THE FRUITS OF TAWHEED. Compiled Lecture Transcripts: Parts (1-9)

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1 THE FRUITS OF TAWHEED Compiled Lecture Transcripts: Parts (1-9)

2 THE FRUITS OF TAWHEED Compiled Lecture Transcripts: Parts (1-9) Fruits of Tawheed (Lecture 1) The most important knowledge we should learn is the Tawheed (Monotheism); which is Allah's right upon His slaves. If you perfect your Tawheed Ar-Ruboobiyah, you will perfect your Tawheed Al-Uloohiyah (Worship). Your heart will be attached to Allah alone. You will love Him, magnify Him and no one else. Tawheed Al-Asmaa Wa Sifat refers to singling out Allah out in His Names and Attributes, especially regarding the Names and Attributes that common between Allah and His creation. This can be done by singling Him out in Perfection. When you see someone who has a good quality, you negate the perfection of that attribute from him, and attribute it to Allah alone.e for example: If you meet a person that is generous and kind, you should know deep down inside you that it is Allaah, Who made him generous and kind. It is in this way you will be fulfilling the right of Allah. If you live in this Dunya like this (as a monotheist), what are the fruits you will gain? is to believe in the unseen mentioned in the Qur'an and the Sunnah. The greatest of all اإليمان unseen is Allah. It is this belief that distinguishes the believers from the hypocrites on the Day of Judgement; the People of Paradise from the People of Hell. In order to bring ourselves out of the fold of hypocrisy, we should take care of our faith and strengthen our belief in the articles of faith; especially in Allah. We should strengthen our belief in Allah's Names, Attributes, and Actions. If a person has knowledge about everything in this life, yet no knowledge about Allah, all this knowledge will not benefit him when he dies. Yet if a person has knowledge about Allah, all the other types of knowledge he learns will benefit him. So if you want to be saved, check yourself: Do you have enough knowledge about Allah? Before you go learn anything of the Dunya, learn about who Allah is first. التوضيح و البيان لشجرة " book, mentions the fruits of fulfilling Tawheed in his رحمه هللا As-Sa'di "اإليمان Many Indeed are the fruits and benefits of correct faith, both temporal and everlasting, in body, heart and spirit, in this life and the next. Plentiful indeed are the ripe, mature fruits of this tree of 1

3 faith. Its delectable harvest, perpetual food and enduring good contain matters that cannot be enumerated and benefits that cannot be restricted. How will the fruits of Tawheed benefit your body? E.g. When the believer drinks ZamZam and believes with certainty that the Prophet ﷺ said: "It is a blessing, and it is food that satisfies. [Muslim, 4/1922] Al-Tayaalisi (61) added, in a version that he narrated: and a cure for the sick. This belief that ZamZam is a cure and food affects his body. This is not like the effect of ZamZam on the weak believer; no matter how much he drinks, it does not benefit him. The problem is not in the ZamZam, or the honey, or the black seed,it is in his weak belief. This is how اإليمان benefits the body of the person. When you tell the youth to learn about the religion, they think that it will only benefit them in the hereafter and not in this world. Whoever thinks his faith will only benefit him when he dies is thinking bad about Allah. The believer enjoys a good life and tranquil soul whilst he is in this world. How do you connect this with the statement of the Prophet ﷺ in this Hadith: It was narrated from Mus ab bin Sa d that his father, Sa d bin Abu Waqqas, said: I said: O Messenger of Allah,ﷺ which people are most severely tested? He said: The Prophets, then the next best and the next best. A person is tested according to his religious commitment. If he is steadfast in his religious commitment, he will be tested more severely, and if he is frail in his religious commitment, his test will be according to his commitment. Trials will continue to afflict a person until they leave him walking on the earth with no sin on him. [Ibn Majah #4023] Imagine a marble floor, and an iron ball hanging from the ceiling above it. If this iron ball falls directly on the marble, it will completely damage it. But if there is an air bag on the floor, and you drop this iron ball, there will be no effect on the marble. This iron ball represents the calamities and afflictions that come one after the other. The air bag represents the faith of the person - if faith is strong in his heart, the calamity will not affect him at all. But if his faith is weak, or not there at all, the calamity will cause damage to the heart of the person..اإليمان This is the benefit of The Prophets and Messengers had strong faith, thus their calamities were stronger, but these calamities did not affect their hearts. It made them even more submissive, more patient, therefore they got more reward, unlike those lesser than them in belief. 2

4 Some people may choose not to be strong believers out of fear that adversity will increase. But remember the above example - the air bag will protect the floor from the iron ball. If you are strong in faith, no matter how much calamities afflict you, you will be firm, tranquil, pleased with Allah, content, patient. This is the fruit of belief. Faith makes ones reaction towards the decree of Allah such. So one does not just attain reformation and goodness in the hereafter, but in this world as well. By way of summary, all goodness in this life and the next, and the repression of all evil ensue as the fruits of this tree. This is because when this tree is implanted firmly, its roots become strong, branches distend and blossom and its fruits ripen, it brings benefit to both its owner and those around it. "Its roots become strong" i.e. The person fulfills the conditions of Tawheed. One should not be hasty in getting the fruit. You should plant the seed of faith in your heart, take care of it, protect it from evil, water it with knowledge and doing good, until it grows. Then as it grows, protect it from the dangers and risks - take care of the evil of your tongue, limbs, and فنتة heart - until it grows and becomes strong. Do not expose your faith to risks, temptations, and (trials of the Dunya) otherwise it will wither away. If you do this, the greatest fruit you will get is the Wilayah of Allah. The greatest of all matter that is to be competed for is this and the most noble of all matters to be acquired by those granted the divine accord is this. Allah, Exalted is He, says, أ ل إ ن أ و ل ي اء ا لل ل خ و ف ع ل ي ه م و ل ه م ي ح ز ن و ن Unquestionably, [for] the allies of Allah there will be no fear concerning them, nor will they grieve ال ذ ين آم ن وا و ك ان وا ي ت ق ون Those who believed and were fearing Allah Surah Yunus (Verses 62;63) Al-Wilayah here refers to the Special of Wilayah of Allah, which is Allah's Guardianship, Protection, Guidance, Love of the person. Thus this person will be supported, helped, guided, loved, guarded, and protected by Allah. This is why the Sheikh رحمه هللا said this is the greatest fruit. Who are Al-Awliyaa? Those who did two things: "الذين ءامنوا" (1 Believed 3

5 And المؤمن = المؤحد (Believer = Monotheist) "و كانوا يتقون" Actions) 2) Feared Allah (in their They performed everything Allah commanded them with and abstained from everything He prohibited them from. Because of their belief and deeds, Allah took these people into His Guardianship. 4

6 Lecture 2 What are the fruits of Belief in Allah? 1) The Wilayah of Allah For detailed explanation of the meaning of 'Wilayah of Allah', refer to this article here The most dangerous darkness which most people suffer from is the darkness of thoughts and beliefs, due to which the Shaytan can easily overpower and confuse a person. It is the wilayah of Allah that will bring a person out of that confusion,misguidance and the whisper of the Shyatan will become less. The Shaytan has no power over the person whom Allah has taken into His Allegiance. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Indeed the Shaitan has an effect on the son of Adam, and the angel also has an effect. As for the Shaitan, it is by threatening evil repercussions and rejecting the truth. As for the effect of the angel, it is by his promise of a good end and believing in the truth." [Sahih At-Tirmithi, Authenticated by Al-Albani] The لم ة of the Shaytan is by threatening the person with evil and making him reject the truth. This is what the Shaytan does to the person. The لم ة of the Shaytan is the voice of the Shaytan; He speaks to the person. And the person may even hear his voice. The Shaytan orders him to do the evil; threatening him - saying that if you do not, such and such will happen. And the second thing the Shaytan does is cause him to reject the truth, and this is when he overpowers the person. The لم ة of the Angel is by promising the person good (i.e. They remind the person that if they do such and such good deed, they will get such and such reward) and acceptance of the truth. When the person becomes one of the Awliyaa of Allah, Allah will protect him from the لم ة of the Shaytan; the Shaytan can no longer whisper in him. However, when the person is far away from the Wilayah of Allah, because of his weak faith, the لمة of the Shaytan becomes so strong to the extent that he believes the evil he is doing is good. If you want Allah to protect you from the لمة and waswaas of the Shaytan, you need to increase in faith, so that Allah gives you the light to see from right and wrong, and the inspiration from Angels will be stronger. Contemplate on the أ ول و ا أ ل ألب اب, whom Allah praised in the Qur'an and mentioned that they are the people of Paradise. They see the impacts of Allah clearly in everything. They are protected from the لم ة of the Shaytan. 2) The Pleasure of Allah 5

7 Everyone who says ال اله اال هللا truthfully and sincerely from their heart, while seeking the countenance of Allah, will have Paradise as his Final Abode, as Allah and the Prophet ﷺ have mentioned. But who is the person who says ال اله اال هللا truthfully? The one who sees the impacts of Allah's attributes so clearly in front of him, until he says اله اال هللا.ال He will not say it until his heart is filled with knowledge, love, and magnification of Allah first. The hypocrites say اله اال هللا,ال but Allah said they are liars. Surah Al-Munafiqoon Verse 1 إ ذ ا ج اء ك ال م ن اف ق ون ق ال وا ن ش ه د إ ن ك ل ر س ول ا لل و ا لل ي ع ل م إ ن ك ل ر س ول ه و ا لل ي ش ه د إ ن ال م ن اف ق ين ل اذ و ن When the hypocrites come to you (O Muhammad,(ﷺ they say: "We bear witness that you are indeed the Messenger of Allah." Allah knows that you are indeed His Messenger and Allah bears witness that the hypocrites are liars indeed. Surah At-Tawbah Verse 71 و ال م ؤ م ن ون و ال م ؤ م ن ات ع ض ه م أ و ل ي اء ع ض ي أ م ر ون ال م ع ر وف و ي ن ه و ن ع ن ال م ن ر و ي ق يم ون الص لة و ي ؤ ون الز ك اة و ي ط يع ون ا لل و ر س ول ه أ ول ئ ك س ي ر ح م ه م ا لل إ ن ا لل ع ز يز ح يم The believers, men and women, are Auliya' (helpers, supporters, friends, protectors) of one another, they enjoin (on the people) Al-Ma'ruf (i.e. Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam orders one to do), and forbid (people) from Al-Munkar (i.e. polytheism and disbelief of all kinds, and all that Islam has forbidden); they perform As-Salat (Iqamat-as-Salat) and give the Zakat, and obey Allah and His Messenger. Allah will have His Mercy on them. Surely Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise. The Believers = Monotheists "The believers, men and women, are Auliya' (helpers, supporters, friends, protectors) of one another," - in the Dunya they: 1) they enjoin (on the people) Al-Ma'ruf 2) and forbid (people) from Al-Munkar 3) they perform As-Salat 4) and give the Zakat 5) and obey Allah and His Messenger. Allah tells us their reward in Verse 72 6

