Purification of the Soul

Bismillah, walhamdulillah, was salatu was salam ala rasulillah!

Amma ba'd

Allah says:

"As for those who strive hard in Our cause, We will surely guide them to Ours Paths (Allah's religion)." [Al-Qur'an 29:69]

Therefore, guidance is dependent upon striving hard, not just making an effort, but to truly struggle with all one's might! The word Allah uses for striving is 'jahada'. From the verb (a doing word if you like) 'jahada' come the words 'jihad' and 'al-mujahadah'. Ar-Raghib al-Asfahani (rahimahullah) defines these words in his famous book on the language of the Qur'an, Mufradatu Gharib al-Qur'an, thus: "The words jihad and al-mujahadah both mean to exhaust ones resources to resist the enemy. Jihad is of three types:

1. Resisting the apparent enemy;
2. Resisting the shayatin (Iblis); and
3. Resisting the temptations of the self." [p. 101]

Shaykh 'Abdul-Qadir al-Jilani (rahimahullah) has mentioned that there are four targets for the plots of Shaytan: the qalb (the heart), the nafs (lower self), the 'aql (the mind), and the hawa (passionate instincts/desires). Concerning this he said:

"On the one hand the angel is inculcating taqwa in the heart. The devil, on the other hand, is busy instilling fujur (moral depravity) in to the nafs. As a result the nafs tries to persuade the qalb to use the limbs and organs of the body for impious and immoral purposes.

Within the physical constitution there are also two target areas: the 'aql (the mind) and the hawa (passionate instincts). The functioning of each of theses is subject to the will of a controlling influence, namely, that of helpful guidance (tawfiq) and that of seductive [satanic] temptation (ighwa')."'

Allah says:

"Say: 'I take refuge with the Lord of Mankind, the King of mankind, the God of mankind, from the evil of the slinking whisperer.' " [Al-Qur'an 114:1-4]

Mujahid (rahimahullah) said regarding these ayat, "This means that Shaytan likes to make himself comfortably at home in the heart of the human being. When someone remembers Allah, he slinks away and feels ill at ease, but whenever a person becomes forgetful, he stretches himself out in comfort over his heart."

Similarly Muqatil (rahimahullah) said, "He [the slinking whisperer] is the Devil in the shape of a pig attached to the heart within the physical body of the son of Adam, where he infiltrates himself smoothly as the flow of blood. Allah has given him control over that human being. Such is the import of His words:

"The slinking whisperer who whispers in the breasts of men." [Al-Qur'an 114:5]

Thus, when the son of Adam becomes absentminded, the Devil insinuates his suggestions into his heart, until he swallows up his heart completely. He is called the Slinker [khannas] because, when the Son of Adam remembers Allah, he slinks away from his heart, leaves it and makes his exit from that person's physical body."

Shaykh al-Jilani (rahimahullah) further mentions in his book Al-Ghunya, the inner nature of the struggle that we must all take care of:

"The struggle with Shaytan is an inner struggle, for it is waged by the heart in the core of one's being, and by faith (iman). When you struggle with him, therefore, your help and support is ar-Rahman (the All-Merciful), your mainstay is the al-Malik (the King) and ad-Dayyan (the Judge), and your hope is in the Face of al-Jalil al-Mannan (the Majestic Benefactor)."

The jihad against the kuffar is the outer battle with the sword and the spear, in which your support is provided by the ruler and the armed forces, and in which your hope is to enter the gardens of Paradise. If you are slain in the struggle with the unbelievers, your reward will be life everlasting in the abode of perpetuity. But if you are killed in the course of waging war on Shaytan and while you are committed to opposing him, due to the expiration of you appointed term and because your moment to die has arrived, your reward will be the Face of ar-Rabb al-'Alamin (the Lord of all the Worlds) at the meeting with Him. If you are slain by a kafir, you will be a martyr. But if you are killed by the Devil through following him obediently and carrying out his orders, you will be an outcast, banished from the nearness to al-Malik al-Jabbar (the All-Compelling King).

The jihad against the kuffar has an end and there comes a time when it is over. But the jihad against the Devil and the nafs is one that has no final limit and no point of termination. As Allah has said:

"And serve your Lord until the Certainty comes to you." [Al-Qur'an 15:99]

That is to say, till death and the meeting [with Him], for 'ibadah is performed by offering opposition to Shaytan and hawa (passionate instincts/desires).

Allah has said:

"The they will be thrown on their faces into it (the Fire of Hell) - they and the ghawun (the devils, the perverse, and those who were in error), and the hosts of Iblis, all together." [Al-Qur'an 26:94-95]

We must renew our efforts, redouble our defences, and strive to clothe ourselves in the armour of Allah's protection from the evil of Shaytan and of our own selves, for all good is from Allah alone. And as al-mujahadah can also be described as at-tazkiyah we need to recognise that it is unattainable by the greatest of all our efforts unless it is to Allah alone to Whom we turn for all our requirements and all help, as Allah has informed us:

"Oh you who believe! Do not follow the steps of Shaytan. Whoever follows the footsteps of Shaytan, then indeed he commands al-fahsha (indecency, etc.) and al-munkar (evil deeds, polytheism, etc.). And had it not been for the grace of Allah and His Mercy upon you, none of you would be pure from sins. But Allah purifies whom He wills, and Allah is All-Hearer, All-Knower." [Al-Qur'an 24:21]

'Abdul-Ghani an-Nabulsi said in encouraging striving, "Al-Mujahadah against the nafs is a form of ibadah. Only those who have 'ilm (knowledge) acquire this. However, it is an obligation upon every Muslim." [Sharh at-Tariqat al-Muhammadiyyah, 1/323]

In encouraging us not to waste time, we find a succinct advice from Shu'bah ibn al-Hajjaj al-Basri, "Do not sit idle, for indeed Death is seeking you!"

If al-mujahadah can be described as at-tazkiyah, then what can we learn about at-tazkiyah? At-tazkiyah is to purify, and it is one of the tasks of the Prophet Muhammad, and by extension a task before us all. Allah said:

"It is He Who has sent to the unlettered ones a Messenger from amongst themselves, reciting to them His signs, purifying them and teaching them the Book and the Wisdom, whereas before that they had been in clear misguidance." [Al-Qur'an 62:2]

Tazkiyah comes before teaching, as Allah has given precedence to it over teaching, and that is because tazkiyah is one of the fruits of acting upon knowledge. Therefore, one should be aware that if his knowledge increases but he does not increase in taqwa, then there is something wrong with his knowledge and something wayward with his actions. Connected to this we must know that the greatest of all the fruits of tazkiyah is sabr (patient perseverance) and zuhd (praiseworthy abstinence from the world), and the fruit of 'ilm (knowledge) is surely yaqin (certitude and certainty). So he who gains both is one of the Imams of the Din; and this is testified to by the saying of Allah:

"And We made leaders, giving guidance by Our Command, whilst they had sabr and had yaqin in Our Signs." [Al-Qur'an 32:24]

Shaykh ul-Islam ibn Taymiyyah used to say, "Through sabr and yaqin leadership in the din is attained." This is indeed the case as both are the actualisations of two of the Prophet's tasks and who other than he is the leader of all the Imams!

'Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak used to say, "The latter part of this Ummah will not be rectified, except by that which rectified its first part: zuhd and yaqin!' And zuhd cannot be attained except by means of sabr, which cannot be attained except through tazkiyah, which is itself, mujahadah. And yaqin cannot be attained except through purified Shari'ah knowldege."

This process of mujahadah will drive away the trials of the heart, namely the trials relating to false desires and the trials relating to doubts. Ibn al-Qayyim said, "the first causes intentions and desires to be corrupted, and the second causes knowledge and beliefs to be corrupted."

So how can we begin on this road of struggle? Then I can only suggest to you and me both dear brothers the advice of Ibn 'Awn when he said, "remembrance of people is a disease and the remembrance of Allah is the cure". Imam adh-Dhahabi commented on this, "Indeed, by Allah! It is very strange how we ignore the cure and race towards the disease! Allah said:

'So remember me and I will remember you.' [Al-Qur'an 2:152]

And the remembrance of Allah is greater. And He said:

'Those who believe and whose hearts find tranquility in the remembrance of Allah. Indeed, in the remembrance of Allah do the hearts find satisfaction.' [Al-Qur'an 13:28]

However, this will not be achieved except by the grace of Allah. And whoever persists in supplication and in knocking at the door, it will be opened for him."

