An in-Depth Study of the Spiritual Practices of the Best Generations (Behind the Scenes)

Qabeelat Haadi Student Notes September 2012

Behind the Scenes Shaykh Omar Suleiman

Table of Contents Unit 1: A Journey Of Introspection: The Path to Purification Chapter 1: Understanding Your Role 1.1.1 What is Tazkiyah? 1.1.2 What is Fitnah? 1.1.3 What is Ikhlāṣ? 1.1.4 What is Tarbiyah? Chapter 2: Understanding Your Enemy 1.2.1 The Enemy Within: The Nafs 1.2.2 al-Shayṭān Chapter 3: Understanding Change 1.3.1 Can I change? 1.3.2 Guidance is from Allāh 1.3.3 Excuses for Not Correcting Oneself 1.3.4 The How’s and When’s of Change Chapter 4: Understanding Yourself 1.4.1 Your Ḥāl vs. Your Maqām 1.4.2 How far away are you? 1.4.3 The Three Types of Nufūs 1.4.4 Baṣar vs. Baṣīrah 1.4.5 The Himmah Never Dies Chapter 5: Experiencing Change 1.5.1 A Deep Look at the Tazkiyah of ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab 1.5.2 The Concept of True Ladhdhah (Pleasure) 1.5.3 Faqīh’l-Nafs

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Unit 2: Making the Change Chapter 1: Knowledge 2.1.1 The Importance of Seeking Knowledge 2.1.2 The Intention behind Seeking Knowledge 2.1.3 The Effort of Seeking Knowledge 2.1.5 The Pursuit that Never Ends: What is the greatest difficulty of knowledge? Chapter 2: Minding Your Own Business 2.2.1 For your own good 2.2.2 For the good of your brother 2.2.3 Giving the benefit of the doubt Chapter 3: Treating Destructive Flaws 2.3.1 Curing Bad Character 2.3.2 Backbiting / al-Ghībah 2.3.4 Lying / al-Kadhib

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2.3.6 Two-Faced Speech 2.3.7 Revealing Secrets 2.3.8 Breaking Promises 2.3.9 Impermissible Joking 2.3.10 Miscellaneous 2.3.11 Pride / al-Kibr 2.3.12 Love of Prestige/ Ḥubb’l-Jāh wa riyaasa 2.3.13 Showing off / al-Riyā’ 2.3.14 Self-Deceit / al-Ghurūr 2.3.15 Envy / al-Ḥasad 2.3.17 Learning Forbearance 2.3.18 Greed and Miserliness 2.3.19 Curbing the Desire for Food and Sex (shahwul batan wal fahsh) 2.3.20 The Wandering Gaze (ghaddul Basar) 2.3.21 Breaking the Habit of Sin Chapter 4: Istiqāmah 2.4.1 The Hardest Task 2.4.2 The Most Praiseworthy Task 2.4.3 Consistency 2.4.4 Discipline in ALL Areas Chapter 5: Moderation: Don’t Go to Extremes (Ifrāṭ and Tafrīṭ) 2.5.1 Balance 2.5.2 What is True Zuhd (Asceticism)? Chapter 6: Get Your Wird On 2.6.1 The Purpose of the Pillars 2.6.2 Understand your complexity! 2.6.3 Act with a Sense of Purpose 2.6.4 The P90x (insanity workout) Wird 2.6.5 The superstar: Abu Bakr (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) Chapter 7: The Daily Wird 2.7.1 A Share of Contemplation & Remembrance 2.7.2 A Share of Meaningful Obligatory Prayers 2.7.3 A Share of Voluntary Prayers 2.7.4 A Share of Qiyām 2.7.5 A Share of Recitation and Memorization of the Qur’ān 2.7.6 A share of charity 2.7.7 How much can I accomplish in a day? Chapter 8: The Weekly Wird 2.8.1 Components of a Fruitful Jum‘uah Experience 2.8.2 Surat’l-Kahf 2.8.3 Fasting Mondays and Thursdays Chapter 9: The Monthly Wird 2.9.1 Fasting “the white days”

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58 58 59 60 62 64 67 69 73 76 86 87 91 94 101 103 104 105 105 106 106 106 107 108 108 109 109 110 110 111 111 115 120 121 122 122 123 124 124 125 125 126 126



2.9.2 Recognize what month you are in! 2.9.3 How much Qur’ān should I have finished? Chapter 10: The Yearly Wird 2.10.1 Ramaḍān 2.10.2 The 6 days of Shawwāl 2.10.3 The fasting of ‘Arafāt, ‘Āshūrā’ 2.10.4 Zakāh 2.10.5 The first 10 days of Dhu’l-Ḥijjah Chapter 11: Once In A Lifetime (Ḥajj) 2.11.1 Before You Go 2.11.2 Inner Meanings of the Manāsik 2.11.3 Qualities of the Hajji Final Note: Overwhelmed?

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Unit 1: A Journey Of Introspection: The Path to Purification Imam al-Ghazali wrote Ihya’ ulum al-din. Imam Ibn al-Jawzi summarized it first and it was called Minhaj-ul-Qasideen. The text we are using for this class is Mukhtasir Minhaj-ul Qasideen by Imam Ibn Qudamah al- Maqdisi that is essentially a summary of the summary (more than 400 pages). The English translation of this book is not recommended, however. In this class we will first discuss the process of change, define tazkiya, tarbiyah and ikhlas and see how they relate to the soul. Next, we will discuss the process of seeking knowledge and how knowledge can be used to tame the soul. We will also discuss the destructive flaws that a person may have and ways to cure them. Finally, we will discuss how to establish our wird (regimen, routine) in accordance to the Qurʾān and Sunnah.

Chapter 1: Understanding Your Role 1.1.1 What is Tazkiyah? Tazkiyah (ling.)-purification. It is similar to zakah, which has two meanings purification and increase. Hence, why Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, "Verily, wealth does not decrease because of charity." The ulema agree that zakah really means growth as a result of purification. The natural effect of the soul is that we are supposed to grow closer to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). We are supposed to incline towards Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) that is how we were created (our fitrah). First question you should ask yourself if you are not getting close to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) is, “What is between me and Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla)? What is preventing my heart from benefiting from the Qurʾān? What is preventing my soul from drawing close to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla)? Ask yourself, what is preventing me from having a soul that is at peace?” Once you get rid of these things, you naturally find yourself a better person. Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, Abu Hurayrah (radi Allāhu anhu) reported that the Messenger of Allāh (sal Allāhu alaihi wa sallam) said, “Everyone of my Ummah will enter Jannah except those who refuse”. He was asked: “Who will refuse?” He (sal Allāhu alaihi wa sallam) said, “Whoever obeys me, shall enter Jannah, and whosoever disobeys me, has refused (to enter Jannah)”. It is only natural that we return home, where we came from (Jannah). Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) did not make it a secret, he gave us a direct practical path on how to attain Jannah. So

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long as we clear the toxins and poisons from our live, we naturally incline towards Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) because of our fitrah. "Will they not then ponder the Qur'an or are there locks upon their hearts?" [Muhammad, 47:24] We naturally benefit from the Qurʾān. Notice that Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) is not saying we don’t pray enough or read enough Qurʾān, but is rather pointing out the state of the Qurʾān. Tazkiya is natural growth as a result of purification. Who is responsible for purifying the soul? It is your job. And [by] the soul and He who proportioned it And inspired it [with discernment of] its wickedness and its righteousness, He has succeeded who purifies it, And he has failed who instills it [with corruption].

(Surah as Shams 91:7-10) Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) swears by many different things, by the immovable, by the alternation of night and day, by the heavens, and by the earth in the Qurʾān. Imam Ibn Qayyim Rahimullah comments that Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) swears either because he is not being believed or to emphasize the severity of something. In Surah As-Shams Allāh swears more than any other place in the Qurʾān just to get to one highlight, these verses above. He has put the burden of tazkiya on us. But at the same time, we turn to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) to help us in this purification. Allāh also says in Sūrat’l-A‘la: “He has succeeded who has purified Himself.” Allāh is swearing that the person who purifies himself is successful. The effort comes from the person. It’s important to not misunderstand verse 8. Allāh did not make us evil, but rather gave us the conscious to distinguish between good and evil. Allāh also mentions that the one who does not achieve tazkiya will be a failure, as a result of his/her heedlessness and disobedience. When the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was asleep, even then his heart was awake. But we are different. Every single night when we are sleep, our nafs, our soul leaves our body. But even when you are sleeping you can be engaged in purification by supplicating to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla).

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Dua for sleeping: Oh Allāh, I lay in submission to you. Oh Allāh, if you hold my soul with you, forgive it and show mercy to it and if you decide to send it back to me, then protect it the way you protect your righteous servants.

Asking Allaah for Taqwa and Purification of the Soul Allāhumma, ‘aati nafsee taqwaaha, wa zakkihaa Anta khairu man zakkaahaa, Anta Waliyyuhaa wa Maulaaha Translation: O Allāh, grant my soul taqwa and purify it, You are the Best of those who purify it, You are its Protecting Friend and Guardian/Master. What is the goal of tazkiyatun nafs? The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) answered that it is the servant knowing his Lord is watching him wherever he may be. This is very similar to ihsan, and hence the minimum goal of tazkiya to gain taqwa. In essence the greater level of taqwa is to reach al ihsan. Ihsan is when you are worshipping Allāh as if you can see him. Abu Hurayrah, radhiAllaahu 'anhu, was asked about taqwa. He said, "It is a road full of thorns. One who walks it needs to have extreme patience." On such a road, you naturally hold/restrain yourself to make sure none of the thorns prick you. If a thorn does happen to prick you, however, you don’t just continue the same path. You put yourself back in your place. You are aware that Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) is watching you and with you wherever you are. It is the greatest state of taqwa a person can have. In the ḥadīth of Jibrīl, when Jibrīl said to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), “Tell me about iḥsān.” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “To worship Allāh as if you can see Him and if you cannot see Him then know that He sees you.” The goal of tazkiya is ihsan. We will not get to it all in one weekend, but in essence goal of that is ihsan; when we worship Allāh as if we can see him. Once you worship Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) as if you see him, you realize your full potential. Allāh says, “Or (lest) he should say when he sees the torment, ‘If only I had another chance (to return to the world) then I should indeed be among al-muhsineen (the good-doers).” 39:59 Can we purify ourselves by ourselves, however? No. Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) gives us a form of purification-fitnah.

1.1.2 What is Fitnah? Fitnah is the ever companion to mankind.

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Aṭa Rahimullah said, “Had it not been for tragedies in our lives, we would have shown up on the Day of Judgment completely bankrupt.” At the end of the day, no matter how much we do. We are not going to be able to perfect oursleves. Allāh sends us fitnah (tests and trials) so that we can be purified from our sins. These are gifts. Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) used to seek refuge from a sudden death. When Allāh allows a person to struggle, to go through some hardship that is Allāh purifying him/her from their sins. Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Allāh will continue to test the beliver or try them until he purifies them for all of his sins until he meets Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) like a newborn baby.” Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “There is a special valley in paradise for people of Shams.” When the companions asked why, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) replied, “Because the angels of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) are shading the people of Shams.” Sometimes fitnah brings out the best in people, sometimes the worst in people. Think of the example of Asiya (radiAllāhu anha). Whenever she was being tortured, Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) allowed her to be shaded. She lived her life as queen and instead of crying, she was laughing while being tortured. It strengthened her faith. Tragedy and tyranny often brings people back to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). In Palestine, 5060 years ago masajids used to be empty. People did not wear hijabs. After the oppression they went through, people started filling up the Masajid and wearing hijabs. Similarly in Syria, the oppression that they went through increased them in faith. People that did not used to go the masjid want to go there now and are saying without any hesitation that Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) is their Lord. There was a video of a 20-year-old boy who was being told to make sujood to Bashar Al-Asad. He said I have never made sujood to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) in my life, and I will not make my first sujood to Bashar Al-Asad. He died making his first sujood to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). SubhanAllāh. Tests and trials make for a better person. It brings out the best in people. Fitnah is a gift Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) sends us –IF we recognize it. Tazkiya is to purify. Fitnah is the process through which precious metals are purified. To make jewelry out of precious metals, one must first burn off its impurities. Similarly when we burn off our impurities, it brings us to a state of ikhlas. Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said, “Sins need to be burned either with the pain of regret in this world or the fire of Hell in the hereafter.” In this world sins are burned off through tazkiya from our part and fitnah from Allāh until we arrive at ikhlas.

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1.1.3 What is Ikhlāṣ? Ikhlas literally means purity. The word ikhlas is not mentioned one time in Surat’l-Ikhlas. But three surahs before, in Surat-l-Kafirun there is declaration for absolute purification and absolving of oneself from all of the gods except Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). Then is Sūrat’lNaṣr is mentioned victory for those who purify themselves. Next Sūrat’l-Masad declares humiliation for those who decided to keep themselves filthy. Abu Lahab refused to purify himself from shirk, so he will stay in Hellfire. Then we arrive at al-Ikhlas, a declaration of purity. I worship no one besides Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). Kalimah shahada la ilaha illAllāh is called Kalimat’l ikhlas. It starts off with negation; there is no god/deity worthy of worship or unconditional obedience except for Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). You must purify yourself from everything else except Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla).

1.1.4 What is Tarbiyah? After gold is purified, it must be shaped. Tarbiyah literally means to shape. There are some that are sincere, but they don’t realize their potential. And there are some people that are sincere but they don’t like to act out their sincerity. If we leave pure gold out, it will start to rust again. Tarbiyah is actively engaging your soul to keep it in a state of ikhlas. Many times we see a person get a serious wake up call in their lives when some kind of calamity strieks them like someone dying in the family. They feel super religious and come to the masjid. But they don’t do things to actually change their lives. Few weeks later we see them regressing back to exactly what they were doing before, because there was nothing in place to keep the soul engaged, pure, beautified and maximizing its potential.

Chapter 2: Understanding Your Enemy 1.2.1 The Enemy Within: The Nafs In Surah An-Naziat Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) say, “…and the one who forbids his own nafs, his own self, from pursuing empty desires, his abode will be Jannah” (79: 39-40). The first thing we need to do is fight our own nafs.

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Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Verily a person will be engaged in a state of struggle and has not once been struck with a sword.” Scholars say the greatest struggle is the struggle against yourself. Many times we like to just blame Shayṭān, however. Nafs is hard to recognize as the enemy as its always sneaking up on us. Sometimes we hear those whispers inside of us and think it’s Shayṭān, but it’s really ourselves. When our own soul is commanding us to do those evil and we need to fight it. Stop blaming Shayṭān, it’s not always his fault. People wonder why we do/continue bad deeds in Ramadan when it’s a blessed month and Shayṭān is locked up? It’s because our nafs is corrupted.

1.2.2 al-Shayṭān Allāh says, “Verily, my slaves you have no power over them, except for those who willingly follow you.” Shayṭān has absolutely no power over you, if you don’t willingly follow him. Adam (‘alayhi wa sallam) did not blame Shayṭān when he erred. He blamed himself. But Shayṭān when he erred, he blamed Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). Sometimes we do that also when we say, “If Allāh wants to take me out of haram, he will do so.” Or that, “Allāh has set me up to fail.” In essence, for some people Shayṭān is extremely active and for some Shayṭān is very laid back. For some Shayṭān does not have to do much as you are doing all the work yourself. And for some Shayṭān is active. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Shayṭān places obstacles in every way the son of Ādam undertakes to obey Allāh.” Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) is telling us the way Shayṭān works on you. “First he obstructs his way to Islam by saying, ‘Will you adopt Islam and abandon the religion of your family and what you were raised upon?’ He tells Shayṭān to go away and disobeys Shayṭān and becomes Muslim. Then the Shayṭān hinders his path for hijrah (emigrating for the sake of Allāh to Madīnah). Shayṭān comes to the man and says, ‘Will you emigrate and abandon your land and everything that you have and your wealth and your shops? A person will come and take everything that you had.’ [What Shayṭān said was coming true because they looted the stores in Makkah.] The man says, ‘Go away’ and disobeys him and still emigrates for the sake of Allāh. [When the man is going to engage in battle, they are outnumbered.] Shayṭān comes to the person and says, ‘Are you going to sacrifice your life and someone else will share a bed with your spouse? Your wealth will be distributed amongst your inheritors and no one will care for you.’ The man disobeys him and continues in the path. Allāh has made it a right upon Himself to admit that person to Paradise whether he drowns, is cast off of a mountain, dies of a stomach disease, is hit by a dabbah (moving saddle).” Why? He is not letting Shayṭān in.

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Imām al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri said, “If Shayṭān sees you consistently obeying Allāh, he will seek you time and time again. If Shayṭān sees that he is not getting anywhere with you eventually he will grow weary of you and reject you. But if a person keeps going back and forth, Shayṭān continues to have hope.” Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said everyone has their own Shayṭān, and he flows in your veins like the blood. ‘Ā’ishah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anha) said, “Even you?” He said, “Even me, but my Shayṭān aslam.” The scholars say either he became Muslim or submitted/gave up. You let Shayṭān in through the characteristics that you have developed. Imam Ibn al-Qayyim said “The mind is like a mill, as long as you have useful grain inside of it, nothing else can get in.” Hence, the only time Shayṭān has influence over a person is when Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) is not enough for him. Allāh asks in the Qurʾān, “Isn’t Allāh enough for him?” When Allāh is enough for you, Shayṭān loses appeal. On the night Allāh's Apostle was taken on a night journey (Mi’raaj) two cups, one containing wine and the other milk, were presented to him at Jerusalem. He looked at it and took the cup of milk. Gabriel said, "Praise be to Allāh Who guided you to Al-Fitra (the right path); if you had taken (the cup of) wine, your nation would have gone astray." The word used for going astray is ghaween-which means a child who refuses to breastfeed. As long as you’re willing to take the milk (ilm), Shayṭān has no appeal for you. Don’t be spiritually lactose intolerant and refuse to drink the milk, because that’s when Shayṭān will get you. When Imām Aḥmad was dying, he was between consciousness and being awake. His son ‘Abdullāh was sitting with him and telling him to say la ilāha illa Allāh. Imām Aḥmad says, “No! Not yet! No! Not yet!” ‘Abdullāh later asks him, “What happened to you?” He said, “I saw my Shayṭān in a dream, and he appeared humiliated and in raggedy clothes and broken and said, ‘O Aḥmad, you have escaped me.’” Imām Aḥmad was telling him, “No, not yet.” Shayṭān will come at you consistently, but don’t give Shayṭān an entrance into you and Shayṭān will not have any power over you. It starts off with not blaming Shayṭān, but blaming yourself for your mistakes. Shayṭān whispers into the hearts of men and then he withdraws. iza ghafala waswas, wa izha zakarullah, khannas. When humans become heedless, Shayṭān is able to whisper to him. And if he remembers Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla), he flees away. It’s always in our control whether or not we not we listen to Shayṭān.

Chapter 3: Understanding Change 1.3.1 Can I change?

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Don’t despair of the mercy of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). But don’t place too much hope in it that it leads to wishful thinking and delusion. Be aware of extremes. Don’t become hopeless in your ability to change. Giving excuses like, “I was born with a bad temper” or that “I was born with this attribute” and claiming Allāh will forgive is simply wishful thinking and also making bad assumptions about Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). It is similar to claiming Allāh cannot change you and that he made you deficient. Imām al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri said, “The nafs is like a strong horse. The goal is not to kill it but to tame it.” But what’s worse than a weak horse? It is a wild, untamed horse. Islam does not want to kill your characteristics; Islam wants to polish your characteristics. Islam strengthens your traits. Islam gives you confidence. If you allow your confidence to become arrogance, however, that’s a problem. It is good to have a strong and powerful horse as long as you are in control of it and it is not in control of you. Allāh does tell us in the Qurʾān “those who swallow their anger” and not “those who do not have anger.” Know when to use your anger and when not to use your anger. Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) used his anger at the right times and it wasn’t for his own ego, but for Allāh. But don’t go attacking every person under the banner of anger for Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). It applies in very, very limited circumstances. Imām al-Ghazāli said, “How can human beings claim that they cannot change? A bear can be tamed into being friendly. A falcon can go from being a savage to being a guide. A dog can go from being an attacker to a friend.” If an animal can change, it is a sign for us that even we can change. Yes, everyone can change. And to claim that you cannot is an accusation against Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). But there is a condition; the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Allāh has given for every disease its cure.” This includes spiritual diseases and problems, but you have to be willing to go through the pain of it. You must be willing to take the medicine, as bitter and nasty as it is. If medicine tastes good it means it’s not effective medicine. We have to take practical steps to cure ourselves of our diseases. And in Islam we have those answers, step-by-step guidance on how to address our problems.

1.3.2 Guidance is from Allāh And [some] among their fathers and their descendants and their brothers -‐ and We chose them and We guided them to a straight path. (Surah al-‐An‘ām 6: 87)

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And Allāh invites to the Home of Peace and guides whom He wills to a straight path (Surah Yūnus 10:25)

And so those who were given knowledge may know that it is the truth from your Lord and [therefore] believe in it, and their hearts humbly submit to it. And indeed is Allāh the Guide of those who have believed to a straight path. (Surah al-‐Ḥajj 22:54)

By which Allāh guides those who pursue His pleasure to the ways of peace and brings them out from darknesses into the light, by His permission, and guides them to a straight path. (Surah al-‐Mā’idah 5:16)

Allāh says in the Qurʾān: “When they turned away, Allāh turned their hearts away.” They became unworthy of guidance. The first one to turn away was not Allāh. Allāh tells us in the Qurʾān that those who seek guidance will be guided. “Those who strive in Our way, We guide them to the various paths of good.” If you make the effort to turn towards Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla), He will guide you. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The hearts are between two fingers of the fingers of the Most Merciful. If Allāh wills, He guides it or turns it away.” If you keep working on yourself, one day you will finally taste guidance. The same Salah you will feel will finally mean something. You may be trying to get khushū‘ in your ṣalāh and keep trying and all of a sudden you might pray salah and truly feel its effect. Shaykh mentioned that once there was a guy with military boots that walked into the masjid. All the “brown people” ran” as the man walked up to Shaykh Omar and said, “I need to talk to you.” They went to the library of the masjid and he said, “My name is Keith. I just got back from Iraq 2 hours ago and haven’t even seen my family. When I was in Iraq and I saw how much those people believed in their faith, so much so, that even when we brought our guns in masajid they didn’t flinch. I got amazed and I knew they had something. And I want what they have. I don’t know what it is about you people, but I want what you have.” He didn’t know anything about Islam and after a 20 minute introduction he took shahada. When he heard the

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loud takbeer, he started to cry. He said, “When we used to hear it in Iraq it meant RUN, now its welcoming me to faith.” We strive, toil, and struggle and when we are sincere, Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) does eventually provide us with guidance. Just think of the before and after picture of Umar (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu). No one has ever turned to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla), and he was turned away. The most frequent supplication of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was: “Yaa Muqallib Al-Quloob Thabbit Qalbee Alaa Deenik.” Translation: O Changer of Hearts, keep my heart steadfast on Your religion. We have to be serious when we ask Allāh for guidance, because we know at the end of the day we can’t achieve it without Allāh’s help. According to Shaykh-ul-Islam the best dua is: Allāhumma a-inni ala Zikrika wa shukrika wa husni ibadatika. Translation: “O Allāh! Help me to remember you, to thank you, and to worship you in the best of manners.” You are asking Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) to guide you.

1.3.3 Excuses for Not Correcting Oneself To show dissatisfaction with yourself is to show dissatisfaction with Allāh. Allāh says, “I am what my servant expects of me...” But some people stretch this too far, banking on Allāh’s mercy too much. Imam Ibn Qayyim said, “You cannot change the attributes of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) by thinking of him in a different way.” Allāh cannot be unjust and when we exaggerate one attribute over another or make up a new one we are distorting His real attributes. We do our best then we think of Allāh as the Most Merciful. In an interview with Nancy Ajram, a famous singer, when she was asked what she would say to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) on the Day of Judgement? She said, “I’m going to tell him, you’re going to enter me into Jannah.” SubhanAllāh- with such arrogance you’re going to enter Jannah? It would be unjust for Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) to enter a person into Jannah who made no effort whatsoever. People came before us who died, who strove, were struck by lightning, and faced earthquakes, diseases and much more and yet stayed firm on the path. Is it fair that Allāh enters them into Jannah and also enters someone who made no effort for it whatsoever? No, that’s wishful thinking. Some common excuses: 1. Blaming Allāh and his decrees for your characteristics

This person blames their family, their qadr for their characteristics. Imām Ibn Qudāmah says, “To say my evil deed is not my fault, but Allāh’s fault because Allāh created me, is like

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a person having a child out of adultery and then saying that they are not going to pay for the child because Allāh created the child.” Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) is the creator, no doubt about that; but you take the steps to bring about the baby. Blaming Allāh for your bad deeds and characteristics is just as senseless as this. Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said in his book al-Fawā’id, “Abu Talib, uncle of the Prophet died a chief of the hypocrites. While Salman-al-Farsi, whose father was a priest for the fireworshippers, was safe on the coast. Al-Walīd b. al-Mughīrah, the honor of the Arabs, preceded all in straying away from Allāh, while Suhayb, the Roman, excelled above all Arabs in belief. Al-Nājashi was in Abyssinia and called labbayk allāhumma labbayk. Bilāl, the slave, called out, ‘Ṣalāh is better than sleep.’ Abu’l-Ḥakam (Abu Jahl) fell deaf and became the father of ignorance. Qis ibn Sa'aadah, a famous poet, believed in Allāh despite never seeing Rasūlullāh. ‘Abdullāh b. Ubayy al-Salūl prayed behind the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) for years and still died a disbeliever.” No excuses; it doesn’t matter who is your imam, who your parents are, where you are from. These stories of the sahabahs destroy all forms of excuse. Some people do have it harder than others, and has given some more favorable situations than others. But at the same time Allāh has given everyone a chance. If a person is not given to believe, then on the day of responsibility they are absolved of that responsibility. They will be raised up and Allāh will test them in another way. Allāh does not punish a people until a messenger reaches them. 2. Self pity or blaming people of religiosity for their own being astray

Some common excuses this group uses are: “all shaykhs are liars, crooks, etc.,” “Those people in the masjid are the worst people, they are so judgmental, so I don’t go there,” “I’ve seen the worst hijabis in this world, they don’t really practice,” “Look that person, he prays and he is a terrible person. I don’t pray, but I’m not shady in my business”. These might be true but you’ll still be responsible for yourself on the Day of Judgment. You still have to go to the masjid, wear hijab and pray. You chastise yourself; you don’t blame others or Allāh. One of Shaykh’s favorite quote, “I’m not overweight, I’m just 9 inches too short” (Shelley Winters).

1.3.4 The How’s and When’s of Change 1. Things that cannot be changed. The sun, the moon, the earth, and other constants in the universe. There are no human characteristics or qualities that cannot be changed. 2. Things that have potential but, if not nourished properly, will go to waste.

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Imam Al-Ghazāli gave the example that you can’t plant a date seed and expect to grow apples and you can’t plant an apple seed and expect to grow dates. Allāh gave us unique qualities, but if we don’t nourish them properly, then those qualities will go to waste. There is nothing inside of us that cannot be tamed. 3. Things that are harmful but can be destroyed with effort ranging from very little to great. One might have grown up in a family with hot temper, or a environment of gossip and developed some bad qualities as a result. But “Allāh has given for every disease its cure.” 4. Things that can go both ways Take the example of Umar (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) and Abu Jahl. Both had leadership qualities, courage, bravery, ability to mobilize people, and wisdom. Umar (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) used his qualities to bring victory to Islam, whereas Abu Jahl used it for the opposite. We often see people who are brilliant and can only think “only if they used that for Islam”. We have been blessed with many special qualities by Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) and we can either use it for good or for bad. Imām al-Dhahabi narrates in his biography of the notables (the companions) a story of a man named Jad‘an who used to be a singer. One day, ‘Abdullāh b. Mas‘ūd was passing by and heard him singing and said, “If only he would use that voice to recite Qurʾān.” Jad‘an heard it and started to cry and ran after ‘Abdullāh b. Mas‘ūd. He repented and became ‘Abdullāh b. Mas‘ūd’s student and one of the best Qaris. Facebook is an example of a tool that can go both ways.

Chapter 4: Understanding Yourself 1.4.1 Your Ḥāl vs. Your Maqām The difference between your situation and station. Your ḥāl is the situation you are in right now but you don’t necessarily reach maqām until it becomes a pattern of behavior. We use hal when asking how someone is-kaifal hal. Their situation is constantly changing, one moment happy, next sad, angry, etc. Maqām is the station, it is something stable. For example: the station of truthfulness, the station of generosity, the station of forbearance. When Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says, “alṣābirīn wa’l-ṣābirāt…” and all these lofty positions, these are people who have reached a pattern of behavior so that they are called by that name. Doing something one time doesn’t mean that quality is attributed to you. Can a liar tell the truth? Yes, but it doesn’t make him

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a truthful person for telling a truth one time. If you restrain your anger one time, it doesn’t make you a forbearing person all of a sudden. There is a difference between something that defines you and something you do once or twice. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Verily a person will tell the truth continuously until he is written with Allāh as ṣiddīq. A person will lie until Allāh writes him down as a liar.” He (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) also said, “Verily, truthfulness leads to good deeds and good deeds guide a person to Jannah. And lying leads to disobedience and disobedience leads a person to hellfire.” Many times people mistake a consequence of behavior as a pattern of behavior. Ibn Qudāmah mentioned that on the way to Ḥudaybiyyah, the camel of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu‘alayhi wa sallam) refused to move, and they said the camel was being disobedient. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The camel did not become disobedient and that is not the character of Qaswah. The only thing that held it back was what held back the elephant.” Prophet (ṣallallāhu‘alayhi wa sallam) was referring to the elephant mentioned in Surat-ul-Feel. Because of one incident one cannot assign a trait to a human being. What is your defining attribute? How would others describe you? Are you known as an arrogant person, a hot-tempered person, a generous person or a humble person? As a Muslim you want to develop good traits and characteristics. Sometimes when you do a good deed or develop a good characteristic, it is not always for Allāh. Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said, “Whenever a person develops a good characteristic they don’t have to make a good intention every time they act on that characteristic, because they developed that good habit for the sake of Allāh in the first place. Allāh still rewards the for good deed.” You don’t have to make an intention “Oh Allāh, this is only for you, and not because he/she is attractive, etc.” every time you help someone.

1.4.2 How far away are you? 4 levels of distance from Allāh 1. Simple ignorance (jahl basīṭ). He/she is a person who wants to do good, but just doesn’t know any better. It’s easy for them to come back to Allāh, because they haven’t developed any bad characteristics. Once this person becomes Muslims and they receive da‘wah, they become better Muslims than anyone else. 2. Compounded ignorance (jahl murakkab). It’s someone who is ignorant, but they are not necessarily evil. They might have consistently been brainwashed. They are being taught the wrong things. They are weak and go with the flow. The ignorance is being fed to them. There is an active Shayṭān in their lives, and the wrong guidance can be from another human being.

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3. The innovator (al-mubtadi‘). The Shayṭān comes to the person with innovation after shirk. If Shayṭān can’t get you to do shirk, then he would rather get you with innovation than major sin. Shayṭān would rather you commit bid‘ah than commit adultery and interest. When you commit innovation, you decorate something that is evil and make it look good. Imām al-Sufyān al-Thawri said, “A person with innovation never makes repentance because he thinks it is good.” They do acts that are not from Allāh and not from the Sunnah and think that it is a way of coming closer to Allāh. At the same time it’s important to not become the bid’ah police, however. Don’t take it to extremes. Not everything is bid’ah and not everything is ok. Analyze your actions to see if it is in accordance with the Qurʾān and Sunnah. Ibn Mas‘ūd found people in the masjid sitting in a circle and saying tasbīḥ with stones. He threw the stones at them and asked them why they were doing this. They said, “All we want to do is good.” Ibn Mas‘ūd said, “How many people desire good and never reach it? If you don’t desist in this, then you will be the enemies of Allāh.” The narrator said that those people were the first to join the Khawarij. Make sure that what you are doing is proper. 4. Someone bursting in disobedience (Al-Faajir). He is disobedient, satanic, knows he is doing wrong and he likes it. He is proud of it. He is completely at peace being in at war with Allāh. This person is in the worst situation. Analyze yourself, which category do you fall in? How far away are you?

