An Introduction to the Lord of the Worlds – Day 23
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum.
[Here’s Day 22.]
f) “I’m too sinful to ask Allah.”
I discussed this issue on Day 21 with regards to grave worshippers i.e. that they use this as an excuse to call out to dead people.
However, there are others who don’t call out to other than Allah – but they don’t call out to Allah either, under the false premise that they are too “sinful” to do so. This is yet another example of Shaytan (the devil) fooling people due to their lack of knowledge of Allah.
Another variation of the above statement is “Oh my dua (supplication) won’t be accepted.”
I was talking to an acquaintance of mine and she got something that she had wanted. The conversation proceeded as follows:
“It was thanks to your duas,” she says to me.
I was confused. MY duas??
“Erm, how do you know it was my duas? Perhaps it was YOUR duas?” I asked, puzzled.
“Oh please, it’s not my duas!” she scoffed.
She didn’t even believe that her duas would get answered and she thought this way because she considered herself very sinful.
This issue is very, very, very common. Shaytan defeats many people before they even begin.
There are several replies to the people who say this:
Ramadan 2012 Prep Tip #1: Seek Knowledge… – Part 7
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum.
[Here are Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.]
What should knowledge do for us?
I spoke about the importance of applying one’s knowledge in the previous parts so in this part, I’d just like to summarise what this knowledge should do for us:
-It should increase us in our knowledge of Allah i.e. His Names and His Attributes.
– It should improve us as people – both from the perspective of ibaadah (worship) and good manners.
– It should soften our hearts.
Yes soften, NOT harden because sadly, some people let their hearts get hard even though the knowledge has come to them.
– It should make us aware of our deficiencies and ignorance.
– It should make us humble, not arrogant. Basically it needs to break us and pour into our pores (if you will).
The following two ahadeeth should clarify the above points:
إن المؤمن يرى ذنوبه كأنه قاعد تحت جبل يخاف أن يقع عليه ، وإن الفاجر يرى ذنوبه كذباب مر على أنفه ، فقال به هكذا . قال أبو شهاب بيده فوق أنفه
أن عبد الرحمن بن عوف رضي الله عنه أتي بطعام ، وكان صائما ، فقال : قتل مصعب بن عمير ، وهو خير مني ، كفن في بردة : إن غطي رأسه بدت رجلاه ، وإن غطي رجلاه بدا رأسه . وأراه قال : وقتل حمزة ، وهو خير مني ، ثم بسط لنا من الدنيا ما بسط ، أو قال : أعطينا من الدنيا ما أعطينا ، وقد خشينا أن تكون حسناتنا عجلت لنا ، ثم جعل يبكي حتى ترك الطعام
Narrated Ibrahim: Once a meal was brought to Abdur-Rahman ibn Awf (radiallahu anhu) and he was fasting. He said, “Musab ibnUmair was martyred and he was better than I and was shrouded in his Burd (a black square narrow dress) and when his head was covered with it, his legs became bare, and when his legs were covered his head got uncovered. Hamza was martyred and was better than I. Now the worldly wealth have been bestowed upon us (or said a similar thing). No doubt, I fear that the rewards of my deeds might have been given earlier in this world.” Then he started weeping and left his food. [Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume No. 2, Hadeeth No. 365]
Abdur Rahman ibn Awf (radiallahu anhu) was one of the greatest companions and he was one of those who was granted Paradise in his lifetime. Subhan Allah, look at how much he feared Allah!
Some words of advice…
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum
So, I was planning to post the “I’m too busy” article today (the one that I mentioned last week). The wind blew and I decided that I could postpone that one until later because I have a reminder for me and for you.
It started with the news of a possible tsunami in Indonesia. When I read this (yesterday or the day before), I was very alarmed because of what had happened in the original tsunami.
Then I read that it might reach the Gulf states. I got scared because I happen to come from a Gulf state.
The article mentioned the UAE. My fear increased. I felt slightly better after it said “Fujairah” and not “Dubai”. [Fujairah is the northern most emirate, and Dubai is in the middle. We have seven emirates overall.]
