The expression of ascent

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

Brothers and sisters, as we welcome the auspicious occasion of the Mir’aj we acknowledge, from our point of view, that it is greatest thing that happened since Allah created the Universe and mankind.

In the beginning the Angels and the Jinns thought that it was such an impossibility for a lump of mud (man) to be a true representative of Allah on earth, and an undeserving host of the knowledge Allah was going to bestow upon them.

Only Allah has knowledge of all things and Allah demonstrated there and then, while the Angels and Jinns were having their reservations, why Adam (as) was special as he demonstrated knowledge that they did not have.

Knowledge is so important that Allah says in Surah Imran; There is no god but He: that is the witness of Allah, His angels, and those endued with knowledge, (3:18)

How can the knowledgeable ones bear witness to Allah’s oneness?  One way is to look at the creation.  If you understand anything of the working of nature you’ll see there are no flaws in it and it has to be someone of real great knowledge Who is able to bring into being these things out of nothing.  This is one way, but there is also another special way that is reserved for some human beings.  And that is mir’aj.  Every week when we recite the ayat;

Whoever expects to meet his Lord, let him work righteousness, and, in the worship of his Lord, he should ascribe no one as partner.  (18:110)

What does it mean to meet our Lord?  Allah says that He is close to us; that He moves in the chest of man.  What then is He alluding to?  Prophet Muhammad (pboh) met his Lord on the night of the mir’aj and he is a human being.  He had the physical self just like anyone of us, but he had a special dimension.  He was able to refine his personality in such a way that he did not have a problem to ascend and meet his Lord in the Lord’s presence.

For someone to ascend beyond all created things and go right up he is indeed really perfect.  We will be hearing a lot of lectures about the mir’aj over the course of this weekend, but one thing I want to leave with you because of the spiritual environment we encourage on a weekly basis.

It is possible for you, here in this world to ascend beyond the skies and heavens.  You have not yet reached that stage of spiritual realisation but when you have that spiritual experience you will see how beautiful a thing like mir’aj is and how possible it is in a different environment.

Keep striving because it is not easy.  When Prophet Muhammad (pboh) was taken up; if he had any blemishes against his personality Allah had forgiven him.  You cannot meet your Lord with clouds around your heart.  But it will be possible for the believers in the hereafter after they’ve been forgiven.

It is recorded in that Prophet Muhammad (pboh) said: “When the people of Paradise enter in Paradise it will be asked of them, ‘Do you need something more’?  They will say ‘have you not whitened our faces? Have you not entered us in Paradise and protected us from Hell’?  Then Allah will remove the veil.  Looking to their Lord will be more lovely to them than anything else given to them.  And then Prophet (pboh) recited this verse: For those who have done good is the best (reward, i.e. Paradise) and even more (i.e. having the honour of glancing at the Countenance of Allah.  (10:26)

For a few it is possible here in this world.  For those who strive hard and their efforts are accepted by their Lord, He will allow them to ascend nearer to Him.

Do you think Satan will want you to achieve this?  Of course not, he will want to pull you down.  So you have to guard yourself against him.  Mir’aj is the expression of ascent.  Those who try to get close to their Lord know truly what mir’aj is.  One masheikh once said “I saw my Lord in my dream”.

As we have assembled here on this special night on try your best to experience your mir’aj in this life and let Allah take care of the rest.

Insha Alla you will be hearing more about the mir’aj over the course of this weekend and I invite those who can make it to attend the following lectures:

·     Lecture:                  The Ascension of Prophet Muhammad (pboh)

·     Delivered by:         Maulana Dr. Waffie Mohammed
·     Dates & Venues:    Friday 7^th June at the Princes Town asja Masjid
                                    Saturday 8^th June at the Marabella asja Masjid
                                    Sunday 9^th June at the Tacarigua asja Masjid
                                    (All lectures will commense after Salat Magrib)

 

Transcript of discourse delivered by

Maulana Dr. Waffie Mohammed

 

 

 

 

 

 

Staying united

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

 

If a limb is cut off from your body it will decay; except if saved and treated, etc.  This is an important eye opener for us because Islam teaches us one brotherhood.  Allah says;

And verily this brotherhood of yours is a single brotherhood, and I am your Lord and Cherisher: Therefore fear Me (and no other).  (23:52)

Islam came to remove the tribalism, racism and all other segregated mentalities.  There is no question of ‘I am better than you’ as was shown by Satan in the Garden.