1.4.3 The Three Types of Nufūs 1. Nafs’l-baheemah: the soul that commands itself with evil. The more a person obeys their desires, and abandons worship, the more they become like an animal. The more a person forbids their desires, restrains their free will, and worships Allāh, the more they become like an angel. Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says they are just like the dog with its tongue always out and panting whether you put something in front of it or not. In fact, they are also worse than animals, because they are more astray from the straight path. This person sins for the sake of sinning because of their free will and lack of conscience. 2. Nafs’l-lawwāmah: the soul that chastises and blames itself. It messes up but blames itself; first step to getting better. This person holds himself accountable and makes istighfār and comes back to Allāh. 3. Nafs’l-muṭmainnah: The soul that is at peace. This is the soul that has ihsan. When Yūsuf was in the situation with the wife of al-‘Azīz, Allāh says, “she wanted him and he

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wanted her had he not seen the proof of his Lord.” But Yūsuf said, “I would rather be imprisoned than do this.” He loved Allāh that much. He completely did away with his desires for the sake of Allāh. He genuinely hates what she’s calling him to, because he knows it is displeasing to Allāh and he is at peace with his Lord. Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said, “Whoever is busy with himself is distracted from others. Whoever is busy with Allāh is distracted from himself.” He is so caught up in pleasing Allāh that he forgets his own desires. When you love Allāh, you start to hate things that your soul naturally desires. The soul at peace wants to please Allāh and is tranquil. Allāh says in the Qurʾān, “O soul at peace, come back to your Lord, rāḍiyatan marḍiyyah (pleasing and pleased).” Allāh first mentions pleasing, because for the soul at peace loves Allāh so much so that what they really want to hear is that Allāh is pleased with them. A tabi‘i said, “To pray two rakʿahs is more beloved to me than Paradise and everything in it.” His companions said, “Why?” He said, “The two rakʿahs please Allāh and Paradise pleases me, and I would rather please Allāh.” The goal of tazkiya is ihsan and this tabi‘i has developed such a relationship with Allāh that he is more concerned with what pleases Allāh than his own pleasures. Suhayb ar-Rumi said, “Had he not feared Allāh, he would still not disobey Him.” Even if there were no punishment of the hellfire he would still obey Allāh, because that was the extent of his love for Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). Shaykh shared a story of a man named, Cory, who came to the masjid to become Muslim after watching the Deen show. He had never met a Muslim, but he had already downloaded the iPray app. When asked in a halaqa what he was looking forward to most in Jannah, he answered, “I just want to be able to pray without being bothered.” His entire family was nonMuslim and he was always distracted by noise or other surroundings. When a person really falls in love with Allāh, “Allāh becomes the hearing with which he hears, the sight by which he sees, the hand with which he strikes and the foot with which he walks”. A person becomes distracted from the things they naturally desire because they are so overwhelmed by their love for Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). The people of hellfire will ask the angels, “Ask your Lord to lighten up our punishment for one day”. They ask the angels to ask Allāh, because they had the chance to call upon Allāh in this life but they didn’t take advantage of it. They said “your lord” not “my lord,” because they recognized they had come out of the scope of being protected by Allāh. They also said “lighten

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up”, not finish it; it shows their hopelessness. Imām al-Ghazāli said, “The greatest punishment in the Hellfire is the chance that was missed to truly know Allāh.”

1.4.4 Baṣar vs. Baṣīrah Both mean “sight.” It’s the difference between a person’s outward sight and insight. The scholar Ibn Qudāmah said, “The body is seen by the baṣar (eyesight) and the soul is seen by baṣīrah (insight).” Some people just don’t have insight, while some people look really deeply into things; they are awake and aware. Being able to look deeply into self and diagnose self is really important in order to change. People who have baṣīrah can even tell certain things about other people. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Fear the sight (firāṣah) of a believer.” A righteous person can diagnose things so well. One time Imām al-Shāfi‘i and Imām Mālik were sitting and someone walked by. Imām Mālik says, “He is a shepherd.” Imām al-Shāfi‘i said, “I think he is a carpenter.” Someone went to him and asked him his profession and he said, “I used to be a shepherd but now I’m a carpenter.”

1.4.5 The Himmah Never Dies Once a person is able to look deeply into self, they will need himmah or ambition. How badly do you want to change? Some of the characteristics of himmah are: 1. Al warah (caution). He abandons makrooh as if it is haram. He treats mustahab as fard for himself. He doesn’t make it hard on other people, however. This is a person with passion and always takes it to the next level. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “What is permissible has been made clear and what is ḥarām has been made clear and between them are doubtful matters. Whoever grazes around the doubtful matters will fall into it.” One of the ṣaḥābah said, “We left half of the ḥalāl things out of fear that we would fall into the ḥarām.” A person who has himmah, never indulges in doubtful matters, not because it conflicts with halal and haraam, but because if something might hurt his deen, he abandons it. It’s always good to avoid doubtful matters, so one cannot fall into haraam. 2. Set high standards for yourself. Always look at people higher than you in deen, never look at people lower than you in deen. Imām Qādir al-Jilāni said, “The ḥasanāt (good deeds) of normal people are the sayyi’āt (bad deeds) of righteous people.” For example, you show up for fajr after a long time and caught the second rakʿah. Another person is

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always in the first row and never comes later than 30 minutes before ṣalāh and if one day he catches just the first takbīr, he feels terrible because he set his standards high. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “In everyone of my generation, there are people who will be in the forefront.” And there are also people who go fatwa shopping. Ask yourself, when you ask for a fatwa, “tureedul fatwa wa tureedul taqwa?” (Do you want a fatwa or do you want Taqwa?). A lot of times we know somethings are not right just from our intuition. Be tough on yourself for yourself. A man came to Maymūn b. Mahrān (a tabi‘i) for his daughter’s hand in marriage, and he said that he doesn’t approve of her for him because she loved clothes and jewelry too much. The man said he loves those things too, so he then said, “Well, now, then I don’t approve of you for her.”

Chapter 5: Experiencing Change 1.5.1 A Deep Look at the Tazkiyah of ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab Umar (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) is a great example of an 180 degree change, the most successful tazkiya experiment. Before Islam, he was someone who used to say that he would beat on his slaves until he was tired. When Surah Hujurat was revealed and the ayah about not raising voices over the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), Umar’s (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) voice became so low, that Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) had to ask him to repeat himself. He would not raise his voice above the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) after that. This is the same companion whose voice was naturally so booming, that once when he was getting his haircut and he something to his barber and the barber fainted. Once the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was giving a ḥalaqah with women. ‘Umar was walking by the ḥalaqah and heard the women raising their voices. He walked in and all of the women ran and hid behind the curtains. ‘Umar said, “You enemies of Allāh! Come out! You are not ashamed in front of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and you are ashamed in front of me?” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was laughing. The women said to ‘Umar, “You are harsher and harder.” Allāh said to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), “If you were rough and harsh-hearted, they would have run away from you even if you had the revelation.” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “You are harsh, but I have seen that when you take a path, the Shayṭān takes another path.” He used his toughness in the right ways and because of that, Allāh honored those qualities in him.

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He forced himself to cry. He would never cry in jāhiliyyah. After Islam, he had two black lines under his eyes because of how much he used to cry. He once walked in on the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and Abu Bakr (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) after Badr while they were crying and asked them why they were crying so that he could cry too. He also used to read the ayat of hellfire every night and cry. He would put his hand next to the fire, and ask, “Can you handle it O ‘Umar?” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “There were people who were muḥadithūn (people spoken to by the angels) in the nations before me and if there is going to be a muḥadith in my ummah, it would be ‘Umar.” He remembered his past and constantly humbled himself. He never thought highly of himself. When the ayahs related to hypocrites were revealed, he would ask, “Am I amongst the hypocrites?” He was the secret keeper of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and his hero was Abu Bakr (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu), asked himself this question. He wanted to be like Abu Bakr (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) in everything and would compete with him. One day he said he was going to outdo Abu Bakr (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) and took half of his money to give in charity, and Abu Bakr (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu), not knowing that ‘Umar did this, brought all of his money for charity. One day during the khalīfah of Abu Bakr (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu), ‘Umar (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) went to the outskirts of Madīnah to serve the old women who were there and when he knocked on the first house, the woman said that someone had already come. ‘Umar asked who it was and she said she could not tell him, so he waited behind the house and saw Abu Bakr. He said, “O Abu Bakr, I have never traveled a path of good except that you have already traveled it. You have exhausted everyone who comes after you.” He looked at a higher standard and wanted to be more. There was no else between the Prophet and ‘Umar except Abu Bakr, and he strived to follow him. He didn’t stop using his traits; rather he used them for a good reason and was sincere. Even the Qurʾān used to agree with ‘Umar. When you are sincere, Allāh grants you deep insight and understanding. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said to ‘Umar, “You are in my ummah like Musa and Nuh”. We should try to find the characteristics in ourselves that are pleasing to Allāh and change ourselves to be pleasing to Him.

1.5.2 The Concept of True Ladhdhah (Pleasure) Tasting zauq (the sweetness of your worship). The average basketball player runs a total of 7 miles per game. Naturally an athlete is not thrilled about doing that. But what keeps them going? Their enjoyment has passed the physical exhaustion.

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In terms of salah, Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says, “And indeed it is something big (burdensome) except upon the khashieen (those who have that tranquility).” Once you taste the khushu’, sweetness, it’s no longer tough anymore. Keep trying until you taste sweetness, it’s smooth sailing after. Don’t become complacent. Keep pushing. VIDEO: Man in old age praying whole night standing on one leg. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zar5wZcEy6Y

1.5.3 Faqīh’l-Nafs This is a concept that is often misunderstood. It means “the scholar of the soul.” How do you start to understand your soul the most and become a scholar of your own soul? This is something very powerful. Imām al-Ghazāli gives the example of a calligrapher. Before one can do his own calligraphy, he copies the same calligraphy over and over and over again, until he starts to figure it out. This is what we’ll be doing in this class. We will look at what the sahabah and the tabieen did. What did the best generations do? What is the prescription of the Qurʾān and Sunnah to cure ourselves of our diseases? In their life stories, we find qualities that are beloved to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) and we discover that we can also have similar qualities. For example Isma’il (‘alayhi sallam) is described in the Qurʾān as forbearing and tolerant (Kaana ghulamun haleem) while Ishaaq (‘alayhi sallam), his father, is described as being very knowledgeable (Kaana ghulamun aleem). Before you can reach any science, you have to sit and copy someone else over and over again. Then you start to recognize what is needed for your soul. This doesn’t mean you can leave the Sunnah of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). It means you become more aware of your weaknesses and how to treat them. You start to diagnose your soul. No two people are exactly the same. Don’t ever think you have arrived! There are subtle diseases that can overtake your heart. Don’t ever think you no longer need tazkiyyat-un-nafs. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) has also described to us those people who perform the deeds of Paradise until they are only a handspan away from Paradise and then they do the deeds of the Hellfire and they end up one of the inhabitants of Hell. Imam Nawawi comments, “This person could have either been insincere in his actions (riya), or he was unaware of his faults.”

Unit 2: Making the Change Chapter 1: Knowledge 2.1.1 The Importance of Seeking Knowledge

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Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says:

Say, “Are those who know equal to those who do not know?” Only they will remember [who are] people of understanding. (al-Zumar: 9) Allāh prefers the people of knowledge. Allāh also says:

Allāh will raise those who have believed among you and those who were given knowledge, by degrees.(al Mujādilah:11) Allāh has elevated the people of belief amongst mankind; and amongst the people of belief, Allāh has elevated the people of knowledge degrees above. Ilm directly impacts our spiritual process and our status in the sight of Allāh. Entire books have been written on this one hadith: Abu’l-Dardā’ (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) reported that the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “He who follows a path in quest of knowledge, Allāh will make the path of Jannah easy to him. The angels lower their wings over the seeker of knowledge, being pleased with what he does. The inhabitants of the heavens and the earth, and even the fish in the depth of the oceans, seek forgiveness for him. The superiority of the learned man over the devout worshipper is like that of the full moon to the rest of the stars (i.e., in brightness). The learned are the heirs of the Prophets who bequeath neither dīnār nor dirham but only that of knowledge; and he who acquires it, has

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in fact acquired an abundant portion.” (Abu Dāwūd & al-Tirmidhi). One subtle part of this hadith, who do the angels and various animals make dua for the person of knowledge? The benefits of the person of knowledge extend to all of the creations. A person of nature is by nature an environmentalist. He teaches the people and at the same time he is consistently being beneficial to the animals, to the environment, etc. True knowledge is knowledge that which benefits. An ‘alim is not simply a person of knowledge, but rather someone who has a degree of knowledge more than the average Muslim. There is a direct correlation between the level of knowledge a person has and their level of khashya. We often forget what knowledge is. We have the overly progressive secular definition which is a person doesn’t know how to read Qurʾān properly but is extremely skilled in his field and says, “Brother, don’t you know the first word in Qurʾān is iqra?” They are saying it encompasses all forms of knowledge, not just Islamic knowledge but rather all knowledge. It is true that Islam encourages knowledge is all fields but to equate knowledge of shariah and deen to secular sciences is also inappropriate. When Allāh revealed surah Alaq, he mentioned iqra two times in the first five ayahs. The scholars comment that the first iqra was for knowledge of deen and the second for knowledge encompasses all other knowledge. When a person acquires knowledge of deen, they naturally acquire a general sense of purpose, and a general dedication to pursuing knowledge. Knowledge of the deen did not cause our ummah to go backwards, rather it helped us and the rest of the whole world to progress. The same scholars of the deen from before are now the fathers of modern law, fathers of modern medicine and fathers of modern mathematics. A person who studies medicine and is very conscious of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla), says subhanAllāh the entire time during their studies. Ibn Taymiyyah was the person to write about price floor and price ceilings in Finance. He would attend weekly lectures in Economics. Al-Qadi Abu Yusuf wrote Kitabul Kharaj, book on taxation, which many of the modern tax laws come from. Ibn Rushd’s works are read frequently in law school. At the end of the day, we cannot equate the two types of knowledge. First question in the grave will not be about science or math, but will be about your rabb, etc. First question on Day of Judgment will not be about your degree, but about your prayer. In Surah Alaq, Allāh says, “Khalaqal insaana min alaq-he created man from a clot.” But the first step in embryology is nutfah-drop of fluid. The reason alaq is here is because the alaq is the suspended blood-clot hanging and holding on inside the womb. Without iqra, a person would fall. We are completely dependent upon the divine revelation and knowledge. In fact, in times when Islam is under attack, ilm is even more important. If you don’t have knowledge of Islam, and people attack your deen and bring up issues it shakes you, because you

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don’t have the knowledge to refute those misconceptions in yourself. Shayṭān consistently whispers and because you don’t have ilm, you cannot refute misconceptions to not only the outside world but also to yourself. With ilm, you have stability whenever those attacks come. Shaykh mentions an example of a brother who became Muslim a few years ago. He was very knowledgeable in the Bible and Qurʾān, and so whenever he gave talks he could respond right away. When the issue of Aisha’s (raḍyAllāhu ‘anha) was brought up by a pastor he asked, “How old was Joseph when he married Mary?” Biblically Joseph was 94 years old and Maryam was 14. When a person is ready and equipped, it doesn’t spiritually hinder them, nor does it hurt the deen or da’wah. Having firm usool, firm foundation of the deen has a direct impact on your spirituality. It shows you how to respond to them for the sake of yourself. The virtue of seeking knowledge is a great virtue in of itself. Abu Hurayrah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) went out to people and shouted that the inheritance of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was being distributed in the masjid. He told people to run and get the inheritance. The people all rushed to the masjid. When they got there, they saw ḥalaqahs and people reading Qurʾān and people praying. The people came to Abu Hurayrah and said, “All we saw was people reading Qurʾān and other things.” Abu Hurayrah said, “This is the inheritance of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam).” It is the inheritance of all the Prophets and you only inherit from someone whom you are close to. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The virtue of a learned person (‘ālim) over the worshipper (‘ābid) is like my virtue over the lowest one of the ummah.” Knowledge does not stop here. A lot of times people knock on weekend seminars, youtube videos and lectures for their knowledge. Yes, it does lead some people to dedicate years studying a subject, but sometimes it leads people to become satisfied with their knowledge and they become complacent knowing they can ask a shaykh for an answer if they need to. Knowledge starts with baby steps. Every letter you learn, it increases you in status in the sight of Allāh.

2.1.2 The Intention behind Seeking Knowledge Abu Hurayrah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) reported that the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “He who does not acquire knowledge with the sole intention of seeking the Pleasure of Allāh but for worldly gain will not smell the fragrance of Jannah on the Day of Resurrection.” (Abu Dāwūd). Imam Al-Ghazāli said, “We started off seeking knowledge for other than Allāh, but knowledge refused to give itself except for Allāh.” Imam Al-Ghazāli’s life was one that of soul searching.

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Many times there are people who want to start seeking knowledge. Why? Because they want to speak at conventions, events and be famous. ‘Abdullāh b. Mas‘ūd once told a man, “If you are going to seek knowledge for one of three reasons, then don’t seek it. The first one is if you want to seek knowledge so that you can shame the ignorant, or if you like arguing with the people of knowledge, or if you are doing it so that you can draw attention to yourself.” Don’t abandon seeking knowledge, however, if you find you have the wrong intention. Keep seeking knowledge and reform your intention. Sometimes people say, “Shaykh, I want to go to Madīnah or go study because I want to be a big speaker like x or y.” Imam Al-Ghazāli said there are three types of students of knowledge: 1. Those who seek knowledge with evil intentions from the beginning and they don’t even try to reform it. 2. Those consistently fighting between two intentions; sincerity and insincerity. 3. Those who are seeking purely for the sake of Allāh. They constantly fight their intentions and sincerity never goes. They are the successful ones. Know why you are seeking knowledge. For every halaqa, every lecture, every video, ask yourself why are you really doing this. Hassan Al-Basri said, “To give knowledge to a person with wrong intention, is like to giving a weapon to a thief.” Al A’Mash also said, “To give knowledge to a person that doesn’t deserve it is like dressing a pig in jewelry.” On a side note, hadith scholars tended to be mean and that was a mercy to the ummah. They weren’t easily swayed by the people. They were to the point and strict and one could not play with their emotions.

2.1.3 The Effort of Seeking Knowledge ‘Abdullah narrated on the authority of his father Yahya: “Knowledge cannot be acquired with sloth.” Having the right intention directly affects the effort you will make. Enthusiasm is direct product of sincerity. We live in a time when teachers feel they are giving izza to the deen and students think that they are doing the deen a favor. Ilm is so much greater than us and it’s our honor to be a part of it. Ilm is a struggle in of itself. Al-A‘mash wanted people to work hard for the knowledge. He had a dog in front of his house and said that if anyone wanted to learn aḥadīth, they had to get past the dog. He wanted to root out the bad students from the serious students. When the dog died, he was sad and said, “This dog died fisabilillāh.” You do have to struggle for the deen, it’s not always going to be packaged nicely and handed to you. You don’t stop going because the scholar said something you don’t agree with, that shows insincerity.

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AlQadhi Abu Yusuf said, “Knowledge will not give it a little bit of it unless you give it your all.” Knowledge requires complete dedication. Imam Ahmad was such an embodiment of what he taught; you don’t see a shred of hypocrisy in him. Although he was most knowledgeable in his region, he would wrap himself (cover his face) and go sit in his students halaqa secretly just to keep on learning. ” He wanted to study from different scholars who were inferior to him in knowledge. One time Imām Aḥmad really wanted to learn from a scholar in Yemen of the name ‘Abdul- Razzāq al-Sināni who was a famous scholar of ḥadīth. ‘Abdul-Razzāq wanted to study with Imām Aḥmad, but Imām Aḥmad beat him to it. Imām Aḥmad said he was going to go to Ḥajj and asked to study with him. Imām Aḥmad was too poor to go to Ḥajj, so he took a job carrying people’s luggage. On the way to Ḥajj, he was carrying people’s luggage. He reached Ḥajj. At that time, it was a journey requiring months of time. He gets to Ḥajj and sees Imām ‘Abdul-Razzāq, and Imām ‘Abdul-Razzāq says, “May Allāh forgive you. I would have come to you. What questions do you have?” He said, “I have to come to you in your home and learn from you there.” So then he had to take another job carrying people’s luggage to Yemen to go there. This is all in his later years of life. ‘Abdullāh b. ʿAbbās became the scholar of this ummah at the age of 13. He loved the Prophet ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and was his shadow. Although he spent less than 3 years with the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) he narrated over 1600 ahadiths. He was 10 years old when he started with the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), but he was so keen on following his every move and observing him and learning from him. When the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) died, ‘Abdullāh b. ʿAbbās told his friend, “Today all of the ṣaḥābah are here, so let’s go start seeking knowledge from them.” His friend was more interested in playing with pigeons. ‘Abdullāh b. ʿAbbāsis left him and wanted nothing to do with him. He also made it a habit to sleep in front of the doors of the ṣaḥābah until they came out. They would ask him, “Why are you doing this? You are the cousin of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam).” He said, “Knowledge does not seek out anyone. If you want knowledge, you have to seek it.” The ṣaḥābah would start checking their doors before sleeping to make sure he was not sleeping there. If you truly want ilm, you will struggle for it. Today we live in a day and age of degradation of the people of the knowledge. It shows our lack of value toward ilm that we give ourselves. In the Muslim world, the failures go to college of Shariah. It’s the guy who failed every other test and couldn’t make it in anything else. Even the quality of imams are those that of high school dropouts in many places. You can see them smoking cigarettes on Mondays and not going to salah, because it’s their day off. Ilm is degraded. In Egypt if you’re blind, then you become a Qari.

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There is also a back home mentality that persists in America: that imams should be barely making ends meet and should be biking around house to house teaching kids Qurʾān. We should of course not be promoting a priest-class; extremes destroy people. But we do need to show respect to ilm and people of ilm. Imām Mālik really held the tradition of Islam in high regard. He was one of the foremost founders of Ahlul Hadith. Imam Malik didn’t always accept student so easily, there was a lot of red tape one would have to cross to study with him. It wasn’t because of arrogance, however. Imām Mālik would only walk barefoot in Madīnah because of his respect to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). When a hadith was mentioned, his face would change colors and he would go and dress in best way to discuss the ahadith of Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). He didn’t want people to take knowledge with any value or seriousness. The khalīfah al-Hārūn al-Rashīd sent a messenger to Imām Mālik (raḥimahullāh) to tell him that he wants him to come to his house to teach his kids Qurʾān. Imām Mālik said his children are like anyone else and need to come to the masjid to learn. The khalīfah sent two bags of gold with the same message, and he told the messenger to tell the khalīfah that his children have to come to the masjid because knowledge is that which is sought. Al-Hārūn al-Rashīd wanted to teach Imām Mālik a lesson. There was a practice that was established in the later Umayyad dynasty where the khalīfah would have a high chair during the khuṭbah. Al-Hārūn al-Rashīd was a righteous man and didn’t like this practice, but he wanted to remind everyone he was the khalīfah, so he asked for the chair to be put in the masjid during the khuṭbah so that he could remind Imām Mālik who the boss is. Imām Mālik walked in and ignored him and stood on the minbar and started the khuṭbah. He said, “In the Name of Allāh. Peace and blessings on the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, ‘Whoever lowers himself for Allāh, Allāh will elevate his status,’” and then he stepped down. The khalīfah started crying and had the chair taken away. You are teaching your kids knowledge is weak and invaluable, if you are having someone come to your house to teach Qurʾān simply out of arrogance. Don’t degrade ilm to that level. When a person truly makes effort, the more that they learn, the more they feel like they don’t know anything. It’s viewed as shameful these days to say, “I don’t know.” Imām al-Sha‘bi, the teacher of Imām Abu Ḥanīfah, was once asked a question and he said, “I don’t know.” The man said, “What kind of a scholar are you then?” He said, “Even the angels said ‘we don’t know,’ so if they can say this then who am I?” Al-Imam Malik was asked forty questions by someone and to most of them he answered "I don't know - Allāh knows better". The man was surprised that the great Imam Malik didn't know the answers. Seeing the man surprised, Imam Malik told him that when he goes back to

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his town, to tell the people that he met and asked al-Imam Malik questions and Imam Malik said he didn't know the answers. We should form relationships based on the pursuit of knowledge. ‘Umar says, “I used to have a neighbor from the anṣār who would live in the area of Bani Ummayyah, and we used to take turns with the ḥalaqah of the Messenger (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). My neighbor would attend one day and I would attend the other day, and we would teach each other what we learned.” You can’t make it to every class, but you want others to tell you what they learned. You want to try to gather as much as you can. There is an idea outside and inside of the community that knowledge is only for men. People don’t think “I want my daughter to be a scholar or ‘ālim.” Unfortunately we don’t think that way and we have devalued the concept of women seeking knowledge in our dīn. Some of the downfall we have in the community today is because we don’t have women scholars. Imām al-Dhahabi said that from the time of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) to his time, he documented 10,000 women scholars of ḥadīth. When people ask the question “why don’t you have women imāms?” Tell them that we settled that a long time ago. A scholar of ḥadīth has a much higher status than an imām. The only reason a woman is not imam is because of the nature of a woman and her hijab, but they occupy positions much greater in our deen. Imām al-Dhahabi said, “There has never been a weak female narrator of ḥadīth.” In ‘ilm’l-rijāl, there has never been a weak female narrator of ḥadīth. Abu Mūsa al-Ashari said, “We, the companions of Allāh’s Messenger, never had difficulty in understanding aḥadīth except that when we asked ‘Ā’ishah, she knew everything about it.” ‘Ā’ishah was asked by the senior companions about inheritance laws. ‘Urwah b. Zubayr said, “I have heard the speeches of Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, ‘Uthmān, ‘Ali, and Abu ‘Ubaydah b. Jurrah and none were as eloquent as ‘Ā’ishah.” Ibn Taymiyyah said, “48% of the fatāwa from the companions came from Umm Salamah.” She was a great scholar and advised the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) in Ḥudaybiyyah. ‘Ā’ishah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anha) said, “The best women are the women of the anṣār because they didn’t allow their sense of modesty to stop them from seeking knowledge.” We should teach our daughter and encourage them to be next scholar of our deen. Raise them with the intention, “My daughter will teach people the deen.” A lot of good can come to the deen through this.

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2.1.4 Being Purified by Knowledge The Distinction between Banī Isrā’īl and the Ummah of Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) In the Qurʾān in Sūrat’l-Baqarah, Ibrāhīm (‘alayhi’s-salām) makes a du‘ā’ to Allāh and says, “O Allāh, send amongst them a prophet who will teach them the book and the wisdom and will purify them through that.” Imām al-Shāfi‘i said in the Qurʾān, ḥikmah means Sunnah. Allāh answered the du‘ā’ thousands of years later. In Sūrat’l-Jumu‘ah, Allāh says, “He is the one sent amongst the illiterate. A messenger from amongst them who would recite upon them his verses and purify them thereby and teach them the application of it (ḥikmah).” Allāh put tazkiyah before application. Allāh perfected the du’ ’ of Ibrāhīm (‘alayhi’l-salām). After this, Allāh describes how the scholars of the children of Isrā’īl were. “They were like donkeys stacking books on top of their backs.” They had much knowledge and understanding, but it was never internalized, so they used their laws for inappropriate reasons. If you’re not purifying yourself with knowledge, it can be dangerous and lead to deviation. The knowledge did not penetrate the hearts and it became a disease for Banī Isrā’īl . Allāh criticized the practice of Sabbath of Banī Isrā’īl directly. They didn’t actually want to do it, so they found a loophole around it through deviant interpretation. They were able to do this because there was no tazkiya there. Allāh reminds us of this story so we are not like them when orders us to, “O People who Believe! When the call for prayer is given on (Friday) the day of congregation, rush towards the remembrance of Allāh and stop buying and selling; this is better for you if you understand.” When a person has tazkiya, they listen and they obey. This is a distinction between for Banī Isrā’īl and us, we consistently seek purification through our knowledge. Abdullāh b. Mubarak said, “We rush for ilm, but we don’t have the manners for it.” A direct indication of whether or not you seek knowledge for purification is if you are seeking knowledge that interests you rather that what benefits you, then you are seeking knowledge for the wrong reasons. If you just like to hear the weird facts and new stories to tell other people than this knowledge is not purifying. It will have no effect on you and you will forget it. This disease will also lead you to asking some weird questions. Imām al-Sha‘bi was asked the name of Iblīs’s wife, and he said, “I don’t know because I wasn’t invited to the wedding!” Everyone will get from knowledge what he wants. The reason why we pursue knowledge is for tazkiyah and not to learn interesting facts. We can ruin our aqeedah like this. One of reason why we have atheists and agnostics is because we are being raised to be consumers of everything, including deen in America. “This doesn’t make sense to me”, “show me how this benefits me”, “I don’t care about the deen”, “ahadith are not real anyways”, “why

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did Allāh say it like this and not that”, etc., these are all indication of a consumer mentality when it comes to our deen. We can ruin our aqeedah like this. A man came to Imam as-Shafi’ and asked, “How can Allāh punish Iblees with fire when he is made out of fire?” Imam hit him and asked, “Did it hurt you?” The man replied, “Yes.” Imam a-Shafai’ said, “But I’m made of the same thing as you are. Don’t ask dumb questions. Allāh will punish him the way he wants punish him.” Imām Abu Ḥanīfah was asked, “What do you think about what happened between ‘Ali and Mu‘āwiyah?” He said, “I seriously doubt that on the Day of Judgment that Allāh will ask me about ‘Ali and Mu‘āwiyah. Allāh is going to ask me about Nu’mān (his name).” We should try to stay away from knowledge that is not beneficial. If you are looking for the juicy stuff, it’s a sign that your intentions are wrong. There is a famous story: Sufyān b. Uyaynah, a great scholar of ḥadīth, once had a student with him who was following him around and attending his lectures. Sufyān wanted to know what he is learning and asked him to share the knowledge. He said, “I learned three aḥadīth. I learned the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) loves sweets and honey. I learned the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, ‘If ‘ishā’ prayer and food coincide, eat first.’ I learned that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, ‘The reward has gone to the people who have not fasted.’ (referring to when people are on a journey).” Obviously, the man was hungry and hence focused on these ahadith. What you gather is a direct indication of what you are on the inside. Whatever you are looking for is what you will find. Sometimes someone sits in a ḥalaqah and the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said in an authentic ḥadīth, “It may be that the listener of good comprehends it better than the speaker.” Sometimes the person who is listening will catch something that the speaker never understood or thought about from the ḥadīth. Because of the purity of your heart and the purity of your intellect and what you are looking for, you will turn it into something purifying for you and understand it and comprehend it even more than the speaker. The most important function of knowledge is to allow your heart to be enlightened by it. Imām Mālik said, “Knowledge is not memorizing numerous narrations but is instead a light that Allāh places in the heart of the believer.” ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz said, “Whoever makes his religion the object of argumentation will frequently change it.” Don’t make your religion a religion of argumentation. You can give naṣīḥah, but then move on and don’t be a frequent arguer. How many youth you see that go from hardcore this to hardcore that? One day one is a salafi, calling sufi’s grave worshippers, next day one is a sufi, calling salafi’s wahabis, etc.

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Seek that which benefits you and Allāh will “nahdiyyanna subulana-we will surely guide to Our path.” Always pursue truth and have wisdom to see truth. Du‘ā’ of Abu’l-Dardā’:“I ask Allāh for īmān that never wears out, for certainty that is truthful, and for knowledge that is beneficial.” Choosing the Right Scholar When you want someone to do surgery on your body, you would not just pick anyone. So, naturally, when it comes to picking someone who is going to have a direct impact on your ilm and imaan, you want to make sure they are the right person. Many times nowadays, people like to go with the easiest. We like the scholar that says everything is halal. But that is not the best for your soul. A person only deludes himself or herself when they fall into this. Ali (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) said, “The real faqih is the one who does not make people despair of Allāh’s mercy, but at the same time he does not give them concessions to disobey Allāh.” How a message is delivered is very important. The deen is easy by nature, but we should not seek to make it easier than it is. What to look for in a scholar: 1. Knowledge Abu ‘Aliyah said, “I would study for days to a man to hear knowledge from him, and before I would start learning from him, I would observe his prayer for days. If he was someone keen to make sure to pray on time and took time in the motions of prayer, then I would listen to him. If he was neglectful in his prayer, then I thought he would be neglectful in all other matters too.” 2. Manners and character Today we have a lot of “personality cults.” The attitude of the scholars was that they are human and we are human. If a person wants you to kiss his hands or feet or treat him a certain way, it contradicts who he is supposed to be in terms of scholarship. Every single sect that we have in the history of the ummah is the result of a personality that was trying command authority. If a person says, “I am beloved to Allāh,” then it means he is not. ‘Ali (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) said, “Allāh has hidden the ‘awliyah amongst his servants.” It is a secret relationship some people have with Allāh and He adorns them on the Day of Judgment. None of the four imāms said that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) taught them something in a dream to teach to others. People who try to claim credentials through miracles or status in society are people you should avoid.