Then, I found out that we’d have no tsunami after all. I was so relieved.
Then today morning as I’m in class, the wind started to blow. A lot.
The first thing that I thought of was that there was going to be a tsunami after all.
Everyone started looked anxious and proceeded to recite the dhikr (remembrance) for when the wind blows. [You can read it here]
After all, an entire nation was destroyed by the wind.
وَأَمَّا عَادٌ فَأُهْلِكُوا بِرِيحٍ صَرْصَرٍ عَاتِيَةٍ
سَخَّرَهَا عَلَيْهِمْ سَبْعَ لَيَالٍ وَثَمَانِيَةَ أَيَّامٍ حُسُومًا فَتَرَى الْقَوْمَ فِيهَا صَرْعَىٰ كَأَنَّهُمْ أَعْجَازُ نَخْلٍ خَاوِيَةٍ
فَهَلْ تَرَىٰ لَهُم مِّن بَاقِيَةٍ
“And as for Aad, they were destroyed by a furious violent wind; which Allah imposed on them for seven nights and eight days in succession, so that you could see men lying overthrown (destroyed), as if they were hollow trunks of date-palms! Do you see any remnants of them?” [Surah Al-Haqqah (69) : 6-8]
Subhan Allah, who can save us from the wind except the One who sends it?
It’s only when we have these kind of situations (tsunami, earthquake, thunder and lighting, violent wind, etc) that we really fear Allah, because we know that only He can save us, nothing else, not our wealth, status, power, etc.
After all, look what happened to Japan, which used to have one of the strongest economies in the world. Could they save themselves from the tsunami? No!
This begs the question: Why do we feel so safe on the other (normal) occasions??
Allah asks us the following:
أَأَمِنتُم مَّن فِي السَّمَاءِ أَن يَخْسِفَ بِكُمُ الْأَرْضَ فَإِذَا هِيَ تَمُورُ
أَمْ أَمِنتُم مَّن فِي السَّمَاءِ أَن يُرْسِلَ عَلَيْكُمْ حَاصِبًا ۖ فَسَتَعْلَمُونَ كَيْفَ نَذِيرِ
وَلَقَدْ كَذَّبَ الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ فَكَيْفَ كَانَ نَكِيرِ
“Do you feel secure that He, Who is above the heaven (Allah), will not cause the earth to sink with you, then behold it shakes (as in an earthquake)? Or do you feel secure that He, Who is over the heaven (Allah), will not send against you a violent whirlwind? Then you shall know how (terrible) has been My Warning? And indeed those before them belied (the Messengers of Allah), then how terrible was My denial (punishment)?” [Surah Al-Mulk (67) : 16-18]
However, some of us do something similar to what the disbelievers of the past did: remember Allah only in times of fear.
وَإِذَا مَسَّكُمُ الضُّرُّ فِي الْبَحْرِ ضَلَّ مَن تَدْعُونَ إِلَّا إِيَّاهُ ۖ فَلَمَّا نَجَّاكُمْ إِلَى الْبَرِّ أَعْرَضْتُمْ ۚ وَكَانَ الْإِنسَانُ كَفُورًا
“And when harm touches you upon the sea, those that you call upon besides Him vanish from you except Him (Allah Alone). But when He brings you safely to land, you turn away (from Him). And man is ever ungrateful.” [Surah Al-Isra (17) : 67]
So, this is a short reminder for you and for me, that we need to fear Allah as He should be feared. Yes, we need to hope in His Mercy but we also need to fear His Punishment. That is the moderate way.
Fearing His Punishment doesn’t just mean becoming righteous for all of 20 minutes during the time of need. It means continuing the good even after the possible calamity has been averted, in order to avoid the major calamity i.e. the hell fire.
All of us are going to die and all of us are going to be raised again. And on that Day, we won’t get a second chance. That will be IT. No more chances.
So, we need to work for that Day from NOW, not just in times of calamity or in Ramadan.
