Abdur Rahman ibn Yusuf Mangera – 1 2 The Intellect A Gift
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Bismillah al Rahman al Rahim Al hamdu Lillahi Rabbil Alameen wa
Salatu was Salam ala so you didn't more serene. While early he was
satrapy he he married and buried. Imam Al Hadith al Maha CV says in
his Salat and Mr. Shivan
wylam An Akula Alkalyn lyase Hibu Salah to a Shia for Hua Kulu
Aculon. MK, Ron,
we have one of the greatest gifts of Allah subhanho wa taala. To us.
We have many, many gifts, which one do we say is the greatest
gift? That's a very difficult thing to say. But I'm sure
everybody would agree that one of the greatest gifts that we have is
our intellect.
Now, how do you even consider that a gift sometimes it's difficult to
understand that to be a gift because it's the it's within our
very makeup. It's basically what makes us who we are human beings,
we have an akal we have a rule, we have a body. Without intelligence
without intelligence, we wouldn't really be human beings as we know
human beings.
Without an intellect you you could be controlled puppeted but you
wouldn't be able to make your own decision. And the whole fact that
there is a paradise and a hill
means this willpower means this free will and free will can only
be exercised, if you have intelligence, which gives you the
ability to put various different things together and reach certain
conclusions. So we have an Oracle, we have an intelligence, the
primary reason for our intelligence is to understand the
purpose of this world.
And then to understand that there are certain realms which
the realm of the Divine, the realm of Allah subhanaw taala, where our
actual our intelligence doesn't necessarily work, but our actual
and intelligence is supposed to allow us to reach to that
understanding.
So he says here, he says here that know that every intellect which is
not accompanied by three things, three characteristics
is
a deceiving intellect. So a person may think that they are using
their intellect, but it's actually full of deception.
Deception is when you think you're doing something or you're getting
something but you're actually not getting that what what you think
is valuable. Deception is generally when you think you're
gonna get something which is supposed to be valuable, but
you're actually not going to get it it's something else that's been
given to you it's not as valuable as you would have thought it was.
So essentially any intelligence when we exercise our intelligence,
leading to certain conclusion if it's not accompanied by three
things, then it's considered a clue. Our colon macaroon magecart
from Makkah, which basically means deception
so the way that's described is basically any intellect which will
adorn for a for the person using it evil as good basically, clothe
evil in good and make make it seem like what you're doing is good,
but actually, internally in effect, consequentially, it's
going to be evil.
Later on.
What are these three things
Number one, he says his ethos, ethos, proto it LOL, Marcia.
So, when we use our intellect, if it's not going to help us to give
preference to obedience over disobedience, then that's one. And
it's justifying for us. It's embellishing for us the wrong over
the right, then
we have to understand that it's a problem. But then the conundrum
here is that how do you know what you're thinking is wrong?
There has to be a scale
to which you have to measure that because obviously the person has
Allah says in the Quran that those for whom shaytaan has the yen
Allah home, right has adorned for them the actions of this world,
they they're going to think they're doing good. They're gonna
swear by them, they're going to be presented sizing, they're going to
be encouraging others to do the same thing.
So I guess this is a way that if we don't under if the person
doesn't understand themselves, while others can actually maybe
make that judgment about such a person. They seem to be very
intellectual, but his intellect is not giving a thorough thought
Island. Moxie is not giving him preference of obedience or
disobedience. In fact, it's the other way around. And I think this
is actually a very important criteria today.
Because we have a lot of this
both in general society within the Muslim community as well.
We're having ideas that were never floated before.
And before, if any of those ideas would have been mentioned, they
would have been considered completely radical. And they would
have been,
essentially completely abandoned. But today, they actually find,
they actually, they actually find following.
And some kind of appreciation, at least in certain quarters. Number
two is what he thought will earn myalgia, while also giving
preference to knowledge over ignorance.
So that, essentially, the idea is that the intellect needs to that's
what it needs to be accompanied by that we're giving preference to
knowledge over ignorance, not coating ignorance into something
that's actually valuable,
but rather based on solid knowledge. So essentially going
off on just shallow knowledge, superficial knowledge.
So there's a lot of people that are very intellectual, but they
have no substance behind what they say, they're able to twist and
turn something and clothe it and make it look nice and embellish
it. But they've actually no solid knowledge. And what knowledge is,
is talking about, obviously, knowledge here that's discussed is
the sacred knowledge that is truly what is considered to be the
correct understanding, according to Allah subhanaw taala.