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If you find a scholar is arrogant, run away. If they try to claim they that they have some special quality and try to boast about that, that is an indication that they are a liar and should be avoided. Some ulema will fight you to remove their hands when you try to kiss their hand. The true ulema don’t feel they are worthy of that treatment and they don’t put themselves on pedastools. Our deen does not have a priest class. “Whomever calls to himself leave him to himself.” Imām Layth b. Sa‘d, the teacher of Imām Mālik, said, “Even if I saw a follower of innovation walking on water, I would reject him.” This was reported to Imām al-Shāfi‘i who said, “He did not go far enough. Even if he was walking in the air, I still wouldn’t accept him.” Abu Bakr al-Maṭū’i man said, “I sat in the circle of Imām Aḥmad for 12 years while he read the Musnad to his children. I never wrote down a single aḥadīth but looked at his behavior, character, and etiquettes.” Ḥasan b. Ismā‘īl said, “I heard my father say, ‘There would gather in the circle of Aḥmad five thousand people or more. Less than five hundred would write, and the rest would look at his good manners and behavior.” Imām Aḥmad would look at the people writing down and say, “Stop writing. Who am I to have my words written down?” Also, when you make a person your deen, and you start seeing the facade of that person, you may end up leaving the deen yourself. Don’t sanctify a scholar and don’t disrespect them either. 3. Correctness Make sure the scholar references Allāh and his Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) frequently. They should remind you of the sunnah. Look at their character and how much they apply the knowledge they are teaching. Acting upon the Knowledge The most important aspect of knowledge is purifying yourself. The second part is acting upon it. Dr Abdur Rahman As-Sumayt was a doctor and daee’ from Kuwait. He opened clinics all over East Africa and over 13 million people accepted Islam through him. People of true knowledge, act upon it. He is a “doer”. This is one of the most important things because no matter how much knowledge you have, if you don’t benefit yourself and others, then it is absolutely pointless and you are like a library that has closed down. This is where we find the difference between people.

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Imām al-Nawawi (raḥimahullāh) wrote Riyāḍ al-Ṣāliḥīn (The Gardens of the Righteous), 40 ḥadīth Nawawi, and a sharḥ on Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim. When you think of him, you probably think of an old man. He was arguably the most productive scholar in history, and he died when he was 36 years old. It is about being a doer and not a talker. It is important to act upon the knowledge that you have. Ibn Taymiyyah was given the title Shaykh’l-Islām by other people. Ibn Taymiyyah was born into a family of scholars. His father was a scholar, his grandfather Aḥmad b. Taymiyyah was a great scholar, and his grandfather was such a great scholar that his son was lost between the sun and the moon. Ibn Taymiyyah had brothers who were all scholars too. Whenever we talk about Ibn Taymiyyah, we are only speaking about one man. Imām al-Dhahabi said, “Imām Ibn Taymiyyah (Taqiy’l-dīn) had a brother names Sharf’l-dīn who was more knowledgeable than him.” Why is it that when we say Ibn Taymiyyah we are referring to Taqiy’l-dīn and not his brother? Ibn Taymiyyah was a doer, and he was on the forefront of da‘wah. He wrote books. ‘Aqīqat’l-wasaṭiyyah (The Balanced Creed) is studied over an entire semester at Madīnah, and he wrote it in one day. He was on the forefront of everything. The doer always succeeds. Practice What You Preach

Do you order righteousness of the people and forget yourselves while you recite the Scripture? Then will you not reason? (al-Baqarah: 44) The Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said in a hadith, "During the night of my ascension, I passed by a group of people. Their lips were being severed with scissors of fire. I said, O Jibreel,who are these people? He said: "They are preachers from your ummah that would say other than what they would do." Al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādi narrated that ‘Ā’ishah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anha) had a young student who would ask her questions. One day she asked, “Son, have you put into practice what you have learned from me?” He said, “No, O mother, I have not.” She said, “Then why are you increasing Allāh’s proof against us? Stop increasing Allāh’s proof against you and me.”

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Abu ‘Aliyah was a great scholar and would leave if he had more than 4 people in his lecture. Sufyān al-Thawri has the title amīr’l-mu’minīn fi’l-ḥadīth. He wouldn’t teach if more than three people sat with him. In those days, the knowledge still continued because there were so many other scholars. In these days, we have a shortage, so you should not stop doing but should keep trying to refine your intention (work on yourself behind the scenes). As long as you are actively engaged in trying to do what you are saying, then inshā’Allāh you won’t be held accountable. When you intentionally tell people that which you purposely don’t do, then it becomes a problem. Keep on giving halaqas, keep on spreading knowledge and at the same time work on yourself. Don’t Preach What You Don’t Practice

O you who have believed, why do you say what you do not do? Great is hatred in the sight of Allah that you say what you do not do. (al-‐Saff: 2-‐3)

Imām al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri was told by the people to give a khuṭbah telling people to free their slaves because too many people in Madīnah were engaged in the slave trade. He stood up the next day at the khuṭbah and didn’t say anything. He did the same the next week. In the third week, he gave a khuṭbah on freeing slaves. Why didn’t he talk about it in the previous two weeks? Imām al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri didn’t own a slave and was afraid to tell people to free a slave when he hadn’t done so himself. In those two weeks, he took a job and saved enough money to free a slave. People will ask, “Is knowledge better or worship better?” Where is the balance? Imām alḤasan al-Baṣri said, “Seek knowledge in a way that doesn’t harm your worship, and seek to worship Allāh in a way that does not harm your pursuit of knowledge.” Imam Malik said, “No one should isolate themselves in worship (for a long time), until they have studied Islam for at least 7 years.”

2.1.5 The Pursuit that Never Ends: What is the greatest difficulty of knowledge? Imām al-Ghazāli said there are three difficulties of knowledge: 1. Keeping yourself in the pursuit of knowledge. 2. Acting upon that knowledge.

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3. Being saved and protected from your knowledge. In Spiderman, Dr. Octopus wanted to create arms to do good, but the arms took over and instead caused harm. If you use your knowledge for corrupt reasons (i.e. to elevate your status, get more money), the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Anyone who seeks knowledge for something worldly will not even smell the fragrance of Paradise.” From the fitnah of a person of knowledge is that they start to think they are better than other people. They develop arrogance and pride. They start to develop love for speech and not love for listening. Knowledge can be bad for a person and can completely destroy a person. You have to analyze, “Is the knowledge I’m seeking making me more humble, appreciative or is it making me look down on people and arrogant?” The pursuit of knowledge has to continue all the time. The more you teach, the more you have to keep learning. Imam Muslim’s death shows the importance of the pursuit of knowledge to scholars. Imam Muslim was working on revisions of hadith with other imams and he made a mistake for the first time in his life. He went home to look for the hadith. He was so troubled while looking for this hadith that he was not eating or drinking. He died neglecting his own body in pursuit of knowledge. Ilm is an amana and one has to continue developing it. Don’t ever think you’re done or that you’ve arrived. Imām Abu Ḥanīfah’s two greatest students were al-Qāḍi Abu Yūsuf and Muḥammad alShaybāni. Their status is so high in the Ḥanafi madh-hab that sometimes their opinions supersede the opinion of Imām Abu Ḥanīfah. Imām Abu Ḥanīfah was not a scholar until his 20s. He was a successful merchant and businessman. Imām al-Sha‘bi saw Imām Abu Ḥanīfah in the market and told him that he had the special qualities of honesty and intelligence and should become a faqīh. Imām Abu Ḥanīfah would look for people with great qualities and polish them and turn them into scholars. He saw Abu Yūsuf as a child and told his mother that he had special qualities and wanted to teach him. He said, “One day your child will be fed from the hands of the kings.” This is exactly what happened because he had such a high status as a judge that the khulafā’ were after him to serve him. One day Imām Abu Ḥanīfah realized that al-Qāḍi Abu Yūsuf was not in the ḥalaqah and asked where he was. He was told that Abu Yūsuf started his own circle. Imām Abu Ḥanīfah wanted to bring him back to the ḥalaqah, so he told one of his students to sit in his ḥalaqah and ask him, “If a person takes his garment to a tailor and pays him to tailor his garment and the tailor steals the thawb and then later feels bad and returns the thawb, then does the man demand his money back from the tailor? If he says ‘yes’ then tell him he is wrong. If he says ‘no’ then tell him he is wrong.” The student did this, and then Abu Yūsuf went to Imām Abu Ḥanīfah and Imām Abu Ḥanīfah started laughing because he knew why he was coming. Imām

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Abu Ḥanīfah gave a brilliant answer: “If the tailor took the thawb and had the intention of stealing it before doing the job, then he has to give the money back, but if he did the job and then kept the thawb and felt bad and returned it, then he keeps the money.” Establishing an Environment of Accountability Everybody needs people to keep them in check. Even the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “My Lord taught me manners.” To do that to someone is to put them in check. Allāh held him to a standard and taught the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) good adab. Use people to create an environment of accountability for yourself. The scholars had the concept of the mu’adhdhib, which is a person who will keep you in check. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The believer is the mirror of his brother.” What is the function of a mirror? It exposes to you faults and things that you would otherwise not have been able to see. When you look in the mirror, things become exposed to you. When the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) says this, it means to have people who can expose faults you would otherwise not have been aware of or recognized. You need people to call you out and give you advice. Once ‘Abdullāh Ibn Mas‘ūd was asked to teach about ikhlas (sincerity). He said, “It is to accept the truth from a person when it comes to you whether he be old or young, whether you love him or hate, you always accept the truth the truth when it comes to you. And whomever comes lying to you even if that person is close to you and beloved to you, you reject it.” Do not become an unadvisable person. There is a ḥadīth in Bukhāri from ‘Ā’ishah: A man came and sought permission to enter upon the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and he said, “Let him in, and what a horrible person he is and what a disgrace to his family.” The man came in and he (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) treated him with courtesy. After the man left, ‘Ā’ishah asked why he treated him with courtesy, and the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The worst of people are those who people avoid advising and correcting out of fear of being abused.” They know that you have a bad temper and stop giving you advice. The worst people in the sight of Allāh are those who don’t want to take advice. Many people have established a reputation of being unadvisable. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) used this as an example to teach us that people should be comfortable giving you advice. Be willing to accept advice. Developing the Attitude of a True Student 1. The role of the people of knowledge Take what’s good from the people of knowledge and leave that which is bad. There is absolutely no reason for a 20 year old to disrespect an 80-year-old scholar, no matter who he

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is. You must have adab with the people of knowledge. Imam al-Dhahabi said, “Whenever there is a large body of water in fiqh, nothing can ever pollute it. Likewise when we look at people of scholarship, we don’t neglect all of their good because of a few bad things (a lavish or wild opinion here and there).” Don’t throw away entire works; rather take the benefit of what is good in it. ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz was the grandson of ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb. His father, ‘Abdul-‘Azīz b. Marwān, was appointed the governor of Egypt. ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz told his father that he wanted to stay in Madīnah with the scholars. The father agreed with the condition that Ṣāliḥ al-Haysan, a great scholar, would watch over him. One day ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz came to ṣalāt’l-fajr after takbīrat’l-iḥrām. Ṣāliḥ said, “I didn’t see you before ṣalāh, where were you?” He said, “I was just combing my hair.” Ṣāliḥ wrote a letter to his father to tell him that his son came to ṣalāt’l-fajr after takbīrat’l-iḥrām because he was combing his hair, and his father sent a letter back along with a barber to shave his son’s head. When ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz became the leader, he asked the scholars to hold him accountable and kept asking for advice. They would sit together for hours and remember death. ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz favorite scholar was the Ubaydullāh b. ‘Abdullāh b. Mas‘ūd. One time ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz went to the door of Ubaydullāh b. ‘Abdullāh b. Mas‘ūd and knocked and sat for an hour. When Ubaydullāh came out an hour later, ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz asked, “Why didn’t you come out when I knocked the first time?” He told him, “I didn’t want you to think that just because you are the khalīfah that you can knock on the door and come in and don’t have to wait.” After Ubaydullāh passed away, he said, “If Ubaydullāh was still alive, I would govern all of you while he governs me.” Having people of knowledge in your life that can correct you and advise you and counsel you is extremely important. 2. The company of the righteous Imām al-Shāfi‘i said, “I love righteous people even though I’m not amongst them, so that maybe I can gain from them an intercession. I hate the corrupt people although I am amongst them.” Imam al-Ahmad when he read that cried and responded, “You love the righteous and you are amongst them. And from people like you are where we gain knowledge. And you hate the one who is corrupt and may Allāh protect us being amongst the corrupt.” Always be around people who are better than you and your standards will change. Hold yourself to high standards. ‘Umar b. Al-Khaṭṭāb said, “Not a single one of you sees a fault of mine except that he points it out.” After he said this, people started to tell him his faults, and he loved it. Usually we make friends on the basis of comfort, because they accept us as we are.

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You want friends who just accept you as you are, but you want friends who will make you better. ‘Ali b. Abi Ṭālib said, “The worst possible friend a person can have is a person who flatters you all the time and expects you to flatter them in return.” These are not your friends but your enemies. You want someone who is going to call you out and tell you what you are doing wrong. These days when we commit sins, we are usually actually congratulated. A friend posts a picture on Facebook, showing what they should not be showing and is not observing proper hijab, and we congratulate them by liking it and telling them how good they look. Abu Bakr and ‘Umar had that special relationship of holding each other responsible. ‘Umar was a much bigger man than Abu Bakr. Usāmah b. Zayd had been appointed the leader of the Muslim army by the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) when he was only 17. When Rasūlullāh died, the people told. ‘Umar to talk to Abu Bakr about Usāmah because they thought he was too young to lead the army. They waited outside the house of Abu Bakr. ‘Umar went inside and said, “I think he may not be as qualified.” Abu Bakr grabbed ‘Umar from the beard and said, “May your mother lose you! You want me to do something different than what the Prophet (ṣallallāhu‘alayhi wa sallam) ordered?” ‘Umar said, “No.” ‘Umar went out and told the people, “May all of your mothers lose you!” ‘Umar did not think for a moment that this was person or Abu Bakr was a hater. They had a relationship and when they called each other out, they knew it was for their own good. Try to find this type of relationship that will call you out and watch your back; not the one who will make you more comfortable with yourself 3. Consider what your enemies say about you Sometimes there is truth in what your enemies say, even if it is just a little of it. Consider it and think over it. A man came to Imām al-Shāfi‘i and said, “You are a sinner and liar.” Imām al-Shāfi‘i said, “O Allāh, if he is telling the truth, then make him succeed and purify me from that sin. If he is lying, then forgive him for what he said.” Moreover, if more than one person is saying something about you, then it means that it is probably true. 4. Learn from the flaws of people around you When you see someone around committing mistakes frequently, don’t use that an opportunity to look down at them. See what it is that they are doing wrong and commit to yourself to not fall into the same mistakes. Do the opposite of what they are doing. Imam Hasan al-Basri was asked, “Who taught you good manners?” He answered, “I just observed the manners of those around me and did the opposite of what they were doing.”

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5. Learn from people of all ages This is hard for the youth and elders. Old people have a hard time taking advice from young people, thinking they are being disrespected. While the young people have hard time taking advice from old people, thinking they are irrelevant and foolish. Ibrāhīm’s father did not to his son. And many old people don’t listen to younger ones, “because, they don’t know what they’re talking about anyways.” Imām al-Muzani said, “In the past, when the older people would see the younger people, they would say, ‘I need to learn from him because I preceded him in bad deeds.’ When the younger people would see the older people, they would say, ‘I need to learn from him because he has preceded me in good.’” Everyone was trying to learn from everyone. This is really powerful. The elder is thinking, “He lived longer than me and did more good than me,” while the elder is thinking “He lived longer than me and is still pure, let me learn from him.” Imām ash-Shāfi‘i was teaching the fiqh of fasting in Madīnah in the masjid of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) while he was drinking water and not fasting. People were wondering why their shaykh was eating and drinking while teaching the fiqh of fasting and asked him. He said, “I have not reached the age of puberty.” Someone asked, “How old are you?” He said, “Mind your own business.” The man said, “Why did you say that?” He said, “I asked Imām Mālik this question and he told me this answer.” The elders should learn from the youth, and the youth should never feel too arrogant to learn from those who are older. A sign of ego is when you have a problem learning from someone younger than you. Advice to the young ones: accompany older people and you will become mature at a very young age. Their experience and wisdom will rub off. 6. Your family members. This is probably the most significant. Nobody after Allāh knows you better than your family, so you need to make sure that you ask them for advice and seek advice from them. No one sees your lack of character or greatness of character more than your family. One of the fallacies with “great men” and “great women” is that they have demons in their closet, which come out later in life. The people inside the household have a totally different tale than everyone else. One of the beauties of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) is that the more you know him, the more you love him. Anas said, “He was the best person of character.” He knew him better than others. The wives of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) had nothing but beautiful things to say about him. When Umm Salamah when heard the ḥadīth “the best amongst you is he who is the best to his family,” she would say, “You have told the truth, Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam).” The companions would compete for his love. No one knows you better than those who you are exposed to for the most amount of time. Seek naṣīḥah from your husband/wife. Establish the environment of accountability in the home. If

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your parents think you are rotten person, then it does not matter how great everyone else thinks you are. If your spouse thinks you are monster, but people on the outside think you are a great person, it’s an indication of messed up you are on the inside. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “May Allāh have mercy on a man who wakes up in the middle of the night and wakes his wife up, and if she refuses, he sprinkles water on her face. May Allāh have mercy on a woman who wakes up in the middle of the night to pray and wakes her husband up, and if he refuses, she sprinkles some water on his face.” It is an environment of holding each other accountable. Create this environment in the home. Consider yourself a business, and you are marketing yourself to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). You are trying to seek the Face of Allāh. As a business, when someone posts reviews, which customers do you look at most? The most frequent buyers. Make sure those who are most exposed to you are satisfied most. The closer people are to you, the more they should see your goodness. You can learn a lot about yourself, just by asking your family. Also if your product is flawed, it doesn’t matter what your customers think. At the same time, know that none of the advice you receive from people can replace your own tazkiyat’l-nafs and chastisement of yourself. 7. People above you and below you There are some people that can give you true advice even though they might be terrible people or less than you in deen. A saying: “To hold a grudge is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.” When you hold a grudge, you have allowed the person trying to make you angry happy because they know that they have been able to hurt you. Sufyān al-Thawri said, “We loved a people from whom it was said to us ‘fear Allāh.’” Nowadays people are annoyed and feel insulted when they hear this. Abu Hurayrah was once guarding some of the charity. He caught a man taking from charity. The man said he is poor and needs to take care of his family. Abu Hurayrah let him go. He told the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) what happened, and the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said the man lied and will be back. The next day, the same thing happened and Abu Hurayrah let him go. He told the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) what happened, and the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said the man lied and will be back. The third time, Abu Hurayrah said he was going to take the man to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), and the man said, “Let me teach you something to protect your money.” He taught him āyat’l-kursi. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), “That was Shayṭān. He told the truth even though he was a liar.” If Abu Hurayrah can learn from Shayṭān, then you can learn from anyone. Learn

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to be a student of knowledge, observe and find ways to benefit from all those around you, even if they are a terrible person. Heed lessons from everyone. Ask the people around you to keep you in check. The worst thing to do when someone gives you advice is to then ask them if you can give them advice. If someone gives you advice, then in that same sitting, do not give them back advice because your ego may have been bruised. Seek advice and take it. Don’t respond to it. Thank the person for giving you advice. It is good for you to keep on seeking advice from people.

Chapter 2: Minding Your Own Business 2.2.1 For your own good

O you, who have believed, avoid much [negative] assumption. Indeed, some assumption is sin. And do not spy or backbite each other. Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his brother when dead? You would detest it. And fear Allāh; indeed, Allāh is Accepting of repentance and Merciful. (al-Ḥujurāt: 12). Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) is telling us to avoid suspicion and to mind our own business. Suspicion causes one to start spying and backbiting about that which does not concern. It makes us curious and look for more details. It starts from suspicion and with a person who does not know how to mind his own business. Rasullulah (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Part of someone being a good Muslim is his leaving alone that which does not concern him.” (al-Tirmidhi). Remember that when you point a finger at someone, there are 3 fingers pointing back at you.

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Imām al-Shāfi‘i said, “Do not allow your tongue to mention the faults of other people because you are covered in faults and other people have tongues too. If you fall upon something displeasing of your brother, then conceal it and tell your eye that other people have eyes too.” It’s really for your own good. We live in the era of social media and it is absolutely destructive where we spend hours of our day minding other people’s business. It is truly destructive for your soul and it lead to leads to gossip and other sins. Mind your own business! ‘Abdullāh Ibn Mas‘ūd one time came across a man who smelled like alcohol. Someone asked him, “Aren’t you going to take care of him?” He replied, “It’s none of my business. I didn’t see him drinking.” Imām al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri said, “One of the signs that Allāh has abandoned you is when he busies himself with what does not concern him.” Also Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said, “Whoever is busy with himself is distracted from others. Whoever is busy with Allāh is distracted from himself.” For your own good, for your own productivity, do not allow yourself to be a gossip king or queen and do not become a monitor for watching others. Monitor yourself and tell other people that you need their help. ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb was on his night patrol. He would take rice and wheat to distribute to the poor. One night ‘Abdullāh b. Mas‘ūd was with him, and they heard music in someone’s house. ‘Umar peeked over the wall and saw an old man with a woman who should not be there, and she was singing to him. ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb said, “O old man, shouldn’t you be waiting for your death? Fear Allāh!” The old man responded, “You fear Allāh! You have violated my rights by spying on me.” ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb started crying and went to ‘Abdullāh b. Mas‘ūd who asked him what was wrong. ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb didn’t say anything and was so afraid that he had violated someone’s rights. Later, he saw the old man in a gathering and whispered in his ear, “I just wanted to tell you that by Allāh, I have never told anyone about this in my life, even ‘Abdullāh b. Mas‘ūd who was with me.” The man whispered back, “By Allāh, I have not committed those sins since that night.” Don't get yourself in trouble by following other people. If you see someone doing something they shouldn’t be, make excuses for them.

2.2.2 For the good of your brother Do not support your brother’s devil against him. How many youth stop coming to the masjid, because they feel like they are being judged?

2.2.3 Giving the benefit of the doubt

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Give the person the benefit of the doubt. Give him 70 excuses, and if you cannot think of excuses, then think that he has an excuse which you can’t think of and don’t know about. Mind your own business and move on. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “He who sees something which should be kept hidden and concealed will be on the Day of Judgment like the one who brought a dead girl buried alive back to life.” This is because you have saved the person’s reputation. Don’t hate the sinner because he sins different from you. We all have sins and we should never try to justify or make ourselves feel better by pointing out other people’s sins. A sister who has issues praying should not point out a sister who has troubles with hijab to make herself seem better. We’ve got our own issues and faults to worry about, no need to look further. Imam Sufyan at-Thawri said, “May Allāh have mercy on the person whose own faults made him too busy to be concerned with the faults of other people.” Cover the other person. When you cover someone, you hide their faults and beautify them. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Whoever covers the believer, Allāh will cover him on the Day of Judgment.” Allāh will conceal your faults on the Day of Judgment. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Whoever follows the ‘awrah of his brother, Allāh will expose him even if he is in the middle of his home.” Imām al-Qisa’i forgot Sūrat’lKāfirūn while reciting, and a man by the name of al-Yazīdi stood up and started to humiliate him. In the next ṣalāh, al-Yazīdi stood to lead ṣalāh and could not get past “alḥamdulillāhi rabbi’l ʿālamīn.” Makes sure your intentions are sincere when you advise someone. You want to elevate them not humiliate them. As a da’iee, if you see something wrong and you see someone mess up, you go to them caring for them. Say, “Look I love you, I care about you. I haven’t told about this to anyone. I just wanted to help you out. Is there any way I can help?” If they see your sincere will, inshaAllāh they will change as result of that. While some people know that they are doing wrong, they will feel uncomfortable knowing others know. At the least, they will appreciate you keeping it to yourself and not gossiping about it. You cover them and beautify them. You should also always give nasihah on the side when you come across something. Don’t ever go searching for other people’s mistakes and don’t ever publicize them either. Imagine how much time is wasted following people on Facebook and social media, finding things out about people you shouldn’t really know about. Time that that you could have spent on bettering yourself. Don’t obsess yourself with other people’s problems and faults.

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If someone happens to be constantly criticizing you, don’t take it personally. If they are just trying to hurt you, take it with a grain of salt. Swallow it and just let it go. If you go and seek to get them back, however, it shows you have a ego issue. If this happens in the public eyes and involves your deen or society, however, you have to defend yourself. Make sure you are standing up for the deen of Allāh, however and not just your ego. In this society, one must learn to grow a thick skin, especially in our communities where we have a chronic disorder of criticizing people.

Chapter 3: Treating Destructive Flaws Everything must be treated with its opposite. You treat extremes with extremes. If a person is at a point where they cannot control themselves and gradually disengage themselves, then they have to disengage from it rapidly. Abdus Salam Rahimullah said, “Allāh always treats extremes with extremes until everything comes to the middle.” Prophet (S.A.W) used to prohibit visiting the grave, because people had an addiction to worshipping the grave. It was reversed once they were firm on their aqeedah. Always consider the disease worse than its expression. Usually when you are trying to emphasize something the expression used is almost always more extreme that what you are actually trying to express (ex: the heat is killing me). But when Allāh uses an expression it does not match the severity of that sin. Because you are sinning against a Lord that is Rahim and he is your own creator. Prevention vs. Restoration “An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.” If you go through the list of character flaws mentioned in this class and realize you don’t have these problems of riya, pride, lying, backbiting, etc. and know how to protect yourself from them, it will be much easier for you to avoid those sins than someone who is already deeply indulged in them.

2.3.1 Curing Bad Character Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) summarized his mission by saying, “I was only sent to perfect good character.” What got Shayṭān out of Jannah and to be forever cursed was not lack of worship, but rather a character flaw. The Messenger of Allāh (SallAllāhu ALaihi Wasallam) was seated in a gathering with the Sahabah when he looked towards the entrance and said, “A man of Paradise is coming.” At that instance someone who seemed to be very ordinary entered the mosque where they were seated.

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A Sahabi was curious as to why the Prophet said this, so he followed the man to his house. This Sahabi told the man that he was a traveler and stayed as a guest. For three days the Sahabi saw nothing unusual, so he finally told the man what the Prophet had said and asked him what was so special. The man thought for a long time and said, “There might be one thing — before going to sleep every night I forgive everyone and sleep with a clean heart." Good character with minimum worship allows a person to attain a place that Shayṭān lost after thousands of years of worship because of a character flaw. Character is that important. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “A person will exceed the level of one who is always fasting and praying Qiyam through good character.” Good character is something we can ascend with. When we don’t have good character we could be destroying ourselves even when we have many acts of worship; they can all be a deception. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “There is nothing heavier on the scale on the day of judgement than khuluq”. Khuluq is internal beauty. Dua of Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam): “Allāhumma kama hassanta khalqi fahassin khuluqi.” O Allāh, the way you have beautified my outside beautify my inside (internal image).” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was told about a woman who fasted much, prayed much, and gave charity much but abused her neighbors. The ṣaḥābah asked about her status, and the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “La khayra fiha. There is no good inside of her. She is in Hellfire.” There was no beauty inside of her. Imām Ibn Qayyim says, “The soul is much more in need of beautification than the body.’” “Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says, ‘I am creating this human being from clay. I created him and breathed in him from My Spirit. Make prostration towards him.’” An academic said this means that we all have Allāh inside of us, but this is not what it means. This is Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) venerating and honoring the soul. Ibn Qudāmah said, “Allāh did not command the angels to prostrate towards Ādam until the soul was there. This is the same thing when we say the Ka‘bah is baytullāh. It is Allāh’s way of venerating the Ka‘bah.” Allāh is venerating the soul. Truly beauty is on the inside. Inner beauty is true beauty. The khalq (exterior) is worthless. Many people think character is not changeable. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Verily, knowledge is through seeking it, and forbearance is through learning it.” To get knowledge, you go and study. The same way that you learn knowledge is the same way you gain good character; by practice. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Whoever seeks good will be given good (will achieve it), and whoever seeks to avoid evil will be protected from it.” When you try to attain a good character, Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla)

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makes it attainable. Anger is one of the hardest characteristics to change. But it can be done through practice and anger management. Every characteristic is the same way. With good character, intention still counts. If you are pretending to have good character so that people think a certain way of you, you will not be rewarded for it. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “A person who tries to show something that is not truly of him is like the one who is wearing two garments of falsehood.” For example, if you are getting in an argument and say, “May Allāh forgive you, brother” because you want people to think you are humble and your intention is that people will say good things about you, then it doesn’t count. If you are trying to practice a good quality, then that is fine because that it is still for Allāh’s sake. To do something trying to show off (riyah), however, can be really destructive.

2.3.2 Backbiting / al-Ghībah ‘Umar Ibn’l-Khaṭṭāb came upon Abū Bakr al-Ṣiddīq pulling his tongue. ‘Umar said to him, “Stop, may Allāh forgive you!” Abū Bakr replied, “This tongue has brought me to dangerous places.” ‘Umar Ibn’l-Khaṭṭāb ‫ ﻫﮬﮪھﻨﻊ!ﻳﯾﻀﺮ‬said:‘Whoever speaks a lot will make many mistakes and whoever makes mistakes will commit many sins and whoever commits many sins will find that the Hellfire is his dwelling place.’ The Prophet (ṣallallāhu‘alayhi wa sallam) said, "When the son of Adam gets up in the morning, all of the organs of his body submit to his tongue and say: 'Fear Allāh with us for our condition is according to you. If you are good, we will be good; and if you are bad, we will become bad."'[At- Tirmidhi]. If a person has a dirty heart, they will have dirty tongue. “A plate of food is your heart and the spoonful is your tongue.” It’s a direct indication of internal nastiness when a person says things that are wrong. We have many different tongues today, unfortunately. Abu’l-Dardā’ said, “Allāh gave you two ears and only one tongue, so use them with their due proportion.” But now our iPhone is a tongue, our laptop is a tongue, etc. Also our Facebook, twitter and emails are also tongues. There are so many ways express to ourselves now and they’re all our tongue. We are now constantly busy talking at people and not really listening anymore. We don’t use our ears and tongue in proportion. Even our gestures have words. ‘Aisha once made a gesture to indicate that Umm alMu’mineen Safiyyah was short. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “You have said a word that if you were to spit it in the ocean it would pollute the entire ocean.’

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The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, "Whoever guarantees me (the chastity of) what is between his legs (i.e. his private parts), and what is between his jaws (i.e., his tongue), I guarantee him Paradise." If speaking is silver, then silence is gold. Allāh gives us that preventative measure. Allāh says, “Certainly will, the believers have succeeded: They who are during their prayer humbly submissive and they who turn away from idle speech” in Suratul Mu’minoon (1-3). Idle speech is neutral, but if you’re consistent with it, you're bound to fall into all of the other things (backbiting, slandering, lying, etc.). The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Whoever believes in Allāh and the last day, let him speak well or keep silent.” Silence is truly golden. If you speak too much, you will mess up. Imam al-Hasan Basri said, “The heart of the believer is in front of his tongue.” Before he speaks, he considers whether or not this is good for him. Tongue of the hypocrite is in front of his heart, the tongue speaks and then he considers whether or not it was right or wrong. Consider what you say and write before doing so. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) would never speak until the other person would finish. It was from his khuluq. He would never cut off anyone and let the other person talk. Doing this gives you a chance to consider or not you should say what you’re about say. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was asked what are the things that enter a person into Jannah most. He replied, “Fear of Allāh and good character.” And as for things that enter a person into hellfire most he said, “the private part and the tongue.” Mu‘ādh asked the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), “Will we even be punished for the things that we say?” He (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), “Nothing causes a person to fall on his face in Hellfire more than the harvest of the tongue.” It is a matter of just saying one thing. Silence strengthens your determination. There are talker and doers. Hold yourself online and in gatherings. Don’t comment on everything. Don’t post whatever you feel like posting. Don’t send text message whenever you feel like it. Silence is always good for you. You’re taking a risk every time you open your mouth. Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Verily the most beloved of you and the closest of you to me in the hereafter is the one with the best manners, and, the most hated of you to me in the hereafter is ath-tharthaaroon al- mutafayhiqoon al-mutashaddiqoon.” Ath-Tharthaaroon – Someone who talks about any and everything. He always has an opinion on everything. He just has to talk. Al-Mutashaddiqoon – Literally this means someone who rhymes excessively to impress people. Today, they would be those people who use big words to try to impress another person. The halal “wine & cheese” people, someone purposely showing off and is looking to be praised.

