Juma Khutbas

The message of Islam is to remind all mankind that we have a Rabb to whom we are directly connected without the need for any intermediaries, agents, intercessors, or facilitators. When we speak, He hears us. When we ask, He gives us. He created us, sustains us, protects us, tests us, helps us, rewards us, and to Him is our return. To Him we turn for all our needs. To Him we tell our story. Before Him we shed our tears. To Him we complain about those who oppress us. And above all, Him, we thank for all that He gave us. Our relationship with Allahﷻ is very close and personal. We know Him, we are in awe of Him, we bask in His Glory, we marvel at His Magnificence, we delight in the variety and complexity of His creation, and we love Him more than we love anyone and anything else. This was the message of all the Prophets and Messengers of Allahﷻ through the ages. A simple message of love, warmth, comfort, and mercy. The message of Islam.

Islam is a Deen of connection. The Purpose of creation is to connect with Allahﷻ. Allahﷻ told us:

وَمَا خَلَقْتُ ٱلْجِنَّ وَٱلْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ

Dhariyaat 51: 56    And I (Allah) created not the jinns and humans except they should worship Me (Alone).‎

We enter Islam by accepting that connection when we declare the Shahada. The Shahada is not a statement of information. It is a statement of a relationship between the Abd and his Rabb. We reiterate this in every Raka’a of every Salah, compulsorily at least 17 times a day in the 5 Fardh Salawaat when we say: Iyyaka na’abudu wa iyyaka nasta’een (We worship only You and we seek help only from You.) That is to reiterate the relationship by saying, ‘O Allahﷻ, I am Yours. I belong to You. I ask only You for help because I am Yours. I am asking, so help me.’

Allahﷻ‎ mentioned the reward for that connection: Faz kuruni az kurkum (You remember me, I will remember you). Just reflect on what it means to have Allahﷻ remember us, which means to mention us on His Arsh (Throne). What does that do to our hearts? Rasoolullahﷺ said about this:

Abu Hurairah (R) narrated that Rasoolullahﷺ said, ‘Allahﷻ says: 'I am (for my slave) just as My slave thinks I am, (i.e. I am able to do for him what he thinks I can do for him) and I am with him if He remembers Me. If he remembers Me in himself, I too, remember him in Myself; and if he remembers Me in a group of people, I remember him in a group that is better than they; and if he comes one span nearer to Me, I go one cubit nearer to him; and if he comes one cubit nearer to Me, I go a distance of two outstretched arms nearer to him; and if he comes to Me walking, I go to him running.’ May Allahﷻ help us to appreciate the value of Dhikr. It is the basis of building a connection. We can’t claim to have a connection with someone we don’t even remember or mention. Know Allahﷻ. Remember Allahﷻ and mention Allahﷻ often, that is the proof of being connected.

Allahﷻ honored those who are connected with Him and called Himself their Wali. He promised to guide them out of the darkness of ignorance and fear into the light of His knowledge and peace and security. Heﷻ said:

ٱللَّهُ وَلِىُّ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ يُخْرِجُهُم مِّنَ ٱلظُّلُمَـٰتِ إِلَى ٱلنُّورِ وَٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوٓا۟ أَوْلِيَآؤُهُمُ ٱلطَّـٰغُوتُ يُخْرِجُونَهُم مِّنَ ٱلنُّورِ إِلَى ٱلظُّلُمَـٰتِ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ أَصْحَـٰبُ ٱلنَّارِ هُمْ فِيهَا خَـٰلِدُونَ

Baqara 2: 257    Allah is the Wali (Protector or Guardian) of those who believe. He brings them out from darkness into light. But as for those who disbelieve, their Auliya (supporters and helpers) are Taghut [false deities and false leaders, etc.], they bring them out from light into darkness. Those are the dwellers of the Fire,