So somebody's as intelligent as they want to be. I mean, there's a
lot of New Kids on the Block like that. That's what we call a new
New Kids on the Block, they've kind of jumped on the stage, they
generally write very well or speak very well, at least one of those
two, or maybe both. And they haven't proven anything yet. They
haven't established they haven't taught anybody. They haven't
produced any good students. They've not essentially nurtured
anybody yet. They've not produced them. They've not produced a model
of Musk's system that works yet. They're criticizing masjids.
They're criticizing institutes or madrasahs, whereas they have not
yet been able to demonstrate a good model for that.
But their whole, their whole campaign is based on criticism.
So the idea is, I mean, there's criticism is very easy. And it
sounds very eloquent. So it actually seems like it's actually
very substantial. And while I mean, every criticism may have
some truth to it, we don't deny that you can't deny all criticism.
I mean, there's always, even when somebody criticizes, there must be
some element of truth in Africa, of course, you have to understand
that whenever somebody criticize somebody, there's generally always
going to be a level of exaggeration in there. So if you
minus that exaggeration of 30% 50%, maybe even seven years,
then okay, even maybe 90% has to be 10% of truth, right? Because
generally, when somebody wants to criticize somebody, hardly anybody
ever makes up something just totally blasphemous, is totally
fabricated. A lot of the time it's based on something or other that
they actually find as ammunition, then they just, they, they put a
lot of bloatware on it, and then they, they basically add a lot of
stuff on there. So that's generally what it is, we can
always learn from criticism. Right, we can always learn from
criticism, of course, it's not nice to be criticized. But
constructive criticism is actually good. So that's the second thing.
And the second one. The third one is what he thought of Dini, Allah
dunya.
This is essentially giving preference to the religion over
the dunya
Subhanallah that one is a lot more commonly understood, right?
Because there is so much intellect today being used even by the
Muslims, for the sake of refinement of the dunya.
Right, and, I mean, we may say, there's nothing wrong about that,
because it's to make lives better for people. So we could say that
we're actually living at a time where unprecedented, unprecedented
progress and advancement, you know, of
whether that be the technology or the various different, you know,
advancements in medicine and
everything, you know, everything related to that. So there's
nothing wrong with that. He's saying there's nothing wrong with
using your ankle for the dunya. But it's, there's something wrong
in preferring the dunya over the Akira.
And again, one of the reasons there is that unfortunately, a lot
of the Muslim countries that even have money, they seem to have
their focus. Unfortunately, some of them their focus is on making
their country more dunya.
Right, rather than actually producing something to contribute
elsewhere.
I was actually quite surprised I went to Malaysia, they've actually
got two cars that are built in Malaysia and designed and built or
at least they're built in Malaysia the proton and there's another one
which I couldn't even remember the name, but they're everywhere in
Malaysia and they actually export different countries. One is the
proton. You see see a few in England, I don't know if you still
see him. Right. So I was quite surprised. I didn't realize that
it was actually a Muslim country. You know, something to be proud
of. That I've actually got a call so we do. We actually do feel
proud of this.
But mashallah, in Malaysia they also
Trying I mean, there's also the people who are trying to focus on
their Deen as well. Right? No place is perfect. But and yet
there's other places where when you go there, it's more dunya than
the UK. It's more dunya than America. In those places. It's
just dunya dunya dunya all around you. Like they have songs down in
the Texas at dunya dunya dunya that's what the joke about
Subhanallah he's had to tell him please put this off, man. Are you
seeing enough dunya around us in Syria? That was the case it was
this just this famous song is dunya dunya dunya. Like, put this
off?
So again, he's saying there's no I mean, in this particular one, I
mean, you can use your uncle for the dunya I mean, like, I think
you'll Sheikh Abdullah Allah will 100 Rahim Allah Allah He said that
if it wasn't for, you know, certain people focused on the
dunya, etc, this dunya would not work because if everybody was
going to use the intelligence for the hereafter, then we wouldn't
have any development in this world.
But as I said that most of the Muslim countries, a lot of them
are seem to be on the defensive. So a lot of the money that they're
putting in, is for, it's not for the right reason.
Right, the thinker's? I mean, in western universities you have you
have research positions, but they pay you a full time job salary to
go and write a book to research and write a book writer, write a
paper, write a few papers or write a book on something.
We How would you consider convince a Muslim community to do that?
Right.
So what cooler elements so then basically, the conclusion is that
use your intellect, but always give preference to obedience or
disobedience or don't use your intellect to make up new ways of
disobedience, or find successful ways of doing disobedience. Right?
Because a lot of people we do things wrong. And we think we've
been very successful because we've avoided detection. Nobody's found
out. I kept it away from the wife, for example, right? Or from the
husband or from the community, whatever, may Allah protect us. So
that's basically using the intellect for disobedience.