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Al-Mutafayhiqoon – Someone who speaks condescendingly, speaks down to people. There is a difference between internal arrogance and speaking condescendingly. However, it is usually a very good sign of arrogance. Luqman the Wise was ordered by his master to bring the best part of the lamb for him. Luqman returned with the tongue. His master asked him, the next day, to bring the worst part of lamb. Again, Luqman returned with the tongue. The master then inquired how the same organ could be both the best and worst at the same time. Luqman replied that if you use the tongue for good things it is the best part of your body. If, on the other hand, it is used in the wrong way, it can become your worst enemy. It is therefore, either the best part of your body or the worst part. Everything is either for you or against you. Allāh did not create anything without a purpose. Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri said, “Allāh has created two gates for the tongue: your teeth and lips. Learn to use your gates properly.” Your lips and teeth are a prison, so leave your tongue in prison sometimes. When a person is silent that allows them more chances to do good. Video on backbiting: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzSB1uKOtCg One way to avoid backbiting is to have a wird of istighfaar. It can be something from sunnah like azkaar, etc, to keep tongue busy with good things. O you, who have believed, avoid much [negative] assumption. Indeed, some assumption is sin. And do not spy or backbite each other. Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his brother when dead? You would detest it. And fear Allāh; indeed, Allāh is Accepting of repentance and Merciful. (al-Ḥujurāt: 12) Amr ibn al-‘Aas was walking with some of his companions when they passed by a rotting carcass of a dead mule. He then said to his companions, ‘By Allāh, it would be better for a man to eat his fill from the meat of this than from the flesh of his fellow Muslims.’ Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) asked the companions, “Do you know what backbiting is?” They said, “Allāh and His Messenger know best.” “Backbiting implies talking about your brother in a manner he does not like. If what you said about him is true, then it is ghībah, and if what you said is not true, then it is namīmah (slander).” Gheebah is linguistically from ghayb, which means the unseen; someone that is absent. Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says, “Would any one of you like to eat the dead flesh of his brother?” Why does Allāh use the word dead? Because the person is dead and hence helpless and unable to defend himself. Also if you were to eat the flesh of a dead person, who is getting hurt? You. You are the one hurting yourself.

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The implication of gheebah are very severe. It can be carried out through gesture and listening also. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “A Muslim is the brother of a Muslim. He neither oppresses him nor betrays him nor looks down upon him…” Backbiting falls into all of these categories. Oppression and belittling are actually forms of backbiting and betrayal is where you allow others to backbite your brothers or sisters and you do not say anything about it. Listening to backbiting is therefore, just as bad as backbiting itself. By listening to others you are simply a silent devil. You are giving your implicit approval to them. Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said you will be punished two times on the Day of Judgment for instigating backbiting. Once for instigating it and the other for causing others to fall into the sin. Also in another hadith reported by Imam Abu-Dawud, that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, "When I was ascended up (Miraj), I passed by some people with copper nails, scratching their faces and chests. Then I asked Jibreel, who are these people? He then answered, "Those are the ones who eat peoples’ flesh (Backbite people) and are accusing people by talking bad about them." What is the relationship between backbiting and scratching our own face over and over again? By doing ghībah in this world we are essentially harming or shaming the face of a person in society. A just recompense for that will be we will be forced to rip and tear our own physical face. Someone came to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and showed the Prophet two women who were fasting and said that they were dying of thirst. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) turned away silently refusing to give permission for them to break their fast. So, the man begged him again, mentioning that the women were on the verge of death. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) then said, bring them to me and bring along a bowl. When they turned to him, he (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) turned to one and told her to vomit in the bowl. She complied, spitting up a mixture of vomit, blood, pus and pieces of flesh which half-filled the bowl. He (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) then turned to the other and had her do the same. After the bowl was filled, he said, “Verily these two have fasted from what Allāh has made Ḥalāl for them and broken their fast from what Allāh has made Ḥarām. They spent their fast eating the flesh of others.” If we are involved in backbiting in any manner, even if it be passive, we need to work to change the situation. Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said,“Whosever of you sees an evil, let him change it with his hand; and if he is not able to do so, then [let him change it] with his tongue; and if he is not able to do so, then with his heart — and that is the weakest of faith.” If people are backbiting and you don’t have the courage to say anything then leave,

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this is the least you can do. Don’t just sit there in a way that gives implicit approval. Otherwise you are not even fulfilling the condition of disliking it in your heart. The causes of ghībah are usually present in out insecurities about ourselves. Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) “Whoever please people at the expense of the anger of Allāh, Allāh will hate and will cause the people to hate him too.” Eventually a gossiper is not liked by anybody, because it starts off with one person but eventually they gossip about everyone. He also continues, “Whoever pleases Allāh at the expense of his popularity, Allāh will be pleased with him and will cause the people to love him too.” People will remind you of your own sins and shaytan will try to hold you back when you try to stop backbiting and other sins. People don’t like to be told they are wrong. If anyone claims they would say the same bad things to the person’s face, it just means they are rude. But backbiting is still wrong and you need to take the first step. Eventually people will start to like you and appreciate you when they understand that you are a person of trust. Some people backbite out of complacency, some out of anger, some to make others laugh but it is extremely important that we diagnose the cause of our backbiting and address them. Victims of backbiting Abdur Rahman ibn Mahdi said, ‘I dislike people to disobey Allāh, otherwise I would wish that everyone in this world would backbite me. There is no equal joy to find a good deed on your scale on the Day of Judgment you did not even know about or even had.’ ‘Abdullāh the son of Imām Ahmad said that once a man came to his father and said, ‘Oh Abū Abdillah, I have backbitten you, so please forgive me.’ Imām Ahmad said to the man, ‘You are forgiven if you do not do it again.’ As a Daa’ee, Imām Ahmad wanted to not only forgive the man but to remind him that he should never commit this sin again. There are three conditions generally for tawbah, but there is an additional condition when it comes to repenting from backbiting. Feeling guilty for the sin, seeking forgiveness, don’t return to seek, and fourth being if you have harmed a person, seek forgiveness from them and returning their rights to them. We need forgiveness from both the person we have harmed and from Allāh. Some people came to Imām Ibn Sireen, and confessed that they had backbitten against him and asked for his forgiveness. He replied, ‘As for me, I have forgiven you, but, I cannot make lawful what Allāh has made unlawful. We should therefore remind those who backbite that they are infringing on the rights of the people and also the rights of Allāh. Forgiveness therefore needs to be sought from both the people and from Allāh.

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How do you seek forgiveness from someone after you have backbitten about him? Won't it be counterproductive? If it’s a person that you think will understand and by approaching those things will get better then tell them. But in reality, the best way to undo the harm you’ve caused is to say good things about the person in front of the same people you have bad things about them to. Restore their face just as you destroyed it. This is far more critical than asking them for their forgiveness. Let them know that you had previously lied and speak well of the person. Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri and Sufyān al-Thawri were peers and they had a way of dealing with those who had backbitten them. If they ever heard of anyone backbiting them, they would send a basket of fruits to those people and write, “I heard that you were giving me your good deeds and this was the only thing I can find to repay you with, so please accept it.” If you are a victim of backbiting then rejoice, those are your good deeds. If you are guilty then think of the punishment. If you have been backbiting people for a long time then send out a mass email, text, status update or call people and say, “Look I used to backbite a lot and I just want to make sure that all of you forgive me. If I’ve ever backbitten about you, please forgive me.” Try to make things better, seek Allāh’s forgiveness and purify yourself. Backbiting usually starts with keeping the wrong friends around. You will backbite if you are consistently surrounded by people who backbite. Don’t spend time around unless you can actually tell them to stop. When does backbiting become permissible? 1. Complaining about oppression or injustice to someone who can help If you need to complain to the imām or a friend who can help, then it is fine to backbite. What about talking about a ruler? The rulers are doing their actions in public and are open transgressors. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Do not forbid people for speaking ill of the fājir (person who disobeys Allāh).” 2. Seeking the help from someone to correct something wrong 3. Asking for a fatwa- its khiyaanah if you don't tell 4. Warning a person at risk of harm If you know someone is a bad businessman, its betrayal when you don’t tell the person entering in a business with him about it. Similarly in marriage. 5. When someone has a title that has a bad meaning but the person is known by it. Al-A‘mash means “the one who is blind.” This was a name he called himself. This is very rare. Make sure if a person has a nickname with a bad meaning that he is seriously okay with it being used and was not bullied into it. 6. Speaking about a proud sinner- zikrul faajir. This refers to someone who publicly disobeys Allāh and is proud of it.

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CAUTION: These are all exceptions to the prohibition of backbiting, however, if your desire to commit ghībah is really strong, you will find a way to make it fall under one of these exceptions. But, know that you are not fooling anyone, but your own self. PRACTICAL TIP: Anytime you’re going to apply an exception, make sure you ask a person of knowledge that it is permissible and that you don't fall into something severe. Anytime you backbite you are putting your imaan at risk. Say only what needs to be said and move on.

2.3.3 Slander / al-Namīmah (Tale-Carrying) Allāh says in Sūrat’l-Ḥujurāt, “If someone comes to you with nabā’ (news), then verify it.” Nabā’ in the Arabic language is different from khabr. In English, they are both news. Nabā’ is news that requires your response. Khabr is all news. Allāh says, “If nabā’ comes to you, then verify it.” If any other news comes to you that doesn’t pertain to you, then you ignore it. If it has nothing to do with you, then it is not your business. This is for your own good because Khabr can waste your time and efforts. It leads to backbiting and other things.

There are two categories of namīmah: saying something about someone that is untrue or coming to someone and saying “so and so said this about you” (starting enmity between people). The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “He who starts enmity between people by quoting their words to each other will not enter Paradise (even if they are true words).” Slandering can be even from just hinting. When Safwan appeared, leading ‘Aisha on the camel, ‘Abdullāh ibn Ubai ibn Salul did not directly accuse them of adultery. All he did was say, ‘By Allāh, he was not safe from her, nor, was she safe from him.’ This was all he said. After that, people started talking. These few words caused so much distress to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and his family. Allāh therefore, condemned those who passed the slander and those who did not stop the slander when it came to them. Allāh says in Suratun-Noor “Why - when you (O believers) heard of it - did the believing men and the believing women not think well about their own selves, and (why did they not) say, ‘This is a manifest lie’. Why did they (the accusers) not bring four witnesses to prove this?...(1213).” Once a woman was giving the ghusl of a dead woman, and she said, “Wallāhi, these private parts were dirty and involved with many men.” Her hand became stuck to the body. People were going around asking imams what to do. Imām Mālik said, “Lash her with the punishment of slandering a chaste woman.” When she was lashed, her hand came loose from the body. Then the people started to say, “No one should give fatwa while Imām Mālik is alive in Madīnah.” Sometimes we go as far as to slander dead people. But what guarantees

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your forgiveness when you slander dead people. Are you going to be able to ask them for forgiveness? Note: be especially careful of not backbiting a righteous person. This is another level. The scholars said, “The flesh of the righteous is poison.” It is worse because Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says in a ḥadīth qudsi: “Whoever takes a close friend of Mine as an enemy, then I have waged war against him.” It is worse if you speak ill of a righteous person. You don’t know if a person is righteous or not. You may be escalating to another level without realizing it. Whenever you spread news about people and stir up enmity, you are Shayṭān’s mailman. ‘Ali b. Abi Ṭālib said, “The person who spreads namīmah (the nammām) will cause in an hour the fitnah of months.” By telling your friend what someone else said about him, are you really doing him any good. No you’re being a nammah. Don’t go to people and quote them to each other. Imām al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri said,“Whoever says to you ‘someone said such and such about you,’ then know that he goes to another person and says that you said such and such about him.” Six things Imam Qudamah said to do if someone comes to you saying: “He said this about you!” 1. Don’t believe him. Don’t entertain what they said and think of it as a lie. You are not allowed to believe this person. 2. Advise him to stop. STOP! Tell them you are not comfortable with this. You have to inform and remind this person that he is not allowed to do this. This is forbidden. 3. Show anger with him. You should show anger in your attitude and facial expression. 4. Don’t think ill of the accused. Don’t think, “Well, what if they really did say that?” Don’t let this person’s statement penetrate into you in any way whatsoever. 5. Don’t start spying to find out if what was said was true. Not worth it. You are not allowed to go to the first person and find out if he really said such and such about you and you are not allowed to ask others who was in his gathering either. 6. Don’t pass the slander. Don't become a part of the satanic train. “A tale-carrier will never enter Paradise.” (al-Bukhāri & Muslim) Our Muslim community has become like Fox news. A guy is seen in a mall with a girl and next thing we know everything is blown out of proportion. After a meeting we go and tell so and so this person said this about you in a board meeting/halaqa/conference meeting. We consistently divide and destroy communities through namimah. How do you face Allāh

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subhanAllāh wa ta'ala with that sin? You did not allow people to live in peace. Why Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) did not specify the punishment for nameemah like gheebah. He just said, they don’t go to Jannah. Because the man did not allow people to live in peace so he all will not be allowed to live in darussalam-the home of peace. He kept a community out of peace. Question: Is it ghiba to make fun of how someone speaks? A: Yes. Sometimes we think that if we are doing it in a religious context, we think its okay. No, it’s not. Question: What should we say to someone who backbites and says this is their way of venting? A: Tell them to learn to vent to Allāh. The is no good complaining to people except that you depress a good friend or make someone who doesn’t like you from your misfortune. When someone hurts you, vent to Allāh, like Prophet Jacob (‘alayhi wa sallam). Question: is it still bad when do it about non muslims? A: Even if we try to argue it’s not that severe, it’s still, bad manners. You need to really watch out especially in work and school settings. Question: If your family member has committed a crime and spouse complains about it all the time A: still counts as backbiting, complaint one that can help you, who can actually do something about the situation. Question: Is it ghibah to use someone as an example to teach a leson? A: Yes, if the person you’re telling the story knows who you are talking about. You can tell stories about yourself, however. But if the person does not want his story to be told, you cannot share it. Islam is big on second chances. There are many opportunities to do tawbah. Even if a person commits zina and then repented, they are not supposed to tell their spouse about it when getting married. Similarly when you talk about person over and over and give them the label of failure and bury them deeper and deeper. A lot of backbiting is just having too much time on our hands, too many parties, and invitations. Pick and choose the social gathering as you go to. Make an excuse if you think it'll be more harm. You’re bound to mess up otherwise. Caution: The idea of speak your mind is ridiculous.

2.3.4 Lying / al-Kadhib Narrated ‘Abdullāh Ibn Mas‘ūd (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa

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sallam) said, “Truthfulness leads to righteousness, and righteousness leads to Paradise. And a man keeps on telling the truth until he becomes a truthful person. Falsehood leads to al-fajūr (i.e. wickedness, evil-doing), and al-fajūr leads to the (Hell) Fire, and a man may keep on telling lies till he is written before Allāh, a liar.” [Sahīh al-Bukhāri and Muslim] Siddiq is a person who always tells the truth and never tells a lie. Khthab is someone who is a frequent liar. Lying with your actions is the essence of hypocrisy. Imām Ibn Taymiyyah said that everywhere in the Qurʾān that Allāh mentions hypocrisy, (nifāq) He also mentions lying (kadhib). There is a weak ḥadīth that a believer can be a coward or miser but cannot be a liar. However, the meaning of this hadith is somewhat true. To be a consistent liar would almost require that a person be devoid of Imān. Abū Hurayrah narrates that the Prophet said, “It is sufficient lying for a person to say everything he hears.” In Islam there are no white lies. If a person is comfortable wiht small lies, they are bound to become comfortable with big lies. Conditions under which lying is acceptable Don’t keep looking for the exceptions because eventually you will fall into the prohibited. Make sure the rules actually apply. Asmā’ b. Yazīd narrates from the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) that there are three forms of permissible lying: in battle, to your spouse, and to reconcile between two parties. In battle you can lying is allowed in limited instaces, for example when it is strategic. But one is not allowed to lie in something like a treaty and break such treaties. It is allowed to lie to reconcile between two people. One can say to the individuals fighting, “He actually likes you and was saying good things about you.” It is allowed for husband and wife to exaggerate with each other to make each other feel good. It is allowed for a man to tell his wife that she is the most beautiful woman in the world. Don’t go overboard, however. A man told his wife, “You are divorced if you are not more beautiful than the moon.” He then went to Imām Mālik and asked if he was divorced, and Imām Mālik said, “Yes.” Imām al-Shāfi‘i was present at the time and didn’t want to disrespect Imām Mālik by contradicting him, so he followed the man home and said, “You are not divorced because your wife is more beautiful than the moon because Allāh says, ‘We have

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created man with the best creation.’” Imām Mālik later heard about this and laughed and praised Imām al-Shāfi‘i. The righteous really hated lying and even when it was permissible to lie they found ways out of lying. One time Imām al-Sha‘bi was studying a question of jurisprudence, and he wanted to be left alone. He told his daughter, “If anyone comes and asks for me, say he is not here (he drew a circle on the door and told her to point at it when saying this).” On another occasion he told his wife, ‘Fifty thousand years before the sky was introduced to the world, Allāh wrote your name next to mine.’ Al-Mughīrah b. Shu‘bah wanted to marry a woman from a tribe, and his friend said, “She is not a good match for you, I saw her kiss a man one time.” Two weeks later, he saw the man was married to her. He asked the man what happened, and the man said, “Yeah, she kissed her dad.”

2.3.5 Mockery

Allāh says, “O you, who have believed, let not a people ridicule [other] people; perhaps they may be better than them; nor let women ridicule [other] women; perhaps they may be better than them. And do not insult one another and do not call each other by [offensive] nicknames. Wretched is the name of disobedience after [one’s] faith. And whoever does not repent - then it is those who are the wrongdoers”. [Suratul-Ḥujurāt: 11] Do not let a group of believers mock another group of believers. Allāh addresses the women specifically in this ayah. Whenever you mock someone it is indication of a much greater diseases of kibr. Kibr is a form of shirk. You are setting yourself up as a god besides Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) when you mock people. We think we are better than the people being mocked also and put ourselves on a pedestal automatically when we do that.

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The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “It is enough of evil for a person that they belittle their brother Muslim.” It’s important that we do not mock orput down people in anyway, whether it be by words or by gesture. The only person we can mock is a person who mocks others frequently and a person who publicly makes a mockery of Islam and Muslims. Hence, Sarah Palin.

2.3.6 Two-Faced Speech Al-Muntaṣir ibn Bilāl al-Anṣāri said: “How many a friend displays affection with his tongue, But is deceitful in my absence and is not regretful. He unwillingly amuses me so I may love him, But his words in my absence strike me like arrows.

2.3.7 Revealing Secrets Narrated from Jābir ibn ‘Abdullāh that the Prophet said, “If a man tells you something and then looks away, it is a trust.” This is even if they didn’t tell you specifically that it was a secret. If it is obvious by indication that they don’t want anyone else to know, then it is a trust. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, "The signs of a hypocrite are three, whenever he speaks, he tells a lie, whenever he promises, he always breaks it, and, if you trust him, he proves to be dishonest." It is a form of trust or amānah when someone tells you a secret. In another narration there is a fourth trait, that is if he gets into an argument he overdoes it. If you have one of these traits, then you have hypocrisy. If you have one of these characteristics, then you are ¼ of a hypocrite and so forth until you become a full hypocrite if you have all four of these traits. In this day and age we have so many ways to break an amanah. If we just cc someone or forward an email that others don’t want you to share is enough to break a trust. One of signs of the signs of the day of Judgement is when trust is lost. We don’t know what’s public and what’s private anymore. We really need to safeguard people’s amanah. ‘Umar Ibn’l-Khaṭṭāb (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) said, “I met ‘Uthmān b. ‘Affān (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) and offered Ḥafṣah to him in marriage. I said, ‘If you wish, I will marry Ḥafṣah bint ‘Umar to you.’ He said, ‘I will think about it.’ Several nights were passed, and then he said, ‘I think that I do not want to get married at this time.’ Then I met Abū Bakr and I said, ‘If you wish, I will marry Ḥafṣah bint ‘Umar to you.’ Abū Bakr kept quiet and did not give me any response. I became more upset about him than about ‘Uthmān. Several nights passed, then the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) proposed to her and I married her to him. Then Abū Bakr met me and said, ‘Perhaps you felt upset when you offered Ḥafṣah in marriage to me and I did not reply?’ I said, ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘Nothing prevented me from responding to your offer but the fact

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that I knew that the Messenger of Allāh had mentioned her, and I did not want to disclose the secret of the Messenger of Allāh. If he had decided not to marry her, I would have accepted your offer.’” [Sahīh al-Bukhāri] It’s still an amanah when the person hints to you in some shape or form that they don’t want other people to know about it, even if they don’t say it directly. If someone tells you they are going to harm someone or do some evil, however, you use your common sense and do what you can to prevent harm. Disclosing secrets of your spouse Which secrets do we disclose the most? The secrets between husband and wife. This is the most serious form of exposing a secret. These are secrets that should remain between husband and wife. Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) said, “They are a cover (garment) for you, and you are a garment for them.” [Suratul Baqarah: 187] The libaas is actually supposed to conceal a fault and beautify it. But, when you tell their secrets to others, then what kind of person are you? he Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The worst person on the Day of Judgment is a man who became intimate with his wife and revealed her secrets.” This is not limited to intimate secrets. It is all secrets. It is a trust between two people. The secrets between husband and wife should never be talked about outside of the house or the bedroom. The most severe of the secrets to reveal is the sexual secrets. You should never talk about this to someone else, not even in a joke. Don’t spill other people’s secrets.

2.3.8 Breaking Promises

And do not approach the property of an orphan, except in the way that is best, until he reaches maturity. And fulfill [every] commitment. Indeed, the commitment is ever [that about which one will be] questioned.}[Qurʾān 17:34]

Allāh says, “And those who are to their trusts and promises attentive” [Suratul-Ma‘ārij: 32]

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‘Abdullāh b. ‘Umar on the day of his death married off his daughter while he was dying because he had promised a young man that he would marry his daughter to him and his daughter had accepted it. They took their promises very seriously. He asked his daughter to have her nikkah on the day he died. ‘Umar Ibn’l-Khaṭṭāb had a relationship with Hurmuzān, one of the Ministers of Persia. In the Battle of Qadisiyyah he was brought to Madīnah and he asked to see ‘Umar. They found him asleep, on his shoes under a tree behind the masjid. He was shocked that he had no bodyguards. He admired that and started crying and said, “You rule, and you rule with justice, so you became safe. Allāh gave you safety and you were able to sleep.” When it came time for his execution after he was captured, he said, “Ya amīr’l-mu’minīn, can I have a glass of water?” He was given a glass of water. He said, “Am I protected until I finish drinking this water?” ‘Umar said, “You are protected.” The emperor threw the glass on the ground and broke it. ‘Umar Ibn’l-Khaṭṭāb started consulting the ṣaḥābah to figure out what to do. He did not want to break his promise. He eventually decided not to break his promise so he went to Hurmuzān and told him that he was free to go. Hurmuzān then said the shahādah. ‘Umar Ibn’l-Khaṭṭāb said, “Why didn’t you save us the trouble and take shahādah first?” He said, “I didn’t want people to think that I was becoming Muslim because I was afraid. I wanted them to know I was sincere.” He knew ‘Umar Ibn’l-Khaṭṭāb wouldn’t break his promise. ‘Umar then embraced him. The justice and character of ‘Umar won him over. Don’t make empty promises if you are not capable of fulfilling it. Try not to be committal if you are not absolutely sure that you would be able to fulfill that commitment. Avoid saying things that are absolutely committal. Do not say ‘I will be there in five minutes,’ and then show up 20 minutes later. If you are invited to two places then you should attend the first invitation so that you can be a man or woman who is known to keep and fulfill his/her amaanah, unless the first person to invite you says it’s okay to attend the second. ‘Abdullāh b. Mubarak borrowed a pen in al-Shām and forgot to return it to the person he took it from. He went to his city, Marw’ in Persia and then realized he still had the pen. He went all the way back, around 500km, to al-Shām, just to return the pen. He felt the severity of the amānah when he told the person he would give it back and didn’t give it back. Avoid the whole culture of wAllāhi, etc and making it very serious. It’s an Arab problem for the most part. If two people at a restaurant say, “WAllāhi, you’re not going to pay.” And only one of them pays, a promise is broken and one of them is a liar. Avoid these unnecessary lies.

2.3.9 Impermissible Joking

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"Woe be on one who speaks and lies in order to make people laugh, woe be on him." [Abu Dawood] Sometimes we take things too far. Our deen has etiquettes. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was always smiling and laughing (Kaana Bassaman dahhaka). Not only was he always smiling and laughing, but he made everyone around him smile and laugh. He made them laugh because of his personality. There are entire volumes of books on the jokes of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). Shaykh Omar mentioned the example of Shaykh Yaser Birjas, his laughs are always mild yet he is always smiling face. Abū Hurayrah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) said that the Prophet was told, “O Prophet, you are joking with us.” He said, “I only say what is true.” [at-Tirmidhi] There are numerous examples of this. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) made sure to be careful not to lie when he would joke. Anas (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) said, “He would joke but would only say the truth.” Everything has its conditions and limits. In our culture of free speech, we can make fun of anything and everything. But we cannot make fun of din. Don’t joke about Allāh, Qurʾān, Aqeedah, Salah, so and so shaykh, or anything related to din. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) even made sure his joking wasn’t mocking anyone. Alkhadhib (the liar) and lying are not exactly synonymous. Khadhib is only when you say a lie and the other person thinks it true and takes it seriously. It is not included as a lie when a person says stuff and everyone understands it as a joke. Be very careful, make sure the other person would accept your joke The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was someone you wanted to be around. He was down to earth and wanted to keep his sahābahs happy. What is prohibited is that a person is always laughing. Nu’aimān, one of the funniest sahābahs, used to joke a lot. However, he was also a veteran of every battle with the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) So, when it was time to be serious, he was serious and down to business. This is how the sahābahs were. The Funniest Sahabi - Omar Suleiman - Qurʾān Weekly - YouTube

Another example is when Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was once sitting with ‘Ali b. Abi Ṭālib. ‘Ali (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) was very poor and would work all day to earn so that he could eat that day. One day he earned 12 dates. He went to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and said, “Ya Rasūlullāh, I want to share this food with you.” He gave six dates to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and kept six for himself. When ‘Ali noticed people

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coming towards them, he pushed all the seeds in front of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). The ṣaḥābahs knew they could joke with him and understood he appreciated jokes as long as they were not overboard. When the ṣaḥābah came, ‘Ali (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) said, “Look at the Prophet of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), he ate all of the dates by himself.” Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) laughed and said, “Look at ‘Ali b. Abi Ṭālib, when he eats the dates, he swallows the seeds too.” It was understood that this was a joke. This shows the light-hearted nature of Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). Ibn Rajab reported that ‘Ali b. Abi Ṭālib said, “Make joking part of your conversation the way that you would put salt in your food.” These words should be written in gold. Too much salt will give you a heart attack, and not enough will make you bland. We should take care not to frighten people when joiking. Don’t jump out at people- wa aamanahum min khawf, give people security. For example during the expedition of Tabuk, they tied up a sahaba and it frightened him and he thought he was captured. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) did not approve of that. He said, “It is not permissible for a person to frighten his brother.” Don't take people's belongings in joking or seriousness. Many times our jokes are the expense of people and their honor, but when Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) joked with people, he actually made them feel better and honored. For example, he told an old lady that no old woman will enter Jannah. She became upset, but then he told her, “People don’t enter jannah in their old age.” Once the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) grabbed Zāhir, a free person, in the marketplace and said, ‘Who will by this slave from me.’ Rasoolullah approached him, while he was selling his merchandise. Rasoolullah caught him in between the arms from the back in such a manner that he (Sayyidina Zaahir radiyAllāhu anhu) could not see him. Zaahir (radiyAllāhu anhu) said, "Who is this?, leave me." But when he saw with the corner of his eye that it was Rasoolullah, he straightened his back and began pressing it to the chest of Rasoolullah (For as long as he gained this opportunity it was better than a thousand gifts). Rasool Allāh then said, "Who will purchase this slave?" Zaahir (radiyAllāhu anhu) replied, "O Rasool of Allāh, if you shall sell me, you will be selling a defective thing, and will earn a very little sum." Rasoolullah said, "No, you are not defective in the sight of Allāh, but very valuable." He joked, but he did it to make someone feel better, not at someone’s expense. Keep in mind the value of joking and at the same time, do no not make it the expense of your brother or sisters’ honor. This includes going overboard with excessive flattering.

2.3.10 Miscellaneous

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Excessive Flattery It’s good to encourage, thank and congratulate people but at the same time don't go overboard with flattering people. ‘Abū Bakra narrated that a man praised another man in front of the Prophet. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said to him, Woe to you. You have cut the neck of your companion. Woe to you. You have cut the neck of your companion.’ This is to praise someone so much that you flatter them and ruin them. ‘Atā said that once a man was praising another person in the presence of Ibn ‘Umar. Ibn ‘Umar picked up some dirt and threw it at the man. One time some came to calling, “O best of people, O son of the best of people.” He said, “Calm down. I’m not the best of people, nor I am the son of the best of people.” Don’t go overboard when we flatter people. When someone flatter you, don’t respond with how terrible you are, because they will just praise you even more. Instead tell yourself how bad you are and stay quiet hoping they will stop. Also show them you are not happy or comfortable with that flatter; for example put your head down. Foul Language Cursing and foul language are different things in Islam. Cursing would literally mean to make a du’a or invoke a curse against a person. This is very dangerous since the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), said that if you invoke a curse on a person, the curse can come back to you if they do not deserve it. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The believer is not one who is aggressive and Abūsive with his language, and he does not curse and he is not foul.” It is not from the character of a believer. Shaykh Kamal El-Mekki said, “Don’t make your angels write down curse words.” Speaking Urdu Speaking Urdu or Arabic, or any language when there is another person sitting with you who doesn’t speak that language is haram. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “If three people are in a room two of them should not be speaking privately.” The third needs to know what is being said. This includes languages. The person who does not understand what is being said will always become suspicious that the other two are talking about him. If we are at a grocery store and the clerk is speaking Chinese to someone else, we automatically assume that they are talking about us.

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It’s common courtesy to not speak a different language in front of other people. It may even fall into tehreem. This can include even when playing basketball together. They might think you are curing them out. On way to approach this is by diversifying where we seat at a dinner party. Try to sit next to someone who speaks another language to avoid this problem.

2.3.11 Pride / al-Kibr There are different manifestations of arrogance and pride. The most serious one is kibr. Quilala insaano ma akffara- created from a dirty drop of fluidremember how small you are The seriousness of kibr as a sin: Allāh says,

“…Indeed, He (Allāh) does not like the arrogant.” (al-Naḥl: 23) The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The one who possesses an iota of kibr in his heart shall not be granted admission to Jannah.” He was (then asked), “[But] OMessenger of Allāh! A man likes to have fine clothing and footwear. Is this included in kibr?” He responded, “No. Allāh is Beautiful and loves beauty. Kibr is the rejection of truth and condescension of others.” Kibr is made up of two different things: denying truth and looking down on people. 1. Denying the truth. You are putting yourself at the same level as the creator. You have intellectual pride. You are directly interfering with the legislation of Allāh, which is nobody’s business. This comes from the consumer mentality. We are pitiful creations. At the end of the day, we are limited by our senses of touch, sight, smell, and hearing. We are so weak as human beings that you can get on a rollercoaster and when a cardboard character jumps at you, you scream. This same person thinks he understands reality enough to debate with Allāh and accuse the Qurʾān or Sunnah of being illogical. We always accuse ourselves and our own faulty intellect before accusing the creator.

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2. Judgement- Allāh is the one to judge people (Al-Hakim), you have no right to judge anybody. Kibr is an action of the heart. Abu Hurayrah narrates a ḥadīth that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “There were two men from among Bani Isrā’īl striving for the same goal. One of them would commit sin and the other would strive to do his best in the world. The man who exerted himself in worship continued to see the other in sin. He would say, ‘Refrain from it.’ One day, he found him in sin and said to him, ‘Refrain from it.’ The sinner said, ‘Leave me alone with my Lord. Have you been sent as a watchman over me?’ The worshipper said, ‘I swear by Allāh, Allāh will not forgive you, nor will He admit you to Paradise.’ Then their souls were taken back (by Allāh), and they met together with the Lord of the worlds. Allāh said to this man who had striven hard in worship, ‘Had you knowledge about Me or had you power over that which I had in My Hand?’ Allāh said to the man who sinned, ‘Go and enter Paradise by My Mercy.’ He said about the other, ‘Take him to Hell.’” Abu Hurayrah said, “By Him in whose hand my soul is, he spoke a word by which this world and the next world of his were destroyed.”