8 و ع د ا لل ال م ؤ م ن ين و ال م ؤ م ن ات ج ن ات ج ر ي م ن ح ت ه ا ا ل ن ه ار خ ال د ين ف يه ا و م س اك ن ط ي ب ف ج ن ات ع د ن و ر و ان م ن ا لل أ ك ب ر ذ ل ك ه و ال ف و ز ال ع ظ ي م Allah has promised the believing men and believing women gardens beneath which rivers flow, wherein they abide eternally, and pleasant dwellings in gardens of perpetual residence; but approval from Allah is greater. It is that which is the great attainment. They will be admitted into Paradise, but greater than that is the Pleasure of Allah. We have to perfect our إيمان (Faith) as much as we can while we are in this Dunya in order to have this reward with Allah. They perfected themselves first, then perfected others by enjoining good and forbidding evil. 3) Security from the fire Faith, even if it ia a little, prevents one from eternity in the Fire. Whoever has complete faith such that he fulfils the obligations and leaves the prohibitions will not enter the Fire. This has been narrated via mutawatir reports from the Prophet justﷺ as it is reported from him that none would remain eternally in the Fire as long as he has even little faith in his heart. Even if the faith of a person is equal to the weight of an atom, Allah is Appreciative, and forbids eternity in Hellfire for him. When his faith increases, he will not even enter the Hellfire. But if he falls into shortcomings, minor and even major sins, and did not repent before he died, then as long as he did not commit Shirk, he will be under the Will of Allah on the Day of Judgement. Allah will either overlook his sins and admit him into Paradise, or admit him into Hell for some time to purify him, then admit him into Paradise. This is of the benefits of faith. The believers are not the same in degree of faith - there are believers whose faith is equal to a mustard seed, and those whose faith is perfect - those, who as soon as they get up from their graves go to Paradise. And these are the 70,000 whom Allah promised to enter into Paradise without Reckoning. These people fulfilled their Tawheed - Tawheed Ruboobiya, Uloohiya, and Asmaa Wa Sifat. This prevented them from seeking Ruqya from people, branding themselves, believing in omens, etc. Because their Tawheed of Allah was so perfect, Allah made them enter Paradise without being even exposed to the Hellfire. Who are the believers whose faith is perfect? Those who do all the obligatory acts and avoid all the prohibitions. Your degree in Paradise will be according to the degree of your faith. Therefore, our attitude in this Dunya should be trying our best to perfect and increase our faith. People nowadays are satisfied with little faith but are never satisfied with little money. Allah gives them enough money to live honourable lives, but they are always seeking and coveting for more and more, whilst being satisfied with little faith and knowledge. This is the state of most people; not realizing that Paradise is of different levels. 4) Allah defends the believers 7

9 Only the believers feel this fruit. As ones faith becomes stronger, so does this fruit increases. Allah says in Surah Al-Haj Verse 38 إ ن ا لل ي د اف ع ع ن ال ذ ين آم ن وا إ ن ا لل ل ي ح ب ك ل خ و ان ك ف و ر Indeed, Allah defends those who have believed. Indeed, Allah does not like everyone treacherous and ungrateful. How does Allah defend the believers? He will defend them by saving them from all that they would dislike. The evil of the devils and men, and from the attacks of their enemies. He will defend them by repressing harm from afflicting them or lightening it or removing it after it has afflicted them. Allah will save them from every evil; the evil of the devils and men, and from the attacks of their enemies. E.g. You wanted to go to a gathering and it was not made easy for you. Later you came to know that that gathering was full of sins. Here you have to know that Allah protected you from that evil, saved you, defended you. Only the believers see this fruit. Allah will save them from hardship and calamities If it happened that a calamity befell you, Allah will relieve you immediately and remove the hardship. This is how Allah deals with His Awliyaa. But do not think that the believers never suffer from hardship. They will, but Allah lightens and removes it from them. Allah will protect them from sins and their desires overcoming them. In many situations your evil self persists in committing a certain sin which you like to do. Some people's evil desires overcome them and make them commit the sin. But who will Allah protect from their evil desires? The true believers. When Allah Exalted is He, mentioned what happened to Yunus and that he, ف ن اد ى ف الظ ل م ات أ ن ل إ ل ه إ ل أ ن س ب ح ان ك إ ن ك ن م ن الظ ال م ي ن...called out within the darknesses: "There is none worthy of worhip save You! Glory be to You! Trully I have been one of the wrongdoers." [Surah al-anbiya' (21;87)] Allah responds by saying, ف اس ت ج ب ن ا ل ه و ن ج ي ن اه م ن ال غ م و ك ذ ل ك ن نج ال م ؤ م ن ين 8

10 We responded to him and rescued him from his grief, that is how We rescue the believers.[surah al-anbiya' (21;88)] 'That is how We rescue the believers' when they are afflicted with hardship in the same way that We rescued Yunus. The Prophet (ﷺ) said, The supplication of my brother Yunus, none who is facing hardship employs it except Allah would relieve him of his distress 'There is none worthy of worship save You, glory be to You, truly I have been of the wrongdoers.'[recorded by Ahmad [1/170] nd al-tirmidhi [#3505] This is the effect of correcting your ال اله اال هللا - Allah will deliver you from every hardship. So check your Tawheed and اله اال هللا,ال especially when you go through any difficulty. Return to Allah in submission. 5) A good life in this world and the next Many people believe that the fruits of faith can only be attained in the hereafter. You will get it in the Dunya, before the hereafter, as Allah says in Surah An-Nahl Verse 97: م ن ع م ل ص ال حا م ن ذ ك ر أ و أ نث ى و ه و م ؤ م ن ف ل ن ح ي ي ن ه ح ي اة ط ي ب و ل ن ج ز ي ن ه م أ ج ر ه م أ ح س ن م ا ك ان وا ي ع م ل و ن Whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer - We will surely cause him to live a good life, and We will surely give them their reward [in the Hereafter] according to the best of what they used to do. Believer = Monotheist Allah will give them reward in proportion to the best of what they did. E.g. You pray 5 times a day everyday for years, your reward will be according to the best prayer you prayed. According to the verse, if you want a good life, you have to do two things: - Perform Righteous Deeds "من عمل صالحا" 1) - Be a Believer "و هو مؤمن" 2) A good deed will not be considered a good deed until it is based on belief and is done according.ﷺ to the way of Prophet Muhammed This means that the good deeds of the disbelievers will not be accepted by Allah; they will only get the reward of it in the Dunya. All what you see of the disbelievers enjoying is a reward of the good deeds they do in the Dunya, but they will have nothing in the hereafter, because of their disbelief. Allah is fair with them. 9

11 Life" "We will give him a Good - "فلنحينه حياة طي ب " You will have a good heart, be content with Allah's Qadar, pleased, at rest, and have peace of mind. Everything has been decreed 50,000 years before the creation of the heavens and the earth. Now these Qadar befall us with Allah's permission. We have no choice in them. How will my life be a good life? If any Qadar of Allah comes, and it is a calamity, the person who believes that Allah is Merciful, All-Wise, nurturing him by this Qadar, testing him, and thinks about Allah in this way, will receive the Qadar of Allah with peace of mind and rest in the heart. Two people may be afflicted with the same calamity. But they are different in their levels of faith. The calamity will come as an iron ball to these two people, the one whose Eeman is strong, and the other whose Eeman is weak. The marble is the heart, and faith is the air bag. The person who has strong Eeman has a thick airbag, nothing will happen to the marble floor; it will be at peace, calm, and at rest. But as for the person whose faith is weak, whose airbag is thin, this calamity will harm his heart and cause pain. Therefore we need to work on our faith a lot. We need to strengthen our Eeman; otherwise we will not be able to face or deal with the calamities in our lives. 10

12 Lecture 3 When our intention is purely for Allah's sake, we will get the fruit of the action we are performing and see the effect of it on our faith. That is why we need to constantly renew and purify our intentions. (Faith) will distinguish between the believers and hypocrites on the Day of Judgement. In اإليمان the beginning, all the believers and hypocrites will be together, then a wall will be set up between them. The believers will walk through a door to Jannah, and the hypocrites will be detained behind that wall. Surah Al-Hadid Verse ي و م ر ى ال م ؤ م ن ين و ال م ؤ م ن ات ي س ع ى ن ور ه م ي ن أ ي د يه م و أ ي م ان ه م ش ر اك م ال ي و م ج ن ات ج ر ي م ن ح ت ه ا ا ل ن ه ار خ ال د ين ف يه ا ذ ل ك ه و ال ف و ز ال ع ظ يم On the Day you shall see the believing men and the believing women their light running forward before them and by their right hands. Glad tidings for you this Day! Gardens under which rivers flow (Paradise), to dwell therein forever! Truly, this is the great success! ي و م ي ق ول ال م ن اف ق ون و ال م ن اف ق ات ل ل ذ ين آم ن وا انظ ر ون ا ن ق ت ب س م ن ن ور ك م ق يل ار ج ع وا و ر اء ك م ف ال ت م س وا ن ورا ف ض ر ب ي ن ه م س و ر ل ه اب اط ن ه ف ي ه الر ح م و ظ اه ر ه م ن ق ب ل ه ال ع ذ ا ب On the Day when the hypocrites men and women will say to the believers: "Wait for us! Let us get something from your light!" It will be said: "Go back to your rear! Then seek a light!" So a wall will be put up between them, with a gate therein. Inside it will be mercy, and outside it will be torment. ي ن اد ون ه م أ ل م ن ن م ع م ق ال وا ل ى و ل ن م ف ت نت م أ نف س م و ر ص ت م و ار ب ت م و غ ر م ا ل م ان ح ت ى جاء أ م ر ا لل و غ ر ك م ا لل ال غ ر ور (The hypocrites) will call the believers: "Were we not with you?" The believers will reply: "Yes! But you led yourselves into temptations, you looked forward for our destruction; you doubted (in Faith); and you were deceived by false desires, till the Command of Allah came to pass. And the chief deceiver (Satan) deceived you in respect of Allah." The hypocrites were with the believers in this life, but did serious things which led them to this situation. Allah also mentioned in Surah An-Nisa [4: ] and Surah Al-Munafiqoon [63:3] that the hypocrites were originally believers, then disbelieved;- their faith decreased until it diminished. This teaches us that the issue of اإليمان is a very important issue; we should always be concerned about it, and ask ourselves if it is increasing or decreasing. 11

13 We will be questioned regarding our belief in Allah, His Religion, and Muhammed ﷺ when we are in our graves. When the believer answers these questions, the Angels will say to him: "Sleep in peace; we have known that you were a true believer who believed with certainty" [Bukhari #7287] We have to ask ourselves - Has our faith reached the degree of certainty where we have no?ﷺ doubt about Allah, His Religion, and the Prophet Faith is news about the articles of faith/unseen which comes to you, and you accept and believe in it without any doubt. Then you should take action. This action indicates that your faith has reached the degree of certainty. All the events that will occur on the Day of Judgement should be alive in front of your eyes. You should always see the Siraat, the Meezan, the Qantara, Hell, and Paradise, whenever you do good etc. This is in order that you do your deeds truthfully for Allah's sake. If Allah accepts the deed, there should be fruits. You know Allah has accepted your deeds when you see the fruits of اإليمان (Faith) in your heart and life. The Greatest Fruit is: 1) The Wilayah of Allah - Allah's Friendship, Support, Love. You should see this in your life; see how Allah supports you during difficult times. As a result of this special Wilayah, you will be given a light to see the right as right and the wrong as wrong, and to see everything in accordance to the Qur'an and Sunnah. Who are the Awliyaa of Allah? Surah Yunus Verses أ ل إ ن أ و ل ي اء ا لل ل خ و ف ع ل ي ه م و ل ه م ي ح ز ن ون No doubt! Verily, the Auliya' of Allah [i.e. those who believe in the Oneness of Allah and fear Allah much (abstain from all kinds of sins and evil deeds which he has forbidden), and love Allah much (perform all kinds of good deeds which He has ordained)], no fear shall come upon them nor shall they grieve ال ذ ين آم ن وا و ك ان وا ي ت ق ون Those who believed (in the Oneness of Allah - Islamic Monotheism), and used to fear Allah much" 12