In my Halaqa last week someone challenged me about the prohibition of interest-based finance and said, “There is no alternative, so what can we do? Without interest-based finance Muslims can never have a big business or industry.” I asked him, “No alternative to what? No alternative to making money, buying a house or whatever? Or no alternative to buying the enmity of Allahﷻ and His Messengerﷺ? Ask, ‘What am I buying? A house, or war with Allahﷻ and Rasoolullahﷺ? Allahﷻ said as we know:

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَذَرُوا۟ مَا بَقِىَ مِنَ ٱلرِّبَوٰٓا۟ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَفَإِن لَّمْ تَفْعَلُوا۟ فَأْذَنُوا۟ بِحَرْبٍ مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِۦ وَإِن تُبْتُمْ فَلَكُمْ رُءُوسُ أَمْوَٰلِكُمْ لَا تَظْلِمُونَ وَلَا تُظْلَمُونَ

Baqara 2: 278-9   O you who believe! Be afraid of Allah and give up what remains (due to you) from Riba (interest) (from now onward) if you are (really) believers. And if you do not do it, then take a notice of war from Allah and His Messenger but if you repent, you shall have your capital sums. Deal not unjustly (by asking more than your capital sums), and you shall not be dealt with unjustly (by receiving less).

Nobody can say that the matter was not clear. Do we really want to live as Allahﷻ’s enemies? What do you call those you are at war with? Buying war with Allahﷻ is not an option for a Muslim. Nothing is worth that. Is there?

Let me give you some facts. Let me do a primer on this: we have two options:

Option 1: Get into interest-based transactions and write our name in the list of the enemies of Allahﷻ. Eat doubtful or Haraam stuff and get our Ibaadah and dua deleted.

Option 2: Choose to live our life with dignity as good Muslims and remain in the list of Allahﷻ’s Awlia and look forward to His Forgiveness. Whatever Allahﷻ decreed for us, will come to us. All the effort we make to get it, will be rewarded. And when we die, we hope to die with Allahﷻ’s Mercy.

Which is the better of the two? Let us get this settled once and for all and decide that we are not going to sacrifice our Aakhira for this life. About believing that there are no alternatives to interest-based finance, let me assure you that we have many alternatives. What we don’t have, is excuses to disobey Allahﷻ and indulge in Haraam.

What we must do therefore is to change the glasses through which we see the world. First, let us ask ourselves if we believe in resurrection and the meeting with Allahﷻ to give account for our lives. That is where we need to start. We are Muslim and that means that Allahﷻ’s Ridha (Pleasure) should be the basis and criterion for all our decision making. Fundamental to that is our faith in resurrection and accountability. For Muslims, all decision making must be based on that. And not on anything else. Because remember, our money, fame, family, wealth, business, authority, even knowledge will stay here when we die but the way we made all that will go with us.

That is why the title of my Khutba is, ‘Change your glasses.’ Just as, if our sight starts to go foggy and blurred, we go to an ophthalmologist to check if we need new glasses, so also, when our sight is getting blurred with the fog of Dunya, we must turn to Allahﷻ to clear our vision. The Sahaba looked at Dunya through the lens of the obedience of Allahﷻ, cleaned and polished daily in the Suhba (company) of Rasoolullahﷺ. Not only did they not have an alternative to obeying Allahﷻ, but they also did not even seek one. So, Allahﷻ gave them Dunya and Aakhira. We have turned that criterion upside down. We look at the obedience of Allahﷻ through the lens of our desires (Dunya) and our desires have no alternative for us. So, Allahﷻ does not give us Dunya and may Allahﷻ protect us ...

As I mentioned in my last Khutba, ‘Living in the Revolution’, there are three things that we must change to survive and thrive in the AI Revolution. Change the way we connect with Allahﷻ and Rasoolullahﷺ, change the way we teach, and change the way we relate with one another.  

I have taught and written about leadership now for 40 years. I have trained practically everything that walks on two legs or four. There is one critical lesson that I learnt in all these years, and that is, that your success doesn’t depend on the amount of knowledge you have, or your piety, or your personality, or your lineage, family, race, color, nationality of anything else. It depends only on one thing; your ability to influence people. And that in turn depends on your ability to get along with people. That is because the cardinal principle in sales is, ‘You can only sell to friends.’ The key to influencing anyone is that the other person must like you first. This is the key to success in marriage, employment, business, politics, or anything else.