Judging others and thinking you are better than others is kibr. Only Allāh has the right to Judge. Never think you are better than other people. No matter how bad someone is, don’t ever allow yourself to say that the person is going to Hellfire. That person may die in a situation pleasing to Allāh, and Allāh may punish you just because of that state. Just think of Iblee’s pride. His pride was one that of religious. He not only felt he was better than human beings, but he had also built up an ego from worshiping Allāh for years before this. Manifestations of Pride 1. Thinking you’re better than people but you try to “act” humble Sometimes people are arrogant but try to act like they have a humble personality. You are not fooling Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). When a person has the disease of thinking he is better than people but around people he acts humble, he has kibr. It is only a matter of time before he is exposed. 2.

Degrading others with your actions It is obvious that you think you are better than others, but you are not saying it.

3.

Constantly bragging about your superiority or accomplishments It’s when you think you are better than other people, you act like you are better than other people and you say it flat out that you are better. This person has reached the level of shaytan and is at an absolute low. That level of kibr is kufr.

Qualities of a Person of Pride 1. Likes people to stand up for him

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If a person walks into a room and you are sitting down, can you stand up to honor the person? Yes, you can. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) told the ṣaḥābah to stand when Mu‘ādh walked in to honor their leader. The problem is when a person walks in and wants people to stand for him. If people seek to honor you, it is okay as long as you are not desiring it and not looking for it. 2. Wants others to walk behind him 3. Doesn’t visit people because he feels he is only deserving of being visited You expect people to always visit you because you are special. Make sure that you visit people and don’t always expect them to visit you. Humble yourself by calling someone that wasn’t expecting your call. Find someone who didn’t think they had a special place with you and check up on them when they are sick. Tip: Always keep your old friends around, because the ones that befriend you after you are famous may not always be sincere. 4. Doesn’t like others to be on his level 5. Expects others to carry his things 6. Does not engage in chores Remedies of Kibr 1. Know yourself. Remember how small you are. Sometimes it’s acquainting yourself with people, coming down to their level that will help. Don't think you're at a higher level. Being part of the people, doing chores, serving others having that trait of doing the degrading things is a great tarbiyah. Imām Mālik once saw a man who was filthy drunk and foaming at the mouth and saying, “Allāh.” No one saw the man drink even though everyone knew he was drunk, so he couldn’t be punished, which shows the justice of Sharī‘ah. Imām Mālik wiped the man’s mouth with a handkerchief and picked him up and held him and walked him home. Look at the care and kindness. That night, Imām Mālik saw a dream that it was being told to him: “We have purified you as you have purified your brother.” The next day, he went to the masjid for fajr and didn’t understand what he saw. He saw the man dressed in the best garment with nūr in his face praying ṣalāt’l-fajr. It was the first time he saw him in the masjid, and he asked, “What happened? How did your situation change so fast?” The man said to him, “The one who came to you in your dream came to me in mine.” Imām Mālik came down to the level of that person and helped him and gave him dignity, so Allāh purified and elevated Imām Mālik as a result of that. Generally speaking, someone who is acquainted with the poor and people in hardship has a lesser chance of becoming prideful and thinking he is better than people. Authentic ḥadīth in Aḥmad: A man complained to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) that his heart is becoming hard. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Caress the head of an orphan.”

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When the children of Ḥabashah came, Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) would embarrass himself by speaking broken Abyssinian just to play with the kids. This shows that he didn’t feel so big. He (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was with the people and at the level of the people. 2. Engage in chores. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) would take care of his own

clothes and shoes. In a gathering, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was always serving and never being served. Look for ways to serve to keep your ego and pride down and to belittle and lower yourself. Shaykh Sha'rawi would go and clean the masjid bathroom every time people would speak so highly of him. Such acts help keep us humble. Clean the bathrooms, organize the shoe rack, etc. Make sure in every gathering you're the one always serving people. 3. Know your Lord. Remember how much greater Allāh is. 4. Remember Death. Remember that you will be eaten by the bugs and that you will be buried 6

feet underground. You will be decompose to just bones and will have to stand in front of Allāh the same way as everyone else.

2.3.12 Love of Prestige/ Ḥubb’l-Jāh wa riyaasa People of righteousness and piety avoid celebrity. Scholars who write about maqāṣid’l-Sharī‘ah talk about acts that need to be done to promote the dīn. For example, Salatul-Jamaat, Hajj, etc. The overall aspects of religion are better to be done in private and in home, however. This includes salahs that are not fard, fasting, sadaqa and more. Don’t develop a love for celebrity and prestige in your heart. Craving for leadership can really destroy you as a person. ‘Umar b. Sa‘d b. Abi Waqqāṣ came to Sa‘d b. Abi Waqqāṣ during the time of ‘Ali when the fitnah started. Sa‘d b. Abi Waqqāṣ fled away from people and was raising sheep on the outskirts of Madīnah. ‘Umar b. Sa‘d wanted to be a governor, so he went to his father. When Sa‘d b. Abi Waqqāṣ saw his son, he said, “I seek refuge in Allāh from the evil of the one coming to me now.” ‘Umar b. Sa‘d said, “You were in Badr and should be taking on leadership.” Sa‘d said to his son, “Allāh loves the slave who is fearful of Him and self-sufficient and is hidden.” ‘Umar b. Sa‘d left his dad frustrated and tried to latch onto leadership wherever he could find it. Mu‘āwiyah gave him honorable tasks and then under Yazīd b. Mu‘āwiyah, he latched onto leadership where he could find it. He wanted to be in the spotlight. When al-Ḥusayn revolted, he was the one given the order to stop al-Ḥusayn. He didn’t want to do it, but at the same time, he was told that if he didn’t,

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then his leadership would be taken away. It was his army that killed al-Ḥusayn. Think about it: his love for leadership led him to that ending. Your quest for leadership and to always be in the spotlight can be extremely dangerous. It will cause you to leave your principles. What about the issue of leadership and being recognized? One of the things that is important to understand is that if leadership seeks you, then accept it. If you seek leadership, then you have a problem. In Islam, you don’t give leadership to those who seek it. This is what Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said. If you want leadership that badly, then it will destroy you. Abu Dhaarr was a great zaahid but he didn't get leadership when requested it. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said if his īmān was to be weighed against everyone else, it would be heavier. When he asked the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) for leadership, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) didn’t give it to him and said, “We don’t give it to those who ask for it.” Leadership is an amana and it is on the day of judgement a humiliation and remorse for some. Is it okay to present your skills in pursuit of leadership sometimes in Islam? Yes, if no one else is there to do the job. You can see it as a means of Da’wah. What if leadership comes to you? What is the ruling? If you get pushed into a position of leadership without desiring it, take it and do your best to work on your intention. Do your best not to seek it. The great leaders that are those pushed into their positions. When ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz was appointed khalifah, people literally had to put him the mimbar. Every time he would try to get away from the masjid they would put him back on the mimbar, until he gave his inauguration speech. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “What is more harmful than two wolves attacking a flock of sheep is a man’s love for status and leadership.” The sahabas would pass around questions, even the simple ones, to another sahaba. They had no desire for the spotlight. ‘Abdullāh’b Mubarak would conceal his face in public. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) would dress and sit like the others in a gathering. He did not like to draw attention to himself. Ibn Qudāmah quotes a ḥadīth from Zayd b. Thābit: “If we were in the company of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and we talked about dunya, he would talk about dunya. If we talked about ākhirah, he would talk about ākhirah too. If we talked about food, he would talk about food too.” (Bukhāri) He (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was at the level of the people. ‘Abdullāh b. Ḥārith said, “If you walked into a gathering, you would not be able to distinguish him by his clothes.” He did not love to have prestige.

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Try to get rid of that love of prestige that a person can develop. Don’t demand attention to yourself, that’s what leads to riya. Don’t ever seek a position of leadership or spotlight. Narated By Abu Hurayrah : People say that I have narrated many Hadiths (The Prophet's narrations). Had it not been for two verses in the Qur'an, I would not have narrated a single Hadith, and the verses are: "Verily those who conceal the clear sign and the guidance which We have sent down . . . (up to) Most Merciful." (2:159-160). Sufyan at’Thawri said, “He who desires to be seen by the people is not truthful to Allāh.”

2.3.13 Showing off / al-Riyā’ The Root of Riya Showing off is the manifestation of the person having a love for prestige. Riyā’ is the only thing a person who is not a disbeliever gets threatened for in Juz’ Amma. Allāh warns the people that pray and are forgetful and show off (Sūrat’l-Mā‘ūn). Imam Ibn Al-Qayyim said, "Deeds without sincerity are like a traveler who carries in his waterjug dirt. The carrying of it burdens him and it brings no benefit." Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) listed the following as the first three people to enter jahannam: A person who was a teacher of Qurʾān, a person who was extremely charitable, and a person who fought and died for Allāh in the sight of the people. Why? Because there no sincerity. They did it to show off to the people. It wasn’t fisabeelillah. They wanted people to say MashaAllāh to they and they got it in this life. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “A person will be brought on the Day of Judgment, and Allāh will tell him, ‘Run to those you used to show off your deeds to in dunya and see if they have anything to give you today.’” You turn those people into gods by doing actions seeking their approval. We should also stay away from the disease of mixed intentions. It’s somewhat for Allāh and somewhat for other reasons. Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says in a ḥadīth qudsi: “Whoever does an action seeking My approval and seeking others’ approval, then I abandon him and his shirk.” Don’t use the deen to seek dunya. Don’t use what Allāh gave as a means of getting close to him to gain the approval of the people. Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said, “To shorten a person’s thawb to a point where it becomes excessive is a form of showing off.” He saw people in his time pulling up their thawb really high to show off, whereas the legislation of thawb was started to combat arrogance. We see the same problem nowadays.

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‘Ā’ishah (raḍyAllāhu‘anha) saw a group of men walking slowly, and she asked about them and was told they were praying qiyām all night. She said, “May Allāh have mercy on ‘Umar. When he walked, he walked fast. When he hit, he hit hard.” ‘Umar would be up all night in qiyām but he would try to hide it from people and not show it. He would keep it a secret between him and Allāh. The word “Ṣūfi” comes from the word meaning wool. Imām al-Ghazāli spoke against the people who would show off by wearing wool. He condemned those who wore wool unnecessarily because it was a way of displaying that a person is humble and a zāhid. Five Forms of Riyā’ 1. Riyā’ through physical appearance 2. Riyā’ through physical actions 3. Riyā’ through words 4. Riyā’ through deeds 5. Riyā’ through connections The Degrees of Riyā’: 1. Forming the intention originally to only commit a deed for people to see 2. He seeks a reward, but is so absorbed with riyā’ that he wouldn’t do that deed alone Levels and Permissibility of Riya 1. Haram-Forbidden a. With all forms of religion b. With matters of dunya if have intention is to degrade people c. Showing off on matters acquired through haram means 2. Makrooh-Disliked a. Something in dunya showed off and it gives you a big head (you become arrogant) 3. Mubah-Neither Liked nor Disliked a. To show someone something Allāh has given you from dunya without boasting or putting anyone down 4. Mustahab-Recommended a. Giving charity in public in order to encourage people b. Allāh is beautiful and loves beauty. You demonstrate beauty to demonstrate to people the beauty of the deen. Yes, you can have a long beard and dress really nice! It’s actually good for the din. Women should similarly look nice and dignified, but avoid the flashy hijabs. Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says in surah Duha: 11- wa amma bi nimatika rabbika fa haddith “But as for the favor of your lord, speak of it” Imām Mālik

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thought that scholars should dress well so that they are respected in society. When ‘Umar became khalifa, he wanted to remove some ornaments from the masjid, but left them when he was told that they were kept there because the Romans would frequently visit. ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz was asked, “If I am prostrating in public and Shayṭān comes to me and tells me I am lengthening my sujūd so that people praise me, what do it do?” He said, “Fight your Shayṭān and lengthen your sujūd even more. Seek refuge in Allāh from doing it for other people’s sake.” Don’t ever forsake your action, that’s a greater form of riya. Also don’t abandon actions when you are not being appreciated. Volunteer burnout, etc.. Were you doing it for Allāh or were you doing it for the people? This would be a sign you are doing things for reasons other than pleasing Allāh. The Hidden Shirk Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) called riyā’ the hidden shirk. He said, “I fear for you most the hidden shirk, which is riyā’.” You make all of the people into hidden gods. Riya in worship is a form of minor shirk. This is why we need to avoid mixed intentions. It is a hidden shirk because at the end of the day you’re worshipping the people, since they are the motive behind your actions. Allāh (subḥānahuwa ta‘āla) says in a ḥadīth qudsi: “Whoever does an action seeking My approval and seeking others’ approval, then I abandon him and his shirk.” Remedies for Riya Abu Hurayrah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) reported that Abu Bakr asked, “O Messenger of Allāh! Teach me some words so that I may recite them in the morning and in the evening.” The Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Recite these words: Allāhumma fāṭiras-samāwāti wal-arḍi, ‘ālimal-ghaybi wash-shahādati, Rabba kulli shay’in wamālīkahu. Ash-hadu an lā ilāha illā Anta, a‘ūdhu bika min sharri nafsi, washarrish- Shayṭāni washirkihi. (O Allāh! Creator of the heavens and the earth! Knower of the hidden and the exposed! Rabb of everything and every one! I bear witness that none has the right to be worshipped but You. I seek Your Protection from the evil of my own self from the evil of Satan and from the evil of shirk to which he calls.)” The Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) added: “Recite these words in the morning and the evening and when you go to bed.” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) taught us a du‘ā’ to make: “O Allāh, I seek refuge in you from committing shirk knowingly, and I ask your forgiveness for doing it unknowingly.” Allaahumma innee ‘aoothu bika an ushrika bika shaiann wa anaa a’lamu, wa astaghfiruka limaa laa a’lamu.

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What if you do things and are praised for it but you are not seeking praise? Mu‘ādh ibn Jabal complained to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) that people were saying too many nice things about him. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “A person who does something for Allāh and is praised by the people, then that is the hastening of Allāh giving glad tidings to the believer.” When other people praise you without you seeking their praise, it is a good thing. Why? Because the witness of the people will count on the Day of Judgment as long as you are not seeking it. However, every time people praise you, you should remind yourself how bad you are. Keep making sincere dua for sincerity. Abu Bakr RA would make the dua: “O Allah, make me better than what they think of me, and forgive me for what they do not know about me. ” If you have thoughts of riyaa, but do not pursue them, Allāh will not punish you for that. There are many examples from the righteous salaf of how they used to hide their good deeds, just as something they wanted to hide: secret habits. Dāwūd b. Abi Hind fasted for 40 years straight except Eids without his family knowing. He would take food for lunch and give it in ṣadaqah and then come home after maghrib and eat with his family. SubhanAllāh! Shaykh Hatem Al-Haj cries all the time and tries to act like it’s not from his kushu. Shaykh Omar mentioned that one time in the AMJA conference, someone mentioned how 14 people were killed and he started to sob. He eventually excused himself and left the room. Eddie from The Deen Show often breaks into tears if you notice, that’s when the camera turns away from him. Scholars said about ‘Ali b. Ḥusayn that people would get their livelihood in Madīnah until the day he passed away. He would leave food and water on their doorsteps without ever being caught. They only found out after seeing the marks on his back from the bags he would carry. There were some people from the ṣāliḥīn who would cry at night on one side of the pillow, and the person sleeping next to them would not find out until they found the other side of the pillow wet. Muḥammad b. Wasi‘ would wake up and pray qiyām without waking his wife and then would go to his bed and wake up his wife to pray qiyām so they could pray together.

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If you develop a secret relationship with Allāh, riyaa will not be an issue for you. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) would pray his sunnahs at home and said, “Do not turn your homes into graveyards.” Do things that people don’t see you do. Keep a portion of your charity secret. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “A secret charity extinguishes the anger of your Lord.” One time someone visited the Prophet, upon him blessings and peace, who said: Who will host this man? One of the Ansar immediately said: I will. Then he rushed to his wife and told her: Provide generously for the guest of the Messenger of Allāh. She replied: We only have food for the children! He said: Prepare the food then light the candle and put the children to bed at dinner-time. She did as he said [and put the children to sleep on an empty stomach] then she got up to tinker with the light and she put it out. Then she and her husband pretended to eat but remained hungry that night. The next morning they went to see the Prophet, upon him blessings and peace, and he said: Last night Allāh laughed or was astonished [the narrator hesitated] at what you two did! Then Allāh revealed the verse: “..but they give them preference above themselves even though they are in privation (59:9). Ibn Qudāmah said, “Ikhlāṣ is to save yourself from the people’s sight. If a person abandons the action, then he falls into a greater riyā’. Ṣidq (truthfulness) is to save yourself from yourself.” Don’t forget who you are, when shaitan tells you look how great you are. Does riyā’ completely make my worship worthless? Three Signs of Riyā’ 1. To love the pleasure produced by being praised 2. To flee from the pain caused by being dispraised 3. To look greedily at what other people possess “...They do not fear the blame of a critic. That is the favor of Allāh ; He bestows it upon whom He wills. And Allāh is all-Encompassing and Knowing.” (al-Mā’idah: 54)

2.3.14 Self-Deceit / al-Ghurūr Al-Ghurūr means self-deceit; it’s when you think so highly of yourself that you don’t even think anything is wrong anymore. Al-ujb means to be conceited; it’s doing good and feeling good about it Imām ibn al-Qayyim said, “If you were to sleep all night and not wake up for a single rakʿah and feel bad about that, then it is more beloved to Allāh than praying all night and being

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proud of it.” You become satisfied and content so that you don’t do anything anymore. Don’t ever think you are safe, that is a very dangerous situation to be in. Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri said, “Do not think highly of yourself because of your surroundings in Jannah. Ādam (‘alayhi’l-salām) was in Jannah and we all know what happened with that. Do not think highly of yourself because you are a worshipper. Iblīs was the greatest of worshippers to the point where he could accompany the angels and we all know what happened to him. Do not think highly of yourself because you are related to righteous people. Abu Lahab was the uncle of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and we know what happened to him.” Never feel content with yourself, and never think that you are an amazing person who is always doing good.

Say, [O Muḥammad], “Shall we [believers] inform you of the greatest losers as to [their] deeds? [They are] those whose effort is lost in worldly life, while they think that they are doing well in work.” (al-Kahf: 103-104)

Satan promises them and arouses desire in them. But Satan does not promise them except delusion. (al-Nisā’: 120) Causes of Self-Deception: 1. This Worldly Life 2. False Wishes and Vain Desires 3. The Righteousness of One’s Parents

You may be the son of anyone at all, but acquire integrity, Its virtue will enrich you, leaving no need for a noble pedigree. The real man is the one who says, “Here I am!” The one who says, “My father was,” is not the man. ~ Well-known lines of Arab poetry Categories of those Afflicted by Self-Deception 1. The Scholars

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He thinks he is safe because people him tell how good he is that he forgets himself. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “On the Day of Judgment, the most grievous torment will be inflicted upon a scholar whose knowledge was of no avail.” (al-Ṭabarāni) 2. The Worshipers Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said, “As for good deeds, both a righteous person and a sinner is capable of doing good deeds, but no one will be able to abandon sin except for one who is truthful to Allāh and his faith.” Abandoning sin is harder than doing good deeds. Don’t be deceived by your worship. It’s like those people who say “I’m spiritual but not religious”. “I like to worship but I don’t want to give up anything in my life” is essentially what their problem is.There are people who like to do good things because of the good feelings they get from the act itself. Abandoning sin is much harder. The worshipper allows his spirituality to be his disguise from his sins. He only worries about doing more good deeds and not dealing with his sins. Abu Ayyūb al-anṣāri said, “A person may do a good deed and rely on it and forget his sins and will meet Allāh with his sins surrounding him. On the other hand, a man may commit a sin and never stop fearing the consequences of the sins until he meets Allāh safe and sound.” 3. The Ascetics Al-Ghazāli said there will be a people claiming exemption and secret knowledge. They will say they have reached a point of being an ‘awliyah and that they have secret knowledge. ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz commanded the scholars to teach publicly because he said if they taught privately, then people will claim they have secret knowledge. A person who is an ascetic and thinks he has secret qualities and thinks he is exempt from the punishment of Allāh. Shaykh gave the example of Muhammad Ibn Ismaeel (aka Bukhari) who faced the fitna from the governor that insisted he teach their kids privately in the palace. 4. The one who frequently gives in charity. They spend a lot in charity and think that it absolves them of living according to the Sunnah. This is very true in modern day America in our masājid. This person is deceived. They don’t become exempt from the rest of the Sharī‘ah just because they contribute financially. Treatment for Self-Deception Realizing the Reality of Matters Knowing Oneself and One’s Lord Knowing this Worldly Life and the Hereafter Knowing the Path to Allāh and How to Overcome Obstacles

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Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says in Surah Baqarah: 17

“Their example is that one who kindled a fire, but when it illuminated what was around him, Allāh took away their light and left them in darkness [so] they could not see.” On the Day of Judgement, Allāh takes light away from them. Hypocrites will be left in darkness. Ibn AlQayyim said the one who fails to kindle light inside will have no light on Day of Judgement. Ask yourself: Do you have noor on inside or all on outside? In Sūrat’l-Ḥadīd, Allāh says on the Day of Judgment, the hypocrites will call out to the believers, “Give us some of the light that you have.” The light was on the inside, and on the Day of Judgment, the light Allāh put in their hearts is shining and they can walk through the ṣirāṭ. Allāh left the hypocrites in darkness and says, “The hypocrites are left behind a wall between them and the true believers who had light in their hearts. They will call out to them, ‘Can’t we be with you?’ They said, ‘No, because you tested yourself and had doubts and were deluded by your desires and the chief deceiver (Shayṭān) deceived you. Now you will not be able to pay anything to get out of this. No compensation will be taken from you and nor from those who disbelieve.’” This means that you had a chance to kindle this light on the inside in your heart. The goal was to kindle it inside. Video, reflection of ayahs 12-17 of Surah al Hadeed recited by Salman al Utaybi (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtEmRfQCjXQ ) We should make the dua from surah Tahreem: 8-Rabbana atmim la ana noorana waghfirlanaa innaka ala kulli shay in qadeer-”Our Lord, perfect for us our light and forgive us. Indeed You are over all things competent.”

2.3.15 Envy / al-Ḥasad It is problematic to translate some terms from Arabic and English. Ḥasad is translated as envy or extreme jealousy. In English, jealousy always has a negative connotation and is not good. For example, when talking about the marital relationships and saying that the woman should obey the man, obedience is different from ṭa‘a, which has a component of obedience and following. There is a wide spectrum. Positive jealousy is gheerah. Sometimes people translate that as jealousy. If you could translate: gheerah is jealous for something and hasad is jealous of something.

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Qabeelat Haadi Student Notes September 2012 ● ● ● ● ● ●


Permissible types of envy Forbidden types of envy Main causes of envy: Self - pride/ competition, Enmity and wickedness How to remedy envy Difference from being jealous for and jealous from Jealousy is good as long as you don’t get to the point that you are accusing someone

Abu Hurayrah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) said that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Beware of envy because envy consumes (destroys) the virtues just as the fire consumes the firewood,” or he said “grass.” (Abu Dāwūd) If anything is going wrong in your day, you usually blame hasad, ‘ayn, etc. This is very overdone. There is a lot of deviancy and lot of misunderstanding, which leads to excess denial on the existence of hasad. Prophet said - AlAynu al Haqq- “The evil eye is true”. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was once approached by the ṣaḥābah. Sa‘d b. Ubādah said, “If I ever catch my wife committing zina, I would kill her with the sharpest part of the sword and him.” The ṣaḥābah told the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) that what he is saying is too much. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Are you amazed by the ghīrah of Sa‘d? Wallāhi, I have more ghīrah than Sa’d. And Allāh has more ghīrah than me.” Gheerah is good as long as you are not accusing an innocent person. It is good for a husband to have ghīrah for his wife and the wife to have ghīrah for the husband. As for the unmarried woman, Allāh has ghīrah for them. It is extremely important for husband to have ghīrah for his wife and the wife to have ghīrah for the husband. It is good for the father to have ghīrah for the daughter and the mother to have ghīrah for the son. It keeps a sense of honor It offends Allāh when people don't act in a dignified manner. The Prophet (s) told us that we should have gheerah - la yadkhulu al jannah al dhayoof - the one who doesn't have honor will not enter Jannah. We live in a society where it is “peep my husband/wife”. The husband and wife sit on the stage during the wedding in front of everyone, and everyone takes a picture of them and then posts it on Facebook. This is disgusting. Don’t you feel any sense of shame and honor? Today it is normal for this to happen. Husbands want people to know their wives are beautiful and for

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them to wear tight clothes. They want to show off their spouses. Even women want to show off their handsome husbands. When we don’t feel a sense of shame or honor for your husband or wife, then there is a problem. People don't have gheerah anymore and one of the reasons for insecurity in relationships is that the husband/wife doesn't feel gheerah for the other. Some people have actually asked on facebook to Shaykh Omar: If you love your wife so much, how come you don’t post her picture. Don't let other girls take pictures with your husband or other guys take pictures with your wife. You should not want to parade your spouses. It creates insecurity issues and then people start crying about nazar, etc. You should want to conceal them. There should be a sense of ghira. Ali once looked at Fatimah and he got jealous of the siwaak she was using and he wrote an entire qaseeda about the siwaak, “O stick of Araak, you found your way into her mouth Weren't you afraid, O stick of the Araak that I will see you (Araak) If you would be someone I could have killed, I would have killed you No one has ever escaped me O siwaak, except you (siwaaka)” [rough translation] This is jealous for, not jealous of and is good. It made Fathimah feel good and validated. It had its limits. Everyone thinks that hasad is taking place. If you are Palestinian and something goes wrong it is either hasad or yahood. We blame it for everything. Most people blame things on sihr (magic). The natural consequence is the next question - who did it? This encourages tajassus evil thoughts of people, backbiting and more fitna. You then start looking at different people, and start accusing different people, terrible for a society. We all like playing the victim card. Ibn Taymiyya said: most of it (hasad) is making a mockery of people A sister once came to Shaykh and said I think I'm possessed by jinn, and started saying strange things. When asked how she felt when the Qurʾān was recited, she said she felt okay. She was not possessed. When people read Qurʾān, if there is a jinn you will feel the pain. Muawwidhaat and sihr cannot exist simultaneously. Sometimes it is real, don't blame everything on Hasad or sihr though. Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) told us in surah Hijr, “Indeed, my servants, no authority will you have over them except those who follow you of the deviators” (42). Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “al ayn can even cause death to a person.” Read muawwidaat together with family, do azkaar, read hisnul muslim dua. A possession cannot co-exist with zikrullah, hisnul muslim. Not being out there and flashy is a way of avoiding hasad for yourself.

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Yaqub (Alayhis Salaam) told his sons when you go to Egypt, don't enter upon the people from one door, enter from different doors. He had 12 sons and he wanted to avoid attracting unnecessary attention. When Yusuf (Alayhis Salaam) told him about his dream, ru’ya, la taqsus ru’ya ala akhwatika... Yaqub ((Alayhis Salaam) told him: “..do not to narrate your dream to your brothers or they will contrive against you a plot. Indeed Shatan, to man, is a manifest enemy” (surah Yusuf: 5). Only share things with people you can trust. Permissible Types of Envy Narrated Ibn Mas‘ūd; I heard the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) saying, “There is no envy except in two: a person whom Allāh has given wealth and he spends it in the right way, and a person whom Allāh has given wisdom (i.e. religious knowledge) and he gives his decisions accordingly and teaches it to the others.” This is allowed because that intention is not of hatred. You are happy for them but you also aspire to be like them and look up to good. In terms of deen you should look at to those people above you and in terms of dunya look at those below you. Look at those struggling in Palestine, Afghanistan, and other countries around the world. Put this to practice and it will solve a lot of the problems. Musa (‘alayhi sallam) was jealous of the Prophet Mohammed (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) but gave him sincere advice. He shared his experience and conveyed the ummah will not to do 50 prayers and kept giving advice over and over to Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). He was jealous of the ummah. Just look at what he had to deal with himself and so he admired our Ummah. Comparisons are destructive and naturally stir the go of people. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) didn’t allow the father of Nu‘mān to give him a gift without giving a similar gift to his other siblings. This naturally stirs up enmity. Don’t do it with your children or people in the community, especially not in front of them. This is why people start hating each other. Don’t compare yourself to others. Ibn Sīrīn said, “I have never envied anyone for anything related to this worldly life, because if he is to be one of the residents of Paradise, how can I envy him for something pertaining to worldly life while he is going to Paradise? And if he is to be one of the residents of the Fire, how can I envy him for something pertaining to worldly life while he is going to the Fire!” CAUSES OF ENVY There are root causes and specific causes. The ultimate Root cause is Hubb al Duniya (loving the world too much).

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1. Self-pride - Thinking you are better than other people, more deserving than others 2. Competition - Avoid comparisons! We purposely encourage the wrong type of

competition among our kids. If you say how good the other kid is - then it causes hatred among them and it hurts their tarbiyah. Instead it encourages competition amongst them for wrong reasons. You foster that hatred, they fall into envy really dangerous Don’t get sucked into comparisons! The Prophet prevented Nouman al Basheer’s father to give him a gift without giving other siblings a gift We all naturally have a love for competition. Ibn Sirīn said, “Had the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) not specified the permissible types of envy, we would have been in a lot of trouble because we all like to compete.” Some people are superficial and will compete with gold. 3. Enmity - Sometimes you just hate someone. You don't want good for that person, you cant stand that person doing well, you take the grudge out of the person.This is from the worst of conditions to have. As much as his enemies did to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), he never wished evil for them. Leave other people alone. Don’t wish bad for other people because it will come back to you. Look at the higher examples and try to emulate them without wanting any harm for them. 4. Wickedness - some people are just evil. It’s a Satanic thing. How to Remedy Envy: specific diagnoses 1. Consider your priorities. What is it that you want in the first place? Prioritize ākhirah over dunya and then you will not worry about the ḥarām types of envy. 2. Ignore comparisons a. Don't allow others to compare you to others and don’t compare yourself to others. b. Don't foster the practice of comparing in community either. 3. Make du‘ā’ for the person - This is the most effective way to get rid of ḥasad. As soon as you feel yourself envying a person ask Allāh to keep the ni’mah for the person. Sincerely ask Allāh to bless that person and this will do away with the envy. 4. Remember that Allāh is the Provider - as long as you understand Allāh is the Provider, you will not question qadr. Allāh has a plan for each person individually

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“Do they allot the portions of their Lord? It is We who have apportioned among them their livelihood in the life of this world…” (al-Zukhruf: 32) Everyone has their way to get to Jannah. Imagine if Umm Maryam had this mentality, “look at those people, how come they have sons, and I have a daughter?” But she didn’t think like that. She realized and acknowledged that the man is not like a woman, yet look at how Maryam As was raised. The poor ṣaḥābah came to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and said, “Ya Rasūlullāh, the rich companions have taken all of the reward. They pray like we pray and fast like we fast. They have money and can spend it for the sake of Allāh, and we don’t have any money.” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said “Hasn’t Allāh given you something that you can give charity with? Every tasbīḥ is a ṣadaqah.” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) taught them to say subḥānAllāh, alḥamdulillāh, Allāhu akbar after the ṣalāh. The poor ṣaḥābah came back complaining, “The rich ṣaḥābah found out about the tasbīḥ and are doing that too.” nThe Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) smiled and said, “That is the bounty of Allāh, and He gives it to whom He wills.” If a person is given all of the wealth and it doesn’t distract him and he spends it for the ākhirah, then he is a person you should envy. This is an envy that stirs up healthy competition and not an envy that harms them. The Prophet [PBUH] said, "He who eats seven Ajwa dates every morning, will not be affected by poison or magic on the day he eats them." There is no such thing as wearing something to do away with hasad; nothing at all, such as wearing Qurʾān on paper around your neck. Read Qurʾān on yourself and have your spouse read Qurʾān on you. You don’t have to go to a shaykh. Did Abu Bakr have people keep coming to him all the time to ask him to read ruqya on them? Read Qurʾān, pray, and make du‘ā’ to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) and inshā’Allāh you will be protected from these things. Never allow yourself to think “who did it to me?” because then you allow yourself to fall into the sin of suspicion. When Shayṭān vows to lead people astray, he mentions that he will lead the human beings to cut off the rabbits ear and believe that the rabbit ear hanging on their neck has certain powers. Shayṭān knew this will destroy the foundations of faith and belief in qadr. The rabbit will proceed to become an idol and it will eventually lead them to shirk.