14 They are those who believed, and as a result of their belief, performed righteous deeds, as well as feared Allah so abstained from all His prohibitions. Allah described the state of the believer in Surah An'am Verse 122 أ و م ن ك ان م ي تا ف أ ح ي ي ن اه و ج ع ل ن ا ل ه ن ورا ي م ش ه ف الن اس ك م ن م ث ل ه ف الظ ل م ات ل ي س خ ار ج م ن ه ا ك ذ ل ك ز ي ن ل ل اف ر ين م ا ك ان وا ي ع م ل ون Is he who was dead (without Faith by ignorance and disbelief) and We gave him life (by knowledge and Faith) and set for him a light (of Belief) whereby he can walk amongst men, like him who is in the darkness (of disbelief, polytheism and hypocrisy) from which he can never come out? Thus it is made fair-seeming to the disbelievers that which they used to do. He was dead due to his lack of faith, ignorance, disbelief, and Allah gave him the life of knowledge and faith. Many times in life, we are in confusion as to how to act or behave.this means that we are in darkness and need light from Allah. In situations like these, you will know the importance of having faith. If you increase in faith, Allah will give you light to guide you to what pleases Him. You will know how to walk among people and deal with them. If you attain the Wilaya of Allah, you will receive the rest of the fruits. If you are a Wali of Allah, your life will be a good life. 2) Winning the Pleasure of Allah If Allah is pleased with a person, his final abode will be Paradise. Paradise is only for those who believe in the oneness of Allah;.الموحدين Not everyone who says ال اله اال هللا will enter Paradise, because even the hypocrites say it. It is the person who says ال اله اال هللا whilst fulfilling its conditions: 1) Knowledge 2) Certainty 3) Acceptance 4) Submission 5) Truthfulness 6) Sincerity 7) Love Many Muslims are content with the level of faith that they have and do not feel like they require more than that. Allah commanded us in Surah An-Nisa Verse 136 to increase our faith: ي ا أ ي ه ا ال ذ ين آم ن وا آم ن وا ا لل و ر س ول ه و ال ت اب ال ذ ي ن ز ل ع ل ى ر س ول ه و ال ت اب ال ذ ي أ نز ل م ن ق ب ل و م ن ي ف ر ا لل و م ل ت ه و ك ت ب ه و ر س ل ه و ال ي و م ا ل خ ر ف ق د ل ل ل ع يدا O you who believe! Believe in Allah, and His Messenger (Muhammad (ﷺ, and the Book (the Quran) which He has sent down to His Messenger, and the Scripture which He sent down to those before (him), and whosoever disbelieves in Allah, His Angels, His Books, His Messengers, and the Last Day, then indeed he has strayed far away. 13

15 They are already believers, but Allah commands them to believe. This means, as Sheikh As- Sa'adi رحمه هللا explained, that you have to take the means of increasing your faith. You should increase in sincerity, in rectifying your deeds, etc. The problem with the hypocrites is that Allah gave them faith and light, but because they did not take care of increasing it, it extinguished. Allah set this parable in Surah Al-Baqarah Verse م ث ل ه م ك م ث ل ال ذ ي اس ت و ق د ن ارا ف ل م ا أ اء ت م ا ح و ل ه ذ ه ب ا لل ن ور ه م و ر ك ه م ف ظ ل م ات ل ي ب ص ر و ن Their likeness is as the likeness of one who kindled a fire; then, when it lighted all around him, Allah took away their light and left them in darkness. (So) they could not see. ص م م ع م ف ه م ل ي ر ج ع ون They are deaf, dumb, and blind, so they return not (to the Right Path). It is obligatory upon the believer to maintain his faith and stay away from the doubts, temptations, and trials which will take away his faith. 3) Security from the Hellfire 4) Allah defends the believers. The impacts of Allah's defense is that He: 1. Saves the believers from every disliked matter 2. Saves them from the evil of their selves. Our self is always pushing us to do evil. 3. Saves them from the evil of the Shayateen of Jinn and Mankind. 5) A good life in this world and the next The best life in this entire world is the life of the believer. This is a fact, because Allah made this promise in the Qur'an, in Surah An-Nahl Verse 97 م ن ع م ل ص ال حا م ن ذ ك ر أ و أ نث ى و ه و م ؤ م ن ف ل ن ح ي ي ن ه ح ي اة ط ي ب و ل ن ج ز ي ن ه م أ ج ر هم أ ح س ن م ا ك ان وا ي ع م ل و ن Whoever works righteousness, whether male or female, while he (or she) is a true believer (of Islamic Monotheism) verily, to him We will give a good life (in this world with respect, contentment and lawful provision), and We shall pay them certainly a reward in proportion to the best of what they used to do (i.e. Paradise in the Hereafter). In order for a good deed to be accepted, it should be perfomed ﷺ 1) With belief 2) And in accordance to the Sunnah of the Prophet 14

16 What is the description of the good life? Rest in the heart, peace in the mind, tranquility, broadness of the chest towards: 1) The Qadar of Allah. The decrees of Allah have already been written before the creation of the heavens and whatever befalls us occurs by the Will of Allah. No one can avoid it or change it. But when the Qadar falls down, because of the difference in faith, people receive it differently. When any calamity befalls the true believer, regardless if it is a sickness, loss of job or family, he receives it with peace in his mind and rest in his heart. This is because he believes that the Mercy of Allah, the Wisdom of Allah, the Nurturing of Allah is behind this decree. His belief makes him explain the decrees correctly; He knows how to analyze the situation he is going through according to the knowledge he has of Allah. He sees everything as good and from Allah. The small situations we go through daily are a test for our pleasure with Allah. The situation with most people is that they are always unhappy and full of criticism. And this is due to the heart - because the tongue will not utter a statement except that it is according to what is established in the heart. 2) The رزق (Provision) of Allah. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Richness does not lie in the abundance of (worldly) goods but richness is the richness of the soul (heart, self)." [Muslim #1051] The truly rich person is the person who has the least worldly needs, while the truly poor person is in always in need of worldly things, and is always asking. The rich believer accepts and is pleased with whatever Allah has given him of provision. The more a person lives in luxury, the more in need he becomes. The rich person is in need of his bed, of his coffee in the morning, otherwise his day will not be good. If you want to see the difference between the rich and poor, look at people during Hajj time. The truly poor people are always criticizing - about having no tea in the morning, or that the milk is finished, - and lose the rewards of their Hajj because of these little needs, even though they are living in luxury. They are not satisfied, although Allah made it easy for them. This is true poverty, because richness is the richness of the soul. One should restrain himself from being attached to this world. The person will feel at rest in his heart and have peace of mind when he is pleased and satisfied with whatever Allah has given him. 15

17 When something is withheld from you, and you show displeasure with Allah, then no matter how,الرزاق Allah, much Allah gives you, you will never be satisfied. You have to believe that distributed provision 50,000 years before the creation of the heavens and earth. Everyone will take his share. Be pleased with the share Allah has allowed for you, and if you are pleased, Allah will be Pleased with you and give you more than you expect. The more ones attachment to this world is cut off, the lighter he will feel in his body and soul. But the more in need you are, the heavier you become. Check yourself with regards to the Qadar of Allah and the provision. This is the criteria by which you can judge the level of your faith. 16

18 Lecture 4 Read 'The Fruits of Tawheed' Part 3 here On the Day of Judgement, the balances will be set up, and three things will be weighed: 1) The Deeds of the Person 2) His Utterances 3) The Person Himself The weight of a person is not dependent on how fat or thin he is, but on how much faith he has in his heart. How much do you think of Allah? How much do you believe in Allah's Knowledge, Wisdom, Ability, in the Meeting with Allah, in His Angels, in the Day of Judgement? All this will be weighed. The Prophet ﷺ said: "I see what you do not see and I hear what you do not hear; heaven has squeaked, and it has right to do so. By Him, in Whose Hand my soul is, there is not a space of four fingers in which there is not an angel who is prostrating his forehead before Allah, the Exalted..." [At-Tirmithi #406] How many times do we think of this Hadith when we look up at the heavens? How many times have we thought about Bayt Al-Ma'mur, which Angels make Tawaf around, as people do around the Ka'bah? The more you discuss these facts with yourself, the more alive they will be in your heart, and the heavier your faith will be on the scale. Evidence that Faith has Weight From among the evidences: 1- Abu Bakr bin Eyash said: "Abu Bakr رضي هللا عنه did not surpass the Ummah through a lot of prayer and fasting, but he surpassed with what was established in his heart (i.e. his,تصديق his belief.)" 17 [Manhaj As-Sunnah An-Nabawiyah] 2- "A man from my nation will be called before all of creation on the Day of Resurrection, and ninety-nine scrolls will be spread out for him, each one extending as far as the eye can see. Then Allah will say: Do you deny anything of this? He will say: No, O Lord. He will say: Have My recording scribes been unfair to you? Then He will say: Apart from that, do you have any good deeds? The man will be terrified and will say: No. (Allah) will say: Indeed, you have good deeds with Us, and you will not be treated unjustly this Day. Then a card will be brought

19 out on which is written Ash-hadu an la ilaha illallah wa anna Muhammadan abduhu wa rasuluhu (I bear witness that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger). He will say: O Lord, what is this card compared with these scrolls? He will say: You will not be treated unjustly. Then the scrolls will be placed in one side of the Balance and the card in the other. The scrolls will go up (i.e., be light) and the card will go down (i.e., will weigh heavily). [Ibn Majah] Even the hypocrites declare the testimony of faith, so what made this persons ال اله اال هللا heavy on the scale? His belief, knowledge, certainty, sincerity, truthfulness, love of Allah. 3-Abu Sa'eed AI-Khudri ( هللا عنه (رضي narrated that Allah's Messenger ﷺ said, "Musa (Moses) said: 'O my Lord, teach me something by which I can remember You and supplicate to You.' Allah answered: 'Say, O Musa, La ilaha illallah (none has the right to be worshipped but Allah).' Musa said: 'O my Lord, all your slaves say this.' Allah said: 'O Musa, if the seven heavens and all of their inhabitants besides Me, and the seven earths were in a pan (of a scale), and La ilaha illallah was in (another) pan, La ilaha illallah would outweigh them." Ibn Hibbaan and AI-Haakim recorded this, and he (AIHaakim) graded it authentic (Saheeh). Since we know that our faith will be weighed on the Day of Judgement, we should take the means of increasing it. There are Muslims who: 1) Only have basic faith. They only have general information about the articles faith. 2) Have perfect faith. What made them vary in their level of faith? It is Knowledge. It is therefore our duty to increase in knowledge so that we accordingly increase in faith, and our scale will be heavy on the Day of Judgement. Increase your knowledge about Allah everyday, even if it is just one piece of information. E.g. When you see rain, tell yourself - This is the impact of Allah's Mercy. As Allah said in Surah Ar-Rum Verse 50 ف انظ ر إ ل ى آث ار ر ح م ا لل ك ي ف ي ح ي ا ل ر ض ع د م و ه ا إ ن ذ ل ك ل م ح ي ال م و ى و ه و ع ل ى ك ل ش ء ق د ي ر "Look then at the effects (results) of Allah's Mercy, how He revives the earth after its death. Verily! That (Allah) Who revived the earth after its death shall indeed raise the dead (on the Day of Resurrection), and He is Able to do all things." 18

20 We ought to revive the knowledge of the Qur'an in our lives. But we rarely discuss this information with ourselves. We see the creation of Allah, the decrees we go through, but we never talk about the impact of Allah's Attributes on ourselves. Discussing the impacts of Allah's Attributes to ourselves will increase our faith. It is our duty towards ourselves and children to increase our and their knowledge about Allah because we believe that our faith will be weighed on the Day of Judgement. When faith is increased, it will produce many fruits and benefits, which you will receive in this التوضيع mentioned in his book رحمة هللا life, even before the Day of Judgement. As Shaikh As-Sa'di are: and these fruits,و التبيان لشجرة اإليمان 1) The Wilayah of Allah 2) The Pleasure of Allah 3) Salvation from the Hellfire 4) Allah defends the believers 5) A Good Life If your faith is weak, your deed will be full of mistakes and shortcomings, and accordingly, the reward of your deeds will be less. If your faith is perfect, your deed will be more complete, and the reward will be greater with Allah. Therefore, great reward depends on the perfection of your faith, not the quantity of good deeds you perform. When many people start adopting the right path, they focus on the quantity of the good deeds they perform, and not on increasing their faith. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Do not abuse my companions for if any one of you spent gold equal to Uhud (in Allah's Cause) it would not be equal to a Mud or even a half Mud spent by one of them." [Al-Bukhari #3673] The quantity and quality is different, what made the charity of the companions heavier than our charity? Their Faith. We have to take care of our belief, because faith affects deeds. Deeds will be accepted and multiplied in reward according to how much your heart moves when taking the action.your heart moving means it is remembering Allah, the reward in the hereafter, death, your grave, etc. 19