Subhan Allah, just a short time before the wind blew, our teacher was talking about people who finish the Quran in 2 months but don’t understand anything.
He said that ilm (knowledge) was khashiyah (fear) of Allah and understanding and applying just one ayah (verse) would suffice us (as it summarises everything).
The ayah? Here you go:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّـهَ وَلْتَنظُرْ نَفْسٌ مَّا قَدَّمَتْ لِغَدٍ ۖ وَاتَّقُوا اللَّـهَ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّـهَ خَبِيرٌ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ
“O you who believe! Fear Allah and keep your duty to Him. And let every person look to what he has sent forth for tomorrow, and fear Allah. Verily, Allah is All-Aware of what you do.” [Surah Al-Hashr (59) : 18]
Something to ponder over, isn’t it?
That’s not all though. The two ayaat (verses) after this are:
وَلَا تَكُونُوا كَالَّذِينَ نَسُوا اللَّـهَ فَأَنسَاهُمْ أَنفُسَهُمْ ۚ أُولَـٰئِكَ هُمُ الْفَاسِقُونَ
لَا يَسْتَوِي أَصْحَابُ النَّارِ وَأَصْحَابُ الْجَنَّةِ ۚ أَصْحَابُ الْجَنَّةِ هُمُ الْفَائِزُونَ
“And be not like those who forgot Allah (i.e. became disobedient to Allah) and He caused them to forget their own selves, (let them to forget to do righteous deeds). Those are the Fasiqoon (rebellious, disobedient to Allah). Not equal are the dwellers of the Fire and the dwellers of the Paradise. It is the dwellers of Paradise that will be successful.” [Surah Al-Hashr (59) : 19-20]
So, let’s get to work.
Seriously Short Reminder No. 27: Realise whose fault it is…
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum.
[Note: Jazakumullahu kheira to the 13 people who took the time out to fill the survey. It was most appreciated.]
[Another note: No more 7-days-a-week blogging for me. I’m taking the weekends off.]
Every time something bad happens to us, we try to figure out whose fault it is.
Well, Allah tells us exactly whose fault it is:
وَمَا أَصَابَكُم مِّن مُّصِيبَةٍ فَبِمَا كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِيكُمْ وَيَعْفُو عَن كَثِيرٍ
“And whatever of misfortune befalls you, it is because of what your hands have earned. And He pardons much.” [Surah Ash-Shura (42) :30]
Yes, it’s OUR fault. And these calamities are a part of what we’ve earned.
“Part?”
Yes.
Allah says:
وَلَوْ يُؤَاخِذُ اللَّـهُ النَّاسَ بِمَا كَسَبُوا مَا تَرَكَ عَلَىٰ ظَهْرِهَا مِن دَابَّةٍ وَلَـٰكِن يُؤَخِّرُهُمْ إِلَىٰ أَجَلٍ مُّسَمًّى ۖ فَإِذَا جَاءَ أَجَلُهُمْ فَإِنَّ اللَّـهَ كَانَ بِعِبَادِهِ بَصِيرًا
“And if Allah were to punish men for that which they earned, He would not leave a moving (living) creature on the surface of the earth, but He gives them respite to an appointed term, and when their term comes, then verily, Allah is Ever All-Seer of His slaves.” [Surah Fatir (35) : 45]
If we got everything we earned, we’d be history.
So what do we need to do?
At the end of a long hadeeth qudsi (the full version can be found in this post), Allah says:
فمن وجد خيرا فليحمد الله . ومن وجد غير ذلك فلا يلومن إلا نفسه
“So he who finds good, let him praise Allah, and he who finds other than that, let him blame no one but himself.” [Sahih Muslim, Hadeeth No. 6246]
So, when something good happens to us, we should attribute it to Allah, not to ourselves. However, when something bad happens to us, we should NOT attribute it to Allah, rather we should blame ourselves and seek His forgiveness.
In fact, this was the difference between Adam (alaihissalam) and Iblees. When Adam (alaihissalam) made that mistake, he blamed himself and asked Allah to forgive him. Due to this, he was raised in status.