And the best speech is the Speech of Allah, so I leave you, my dear brothers with the greatest reminder from our Rabb, so merciful, wise and gentle upon His slaves:

"Whoever hopes for the Meeting with Allah, then Allah's Term is surely coming, and He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower. And whoever strives, strives only for himself. Verily, Allah is free of all wants from the 'alamin (all creation)." [Al-Qur'an 29:5-6]

May Allah grant the Muslims the ability and guidance to strive in His way always until they meet Him.

Walhamdulillahi Rabb al-'Alamin

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

We read story after story of the measures being taken by individuals, corporations and governments for the impending possible disaster of Y2k meltdown and disruption worldwide. No matter what these people do, I am positive that most will not be ready for Y2K even if they have the most sophisticated and comprehensive hardware and software fixes available and teams of engineers and technicians. No matter what they do it will likely be far too late for them by the time Y2K rolls around and they will have the utmost regret for not having properly taken into account the gravity of the situation beforehand. They will have already met their destruction as will have most of their children. I am as sure of this as sure as I am of the sun rising in the East. Read the following list of Y2K preparedness questions to evaluate if you have taken proper measures before the occasion of Y2K and then judge for yourself if most people are ready.

Y2K Preparedness Questionnaire

Have You:

1. Recognized the One and Only True Provider, Creator and Sustainer, Allah?
2. Committed yourself to serving Him and willfully submitting to His commands?
3. Recognized that Muhammad the son of Abdullah and Aminah was the final Prophet and Messenger of Allah to all mankind?
4. Submitted to the fact that Muhammad (sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam) was the absolute correct speech and given the best of guidance and way of life in the form of the Qur'an and his way, the sunnah?
5. Saved your data (Ctrl+S = confess and submit) to prevent total loss by knowing the above and realizing there is a Hereafter and a questioning you will face about who your Lord, His Prophet and His Din are and also knowing that even if you didn't save, it has all been recorded?
6. Turned to Allah in repentance for your sins?
7. Backed up your data and deeds by doing your best to pray the obligatory prayers (in congregation whenever possible as men and as women strived to do so on time in their homes or elsewhere)?
8. Backed up your data and deeds by doing as many extra, non-obligatory acts of worship as you could?
9. Fasted sincerely in the month of Ramadhan and outside it?
10. Used your money to go to the Holy places to perform your obligation of Hajj and 'Umrah when you were able instead of spending thousands on hi-tech hardware you didn't need or vacations to far away places that had no benefit other than fulfilling your desires?
11. Disrespected your parents and rushed headlong into every evil they warned against?
12. Neglected the parents that cared for you, especially your mothers, in their old age?
13. Taken the time to learn Islam from the scholars of Islam and not merely the claimants to it?
14. Put the good and correct things you learned into practice like practicing all the five pillars?
15. Done all that was within your ability to convey the message of Islam to those who did not know or tried to teach other Muslims?
16. Neglected your spouse? In the case of women: not obeying the lawful wishes of the husband and guarding yourselves and his property and putting aside his rights upon you? In the case of men: verbally or physically abused your wives, given them little quality time, treated them like maids or sex slaves and did nothing or little to educate them?
17. Neglected your children by leaving their upbringing to others especially the worst among them, including the mechanical babysitters and educators such as the TV, the radio, the cinema and the Internet?
18. Doing all you could to leave behind righteous children who could benefit you after Y2k?
19. Spent most of your time worrying about the latest gadget, clothes, software, hardware or underwear to the neglect of giving some of that extra money in sadaqah?
20. Made a mockery of Islamic practices and morality such as removing your Islamic garb in imitation or emulation or self-consciousness before those who disbelieve?
21. After claiming Islam nevertheless continued to lie, cheat, steal, or commit other major sins?
22. Assisted your Muslim brethren who were starving, suffering from disease, attacks from their enemies by praying for them, sending them food, clothing, or money on their behalf?
23. Made a pastime of backbiting and belittling believers, and making the worst of their intentions or taking more time to figure out how to overcome other Muslims and find them blameworthy than in self-examination and rectification?
24. Aided and abetted the enemies of Islam by promoting their causes, habits and values before those of Islam?
25. Sought out to indulge every pleasure in your youth and did nothing to nourish your soul?
26. Used your technological saavy to produce to listen to, spread or view the immoral behavior of actors, actresses, singers, athletes, dancers, fashion models, porn stars and the like?
27. Read far more and gained more knowledge of entertainers of all types than you had of the best of people, starting with the prophets ('alayhimus salam) and then the noble companions of Muhammad (radiallahu 'anhum) and the righteous scholars who followed their way?
28. Looked down upon Muslims who strived hard in their lifetimes to adhere to Islam in word, deed, letter and spirit?
29. Been unforgiving to your brothers and sisters for their mistakes?
30. Lived a life that you would be confident in standing before your Creator on the Day that is incomparable to anything that may occur in any millenium and will be equal to 50K?

What in the world is the relationship between these questions and Y2K preparedness you ask? Perhaps you have forgotten that Y2k on the Islamic calendar comes in 500 years and surely most anyone who can read this at this time will be in their graves.

All praise is due to Allah, and we seek refuge with Him in the evil which lies within our ownselves. Whoever Allah guides, there is none can lead him astray and whom He leads astray, there is none can guide him and I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam is His prophet and messenger.

After this, know dear brothers, that Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, has said in His Qur'an:

"And We have not created the Jinn and Mankind except to worship Me."

What is the meaning of worship?

Is the meaning of worship to establish prayer only or to give Zakah or to make Hajj to the house of Allah or to make Wudu', to fast? Are these things only worship? Or are these things mere signs of worship? The truth is that worship, as it was explained by the Shaykh of Islam, Ibn Taymiyyah, worship is an expression of love for Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, and it also expresses complete humility to Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala. For worship does not only mean prayer but prayer is merely a sign of worship but worship is indeed love for Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala.ning of worship? Is the meaning of worship to establish

Many people claim that they love Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, and they say: 'I prayed and I fasted and I made the Hajj and I gave Zakah. After all of this, what does Allah want from me because I have done all these forms of worship? I have worshipped Allah.' Has this person really worshipped Allah? Does Allah need our prayer? Does Allah need our fast? Does he need our Zakah and our Hajj. Allah is High above all these things. Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, said in a hadith qudsi, "O my servants! I have made unlawful oppression upon myself and I have made it unlawful between you. So do not oppress each other. O my servants! All of you are astray except the ones whom I have guided, so seek my guidance and I will guide you. O my servants! All of you are naked except those of you whom I have clothed, so seek clothing from me and I will clothe you. O my servants! All of you are hungry except those of you whom I have fed, seek food from me and I will feed you. O my servants! You make errors in the night and in the day and I forgive all sins. Seek forgiveness from me and I will forgive you. O my servants! You will never be able to harm Me and you will never be able to benefit Me. O my servants! If the first of you and the last of you and the jinn from among you and the men from among you, were to stand as one man from among you, that would never take away from My Majesty one bit. If you were to fear Allah as the best among you, that would not increase in My Majesty any. O my servants! If the first of you and the last of you and the Jinn among you and the men among you, were to perform the worst forms of crimes, that will not decrease from My Majesty any. O my servants! If the first of you and the last of you, the Jinn of you and the men of you, were to stand on one side and ask Me, I will give each one of you what you ask and still this will not decrease from My Majesty. This will not decrease from My Majesty as if you dip a needle into the water.""