2.3.16 Anger / al-Ghaḍab 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Destructive characteristics and impact of anger Evidence from Sunnah about the importance of avoiding anger Levels of anger: Excessiveness, Negligence (Deficiency of Anger), Moderation Dealing with anger: Doing what is prohibited, fair and equal retaliation, forbearance Levels of forbearance: Withholding, Forgiveness, and Extending Kindness

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Narrated Abu Hurayrah: Allāh’s Apostle said, “The strong is not the one who overcomes the people by his strength, but the strong is the one who yamiliku himself while in anger.” If you let Shayṭān in the driver seat you will say things you’ve said before and do things you will regret later. Prophet said yamiku, the one who owns his anger not simply controls his anger. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Restraining your anger (forbearance) is through practicing forbearance.” You learn forbearance through practice. The same way you learn knowledge is the same way you learn to control your temper. Learn hulm; having that quality is truly honor, i3zza and victory. You can learn to deal with your anger; you wouldn’t get angry over the duniya if you didn’t love it. Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said in al-Fawā’id, “When you shield yourself from the arrows of the enemy, not only are you not harmed by your enemy, but your enemy wasted arrows.” Learn hulm, having that quality is truly honor, izza. Once the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was sitting with Abu Bakr and a group of people were insulting them. After the third time, Abu Bakr stood up and started arguing back. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) got up and left. Abu Bakr said, “Are you angry with me, ya Rasūlullāh?” He (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “An angel came down from heaven and was rejecting what he had said to you. And when you took revenge, a Shayṭān came down and the angel left and I didn’t want to be in the presence of a Shayṭān.” You don’t own yourself anymore when you start to get angry. The Shayṭān does the talking for you. Usually when a person gets higher in status, they put up with less from people. As for Rasulullah (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) the more he became established, more hulm the people saw from him. Anas b. Mālik said, “I was walking with the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) while he was wearing a nice garment. A bedouin pulled it off of him and left marks on his neck. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) turned to him and smiled and gave him more.” (Bukhāri) Indeed, Abraham was forbearing, grieving and [frequently] returning [to Allāh]. (Hūd: 75) He was halim, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t hurting (awawh). He just took his problems to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) (muneeb). SubhanAllāh, it shows the humanness of the prophets and the balance they had. They wanted to be elevated in the sight of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla).

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Whenever the Jews of Madīnah would say salām to him, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) would say “wa ‘alaykum.” According to most scholars including Imām ‘Uthaymīn, you should give a Christian or Jew the exact same greeting back to him. Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says in the Qurʾān that if you are given a greeting, then respond to it equal or greater. The reason the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said this is because the Jews of Madīnah would say “al-sām‘alaykum,” which means “may the curse of Allāh be upon you.” Once the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was walking with ‘Ā’ishah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anha) and someone said, “al-sām ‘alaykum,” and ‘Ā’ishah said, “May the curse of Allāh be upon you and His damnation and anger.” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) told her to calm down and that Allāh did not send them with this. She said, “Ya Rasūlullāh, did you hear what they said?” He said, “Yes. And did you hear how I responded? Allāh loves gentleness with all matters.” Some sahabas excelled in hulm. Hassan (RA) had a slave and he asked the slave to pour him a glass of water. The slave dropped the jug, which fell on his foot. The slave sees that Hassan (RA) is upset, as is only expected. In order to diffuse the situation, the slave quotes part of the above ayah, “who swallow anger” and then Hassan says immediately “I swallowed my anger.” So the slave thinks that this is as good of an opportunity as ever, and the slave continues to the next part of the ayah and says “who forgive people” and then Hassan said to the slave, “I forgive you.” The slave persists and completes the ayah, telling Hassan (RA) that “Allāh loves those who do good to others” (also a meaning of “ihsan”). And then Hassan said “Go, you’re free.” Understand how beloved al-ḥulm is to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said to al-Ashajj b. ‘Abd’l-Qays: “You have two qualities that Allāh the Almighty loves: forbearance and patience.” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) went to him and said, “You have two qualities that Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) loves: al-ḥulm and alanā’ (taking your time making sure things are in order, not being hasty).” One time, a group of people said they knew how to get Aḥmad b. ‘Abd’l-Qays angry because he loved his mom a lot. They sent someone who said, “I want to marry your mother.” Aḥmad ibn ‘Abd’l- Qays said, “Jazākallāhu khayran for your interest, but you are a young man and have your whole life in front of you, but my mother is old. By the way, tell your companions you were not able to make me angry!” Abu Hurayrah relates that a man said to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam): “Counsel me.” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Do not get angry.” The man repeated his request many times, but the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) kept saying: “Do not get angry.” (al- Bukhāri)

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The only permissible type of anger is to get angry for Allāh. Anas said, “The Prophet (ṣallallāhu‘alayhi wa sallam) never became angry for himself. If the boundaries of Allāh were crossed, then he would become angry for Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla).” If you are angry, ask yourself why you are angry. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) did get angry but only when the boundaries of Allāh are crossed. Even if your anger is for Allāh, you have to channel it in the right way. Channel your anger in the proper way. Even when the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) got angry for Allāh, he did not allow it to control him. Repel evil with that which is better. Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) admonished the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) in Sūrah ‘Abasa because Ibn Abi Makhtoum, a blind man, came to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) while he had the attention of the leaders of the Quraysh. This blind man was running and kicking up the dirt and saying, “Teach me from what Allāh has taught you!” He didn’t know that Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was talking to the Quraysh. The Quraysh’s problem was that they felt they were better than the poor ṣaḥābah. This man comes and yells in this way, and the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) did ‘abasa, which indicates the two lines on your forehead when you make the slightest frown possible. That is all the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) did at a blind man who didn’t even see him. Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) held the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) to a standard and told him to not show even those two lines on his face. You suppress it and swallow it. While ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz was the khalīfah, he tripped over someone, and the man said, “Are you majnūn (crazy)?” ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Azīz said, “No,” and kept walking. The guards went to the man and were going to take care of him, and ‘Umar said to the guards, “What are you doing? He asked a question, and I answered his question.” Some Causes of Anger ● Self-admiration ○ Arrogance, expecting others to treat you a certain way ● Inappropriate joking ○ Sometimes its out of mockery ● Argumentation ● Betrayal Practical Measures: 1. Make Wudu. If you do this, you will not have the same amount of anger. There is

scientific proof. When you are angry, you heat up physically, and when you put cold water on you, then you calm down.

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2. Say “a‘ūdhu billāhi min al-shayṭān’l-rajīm.” It will remind us of the attributes of Allāh

that He hears and He is knowledgeable. When the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) saw someone angry one time, he didn’t tell him to say the isti‘ādhah because he knew that sometimes the worst thing to do is remind them while angry. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) told the other ṣaḥābah, “I know a word that if he would say it, it would do away with his anger: ‘a‘ūdhu billāhi min al-shayṭān’l-rajīm’.” It’s a really bad idea to tell people what to do when angry. Do it afterwards. Shaykh shared an experience where a husband and wife were cursing each other in tawaaf and eventually divorced in tawaaf. Let them finish and give them future advice. 3. Change Position. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “If you are angry and standing up, then sit down. If you are still angry while sitting, then lay down.” This withdraws you from acting on the emotion. We have sufficient ways in the sunnah to deal with anger. Remove yourself from confrontation, it naturally takes you away from getting angry. All of this serves one purpose: do not act while you are angry. Don't EVER write, email, text. tweet, update facebook status, etc when you are angry. Just in the nature of writing, you become a coward and you can write things and you would not be able to say outloud. Got a problem with someone? Meet up with them; don’t write it out and try to it solve that way. Let it sit for 24 hours then write it if you really have to. When you are reading an email, you imagine a person in your face yelling; you imagine the worst possible tone. You read into it the way you want to read it when it is written down, that way it hurts more and it is a recurring sayyiaat every time they read it. If the shaykh could give a fatwa on this he would say,” It’s haram to write an email about a serious issues, makrooh to talk about them over the phone, and it’s mustahab to do it in person.” Shaytan always tries to make you do things in haste, so you can ruin your life and your relationships. He wants you to act in the moment of anger when you are not thinking clearly. Shaytaan provides a disguise for you. Ibn al-Qayyim said, “Whenever you are angry, look at yourself in the mirror.” You will be disgusted with yourself. It’s important that you do things that physically and spiritually calm you down when you are angry. Whenever you see a person there is more rahmah. Any time you have a serious issue, say like a board issue, you call the brother and say let us meet at isha and this will automatically take off half of the heat. Abu Dharr (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) told a servant to bring a sheep, and he brought the sheep but broke the sheep’s leg. He asked, “Why did you do that?” The servant said, “I did it to make

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you mad.” Abu Dharr said, “I’m going to anger the one who told you to make me mad [the Shayṭān] and let you go free.” Sometimes protesting takes away from the issue and it consumes your anger. Protesting is an effective tool, but it does not replace dua. There is problem when someone goes out protests and thinks just because they have yelled, “Free Palestine” they have freed Palestine. It relieves some pressure, but doesn’t replace a propers ways to direct our anger.

2.3.17 Learning Forbearance Ibn 'Abbas reported that the Messenger of Allāh said to Ashajj 'Abdu'l-Qays, "You have two qualities which Allāh loves: forbearance and steadiness." Allāh is Al-Ḥalīm ● How do I acquire Ḥulm? ● How am I able to gain the attribute of Ḥulm? ● The Example of Prophet Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) ●

Anas b. Mālik narrated: “I was walking with the Messenger of Allāh and he was wearing a mantle of Najrān with a thick border. A rude bedouin met him and pulled the mantle so violently that I saw this violent pulling had left marks from its border on the skin of the neck of the Messenger of Allāh. And he (the bedouin) said: Muḥammad! Command that I should be given out of the wealth of Allāh, which is at your disposal. The Messenger of Allāh turned to him and smiled, and then he ordered for him a provision.” (al-Bukhāri) The Example of Ibrāhīm (‘alayhi’l-salām)

Indeed, Abraham was forbearing, grieving and [frequently] returning [to Allāh]. (Hūd: 75) The True Meaning of Forgiving Others and Not Holding Grudges

...but whoever pardons and makes reconciliation -his reward is [due] from Allāh. (al-Shūra: 40)

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The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “... and Allāh does not increase a servant (of His), as a result of his forgiveness, except in glory.” (al-Trimidhi) Abu Hurayrah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) reported: The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “May he be miserable, the worshipper of the dīnār and dirham, and the worshipper of the dinar and dirham, and the worshipper of the striped silk cloak. If he is given anything, he is satisfied; but if not, he is unsatisfied.” (Al-Bukhari) “By Him in Whose Hand is my soul, no servant (of Allāh) truly believes unless he loves for his brother what he loves for himself.” (al-Bukhāri & Muslim) Learn about the virtues of forgiveness and forbearance 1. Surah A’raf:199- Take what is given freely, enjoin what is good, and turn away from the ignorant.

Remember the Anger of Allāh Think about the consequences of your temper in this world Always carry an invisible mirror with you to see how you look when your angry Try to identify the causes of your anger 6. Remember that everything that happens is by the will of Allāh 2. 3. 4. 5.

2.3.18 Greed and Miserliness Again the root cause of this problem is loving the duniyaa too much. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “If the son of Ādam was to be given a valley of gold, then he would seek with it another valley of gold. If he has two valleys of gold, then he would want another. Nothing would satisfy him except for the dirt in his mouth.” Allāh says in Surah At-Takathur:

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The mutual rivalry for piling up (the good things of this world) diverts you (from the more serious things) (1). When a person is so business minded and consistently wants more and more, it is a path for him getting destroyed. So many CEO’s, celebrities, athletes and other people we look up to end up committing suicide. In Surah Al-Hadid Allāh says,

“Know that the life of this world is only play and amusement, pomp and mutual boasting among you, and rivalry in respect of wealth and children, as the likeness of vegetation after rain, thereof the growth is pleasing to the tiller; afterwards it dries up and you see it turning yellow; then it becomes straw. But in the Hereafter (there is) a severe torment (for the disbelievers, evil-doers), and (there is) Forgiveness from Allāh and (His) Good Pleasure (for the believers, good-doers), whereas the life of this world is only a deceiving enjoyment.” The farmer became happy to see his tree grow after the beneficial rain. The leaves then turned yellow and he sees it as yellow. This is because the craving of abundance gets to you every time you reach another goal. You are not happy. Abundance is torture. Everything you get you will see it as yellow. A way to remedy this: At beginning of year always set a goal of how much you want to save. Give the rest to sadaqa. When you don’t have goals, your desire to accumulate money will increase and that kills your spirituality.

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Take cars as an example. A ca comes out that is extremely beautiful. The next year same car comes out but the lights move a little differently or the rims are little bigger. All of a sudden what you own is not good enough. Same with iPhones. You get what you get and then you want the next one. Many books written on why people are least happy in this generation, despite all of the advancements we have. The reason is because people mistake happiness for abundance. They forget that that the key component of happiness is achievement. You set milestones that are not crazy and are achievable. Attain them and move on. The shaykh dislikes desi/arab weddings. They waste a lot of money on this. There are high mahrs and competition to outdo others. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “ The smaller the mahr the more blessing there is in it.” In our society the more someone has, the more unsatisfied they become. Someone has nicer house than you so you want to build a bigger house. You work extra hours at work to pay off for the house. Two weeks later the house does not feel the same. No, it turned yellow. Don’t allow yourself to get caught up in pursuit of dunya. It destroys you and it kills your spirituality. Allāh said this 1400 years ago but we see the same principles reverbrating in modern books. An author writes that the 3 keys to happiness are, “When you have something to do, something to love, and something work for.” Doesn’t this remind of you the Qurʾān? In Surat al’Imran Allāh says, “And hasten to forgiveness from your Lord; and a Garden, the extensiveness of which is (as) the heavens and the earth, it is prepared for those who guard (against evil)” (3:133). Rush (something to do), toward forgiveness (something to love), and Garden (something to work for). In Palestinian culture, there is a jāhiliyy tradition in the wedding of dressing the woman with the gold purchased for her. Then they complain that someone put ‘ayn on her. They shouldn’t show it off to people. This tradition is from the tradition of jāhiliyyah. The Quraysh would dress the woman with the gold purchased for her. The Shaykh share his personal mahr story. His wife asked for a “100 grand and a dollar” as her mahr. It was a joke however, she was referring the chocolate 100 grand and $1. SubhanAllāh. In Sūrat’l-A‘rāf, Allāh says, “And if only the people would have believed and had faith, We would have opened the barakāt (blessings) of the heavens and the earth.” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu‘alayhi wa sallam) used to say, “And make my house expansive.” He (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). He chose to live in an apartment so small that he had to ask ‘Ā’ishah to move his legs so he could pray qiyām. When he (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “And make

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my home expansive,” he was asking Allāh to make him feel that his house is expansive. He was asking for barakah in what he had. Some people are given very little and are satisfied and content, and another is given ten times that and is not content. Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) teaches us some important lessons. There is a difference between having blessing in something and having something. In Sūrat’l-An‘ām, Allāh says, “Whenever they forgot that which they are reminded of [i.e. Allāh sent them hardship, a test to wake them up but they did not wake up] We open for them the doors of all good [in the sense of dunya]. We gave it all to them until they became pleased with what they had. We snatched it suddenly and they are left in utter despair.” The dunya was a punishment for them. Sometimes Allāh punishes a person with dunya. Having a lot is the greatest punishment for you if you are not grateful because you hang your hopes on dunya. And that is the norm and this is why we celebrities that are so chronically depressed. Be satisfied with your situation and ask Allāh for barakah in what He gave you. Ask to have more in less. See it as a lot even though it may be little. hink about death ‘Aṭa said, “There are three benefits to remembering death. You are satisfied with little. You hasten to repent. You do not compete with the people of dunya over their dunya (you feel satisfied).” It can be a true punishment when you are attached and feel grief and feel a sense of entitlement to the good in your life. When you have your priorities right and Allāh puts barakah in it. Would you sell your arm for 2 million dollars? How about your eyesight? Your hearing? If you add up all the things you have you would not give away for any amount, you will see yourself as a millionaire. We saw through hurricane Katrina how fitnah brings out either the ugliness or goodness of people - some came back to the masjid while others became worse in their deeds. There was a video of a woman (non-Muslim) with a 2 year old and she was smiling and saying, “This is the greatest day of my life” standing in front of the destroyed house. She thought she had lost her duaghter and until that day she ever appreciated the value of her daughter until today. As long as you are always behind the duniya, you are always distraught and disturbed.

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“Beautified for people is the love of that which they desire - of women and sons, heaped-up sums of gold and silver, fine branded horses, and cattle and tilled land. That is the enjoyment of worldly life, but Allāh has with Him the best return.” (āle-‘Imrān: 14) The Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The likeness of this worldly life in the Hereafter is as the likeness of what any of you (gets when he) puts his finger into the sea; so let him see that which he gets!” (al-Bukhāri & Muslim) REMEDY: ● As Sadaqah - If the ummah paid its zakah, there wouldn’t be any poor people. ● Set a financial goal that is reasonable. Everyrhing beyond what you had ahchieved to save goes to sadaqa. This will also keep you from not monitoring your bank account every single moment.

2.3.19 Curbing the Desire for Food and Sex (shahwul batan wal fahsh) This is very serious and significant as it has a direct implication on spirituality. Allāh gave us halal options. Abdullāh b. Mas‘ūd said, “If I had ten days left to live and I knew I would die at the end of them and if I had time to get married, I would still get married.” In this day and age we make it very hard for the youth to get married and we make haram what Allāh has made halal. Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said, “One of the worst desires a person can have is excess in food. This is what got Ādam out of Paradise in the first place, and this is what stimulates the desire for wealth and it also stimulates the desire for intimacy.” In the books of tazkiyah, it is condemned to overeat. Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said, “One of the worst desires a person can have is excess in food. This is what got Ādam out of Paradise in the

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first place, and this is what stimulates the desire for wealth and it also stimulates the desire for intimacy.” Ibn Qudāmah said that people who have a larger appetite for food have a larger sexual appetite. A person should not eat in excess. Ibn ‘Umar reported Allāh’s Messenger (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) as saying that a nonMuslim eats in seven intestines whereas a Muslim eats in one intestine. (Muslim) The context of this ḥadīth: There was a man who was not Muslim who drank milk from seven different animals because he wasn’t getting full. The next day he became Muslim and only drank one cup of milk and was satisfied. This is what the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was talking about. Imām al-Nawawi explains this ḥadīth and says: “Whenever you are focused on the hereafter, you naturally become somewhat distracted from the dunya.” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The son of Ādam has not filled a worse vessel than the stomach. It is enough for him to eat enough to hold his posture.” This means that you eat to function. It is okay to enjoy good food, but don’t overeat. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “If one must eat, he should leave 1/3rd for food, 1/3rd for drink, and 1/3rd for air.” This is one of the most scientifically accurate aḥadīth. The gas bubble in the stomach occupies 34% of the stomach. If you infringe on the gas bubble, then you suffer from indigestion. Imam Hasan al Basri was once told him by someone, “I am full.” He replied, “Should any believer do that to himself?” We can our desire our food by by decreasing your portions. Crash dieting doesn't work. After the diet you just gain back more than what you lost. The sunnah is to eat in portions. Shaykh lost 75 pounds through this method. Imam ibn Qudamah said, “Being overweight doesn’t mean that you indulge. Being thin does not make you healthy or mean that you don’t indulge.” Fill yourself to a point where you are satisfied and function. Ibn Qudāmah said, “You eat too much so you sleep too much so you worship too little.” Abu Mūsa al-Ashari was told that he doesn’t eat enough, and he said, “The horses that always win the race are the lean ones. When you want to train a horse, you feed the horse well. The next day you barely feed them. The next day you feed them something small but nutritious.” Tufayl ibn Amr was nicknamed ABu Batn- was known as the guy who had adheem al batan Amr ibn al Aas? - Adheem al batan A scholar said, “In order to be disciplined in anything, you have to be disciplined in everything.” It is easier to pray qiyaam al layl when you are healthy. Hajj is easy when one is

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healthy. You are not going to be disciplined with your salah if you are not disciplined with your fitness. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was someone very healthy. His stomach did not pop out and he did work out. If a person is sitting and food is being presented, he should not condemn others or depress people or tell them that they are overeating. They should be kind to the host and still eat their portions. Eat in moderation. If you are healthy physically, watch what it does to your spirituality. You can do so much more when you are used to less. Sexual Appetite: Islam has put in many internal checks, including marriage and fasting. Islam forbids being alone with a nonmahram. It doesn’t matter who you think he/she. Even if you think of them as a brother/sister. Just take a take look at this video, “Why guys and girls can’t be friends.” It’s a neutral, not religious experiment on a college campus. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_lh5f4DMA There are men and women who can be completely around each other and not be indecent. But they are the exceptions not the norm. In Islam rule of law is not for exception, but for the norm. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The brother-in-law is Death.” Why? Because people get relaxed around the in-laws and family. Don’t ignore the rules whether he be your cousin or any other family member. Respect the internal checks. Also make it easy for people to get married young. Islam encourages intimacy within marriage. Spouses cannot deny each other. They are encouraged to look good for each other and dress up for each other. Islam encourages a healthy relationship so people don’t have to look on the outside. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) taught us that even when a person cannot be entirely intimate, they should have levels of intimacy. Having those displays of affection is necessary so a person can be satisfied and so they don’t look beyond that. Khalwah is not just two people being together in a room or car. There is such a thing as cyber-khalwah like Gchat. Shayṭān plays with people. Always cc when in doubt. Don’t get too comfortable. If you wouldn’t write it if other people saw it, then don’t write it. Imam al-Ghazali says, “If someone in particular triggers your thoughts and you cannot get married to them, being even around them is haraam even when you are not secluded with them. Islam stops it at the very root. Why do we have sexual deviance? The reason why people are not satisfied is because we see a lot of weird, lavish things in public and it’s harmful to society. Take care of desiring food

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and sex too much. You are supposed to desire them, but channel them in the right way. Ibn Taymiyyah said, “Not a single person from the time of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) to my time (~600 years) was ever stoned for committing adultery.” In order to have that crime, you have to be married and have four trustworthy witnesses at the same time see everything. Ibn Taymiyyah said, “If a few people saw two people committing zina, he is supposed to close his eyes and walk away (not get more people).” It worked because no one ever did it.

2.3.20 The Wandering Gaze (ghaddul Basar) The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Do not follow one look with another look. The second one is on you and the second one is against you.” This doesn’t mean that you can keep on staring the first time! (YOLO-You only look once). Prophet saw dealt the with youth in very compassionate way. When he saw a couple of young men staring at women, he simply took their head and turned them with a smile on his face. This also doesn’t mean that you have to keep looking down all the time. Look over people’s shoulders, look around, but don’t focus on a person. Don’t act like sisters are aliens in masjid and outside act very laxed. Lowering your gaze applies to sisters as well. Ibn Abi Makhtoum was with Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu‘alayhi wa sallam), and they were sitting with the wives of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) who were not properly covered. They said, “Ya Rasūlullāh, he is blind.” He said, “Are you blind too?” Celebrity crush is wrong also. Imagine being watched

Tell the believing men to reduce [some] of their vision and guard their private parts. That is purer for them. Indeed, Allāh is Acquainted with what they do. (al-Nūr: 30)

Allāh knows the fraud of the eyes, and all that the breasts conceal (Ghāfir:19)

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What is the betrayal of the eyes? ‘Abdullāh b. ʿAbbās explains this verse. He says, “A man is with a group of people when a woman passes by, and he shows them that he has lowered his gaze, but when they are not paying attention, he looks.” Don’t be a hypocrite. If you see the sister in public you look down but on facebook staring at her profile picture. If it’s not okay in person then its not okay on social media! Careful what you post online, you never know who might be staring at it; it’s not just a matter of halal and haram. Modesty applies to men and women. Let your heart be your discretion. Shaykh is working on a project and needs help from IT professionals: HalalifyYourWeb Keep your eyes on the prize, Jannah Ibrāhīm b. Adham was asked by a man how to lower his gaze. He told the man that he needed a bowl of milk delivered to a place. The man delivered it. Ibrāhīm asked him, “Did you see the house we passed by? Did you see the market you passed by?” The man said, “No.” If your eyes are on the prize, then you don’t pay attention to what is around you. It may sacrifice your Jannah, so you lower your gaze. Remember Jannah whenever it happens. Breaking the Habit of Sin: ● Preventing the sin is better than treatment ● Using ibadah and positive action as treatment ● Countering Desires with patience ● Countering heedlessness with knowledge The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “All children of Ādam are sinners, and the best sinners are those who repent.” (al-Tirmidhi) kulli adamu khatta Three men complained to al-Ḥusayn. One man said, “We don’t have any rain.” He said, “Stop sinning.” Another said, “We are not blessed with children.” He said, “Work on your sins.” The third said, “We are struggling with poverty.” He said, “Work on your sins.” He was asked why he told this to each of them and said, “Allāh said in the Qurʾān that when Nūḥ complained to his Lord, Nūḥ said to them, ‘Seek the forgiveness of your Lord. Verily He is the most forgiving. He would send upon you beneficial rain and give you money and give you children and grant you gardens and waterfalls.’” There is a direct correlation between sins and being deprived. Ascribe the bad things that happen in your life to sin. Even if they are not from sin, it will cause you to be more vigilant in rooting out those causes, especially when it comes to your

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‘ibādah. “Allāh said in the Qurʾān that when Nūḥ complained to his Lord, Nūḥ said to them, ‘Seek the forgiveness of your Lord. Verily He is the most forgiving. He would send upon you beneficial rain and give you money and give you children and grant you gardens and waterfalls.’” Make sure your repentance is a sincere one. Abu Mihjan was one of the companions of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) He was suffering from an addiction to drinking wine. He was brought and flogged, then brought and flogged again, but he knew that this problem did not relieve him of his duty to strive for the cause of Islam. So he went out with the Muslims to al-Qaadisiyyah as a soldier, seeking martyrdom on the battlefield. In al-Qaadisiyyah he was brought to the commander of the army, Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqaas, for having drunk wine. Sa’d detained him so that the Muslims ranks would be cleansed of such a person. This detention was a harsh punishment which caused Abu Mihjan a great deal of anguish. When he heard the sounds of swords and spears, and the neighing of the horses, and he knew that the jihad had begun, and the gates of Paradise were open, he was filled with longing for jihad. He called to the wife of Sa’d ibn Abi Waaqqas saying, “Let me go and I promise Allaah that if I come back safe and sound, I will put my own feet in the chains, and if I am killed, then you will be rid of me.” She felt sorry for him, so she let him go. He fought very bravely and everyone was wondering who he was as he had his face covered. When the battle was over, Abu Mihjan went back and put his feet in the chains. When Sa’d found out he himself went to this wine-drinker, released the chains with his own hands and said, “Get up, for by Allaah I will never flog you for drinking wine again.” Abu Mihjan said, “By Allaah, I will never drink it again.” Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) covers you the first time. A sāriq is someone who can steal something of value that is hidden without the owner even knowing about it – a skilled thief. If you see someone take something, then he is not a sāriq. A sāriq was brought to ‘Umar b. Al- Khaṭṭāb. When the punishment was going to be taken, he said to ‘Umar b. Al-Khaṭṭāb, “This is my first time!” ‘Umar said, “No it is not. Allāh always covers you up the first time.” After his hand was cut, the man came to ‘Umar and said, “I have stolen 21 times.” Allāh covers, shelters, and shields you the first time. He (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) gives you an opportunity to come back to Him. Secret sin or public sin, which sin worse? Public sin is worse, because boasting about a sin is worse than just sinning. But for spirituality secret sins are worse. It shows weakness of your faith in Allāh as only people are preventing you from doing the sins in public. Imām al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri said, “If there is a thief who is robbing a house and hears the

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doorknob rattle, he will hide. At that moment, he committed a form of shirk because Allāh was watching him the whole time and he felt no shame. When he thought that someone may see him, then he felt ashamed of himself.” Respect the sight of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). If you feel Allāh doesn’t even see you that’s a sign you are a mushrik. And if you know he is watching why do you make him the lowest of observers? A Man from Bani Israeel was about to rape a woman and he said, “Don’t worry, no one sees us except the stars.” She said, “Where is the maker of the stars? He is watching us.” If we feel no shame whatsoever committing the sin in private and in public, we have a serious disease. Hudhayfah ibn Yaman was asked, “What was the difference between the hypocrite of the time of the Prophet and his time?” He said, “The hypocrites of time of Prophet used to hide their sins but not anymore.” If you can go to someone who can help and you tell them about the sin then it is not boasting. Remember, every sin is worse than its expression. Abu Huraira said that the Messenger of Allāh (sallAllāhu Alaihi wasalam) said: Riba is of seventy different kinds, the least grave being equivalent to a man marrying (i.e. having sexual intercourse with) his own mother. Just because we have become desensitized to it doesn’t make it okay. Our sight should be with Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) and what he made known to us. Sufyān al-Thawri said, “Making istighfār is more important than making tasbīḥ.” If you have a stain on a garment, the priority is to clean the stain and not to accessorize more. An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. Imām ibn al-Qayyim said, “Every single action manifests itself through the following process: First the action is a fatara (passing thought). Then you start to entertain the thought and it becomes a settled thought. If you entertain the thought long enough, then it becomes niyyah (an intention) to commit the deed. Then you become determined to do it (‘azīmah). (Once we make the intention, we have a certain level of determination.) Then it becomes ‘amal (action, an actual deed). After it manifests itself as an actual deed, it become a habit.” It is then a sin that defines you and is part of your life. Imām ibn al-Qayyim said, “The greatest punishment of a sin is that Allāh allows you to sin again.” Ibn Qudāmah said, “It is like a farmer who sees a tree growing which is harmful and has weeds and then decides to come back later to take care of it.”

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What happens to a tree when it grows? It grows inwardly and deeper. The longer you allow it to drag on, the more hurt you get out of it. You are allowing sin to grow deeper and you lose fitrah. A sister stopped wearing ḥijāb just to take revenge on her father. The first day she went to the university without ḥijāb, she felt so uncomfortable that she wore a hoodie. A few weeks later, she took it off. It became normal. The heart becomes hard and you become desensitized to the sin and it is no longer a big deal. Imām ibn al-Qayyim said, “The greatest punishment of a sin is that Allāh allows you to sin again.” You become further desensitized each time you sin. Shaytaan gets you to think backwards, “Why should I fast if I don’t even pray?” You want to progress not go backwards. The Sources Treat sin the way you would treat any other drug rehab. If a person walks and he falls down what is the first thing he does? He looks to see what caused him to fall down. When a person commits a sin or trait that is not praiseworthy they need to analyze what gave birth to this. 1. Where was I when I first committed this sin? Environment, setting, who was your company, etc. 2. When did I first do it? 3. Did anyone encourage me to commit this sin directly or indirectly? When society becomes corrupt, then the standards of what is ethical become completely blurred. Look at your environment and your close friends. 4. What was the primary intended goal of committing the sin? Whenever you do something, you do it for a reason. You thought the sin was going to make you happy, which is why you did it in the first place. You were not patient with Allāh. Ask yourself: what was the intention behind the sin and was the goal achieved? Motives like pride are harder to get rid off than desire. 5. Was that goal achieved? Most people are more miserable in their lives, they never got that “peace” they would get from committing that sin. People after committing sins are more miserable. They have lots of turmoil, less peace 6. What are some of the possible secondary factors? What else contributed to the problem? The Action 1. Was this sin committed using any tool or medium? Facebook, CD Player, Phone, Business Location 2. If so, is this tool a necessity in my life?