He thought, Well, Amy, Allah Jen.
Right. The intellect is of no use if if if it's based on ignorance,
it's going to be shallow anyway. It needs to be based on knowledge,
then it's the tool that will help you develop that knowledge into
something that's more useful. And thirdly, etha Dini added dunya
which is
to give preference to the deen over the dunya.
To understand the position of both of them with the intellect that
Allah subhanaw taala has given us May Allah guide our intellect and
allow these three companions, the right companions to be along them
the obedience, preference of obedience, preference of
knowledge, and preference of the deed. Then he says, What could Lor
l mean?
Liars Habu Thalassa to a Shia?
Right? What cooler ailment liars, Habu Falletta to a Shia for Hua
mazindol Phil Hijjah every knowledge. So specifically in our
knowledge, every knowledge that we acquire,
if it is not accompanied by the following three things, then that
is just going to be an increase in evidence. Basically, it's going to
be an increase in the evidence against us it's not going to be
for us it's going to be used against us because knowledge is
supposed to be a good thing. It's supposed to be in our favor.
Good careful ever been caught a rather
careful other be caught a robber,
basically to deter the harm to to prevent the harm in whatever shape
and form that is to to prevent the harm,
while also severing decreasing the desire for the inappropriate.
So, on the one hand, we're trying to remove and deter anything which
is harmful through our knowledge. So obviously, avoiding harmful
knowledge is one thing, but then using our knowledge to educate
people so they can understand what's wrong. That's how you deter
harm. You educate people and say, Look, this is harmful for you.
Right? Whether that be pyramid schemes, right? Whether that be
just other deviances whether that be whatever it may be something
misleading people. So educating people to help educate people,
even if you're not a scholar to find to listen to something good
and convey that to somebody else. This does not mean you just
basically spam people with a lot of forwards that you get of nice
Hadith apparently are nice quotes. That's not what it means because
that could be harmful to people. Because what you're doing is
you're over you're flooding them. You're overwhelming them so they
dismiss everything that they see that they don't bother
looking. So if you're getting a message or several messages from
this, if I'm sending you several messages a day, you're probably
not going to read everything.
But if I send you maybe one message a week, it's like, oh,
mashallah, this guy is very considerate in what they send.
Thank you, it really makes a lot of sense. Let me read his messages
as effective, though, isn't it?
So there's a way to do that. Or there's a way to spread your
knowledge as a way to avoid other if you're going to be constantly
condemning somebody in a very strict and harsh way. That's not
going to work either. Because then people like balance you see,
generally people, most people are predisposed to balance majority of
people, you get the fringe, which is predisposed to
extreme extremism, right, in whatever way, shape or form, you
get those kinds of people among everybody. So they're looking for
extremist. And if you give something in a balance they don't
like what you say is they know you're not being strict enough.
But then a majority of people don't like extremist ways of
saying and when I mean, extremists, I don't mean in the
media meaning of extremists. I don't mean it in that sense. I
mean, off balance, where it just sounds a bit too harsh, and too,
it's not palatable. Sometimes you need to use a bit of harshness, or
perceived hardness or assumed hardness in the strictness in the
way you say things. But if somebody is constantly that's what
he says always just condemning people all the time
then eventually they become
so for example, if you're constantly calling Muslims you're
that they are shaytaan and basically they are hooked and they
shaytaan radio Islam becomes radio shaytaan and mana Ibrahim bomb
becomes Reverend Ibrahim bomb because he did something that was
disliked by this individual. And people aren't going to take you
seriously anymore.
That's just that's very extreme. That's very extreme.
So careful other because erotica and also to basically at the same
time by
trying to sever people's desire for the wrong as well.
Number two, so this is all based on knowledge, like how is
knowledge beneficial? Right, so this was the first part part
number two, what else our knowledge needs to accompany is
what would you do? Amelie Bill Hashem
the knowledge that we have,
is supposed to then beckon us to act upon it.
Because that's the lot of people say that look, if you can't act on
knowledge, why learn more.
But the benefit is that the more you learn, the more chance there
is that something is going to inspire you. Because the knowledge
we're talking about knowledge of Quran and Sunnah something is
going to inspire you if it didn't inspire you the first time when
you heard it again, when you heard it differently, it's going to
inspire you. So it is always beneficial of learning more,
nobody you should never listen to this deception of the shaytaan
that you shouldn't be listening to more because you don't you haven't
even acted on that first lecture you heard right, this is a general
deception, the more we listen inshallah the hopefully it is
going to soften our hearts. Not everybody listens to good stuff.