Can anyone take away from the Majesty of Allah? No-one can decrease from the Majesty of Allah. He is Great and Supreme. Allah does not need our worship, he does not need our love, he does not need our Salat, he does not need our fast. Allah is the Owner of all majesty and supremecy and He is independent and above all needs. He does not need our worship. We need the worship of Allah, we need Salat, we need Zakat and we need to fast, we need to perform good deeds to the creation. We are poor and Allah is rich. We are weak and Allah is strong. We are the degraded, the low and Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, is the High. So we need the love of Allah.aah or to make Wudoo, to fast? Are

O brothers! We relate to Allah as we relate to this world. Who from among us, when someone comes to him, says to his brother: 'I love you and I am this and that in obedience to you,' and then you say to him, if he said these words to you: 'Have you said these words from your heart?' Did he really understand what he said to you or are you merely speaking words that you have memorised. O brothers, are we truly relating to Allah in our prayers in this manner? How many of us recite Fatihah, the opening prayer of the Qur'an, in the right manner? How many of us, when we prostrate to Allah, we fell in our hearts, humility? We enter Salah, when the Imam says 'Allahu Akbar', God is the Greatest and we remember, at that moment, all the affairs of the world. We remember, at this moment, all the affairs of the world. We remember, we remember, only at this moment, the affairs of the world and we forget Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala. We remember our food when we go to prayer and we remember our friends when we go to Salah and we remember our needs when we go to prayer and we don't know what the Imam is saying, what he is reading and we don't feel anything from the prayer except for when the Imam says 'Salam wa Alaykum, Salam wa Alaykum'.

Are we really loving Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala? When we are reading Fatihah, do we really understand the meaning or what we say or are we merely repeating words that we have memorised? We will never be pleased if people relate to us in this way, so how can we be happy if we relate to Allah in this manner? Our heart has become hard and they have become like stones! Even harder than stones! What is the way to the love of Allah? What is the way which would lead us and help us to arrive at this station of love of Allah?

Everyone of us, at this moment, should ask ourselves - When did you love this person? What were the reasons that lead you to love that brother or that women? There are three things that lead to love. The first is beauty, the second is dignity of character and the third is the kindness and graciousness of that person towards you. Maybe that person is not beautiful and he has no good character but he provides for you all your needs and maybe that is the reason that your heart feels out for him.

If we take the first reason, O dear brothers, we know that the hearts are naturally attached, naturally inclined to beauty. No-one can say that beauty does not affect the heart. Therefore if someone intends, or needs to travel to some place, he asks about the natural beauty of that place and if he wants to marry, he asks if the woman is beautiful. Once a young man came to me and he asked me to help him find a wife through my wife and I asked him: What are the things you are looking for? What are your conditions? He said to me: She must be beautiful, long hair, very tender, beautiful eyes and the colour of her must be qurnubi. I said: What is the meaning of this qurnubi? The Shaykh did not know what was meant by qurnubi. He began to describe beauty to me and the last word he said to me: '...and she must be religious, so that I will not despise her because the Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said choose the one that is pious.' He did not describe Din but he described to me beauty. He only mentioned Din, so that I would be pleased with him and carry out his wishes. So really, the hearts of men are very much attached to beauty..

(Also), When we read the story of Yusuf alayhis salam, the Prophet Muhammad sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam informed us that Yusuf and his mother were given half of all the beauty in the world. When we read what happened between Yusuf and the wife of the 'Aziz in Egypt and the woman of the 'Aziz was the highest in social status for Egypt, because she was the wife of the minister of finance and she was very beautiful and Yusuf was a slave to her, not only a servant but a property. So one day, her heart reached out to Yusuf. She closed the door to him and said: Come to me. And Yusuf refused and this word spread among the women and among the women, the wives of the ministers. They said that the wife of the 'Aziz, the minister of finance, tried to lure her servant into lewdness. The love of Yusuf had dominated her heart and she became possessed by this love and it overwhelmed her heart. They said: 'Indeed the wife of the 'Aziz has gone astray. Is she not ashamed of herself? She is trying to intice her servant! This mean and low person is trying to capture (her slave), surely she is a women who has gone astray.' The word, sooner or later, go to the 'Aziz and when she heard of their sayings, she invited them to her house and she prepared for them a dinner and after this, she presented them with fruits and gave each one of them a knife and she said, 'Please eat,' and then each one of them took a fruit and a knife and then they began to peel the fruit. The wife of the 'Aziz went to Yusuf and ordered him to have a bath and then she ordered him to wear his finest clothes and this only increased in his beauty. She, herself, prepared her hair in the best manner. She made Yusuf wear the best forms of perfume and his beauty seemed perfect and absolute. So she said to him, 'Now, go to these women.' They were peeling their fruits and when they saw him, their image of him became very outstanding and then, without even feeling or being conscious of it, they cut themselves. The knives began to cut the nerves and the skin without them feeling it and it was said that they cut their hands and they said, 'By Allah! This is not a human being. He is nothing but a gracious Angel!' She (the wife of the 'Aziz) said to these women, 'This is what you have been blaming me for. Do you want to blame me for what I have done now?' They said, 'No!' She said, 'This thing which you have blamed me for. Surely, I tried to intice him and make him do something bad against his own nature but he stood firm.' She confessed that she had done something wrong. She was prepared to stand by her wrong-doing. At this moment, she had not yet gone back on her wrong-doing and she was happy with the words of the women. 'WIll you hold me wrong for what I have done?' One women from the crowd called Yusuf, as if she wanted to ask him something. She said to him secretly, 'What is your opinion of a meeting tonight?' He said, 'I seek refuge with Allah,' and another women invited him as if she wanted to make a similar request and when he came, she said, 'What about a meeting tonight?' And all of them invited (him) to have sex with them and he said, 'O my Lord! Prison is better to me rather than to do what they invite me to and if you do not divert me away from what they have tried to make me do, I will fall victim and I will be among the ignorant,' and Allah answered his prayer and Allah diverted him away from the bad calling. Allah is indeed the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing.

Who from among us, reads the story of Yusuf, he wishes in his heart that he see Yusuf in his sleep? To see and witness his beauty. By Allah! If the beauty of Yusuf were gathered and the beauty of his mother and the beauty of his nature and the beauty of all men and all women and all this beauty was put in the person of one man, by Allah, this beauty would not be in any way equivalant to the beauty of Allah. The Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said in a hadith by Imam Muslim, 'Indeed Allah is beautiful and He loves beauty.' Because Allah's nature is beauty. Every aspect of Allah is beauty.

The Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam was asked, 'Have you ever seen your Lord?' He sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'Nur (Light)! This is what I have seen. How can I see all that beauty?' The face of Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, is all beauty and all light, therefore Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, says about this world, 'Everything in it will vanish and face of Allah will remain.' His Majesty and His Glory, His Dignity and His Beauty is all that He embodies. Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, has described himself that is face is all light. Therefore he says about the light of His Face, 'Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth.' So, the light of the heaven and the earth is part of the creation of Allah. When the world is overwhelmed with darkness, this sun, which Allah has created, and it will overwhelm the darkness and present light to the earth and give it light and this is the light of the creation, so how can you imagine the light of the Creator! Therefore the Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, opens His Hands in the night, to give forgiveness to those who disobeyed Him during the day and He opens His Hands in the day, to give forgiveness to those who disobeyed Him in the night and His veil is Light and if He removes it, His Light will burn whoever of His creation turn to Him.' All of Him is light.

Therefore Musa alayhis salam, when Allah spoke to Him, his heart reached out to Allah and there was an exchange of words between him and Allah. When Allah spoke to Moses, his heart was attached to Allah and Musa thought that there was no harm in trying to see Allah. He said, 'O my Lord, let me see You.' Allah, 'You will never see Me, but if you so wish, look at the mountain and if it stands in its place (when Allah unveiled Himself to the mountain), then you will see Me.' So Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, said, 'And when Allah revealed Himself to the mountain,' and as Ibn Malik said the light of Allah was only a small bit and when Allah revealed Himself to the moutain, it smashed the mountain, Musa fell down in a state of unconsciousness. The mountain could not carry the beauty of Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala. It could not stand in front of the Majesty of Allah and it became levelled with the earth and Musa fell down in a state of unconsciousness. When he was revived, he said, 'Glory be to You O Allah! I repent and I am the first of the believers.'

So, my dear brothers, Allah, all of Him is light and all of Him is beauty. Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, says about himself: On that Day, the Day of Judgement, how great is the Glory and Majesty of Allah and the whole of the earth, on the Day of Judgement will be in His grip and the heavens will be in His Palms. Glory be to Him over what they ascribe to Him!

It will be blown in the trumpets and all of the people in the heavens and the earth will faint away except whom Allah wills and then there will be a second blowing and they will stand up looking, all the people will stand again and look and the people will ask that Allah should come to seperate between the people and Allah says about Himself, ' ... and Allah will come with the angels in ranks ... ' and the angels will come carrying the Throne of Allah. Allah says, ' ... and they carry the Throne of Allah above them.' Eight angels carrying the Throne of Allah and when the procession comes before those who carry the Throne of Allah. Rows, ranks of angels will proceed before Allah comes. Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, informs of His coming and the earth will become enlightened with the light of Allah and that is because of the beauty of Allah and the completeness of His light and Allah gives the best of examples.