21 The more your heart moves, even if you perform a little good deed, the more reward you will have with Allah. So do not perform good deeds with a heedless heart; this will lessen the reward of the deeds. E.g. Everyone performs Wudoo (Ablution). But how many of us remember from the beginning, that we are performing it, carrying out the command of Allah in Surah An-Nisa Verse 43 and Surah Al-Maa'idah Verse 6 in accordance to the Sunnah of the Prophet,ﷺ and if you obey Allah and His Messenger ﷺ you will have Paradise, as Allah said in Surah An-Nisa Verse 13. And when you are performing Wudoo you remember that your sins drop off with the water, and hope that Allah will make the limbs you are washing to be bright and shining, so that you are recognized by the Prophet ﷺ and called to drink from the river Kawther on the Day of judgement. If you perform Wudoo like this, it will be heavy on the scale on the Day of Judgement. 6) The attentiveness of the heart when performing the good deed is an indication of stronger faith. After performing Wudoo, you are expected to say: أ أشه د أ أن ال إل ه إ اال ا ا لل و أحد ه ال ش ريك ل ه, و أ أشه د أ ان م ح امد ا ع أبد ه و ر س ول ه and remember the Hadith where the Prophet ﷺ said: If one after performing ablution completely recites the following supplication: (Ash-hadu an la ilaha ill-allahu wahdahu la sharika lahu, wa ash hadu anna Muhammadan abduhu wa Rasuluhu) I testify that there is no one worthy of worship but Allah, He is Alone and has no partner and Muhammad (ﷺ) is his slave and Messenger, all the eight gates of Paradise will be opened for him and he may enter through any gate he wishes. [Bulugh Al-Maram #57] This means that Allah will make the performance of good deeds easy for you which will then enable you to enter from these 8 gates. But only those whose faith is strong will remember this. What will make my faith stronger? It is Knowledge. The more you know, the more your faith will increase and the more the attentiveness of your heart will increase, the more your deed will be accepted and rewarded by Allah. Allah will multiply the reward of your little good deed. The Condition: هو مؤمن" "و - (While he is a believer) Monotheist) (Believer = موحد مؤمن = Faith is a very important pre-requisite before performing good deeds. Allah said in Surah Al- Furqan Verse 23 20

22 و ق د م ن ا إ ل ى م ا ع م ل وا م ن ع م ل ف ج ع ل ن اه ه ب اء م نث ورا And We will regard what they have done of deeds and make them as dust dispersed. The reason for this is that their deeds were founded on other than the belief in Allah and His Messenger, the spirit of which is to have sincerity towards the worshipped and to fllow the Messenger. Allah, Exalted is He, says, ق ل ه ل ن ن ب ئ م ا ل خ س ر ين أ ع م ا ل Say, [O Muhammad], "Shall we [believers] inform you of the greatest losers as to [their] deeds? ال ذ ين ل س ع ي ه م ف ال ح ي اة الد ن ي ا و ه م ي ح س ب ون أ ن ه م ي ح س ن ون ص ن عا [They are] those whose effort is lost in worldly life, while they think that they are doing well in work." أ ول ئ ك ال ذ ين ك ف ر وا آي ات ر ه م و ل ق ا ه ف ح ب ط أ ع م ال ه م ف ل ن ق يم ل ه م ي و م ال ق ي ام و ز نا Those are the ones who disbelieve in the verses of their Lord and in [their] meeting Him, so their deeds have become worthless; and We will not assign to them on the Day of Resurrection any importance. [Surah al-kahf(1); ] Another thing which causes deeds to be rendered fruitless is the Shirk ( associating partners with Allah). Surah al-zumar Verse 65 و ل ق د أ وح إ ل ي ك و إ ل ى ال ذ ين م ن ق ب ل ك ل ئ ن أ ش ر ك ل ي ح ب ط ن ع م ل ك و ل ت ون ن م ن ال خ اس ر ي ن And it was already revealed to you and to those before you that if you should associate [anything] with Allah, your work would surely become worthless, and you would surely be among the losers." Surah al-an'am Verse 88 ذ ل ك ه د ى ا لل ي ه د ي ه م ن ي ش اء م ن ع ب اد ه و ل و أ ش ر ك وا ل ح ب ط ع ن ه م م ا ك ان وا ي ع م ل و ن That is the guidance of Allah by which He guides whomever He wills of His servants. But if they had associated others with Allah, then worthless for them would be whatever they were doing. 21

23 Lecture 5 Beneficial Knowledge is the knowledge which increases our faith, purifies our hearts, and corrects our Tawheed. The Angels encircle assemblies where Allah is being remembered, because the people of that gathering come out of their homes for one purpose; that is to learn about Allah, to know their Lord by His Names and Attributes and to come closer to Him. The assemblies of Halaal and Haraam (i.e. Fiqh) are also included in these, because it is the belief of these people that made them gather to learn about the Halaal and Haraam. They believe that their Lord is,الملك who legislated laws, and whose Laws are perfect. As an honour, Allah created these Angels, and bestows His Mercy upon them, and forgives their sins. All these blessings are because of their belief in Allah. The impact of sitting in the assemblies of remembrance of Allah is an increase in faith. And we should always be concerned about correcting our 'Aqeedah and increasing our faith, because it will be weighed on the Day of Judgement. On the Day of Judgement Allah will ask us about our Belief in Him, Our Belief in the Messengers, etc. We want to be of those who testify with the Prophets against their people. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Noah and his nation will come (on the Day of Resurrection and Allah will ask (Noah), "Did you convey (the Message)?' He will reply, 'Yes, O my Lord!' Then Allah will ask Noah's nation, 'Did Noah convey My Message to you?' They will reply, 'No, no prophet came to us.' Then Allah will ask Noah, 'Who will stand a witness for you?' He will reply, 'Muhammad and his followers (will stand witness for me).' So, I and my followers will stand as witnesses for him (that he conveyed Allah's Message)." That is, (the interpretation) of the Statement of Allah: "Thus we have made you a just and the best nation that you might be witnesses Over mankind.." (2.143)" [Bukhari #3339] Your belief in the Messengers now will make you of those who testify for them. But if you do not know who they are, why they were sent, what their message was, how can you be a witness for them on the Day of Judgement? We have to increase our faith now whilst in this Dunya in order to see the effect of that on the Day of Judgement. What we are going to face from the moment of our death until the last abode are severe, horrible, difficult moments. The Prophet ﷺ said: "...By Allah, though I am Allah's Messenger ﷺ I neither know what will happen to me, nor to you..." [Bukhari #7018] 22

24 And this is the Prophet,ﷺ the best of all Messengers. What about us? The religion is easy, what is required from us is easy, but we make it difficult for ourselves. The Prophet ﷺ said, "Recognize and acknowledge Allah in times of ease and prosperity, and He will remember you in times of adversity." [40 Hadith Nawawi] Regardless of what personal difficulty you are going through in your life, it is nothing compared to the difficulty on the Day of Judgement. We are in prosperity now, so take advantage of your life to increase your belief in Allah and the Day of Judgement, in order for Allah to remember and show us mercy on that day. We want to be the person who loves to meet Allah when the Angel of Death comes to take his soul. But only the person who was engaged in life learning about Allah, wanting to please Him, will be happy to meet Allah when the Angels come to take his soul. We do not want to be the person, who at the time of death, dislikes to meet Allah, so Allah dislikes to meet him. So we have to increase our faith now, to prepare ourselves for that difficult time, which we are all going to face. Not everyone will be saved on the Day of Judgement; only particular people. Those who had faith, and proved their faith by actions. The Prophet ﷺ said: "There was a man among those who came before you who thought badly of his deeds, so when death was approaching he said to his family: 'When I am dead, burn my body and grind up my bones, then scatter me in the sea, for if Allah gets hold of me, He will never forgive me.' But Allah commanded the angles to seize his soul. He said to him: 'What made you do what you did?' He said: 'O Lord, I only did it because I feared You.' So Allah forgave him." [An-Nasaa'i #2080] He did that out of his fear of meeting Allah. This person did not give Allah His due estimate; that Allah is Able to bring him back to life, even if he is particles of dust. Because of his fear of Allah, Allah forgave him. The Prophet ﷺ said: 'A man killed ninety-nine people, then the idea of repentance occurred to him. He asked who was the most knowledgeable of people on earth, and he was told of a man so he went to him and said: I have killed ninety-nine people. Can I repent? He said: After ninety-nine people?! He said: 'So he drew his sword and killed him, thus completing one hundred. Then the idea of repentance occurred to him (again), so he asked who was the most knowledgeable of people, and he was told of a man (so he went to him) and said: I have killed one hundred people. Can I repent? He said: Woe to you, what is stopping you from repenting? Leave the evil town where you are living and go to a good town, such and such town and worship your Lord there. So he went out, heading for the good town, but death came to him on the road. The angels of mercy and angels 23

25 of punishment argued over him. Iblis (Satan) said: I have more right to him, for he never disobeyed me for a moment. But the angels of mercy said: He went out repenting. (One of the narrators) Hammam said: Humaid At-Tawil narrated to me from Bakr bin Abdullah that Abu Rafi said: 'So Allah sent an angel to whom they referred (the case). He said: Look and see which of the two towns was he closer, and put him with its people. (One of the narrators) Qatadah said: Hasan narrated to us: 'When death came to him he strove and drew closer to the good town, and farther away from the evil town, so they put him with the people of the good town. [Ibn Majah #2622] He sought forgiveness from Allah and left his land, hoping to start a new life, but in the middle of the way he died. He killed 99 souls, but Allah forgave all the sins he committed, because of his belief. This is how Allah deals with us. He will deal with you the way you think He will deal with you. Surah As-Saaffaat, Verse 87 : ف م ا ظ ن م ر ب ال ع ال م ين Then what is your thought about the Lord of the worlds? What do you expect from your Lord? If you expect good, you will receive good from Him. The matter of faith is not something trivial or unimportant. We have to focus on our faith day and night, because we will meet Allah with this belief on the Day of Judgement. When the believer is asked the questions in the grave, he will say: 'He is Muhammad Allah's ﷺMessenger who had come to us with clear evidences and guidance and so we accepted his teachings and followed him. And he is Muhammad.' And he will repeat it thrice. Then the angels will say to him, 'Sleep in peace as we have come to know that you were a faithful believer.' [Bukhari #86] But to whom will this be said? The person who has faith with certainty. Faith is not a matter of tongue; we should act upon this belief. And Allah will deal with you according to that in this world and in the next. Correct belief should motivate the person to take the correct action. We should have a daily portion where we learn one piece of information about Allah, whether it is from the Qur'an or Hadith, and live it in our lives. This is how your faith will increase day by day. mentioned: has fruits, as As-Sa'di اإليمان 7) The seventh fruits is that Allah guides one to the Straight Path 24

26 We ask Allah for guidance to the straight path in our reciting of Surah Al-Fatihah every single day. The believer receives calamities with contentment and patience and blessings with gratitude. When you see yourself with contentment, peace, and patience at times of calamity, then know this is from Allah's Guidance. When you see yourself thanking Allah when receiving good, know that no one guided you to that except Allah. This is from the impacts of guidance to the Siraat Al-Mustaqeem. Surah Yunus, Verse 9: إ ن ال ذ ين آم ن وا و ع م ل وا الص ال ح ات ي ه د يه م ر ه م إ يم ان ه م ج ر ي م ن ح ت ه م ا ل ن ه ار ف ج ن ات الن ع ي م Verily, those who believe [in the Oneness of Allah along with the six articles of Faith, i.e. to believe in Allah, His Angels, His Books, His Messengers, Day of Resurrection, and Al-Qadr (Divine Pre-ordainments) - Islamic Monotheism], and do deeds of righteousness, their Lord will guide them through their Faith; under them will flow rivers in the Gardens of delight (Paradise). Allah guides the believer in the details of his life; He guides the believer to the right statements, the right actions, the right behaviour. This life is full of decision making, and we will make the correct decision when Allah guides us. When Allah takes you into His Wilayah, and loves you, He will be your sense of seeing with which you see, your sense of hearing with which you hear, etc. Allah will guide you to what He is pleased with in all your affairs. 25 Strong faith will benefit the person in his walk to Allah. Allah will never detain any good from that believer; Allah will never disgrace Him; Allah will never let him down. Allah will not let the Shaytan overpower the person, but that is if his faith is strong. Allah will prevent the Shaytan from making the person confused, distracted and from behave wrongly.