This applies even more to the biggest of all challenges, to get people to change their belief. Just try getting someone to change the soccer or basketball team they support or to vote for another party and you know what I mean. Rasoolullahﷺ’s challenge was to change who people worshipped. One of Rasoolullahﷺ’s greatest strengths was the ability to get along which enabled him to continue to remain engaged in the most difficult and antagonistic of situations and that in turn was instrumental in changing people like Khalid bin Waleed and Abu Sufyan (RA) to becoming his friends.

The key to getting along is to get along with those we may disagree with. Especially when such people may have strengths and talents that are critical to our own success. I want to remind you that nobody can succeed on his own. Everyone needs someone else to succeed. The key is to help the other person see how they can succeed in their own life goals by supporting you. It is not about deception or smooth talking. It is about helping the other person see what is in it for them. Smooth talking is suicidal to influencing. It destroys credibility and trust. Once people wake up to the fact that they had been deceived, and they always do without exception, then they will distrust everything that comes from you and anyone like you. Permanent and powerful influencing is about desiring the best for others and helping them to achieve it. In that process you achieve your own goals. Allahﷻ said:

وَلَا تَسْتَوِى ٱلْحَسَنَةُ وَلَا ٱلسَّيِّئَةُ ٱدْفَعْ بِٱلَّتِى هِىَ أَحْسَنُ فَإِذَا ٱلَّذِى بَيْنَكَ وَبَيْنَهُۥ عَدَٰوَةٌ كَأَنَّهُۥ وَلِىٌّ حَمِيمٌ

Fussilat 41: 34   The good deed and the evil deed cannot be equal. Repel (evil) with one which is better (Allah ordered believers to be patient when angry and to excuse those who treat them badly), then verily! he, between whom and you there was enmity, (will become) as though he was a close friend.

This can only happen if we are willing to forgive each other and keep the primacy of the goal in mind i.e., building the relationship. Rasoolullahﷺ set the best example with the people he forgave and what happened thereafter.

The focus on winning friends is even more critical when we are talking about Da’awa of Islam which is get people to look at a belief that goes against whatever they hold to be true. The only way that will happen is when they don’t feel threatened because they see you as a well-wisher and friend.

ٱدْعُ إِلَىٰ سَبِيلِ رَبِّكَ بِٱلْحِكْمَةِ وَٱلْمَوْعِظَةِ ٱلْحَسَنَةِ وَجَـٰدِلْهُم بِٱلَّتِى هِىَ أَحْسَنُ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ هُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَن ضَلَّ عَن سَبِيلِهِۦ وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِٱلْمُهْتَدِينَ

As I mentioned in my last Khutba, ‘Living in the Revolution’, there are three things that we must change in our approach to life to leverage the benefits of technology and counter its ill effects. Change the way we connect with Allahﷻ and Rasoolullahﷺ, change the way we teach, and change the way we relate with one another.  In the 15th century in Medieval Europe the conflict between the Church and scientists came to a head. The Pope was Urban VIII and the scientist was Galileo. Galileo's theory of Copernican heliocentrism (Earth rotating daily and revolving around the Sun) was opposed by the Catholic Church. The matter was investigated by the Roman Inquisition in 1615, which concluded that heliocentrism was foolish, and heretical since it contradicted Holy Scripture.

Galileo later defended his views in Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems (1632), which appeared to attack Pope Urban VIII and thus he was tried by the Inquisition, found ‘vehemently suspect of heresy’, and forced to recant. He spent the rest of his life under house arrest. The reason I am mentioning this is because we Muslims inherited this conflict between the Church (in our case our Ulama) and scientists without any reason because there is, in fact, no conflict between Islam and science.