When some of the most beloved people come to you, you say, 'Oh you have bought light because of your beauty.' So how could it be with Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala? So the dark earth which encompasses all the worlds on the Day of Judgement will become enlightened with Allah. It was this reason that the hearts of the companions were attached to Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, and so to our Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam was deeply attached to Allah and His Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'I ask you for the good taste of seeing Your beauty and I ask You, so that I may long to meet You.' So too the heart of Abu Bakr radiallahu 'anhu was attached to Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, and Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, spoke about Abu Bakr in Surah al-Layl, when Allah said about the Fire, 'The pious will never enter the Fire.' Ibn Abbas said the most pious and God-fearing man after the Prophets and Messengers was Abu Bakr. This is because he used to purchase slaves, the weak, the oppressed and he would free them for the sake of Allah and his father would say to him, 'O son! Will you purchase people who have strength for themselves so they can defend you but you are purchasing weak people. What will they do for you and what will you do for them?' What did Abu Bakr say to his father, 'O my dear father, I want what I want and I want the pleasure of seeing the Face of my Lord, one look only at Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala. It is equal to this world and what is in it.' And Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, said, 'The pious will never enter the Fire, the one who gives his wealth to purify his heart.' There is none who has any greater worldly qualities than Abu Bakr except the Holy Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam because he bought guidance, therefore Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said the most beloved person among people in terms of their person, is Abu Bakr and none can claim to better than him but he, himself, can claim to better than them. Why? Because Abu Bakr wanted to see the face of Allah and Allah said that He will indeed be pleased with Abu Bakr and Abu Bakr will be pleased with Allah. So the hearts of the companions were attached to Allah and their hearts were attached to the beauty of Allah. And Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, said about them, 'And they were giving out of their wealth for the love of Allah.' And they were giving their wealth despite their love of that which they were giving and they gave their wealth to the poor, the orphans and the prisoners of war. They said, 'We are feeding you. Why? So we can see the Face of Allah. We do not want your reward or your thanks.'

Once, one companion came to the Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam and his heart was shredded and he said, 'O Prophet of Allah! Our hearts have become really attached to Allah and His beauty. O Prophet of Allah, will we see Allah on the Day of Judgement?' The Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'If you all put yourself together and if the sun comes out without any clouds, will you see the sun (without needing to move to see it)?' He said, 'No Messenger of Allah, we do not need to move to see it.' The Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'Do you crowd each other in order to see a full moon?' He said, 'No O Messenger of Allah!' He sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'So you shall see Allah like this on the Day of Judgement.'

What is the way to see Allah? The Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'Whoever from among you is able to make Salat ul-Fajr and 'Asr, he should preserve these prayers.' These are two reasons which will enable us to see the Face of Allah. Therefore the hearts of believers are always attached to Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, and Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, has promised them and Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, has said that on the Day of Judgement, all their faces will be lights and they will see the Face of their Lord.

<END OF SIDE ONE>

... and their faces will increase with light when they see the Allah! As Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, has also said when he has spoken about the righteous; He says, 'Indeed the Book of the righteous will be in a high stage ('illiyin).' And what can you perceive is this high station? Allah says it is a written book and the people who are close (the angels) will bear witness to this book and indeed the righteous will be in contentment and delight. They will be sitting on high chairs looking. What are they looking at? They will be looking at the Face of Allah! They will be sitting on high cushions looking at the Face of Allah and you will see in their faces, contentment and delight after they have seen Allah. You will contentment and pleasure. They will be given a drink, the Sealed Nectar. At the end of this drink will be misk* and for this, those who compete should compete and this drink will be mixed with something from tasnim. Tasnim is a spring from which the close people will drink.

Those crinimals used to laugh at the believers and the righteous. Used to laugh at the people when they grew their beards. They laughed at him and made fun of him because he had his thawb short. They laughed at him because he turned his back on vain desires and women and they say that he wasted his youth and they say he wasted his life and they say that he made his life narrow because of this religion, so they laugh at him. Surely, those people who committed crimes and outrages, they laugh at the believing, righteous people and when they pass the righteous people, they touch each other and they make fun of the righteous and when they go to their people, they laugh at the religious and the righteous people and when they see the righteous people, they say, 'Surely these people have gone astray. They have wasted their lives, wasted their youths. Surely there are many womens and girls for them to have and all these fair delights are easy to have.' Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, says about the kuffar that He did not send the disbelievers to set any standard or to preserve or protect the believers. O unbelieving people are you not calling to freedom? So why don't you leave the Muslim people? Why are you laughing at them. I did not send you to protect them.

Allah says on this Day of Judgement, the believers will laugh at the disbelievers. They will be sitting on their high chairs looking at the Face of Allah and Allah says, after this, about the kuffar, did the unbelieving people get their reward for what they were doing? This the rewards for anyone who turns to Allah and attaches his heart and allows his heart to reach Allah.

Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, says in Surah al-Insan, 'And they will be surrounded by boys who will never die and if you see them you will think they are scattered pearls.' And if you see them in their high stations, you will see delight and you will see Allah in His High Majesty. This is the promised vision of the believers of Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala,. This is the greatest that a believer will be given on the Day of Judgement.'

So Bukhari has related and so too Imam Muslim on the authority of Abi Sa'id al-Qudri, that the Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'If the people on Jannah, enter Jannah and the people of Hell, enter the Hell, there will be a caller who will give his call. 'O people of Jannah! You have an appointment with Allah, He wants to realise for you all your ambitions.' ' Then the Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'Then the curtain will be taken away and they will not be given something more loved to them than the sight of Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala.' Therefore the greatest pleasure to the believers is the sight of Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, and the worst punishment of the people of the fire is the denial to see Allah. So Allah says about the unbelieving people, 'Surely the Book of the unbelieving people will be locked.' And what is the prison were the unbelieving will be locked? It will be a punishment to those who denied the Prophets, the coming of the Day of Judgement and what did they deny with except with every mean form of outrage and sin. 'If our signs and verses were recited to them, they say 'Stories, fables of the past peoples.' O indeed, we will cover their hearts because of their wrong-doings. Indeed, they will be a barrier between them and their Lord on that Day.' They will be denied the right to see Allah, the King of all kings. They will be denied the right to see the most Mighty and Allah gives the most complete expressions.

If you want to reach out to the heart of the most beloved person to you or the most beautiful person, you will say close the door upon him. Don't let him enter him upon me. This is the way and this is the curse and he does not have the rights, he does not deserve to see me and he will be belittled and denied the right to see me and many peope will have this experience and they will be exposed in front of the people. How will it be on the Day of Judgement? When they will be thrown out in front of all the world. This is one of the worst forms of punishment for the people of the Fire while the believers will be given the delight and the pleasure of seeing Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala. This is the reason why the heart of the Prophet was so much attached to Allah. He used to say, 'O Bilal! Make us comfortable with prayer.' He never said, make us comfortable from prayer. That is because in prayer, he spoke to Allah and he felt during this dialogue with Allah, he felt love for Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, and his heart moved and pulsated with the love of Allah and Allah gives the most beautiful expressions.

If all the disasters will fall upon you, you go the most beloved person to you and you speak to him and you sit with him and you open your heart to him and when you do this, your sadness goes away. So the Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'O Bilal! Make us comfortable with prayer.' This is why the Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'The delight of my eye is prayer.' Therefore, he stood up one night from among the nights, and he was sleeping in the house of the Mother of the Faithful, 'Aishah and he wanted to pray and she said to him, 'O Prophet of Allah. I love your closeness to me.' The Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'O 'Aishah. Leave me one minute to worship my Lord because my heart is attached to Allah.' Who from amongst us feels this way? The hearts of believers are this way. A man, when the night comes, his heart begins to throb with love and his heart begins to search for the most loved thing to him, so that he can sit with that person and he would call that person and pour out his troubles to that person as one person once said, 'When the darkness comes and the heart begins to move with love and longing is the most burning thing in the heart, and the believers wait for that night and instead of sitting with their love, they wait for the moment when they can stand in prayer, so that they can make the prayer of Tahajjud to Allah because their hearts are attached to Allah.'