27 Because of Umar هللا عنه s 'رضي strong faith, the Shaytan would take another path out of fear of him. :رضي هللا عنهما said regarding Ammar Ibn Yaasir ﷺ The Prophet "Ammars heart overflows with faith (Literally, up to the top of his bones).'" [Ibn Majah] All the companions of the Prophet ﷺ reached the peak of faith in their lives, which is why the Shaytan could never overpower them. Ali Ibn Abi Taalib رضي هللا عنه reported: I swear by Allah that Ammar Ibn Yasir fought against both humans and jinn during the life of the Prophet.ﷺ People said: We know how he fought against humans, so how did he fight against jinn? Ali رضي هللا عنه said: We were with the Prophet ﷺ on a journey and he told Ammar to go get some water. So Ammar رضي هللا عنه went to get the water, but a devil, in the form of a black slave, appeared and prevented him from getting the water. Ammar wrestled with him and brought him to the ground. Satan said: Let me go and I will let you get the water. Ammar let him go, but again Satan prevented him from reaching the water. This happened three times, and the fourth time, Satan allowed Ammar to get to the water. The Prophet ﷺ then told us: Satan has assumed the form of a black slave and prevented Ammar from having water, but Allah helped Ammar defeat him. Ali رضي هللا عنه said: When Ammar came back we met him, saying: Well done Ammar, the Prophet ﷺ told us what happened to you. Then Ammar said: I swear by Allah if I had known that he was a devil I would have killed him I would have throttled him were it not for his bad smell. [Sahih, reported by Abu ash-sheikh in AI- Adhamah (1107), Ibn Sa d in his Tabaqaat (3/179) and Al-Bayhaqi s Dala i! an- Nubuwwah (7/124) and at-tabarani in Mujma az-zawa id (9/293).] The Shaytan plays with us; we need strong faith in order to overpower him. The person wants to give charity, and the Shaytan comes and makes him afraid of poverty. He wants to fast, the Shaytan reminds him of tiredness and sickness. This is our struggle with the Shaytan. If our faith was strong, the Shaytan would never come to distract us from doing good. As-Sa'di mentioned the types of guidance in his Tafseer: Their Lord will guide them by their faith, He will 1) He will teach them what benefits them 2) Bless them with actions that arise from this guidance 3) Allah will guide them to ponder over His signs 4) Allah will guide them to the Straight Path in this World, and in the Hereafter Allah will guide them to their homes in Paradise. This is based on the verse in Surah Muhammed. 26

28 م Surah Tagabun Verse 11 م ا أ ص اب م ن م ص ي ب إ ل إ ذ ن ا لل و م ن ي ؤ م ن ا لل ي ه د ق ل ب ه و ا لل ل ش ء ع ل ي No calamity befalls, but with the Leave [i.e. decision and Qadar (Divine Preordainments)] of Allah, and whosoever believes in Allah, He guides his heart [to the true Faith with certainty, i.e. what has befallen him was already written for him by Allah from the Qadar (Divine Preordainments)], and Allah is the All-Knower of everything. Whoever believes that Allah decreed the calamity, knows Allah is Merciful, that He is Ra'oof and Wadud, that there is good behind the calamity, then Allah will guide his heart. Allah will give him peace of mind, rest in his heart, and pleasure..اإليمان He did not choose the calamity, but he received it with "اهدنا الصراط المستقيم" The Impact of Allah's Guidance on the Person who says Ibn AlQayyim said: 1) There are Matters which the Person did in the Past without Knowledge. (I.e. The person committed sins ignorantly). Out of Allah's Guidance, He will make him Remember these Sins and Guide him to Repent from them, in order for Allah to remove that sin from his record. 2) There are Matters which one knows the Basics, and General Information, but does not know the Details of. Allah will Guide him to Know the Details. E.g. The person knows Islam generally; that he has to pray and fast, but he does not know beyond that. Out of Allah's Guidance, He will guide him to the details of knowlege. 3) There are Matters in which one is Guided to one Aspect of but not the Other Aspects. Allah will Guide him to know the Matter from All Aspects. E.g. He knows Tawakkul, but he does not know how to make Tawakkul, or the connection between taking the means with Tawakkul. Allah will guide him to know all the aspects of that matter. 4) There are Matters which one needs Guidance in the Future 27

29 E.g. The person may be performing a good deed, and is afraid of stopping in the future. When the person says, الصراط المستقيم" "اهدنا Allah will make him continue to do the good deed for the rest of his life; He will keep that person firm on the right path. 5) There are Matters the Person Thinks Wrongly about; Contrary to what Allah wants. Allah will Guide him to Think Correctly. E.g. He thinks that no matter how nice he is to people, people will not respect him anyway. Out of Allah's Guidance, Allah will guide him to be good because he is dealing with Allah, and to wait for the reward from Allah, not people. 6) There are Matters which the Person Knows about, and is Able to do, but he is Weak in Resolution. E.g. He knows Qiyam Al-Layl is good. Out of Allah's Guidance, Allah will enable him to take that action. E.g. He knows of the virtues of the last third of the night, that Allah Descends and Asks: "Who supplicates Me so that I may answer him? Who asks Me so that I may give to him? Who asks Me forgiveness so that I may forgive him?" [Muslim #758] But he does not get up for the late night prayer. If he says, الصراط المستقيم" "اهدنا from his heart, Allah will enable him to get up. 7) There are Matters the Person is Unable to do, although he is Willing to Do Them. E.g. The person has old, moody parents, whom nothing pleases. He wants to be dutiful to them, but he does not know what to do. Out of Allah's Guidance, He will enable him to do good and be dutiful to his parents. 8) There are Matters the Person is Unable to do and has no Will to do. Allah will guide him to Perform Them and Give him Strong Will. E.g. He believes that remembrance of Allah is a good deed, but he does not have the will to do it ذاكرين هللا " the and is unable to. Allah will guide him to remember Allah and make him one of "كثيرة 9) There are Matters the Person Performs with Knowledge, Good Intention, Diligence, but he needs.( Firmness )الث بات Out of Allah's Guidance, Allah will keep him firm. When will you attain these? When you say اهدنا الصراط المستقيم" - "Ihdeena as-sirat-al mustaqeem" truthfully and sincerely from your heart. We say this many times but we need to bring all these matters in front of our eyes. 28

30 Lecture 6 In Surat An-Nisaa [4:136], Allaah (subhanaahu wa Ta'ala) says: "O you who believe! Believe in Allaah, and His Messenger [Muhammad,[(ﷺ) and the Book (the Qur an) which He has sent down to His Messenger, and the Scripture which He sent down to those before (him), and whosoever disbelieves in Allaah, His Angels, His Books, His Messengers, and the Last Day, then indeed he has strayed far away." Believe" "O you who believe! - "يأيها الذين ءامنوا ءامنوا" Allaah is commanding the believers to believe. This means that if one has faith in Allaah and all the articles of faith, he needs to do more. He needs to do more than just believe generally. One needs to take care of increasing the faith he already has, to purify his intentions, and make his state better than it already is. One should not be satisfied with what he has of knowledge and faith. One needs to increase it, because his faith will be weighed on the Day of Judgment, and one needs strong faith to save him from the trials of the grave and the punishment on the Day of Judgment. Abu Ad-Dardaa said: إن من ف قه المرء أن يعر ف إيمانه هل هو فى نقص ام زيادة "It is from the understanding of a person to know if his faith has increased or decreased." One should know if his faith has increased or decreased by looking at the impacts it has in his life. From the impacts, as Shaikh As-Sa'di هللا) (رحمه mentioned, are: 1) The Wilayah of Allaah 29 2) The Pleasure of Allaah

31 3) Salvation from the Hellfire 4) Allaah defends the believers 5) A Good Life 6) Faith and Sincerity are what determine the potency and correctness of actions 7) Allaah will Guide the Person to the Straight Path In the beginning, you will find that there are many ways, and all of them look similar. Everyone tells you to follow their way, that it is the right way, and you are confused as to which to follow. If you increase in your faith, Allaah will show you which way to take; the way which ends with meeting Allaah. So many people are confused in life; they do not know what to do, say, or how to please Allaah. When a person increases in faith, Allaah will help him adopt the Straight Path. Ibn Al-Qayyim From the impacts is that Allaah."اهدنا الصراط المستقيم " saying mentioned many impacts of (رحمه هللا) will enable one to take actions on the Straight Path; - because there are instances where one may know, but he is lazy to act or he has low resolve. Another impact is being kept firm on the Straight Path until one meets Allaah. The issue of guidance is very important. We especially need it nowadays because there is Fitnah wherever one goes. We are surrounded by trials of different kinds at home, in the streets, when we travel, at work, etc. What will save a person from them so that he acts in a way that pleases Allaah? Increasing his faith. Increasing ones faith is something obligatory upon us, because Allaah commanded us to it in the aforementioned verse. If one does not take care of increasing it, his faith will slowly decrease until it completely diminishes. Faith never will increase unless one takes the means of increasing it. 8) One is comforted at the onset of calamity and hardship This is what we need in our lives. No one can avoid calamities, because Allaah wrote the calamity before the creation of the heavens and the earth; however, strong faith will comfort and lessen the effect of the calamity on the heart of the person. One is faced with trials and difficulties in every moment of life, but having faith and certainity serves to comfort and console one of them. Strong faith, reliance upon Allah, hope in the reward of Allah and desire for His beneficence are the basic constituents that help bring this state about. The sweetness of the reward lessens the bitterness of patience. Allah, Exalted is He, says in Surah An-Nisa - Verse 4: و ل ه ن وا ف ا ت غ اء ال ق و م إ ن ون وا أ ل م ون ف إ ن ه م ي أ ل م ون ك م ا أ ل م ون و ر ج ون م ن ا لل م ا ل ي ر ج ون و ك ان ا لل ع ل يما ح يما 30