The purpose of science is to peel back the layers of the appearance of objects to reveal their underlying nature. The purpose of Islam is to peel back the layers of the appearance of objects to reveal their underlying purpose. Let’s see what happens in practice. I call it the “Why” versus “How” conundrum.

When you ask “Why” something happens, science tells you “How” it happens. For example, if you ask why do rogue waves happen? You are told, “Waves coming at different speeds from different directions suddenly meet and mingle into one big rogue wave. Strong waves collide with fast-flowing ocean currents coming from the opposite direction, slowing down the waves so that they pile up and form rogue waves.” The answer is perfectly correct but not for the question you asked. Is this the answer to the question: “Why?” Or are they telling us “How” rogue waves are formed? Is it important to know how it happens? Of course, it is. But does that answer your question about why? ‘How’ is the method or mechanics. ‘Why’ is the cause or reason. Both are important but not in the same way. Just as ‘How’ is different from ‘Why’, so are the answers. Also, if you want to know how to change something, you must know why it happened. Just understanding the mechanics is not enough. You need to know the reason.

The real answer to “Why” can only be given by the One who made it happen. Let me give you an example. If you invite me for dinner and make Hyderabadi Biryani, I will be totally delighted. Then imagine that overcome with happiness, I ask you, “Ya Habeebi, why did you do this?” Listen to my question: ‘Why did you do this?’ You answer, ‘Take a pot and wash it well. Then take good quality Basmati rice and wash it well. Then cut up the mutton because Biryani with any other meat is Bida’a. Wash the mutton well in lime juice and then with water.’ I say to you, ‘Hello! Excuse me. I asked you why you took all the trouble to make this delicious Biryani. You are telling me the recipe of Biryani. While that is good to know, it doesn't answer my question. Why did you do it?’ You respond, ‘That is what I am trying to tell you. Just listen.’ And this ridiculous conversation continues. Tell me, is my question, ‘WHY did you make Biryani for me?’, answered, if you learn HOW to make Biryani?

The source of confusion is modern education that is taught without considering the nature of the Creator and His Will in His creation. Since the Creator is not recognized, His Will is not recognized. This leads to gaps in knowledge which are attempted to be...

 As I mentioned in my last Khutba, ‘Living in the Revolution’, there are three things that we must change in our approach to life to leverage the benefits of technology and counter its ill effects. Change the way we connect with Allahﷻ and Rasoolullahﷺ, change the way we teach, and change the way we relate with one another. Each of these is important enough for us to reflect on, so here goes.

Let us reflect on how we relate with Allahﷻ and His Messengerﷺ today. For most of us, it is ceremonial, ritualistic, restricted to special occasions, like when we go to the masjid, when we pray and when we are in a religious gathering. We read the words of Allahﷻ ceremonially at the beginning of some of our meetings, which is not a Sunnah. We have Qur’an recitation competitions; we try to memorize the Qur’an and learn to recite it in a melodious way. We learn the rules of Tajweed and criticize others whose Tajweed we think is incorrect. We write the Qur’an in different styles of calligraphy and decorate it beautifully and make it a work of art. When our children are 4 years, 4 months, and 4 days old, we do a ceremony called ‘Bismillah’, in Hyderabad. In Bangalore they call it ‘Ameen'. When we enter a new house, we carry the Qur’an on our heads. When we get married the Qur’an is carried over the head of the bride like an umbrella, maybe to shield her from her husband. I can go on, but this will suffice to illustrate our relationship with the Kalaam of Allahﷻ which is the only means we have to get close to Allahﷻ. Heﷻ gave us the tools to vet this relationship and said:

إِنَّمَا ٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ ٱلَّذِينَ إِذَا ذُكِرَ ٱللَّهُ وَجِلَتْ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَإِذَا تُلِيَتْ عَلَيْهِمْ ءَايَـٰتُهُۥ زَادَتْهُمْ إِيمَـٰنًا وَعَلَىٰ رَبِّهِمْ يَتَوَكَّلُونَ