One companion, one believer, was on his death bed. He began to cry and they said to him: Why are you crying? You are about to die and Allah has written death to everyone and you are among the believers. He said: I am not crying because my spirit is going, because I am going to leave but I will miss 3 things - Firstly, the night prayer. How will I be able to speak to Allah and I am in my grave and my heart has become so attached to Allah. Second, the fasting during hot days and the third, sitting close to the scholars who reminded me about Allah, about my beloved Prophet. Who would remind me of my beloved Prophet when I am in my grave?

One of the Salaf, Sufyan ath-Thawri was on his death bed and he began to cry. They said: Why are you crying? Allah has written death to all people. He said: I am not crying because of death but I am crying because Tawhid will be taken away from me. And what he means by Tawhid, if the love of worship for Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, only.

O brothers do we feel this way?

One of the Salaf, Qais said to his beloved wife, her name was Laylah and the star which guides people never came out and the morning except that it made me remember her. But the believers say the star never comes out and the morning never comes until we remember Allah. They never say that the coming of the star or the coming of the Fajr reminds them of their lovers but they say that the coming of the stars and the coming of Fajr reminds them of Allah and Qais also said about Laylah that he used to go to the desert alone and he said that we would go out from among the house, so that I can speak to my serve about you (Laylah) and it is an empty night. But what does the believer say? One of the students of Ibn Taymiyyah said: We saw Shaykh ul-Islam leaving the houses going and he went into the desert so we followed him without him knowing and we heard him saying, 'I have come out from among the houses so that I can speak to myself about you O my Lord!' So it was how their hearts were attached to Allah.

So the love of Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, dominates the hearts of the believers. Do we ourselves feel this kind of love? Maybe one of us, if we enter prayer to speak to Allah and to communicate with Him, he remembers his beloved or some other of creation other than Allah and when he sits with his beloved, he does not remember Allah and when he enters that thing which should be dedicated to Allah, he remembers his beloved and when he sits with his beloved, he does not remember Allah. Allah speaks about the polytheists, they ascribe to Allah what they have created from plantations, animals, a portion. They say these products are for Allah and this portion is for our idols and when the produce which they dedicated to the idols finishes, they take from that which they give to Allah and they give it to the idols and when the produce they dedicate to Allah decreases, they never take from Allah and give it to Allah. When we do our prayer, we see this matter. When we sit with the most beloved person to us, this sitting becomes purely for that person who we love and when we enter prayer, then comes the ideas and the memories of our beloved persons and so this prayer will never be purely for the sake of Allah. Would anyone be pleased that we are related to in this manner? So Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, says that from among the people, there are those who take false gods and they love those false gods as they love Allah but the people who believe, they are more strong in their love towards Allah and Allah says in another ayah, 'And the gates of Jannah will be bought close to the God-fearing people and the fire will be bought close to the bad people and it will be said to them, 'What did you worship? Those who you worshipped other than Allah, can they help you now?' They will thrown onto their faces into the Fire and those whom they worshipped and the soldiers of the Satan, all together and they will be there debating and fighting amongst themselves in the Fire and they will say, 'O Allah! Surely we were astray because we worshipped others in the way that we should have worshipped Allah.' ' The associating of partners in Shirk is like the associating of partners in love as Ibn Taymiyyah said.

Therefore it should become clear to us know, the way to the love of Allah. I will not be much longer upon you. I will conclude now.

The second reason that leads to the love of Allah after the beauty of Allah, to know the great qualities of Allah because you may have heard of some man and you have never seen him but his qualities are well known and you love him, only because you have heard about his great qualities. If you look at the qualities of Allah, as this Arab once said he heard only one hadith of the Prophet. The hadith in which the Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, 'The last person to come out of the Fire, his face will be turned to the Fire and he will look for one moment and the heat of the Fire will burn him and also the smell of the Fire and he will say, 'O my Lord, turn my face away from the Fire,' and Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, will take from him a strong promise that he will not ask other than this question (for anything else) and Allah turned his face away and then he stood for one moment and then he would say, 'O Allah, turn my face towards the Jannah,' and Allah will say to him, 'O what a wretched creature you are! Did you not promise you would not ask for anything else?' He said, 'O Allah! I swear, I promise I will not ask for anything else.' Then Allah turned his face towards the Jannah. He (the man) waited for a moment and then he said, 'O my Lord! Make me come close to the Jannah,' and Allah will say, 'O what a wretched creature you are son of Adam! Did you not promise you would not ask for anything else?' He said, 'I swear I will not ask for anything else,' and Allah made him come close to the Jannah and the Jannah became high and near towards him and he saw in it the delights and pleasures. He said, 'O Allah, make me enter the Jannah.' Allah says, 'O what a wretched creature you are son of man! Did you not promise you would not ask for anything else?' He said, 'I swear Allah, I will not ask for anything else.' Allah then says to him, 'Make a wish.' And Allah said to him, 'Again, make a wish,' and the angels were near to the that person and the angels will say, 'Wish for any of things of al-Jannah,' and the angels will say, 'There are so many things in al-Jannah, what do you want?' And the angels will tell him all about the delights of al-Jannah and his heart began to long and yearn for the things of al-Jannah and then he made more demands from Allah until he had nothing more to ask for. Allah will then say to him, 'Ask for something again.' He said, 'I don't have anything else to ask for.' Allah says to him, 'All of this is for you and ten times this is for you,' and Allah laughed and this servant said, 'Are you laughing at me and you are the Lord of the Worlds? You told me to make a wish and now you laugh at me.' Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, says, 'I am not laughing at you but I am able to do whatever I want for you.' So Allah gave him.' This Arab man from the desert heard that Allah laughed, he said that the great Master of the heavens and the earth, He laughed!? The King of all kings is laughing!? The Owner of all-Majesty and Power laughs! The One who can hold the heavens in His Hands and the earth in His other hand and then He shakes them and then He says, 'I am King! Where are the great oppressors?' Where the proud people? Where are the people who held up their heads high up in pride and did not submit to this Din? And none of them will be able to say anything and they will be forced into submission and humility to Him. Where are the Ceasers? Where are the rulers of Persia? None of them will be able to speak in front of the Majesty of Allah, and they (the Arabs) would say, 'The Great and Powerful Allah is laughing!? Allah will never be able to deny us any good. If Allah is laughing then He will not deny us any good.'

If you enter upon one responsible person or one minister and you have some request and he smiles in your face after you enter upon him, you will say O look he is laughing at me and then you would say I am sure he will not reject my request. So how can it be with Allah? The King of all kings. Therefore when Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, smiles we know that there will not be a denial of good. O observe dear brothers, this one quality. This one quality made the heart of this desert Arab become attached to Allah.

And the third thing which will take us to the love of Allah, is the graciousness of Allah towards us. How much have we paid for what Allah had blessed us with? If you have lost your sight, how much can you pay? If you loose your heart, how much can you pay? If you loose your mind, how much can you pay for it? If you loose a kindey, how much can you pay for it? 30,000? A liver? 50,000? Intestines? 30,000? How much about the nervous system and different parts of the body? How much have we paid for all of these things which we have? We have not paid one single cent and Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, gives them working in perfect order for us.

One man, Ibn Sama, he went to Harun Rashid and Harun Rashid had with him a gathering. Harun Rashid asked for a cup of water and he was at the time, the leader of the Muslims and before Harun drank, Ibn Sama said to him, 'One minute Amir ul-Muminin, can you imagine if you were denied that cup of water and you were in the heart of the desert and you are about to die from thirst? How much will you pay for this small cup of water?' He said, 'Half, O Ibn Sama, I will pay half of my throne (kingdom) for this.' Ibn Sama said to him, 'O leader of the faithful, drink graciously and thankfully.' Then Harun Rashid drank and we waited for one moment and we wanted to go now to the bathroom to relieve himself of this water and Ibn Sama said to him, 'O leader of the faithful, can you imagine if this water could not leave you and this water was held within you? How much will you pay to get this water out of your system?' He said, 'O I will pay one half of my throne (kingdom).' Ibn Sama said, 'O leader of the faithful, what do you want from your throne!? Your throne is not equal to a cup of water? Half of your throne is not equal to what you drink and half of it is not equal for you to relieve what you drink? And in the night and the day, we drink and we relieve ourselves without anything in return!'