Prophet Muhammad (pboh) has informed us of the consequences of trying to be superior or segregate ourselves from others.  For example he says that if there is a flock of sheep and a wolf is to attack them, he won’t go in the middle of the flock, he will take one that is on the outskirt or the one’s that separated from the flock.

These are eye openers to the message that Allah give us in the Holy Qur’an;

And hold fast, all together, by the rope which Allah (stretches out for you), and be not divided among yourselves.  (3:103)

Islam gives us the recipe, the prescription, the philosophy and the consequences of on one hand staying united and on the other hand the danger of separating.  A lot of people, because of their ego or because of their desire to do good, separate because they are not allowed to contribute, something of their talent to help others.  And later on that separation may grow into a separate entity.  We need to be mindful of at all times the we are  to stay united.

For example when Prophet Muhammad (pboh) and his Companions were constructing the mosque in Madinah, each Companion took one brick at a time.  One Companion took with him two bricks at a time and Prophet (pboh) reprehended him.

We have to be careful at all times.  Our intentions may be good but we must always ask the question: are we causing disunity by doing this or that?

Allah has given us institutions to unite the ummah such as salaat.  When the time for salaat comes we all join in.  That is an indication that we are a united people and an eye opener of what we can really achieve if we work like a unit.

Whenever we are going to do something ask yourself whether you are doing it for the sole sake of Allah and for the love of His Rasool (pboh).  And always try to bring together your Muslim brothers and sisters.  We will have personal difference as no two humans are alike, but these must not lead us to segregating ourselves or excluding others.  Whenever we are working as a group always remember what Allah says and be not divided among yourselves.

One way of staying united is the collective engagement in zikrullah.  This is common to all; remembering Allah and praising Him.

We all have to make a conscious effort to foster and maintain unity.  Don’t allow the ego to prevent you from achieving this.  And whatever little you may do on your own try your best not to create disunity. 

With love, compassion, wisdom and understanding; let us make an effort not to contribute to the division of the ummah.  It takes a real effort but we insha Allah we can all contribute to it.  Always be mindful of the bond that Allah wants us to create.

May Allah enable us to strive for unification in the ummah and may He allow us to always work together.


Transcript of discourse delivered by
Maulana Dr. Waffie Mohammed

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


 

Good and evil never mix

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

Allah tells us in Surah Muzzammil; And whatever good ye send forth for your souls ye shall find it in Allah’s Presence, - yea, better and greater, in reward and seek ye the Grace of Allah for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.  (73:20)

Good goes to Allah and evil goes down into a dungeon.  Allah says in Surah Infitaar; As for the righteous, they will be In Bliss; and the wicked - they will be in the fire.  (82:13-14)

What we need to understand is that good goes up to Allah and evil goes downwards.  Good and evil do not mix.  They are not even recorded in the same place.  As I’ve said in the past good is recorded in the skies and evil is recorded in a dungeon.

Allah has given us examples in the Holy Qur’an about the end of those who lived a life of wrong and those who lived a life of good.  I would like to reference just two examples.

Firstly, the story of Qarun.  Qarun was a person who lives at the time of Moses (as).  Once he overheard when Angel Jibril explaining to Moses (as) the process for making gold.  So in his past time he used to make gold.  And he became so wealthy that the keys for his treasures were a burden for men.  Allah records this in Surah Qashash;

Qarun was doubtless, of the people of Moses; but he acted insolently towards them: such were the treasures we had bestowed on Him that their very keys would have been a burden to a body of strong men.  (28:76)

When Moses told Qarun to pay his zakaat he schemed up a plan to accuse Moses of adultery in an effort to get rid of him.  And what was his end?

Then We caused the earth to swallow up him and his house; and he had not (the least little) party to help him against Allah, nor could he defend himself.  (28:81)

Allah caused the earth to swallow him along with his wealth.  Evil goes down into the earth!

Next reference; Prophet Jesus (as).  Jesus (as) was a righteous man.  He was brought into this world in an extra ordinary way.  He never depended on anyone for anything.  Jesus (as) lived in the hills and came down to preach to the people.  Allah records of him in the Qur’an;

And Zakariya and John, and Jesus and Elias: all in the ranks of the righteous:  (6:85)

He never wanted anything from him yet they want to kill him.  What did Allah do?  Allah took him up in the skies and he is still there.