Whereas in the case of Iblees, he blamed Allah for his misdeeds and refused to blame himself. Due to this, he was doomed.
So, who do we want to be like? Our father Adam or our enemy Iblees?
How to remove the impurities from one’s heart…
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum.
Okay, let me see.
This is a Ramadan blog.
And Ramadan is the month of fasting.
So, guess which way I’m going to suggest?
Yep.
And here’s the proof:
An Introduction to the Lord of the Worlds – Day 18
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum.
Let’s summarise what we learnt about Allah in this section. [That would be Day 10 – Day 17.]
a) He is the One who provides.
We need to remember this fact all time ESPECIALLY when Shaytaan (the devil) tries to stop us from giving in charity:
قُلْ إِنَّ رَبِّي يَبْسُطُ الرِّزْقَ لِمَن يَشَاءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ وَيَقْدِرُ لَهُ ۚ وَمَا أَنفَقْتُم مِّن شَيْءٍ فَهُوَ يُخْلِفُهُ ۖ وَهُوَ خَيْرُ الرَّازِقِينَ
“Say: “Truly, my Lord enlarges the provision for whom He wills of His slaves, and (also) restricts (it) for him, and whatsoever you spend of anything (in Allah’s Cause), He will replace it. And He is the Best of providers.” [Surah Saba (34) : 39]
An Introduction to the Lord of the Worlds – Day 17
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum.
c) Al-Haseeb (the One who takes account; the Reckoner)
Al-Haseeb is the one who is Sufficient for all His Slaves. He is the one recompenses (i.e. rewards) with them with either good or bad (depending on which on which one they deserve).
The proof for this Name is as follows:
وَإِذَا حُيِّيتُم بِتَحِيَّةٍ فَحَيُّوا بِأَحْسَنَ مِنْهَا أَوْ رُدُّوهَا ۗ إِنَّ اللَّـهَ كَانَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ حَسِيبًا
“When you are greeted with a greeting, greet in return with what is better than it, or (at least) return it equally. Certainly, Allah is Ever a Careful Account Taker of all things.” [Surah An-Nisaa (4) :86]
An Introduction to the Lord of the Worlds – Day 16
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum.
[Note: I started this section on Day 10. I mentioned 5 Names there. However, I added Ar-Raaziq and Al-Qayyum. Today and tomorrow, insha-Allah, I’ll also be adding Al-Kafeel, Al-Haseeb, and Al-Kaafi to that list, because they are all related to the issue of tawakkul.]
I’d like to add one more point to yesterday’s post:
[I just found out about it which is why I’m adding it today.]
One reason for Allah using the Name Al-Hayy (the Ever Living) for the One that should be relied upon is that the idols that the pagans (at the time of the Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wasallam)) worshipped were dead:
وَالَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّـهِ لَا يَخْلُقُونَ شَيْئًا وَهُمْ يُخْلَقُونَ
أَمْوَاتٌ غَيْرُ أَحْيَاءٍ ۖ وَمَا يَشْعُرُونَ أَيَّانَ يُبْعَثُونَ
“Those whom they (the polytheists) invoke besides Allsh have not created anything, but are themselves created. (They are) dead, lifeless, and they know not when they will be raised up.” [Surah An-Nahl (16) : 20-21]
So, these idols were dead so why bother relying upon them?
An Introduction to the Lord of the Worlds – Day 15
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum.
[Note: I haven’t forgotten to reply to all your comments. It’s on my to-do list (along with a whole bunch of other stuff…).]
So, Allah says that because He is the Ever Living One, we need to put our trust in Him.
Think about it. Anyone else that we might depend upon like a family member, a friend, etc is just a created being who is going to die one day.
And what happens if they die BEFORE us?
Are we going to rely upon someone else?
And what happens if they too die BEFORE us?
See how it goes? None of them can be relied upon completely.
Allah, on the other hand, will never die so we should feel completely relaxed and put our trust in Him.
The Greatest Month 