Anfaal 8: 2    The believers are only those who, when Allah is mentioned, their hearts tremble (with the Awe and Majesty of Allahﷻ) and when His Ayaat (Quran) are recited unto them, they (the Ayaat) increase their Faith; and they put their trust in their Rabb (Alone);

I remind myself and you to ask what the purpose of the revelation of the Qur’an is. Is it to get stuck in how to pronounce it, to sing it (no matter that we call it recitation), to write it in beautiful fonts, to translate it into many languages, to create all sorts of ceremonial uses for it most or none of which Rasoolullahﷺ ever did, and of course to argue about it? Or is it one simple purpose; to understand it and live by it. To practice it in our lives. Let us ask what Allahﷻ will question us about; Tajweed (pronunciation), Kitaabat (writing, calligraphy), Rusoomaat (traditions) or A’amaal bil Qur’an (actions by the Qur’an). I remind you that the Kalaam of Allahﷻ is the closest that we can get to Allahﷻ in this life. Let us use it to get close to Him. The way to do that is to forget everyone else and focus on ourselves. To ask what the Qur’an is doing for us and to us when we recite it or listen to it. Forget the reciter. Focus on yourself and ask, “What happened to me when I heard/read that Ayah?” What do you say about a farmer who spends his time examining the fields and crops of his neighbors, criticizing them instead of tilling his field, treating the soil, planting his seeds, watering them, protecting them from pests, disease, and predators? Who will starve in the winter? Forget everyone. Focus on yourself. Not even our children. But ourselves. Only a lighted lamp can light others. If the lamp wants to light others, what advice will you give it? Light up yourself. Where is your flame? Without your flame you will never light anyone else’s lamp. So, let us do a little self-test. Focus on your heart and see what happens to it as I recite some Qur’an for you. It is the Kalaam of Allahﷻ. See what it does to you.

I am deliberately not translating these Ayaat firstly because I know...

We live in a world where we seem to be surrounded by bad news. That leads to us feeling stressed, depressed, threatened, and hopeless about the future. Many people seem to feel that we are living at the end of times, and in a world and society that is terrible to live in. If you feel this way, believe me, you are not alone. However, the problem with this feeling is that firstly it is not true. Secondly, if you feel this way, then it debilitates you and takes away your initiative to do anything. It drains your energy, sabotages your ambition, and increases your anxiety to potentially dangerous levels. Allah told us to be grateful and warned those who are not, to beware of His punishment. Gratitude is energizing, joyful, encouraging, and very powerful. Ingratitude is the opposite on all these counts. The question is, what should we be grateful for? Let me help you with facts.

When I was growing up from 1950’s to 1980’s,  we didn’t have a refrigerator, gas, or electric stove. Food was cooked on firewood or coal in a smoky kitchen or outdoors. We routinely had no electricity for many hours a day and so no lights or fans. We had no central heating or air conditioning, one car. Nobody had ‘cars’, even one was a rarity. No TV. What was on your lap was not a computer. Go wash out your brain. Phones were not smart, people were. We wrote letters by hand, licked the stamp, stuck it on the envelope, posted it and counted the days until the postman brought us a reply. We had malaria, cholera and typhoid, polio, and tuberculosis. Later we got chikungunya, and dengue. We always had the flu and when the doctors didn’t know what we had, they called it, ‘viral fever’. Today, malaria and poliomyelitis have been eradicated. The others remain. I can add to this list, and there are many here who will bear witness with me and thank Allah that we can talk about those days and smile.

Today with air-conditioning, antibiotics, painkillers, glasses and LASIX surgery for sight correction, cataract and bypass surgery, medical diagnostic equipment and advanced pathology, sneakers, thermal underwear, and jackets, eating out, non-seasonal fruits, treadmills, central heating, indoor flushing toilets, hot and cold water on tap, we, ordinary people, are better off and more comfortable than the wealthiest kings and queens of the past. Add to this that today our children routinely go to school, are literate and many go on to higher education. In Medieval Europe 99% of people couldn’t write their names and that included most kings and queens. We live in countries where the only thing limiting your material growth, learning and career advancement is yourself. Anyone willing to make the effort can get to the top. See who are the people heading major corporations whose turnover is more than the GDP of many countries. Not a single one is a hereditary monarch or noble. There was a time, not too long ago where if you were not born into the right family, your fate was sealed. Today, your present situation doesn’t decide if you will succeed or fail. It only defines where you need to start. If you have ambition, determination, seek feedback, are willing to learn, sleep less and work hard, nothing but death can stop you.

