allah make this Ramadhan peaceful and tranquil for all the believers’.  May He make the trials easy and bearable for us and may He remove most of it in this most special month.  Let us benefit from it, and whatever you do, do it solely for the sake of Allah.