IMATX Reflections

A sample circle for Session 5, 7 October 2026: Who Forbade the Good Things, Al-A'raf 7:32–36.

It opens with the question the Qur'an asks those who say that enjoying good things is less religious: who has forbidden the adornment of Allah? Then each ayah is recited by Mishary Rashid Alafasy and explained: the good things brought out for His servants, what Allah has actually forbidden, the fixed term for every nation, the last “O children of Adam” in the surah with its promise for those who have taqwa and set things right, and the denial and pride that close the passage.

The circle comes back to that opening question, answers two questions from the members, reads the first two discussion questions and ends with the du'a for the end of a gathering. It is the same audio as on the session page, with its transcript and chapters.

This is a sample circle: a dramatised halaqa. George, Salma, Yu, Viraj and Victor are fictional, with AI voices, and the recitation is by Mishary Rashid Alafasy.

Re-recorded on 18 October 2026 as a sample circle.

A sample circle for Session 4, 29 September 2026: Ya Bani Adam — Dress and Adornment, Al-A'raf 7:26–31.

It opens with the time we spend on what to wear, and an ayah that calls another clothing best. Three times the passage calls out, O children of Adam. Each ayah is recited by Mishary Rashid Alafasy and explained: the two kinds of clothing and the clothing of taqwa, the warning drawn from what Shaytan did to our parents, the habit that was given Allah's name, what Allah does command, the people who thought they were guided, and the call to dress well for every masjid without going past the limit.

The circle comes back to that opening and answers two questions from the members. Then two members put the first two discussion questions in short form, two say what they are taking with them, and the circle ends with the du'a for the end of a gathering. It is the same audio as on the session page, with its transcript and chapters.

This is a sample circle: a dramatised halaqa. Benedict, Salma, Yu, Viraj and Victor are fictional, with AI voices, and the recitation is by Mishary Rashid Alafasy.

Re-recorded on 23 October 2026 as a sample circle.

A sample circle for Session 3, 20 September 2026: Adam and the Garden, Al-A'raf 7:19–25.

It opens with the first words Adam and his wife said after they were deceived. Then each ayah is recited by Mishary Rashid Alafasy and explained: the permission and the one limit, the whisper and the oath that carried it, how they were brought down and covered themselves, the words of repentance in ayah 23, the command to go down, and the earth where we live, die and are brought forth.

The circle comes back to those words, answers two questions from the members, reads the first two discussion questions and ends with the du'a for the end of a gathering. It is the same audio as on the session page, with its transcript and chapters.

This is a sample circle: a dramatised halaqa. George, Salma, Yu, Viraj and Victor are fictional, with AI voices, and the recitation is by Mishary Rashid Alafasy.

Re-recorded on 19 October 2026 as a sample circle.

A sample circle for Session 2, 15 September 2026: Iblis Refuses, and Makes a Vow, Al-A'raf 7:11–18.

It opens with Allah's question to Iblis: what prevented you from prostrating? Then each ayah is recited by Mishary Rashid Alafasy and explained: the shaping of Adam and the command to prostrate, Iblis's comparison, the verdict on arrogance, his request for time, the reprieve, his vow to sit on the straight path, the four sides he names, and his expulsion, with the warning to those who follow him.

The circle comes back to that opening question, answers two questions from the members, reads the first two discussion questions and ends with the du'a for the end of a gathering. It is the same audio as on the session page, with its transcript and chapters.

This is a sample circle: a dramatised halaqa. Benedict, Salma, Yu, Viraj and Victor are fictional, with AI voices, and the recitation is by Mishary Rashid Alafasy.

Re-recorded on 19 October 2026 as a sample circle.

One verse: Surah Al-A'raf, verse 12. Allah asks Iblis what prevented him from prostrating, and Iblis answers with a claim — I am better than him, You created me from fire and created him from clay. He refused, and then defended the refusal by claiming he was the better of the two. The episode holds one question the whole way through: when someone corrects me, do I consider whether they are right, or do I dismiss them because of who they are?

Ibn Kathir's point, paraphrased and attributed in the episode: the excuse is worse than the offence, because Iblis was not confessing — he was explaining why the command should not have applied to him. The superiority was not an aside. It was the reason he gave for not doing what he was told.

Sahih Muslim 91a then puts a definition on it: pride is disdaining the truth and contempt for the people — asked in the context of a man who likes fine dress and fine shoes, which the narration is explicit is not what is meant. And a boundary: a person correcting you is not the same as Allah commanding you. You may ask for evidence, disagree respectfully, and keep reasonable limits. The question is only whether someone's age or standing is stopping you from giving what they said a fair hearing.

It closes with one practice — pause, ask what is true, and if it is right acknowledge it and change one concrete thing — then a short look ahead to 7:23, where Adam and his wife answer the opposite way, and an original du'a.

Under eight minutes, no prior study needed. The full show notes on the episode page carry the qiyas discussion, which is deliberately not in the audio, and every source with a link.

A sample circle for Session 1, 8 September 2026: The Trust of the Book and the Scales, Al-A'raf 7:1–10.

It opens with a reminder we hear and pass on to someone else. Then each ayah is recited by Mishary Rashid Alafasy and explained: the opening letters, the Book sent without tightness in the chest, following what was revealed and no other allies, the towns that were destroyed, the people who admit they were wrongdoers, the questioning of the nations and of the messengers, the account given with knowledge, the weighing, those who lose themselves, and the earth given to us with its livelihoods and little thanks.

The circle comes back to that opening, answers two questions from the members, reads the first two discussion questions and ends with the du'a for the end of a gathering. It is the same audio as on the session page, with its transcript and chapters.

This is a sample circle: a dramatised halaqa. George, Salma, Yu, Viraj and Victor are fictional, with AI voices, and the recitation is by Mishary Rashid Alafasy.

Re-recorded on 19 October 2026 as a sample circle.