Despite all this, we enjoyed life enormously and have wonderful memories, not because we had stuff, but because we had attitude. An attitude of gratitude. That was inculcated into us from the earliest and that is what is most necessary in the way we raise children today. Teach them to value people and use stuff. Not the other way around. Thankfulness is the open secret of happiness. So, while we look at all that is ‘wrong’ with society, let’s reflect on what is right. There is far more that’s right than what’s wrong.

Let’s continue. Today our major preoccupation is Covid, right? Let us put that also in perspective.

I spoke to you about the Industrial Revolution and how it was far more than the invention of the assembly line. It profoundly changed our values, culture, and behavior. It changed how we saw ourselves, how we measured our effort, what we gave significance to, what we ignored, how we taught and learnt – including how we taught and learnt Islam – how we assessed and valued one another and the basis on which we measured success and failure. The Industrial Revolution changed the very basis of self-esteem.   

Today as I speak, we have entered another far more pervasive, persuasive, and even more transformational revolution, that of Artificial Intelligence in all its forms. We must remember that ever more subtly and for that reason powerfully, technology is not only about its mechanics but even more about the psychological, even ideological changes it creates. Atheism seems to move hand in hand with technological development. The reason is that it gives mankind the illusion of being all powerful and invincible. Of being immortal even in terms of the things we create, if not our own bodies. Even our bodies, we are moving to believing that with stem cell technology and gene manipulation we can grow what we like in our bodies to cure disease and prolong life, maybe even indefinitely. Granted, much of this is today still in the realm of science fiction, like aeroplanes once were. But like aeroplanes, very soon it will become mundane and normal before we know it.

Let me read the menu for you. How about memorizing the Qur’an and learning Arabic in 5 minutes, and that too if you have a bad internet connection? How about traveling to Russia – you are asking why you would do that – or China – same question – or name your country, which is rich in sights to see but where you don’t know the language? But here’s the twist – how would it be if you knew the language as soon as you land? To quote Prof. Michio Kaku, the author of Hyperspace, which you should read, “As soon as you blink, your contact lenses will connect you to the internet and if you are not feeling well, Robodoc will tell you what’s wrong, prescribe medicines which will be delivered to you. If you are in an accident in a foreign country, you will speak to Robolaw on your watch which knows all the laws of all countries and will advise you what to do.” He said much more but I will leave it to your imagination and assure you that what is ahead is more than what you can imagine. That is not difficult to understand because imagination is a function of experience. So, get prepared for a world which will turn our society on its head. Final point, I am not talking about the remote future. I am talking about things that already exist and others which will build on them. We already have Robodoc, Watson, GPS, Siri, self-driving cars and so on. Much more will happen and very fast.

In this scenario, it is ever more essential to get connected to Allah and to remember that we will meet Him. Reality doesn’t depend on belief for its existence. Wisdom is to prepare for that reality, the meeting with Allah.

كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَآئِقَةُ ٱلْمَوْتِ وَإِنَّمَا تُوَفَّوْنَ أُجُورَكُمْ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ فَمَن زُحْزِحَ عَنِ ٱلنَّارِ وَأُدْخِلَ ٱلْجَنَّةَ فَقَدْ فَازَ وَمَا ٱلْحَيَوٰةُ ٱلدُّنْيَآ إِلَّا مَتَـٰعُ ٱلْغُرُورِ

A’al Imraan 3: 185        Everyone shall taste death. And only on the Day of Resurrection shall you be paid your wages in full. And whoever is removed away from the Fire and admitted to Jannah, (only) he is successful. The life of this world is only the enjoyment of deception (a deceiving thing).