Allah raised him up unto Himself; and Allah is Exalted in power, Wise.  (4:158)

What is the importance of telling you this?  It is to show you the ends of those who did evil and those who did good.  Allah is Dhil-maarij.  Dhil-maarij literally means He is the Owner of the ascending stairways.

Our mission is to ascend and get closer to our Lord.  And those who do will get a greater reward.  On that Day they will have the fastest transport to reach their Lord.  Build your transport here.  The time is now and the preparation is now.

There is nothing wrong in striving for betterment in the world, but don’t make it your Lord and get arrogant of what you’ve achieved.

Understand what Allah has for you, you will get it.  Rumi wrote day and night there is movement of foam on the Sea.  You see the foam, but not the Sea. Amazing!  What he’s alluding to is to drown yourself in your Lord and not in the world.  Be careful of what you are fighting for.  We all have to leave one day.  What are you sending before you and where is it being kept?  Remember what you send in the dungeon won’t help you.  It’ll only lead you in the fire.  What you send upwards is safe and insha Allah the more you send the further and further away you will be from the abyss.

May Allah bless us and guide us and enable us to send plentiful upwards to Him for safekeeping insha Allah.

Transcript of discourse delivered by

Maulana Dr. Waffie Mohammed

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

Refining your intention

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

If you go to a market you will see a lot of people and each one of them will concerned with his or her own business.  Each of them would have gone with a purpose that concerns their own affairs.  Like this is the human family.  We were all created by Allah and are placed on this earth for a purpose.  And that is to represent Allah and prepare ourselves to return to, and Him.

Throughout the history of man you will see tribes and nations that deviated.  And when they deviated, Allah sent Messengers to remind them and bring them back.  Bring them back to what?  This is what we need to understand.  To bring them back to the common thread that binds all human beings together.  This common thread has one important strand and that is to believe that Allah is the Creator of the Universe.

The Messengers came to remind the people of this and in spite of their efforts the people remained divided and disunited; each looking after his own material affairs and not thinking of the return to the Lord.  Islam came to remove that kind of thinking and Allah testifies to this is Surah Imran;

and ye were on the brink of the pit of fire, and He saved you from it.  (3:103)

Muslims are supposed to have one common denominator and that is La Ilaha Illallah; this unites all believers together.  There are, however unfortunately some who attest to this but their hearts have not yet joined that human family.  For example in our zikir sessions we are joined by one motive and one intention that makes us all part of this family.  But in society even amongst the believers you don’t have that common purpose and focus.

The reason is because Satan is able to get into the chest of us and is able to effectively whisper in a few to get them to have some sort of selfish motive.  And in spite of the fact that they are believers and they harbour love of the religion of Islam, some of them may have ulterior motives.

A perfect example is the story of Adam (as) and Satan in the Garden of Eden.  Satan, Adam (as), the Angels, the Jinns all lived together in the Garden. There Satan posed to be a good and trusted friend of Adam and look what he did.  He harboured an ulterior motive although he was in the Garden.

This is what Islam came to guard us against.  Be careful with your intention.  Some people profess to be Muslims and in so doing are supposed to submit in totality to Allah and His Rasool (pboh), but they have their own agendas.  Perhaps this is why today we have such turmoil in the Muslim world; because we are not living for the sake of Allah.

We have to try our best to live for the sake of Allah.  Sometimes we may think ‘if I do something like this I can get personal benefit’.  It’s a natural thinking but in so doing we are sacrificing some of the blessings Allah can shower upon us.  Then I am not truly living for the sake of Allah.  This is a little lower category than a truly righteous believer about whom Prophet Muhammad (pboh) said ‘a Muslim in the Hands of Allah is like a dead in the hands of those who wash him’.

True faith is to live for the sake of Allah and understand that whatever is happening to you is coming with Allah’s Permission and Knowledge and He knows why He is doing it.  That is why we recite in our duas;

‘We hear, and we obey: (We seek) Thy forgiveness, Our Lord, and to Thee is the end of all journeys’.  (2:285)

This is applicable to us all, none of us are perfect.  We will at times think of ourselves, however let us all try to grow our Iman and try to think about Allah and His Rasool (pboh) and hope for the best from our Lord.