We use our eyes to disobey Allah! He preserves our eyes and we disboey Him with them. Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, preserves our ears and yet we disobey Him with them? Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, keeps our minds and we use them to disobey him. His good to us is descending upon us and our evil is going towards Him. He blesses us and provides for us and we give thanks to others. Is this not waywardness? Is this not a display of poor manners towards Allah? These are the ways towards love for Allah but this love must be encircled with humility of Allah through the way of learning the qualities of Allah.

Let us consider the story of this little girl. 'Umar ibn al-Khattab was making one of his rounds during the night and he became close to this house and this women was speaking to her daughter, 'Get up my daughter and mix the milk with water. So we can sell the people this and they will not know that it is mixed and we will make great interest and profit.' She said, 'O my dear mother, the Amir of the Muslims has prohibited us from doing this.' The mother said, 'Where is the leader of the Muslims now? He is not here.' She said, 'If the leader of the Muslims does not see us but the Lord of the Amir is seeing us!' 'Umar began to shiver. This strong man, this great personality, he began to shiver. He said to his servant, 'Put a mark on that house and come to me in the morning with the name of that girl,' and 'Umar gathered all his sons ...

<END OF TAPE 1>

When she knew the value of worshipping Allah this way, when she knew that Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, is the All-Seeing, she worshipped him with this consciousness and Allah raised her in station.

'Aishah said, 'Glory be to Him, Whose Ear encompasses all the voices.' She said, Kholat entered upon the Prophet and she was an old woman, and she began to complain to the Prophet in the house of 'Aishah, and the house of 'Aishah was small and the Prophet had placed a curtain in this house and 'Aishah was behind this curtain and the old woman was on the other side and the Prophet was with her and the Prophet said to her, 'What is your complaint?'

The woman said, 'O Messenger of Allah! Aisha will hear what I am saying because it is the nature of women to listen. She would say that I have heard some of her sayings and perhaps some of it will not be known to her.' And among the things she heard the woman say, 'My husband has used all her wealth and I have lost all my beauty and now I have become old and I have no offspring and he said to me, ‘You are like the back of my mother to me!' ' And she said, 'O Allah I complain to you!' 'Aishah said, 'I heard some of her statements and some of it was not clear to me but when she said, ‘O Allah I complain to you!’, Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, He was above His Throne, He heard her complaint, He sent down a verse at that moment:

'Allah has heard the saying of that women, who complains to you about her husband, and she complains to Allah and Allah hears your conversation. Allah is All-Hearing, All-Seeing.' '

And Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, is worshipped because He has this quality of hearing and Allah answered and Allaah, He has all things.

And those who feel the majesty and power of Allah, who goes to Hajj or goes to Makkah in the last ten days of Ramadhan, and he stands on the third story and sees the people circling the Ka'bah and he sees their number, a million or more and this one is making du'a and this one is crying and this one is seeking help and this one is hiding his du'a and this one is crying and tears are flowing from his eyes and the one who hides his crying and this one is speaking in Arabic, and another is speaking in Hindi, and another in Pakistani and another in English and all the people with their languages are calling upon Allah according to their own conditions and in one moment and their number is more than one million! Allah hears all of this and He hears this one and He answers to this one and He gives to the other and He realises the promises to this one, in one moment and the same time! This is greatness and power upon greatness and power. Glory be to Allah who can hear all voices.

This is why the scholars of the Salafis, they concentrate on this quality of Allah, that He is all-Hearing and they try to explain this meaning of this quality of Allah, that He is all-Hearing so that the believers can really feel the closeness to Allah and the love for Allah and they can experience true humility to Allah without any form of distortion of the qualities of Allah, without any form of denial of the qualities of Allah.

One of the Salaf said, 'Whoever denies any of the qualities of Allah, surely he does not love Allah, he does not feel the Majesty and Power of Allah.' Therefore, one of the people who denied the qualities of Allah, said when he was prostrating, 'Glory be to Allah, the lowest.'

This is why 'Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak said, 'The truth about what they say is not above the Throne of Allah.' But on the other hand, the righteous predecessors, they have established and given true recognition to the qualities of Allah and they establish and realised true worship of Allah and also complete love for him and all praise is due to Allah, Lord of the Worlds.

(s) Transcript of a lecture given at Brixton Mosque, London

Asir ibn Jabir narrates: Whenever people would come from Yemen, ''Umar would ask them, "Is Uways all-Qarani amongst you?" until, one year, he met Uways. He said, "Are you Uways al-Qarani?" He said, "Yes." 'Umar continued, "From Murad, then Qaran?" He said, "Yes." 'Umar then asked, "Were you once afflicted with leprosy and your skin healed except for a dirham's area?" Uways said, "Yes." 'Umar finally asked, "Do you have a mother (that is alive)?" He said, "Yes." 'Umar then said, "I heard the Messenger of Allah - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - say, "Uways ibn Amir will come to you with the delegations from Yemen, from Murad, then from Qaran. He was once afflicted with leprosy and his skin healed except for a dirham's area. He has a mother, and he treats her kindly. If he was to ever swear by Allah (for something) Allah would fulfill his oath. If you can, request that he ask forgiveness for you." 'Umar then requested from Uways, "Ask forgiveness for me." And Uways Al-Qarani did.

Allah - ta'ala - commanded us:

"And your Lord decreed that you should worship none but Him and that you be dutiful to your Parents. If one of them or both attain old age in your life, then do not say to them uff (a word of disrespect), nor shout at them, rather address them in terms of honour / And lower for them the wing of submission and humility through mercy. And say, 'My Lord! Grant them Your Mercy as they brought me up when I was small.' " [Al-Qur'an 17:23-24]

Ad-Daylami collected from Al-Husayn ibn Ali, that the Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - said, "If Allah knew any smaller than uff (tsk) to be disrespectful to parents, He would have decreed it to be haram." In Bukhari, a man came to the Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - seeking permission to go for Jihad. The Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - asked him, "Are your Parents alive?" He said, "Yes." He - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - said, "Perform Jihad (in you kind treatment) of them."

If someone came to you today and offered you a free lunch, what would be your response? No doubt you would smile, speak kindly to them, and reserve a special place in your heart for their memory. Why is it then that our parents receive only cold stares, harsh words and bitter treatment and they are who they are in our lives? For twenty or thirty years they fed us, clothed us, washed us, and showered their mercy on our soft skin. Their love for us never dies even if we do, love that goes even beyond us, to our children and even their children.

Dear Brothers and Sisters, we all have parents – whether they are with us or not – and many have not understood the severity of their position in our lives and their right to be respected and revered. Today I want to remind you and I of the true position of our Parents, may Allah have mercy on them all.

Birr al-walidayn (kindness to parents) is a characteristic of the mu'min. Al-Hasan al-Basri defined it saying, "Al-Birr is to obey the parents in everything that they ask so long as it is not to disobey Allah. Uquq is to disown your parents, denying them all of your goodness."

By the ijma' of the ulama', being respectful and obedient to ones parents is fardh. Ibn Hazm said, "(Obeying ones parents) is Fardh," and he quoted the verse:

"And your Lord decreed that you should worship none but Him and that you be dutiful to your Parents."

To better understand what is meant by birr al-walidayn, the scholars set the following conditions:

1. He should place the pleasure of his parents above the pleasure of anyone else, including himself and his wife and kids. Everyone.;
2. He should obey them in everything they command or forbid, whether it agrees with his desires or not, so long as they do not command the disobedience of Allah; and
3. He should present them with everything he feels they desire, whether they ask for it or not. He should present it with kindness and mercy, understanding – no matter what he does – his shortcomings in fulfilling the true kindness that his parents deserve.

Allah's love comes when our parents love us. And Allah's anger comes when our parents are angry with us. Ibn Abbas said, "There are three things that will not be accepted if it's mate is not fulfilled ... " and he mentioned:

"Thank Me (Allah) and your parents ... " [Al-Qur'an 31:14]

Ibn Abbas continued, "Thus whoever thanks Allah and is not thankful to his parents, Allah will not accept from him."

The Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - said, "The Pleasure of Allah is from the pleasure of the parents, and the anger of Allah is from the anger of the parents."

Let us think about how many of us treat our parents. We shy away from them when they may need something. We never visit if we are away from them. In fact, many people dispose of their parents in retirement homes. And when an argument ignites between our parents and us, many of us shout at them as if we were arguing with our evilest enemy, may Allah protect us all.