32 " If you feel pain, they too are feeling it just as you are, but you hope for something from Allah which they cannot hope for." The fruit that is found by a person whose faith is strong when calamity befalls him is increased hope in the reward from Allaah. He immediately thinks of the reward in the Hereafter, and this is the result of his strong faith. Not everyone who is afflicted thinks of the reward with Allaah. This is why the believer says هلل على كل حال' 'الحمد [All Praise is due to Allaah, (in all states)]. The calamities are written and unavoidable, but the believer s belief comforts him. When any calamity befalls the believer, he thinks of three things: a) He believes that this affliction is a means of attaining reward with His Lord in the Hereafter. Allaah (subhanaahu wa Ta'ala) says in Surat Az-Zumar [39:10]: "...Only those who are patient shall receive their rewards in full, without reckoning..." This is like a blank check - but only for those who are afflicted and show patience, regardless of what kind of affliction befalls them. b) At the same time, he hopes that Allaah will soon remove the calamity and distress from him. He knows that on the Day of Judgment people will be raised from their graves. Some will be carrying their sins on their shoulders, and there will be others (those with Taqwa) to whom Allaah will send Angels to receive them as delegates. In Surat Maryam [19:85], Allaah (subhanaahu wa Ta'ala) says: On the Day We will gather the righteous to the Most Merciful as a delegation. He says to himself: This calamity will take some of my sins off my shoulders so I do not rise from my grave having them, and I hope that I will be amongst those whom the Angels receive with glad tidings, and who will be presented to Allaah. As soon as a calamity befalls the slave, the believer with strong faith thinks of the Hereafter; and this comforts his heart. Contrary to that is the person whose faith is weak, who thinks of the Dunya. As soon as he is afflicted he thinks about what will happen to him and his family, what the people will say about them, what he should do, etc. This makes the problem even worse. And on top of that the Shaytaan will come and tell him that there is no relief from his difficulty, there is no way out, there is no cure for his sickness, he is a hopeless case. This person completely despairs of the Mercy of Allaah; He has no hope in Allaah. Therefore, be careful. We do not want to reach to the state where desperation creeps into our hearts and we think evil of Allaah. We should be a person whose faith is strong, who has hope in Allaah, and 31

33 says to himself: مع العسر يسرا" "ان (Verily with every difficulty there is ease) - Allaah promised that there will be relief. I do not know how, but I know there will be relief. Because Allaah is The )الصادق Truthful). Shaikh Abdur-Razzaq al-badr mentioned this as a Name of Allaah from "و إن ا لصادقون" verse: the Allaah is Truthful, but we need to wait, be patient, and have hope. And إنتظار الفرج (waiting for the relief) is an act of worship. Meaning, that every day one is suffering from the calamity, regardless if it is a sickness or loss, and he has patience and hope in Allaah, the Angel is continuously writing in his record of good deeds. If one is patient for two months, one year, two years, just imagine how much reward is being recorded for him. With every moment, minute, day, that passes, while one is patient and hoping for relief, he will be receiving reward until Allaah relieves him. This is a blessing from Allaah. But who looks at calamities and difficulties this way? Only the strong believer. And it is only he who will receive this reward for the suffering and pain he goes through. c) He believes that Allaah is The )الح يم All-Wise) and The )اللطيف Subtle, Kind) He knows Allaah, Al-Hakeem, has chosen that calamity for him and there is something good behind it. And he believes that Allaah is Al-Lateef, Who is Able to bring him out of the distress in a very kind, subtle, hidden way; in a way that he cannot even imagine. E.g. A person has a financial problem. He sits with his paper and pen calculating all his expenses, thinking about the people he can borrow from, etc. He does this with his limited mind, not knowing that Allaah is planning to bring him out of his difficulty in a way he never even perceived. He needs strong faith in order for his heart to be comforted. If the person is a strong believer, Allaah will be his eyes with which he sees and his ears with which he hears. This person will see what Allaah wants him to see. He looks at this affliction as a gate of increasing in faith, increasing in reward, a means to come closer to Allaah. He looks at calamities in a way pleasing to Allaah. The more he puts his trust in Allaah, the more Allaah makes him see the wisdom behind the calamity he is suffering from. So whenever the Shaytaan whispers and tells you that there is no way out, no cure; then repel his whispers by saying that there is, and it will come sooner or later, because Allaah promised it will. Think of the Prophet (ﷺ) and how much he suffered and the calamities he went through in his life; far more than any one of us. One wonders how he (ﷺ) faced all these calamities. He was expelled from the most beloved land to his heart. When he had to emigrate, he (ﷺ) said: و " ا لل إ ن ك ل خ ي ر أ ر ض ا لل و أ ح ب أ ر ض ا لل إ ل و ا لل ل و ل أ ن أ خ ر ج م ن ك م ا خ ر ج " "By Allah, you are the best land of Allah, and the dearest of the land of Allah to me. By Allah, had I not been expelled from you I would never have left. [Ibn Majah] 32

34 Then, while he was in the Cave of Thawr, he said, as Allaah (subhanaahu wa Ta'ala) mentioned in Surat Tawbah [9:40]: "If you help him {Muhammad [(ﷺ) not (it does not matter), for Allaah did indeed help him when the disbelievers drove him out, the second of two, when they [Muhammad ﷺ) ) and Abu Bakr (Radia-Allaahu anhu)] were in the cave, and he (ﷺ) said to his Companion (Abu Bakr): "Be not sad (or afraid), surely Allaah is with us." Then Allaah sent down His Sakeenah (calmness, tranquillity, peace, etc.) upon him, and strengthened him with forces (angels) which you saw not, and made the word of those who disbelieved the lowermost, while it was the Word of Allaah that became the uppermost, and Allaah is All-Mighty, All- Wise." us." "Be not sad, surely Allaah is with - " ل حزن إن هللا معنا " They were being chased by the believers who wanted to kill them, and yet the Prophet (ﷺ) said this. Compare our distresses with the distress of the Prophet.(ﷺ) We need to tell ourselves what he told us. If you see your husband in a calamity, tell him not to grieve; Allaah is with us. As long as you are a believer, are patient, and have hope, Allaah will be with you. After this, Allaah gave the Prophet (ﷺ) and his Companions authority over the land, after they were unsafe and chased by disbelievers. Allaah gave them the dominion on earth because of the faith they had. Faith in the heart helps a person overcome the difficulties in his life and makes him taste the sweetness of reward. Faith has great effects on the thoughts of a person. و ل ه ن وا ف ا ت غ اء ال ق و م إ ن ون وا أ ل م ون ف إ ن ه م ي أ ل م ون ك م ا أ ل م ون و ر ج ون م ن ا لل م ا ل ي ر ج ون و ك ان ا لل ع ل يما ح يما " If you feel pain, they too are feeling it just as you are, but you hope for something from Allah which they cannot hope for." [Surah an-nisa: Verse 104] 33

35 People differ in their thoughts about calamities. We hope for the reward from Allaah, and the disbelievers do not have any hope in Allaah or the reward on the Day of Judgment. This explains why and how a man, due to his weak faith, goes through depression and commits suicide. He reaches that state because he has no hope in the Hereafter; all his hopes are limited to this life. And this is the state of most of the Muslims nowadays. All their thoughts and hopes revolve around this Dunya, and they have no hope in the Hereafter. Hence, some may go through depression and may even commit suicide. Strong faith makes a person have great hope in Allaah and weak faith makes a person despair of Allaah's Mercy. The person who knows the reality of this life knows that the most important thing in it is his religion. He says: الحمد هلل (Alhamdulillaah) the calamity is in my house, job, and not in my religion. As Ibn Uthaimeen هللا) (رحمه mentioned that calamities are of different kinds. A person could be afflicted in his health, children, wealth, and/ or he could be afflicted in his Religion. And the worst affliction is when a person is afflicted in his Religion - where a person apostates after believing, or becomes a hypocrite after being a believer, or has doubts, or is not helped to worship Allaah. This is a (مصيبة) calamity in the religion. Loss of money or jobs is nothing in comparison to loss of Religion. And this is how the believer looks at the calamity. Strong faith makes one have hope and makes him see that Allaah is All-Wise and that this Dunya has no value. He sees the Hereafter and the reward. Who makes him see this? Allaah, because of his strong faith. He can analyze and explain everything correctly. This is the impact of having faith. But if the person has no faith, he will see everything according to the criteria of the Dunya. This makes the Awliyaa of Allaah strong in their hope. They know Allaah and they know that most important thing is meeting Him. They have tranquillity in their hearts, and are pleased and content with their Lord. Faith affects a person inwardly and outwardly at the time of calamity, i.e. his heart inwardly and his behaviour outwardly. E.g. A person is afflicted with impatience or short temperedness. Two people have this same characteristic - one is strong in faith and one is weak. The one whose faith is weak says: This is how Allaah created me, accept me for who I am, I cannot change myself. The one whose faith is strong looks at his calamity and says Allaah afflicted me with this characteristic. This is an opportunity to receive reward by making Jihaad and to struggle 34

36 against myself, preventing myself from behaving wrongly, etc. And Allaah will reward me for my struggle against myself. Calamities are not limited to loss of children, jobs or health. They could be in one s character. So ones faith affects him inwardly and outwardly. The person who looks at the Qur'an as a speech and blessing from Allaah is not like the person who looks at it like any other book. It is their faith that makes them see it differently. 35

37 Lecture 7 The Prophet (ﷺ) said: من قام رمضان إيمانا واحتسا ا غفر له ما قدم من ذن به "He who observes optional prayer (Taraweeh prayers) throughout Ramadan, out of sincerity of Faith and in the hope of earning reward, will have his past sins pardoned." [Agreed upon] And in another narration: من صام رمضان إيمانا واحتسا ا غفر له ما قدم من ذن به "He who observes fasting during the month of Ramadan with Faith, while seeking its reward from Allaah, will have his past sins forgiven." [Agreed upon] We need strong faith in order to fast and establish the nights with prayer in Ramadan in the way pleasing to Allaah. We should take the means of increasing our faith now. When our faith is increased, it will produce fruits which benefit us both in this world and the next: Continuation of Point 8, One is comforted at the onset of calamity and hardship (Fruits of Tawheed - Part 6) When any calamity befalls the believer, he immediately thinks of the reward he will get from Allaah. At the same time, he hopes for the removal of his distress; an exchange of his state to a better one. He does not despair of the Mercy of Allaah. Also, when He is afflicted with the calamity, he believes that Allaah is Al-Hakeem, Ar-Raheem, Al-Wadood, This comforts and consoles his heart. The believer does not sit doing nothing, he takes the means of removal of his distress, whilst relying on Allaah. There are people who become paralyzed when a calamity befalls them; they cannot do anything nor think correctly. But the believer will think correctly by having hope in Allaah, taking the means, and waiting for relief from Allaah. This is regarding situations which can be changed. But what should a person do in the case where he loses someone beloved to him, by death? If a person is a believer and has strong faith, his faith will comfort his heart. 36

38 atient, and remind himself of بيت الحمد (The House of Praise) in Paradise. The Prophet (ﷺ) said: إذا مات ولد الع بد قال هللا عال لمل ته: ق بضتم ولد ع بدي فيقولون: نعم فيقول: ق بضتم ثمرة فؤاده فيقولون: نعم. فيقول: ماذا قال ع بدي فيقولون: حمدك واسترجع فيقول هللا عالى: ا نوا لع بدي يتا ف الجن وسموه ي الحمد The Messenger of Allaah (ﷺ) said: "When a man's child dies, Allaah, the Exalted, asks His angels: 'Have you taken out the life of the child of My slave?' and they reply in the affirmative. He then asks: 'Have you taken the fruit of his heart?' and they reply in the affirmative. Thereupon He asks: 'What did my slave say?' They say: 'He praised You and said: Inna lillaahi wa inna ilayhi raji'oon (We belong to Allaah and to Him we shall return).' Allaah says: 'Build a house for my slave in Jannah and name it Baitul-Hamd (The House of Praise)."' [At-Tirmidhi, #922] So, the believer is consoled knowing that when he shows patience, he will taste the sweetness of faith. And this is not for everyone. There are two rewards: 1) In the Dunya - The person will taste the sweetness of faith. 2) In the Hereafter - The House of Praise One enjoys the sweetness of faith when he knows his heart will be mended by Allaah, Al-Jabbar. If a person remains thinking of his beloved one who died, always lamenting, remembering the days that passed, and he does not think good of the event that occurred, he is not being patient. Shedding tears out of grief is permissible, but not more than that. There are people who excessively talk about those who are dead, lament, and live in grief for years. This all indicates that the person does not accept the death of that beloved person, and thus prevents himself from attaining the House of Al-Hamd in Paradise. The believer knows that when a calamity befalls him, he has two rewards to think about: The one in the Dunya and one in the Hereafter. He thinks positively. He thinks; الحمد هلل (Alhamdulillaah) this person died with a good end, without being afflicted in his religion, etc. When he thinks good, Allaah will exchange his grief with good, and he will see the wisdom behind the calamity having afflicted him, which he did not see in the beginning. Because he submitted to the decree 37