Moses (as) prayed to Allah: “Our Lord! Thou hast indeed bestowed on Pharaoh and His Chiefs splendour and wealth in the life of the present, and so, Our Lord, they mislead (men) from Thy path. Deface, Our Lord, the features of their wealth, and send hardness to their hearts, so they will not believe until they see the grievous penalty”.

On the other hand Allah says of Prophet Muhammad (pboh)

Thou wouldst only, perchance, fret thyself to death, after them, in grief, if they believe not in this Message.  (18:6)

He was so loving and compassionate that he felt sorrow for the nonbelievers who didn’t listen and were using their God giving gifts to destroy themselves and others.

Let us try to do our little bit for ourselves and for others and let Allah take care of the rest.  This earth belongs to Him, not us.  We can do a little and if you do He will take care of you and whatever you are doing. 

Try to make your intentions more and more refined because we are all humans and it is very possible to get carried away and tempted at times.  However when times like these occur hasten to ask your Lord for forgiveness and turn back to Him in the hope for His blessings and forgiveness.  May Allah always bless us and take care of our affairs.


Transcript of discourse delivered by
Maulana Dr. Waffie Mohammed

The video presentation of this discourse can be accessed at

http://www.youtube.com/markazalihsaan 

 

The Divine Countenance

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

Allah says in the Ayatul Kursi; His Throne doth extend over the heavens and the earth; (2:255)

If Allah’s Throne is outside our realm of understanding it also means that His Divine Personality is incomprehensible.  We cannot really figure out or conceive how vast Allah is.

Our mission in life is to try and realise we are always in front of our Lord and He is facing us He is knowledgeable of our thoughts and actions.  Take for example; He says in Surah Baqarah;

To Allah belong the East and the West: Whithersoever ye turn, there is the presence of Allah.  For Allah is all-Pervading, All-Knowing.  (2:115)

Allah, at all time, has His attention on us, therefore we should be conscious that we are in His Divine presence.

What we want in life is to realise that we are standing and facing our Lord and He is facing us; and He is pleased with us as well.  We need to strive to be conscious of this.  To this effect Allah says;

And keep yourself (O Muhammad) patiently with those who call on their Lord in the morning and afternoon, seeking His Face.  (18:28)

The mission is life is not to get as much of the world as you can.  The true success in life is to get the attention of our Lord.  Everything is in His knowledge; He is seeing everything; He is assisting, sustaining, etc. 

But He also says if you remember me I will remember you.  We can assume that it also means ‘if you don’t remember me I won’t have time for you’.  He will allow out of His mercy, those who are disobedient, to go on just as He granted Satan respite.  However the wise creature will try to get His Attention by aspiring to know that they are always in the presence of their Lord.

We want Allah to look at us, to be pleased with us and to love us.  If we are ungrateful and disobedient do you think He would want to look at you? 

At this point one may ask “why do we need to attach ourselves to the Divine Countenance of our Lord?”  Everything is existing in His Divine Knowledge.  But why get close to His Countenance?  He gives us the answer in Surah Qashash;

Everything (that exists) will perish except His Own Face.  (28:88)

If everything in the heaven and earth will be destroyed except His Own Face do you think if you are attach to Him you will be destroyed?  We want to be saved and live on, therefore try to get close to the Divine Countenance of our Lord.  And how do we achieve this?  Allah gives us the answer in Surah Ar Ruum;

So give what is due to kindred, the needy, and the wayfarer.  That is best for those who seek the Countenance, of Allah, and it is they who will prosper.  (30:38)

If you want to be in the presence of the Divine and have Him look at you and consequently take care of you; one way is to be generous to what Allah has given you.

The true believer will give in the way of Allah; without thanks or fame.  They give for the pleasure of Allah with the intention that Allah would be pleased with them as they carry on in His Presence.  And in so doing their personalities would get brighter and brighter.

This isn’t achieved overnight.  You have to work hard for it.  And you have to also preserve with patience because one mistake can be like a black cloud that comes and blocks out the light of the sun.  We don’t want to soil the brightness we are striving to attain, thus we must constantly preserve with patience.  And rest assured that Satan would try to divert you from your mission.

Aspire to get close to the Divine Countenance of your Lord.  We are taught the way of getting close because when we stand for salaat the first thing we say is 'Inni Wajjahtu Wajhiya Lilladhī Faţara As-Samāwāti Wa Al-'Arđa Ĥanīfāan Wa Mā 'Anā Mina Al-Mushrikeen - For me, I have set my face, firmly and truly, towards Him Who created the heavens and the earth, and never shall I give partners to Allah.