In 1998 I watched a 3D movie in San Francisco. It was about sharks. As I sat in the theatre wearing my 3D glasses, enveloped in Surround Sound, I could see the shark coming at me.

What is the first thought that comes into your mind when you think of Rasoolullahﷺ? For me it is someone to run to if I need anything. Someone who will intercede for me when I meet Allahﷻ. Someone who I love more than I can say and who I yearn to meet. May Allahﷻ grant that to us all, that we meet him at his Hauz and receive the water of Al-Kauthar from his blessed hand. May Allahﷻ grant that before that day, we see him in our dream and give him our salaam and he responds with his dua. My brothers and sisters, Allahﷻ gave us many blessings. Everything we have is a blessing of Allahﷻ, from our lives to our health, our families, wealth, above all Islam. But there is only one out of all His blessings that Allahﷻ emphasized and especially mentioned as His Neyma – His Blessing and that is Rasoolullahﷺ. Let us reflect on that.

لَقَدْ مَنَّ ٱللَّهُ عَلَى ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ إِذْ بَعَثَ فِيهِمْ رَسُولًا مِّنْ أَنفُسِهِمْ يَتْلُوا۟ عَلَيْهِمْ ءَايَـٰتِهِۦ وَيُزَكِّيهِمْ وَيُعَلِّمُهُمُ ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ وَٱلْحِكْمَةَ وَإِن كَانُوا۟ مِن قَبْلُ لَفِى ضَلَـٰلٍ مُّبِينٍ

A’al Imraan 3: 164   Indeed Allah conferred a great blessing on the Believers when He sent among them a Messenger (Muhammadﷺ) from among themselves, reciting unto them His Ayaat (Qur’an), and purifying them (Tazkiyya wa Tarbiyya), and instructing them (in) the Book (Qur’an) and Al-Hikmah [wisdom of his Sunnah] while before that they had been in manifest error.

If we think about the life of the people in Makkah, especially the Quraysh, they were highly successful businesspeople. They had wealth, they self-governed, they were not subservient to either of the two empires in their part of the world, they had every luxury and pleasure that money could buy. So why did they need Islam? I am asking this because this is a relevant question for us to ask ourselves today. Why do I need Islam?

I say to you, that angle influences the view. What you see depends on the angle you look at it from. Our job is to please Allahﷻ‎ but we have been taught that it is to accumulate wealth. Our role models, almost exclusively, are those who accumulate wealth. But if you ask, ‘But did he please Allahﷻ‎?’, what's the answer. So, what will happen to him if he reaches the Aakhira without having pleased Allahﷻ‎? Or worse still, having angered Allahﷻ and having accepted a declaration of war from Himﷻ. This was the case of the Quraysh and the choice they faced. Some chose to reject Allahﷻ and His Messengerﷺ and others chose to reject ways that run contrary to the Will of Allahﷻ and the Sunnah of His Messengerﷺ. Allahﷻ declared about the Sahaba which tells us about their Aakhira and that of their followers:

وَٱلسَّـٰبِقُونَ ٱلْأَوَّلُونَ مِنَ ٱلْمُهَـٰجِرِينَ وَٱلْأَنصَارِ وَٱلَّذِينَ ٱتَّبَعُوهُم بِإِحْسَـٰنٍ رَّضِىَ ٱللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ وَرَضُوا۟ عَنْهُ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُمْ جَنَّـٰتٍ تَجْرِى تَحْتَهَا ٱلْأَنْهَـٰرُ خَـٰلِدِينَ فِيهَآ أَبَدًا ذَٰلِكَ ٱلْفَوْزُ ٱلْعَظِيمُ

Tawba 9: 100       And the first to embrace Islam of the Muhajirun (migrants) and the Ansar (helpers) and those who followed them exactly (in Faith). Allah is well-pleased with them as they are well-pleased with Him. He has prepared for them Gardens under which rivers flow, to dwell therein forever. That is supreme success.