Compare this to those that came before us. Dhibyan ibn Ali ath-Thawri used to travel with his mother to Makkah. There – in the scorching heat – he would dig a little pool and fill it with cool water. Then he would turn to his mother and say, "Ummi, sit in this water to cool yourself."

For many of us, our friends are more precious to us than our mother and father. Forgetful we are of the time a man came to the Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - and asked him who is more worthy of his dear companionship. He - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - said, "Your mother!" The man asked again and again, and the Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - replied, "Your mother! Your mother!" Until on the fourth time he - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - said, "Your father." Today, when the common question is asked, "Who is your best friend?" How many people would say, "My mother!" But this is how the question should be answered and implemented.

What pleases our parents comes before everything, so long as it is not in disobedience of Allah. The scholars understood this and set the example for us. Haywah bin Shurayh, one of the Imam's of our Ummah, used to give classes in front of his home. During the class, his mother would call him to feed the chickens. He would stand up, leave the halaqah, and go feed the chickens.

We all want Allah to accept from us, we would all like to enter Paradise. Look down – dear brothers and sisters - and you will find paradise at the feet of your mother.

Narrated Ahmad and an-Nasa'i, from Mu'awiyah ibn Jahimah as-Sulami: My father, Jahimah went to the Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - and asked, "O Messenger of Allah, I would like to go out and fight for the sake of Allah, and I have come to you for advice." The Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - asked him, "Is your mother alive?" He said, "Yes." "Then stay near her," advised the Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, "For at her feet is Jannah!" said, “I heard the M

On the other side, making our parents sad or even making them cry is one of the many ways to earn Allah's anger. Imam Ahmad narrates, from Abdullah ibn 'Amr ibn al-'As: A man came to the Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - to give him his Pledge of Allegiance. He said, "I have come to pledge allegiance to you for Hijrah! And I have left both my parents behind crying." The Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - commanded him, "Go back, and the same way that you made them cry, make them laugh." Ibn 'Umar said, "Making ones parents cry is amongst the uquq, a major sin!"

Shaykh al-Qasim once said, "Subhanallah! How can we leave our parents sobbing, tears that the throne of Allah shakes for, tears that unsettle the Angels in the heavens, and then we claim that we want to go for Jihad so that Allah will be pleased with us? Go back and make them happy with your visit as you made them sad by your departure. If they laugh and are pleased with you, Allah will be pleased."

During the funeral of his mother, al-Harith al-Akli weeped. When asked for the reason of his tears he said, "Why should I not cry when one of my doors to Paradise has now closed?"

We reap what we plant. In a far away land, a long time ago, a boy was born blind. His widowed mother – the good muslimah that she was – did not lose hope in her du'a and pray she did, continuously. A few years later, the boy's sight returned. Alhamdulillah.

She realized that her village was not befitting for her son to excel in Islamic education, so with her son in hand they migrated to Makkah. There she saw that he was being instructed in Qur'an and hadith, the latter becoming the young man's focus. He went out far and wide collecting hadith and compiled a hadith book that sits next to the Qur'an in authenticity, forgetting not his mother that had raised him well. His mother named him Muhammad ibn Isma'il, and many of us know him today as: Al-Imam al-Bukhari!

Dear brothers and sisters, how often is it that a farmer plants wheat and it comes out as a sunflower? You may say, never! For how can someone farm the seed of one plant and expect some other plant to grow. It just does not happen. Similarly, some parents leave their children waddling in the mud of television, music, movies, and disbelieving friends. Then when the child reaches grade 12 and asks to go to the final dance with a girlfriend, or when he enters university and stops praying, or when he gets married to a kafir and himself becomes one, then the parents say, "What happened?"

Brothers and sisters, it is the harvest of what we planted. If we do not raise our children to be obedient, where do we expect them to learn? If we do not practice Islam ourselves, who will be our children's example? How do you teach a child to wake up for Fajr, when he sees his own father and mother sleeping in, day after day? You may ask, how do I raise my children to be good Muslims, obedient to their parents? Consider the following:

Firstly: One should discipline their children throughout their youth. Hisham ibn 'Abdul-Malik missed a son of his during Jumu'ah one week. When he met him later, he asked him, "Why did you miss Jumu'ah?" He son replied, "My donkey couldn't make the trip." His father then said, "Couldn't you have walked!" For an entire year after that, Hisham ibn 'Abdul-Malik made his son walk to Jumu'ah.

Secondly: The piety of the father and mother reaches the children. In the Qur'an, Allah recalls for us the story of Khidr, and how he rebuilt a wall for 2 orphans:

"And as for the wall, it belonged to two orphan boys in the town. Under it was a treasure belonging to them and their father was a righteous man ... " [Al-Qur'an 18:82]

Look at how Allah protected these orphans because of the piety of their father. In tafsir, it is said that it was their grandfather seven generations back! Sa'id ibn Jubayr said, "I often lengthen my salah for the sake of my son, perhaps Allah may protect him (because of it)."

In conclusion, let us reflect on the virtue of respecting our parents:

• It is one of the greatest things that we can do. In Bukhari and Muslim, from 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, a man asked the Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, "What deed is most beloved by Allah?" He - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - said, "Salah on time." The man asked, "And then?" He - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - said, "Respecting and revering ones parents." He said, "And then?" "Jihad for the sake of Allah."
• It is a means by which our sins are forgiven. When Allah commanded in the Qur'an, "And We enjoined on man to be dutiful and kind to his parents ... They are those from whom We shall accept the best of their deeds and overlook their evil deeds, (they shall be) amongst the dwellers of Paradise." [Al-Qur'an 46:15-16]
• Respecting our parents will lead us to Jannah! In Muslim, from Abu Hurayrah: I heard the Messenger of Allah - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - say, "May he perish! May he perish! May he perish!" It was asked, "Who, O Messenger of Allah?" The Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - said, "He whose parents attain old age in his life – one or both of them – and he does not enter Paradise (because of his goodness towards them)."

And when our parents are gone, the goodness towards them does not end.

Malik ibn Rabi'ah as-Sa'idi narrated: We were sitting with the Messenger of Allah - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - when an Ansari man came and asked, "O Messenger of Allah, is there anything left from my birr to my parents that I should present to them after their death?" The Prophet - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - said, "Yes, four things: Pray and ask forgiveness for them. Fulfill their pledges. Be kind to their friends. And maintain the ties of kinship that come from only their direction. That is what is left from your birr to them after their death." [Ahmad, Abu Dawud and Ibn Majah]

Amir ibn Abdullah ibn az-Zubayr said, "My father died, and for an entire year I did not ask Allah for anything except that He forgive my father."

Remember dear brothers and sisters as you meet your parents today, the words of Rasulallah - sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam - "Fa fihima fa jahid!" (Do Jihad in your kind treatment of your parents).

O Allah, forgive us and our parents, and reward them with the finest reward. O Allah, elevate their position in the hereafter and this Dunya; make that which befalls them an expiation for their sins. O Allah, grant them residence in Firdows, the highest level of Jannah, with the Prophets, the Siddiqin, and the Martyrs.

Amin.

One of the most beautiful things about the concept of worship in Islam is the truly unique way in which it incorporates the feeling of love, fear and hope within the hearts of the worshippers of Allah. Understanding how to combine these three qualities into the worship (ibadah) of Allah is one of the most essential things that every Muslim must grasp, not least because every sect which has drifted from the Straight Path has strayed in the aspect of worship. The deviation of the other religions in this regard is clear for all to see: "God is love! Jesus is love!" say the Christians, denying the fact that Allah should be feared too. As for the Jews, their hearts were filled only with hope; hope that the Fire will never touch them, since they were the "Promised People".

In Islam however, no worship is complete without the presence of all three qualities: love of Allah, hope in His Mercy and fear of His Punishment. Contemplate the opening Surah of the Qur'an - Surah al-Fatihah - and you will see this for yourself.

Ayah 1: "All praise [and thanks] is for Allah, Rabb of all the worlds."

In this opening ayah (verse) of the Qur'an, we have LOVE of Allah and every time we recite this ayah we are testifying to our love for Allah. How is that you ask?

It is because in the ayah, we are acknowledging that Allah is our Rabb and the Rabb of all the worlds. Rabb is usually translated as 'the Lord', but this translation does not do justification to this name of Allah and all the meanings this name carries. In reality, Rabb means that Allah is the Creator of everything; He sustains and nourishes everything; He gives life and Death; anything good that we have is from Him; everything is dependant on Him and nothing can happen unless He wills it. Furthermore, for the Muslims He - the Rabb - in the One who has guided us to the Truth and given us good morals and manners.