39 of Allaah, Allaah uncovered the wisdom behind the calamity. Allaah took this person at the right time; He did not make him suffer longer, etc. It was to that extent that Ya qoob السالم) (عليه loved Yusuf السالم).(عليه He could not even bear the separation of him going out to play with his brothers. Death is much easier to accept than loss. When you lose children, you do not know - are they alive? Are they dead? Is their condition good? You will be in continuous anxiety and grief. Ya qoob السالم) (عليه s calamity was severe, especially for a father who loved his son immensely. Yet, look at the attitude of Ya qoob السالم).(عليه in Surah Yusuf. See how his faith helped him overcome his calamity. In Surah Yusuf [12:84-86]: "And he turned away from them and said: "Alas, my grief for Yusuf (Joseph)!" And he lost his sight because of the sorrow that he was suppressing." 38

40 "They said: By Allaah! You will never cease remembering Yusuf (Joseph) until you become weak with old age, or until you be of the dead. " He turned away from them. He secluded himself, and did not share his feelings with his children. He did not mention his grief in front of his children, and when he was alone, he only complained to Allaah. And this is the indication of صبر جميل (beautiful, good patience) - where you only complain of your state to Allaah. Allaah already knows, but Allaah loves that you do that, as in the case of Zakariya السالم) (عليه in Surat Maryam [19:4]: "Saying: "My Lord! Indeed my bones have grown feeble, and grey hair has spread on my head, and I have never been unblessed in my invocation to You, O my Lord!" And Ya qoob did not despair of the Mercy of Allaah. He was the one who told his sons to not despair of the Mercy of Allaah. In verse 87: "O my sons! Go you and inquire about Yusuf (Joseph) and his brother, and never give up hope of Allaah's Mercy. Certainly no one despairs of Allaah's Mercy, except the people who disbelieve." Her baby was just born, he was still being breastfed, and Allaah ordered her to throw him into the river. After she threw him in the river, she was about to disclose his matter to the people, but 39

41 Allaah ربط her heart. Allaah tied her heart, and as Shaikh As-Sa'di mentioned, this means to be kept firm upon faith, until Allaah relieved her. These are our examples; they did not lose hope in Allaah. Musa [Moses السالم) s '[(عليه mother took the means and put her trust in Allaah. We need strong faith at the onset of calamity in order to stay firm, and Allaah will reward us abundantly. Because they knew Allaah at the time of prosperity and ease, Allaah kept them strong and firm during times of calamity. We have to take the means of increasing our faith, and this is by increasing our knowledge about Allaah, His Names, Attributes, and the Impacts of that. Then, when a calamity occurs, we will be able to face it with strong faith - not collapse, and think negatively of Allaah. Forty or fifty years ago, people had hearts filled with faith. They really believed in Allaah, Ar- Razzaq. They would not know what they would eat tomorrow, they would take their Rizq day by day. But nowadays, the hearts of the people are filled with the Dunya; excessively thinking and worrying. There is more depression, more psychological problems, people bursting out in anger when one word is being said, etc. Everything is easy nowadays, but the problem is the hearts - there is lack of faith in the hearts. If you increase in knowledge about Allaah, it will benefit you during the time of calamity. This begins with the agonies of death, then the grave, etc. No matter how great your distress is now, it is nothing compared to what we are going to face. We have to prepare ourselves for that time by having strong faith. 40

42 During the agonies of death, the Shaytaan will be so keen to attend in order to prevent the person from saying اله اال هللا.ال Being kept firm is not in our power, Allaah is the One Who will keep the person firm, and enable him to say اله اال هللا.ال Because during his life, this person learnt about Allaah, worshipped Him by His Names. And when he is placed in his grave, when the Angels ask him who his Lord is, Allaah will keep him firm, so that he will say: My Lord is Allaah. Know Allaah at times of prosperity, and Allaah will know you during times of difficulty. And times of difficulty are going to come in the future. 41

43 م THE FRUITS OF TAWHEED 7/17/2017 Lecture 8 ق ال م ع اذ أبن ج ب ل ا أجلأس بن ا ن أؤمأن س اع ة Mu adh ibn Jabal radia Allaahu 'anhu would say: Come and sit with us; we will have faith for a while. This is because the Prophet (ﷺ) said in a Hadeeth: إ ان ا أإليم ان ل ي أخل ق في ج أوف أ ح دك أم ك م ا ي أخل ق ع أن ع أبد ا ا لل أبن ع أمرو أبن ا ألع اص ق ال ق ال ر س ول ا ا لل ص لاى ا ا لل ع ل أيه و آله و س لا ال اث أوب األخ لق ف ا أسأ ل وا ا ا لل أ أن ي ج د د ا أإليم ان في ق ل وبك أم Abdullaah ibn Amr radia Allaahu 'anhu reported that the Messenger of Allaah, (ﷺ) said: Verily, the faith of one of you will diminish just as a shirt becomes worn out, so ask Allaah to renew faith in your hearts. [Al-Mustadrak 5; and authentic according to Al-Albaani] Faith can become weak, just like clothes become thin and old. We need to renew the faith in our hearts. What will increase faith in our hearts? When we gather and talk about the غيب (Unseen). And the greatest Unseen is Allaah. Talking about Allaah's Names and Attributes will increase faith in the heart of a person. Being busy with worldly occupation, lives, children, and families, will diminish and weaken faith in one s heart. This is why one constantly needs to renew his faith. If the slave leaves his faith, and does not take the means to increase it, it will decrease until it completely diminishes, to the point where the person outwardly looks like a Muslim, but is a hypocrite. One should hope to renew his faith every time he attends these gatherings (Halaqas). We want to keep our faith steady until we die. When we talk about the Unseen, our faith and accordingly, certainty will increase. All of us know the Unseen; we know about Allaah, the Day of Judgment, etc. but every one of us has a weakness - one is weak in his trust in Allaah, another is weak in his remembrance of Allaah, etc. We need to strengthen our weaknesses. Everyone knows what he is weak in, so it is his duty to strengthen the weakness he has, and this will not be attained unless he puts effort into increasing in his faith and certainty. One should strive hard to acquire knowledge, and not rely on the knowledge he already has. Even if a person has already heard what he is learning, with repetition there is establishment in the heart, and this will benefit man whilst he is in his grave. Superficial knowledge will not be rooted in a person s heart. One needs knowledge to be established in his heart, so that when he faces calamities in his life, he will be able to face them with strong faith. And Allaah will appreciate his efforts. When a person increases in faith, this faith will have an effect on him. Of the impacts: 42

44 9) When a person increases in faith, he will attain the Love of Allaah, as Allaah mentioned: If one attains the Love of Allaah, it is out of Allaah's Mercy upon him. What is the Impact of the Love of Allaah? Allaah is watchful over the hearts of the people, and sees the deeds one is performing, and the efforts he is putting forth. Consequently Allaah will love him. The Prohet (ﷺ) said: إن هللا يحب فالن ا :إذا أحب هللا العبد نادى جبريل : إن هللا تعالى يحب فالن ا فأحببه فيحبه جبريل فينادي في أهل السماء " "فأحبوه فيحبه أهل السماء ثم يوضع له القبول في ا لرض "When Allaah loves a slave, He calls Jibreel and says: 'I love so-and-so; so love him'. Then Jibreel loves him. After that he (Jibreel) announces to the inhabitants of the heavens that Allaah loves so-and-so; so love him; and the inhabitants of the heavens (the Angels) also love him and then acceptance will be placed on earth for him." [Agreed upon] Will all the people on earth accept that person? No, only the believers. Take the Prophet (ﷺ) for example. He is a beloved Messenger to Allaah, yet you find disbelievers who mock and ridicule him on earth. There is no contradiction between this Hadeeth and what they say about him. Allaah Loves him and puts acceptance for him in the hearts of the believers. Do not be deceived by singers and musicians who have millions of people watching them. This is not from the Love of Allaah nor the acceptance for that person on the earth. The consideration here is the acceptance in the hearts of the believers. Of the impacts of Allaah's Love and Mercy for a person is that He makes the Angels who bear the Throne pray for the believers. Who are we for Allaah to make these great Angels pray for us, if it were not for Allaah's Mercy and Love? 43

45 They ask Allaah to forgive the believer, save him from the evil of his sins, and admit him and his family into Paradise. If a person attains Allaah's Love, he will attain high fame, elevation and reputation. His name will be elevated, especially after his death. This does not always occur during a person s lifetime, so do not be deceived by the state of some whilst they are alive. What is important is what occurs after death. The person who attains Allaah s Love will be in his grave while the people on earth are invoking for him. Love of Allaah is the achievement of every good in this Dunya and in the Hereafter. The Prophet said that everyone has a reputation with Allaah. Whoever has a good reputation in the (ﷺ) heavens, it will be put for him (i.e. it will be known) on earth and whoever has a bad reputation in the heavens, it will be put for him (i.e. it will be known) on the earth. [Authenticated by Al- Albaani in Saheeh Jaami'] We should be concerned about our reputation with Allaah, because it is this reputation which will be placed for us on earth, especially after our death. A good reputation is based on faith and good deeds, so do not be deceived by sinners who are famous, they may temporarily be up, but will go down in the end. One of the greatest fruits of faith is that the believer is granted a صدق" "لسان - a good reputation; a mention of honor amongst the people. He will die and the people will mention his name. By his faith and good deeds, Allaah will not just increase his fame, but He will make him a good example to be followed. And he will get the reward of all the people who follow him. And this is out of Allaah's Generosity with him. E.g. a Muslim teacher teaching the children Surat Al-Fatihah: The children will grow up and teach their children, and their grandchildren, etc. and every time they recite it, it will be recorded in the record of this believer. This is what it means to be an Imam. If one person becomes a Muslim through a person, so long as that person is guided, and he affects others, the reward of all their good deeds will also be given to the person who guided them. That is why the Prophet (ﷺ) said: "فوهللا لن يهدي هللا بك رجال واحدا خير من حمر النعم" "By Allaah, if a single person is guided by Allaah through you, it will be better for you than a whole lot of red camels." [Agreed upon] Making a person a leader is out of Allaah's Mercy and Love for that person. And this is not attained by anyone, except for whom Allaah wills. Our concern should not be leadership, but to strengthen our faith and perform righteous deeds, so that Allaah makes us leaders. There are people who focus on leadership but neglect faith and doing righteous good deeds. Our focus should be our faith and Allaah will make us leaders. In Surat Sajdah [32:24]: 44

46 "And We made from among them (Children of Israel), leaders, giving guidance under Our Command, when they were patient and used to believe with certainty in Our Ayaat (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, etc.)." Allaah made Bani Israeel leaders because they were patient and believed with certainty in the Ayaat of Allaah. We have to take care of our faith, and Allaah will make us a good example to be followed. Allaah will make you a leader, raise your fame, and people will talk about you and send mercy on you after your death. Look at how Allaah honored the believer in Surah Ghaafir [40:26]: "Fir'aun (Pharaoh) said: Leave me to kill Musa (Moses), and let him call his Lord (to stop me from killing him)! I fear that he may change your religion, or that he may cause mischief to appear in the land!. " When Pharaoh threatened to kill Musa, Musa [Moses السالم) [(عليه said in verse 27: "Musa (Moses) said: Verily, I seek refuge in my Lord and your Lord from every arrogant who believes not in the Day of Reckoning! " 45