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3. Did I feel any guilt after committing this sin the first time? How desensitized are you? How did you feel after the first time? Did any friends praise the sin or encourage you to repeat it? The first time you do something your fitrah says this is wrong, but slowly you become comfortable with it. 4. Did any of my friends praise this sin or encourage me to repeat it? If losers surround you, you lower your own standards, vice versa. Post-Sin Feelings 1. How many times did I repeat this action? 2. How often do I put myself in unnecessary contact with an environment conducive to committing it? There is a saying in drug rehab: “If you are an alcoholic, then don’t play pool in a bar.” You are exposing yourself to contact with the bar, and it is inviting you to it. 3. Did anything bad happen to me after the sin (even if unrelated to the act itself)? Ascribe what happened to the sin itself. 4. Did anyone I was trying to hide the sin from catch me in the act? If so, how did it make me feel? Are you shameful in front of people and not in front of Allāh? 5. Did I sacrifice any acts of worship as a result of the sin? (i.e. Listening to music instead of Qur’ān, going to a party instead of the masjid) It is a trillion dollar industry. It is so harmful that it kills time, it kills salah. It’s a drug. A study said that pornography alters chemicals in the brain the same way a drug does. People sacrifice acts of worship. Anything that takes you away from Allāh is not good for you. Game Plan 1. Imagine having to stand in front of Allāh and watch the sin being committed in front me, then having to explain it. Let’s say your mother had a hidden camera that recorded you committing the sin and then made you watch it with her and explain the sin. How much worse is this than her just having knowledge of it? On the Day of Judgment, you will see it all in instant replay. You will have to watch the replay with Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) and answer for it. You are observing Allāh and Allāh is observing you. 2. Imagine having to be burned by a fire for every time I commit the sin. Umar khattab would consistently put his hand next to fire and say, “Can you handle it O ‘Umar?” 3. Pray two rak‘ahs and sincerely seek forgiveness from Allāh. Make your tawbah an event; document the day. Don’t just cry but repent and change course. Even Shayṭān cried; that’s not enough. Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri said, “The one who is truly fearful of Allāh is not the one who cries and wipes his tears but he is the one who leaves the things that cause him to be fearful in the first place.”

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Qabeelat Haadi Student Notes September 2012 4.


Ask Allāh to grant me the strength to deal with the withdrawal symptoms of the sin.

When you leave things, you may become an outcast. You will have withdrawal symptoms when you leave the sin. The effects are not necessarily a manifestation of Allāh’s anger on you. Allāh accepted Ādam’s repentance, but Ādam had consequences for his sin and had to leave Jannah. You will face consequences whenever you withdraw yourself from these things, but ask Allāh to help you deal with it. Take those withdrawal symptoms as a source of purification. 5. Make a commitment to never return to that sin again. 6. Seek forgiveness from the people I hurt with this sin (if applicable). 7. Designate a self-enforced “punishment” for myself if I do it again to act as a deterrent. Soap in the mouth is one of the most effective ways to deal with cursing. It is a deterrent. Punish yourself in ways that don’t harm you. It is extremely effective. Deter yourself but don’t harm yourself; deprive of things like self of leisure. 8. Give an act of charity or perform extra prayers to make up for the sin. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Follow up your sin with a good deed and it will wipe it out.” This doesn’t mean you can consistently do the same sin and then follow it up with a good deed. The ultimate sign of your repentance and turning the page is doing a good deed after a bad deed. Good deeds do away with the sins. For tawbah, make two rakʿahs. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) legislated it. Physically involve yourself in tawbah and make yourself feel involved. Do good deeds to show that you have turned the page. 9. Eliminate all mediums that could be used to pull me back into the sin. (i.e. delete phone numbers, deactivate Facebook account, change email address, put up internet firewalls, break CDs, take TV out of my room, etc.) Don’t tempt yourself. Don’t leave the means open for temptation. Do what you have to do. 10. Look for a permissible alternative to my sin (nicotine gum for smokers, sports, nashīds/na‘ts) Imām Ibn Qudāmah said, “For a person to do something merely permissible to take him away from something ḥarām is good and can be rewardable.” Keep active. Keep away from being idle because that is when Shayṭān has time to work on you. 11. Disassociate either gradually or immediately from the people who either commit the same sin or encourage me to do so. This is crucial. If you keep the same company and they commit that sin or have a behavioral issue, then you will fall back into it. Surround yourself with good company. 12. Surround myself with people who abhor the sin and will help me refocus. 13. Make a pact with someone in a similar situation to leave that sin for good. 14. Keep my eye on the prize! Realize if Allāh doesn’t replace what I’ve lost with something in this dunya, then He will do so in Jannah, or even both, inshā’Allāh. Allāh will give you back more than what you have

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sacrificed. Allāh says, “Whoever isconscious of Me, I will make a way out for him and grant him from ways that he never expected.” Allāh will make a way out for you, inshā’Allāh.

2.3.21 Breaking the Habit of Sin Make a pact with someone who is going through the same situation, to get rid of the sin. Keep your eyes on the prize. Some of the best people are the repenters. Shaytaan’s name come Iblees comes from-ablasa. He despairs and digs himself a deeper and deeper hole. Imam ‘ibn Qayyim said, “When iblees managed to get Adam out of jannah, he thought he won and adam lost, but whenever remember whenever a diver dives into the sea, he collects pearls. The strongest people are those who repent. And Allāh made Adam stronger.” Similarly with Yunus (as), Allāh made him a better person. Sin was his catalyst to get back to Allāh. A sin that brings you back to Allāh is better than the good deed that it takes away. Shayṭān tells you while you are doing a sin how terrible you are and that Allāh will not forgive you and will not have mercy on you. Always leave the door open between you and Allāh. Never shut the door between you and allāh. No matter how low you are in life. Abu Bakr, one of the taba tabi‘īn, said, “Once I was traveling to al-Shāam with other travelers, and on the way, we were attacked by thieves. They took everything we had and put it in front of the gang leader. From the goods was a bag of sugar and some almonds. The thieves began eating in front of us. Everyone was eating except for the leader, so I asked him why he wasn’t eating anything, and he said he was fasting. I said, ‘How is it that you are a highway robber and steal people’s property and kill people and are fasting?’ He said, ‘O shaykh, this is a door that I keep open between me and Allāh so that maybe one day I will be able to enter upon Allāh through it.’” Abu Bakr said, “After a while, I saw this same person in Ḥajj. I asked, ‘Are you who I think you are?’ He said, ‘Yes! That fasting that I kept open elevated me to this status, and Allāh accepted me through that door so I abandoned all of the other stuff.’” Al-Fudayl bin Iyaad was famous for his piety and worship, but he was not always a practicing Muslim. In his early years, al-Fudayl was an infamous highway robber; he would prowl in the night for victims on the road from Abiward to Sarakhs. Between these two cities was a small village in which lived a girl that al-Fudayl was in love with. One night, out of desperation to be with her, al-Fudayl climbed the wall of her home. As he was climbing over it, he heard a voice recite:

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“Has not the time come for the hearts of those who believe to be affected by Allāh’s Reminder?” [Qur'an al-Hadeed : 16] At that moment, al-Fudayl answered, “O my Lord, the time has indeed come.” He returned from where he came and sought refuge near a traveling party on the main road. They were busy engaging in a serious discussion. al-Fudayl heard one of them say, “Let us continue our journey now.” Another answered, “No, not until the morning, for al-Fudayl is lurking on the road somewhere out there, just waiting to rob us.” Having heard the entire conversation, alFudayl thought to himself, “I go around in the night to sin, while a group of Muslims remain here because they fear me. Indeed i feel that Allāh has brought me here to them only so that I can reform my character. O Allāh, I indeed repent to you..” Look at also the story of Malik ibn Dinar, who was drunk police officer, did not engage in worship and was completely away from deen. He changed his life around completely after the death of his daughter. He became a long-standing faqih at the masjid of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). ‘Abdullāh ibn Mubarak was another example. He used to be a party animal, play instruments, host parties and drink all night. One night, in his sleep he heard a bird say, “Has not the time come for the hearts of those who believe to be affected by the reminder of Allāh, and that, which has been revealed of the truth.” After that not only did he change his life around but became a great scholar of ahadith and fiqh. Malik ibn Dinar is a humble person whose righteousness is prominent and austerity is wellknown. One day, a thief broke in his house but it was not long until the thief realized he is in a house that has nothing worthy to steal. He looked around and saw Malik ibn Dinar looking at him then said, " You came searching for something of a worldly value but could not find anything. Do you care to possess something of a religious value to benefit you in the hereafter?" Upon hearing this, the thief drew near him and sat down listening to the teachings and heart-melting advices that made the man weep in remorse. Then got up and walked with him to the Masjid to pray Fajr. This caught the people's attention, the noble pious man is

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walking with the evil low-life thief and so they asked Malik about it. He replied: "He came to steal from me but instead I stole his heart" If you have been running away from Allāh for last 20 years it will take some time for you to come back, but it doesn’t mean that Allāh is not accepting our repentance. Video: Poem that made Imam Ahmed cry http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdb4UV4QuQY

The Poem that Made Imam Ahmed Cry If my Lord asks me ‘Have you shyness in disobeying me? You conceal your sins from my creation – and with sins you come to me.’ So how will I answer? O woe to me – and who shall protect me? I keep averting my soul with thoughts of hope – from time to time. And I forget what is to come after death – and what is to come after I am shrouded. As if I am guaranteed life (eternally) – and that death will not come to me. And when the severe stupor of death overtakes me – who will protect me? I looked at the faces, is there not from amongst them who will ransom me? I will be asked regarding what I’ve prepared in my life to save me (on the Day of Judgement). Then how will I answer – after I’ve neglected my religion. Woe to me! Did I not hear the Speech of Allāh inviting me? Did I not hear what came in (the chapters of) Qaaf and Yaa Seen? Did I not hear about the Day of Gathering, the Day of Assemble and the Day of Judgment? Did I not hear the crier of death inviting me, calling me? So O’ my Lord, a slave (turning to you) I have repented – so who then shall shelter me? Except a Lord extensive in forgiveness – to the truth He will guide me. I have come to you (in repentance) – so have mercy on me, and make heavy my scales (with good deeds). And lighten my account – You are the best of who will bring me to account.

Chapter 4: Istiqāmah When you go through the diseases, you feel helpless. The most praiseworthy quality a person can have is istiqaamah. The word istiqāmah means: stability, straight, disciplined, stable, steadfastness, consistent. One time the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was sitting with Abu Bakr (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu), and Abu Bakr said, “Ya Rasūlullāh, I’m noticing that all of a sudden grey hairs are appearing in your hair.” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was very youthful looking and when he passed away at 63 years old, he only had 20 grey hairs. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu

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‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Sūrah Hūd and its sisters have turned me grey.” Towards the end of the Makkan period, the revelation about the previous prophets came: Yūnus, Maryam, Yūsuf, Sūrat’l-Anbiyā’. The reason was to give the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) some reinforcement and to look at what the previous prophets went through. This sūrah in particular had a profound effect on the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). When Abu Bakr asked what about Sūrah Hūd gave him the grey hair, he said the following āyah:

“So remain on a right course as you have been commanded, [you] and those who have turned back with you [to Allāh], and do not transgress. Indeed, He is Seeing of what you do. (Hūd: 112) Istaqim is the right course. Ibn ʿAbbās (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) said, “No verse has ever been revealed to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) that was harder than this verse.” Why? It was a command for him to maintain consistency no matter what he went through. When al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri would come across this āyah, he would say, “O Allāh, You are our Lord so grant us istiqāmah.”

2.4.1 The Hardest Task -

In regards to hardship In regards to maintaining strength

Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The likeness of the heart is as the likeness of a feather that the wind is turning over in the desert.”(Ahmad) Whenever you are struck by tragedy, keep going on course. Do not be like a snake, righteous one moment not the other, but rather strive to be consistent. Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) used to make this dua frequently: “Ya muqallib alqulub, thabbit qalbi ‘ala dinik -O turner of hearts, make my heart firm upon your religion.” Istiqāmah means two things. 1) It comes in regards to hardship. It is hard to keep moving forward when under oppression or going through tests such as poverty, oppression, being stricken, challenged in faith. Keep moving forward and don’t become diverted.

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2) Maintaining strength. You start something but don’t think you can finish or you look at things as being so big that you don’t even try to start. “Analysis paralysis” is a disease. It means that you overanalyze everything and render yourself incapable of doing anything. You say, “I want to go study overseas,” but you aren’t even taking advantage of the local classes in your community. “One day I want to do…” but you don’t do anything. ‘Abdullāh b. Mas‘ūd said, “The example of the believer, unbeliever, and hypocrite is that of three people who arrive in a valley. One descended and passed through to the other side. One descended and reached halfway. One of them was at the edge of the valley calling to the one in the middle saying, ‘Woe to you! Where are you going?’ The one who reached the other side called, ‘Come to the One who will save you!’ The one in the middle called back, ‘I don’t want to die!’ The man in the middle was looking back and forth. Because he kept looking back and forth, a flood came and he drowned.” The one who made it across the valley was the believer. The disbeliever stood calling out and died of starvation. The one in the middle was consistently torn. He wasn’t sure if he could be that person who crosses, and he died before realizing his full potential because he wasn’t moving at a gradual pace. Ibn Mas‘ūd recited āyah 143 in Sūrat’l-Nisā’:

“Wavering between them, [belonging] neither to the believers nor to the disbelievers. And whoever Allāh leaves astray - never will you find for him a way.” (al-Nisā’: 143) Imaan, faith goes up and down. You are not the same before and after Ramadan

2.4.2 The Most Praiseworthy Task Have you not considered how Allāh presents an example, [making] a good word like a good tree, whose root is firmly fixed and its branches [high] in the sky? It produces its fruit all the time, by permission of its Lord. And Allāh presents examples for the people that perhaps they will be reminded. (Ibrahīm: 24-25)

2.4.3 Consistency

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‘Ā’ishah reported Allāh’s Messenger as saying, “The acts most pleasing to Allāh are those which are done continuously, even if they are small.” And when ‘Ā’ishah did any act she did it continuously.” Crash dieting doesn't work, same way spiritual crash dieting doesn't work.

2.4.4 Discipline in ALL Areas Istiqamah means discipline, it is straight and balanced. Trying to find that in our lives is so important. Remember you can’t have discipline in anything unless you have discipline in everything. Not in only your ṣalāh and siyām but also with your family relationships. In your life, in your religion, in your character.

Chapter 5: Moderation: Don’t Go to Extremes (Ifrāṭ and Tafrīṭ) O children of Ādam, take your adornment at every masjid, and eat and drink, but be not excessive. Indeed, He likes not those who commit excess. (al-A‘rāf: 31) And [they are] those who, when they spend, do so not excessively or sparingly but are ever, between that, [justly] moderate (al-Furqān: 67) The Prophet Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “Do good deeds properly, sincerely and moderately, and worship Allāh in the forenoon and in the afternoon and during a part of the night, and always adopt a middle, moderate, regular course, whereby you will reach your target (of Paradise).” (al-Bukhāri)

2.5.1

Balance

Narrated Abu Juḥayfah: The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) established a bond of brotherhood between Salmān and Abu’l-Dardā’. Salmān paid a visit to Abu’l-Dardā’ and found Umm’l-Dardā’ dressed in shabby clothes, and he asked her why she was in that state. She replied, “Your brother, Abu’l-Dardā’, is not interested in the luxuries of this world.” In the meantime Abu’l-Dardā’ came and prepared a meal for him (Salmān), and said to him, “(Please) eat, for I am fasting.” Salmān said, “I am not going to eat, unless you eat.” So Abu’lDardā’ ate. When it was night, Abu’l-Dardā’ got up (for the night prayer). Salmān said (to him), “Sleep,” and he slept. Again Abu’l-Dardā’ got up (for the prayer), and Salmān said (to him), “Sleep.” When it was the last part of the night, Salmān said to him, “Get up now (for the

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prayer).” So both of them offered their prayers and Salmān said to Abu’l-Dardā’, “Your Lord has a right upon you, and your own self has a right on you, and your family has a right on you, so you should give the rights of all those who have a right upon you).” Later, Abu’lDardā’ visited the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and mentioned that to him. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Salmān has spoken the truth.” (al-Bukhāri) Imam Ibn Qayyim said, “When a person denies in excess, he can end up acting on the desires deviantly and in excess.” It is not correct to completely suppress desires. Even when it comes to sadaqa, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) would not allow someone to give all their wealth in charity. Abu Bakr was the exception. He would tell them to hold some of it for their money for family. He did not want people to go all in and have unrealistic expectations from self. But when it comes to abandoning sins it should be done rapidly, not gradually. You gradually build good habits, good character and grow close to Allāh with a balanced understanding.

2.5.2 What is True Zuhd (Asceticism)? We don’t believe in celibacy. We don’t believe in becoming monks. We don’t believe in denying the duniya. Sulayman (as) was a true zahid. He had the dunya, an amazing and customized kingdom. He asked Allāh for it, “He said, “My Lord, forgive me and grant me a kingdom such as will not belong to anyone after me. Indeed, You are the Bestower.” (Ṣād: 35) He was not a person of dunya, however. He did not let his kingdom to affect his mission or corrupt him. Sulaymān was once walking in his kingdom with people and animals following him and a righteous worshipper said, “O son of David, Allāh has given you a great kingdom.” Sulaymān stopped and asked, “Who said that?” They pointed out the man. He said, “One ‘subḥānAllāh’ is better in the book of a believer is better than everything the son of David has been given. What has been given to the son of David will disappear, but the tasbīḥ will stay forever.” He had the kingdom, but at the same time, that wasn’t what he was all about. We are supposed to make du‘ā’: “O Allāh, grant us in the dunya good and in the ākhirah good and protect us from the fire.” Why do we say “qina ‘adhāb’l-nār”? Just because you get ḥasanah in the ākhirah doesn’t mean you won’t get some of the punishment first. It is okay to ask for dunya and to ask for good. It is from the Sunnah of the prophets to do so.

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Asceticism does not mean you live poverty. You don’t stop working and live in the masjid. ‘Umar saw some young people sleeping in the masjid in the middle of the day and told them to wake up and work and make money. ‘Ali b. Abi Ṭālib defines zuhd best: “Asceticism is not that you own nothing but it is that nothing owns you.” What you own stays in your hand and doesn’t go to your hearts. No relationship or wealth or reputation owns you. You own all of that stuff and you control it. It doesn’t control you or affect your ibadaah. When ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Aziz passed away, Leo III, the Roman Emperor, came out of his house crying and said, “If there was to be a man who could bring the dead back to life after ‘Īsa, it would have been ‘Umar b. ‘Abdul-‘Aziz. People should not be impressed by a monk who never had anything in the first place who abandoned the world and stayed in his temple worshipping, but people should be impressed and amazed by a person to whom the dunya presented itself to his feet and he still abandoned it.” It’s okay to have leisure in our lives, but at the end of the day we need to ask ourselves, “What are we accomplishing?”

Chapter 6: Get Your Wird On Wird is a way from the sunnah to keep the remembrance of Allāh. Comparison with Shariah Shariah means a well trodden path leading towards water in the desert. When you say “shara’tu al ibl”, it means that “I took my camel down the path that leads to water”. I didn't force him to drink. The camel drank whatever it felt like. When you say “awirdtu al ibl” (I gave the camel wird), it means I gave the camel water. With wird you consistently get water, you go to the water because it is good for you. As for shariah, it is up to the person to drink or not to drink. With wird, you force yourself to go to the water. And mention the name of your Lord [in prayer] morning and evening. And during the night prostrate to Him and exalt Him a long [part of the] night. (al-Insān: 25-26) The wird starts off from 5 pillars of Islam

2.6.1 The Purpose of the Pillars

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Qabeelat Haadi Student Notes September 2012 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.


Shahada curbs shirk Salah curbs arrogance and pride and all of those diseases Zakah curbs greed, hubb ud dunya (love of the dunya) Fasting curbs flaws of tongue, anger and shahawaat (desires) Hajj curbs everything. Thats why it is only required once in lifetime. Hajj mabroor (an accepted hajj) does away with everything.

Abu Darda: I do things that are neither haram nor are in the sunnah, but that makes me better in ibaadah. How can we develop this habit?

2.6.2 Understand your complexity! Indeed, the Muslim men and Muslim women, the believing men and believing women, the obedient men and obedient women, the truthful men and truthful women, the patient men and patient women, the humble men and humble women, the charitable men and charitable women, the fasting men and fasting women, the men who guard their private parts and the women who do so, and the men who remember Allāh often and the women who do so - for them Allāh has prepared forgiveness and a great reward. (al-Aḥzāb: 35) Ibn Masud was told that we never saw you fast voluntarily. He said that verily siyaam (fasting) stops me from reading the Qurʾān and reading the Qurʾān is more beloved to me than fasting. Some people have the ability to consistently fast. People are different. Not all of the sahaaba were the same. We need to understand our complexity. But make sure you act with a sense of purpose.

2.6.3 Act with a Sense of Purpose There is a story related by al-Shawkāni about the great muḥaddith Abu Dāwūd. Abu Dāwūd was on board a ship and he heard someone far away sneeze and say “alḥamdulillāh.” He wanted to go the person and say “yarḥamuk Allāh” to receive the reward, so he paid one dirham to rent a rowboat and went to the person and said this and came back to the ship. Imām Abu Dāwūd was asked why he did that, and he said, “The person will in return for saying ‘yarḥamuk Allāh’ make du‘ā’ for my guidance, and maybe his supplication is of those whose du‘ā’ is answered.” They heard a voice saying, “Surely Abu Dāwūd has purchased paradise from Allāh for one dirham.” Whenever you have a subtle thought in the mind everything blends itself to that thought. You cannot hold a believer from good deeds. The believer will always find a way to please Allāh.

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Yahya (raa) related to me from Malik (raa) from Ishaq ibn ‘Abdullāh ibn Abi Talha (raa) that at-Tufayl ibn Ubayy ibn Kab (raa) told him that he visited ‘Abdullāh ibn Umar (raa) one morning and went out with him to the market, and when they were out, ‘Abdullāh ibn Umar (raa) did not pass by anyone selling poor merchandise or selling commodities or a needy person or anyone but that he greeted them. At-Tufayl (raa) said, I came to ‘Abdullāh ibn Umar (raa) one day and he asked me to follow him to the market. I said to him, “What will you do in the market if you will not stop to sell nor seek any goods or barter with them or sit in any of the assemblies or market?” ‘Abdullāh ibn Umar (raa) said that we should sit down and talk, and then he explained,“Abu Batni (raa), (lit. father of the belly, at-Tufayl had a prominent stomach), we go out in the morning only for the sake of the greeting. We greet whomever we meet.” (Greetings – Malik’s Muwatta: Book 53 : Hadith 53.3.6) He went to the market simply doing the good deed of greeting other people.

2.6.4 The P90x (insanity workout) Wird ‘Abdullāh b. ‘Amr narrated that the messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “Every servant of Allāh possesses some inclination (shirra), and every inclination has its course (fatra). If one’s inclination is for the Sunnah, he has succeeded. If otherwise, he has perished.” (Bayhaqi) The key for this insanity workout is muscle confusion. You keep on switching the muscles you are working on. We have these “intensive” times for a purpose. Allāh sends us Laylatul Qadr and other special days of ibadah at different times of the year to boost our emaan. If you are someone accustomed to reading Qurʾān, you keep diversifying your portfolio within the sunnah. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Verily, faith becomes worn out in your heart the way a thawb becomes worn out.” You need to confuse your spirituality and do things out of the ordinary and push yourself. Do sajdah of shukr. Pray two rakʿahs nāfilah out of the blue. Read Qurʾān out of the blue. Even when you establish a routine, if you only do the routine, then you will start getting bored and it will no longer serve its purpose. You need to have consistent things in your day and also you need to diversify.

2.6.5 The superstar: Abu Bakr (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) “Whoever spends two things in the way of Allāh will be called from the gates of Jannah and willbe addressed, ‘O slave of Allāh, here is prosperity!’ So whoever was among the people who used to offer their prayers will be called from the gate of prayer; and whoever was among the people who used to participate in jihād will be called from the gates of jihād; and whoever was among those who used to observe fasts will be called from the gate of al-rayyān; and whoever was among those who used to give in charity will be called from the gate of charity.” Abu Bakr said, “Let my parents be sacrificed for you, Oh Allāh’s Messenger! No distress or need will

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befall him one will be called from those gates. Will there by anyone who will be called from all these gates?” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) replied, “Yes. And I hope you will be one of them.” (Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhāri) But those who feared their Lord will be driven to Paradise in groups until, when they reach it while its gates have been opened and its keepers say, "Peace be upon you; you have become pure; so enter it to abide eternally therein," [they will enter]. (Az Zumar 39:73) When people show up in throngs, the gates of Jannah unravel and people stare. There is a huge journey. The angels welcome the people saying: "Peace be upon you; you have become pure; so enter it to abide eternally therein," If you get to the gates of Jannah and malaaika are calling you to come through this gate, Abu Bakr wanted all the gates to call to him. The sahaaba had ambition and passion. A lot of us think we would just be lucky to just get in. Sahaba were ahlul himmah and that's what made them so much more special, Ali said about Abu Bakr: He was at the forefront of every good (kaana sabaaqan (sabaqa, sabiqoon) li kulli khayr). ‘Ali says about Abu Bakr: “Every time you think of good, Abu Bakr has already done it.” Abu Hurayrah narrated that: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said to his companions, “Who among you is fasting today?” Abu Bakr said, “I am.” He said, “Who among you has attended a funeral?” Abu Bakr said, “I have.” He said, “Is there anyone among you who has visited a sick person?” Abu Bakr said, “I have.” He said, “Is there anyone among you who has given charity?” Abu Bakr said, “I have.” He said, “(These qualities) are not combined in a man but he will enter Paradise.” Narrated by Muslim. He had so much barakah in time, he tried to do everything and was consistent on that. If you get into jannah from one gate, you won’t want to come out, you forget everything outside. This is a superstar!

Chapter 7: The Daily Wird 2.7.1 A Share of Contemplation & Remembrance What can I get done in a day?

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Allāh says,

“In the alternation of the night and day and in the creation of the heavens and the earth are signs for the people whose intellect is clear.” Surat 'Ali Ìmr’an: 190) Al-uli’l-albāb means that there is nothing occupying your mind except for Allāh. Clean intellect. You contemplate. People whose minds are free from other than Allāh. Their minds are focused. Those who remember Allāh standing, sitting, and while lying down. “They are contemplating the creation of the heavens and the earth and say, ‘O Allāh, You did not create this in vain. Subḥānak. So protect me from the punishment.’” They are focused and in the zone and wherever they are they see the remembrance of Allāh. They start off their day with a sense of purpose. Nowadays people who are bombarded with wasteful things. We are addicted to technology. What about starting day off with zikr and not checking email? How would you like to limit your tech use to 30 minutes and see what your day is like? We automatically paralyze ourselves with media when we start our day with it. First thing we do when we wake up is we check email. Let’s try to wait for an hour before you check anything. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) had the love of seclusion. He (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) would go to Hirā’ for weeks. He would think and contemplate. ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) said, “You should have some proportion of solitude or else you will become heedless.” Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri said: “Contemplation is a mirror that shows you your good and bad deeds.” You should have a love of seclusion. They are special moments between you and Allāh. Imagine being like Ibn Taymiyyah, who stated, “What can my enemies do to me? I have in my breast both my heaven and my garden. If I travel they are with me, never leaving me. Imprisonment for me is a chance to be alone with my Lord. To be killed is martyrdom and to be exiled from my land is a spiritual journey.”

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Imām al-Awzā’i said, “At the time of fajr or before it, the salaf would be as if birds were sitting on their heads, sitting and concentrating in worship, so much so that if a close friend came after having been parted from them, they would not even notice. After, they would meet each other and sit in circles. The first thing they will do is discuss the ākhirah. Then after that, they would discuss what would become of them in the hereafter. Then they would split into other circles and study the Qurʾān. Then they would split into more circles and study fiqh until it reached the time of ḍuḥa prayer, and they would pray two rakʿahs. They would then tell the jokes and sing the poetry of jāhiliyyah. (They had their share of talking about dunya.)” In the morning, there was a time of solitude and thinking of your situation. When you start your day with salah and contemplation, you are in the zone for the entire day. Ibn Taymiyyah in his Majmoo al Fatawwa said, “To contemplate for an hour is better than worship for a thousand years.” If someone jumps into salaah without preparing for it, it doesn’t really have any effect. But if they contemplate the quality of ibadaah is much better. Take moments to contemplate and remember Allāh. In an authentic narration, Rabi‘ah al-Adawiyyah says, “I have never heard the ādhān except that I remember the caller who will announce the Day of Resurrection and I never see the falling snow except that I imagine the flying pages of the records of people’s deeds on the Day of Judgment. I never see swarms of locusts except that I think about the great gathering on the Last Day.” Everything she sees reminds her of the ākhirah and the Day of Judgment. These are people of true intellect. The example of [this] worldly life is but like rain which We have sent down from the sky that the plants of the earth absorb - [those] from which men and livestock eat - until, when the earth has taken on its adornment and is beautified and its people suppose that they have capability over it, there comes to it Our command by night or by day, and We make it as a harvest, as if it had not flourished yesterday. Thus do We explain in detail the signs for a people who give thought. (Yūnus: 24) Narrated ‘Ā’ishah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anha): The commencement of the Divine Inspiration to Allāh’s Apostle (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was in the form of good dreams, which came true like brightday light, and then the love of seclusion was bestowed upon him. He used to go in seclusion in the cave of Hirā’ where he used to worship (Allāh alone) continuously for many days before his desire to see his family... (al-Bukhāri) ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) said, “You should have some proportion of solitude or else you will become heedless.” Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri said: “Contemplation is a mirror that shows you your good and bad deeds.” Sometimes you just need to sit and think about your situation and contemplate. Think about

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how you measure up to what Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) has commanded from you. Ibn Taymiyyah would contemplate at the riverbank every single day. This was the habit of the ṣāliḥīn. Reflect on nature. Remember: Without a regimen you cannot keep anything going. Keep in mind the sahaba had barakah in their time and used their time wisely. They go the distractions out of the way. Department of labor study in 2009 studied the TV watching habits of Americans. They found Americans to be zombies. Average amount of TV an American watched in a month was 153 hours. This is before social became big. The working class watched on average 30 hours of TV per week. School child under age of 12 watched about 40 hours a week. A person who earned six figures watched above 11-12 hours a week. People who earned over 250k watched 2.5 hours and it was related to their profession.Over a span of 80 years the average person will spend 27 years sleeping, 17 years working, 5 years driving and 3 years in bathroom. Make sure you have Hisnul Muslim. There are apps you can download for your iPhone and iPad also; MyDuaa/Qamardeen/ISubha. Start off your day with adkhaar. There is a dua for every situation in your life. Do it regularly and you’ll have it memorized soon. Which is preferable: seclusion or keeping company? Imām Ibn Qudāmah talks about some scholars who preferred absolute seclusion and some preferred to be around people. Understand your complexity. If you progress more in solitude, then keep more solitude. If you progress more around righteous people, then keep the company of righteous people. See what is better for you. You need to have a share of both. What do you increase in? It depends on the individual. Sufyān al-Thawri didn’t like the company of anyone. Imām Aḥmad said, “I wish for a world devoid of people.” He liked being alone. You have to diagnose yourself. ‘Abdullāh Ibn Mas‘ūd said, ”One should get to used to idea that if everyone in the world was kaafir, he would still be a believer.” If you have a strong personality, you need to be around people. Even the interactions people had back then were reminders Benefits of Seclusion

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Qabeelat Haadi Student Notes September 2012 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.


Dedication to ritual worship Staying away from sins like backbiting, greed, or hypocrisy Avoiding being affected by others’ bad behavior Escaping temptation and dissention Saving oneself from others’ harm Avoiding wasting time

Benefits of keeping Company 1. Opportunity to learn from and teach others 2. Exchanging benefits 3. Improving one’s manners through experience.

Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says, “They are the people whose hearts were tested for true piety.” ‘Umar b. Al-Khaṭṭāb said, “The one who is tested is better than the one who is not tested.” The one who is not tested is like a zoo animal. If you put them in the wild, they are done because they haven’t been tested by the wilderness. 4. Enjoying the company of others 5. Performing righteous deeds that require interaction. There are some deeds that can only be done through interaction with people. 6. Developing modesty and humility through dealing with others. It is easy for us to say that we are humble to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). You prove your humility to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) whenever you are willing to humble yourself to a human being who is in front of you and is at your level. When you can humble yourself to a human being, then you are humble to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). Suyan ibn Uyaynah saw at Thawri in his sleep and asked for advice. He said, “Acquaint yourself with fewer people and as a result you end up backbiting less.” Also, naturally when we talk about bad things, we have more time to speak good, do azkaar and tasbeeh. Imam darimi said in an authentic hadith in Tabarani, “Sahabas wouldn't part unless they recited wal asr and the other said salaam to remind each other of the sacredness of time.” We don’t adopt the wird of any other human being. There is plenty from the sunnah for us to follow. Look at the authentic sources before following any other human being. Use a masbaha only if it’s not for riya. Only use it for counting when it keeps you goal oriented and get much done.