We are not supposed to give attention to anything else but Allah at that moment.  And we speak to Him and glorify Him and beg of Him.  That is realisation which we aspire night and day to experience.  Some may experience it in this world like Prophet Muhammad (pboh) did on the night of the Mir’aj.  He ascended in the Divine presence of the Lord.  And Prophet Muhammad (pboh) is reported to have said ‘salaat is the mir’aj of the believer’. 

Our mission in life is to aspire with our health, our wealth, our knowledge, with our everything to try to get close to your Lord and to feel yourself in His Divine Presence and He is looking on at you with Love and Compassion.  If this is achieved you would have succeeded in life.

We beg Allah to help us and guide us to control our nafs so it’ll help us to realise we are in the presence of our Lord and to subsequently engage in those actions and thoughts that would lead to Him being well pleased with us insha Allah.

 

Transcript of discourse delivered by

Maulana Dr. Waffie Mohammed

Audio File: The Divine Countenance.mp3

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

Click to listen/download Maulana Dr. Waffie Mohammed's discourse
The Divine Countenance.mp3


Proper use of Allah's Blessings

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

One of the blessings of praying to the Merciful Lord to “guide us on the Straight Path” is that we should utilize our material blessings and assets to be of benefit to us in this life as well as in the next. 

How many people waste their lives and the precious material gifts that the Merciful Lord bestowed on them? Many of them became pauper after having much, and they then realized that they wasted their time and resources in things that did not stay with them forever. They then had to continue the journey of life with very little, or in some case with nothing.

Sometimes the thought may come to the minds of the believers and that is,  why is it that Allah is bestowing so much of material things on the “rejecters of His Oneness? Many of them do not only misuse their wealth, but they also cause harm, hardship and suffering to believers who may not agree with what they are doing.

Such a thought once crossed the mind of Prophet Moses when he saw how Pharaoh was using his God-given gifts to torture and torment the Children of Israel. When Moses saw what Pharaoh was doing he prayed to Allah as follows:

Our Lord! You have indeed bestowed of Pharaoh and his chiefs splendor and wealth in the life of this world; that they may lead men astray from Your Path. Our Lord, destroy their wealth, and harden their hearts, so that they will not believe until they see the painful doom……………Allah said: verily the invocation of you both is accepted. So you both keep to the Straight Way, and do not follow the path of those who do not know. (Qur’an:10:88-89)

Prophet Muhammad (pboh) used to feel sorry for those who wasted their wealth, talent and life by staying busy with only the material life, not realizing that one day they will have to die and leave all these things behind them. So sad and depressed he used to be when he saw how these people were wasting their lives that Allah had to console him. This is recorded in the Holy Qur’an in the following verse:

Perhaps you will kill yourself (O Muhammad) with grief, over their footsteps (because they do not accept the message), as they do not believe in this narration, i.e. the Holy Qur’an. (18:6)

Prophet Muhammad (pboh) knew that, out of ignorance, the non-believers are spending all their time trying to acquire as much as they can the wealth of this world and then they will be called back by the Lord and they will die and leave everything behind them. And some of their inheritors may even abuse what they got.

Muslims are taught to manage their precious time and resources properly, so that these things can benefit them while they are alive in this world, and will also benefit on the onward journey and in the next life.

Islam teaches us how to do so.

 

A Bright Bulb

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

It is the custom of a lot of people that when they are decorating a home they usually put up a lot of bright bulbs.  If the bulbs of those lights aren’t bright and shinning it will not serve its purpose.

Every human being is like a bulb.  And the mission of life is to keep that bulb bright and shinning, so that it will be part of the decoration of the Garden on the Day of Resurrection.  In that Garden the perquisite of being there is to have a bright and shinning personality.  In this connection Allah tells us in the Qur’an;

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)

There are two ways of keeping our bulbs bright and shinning.  One is to do good.  When we do good we add to the brightness of the bulb.  Another way is to wipe out the dust and smut that prevents our blub from shinning brightly.  The way of doing this is to constantly ask for forgiveness for your Lord.