But let’s look at their Dunya? Did that suffer? Did they lose their wealth, influence, and power? Or did they, in one generation, change from being at best, a village of prosperous businessmen, to becoming the dominant global power having defeated both the Roman and Persian Empires. History is witness. What changed in their lives? The angle changed and so the view changed. That is why in this month of Rabi-ul Awwal, I present to you Muhammadur Rasoolullahﷺ, not only as the model we must follow if we want...

Allah told us why He created us and said:

وَمَا خَلَقْتُ ٱلْجِنَّ وَٱلْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ

Zariyaat 51: 56   And I (Allah) created not the jinns and humans except they should worship Me (Alone).

In order that we can live our lives in a state of worshipping Allah, He sent Islam and told us to follow it completely in all aspects of our lives. He said:

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱدْخُلُوا۟ فِى ٱلسِّلْمِ كَآفَّةً وَلَا تَتَّبِعُوا۟ خُطُوَٰتِ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنِ إِنَّهُۥ لَكُمْ عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ

Baqara 2: 208      O you who believe! Enter perfectly into Islam (in all aspects of life) and follow not the footsteps of Shaytaan. Verily! He is to you a plain enemy.

My brothers and sisters, we seem to live in a time where we have made the Deen subservient to ourselves. We seem to believe that simply doing personal acts of worship and that also when it is convenient to do so, is sufficient for us. Why then did Allah order the Believers to enter Islam completely and perfectly? After all they are Believers because they entered Islam. Then what does it mean to enter Islam completely and perfectly?

Let us remember that Islam is a practice. It is a complete way of life that touches every aspect of our lives. It is something that we can take the help of and rely on for every decision that we need to make, be it domestic, public, administrative, business or anything else. Islam shows us the way. I remind myself and you that the purpose of life is to worship Allah as it is His right to be worshipped in the way taught to us by His Messenger Muhammad. That is the essence of the Kalima Tayyiba – La ilaha illAllahu Muhammadur Rasoolullahi. When we bear witness that only Allah is worthy of worship, we worship Him alone. And when we bear witness that Muhammad is His Messenger, the last and final of all Messengers, we prove that by worshipping Allah in the way that Muhammad taught us to worship Him. That is why Salah is so critically important, because it is the physical manifestation of the Kalima Tayyiba; the demonstration of Tawheed. This principle of worshipping Allah in the way taught by His Messenger is extended in Islam to every aspect of life. To obey Allah the way Rasoolullah did. That is the essence of entering Islam completely.

To understand what went wrong, first a bit of history. The Industrial Revolution (1760-1840) was more than moving from handmade to machine-made. It changed three critical things: time of day, family dynamics, and method and content of education. These changes are almost never mentioned but they are far more important than the invention of the assembly line and literally changed our society in ways that one can safely say are irreversible. What are these changes?

Prior to 1760 society was mostly agrarian. If you want to see what that was like, I strongly advice a visit to the Amish in Pennsylvania or elsewhere. They are people who have decided not to change. Whether that is for the good or not is for you to decide and I am not going to describe it in detail because for a proper understanding it is essential to visit an Amish settlement. They welcome visitors and tourism is a source of income for them, so please go and visit them. I can assure you that it will be interesting.

The Industrial Revolution changed the time of day from sunrise to sunset, to shift start and knock off in the factory. Your day could begin at 2.00 AM and end at 2.00 PM. And your night was from 2.00 PM onwards or whatever the shift time was. At least one parent never saw their kids awake. This is also how the latchkey kid was born. A kid with the doorlatch key on a tape round his neck,

We continue from where we ended last Friday about the things to keep in mind as you negotiate college life. I dealt with four things last week; Factor Allahﷻ into the equation, always be thankful, forgive others, and seek forgiveness. Today let us look at six more to complete the ten. 5.  Never compromise your legacy. Never lose… Continue reading Commencement advice to students – Part 2 The post Commencement advice to students – Part 2 appeared first on Mahmood Habib Masjid and Islamic Centre - We came to give, not to take..