Thus when we testify that Allah is our Rabb, then we are acknowledging that He is the One who has given us so many blessings - so many that if we try to enumerate His blessings, we would be unable to do so. So how could we not but LOVE Him?

After all, we all love those who show kindness towards us or present us with gifts. And therefore the Messenger of Allah sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam encouraged the exchange of gifts between Muslims because it helps to strengthen ties and develop love for one another. He sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, "Give gifts to one another, you will come to love one another." [Collected by Imam al-Bukhari in al-Adab al-Mufrad and declared hasan by al-Albani in al-Irwa' (1601)]

So imagine the LOVE we should have for our Rabb who has given us everything: nice families, shelter, security, food, health and above all the Guidance of Islam and the Sunnah. We should be overwhelming in our love for Him. That is why we praise Him and thank Him and say, "All praise (and thanks) is for Allah, Rabbil-'alameen."

Ayah 2: "The Rahman (Merciful) and the Rahim (Mercy-Giving)."

In the first ayah of Surah al-Fatihah, Allah mentioned He was the Rabb. In this ayah two more of His Beautiful Names are mentioned: ar-Rahman and ar-Rahim. Ar-Rahman means that He is the Most Merciful. Ar-Rahim means that He is the Giver of Mercy, in other words His actions are full of Mercy and He shows Mercy to His creation [As explained by Ibn al-Qayyim (d. 751H) in Bada'i al-Fawa'id].]

When we mention these two names of Allah, then we have HOPE. Since He is the One who is full of Mercy, and we hope He will forgive our mistakes and shortcomings. We should never loose hope, because Allah says in the Qur'an, "O My slaves, who have transgressed against themselves! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah, Verily Allah forgives all sins (except sins). Truly He is Oft-Forgiving, the Most Merciful." [Al-Qur'an 39: 53]

The need to have FEAR in our worship is shown by the next ayah of Surah al-Fatihah.

Ayah 3: "King/Master of the Day of Judgement."

When we recite this ayah, we remind ourselves of the Day of Judgement - that awful Day, when all of humanity shall stand before Allah naked, uncircumcised and barefooted. People will appear drunk though they are not. On that Day, every person will stand before Allah and account for his sins, knowing that not even the smallest action which he did is hidden from Allah: "So whosoever does good equal to the weight of an atom, shall see it. And whosoever does evil equal to the weight of an atom shall see it." [Al-Qur'an 99:7-8]

So when we recite this third ayah of Surah al-Fatihah, we remind ourselves of this Judgement and accountability and that should bring about in us a sense of fear - that maybe our evil actions will be too great and we will be responsible for them - May Allah protect us from such a fate. Then the next verse goes on to say: "You alone we worship." i.e. we single out Allah for our worship. And how do we worship Him? With LOVE, HOPE and FEAR. And in order to achieve these qualities, we need Allah's assistance, so we say then, "We seek Your Aid."

Striking the Balance

After understanding the need to have love, hope and fear in our worship, the next question that naturally arises is that, in what proportion should these qualities be present in our worship? Again we turn to the Qur'an for the answer.

"Call upon Him with fear and hope." [Al-Qur'an 7:56]

"Their sides forsake their beds, to invoke their Lord in fear and hope." [Al-Qur'an 32:16]

So both fear and hope should be present in our hearts in equal proportions. Anas reported that the Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam entered upon a young boy who was dying. The Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam asked, "How are you?" The boy replied, "O Messenger of Allah, I am in between hoping in Allah and fearing for my sins." The Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, "The like of these two qualities do not unite in the heart of a servant except that Allah gives him what he hopes for and protects him from what he feared." [Collected in Sunan at-Tirmidhi and Sunan ibn Majah and authenticated by Shaykh al-Albani in Ahkam al-Jana'iz (no.2)]]

Therefore whenever we do a good action, we should hope that it has been accepted by Allah, but at the same time we should also have fear that maybe it isn't enough or that the good deed has not been worthy of acceptance. Likewise when we sin, we should have hope that Allah will accept our repentance and forgive us, but we should also fear that we may be accountable for it.

This balance should be reflected in our da'wah (which of course is also worship). So when we invite others to the Truth, we should not give them the impression that 'they have nothing to worry about', nor do we suggest that 'they are doomed forever'. Rather we couple warnings with encouragement. We inform them of the horrors of the Fire and tell them about the bliss of Paradise. Just as we find Allah telling us in the Qur'an:

"Verily your Lord is quick in punishment and verily He is the Oft-Forgiving, the Giver of Mercy." [Al-Qur'an 7:167]

And the scholars of Islam say, "He who worships Allah with hope only is a murji'i. He who worships Him in fear only is a haruri [khariji]. And He who worships Allah in love only is a zindiq [eg. the Sufis, the Christians, etc]. But he who worships Allah in fear, love and hope is a muwahhid mu'min [a believer upon tawhid]." [Quoted by Ibn Rajab in at-Takhwif min an-Nar]

The murji'a were a sect that emerged within the first century of Islam. The people of this sect believe that sins do not affect faith i.e. no matter what sins a person commits, his iman (faith) is complete and perfect. They worship Allah only with hope because they believe that as long as one believed and testified to Islam, they would enter Paradise regardless of their actions.

Unfortunately, all too often nowadays we find a similar attitude amongst many Muslims today, which is why we find that so often we try to advise someone to turn to the din and abandon sin, they just point to their hearts and say, "Allah knows what is in my heart", or "Allah forgives", or something else like that.

As for the khawarij, they worshipped Allah in fear only because they held that anyone who commits major sins was a disbeliever and would therefore dwell in Hellfire forever. This of course is gross extremism and straying from the correct path. The Prophet sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam said: "There were two men of Banu Isra'il who strove equally. One of them committed sins and the other strove hard in worship. And the one who strove in worship to see the other in sin and kept saying to him: 'Desist.' So one day he found him committing a sin and so said to him: 'Desist.' So he replied, 'Leave me by my Lord, have you been sent as a watcher over me?' He said, 'By Allah, Allah will not forgive you, nor will Allah admit you to Paradise.' Then their souls were taken and they came together before the Lord of the Worlds. So Allah said to the one who strove in worship: 'Did you have Knowledge of Me, or did you have any power in what is in my Hands?' And He said to the sinner: 'Go and enter Paradise through My Mercy.' And He said to the other: 'Take him to the fire.' " Abu Hurayrah said: "By Him in whose Hand is my soul! He spoke a word which destroyed this world and the hereafter for him." [Collected in Sunan Abu Dawud (english trans. vol. 3, p. 1365, no. 4883). See Sahih al-Jami' (4455) of Shaykh al-Albani]

Therefore we should never say of anyone that he or she is a 'lost cause' or 'doomed' or the like for this is a great sin. However, we fear for those who commit major sins because they have been threatened with punishment in the Qur'an and the Hadith. However it is up to Allah whether He chooses to punish them or whether He will forgive them.

The zindiqs - or the heretics - are groups, such as many of the Sufis who have become like the Christians and reduced the religion to just 'love' and so all their talk and their mystical practices are centered around developing more 'love'.

It is thus clear how imbalances in any of the three qualities of worship can lead to major deviation and straying to the True Guidance. It is therefore important for every Muslim to combine all three of them in his heart properly. As was mentioned before, the fear and hope should be in equal proportions. This was the opinion of most of the Salaf. Fudayl ibn 'Iyyad said that, when one is healthy and well, then fear should predominate, but when terminally ill then hope should predominate - so that one should strive to do good when well and not despair of Allah's Mercy when terminally ill [at-Takhwif min an-Nar], but as for love then that should be uppermost. As Fudayl ibn 'Iyyad - rahimahullah - (d. 187H) said:

"The love is better than the fear.

The fear checks us from sinning,

and the love makes us do what is prescribed with an open heart."

[Reported in at-Takhwif min an-Nar of Ibn Rajab. Note that some scholars hold that the fear is better than love, and Allah knows best.]

May Allah grant us what we hope for and protect us from what we fear. And may the Blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad, upon his family, his Companions and upon all those who follow Guidance until the Last Day.

(s) Ad-Da'wah illallah