47 (عليه السالم) was alone and Pharaoh wanted to kill him. When Musa [(عليه السالم) Musa [Moses sought refuge with Allaah, Allaah immediately sent a believer, from among the family of :(عليه السالم) Pharaoh who concealed his faith, to defend Musa "And a believing man of Fir'aun's (Pharaoh) family, who hid his faith said: Would you kill a man because he says: My Lord is Allaah, and he has come to you with clear signs (proofs) from your Lord? And if he is a liar, upon him will be (the sin of) his lie; but if he is telling the truth, then some of that (calamity) wherewith he threatens you will befall on you. Verily, Allaah guides not one who is a Mushrik (a polytheist, or a murderer who shed blood without a right, or those who commit great sins, an oppressor, a transgressor), a liar!" Allaah raised the fame of this believer. He is mentioned in the books of Bani Israeel, and he is mentioned in the Qur'an, and people will recite his story until the Day of Judgment. Similarly, the believer in Surat Ya-Sin: Allaah sent Messengers to call the people to Islam, and the people refused to accept. Allaah then sent a man. In [36:20]: "And there came running from the farthest part of the town, a man, saying: O my people! Obey the Messengers...etc '". He was killed in the end, but Allaah mentioned in verses 26 and 27: 46

48 "It was said (to him when the disbelievers killed him): Enter Paradise. He said: Would that my people knew! " That my Lord (Allaah) has forgiven me, and made me of the honored ones! It is not about getting fame and honor whilst you are alive in the Dunya, but after your death. And this is only attained by the believers who perform righteous deeds. We should therefore focus on our faith in order to attain all these blessings from Allaah. 47

49 Lecture 9 Allaah has bestowed many blessings upon us, and we need to thank Allaah for them. Of these blessings is that Allaah made it easy for us to gather every week and remember Him. Yet only those who are deprived of such gatherings feel this blessing. There are countries where people are not allowed to gather and remember Allaah. We should thank Allaah for living in security and safety, while being able to attend classes. Allaah made it easy for us; we should not be ungrateful and act as if we are not in need of it. Ibn Al-Qayyim said in Al-Fawaa id that one of the greatest and a most beneficial booty that a person will attain is to sit with sincere people and help each other in taking the means of salvation; to advise each other with the truth and patience. If you sit in gatherings with sincere people, remembering Allaah, you will attain salvation from غنيمة the Anger of Allaah, the Punishment of Allaah, etc. This is the greatest and most beneficial you will attain; not money, but something greater than that. These are the people whom Allaah said regarding: ي ش ق ى ه م ج ل يس ه م Al-Bukhari ] ل # 6408] Meaning: Even the person who sits with them will not be miserable. If a person comes and sits for a few minutes, not to attend the gathering, but for another reason, he will be blessed and honored by Allaah because of the people who are sitting sincerely. This is to emphasize their status; that even those who come for a while and leave will be blessed because of them. ع ن أ س ع يد ال خ د ر ي ق ال خ ر ج م ع او ي إ ل ى ال م س ج د ف ق ال م ا ي ج ل س م ق ال وا ج ل س ن ا ن ذ ك ر ا لل ق ال آ لل م ا أ ج ل س م إ ل ذ اك ق ال وا و ا لل م ا أ ج ل س ن ا إ ل ذ اك. ق ال أ م ا إ ن م ا أ س ت ح ل ف م ه م ل م و م ا ك ان أ ح د م ن ز ل ت م ن ر س ول ا لل ﷺ أ ق ل ح د يثا ع ن ه م ن إ ن ر س ول ا لل ﷺ خ ر ج ع ل ى ح ل ق م ن أ ص ح ا ه ف ق ال " م ا ي ج ل س م ". ق ال وا ج ل س ن ا ن ذ ك ر ا لل و ن ح م د ه ل م ا ه د ان ا ل إل س ل م و م ن ع ل ي ن ا ه. ف ق ال " آ لل م ا أ ج ل س م إ ل ذ ا ك ". ق ال وا آ لل م ا أ ج ل س ن ا إ ل ذ اك. ق ال " أ م ا إ ن ل م أ س ت ح ل ف م ل ت ه م ل م إ ن ه أ ان ج ب ر يل "ف أ خ ب ر ن أ ن ا لل ي ب اه م ال م ل Abu Sa eed al-khudri narrated that Mu'awiyah came out to the Masjid and said: What has caused you to gather for this sitting? They said: We gathered so that we may remember Allaah. He said: By Allaah, nothing caused you to gather for this sitting except for that? They said: By Allaah, nothing caused us to gather for this sitting except for that. He said: Indeed, I did not ask you out of suspicion, and there was no one in the position I was from the Messenger of Allaah who narrates less Ahadeeth from him than me. Indeed the Messenger of Allaah came out upon a circle of his Companions and said: What has caused you to gather for this sitting? They said: We have gathered for this sitting to remember Allaah, and praise Him for His having guided us to Islam, and having bestowed blessings upon us. So he said: By Allaah, nothing caused you to gather for this sitting except for that? He said: Indeed, I did not ask you out of suspicion, verily Jibreel came to me and informed me that Allaah boasts of you to the angels. [Tirmidhi, # 3379] - Allaah boasts of you to the angels ا لل ي ب اه م ال م ل 48

50 Imam An-Nawawi said this means that Allaah mentions their superiority and excellence to the Angels, shows their good actions to them, and praises them. Ibn Al-Qayyim said this indicates the dignity and superiority of Dhikr Allaah. Remembrance of Allaah could be people gathering to study the Names of Allaah, the Sunnah of the Prophet,(ﷺ) to study the Qur'an, to memorize the Qur'an, learning the Halal and Haraam, etc. All these gatherings fall under the heading of مجالس الذكر (assemblies of Dhikr), which has this superiority with Allaah; where Allaah mentions the magnificence of the attendees to the Angels. This indicates Allaah's love for such gatherings and those who are sincerely gathering to remember Him. When you come to class, remember that this action of yours is not something that is light in reward, it may have a greater reward than any other action you are performing. It also teaches us the special characteristics of this action over other actions. Remembering Allaah is more superior over other actions; Allaah Loves it. The person is a loser if he has a chance to come and attend for this purpose and does not. Faith, when perfected, causes a person to love what Allaah loves and hate what Allaah hates. When you hear a Hadeeth like this, you should not hesitate for a moment. A believer is keen to attend and does not give excuses. Whoever is thinking of the Hereafter and wants high ranks with Allaah will never show laziness or lag behind when he is called to attend. Faith wears out in the heart. If you do not take care of it, it will fade away and become weak. The Prophet (ﷺ) said: إ ان ا أإليم ان ل ي أخل ق في ج أوف أ ح دك أم ك م ا ي أخل ق ال اث أوب ا ألخ لق ف ا أسأ ل وا ا ا لل أ أن ي ج د د ا أإليم ان في ق ل وبك أم Verily, the faith of one of you will diminish just as a shirt becomes worn out, so ask Allaah to renew faith in your hearts. [Al-Mustadrak 5; authentic according to Al-Albaani] Faith becomes weak and thin if you do not renew and strengthen it. One of the indications of the thinness and weakness of Faith is that a person will see the Haraam as Halal and Halal as Haraam. The person may outwardly be a Muslim, but the way she talks and thinks contradicts that. One of the means of increasing faith is by attending the gatherings of remembrance of Allaah. When you strengthen your faith, this faith will surely have an effect and bear many fruits: 10) The tenth fruit of Tawheed is that Allah will raise one in ranks. 49

51 Allaah promised to raise the believers;,الموحدين and those who have knowledge. You should have basic faith, then acquire knowledge. As you acquire knowledge, your faith will increase, and as your faith increases, your rank in Paradise will increase as well. Elevation in ranks is not limited to Paradise. A person will be elevated in this Dunya as well. However, it is not important that you are known now. People will mention your name, praise you, ask Allaah to send mercy on you, even after your death. This is what Allaah promised those who have faith and knowledge. حصول ال بشارة رام هللا - Attaining the gifts of Allaah 11) Allah mentioned بشر المؤمنين" "و in many verses in the Qur'an, without mentioning what gladtidings "بشر" to give them. For example, in Surah As-Saff [61:10-13]: 50

52 "O You who believe! Shall I guide you to a commerce that will save you from a painful torment." "That you believe in Allaah and His Messenger [Muhammad,[(ﷺ) and that you strive hard and fight in the Cause of Allaah with your wealth and your lives, that will be better for you, if you but know! a) اهلل و رسوله" " ؤمنون - That you believe in Allaah and His Messenger Belief in the Prophet (ﷺ) is proven through following him, honoring his Sunnah, spreading it, etc. b) جاهدوا ف س بيل هللا أموال م و أنفس م" "و - and that you strive hard and fight in the Cause of Allaah with your wealth and your lives We do not have Jihaad now, but the greatest Jihaad we have now is Jihaad with the pen (i.e. by writing), with the tongue (i.e. by calling people to Islam). If you strengthen your faith in Allaah and in the Prophet,(ﷺ) as well as make Jihaad in the Cause of Allaah by spending of your money, time, life, what will you get in return? The above is the business with Allaah. If you do the above, Allaah will give you the following: In Surat As-Saff (61:12) Allaah says: 51

53 "(If you do so) He will forgive you your sins, and admit you into Gardens under which rivers flow, and pleasant dwelling in Gardens of 'Adn - Eternity ['Adn (Edn) Paradise], that is indeed the great success." "And also (He will give you) another (blessing) which you love, help from Allaah (against your enemies) and a near victory. And give glad tidings [O Muhammad [(ﷺ) to the believers." In his interpretation of this verse, Shaikh As-Sa'di said that as for the believers who do not have a chance to participate in Jihaad, then Allaah does not let them despair in His grace and Ihsaan. He says بشر المؤمنين" "و with a hastened and delayed reward - in this Dunya and in the Hereafter - in accordance to their faith. Allaah did not specify the reward. It is general, and includes every good in this Dunya and in the Hereafter. In the Dunya, if you are going through a crisis or stressful situation, then receive the أبشرgladtiding relief from Allaah will come if you believe that Allaah is Able to help you. The gladtiding بشارة is dependent on your belief. E.g. You need something but do not know how to get it. If you believe that Allaah is Able to fulfill your need because He is المنان,الرزاق then receive the gladtiding أبشر - Allaah will fulfill it. E.g. You are sad because someone offended you. If you believe Allaah is الجبار the One Who mends the hearts, then receive the glad tiding,أبشر Allaah will mend your heart. E.g. If you are sick and believe Allaah is,الشافي then,أبشر Allaah will cure you. But this is dependent on your belief - the amount of belief you have in Allaah is proportional to the amount of glad-tiding you receive.بشارة As your faith increases, the glad tidings increase. You should therefore be keen to increase your faith in order to attain this fruit. Glad tidings are also mentioned in specific ways in the Qur'an: 52

54 `` If you believe and perform righteous deeds, Allah mentioned that you will specifically receive the glad tidings of Paradise. Those who believe and do not commit Shirk will have two rewards: a) Security in this World and the Next Security from their faith being taken away from them. The true believers are always afraid of hypocrisy, of losing their faith, etc. If you really believe, Allaah will keep your faith safe. In addition, you will be saved from the Anger of Allaah, the Punishment of Allaah; from every evil. b) Guidance in this World and the Next 53

55 In this Dunya Allaah guides people to the Right Path. In the Hereafter, Allaah will guide the People of Jannah to their homes. They will enter Jannah and go straight to their homes without anyone showing them where it is. It is Allaah Who will guide them to their houses, as a result of the faith they had in their hearts. We have to take care of increasing our faith. And one of the means is by attending lectures that talk about Allaah, His Names, the Attributes of Allaah, and the Sunnah of the Prophet.(ﷺ) This life is so short in comparison to the everlasting life in the Hereafter. The Day of Judgment is equal to 50,000 years. Therefore be patient when learning and acquiring knowledge. reformed. - They performed righteous deeds, so accordingly their life was "أصلح" At the time of death and on the Day of Resurrection, the Angels will give them glad tidings, telling them to not be afraid of what they are going to face, nor be sad for what they are going to leave behind. Allaah will secure them from fear and grief at the time of their death and on the Day of Judgment. 54