A lot of people don’t keep this in mind at all.  When you reach a point in life concentrate on two things that Allah makes mention of in Surah Nashr;

Celebrate the praises of Thy Lord, and pray for His forgiveness: (110:3)

Keep your light bright and shinning by glorifying Allah, by seeking forgiveness for your shortcomings, by doing good to others and by connecting your lamp to the source of the light; i.e. Prophet Muhammad (pboh) because he is Sirajum Munirah – the lamp that gives light.

Our aspiration is to get into the Garden and the beginning of entry into the Garden is when you will rise with brightening countenances.

In this earth there are limitations.  For example Prophet Muhammad (pboh) could not have seen the true personality of Jibreal in this world.  It was only when he was outside the dimension of space and time he saw his true personality.  So we cannot understand what are the implication and the beauty of having a bright light.  It is only when we are resurrected we can understand fully.

Pray to Allah to perfect your light and try your best to avoid those things that soil your light or your soul.  The soul is the source of our light and we must never forget that our nafs is impacting upon it.

Our personality comprises of both the body and soul so we need to take care of both.  Because man cannot see the soul much attention isn’t given to it.  We must understand that the soul is the source of our light and we must polish it in order for it to shine brightly.

May Allah forgive us all and bless us with the ability and understanding to remove the spots we would have put on our light and polish it at the same time.

The Rehearsal

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

Brother and sisters, firstly I would like to wish all our brothers and sisters, and in particular those from the Markaz al Ihsaan, who will be performing the Umrah in the next coming weeks, insha Allah.  They have been invited by Allah to His Holy House and we beg Allah to give them all a safe journey to and from and let it be rewarding, insha Allah.

Visiting the Holy House and the blessed city of Madinah is enjoined on all believers who can afford it; and the benefits and blessings that are derived from it are many.  Insha Allah I wish to highlight a few good reasons why Muslims must avail themselves of this opportunity as it will definitely help them in this life and the next.

Firstly, we all understand that we are not here forever and we all have a fixed life span.  We will have to leave everything we’ve accumulated behind.  Leaving and going to the Holy Land therefore is like a practice session in a way; because one day we will have to leave and begin the journey back to our Lord.  And it’s reflected in the Talbiyah that is recited;

“Here I come at Thy service O Lord, here I come.  Here I come at Thy service and Thou hast no partners.  Thine alone is All Praise and All Bounty, and Thine alone is The Sovereignty. Thou hast no partners”.

This is a good practice that believes inculcate to remind themselves that one day we have to leave everything and go back to our Lord and stand before Him.  And look at the humble manner in which we are commanded to observe the Hajj/Umrah.   You adorn yourself in simple humble clothing.  And at that point in time you can’t think of material things.  All you’re preoccupied with it glorifying and begging the Merciful Lord.  It is a rehearsal for what will happen on that inevitable Day.

Secondly, we all love our family, our friends and that which Allah has blessed us with.  When we go to the Holy Land we get the discipline that none of these things really matter as it cannot help you; it is only you and your Lord.  Your family and assets cannot help with being bombarded with the millions of people.  It is actually you and your Lord.  This too is a rehearsal for the Day of Accountability as Allah says in Surah Abasa;

That Day shall a man flee from his own brother, and from his mother and his father, and from his wife and his children.  Each one of them, that Day, will have enough concern (of his own) to make him indifferent to the others.  (80:34-37)

Those who visit Allah’s sacred House; they will get the experience and blessings of that kind of feeling and the good that goes along with it.  In Makkah especially it’s a question of survival.  Everything is so fast paced and everyone is always on the go.  In contrast Madinah is so different.  It reflects the verse from Surah Yaseen that we recite so often;

"Peace!" - A word (of salutation) from a Lord Most Merciful!  (36:58)

If Allah has created in paradise in peace and tranquillity and Prophet Muhammad (pboh) is reported to have said “between my house and the pulpit there is a garden of the gardens of Paradise” can you imagine the feeling you will get?  Firstly you will get the feeling of amazement; ‘look where I am’.  I am blessed to stand in the same city that my Prophet (pboh) lived in.  It’s quite different from Makkah.

Anyone who has the means and can find the time to make this sacred journey it is highly recommended to go and experience these things.  Go with the right intention.  Nothing can be compared to being able to stand in the Holy House and glorify Him and praise our Loving Lord.  And Allah is so merciful that anyone who worships there the blessings are multiplied many times over.