2.7.2 A Share of Meaningful Obligatory Prayers

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Recite, [O Muḥammad], what has been revealed to you of the Book and establish prayer. Indeed, prayer prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and the remembrance of Allāh is greater. And Allāh knows that which you do. (al-‘Ankabūt: 45) ‘Uthmān b. ‘Affān reports that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “If the time for a prescribed ṣalāh comes, and a Muslim performs ablution properly, (and then offers his ṣalāh) with humility and bowing, it will be an expiation for his past sins, so long as he has not committed a major sin, and this is applicable to all times.” (Muslim) Having a share of quality salaah completely changes you. You schedule your life around the salaah. Meaningful Prayer How to attain Khushoo? Consciousness Allāh said, “Verily, prayer prohibits one from wrongdoing.” Imagine feeling like your ṣalāh was a conversation with Allāh. Would you be able to rush your ṣalāh if you are on Facebook? Honestly give each of the five ṣalawāt their due. Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says in ḥadīth qudsi: “My servant does not come close to Me with anything other than the mandatory actions.” It starts with the prayer. Use it to remind you of Allāh. There is no way you can talk to Allāh five times a day and then do those things you are going to do. You would not be able to backbite. When you engage in a dialogue with Allāh, it will stop you from doing those things naturally. Reflection on the words Know the basic meanings of what you say in ṣalāh. Memorize the translation. You aren’t supposed to just stare at the carpet in the ṣalāh. The words that are being said are supposed to humble you. Glorification of the words Think about the words and reflect on them, and find the āyāt that apply to you. Recite in your ṣalāh the āyāt that you love most. Contemplating each action When you say “Allāhu akbar,” you are saying “Allāh is Greater” than whatever it is that you brought to your ṣalāh. You contemplate each action. Malcolm X said that he was not able to

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bring himself to do sujūd at first, but once he did it, it was the best thing he did in his life. Once he put himself down in sujūd, he never wanted to get back up because he understood the meaning. What are you doing with your face on the ground saying “Glory be to Allāh, the Most High”? Pre and Post Ṣalāh Pre-Salah determines the quality of your salah. When islam is on your mind, it’s naturally better. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. This is true for all other forms of ibadah. Abu Darda advises to see our needs before prayer so that we can concentrate and turn to Allāh without distraction. Clean up the area around you and make it a place that is appropriate for prayer. Take your best clothes to the prayer. Perfume yourself. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “If it wasn’t a hardship for my ummah, I would order them to use the miswāk before the ṣalāh.” Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said, “If the person goes into the ṣalāh and then turns away (his heart turns away, his mind or thoughts turn away), Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says, ‘O My servant, where are you going? To something better than Me?” SubḥānAllāh. Where are you turning to? ‘Align yourself to think of Allāh. Before you start your ṣalāh, stand there and think that you are about to talk to Allāh. Then go into the ṣalāh and start reciting Sūrat’lFātiḥah. Imagine how insulting it is when you are doing the motions of ṣalāh and Allāh is offering you attention and you are not offering Allāh your attention. Everything changes when you prepare for your salah. Post salah, have those few minutes of reflection and do tasbeeh, dhikr and make dua. Don’t stand up right away. DefiningKhushū‘Khushoo - linguistically means silence. When you are silent on the inside and silent on the outside, you are giving something your full attention. This is how we will be on Day of Judgement. And that is what we need to attain in our salah. Is there any way to obtain internal silence if you are not externally silent? No. Mohammmad Hussain Yaqoub said, “When one is sleeping in the balcony with all the cars honking that is khushoo.” If you have TV running and you have to move things out of the way during salah that is not helpful. Imam of Masjid Quba said, “The secret of khushoo is that you turn to Allāh

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with your heart first then your body.” You don’t start salaah until your heart has turned towards Allāh. Take 5 mins before salah so there is nothing on your mind except salaah. The example of ‘Urwah b. al-Zubayr: When he prayed, the birds would stand on his head and shoulders. He had to have his leg amputated, and they wanted to intoxicate him to remove it, but he told them to wait until fajr prayer and cut it off when he was in prayer. When ‘Abdullāh b. al-Zubayr was praying next to the Ka‘bah and it caught fire, his clothes caught fire and didn’t notice. The people started extinguishing the fire on him. A practical way on how to achieve khushū‘ in ṣalāh: Al-Ḥātim b. ‘Āṣim (raḥimahullāh) was one of the tabi‘īn. He was asked, “How do you attain tranquility in your prayer? We see you so engulfed. How do you reach that level?” He said, “Before I start, I imagine the ṣirāṭ (bridge over Hellfire) in front of me. I imagine Jannah is on my right and Hellfire is on my left. I remember that the one who does not pray his ṣalawāt in this world will be grabbed by a hook on the ṣirāṭ and have to make them up in Jahannam. Then I imagine the angel of death is standing behind me, and I don’t know when he is going to attack. Then I imagine that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) is standing in front of me to monitor the correctness of my ṣalāh. Then I remember that Allāh, Who created all of that, is monitoring me. Then I start.” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “When the believer is sat up in the grave, the first thing he says is that he needs to pray the ṣalāh Make sure you body is still during salah. If you body is not still then your heart is not still. A bedouin was asked by the Prophet Saw to repeat his prayer three times for he did not have stillness in his prayer. 1. Those who are unjust with themselves. They have wasted their ṣalāh by not completing the proper pillars and by not praying on time. Their ṣalāh is worthless. Their salah is invalid and they will be punished for it. 2. Those who perform the prayer in its correct hours, and they complete its technical requirements, but they are unable to strive against themselves and against the whispers of Shayṭān, so their mind is occupied by other things. It is all form and no substance. Their salah is questionable and they may or may not be forgiven. 3. Those who maintain its pillars and its correctness and strive against themselves and the whispers of Shayṭān. They are busy throughout the ṣalāh striving against the whispers and themselves. This person is engaged in jihād. He is not tasting khushū‘ yet but is fighting Shayṭān. All is will forgive him.

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4. Those who whenever they enter the ṣalāh, they perfect its duties and their heart is focused on perfecting the ṣalāh. They make sure that they don’t waste a single portion of the ṣalāh and fulfill all of its internal and external requirements. They do everything that is to be done externally and they are concerned with properly performing salaah. Their heart is in servitude to Allāh and they have fought off most off the distractions. They will be rewarded for not only fulfilling the salah but will be rewarded also extra for it. 5. Those who when they enter into the ṣalāh, they place their hearts into the Hands of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla), staring at the Creator through their hearts, filled with love for Him. They have gone beyond fighting the whispers and themselves. The only thing beloved to them at that moment is the ṣalāh. They are immersed in the ṣalāh. This is the category of iḥsān: worshipping Allāh as if you can see Him, and if you can’t see Him, then know that He sees you. They are the highest level. They are in delighted in their Salaah. They are the ‘awliyah (beloved friends) of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla). Zayn al-‘Abidīn was in sujūd in ṣalāh. He didn’t raise his head until the fire went out, and when he was asked about this, he said, “The other fire kept my mind occupied.” Salah is a dialogue with Allāh. Salah is the mi’raaj (ascension) of the believer. If this connection is severed you will not be able to connect to Allāh Pray your ṣalāh on time and plan around it Plan your day around salaah. You won’t be able to attain khushu in a Macy’s fitting room. Don’t plan your salaah around your day. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) tells us about the coming of al-Dajjāl. He said that one day will be like a year and one day will be like a month and one day like a week. The first question the ṣaḥābah asked was, “How will we pray during those days?” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “You estimate based on your regular times.” They were that concerned. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “When the believer is sat up in the grave, the firstthing he says is that he needs to pray the ṣalāh.” Al Qasim bin Muhammad said, “Whenever I went out in the morning, I used to visitÀaa'ishah radhiAll hu ànha (his aunt and the wife of the Prophet, sallAll hu àlayhi wa sallam) and greet her. One day I found her performing Ad Duha prayer, reciting this Ayah repeatedly, crying and invoking All h: ‘So All h has been gracious to us, and has saved us from the

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torment of the Fire.’ (52:27) I stood there until I felt bored, so I left and went to the market to do something and said to myself that when I finish what I have to do, I will go back (to Àishah radhiAllahu ànha). When I finished and went back to her, I found her still standing in prayer, reciting the same Ayah, crying and invoking Allah.’” [Al Ihya 4/436]. As long as you have khushoo with an ayah, stay there as long as the khushoo is there.

2.7.3 A Share of Voluntary Prayers Get the best experience of salaah through the sunan: 1. Sunan Rātibah: the voluntary prayers that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam)

never left. For example: 2 rakʿahs before fajr, 4 rakʿahs before ẓuhr, 4 rakʿahs after ẓuhr, 2 rakʿahs after maghrib, 2 rakʿahs after ‘ishā’. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) also never abandoned the witr prayer. 2. Mustaḥabbāt: Recommended prayers that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) did sometimes and left at other times. Example: 4 rakʿahs before ‘aṣr – sometimes he did it and sometimes he did not. (There is some basis in the Sunnah for these). 3. Taṭawwu‘āt: Pure voluntary prayers. These can be done at any time prayer is permissible. Allāh is so generous and merciful to us. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said in an authentic ḥadīth in al-Tirmidhi: “On the Day of Judgment, the first thing you will be asked about is your prayer. If your prayer is deficient, Allāh will ask for your voluntary prayers. Allāh will patch up your mandatory prayers with your voluntary prayers.” Then you will be asked about your fasting. The deficiencies are made up with the voluntary days. Allāh patches up our deficiencies for us. 17 rakah of fard salaah a day 2 rakah fajr sunnah 2 rakah duha 4 b4 dhhr 4 after dhuhr 2 after maghrib 3 witr You should make a goal to have as many sunnah as faraaid to makeup for the deficiencies in your prayers. Build it up slowly and spread the out throughout the day. “Whoever of you fears that he cannot wake up in the latter part of the night, he should pray witr before sleeping. And whoever of you believes that he will be able to wake during the latter portion of the night, he should make the witr prayer during that latter portion as it is a

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blessed time.”

2.7.4 A Share of Qiyām We need to learn how to implement qiyaam in our lives. That is your lifeline, especially if you’re involved in Muslim community. The one sūrah you need to read every night before you sleep is Sūrat’l-Mulk. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Whoever recites it every night will be protected from the punishment of the grave.” Spend three minutes to recite the Surah before sleep and he protects you from the punishment of grave. Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri was asked, “How is it that those who observe qiyām’l-layl are among the people with the most beautiful faces?” To this he replied, “Because they commune with the Most Merciful, and He clothes them in light from His light.” How can I start praying Qiyamulayl? 1. Intention (Niyyah) 2. Determination (Al Azeemah) 3. Repentance Sufyān al-Thawri said, “Don’t disobey Him during the day and you will be able to worship Him during the night. I was forbidden from praying qiyām’l-layl for six months (20 years??) because of a sin I was committing.” The sins can keep you asleep. 4. Kick the bad habits 5. Sleep early 6. Take a nap sometime in the day (particularly around ẓuhr time) 7. Go easy on the Biryani! If you eat heavy before you sleep, it is harder to wake up. 8. Understand only Allāh wakes you up. Make du‘ā’ to Allāh to wake you up. Allāh doesn’t want you torture yourself, however. A person should pray until they don’t understanding what they are saying anymore. Then they should sleep. 9. Read about the merits 10. Set your alarm in a place far away in the room and kill the Shayṭān button. Use commonsense and avoid the snooze button. 11. Get your family involved. 12. Make Wudu before sleeping Authentic hadith in tabarani narrated by ‘Umar: “If you purify yourself before going to sleep the angel sits at your head and makes dua for you.” You should perform qiyaam al layl even if it is one rakah. Start it off with 2 rakahs at home before you sleep

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2.7.5 A Share of Recitation and Memorization of the Qur’ān The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “It is better for you to learn a single verse of Qurʾān in the morning than to pray 100s of rakahs at night.” Even if you are memorizing one ayah a day it does have an effect on your life. If you read four pages of Qurʾān with every ṣalāh, then you will finish the Qurʾān every month. Planning around salah is the key to having a productive day. Sufyān b. Uyaynah said the salaf used to consider a person a hypocrite if they didn’t finish the Qurʾān in a month. Don’t wait until the last day of the month and then say that you need to finish the Qurʾān. Al Bukhari used to finish the Qurʾān once a day in Ramadan and once every 3 days outside of Ramadan. It’s important to have himmah to achieve your goal. When you have the goal of memorizing the Qurʾān, you naturally become better in school and work. You understand the value of time. You don’t spend time listening to garbage but rather focus on reciting Allāh’s pure words. It naturally puts you in a state of purification. ‘Uthmān b. ‘Affān reports that the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The best of you is the one who learns the Qur’ān and teaches it.” (al-Bukhāri) Anas (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) reports that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Surely, Allāh, Most High, has chosen some people (to be His favorite servants),” It was said, “Who are those people, O Messenger of Allāh?” “The People of the Qur’ān,” said the Messenger of Allāh, and he added, “They are the (favorite) people of Allāh.” (al-Nasā’i) This is the easiest way to discipline yourself. Get in the process of memorizing Qurʾān. Your life completely changes because everyday you have a goal that you are trying to achieve. Set a daily goal of memorizing a few āyāt. Stay in the gardens of the Qurʾān throughout the day as much as possible.

2.7.6 A share of charity

Never will you attain the good [reward] until you spend [in the way of Allāh] from that which you love. And whatever you spend - indeed, Allāh is Knowing of it. (āle-‘Imrān: 92) Narrated Abu Hurayrah: The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Charity is obligatory everyday on every joint of a human being. If one helps a person in matters

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concerning his riding animal by helping him to ride it or by lifting his luggage on to it, all this will be regarded charity. A good word, and every step one takes to offer the compulsory congregational prayer, is regarded as charity; and guiding somebody on the road is regarded as charity.” What if my charity was given to one undeserving? Don’t be sad because the Prophet (ṣallallāhu‘alayhi wa sallam) has some news for you. (Muslim) The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said charity is due on a person every day. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Whoever constructs a small well, no one would drink from it except that Allāh will reward you from it on the Day of Judgment.” He also said, “If you are planting a plant and the Day of Judgment comes, finish planting your plant.” Imagine if you could ask the most righteous person in the world, “Shaykh, I want you to make du‘ā’ for me every single day.” He asks for your name and says he will. Now imagine the angels making du‘ā’ for you. Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Every day the angels say, ‘O Allāh, reward the one who gave and hold back from the one who held back.’” Every day, put something in your 2 liter bottle and when it is full, give it away in ṣadaqah. You have just guaranteed the du‘ā’ of the angels every day of your life, inshā’Allāh.

2.7.7 How much can I accomplish in a day? Imagine the reward of: 1. Praying fajr and ‘ishā’ in jama’a in masjid. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The one who prays ‘ishā’ in jama‘ah, it is as if he prayed the first half of the night in qiyam’l-layl. The one who prays fajr in jama‘ah, it is as if he prayed the second half of the night in qiyam’l-layl.” Woman could be praying in her home. Imām Ibn al-Qayyim says she gets the same reward as long as she makes the intention before ṣalāh. Whenever a traveler travels, if he prays two rakʿahs, it is more rewardable because it is the proper intention. 2. Praying ḍuḥa If a person remembers Allāh after their fajr prayer until the time of ḍuḥa and then prays 2 rakʿahs, a full Ḥajj will be written for him. He (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said in hadith of Abu Dharr, “Charity is required from every part of your body daily. Saying ‘subḥānAllāh’ is a charity. Saying ‘alḥamdulillāh’ is a charity. Saying ‘Allāhu akbar’ is a charity. Every Commanding the good is a charity. Every Forbidding evil is a charity. What suffices for all of that is 2 rak‘ahs that you pray in ḍuḥa.” 3.

Doing tasbīḥ after ṣalāh

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‘Amr b. Al-‘Āṣ narrated that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “After the ṣalāh, if a person says subḥānAllāh ten times and alḥamdulillāh ten times and Allāhu akbar ten times after all five of his prayers, then 150 on his tongue and 1,500 good deeds on his scale. If at night before he sleeps he says subḥānAllāh 33 times, alḥamdulillāh 33 times, and Allāhu akbar 34 times, it is 100 on the tongue, 1,000 on the scale. Who amongst you commits 2,500 sins a day?” 4. Praying just 2 rakʿahs of qiyām Ḥadīth of Anas: Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Prayer in my masjid is equal to 10,000 prayers elsewhere. Prayer in Masjid’l-Ḥarām in Makkah is equal to 100,000 prayers elsewhere. Prayer in the battlefield is equal to one million prayers elsewhere. What is more beloved to Allāh than all of that is 2 rakʿahs in the middle of the night.” From Ibn Mājah: “Whoever prays qiyām with 10 āyahs, he will never be written as those who are heedless. Whoever stands up and prays with 100 āyāt will be written from those who are standing in prayer. Whoever wants to stand and pray with 1000 āyāt will be written with Allāh as those who are piling up good deeds.” Start with 2 rakʿahs before you sleep. Read Sūrat’l-Falaq and Sūrat’l-Nās and it will be sufficient to not be written amongst those who are heedless. 5. Saying the du‘ā’ after wuḍū’ The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “No one does wuḍū’ and then says except that all of the gates of Jannah will be opened and he can enter from whichever gate he chooses.” (Muslim) 6. Saying the du‘ā’ of the marketplace “Whoever says upon entering the marketplace, Allāh will write for him one million ḥasanāt and will erase from him one million evil deeds and will build for him a house in Paradise.” 7. Make dua/ istighfar for muslims ’Ubaadah ibn as-Saamit radiallaahu ’anhu related that the Prophet sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam said: “Whosoever seeks forgiveness for the believing men and the believing women, Allaah will record for that person – equivalent to every believing man and believing woman – a good deed.”

Chapter 8: The Weekly Wird 2.8.1 Components of a Fruitful Jum‘uah Experience

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Components of a Fruitful Jum‘uah Experience 1. Starting on Thursday night with Sūrat’l-Kahf, cleaning, ṣalawāt 2. Ghusl 3. Beautifying yourself and using the miswāk 4. Walking to the masjid 5. Going as early as possible 6. Avoiding stepping over people 7. Avoiding walking in front of the worshippers 8. Praying in the first row 9. Repeat the ādhān 10. Listen attentively 11. Pray sunnah afterwards 12. Stay in the mosque until ‘aṣr 13. Look for “the hour”: Hour during which duas are accepted, so look for it. “There is an hour on Friday that if a servant calls upon Allāh, he will surely be answered.” Some narrations it is while the imām is sitting down in Jumu‘ah and other narrations indicate it is the last hour before maghrib. Some scholars say it switches.

2.8.2

Surat’l-Kahf

Read it on the night of Thursday or on the day of Friday. It was narrated that Ibn ‘Umar (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) said: “The Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu‘alayhi wa sallam) said: ‘Whoever reads Sūrat’l-Kahf on the day of Jumu‘ah, a light will shine for him from beneath his feet to the clouds of the sky, which will shine for him on the Day of Resurrection, and he will be forgiven (his sins) between the two Fridays.’” (Mundhiri) Also increase in salawaat on Prophet on Thursday night and day of Friday.

2.8.3 Fasting Mondays and Thursdays Abu Hurayrah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) narrated that the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The deeds are presented on Monday and Thursday, so I love that my deeds be presented while I am fasting.” (al-Tirmidhi) Start applying the days of fasting, especially right after Ramaḍān when you are still in the habit. This is golden time. You are already used to fasting, so take advantage of it.

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Send ṣalawāt on the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) on Friday (the night of Thursday). Also, on the day of Friday, look for the hour. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “There is an hour on Friday that if a servant calls upon Allāh, he will surely be answered.” Some narrations it is while the imām is sitting down in Jumu‘ah and other narrations indicate it is the last hour before maghrib. Some scholars say it switches. The ṣaḥābah took Friday as a weekly ‘Īd. They were able to go out with their family and do things. It was a special day.

Chapter 9: The Monthly Wird Make a planner for yourself on what you need to do in a week, a month, and one day, and one year.

2.9.1 Fasting “the white days” They are the 13th, 14th, and 15th of every single month. Abu Hurayrah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) narrated that the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) took a covenant from him for three: To not sleep except after performing witr, to fast three days of every month, and to perform the ḍuḥa prayer. (Tirmidhi)

2.9.2 Recognize what month you are in! Pay attention and try to do something within that month. Make sure that you finish the Qurʾān at least once a month. Narrated Abu Bakra that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said. “The division of time has turned to its original form which was current when Allāh created the Heavens and the Earths. The year is of twelve months, out of which four months are sacred: Three are in succession Dhu’l-Qa‘dah, Dhu’l-Ḥijjah and Muḥarram, and (the fourth is) Rajab of (the tribe of) Mudar which comes between Jumāda‘l-Thāniyah and Sha‘bān.” (Bukhāri) Take advantage of the seasons. Abu Hurayrah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) said, “Shall I not point you to an easy reward? Fasting in the winter.” The ṣaḥābah loved to fast in the winter because it was easy. Ubayd b. Umayyad said that when the winter came, they would say, “O people of the Qurʾān, the night has become long so you can pray longer, and the day has become short so you can fast.

2.9.3 How much Qur’ān should I have finished?

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Once a month? Twice a month? Once a week? Push yourself and start increasing the load.

Chapter 10: The Yearly Wird 2.10.1 Ramaḍān Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) once said “āmīn” three times, and the ṣaḥābah asked him why he said that. He (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Jibrīl was making du‘ā’. He made du‘ā’ against the person who Ramaḍān comes and goes and he isn’t forgiven for his sins and he doesn’t change his habits.” Take full advantage of Ramaḍān and prepare for it. The ṣaḥābah used to get excited six months in advance. They are planning and waiting for it. For other people, they start getting into Ramaḍān towards the end and by the time they start getting into it, it is already over. Start preparing for Ramaḍān as much as you can early on. Narrated Abu Hurayrah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu): The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Allāh said, ‘The fast is for Me and I will give the reward for it, as he (the one who observes the fast) leaves his sexual desire, food and drink for My Sake. Fasting is a screen (from Hell) and there are two pleasures for a fasting person, one at the time of breaking his fast, and the other at the time when he will meet his Lord. And the smell of the mouth of a fasting person is better in Allāh’s Sight than the smell of musk.’” (Bukhāri) Narrated Abu Hurayrah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) that Allāh’s Apostle (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said,“When the month of Ramaḍān comes, the gates of Paradise are opened and the gates of the (Hell) Fire are closed, and the devils are chained.” (Bukhāri) Components of a Fruitful Fast 1. Suḥūr 2. Break it as soon as the sun has set with dates 3. Generosity 4. More good deeds 5. More charity 6. More Qur’ān 7. I‘tikāf the last 10 nights Degrees of Fasting 1. Ordinary Fasting 2. Special Fasting 3. Extra-Special Fasting

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a. Lower your gaze b. Guard your tongue c. Guard your ears d. Keep your limbs pure e. Once again: Easy on the Biryani! So how do we achieve taqwa? In Ramadaan everything is increased. Read more Qurʾān. Doing an umrah in Ramadaan has the reward of doing Hajj with Prophet.

2.10.2 The 6 days of Shawwāl Abu Ayyūb (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) narrated that the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “Whoever fasts Ramaḍān, then follows it with six from Shawwāl, then that is (equal in reward) to fasting everyday.” (Tirmidhi) Imām Mālik said that it can mean six from Shawwāl itself or it can be mean six days starting from Shawwāl, meaning starting from Shawwāl until Ramaḍān. Imām Mālik said that he never saw the people of Madīnah rushing to finish six days in the month of Shawwāl itself and that it meant that you do six days of voluntary fasting during the rest of the year on top of Ramaḍān. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said that every good deed is multiplied by ten, so then you have one month worth of fasting, which covers ten months, and then you fast for six days which covers the remaining days of the year. This is a mercy for those who cannot finish those days in Shawwāl for whatever reason. Try to fast them right away if you have the opportunity because if you don’t do them right away, you probably never will. Can you combine intentions between voluntary fasts? Yes. If you decide to fast every Monday and Thursday, then you can combine the intention of the six fasts with Monday and Thursday.

2.10.3 The fasting of ‘Arafāt, ‘Āshūrā’ Abu Qatādah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) narrated that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Fast the Day of ‘Arafāt, for indeed I anticipate that Allāh will forgive (the sins) of the year after it, and the year before it.” (Tirmidhi) Someone may ask: “Why do I need to fast on ‘Āshūrā’ if I already fasted on ‘Arafāt?” Answer: ‘Arafāt is from Dhu’l-Ḥijjah which is the last month in the Islamic calendar. If you fast ‘Arafāt in Dhu’l-Ḥijjah 1433, the reward is that the sins of the previous and upcoming

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years have been forgiven. ‘Āshūrā’ is in Muḥarram, which is the first month of the Islamic calendar.‘Āshūrā’ coming up will be 1434, and the reward is the preceding year has been forgiven. When you fast ‘Arafāt in 1433, you took care of 1432 and 1434. When you fast ‘Āshūrā’ 1434, the reward is taking care of the previous year 1433. Three years in two days.

2.10.4 Zakāh People have the misconception that if they pay enough charity, then they don’t have to worry about zakāh. You have to intend for your zakāh. The companions used to prefer to give in Ramaḍān and called it sharḥ’l-zakāh. Its Effect on the Individual and on Society It was narrated from ‘Abd’l-Raḥmān b. Ghanm that Abu Mālik al-Ash‘ari told him that the Messenger of Allāh said, “Iṣbāgh’l-wudū’ is half of faith; alḥamdulillāh (praise be to Allāh) fills the balance; the tasbīḥ and the takbīr fill the heavens and Earth; the ṣalāh is light; the zakāh is a sign (of sincerity); patience is an illuminating torch; and the Qur’ān is proof, either for you or against you.” (al-Nasā’i) Enhancing Your Zakāh Experience 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Understand its significance Give it in secret Avoid taunting or harming people Show humbleness Pay it from what is good Look for the best recipient a. Righteousness b. People of knowledge c. People of pure tawhīd d. People who don’t ask e. Large families or handicap f. The closest of kin come first

It was narrated from Salmān b. ‘Āmir that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Giving charity to a poor person is charity, and (giving) to a relative is two things, charity and upholding the ties of kinship.” (al-Nasā’i)

2.10.5 The first 10 days of Dhu’l-Ḥijjah

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Ibn ‘Abbās (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) narrated that the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “There are no days in which righteous deeds are more beloved to Allāh than those ten days.” They said, “O Messenger of Allāh! Not even jihād in Allāh Cause?” The Messenger of Allāh said, “Not even jihād in Allāh’s Cause, unless a man were to out with his self and his wealth and not return from that with anything.” (Tirmidhi) The Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Allāh has blessed the time of my nation in the early part of the day.” You are much more productive after fajr because Allāh put barakah in your time. In Sūrat’l-Fajr, Allāh swore by the most productive time of the year (the 10 days of Dhu’l-Ḥijjah) and then Allāh said “by the night when it fleets away.” In Ramaḍān, you are more productive. These 10 days of Dhu’l-Ḥijjah are more beloved to Allāh than any 10 days in Ramaḍān. Take advantage of those ten days of the year. If you have the means, make a sacrifice if you have the means. From the beginning to end of Dhu’l-Ḥijjah, if you are going to make a sacrifice, you cannot shave, cut your hair, or clip your nails. You cannot do these things until your sacrifice has been done. Al-Shawkāni said, “This is your way of participating with those on Ḥajj. Also, it is a sign that everything of your body has been ransomed form Hellfire.” You keep your body in its natural form as a way of ransoming yourself to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla).

Chapter 11: Once In A Lifetime (Ḥajj) ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb said, “Whoever has the means to go to Ḥajj but does not go to Ḥajj, let him die as a Jew or a Christian if he wants.” If you have the means and are financially and physically able to go, then you go. Americans whine more than anyone else at Ḥajj. How sad would it be if you go to Ḥajj, the once in a lifetime journey, and you waste the opportunity. Don’t waste the opportunity!

2.11.1 Before You Go 1. Tawbah 2.Repay debts 3. Don’t leave your family struggling 4. Make amends with people. Allāh will not accept your good deeds because of a quarrel you had with your brother or sister, so then what would be the point of going? 5. Know your stuff 6. Choose good company. If everyone else is whining, then you feel entitled to.

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2.11.2 Inner Meanings of the Manāsik 1. 2. a. b. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

10.

11. 12.

Departure. You are preparing yourself for the journey of death. When a person departs, he should feel as though he is leaving this world. Iḥrām. When a person goes into iḥrām, recognize that you are wearing the shrouds of death For the ḥajji For the non-ḥajji in the first 10 days of Dhu’l-Ḥijjah Talbiyah. Feel like you are answering the call of Allāh on the Day of Judgment. Entering the Ḥaram. You should feel like you have entered into the presence of Allāh. When you set your eyes on the ka’bah think of the Lord of the House The Black Stone. When touching it, feel like you are making allegiance to Allāh. al-Multazam. Feel like you are drawing close to your Lord and yearning for Him. Ṭawāf. Realize that Allāh is at the center of your life and you go the way Allāh tells you. Sa‘y. Remember the struggle of Hajar running between the two hills and never losing trust in Allāh. This is all that life is. The point you start at is the point where you will finish. As long as you remain trusting in Allāh, Allāh will take care of him. ‘Arafah. Remember the Day of Judgment when Allāh speaks to every individual without any translator. Millions are making du‘ā’ in hundreds of languages, and Allāh is answering all of them. Ramy. Remember that these are the places where Ibrāhīm (‘alayhi’l-salām) and his familywere tempted by the Shayṭān. Madīnah. Feel as if you are entering into the presence of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). Remember that this is where he sat, spoke, stood, ate, did khuṭbah, led ṣalāh. Envision the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and the ṣaḥābah around him. Imām Mālik would only walk barefoot in Madīnah out of how humbled he felt to be in that city.

2.11.3 Qualities of the Hajji 1. Be a Slave not a master - You don’t have any rights there, you are completely submitting to Allāh. You have no right to say it should be this way or that; do not act as if you are in control you have no right to be angry; complain afterwards 2. Guest not a host - don’t start dictating accommodations 3. Hajji not tourist - don't take pictures and pictures of the Kaba - dont take a camera to hajj. don’t go to the sooq(market) daily, Hajj is a once in a lifetime opportunity, even if you have to pay the extra $20, pay it, it won’t hurt. Just go one day and specify the time.

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‘Abdullāh b. Mubārak has a touching story. He would make Ḥajj one year and jihād the other year. One year when he was in Ḥajj, he had a dream that two angels were talking to each other and saying, “Do you see all these people coming to Ḥajj? Allāh has not accepted from a single one of them, and all of their Ḥajj went to waste.” He woke up scared. Then he slept and he dreamt, “Allāh accepted the Ḥajj of all of them because of a man named ‘Ali b. Mu‘fiq.” He was a shoe repairman who had saved to go to Ḥajj. His neighbor fell into poverty, so he gave all the money to his neighbor and made du‘ā’ to Allāh to accept. It is all about your intention. Make du‘ā’: “O Allāh, I want to go, facilitate the means.” How badly do you want to go to Ḥajj? How badly do you want it to be accepted?

Final Note: Overwhelmed? Just start, take baby steps. The true test of this class is whether or not you change yourself. Make sure that today is the day that you don’t go back to those past sins. At the very least try to cry over your situation! Don’t be cheap with your tears, we can't cry over our fate and the possibility of being doomed for eternity but we can cry over fictional movies? This is a problem! Force yourself to feel sorry and cry. Try to make the changes. Abu Hurayrah (raḍyAllāhu ‘anhu) reported that the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “One who weeps out of fear of Allāh, will not enter the Hell until milk returns back in the udder; and the dust raised on account of fighting in the path of Allāh and the smoke of Hell will never exist together.” (Tirmidhi) Do not stand [for prayer] within it - ever. A mosque founded on righteousness from the first day is more worthy for you to stand in. Within it are men who love to purify themselves; and Allāh loves those who purify themselves. (al-Tawbah: 108) Video: Meeting with Allāh and seeing his glorious face. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukBX2TvfyQE Many of us will feel a spiritual high now and it may wear off. Don’t lose hope. Start off with realistic goals. Start with the basics, and inshā’Allāh you will see the change and rise.

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In need of your du’as, Haadi PNT (Professional Notes Team) Please forgive the team for any mistakes in the notes above. Anything beneficial is from Allāh and any shortcoming are from ourselves and Shayṭān. Barak Allahu Feekum.

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