So today, we wish all our brothers and sisters, who are indeed blessed to go, all best and request that they especially offer salaams to the best of all creations (pboh) on our behalf and remember us in their duas.

We beg Allah to enable all believers to visit His Holy House and the mosque of His Beloved (pboh).  May He bless and enable us to successfully meet Him on that Promised Day and may the meeting be special, blessed and highly rewarding insha Allah.


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

Submitting to Allah in all conditions

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ

Last week we spoke of the importance of cultivating faith in our hearts.  We remind ourselves of what 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)

 

If you have true faith in your heart it will manifest throughout your entire personality and when that happens, you will submit to Allah willingly.  There are some who profess to have faith but as Allah says ‘in their hearts is a disease; and Allah has increased their disease’ (2:10); meaning that they don’t really have faith.  And Allah expounds about such people in the very beginning of Surah Baqarah;

 

Of the people there are some who say: "We believe In Allah and the Last Day;" but they do not (really) believe.  (2:8)

 

In reality they are professing to be something they are really not.  There is something else in their hearts.  We need to culture our hearts to ensure that faith enters and remains there, because the heart is the centre or nucleus of the personality.  And if the heart has true faith it will manifest itself throughout the entire personality.

 

Understand that we, on one hand, want our entire personality to meet the expression made by Hazrat Abraham (as): Truly, my prayer and my service of sacrifice, my life and my death, are (all) for Allah, the Cherisher of the Worlds:  He understood so well the importance of his complete personality being in total submission to Allah.  And that is what we should all strive for.

 

If we want to get close to our Lord we need to aspire for it.  We cannot put anything between us and Him.  If we love the world more it will ultimately come between us.  The true believer, in all conditions, learns to submit to Allah no matter what the circumstance may be.  We are living for His sake and He will not let us down.  He will give us all sorts of trials and always remember that the higher you go the more the trials you will get.  Prophet Muhammad (pboh) is reported to have said “when Allah loves a servant, He tests him” (Tirmidh)

 

Look how He tried His Beloved (pboh).  He was an orphan born  in the most aristocratic family but they were so humble.  His mother could not even afford a wet nurse.  And look at how he was able to draw all the people close to him.  He never forced them.  On one hand they knew if they were associated with him they would get blessings from Allah and on the other they knew they will learn to culture and cultivate their personalities.

 

The test of faith of the believers is the trials from Allah.  When the trials come will you run to someone else other than Allah?  When everything is good and peaceful your faith isn’t truly tested.  As Allah says in Surah Hajj;

 

There are among men some who serve Allah, as it were, on the verge: if good befalls them, they are, therewith, well content; but if a trial comes to them, they turn on their faces: they lose both this world and the Hereafter: that is loss for all to see!  (22:11)

 

Some people sit on the fence.  When everything is nice and rosy there aren’t any complaints; but when they are afflicted with some hardship they lose faith and trust in Allah.  This is what we have to be careful about.  Any of us can display levels if hypocrisy at anytime if we give something priority over Allah.

 

Everyday Hazrat Umar (ra) would visit a Companion who Prophet Muhammad (pboh) made a special dua for.  This particular companion thereafter possessed the ability of identifying a hypocrite.  So gifted was he that whenever there was a Janaza of a hypocrite he would not attend and this led Hazrat Umar (ra) to scan the crowd to see if this particular Companion was present.  If he was not present Umar (ra) would refrain from leading the Janaza because he knew the deceased was a hypocrite.  And Everyday Umar (ra) would visit this blessed companion and ask “am I a hypocrite?”

 

It is quite easy to fall into complacency.  For example when salaat time enters and we don’t pray our salaat because of some worldly preoccupation; what happens?  These are the things what we need to be careful about.

 

A true believer is a humble person because on one hand they know their Lord is close to them and on the other they know they can make mistakes at anytime.  Your heart is like the pearl inside an oyster.  Try your best to keep it bright and shinning.

 

Ask you Lord for forgiveness for the wrong we would have all committed.  Yes we make mistakes but if our intention is Allah He will help us.  Strengthen your heart through His remembrance and through this insha Allah, Satan will not get the better of you.

 

We all have one life to live and everyday that passes is a day gone.  May Allah always protect us, guide us and bless us insha Allah.

 

 

The video presentation of this discourse can be accessed at

http://www.youtube.com/markazalihsaan

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