Right. So let's let them carry on. And the more because generally
when it comes it beckons to amble it beckons to practice. But now
the practice, the optimal sense is that the practice needs to be
based on fear. So number one, you have to have knowledge with
knowledge, you have to have animal and the animal has to be with
fear, then it makes the perfect thing. So knowledge. We have
basically practice based on knowledge, but with fear with
Reverend fear of Allah subhanho wa taala.
And number three, he says we're both a little insert in Safi with
the birth Willie, we're Rama.
When you do mete out any justice, when you do try to act in a just
way and exercise justice, it needs to be done with mercy and
compassion.
It doesn't need to be done in this very draconian way where and
again, that that that comes from a sense of extremism, doesn't it?
That comes from a sense of imbalance that everything that I
do must just be
you know, they just enjoy doing it in the most extreme sense, and
some people are just too soft about it. It's a balance that we
need to achieve. And the way to achieve all this balance is by
observing others who have that experience. That's generally the
way humans learn.
The way humans learn is obviously by reading through observation or
reading the Syrah of others. That's why the greatest benefits
is the seerah of the of the Olia, the Sahaba, and then those who
follow them, because in the various different stories, they
will be a story in there. There will be an incident in there,
there'll be an account in there, which we can relate to in our
situation that will help us and of course, learning from our own
mistakes. The first time we went and tried to help
Somebody correct somebody.
And it just went completely wrong. We have to come back and not blame
them, we have to come and blame ourselves. I think that's the
Sunnah of the Prophet sallallahu.
And one of the best examples of that is just the recap of the
story of life, that when the Prophet saw some live stuff, I
mean, come on, who could blame the Prophet sallallahu Sallam for not
having tried? Like, who could blame him for that? Right? He
tried for four. He he tried his best. But none of those three
leaders gave him any kind of support. In fact, you had, then
these little kids go,
basically attack him, and now he's covered in blood. I mean, what
greater proof do you want than that, that I've done my job? But
then he says, Yeah, Allah, He says, this is basically my
weakness. This is my inability to let the heel at the this is
basically
the fact that this is the paucity of my strategy. I didn't have the
right strategy. So
he's blaming himself, and then you can see that he's completely
sincere, because we know that, but what can tell is that in this dua,
where he's saying to Allah subhanaw, taala, that in limited
conserve heat on Allah year for that,
but if you are, you know, I've been basically humiliated and
degraded and and trodden on all the rest of it. But it doesn't
matter. As long as you're not unhappy with me.
It does not matter unless you're unless unless you're unhappy with
me. Right? So if you're not happy with me, then it doesn't matter.
It just shows you that he was purely done for the sake of Allah
subhanaw taala. And now, what makes it even more sincere is the
fact
it's a really big lesson, that door is a real big lesson. I mean,
it's one of the most emotional doors there is that one. And
there's one more that that meets the emotional. So another thing is
that remember, Gibreel is not had come to him that or the angel had
come to him saying that I will just finish these people off by
knocking these mountains together, and everybody in the valley would
die. So he was in a position of power. And he's still saying this,
that shows proper self reflection,
being in a position of power that you could have just done it
because he would have been a position of anger. Look, I did my
best man, these guys were strong with them. And then I get blooded,
okay, now I can I can just wipe all of these people off. That's
what you would expect as a reaction. But he doesn't do that.
How can we act in extreme ways, an extreme form of dour doesn't work.
And too much leniency doesn't work either there needs to be a
balance. But sometimes that extremism does that that harshness
or strictness does work sometimes has to be used sparingly, and
likewise the other one needs to be used as well. So there you go.
Got full other we've got the rubber which will do the hammer
because you're both really savvy with the verbal Rama. So
basically, the conclusion is that our intellect, it should always be
accompanied by giving preference to obedience over disobedience,
preference to knowledge over ignorance. That means go and
inquire, go and find out what does the Sharia say about this? Right?
There's something going around gone contact is gonna say, can you
tell me about this, and of course, giving preference to the dean over
the dunya. And knowledge, and this is on every level is not just just
for scholars, you have to remember this for every one of us,
especially those of us who want to learn more, who want to be closer
to Allah. So every knowledge has to be
accompanied by the following three things otherwise, that knowledge
is going to act against us on the Day of Judgment. One is that it
should be used to remove harm to repel harm, right and number two,
is to
number two, it should be accompanied by good deeds, that
come with fear of Allah subhanaw taala. And when a person through
their knowledge does use it to
what do you call it contribute to fairness in the world, right to
try to bring about some goodness, whether that be at work, whether
that be in their families, whether it be in their home or in their
extended family, then it needs to be done with who right which means
to spend to better, better means to spend with that means an
effort, right? mutual effort needs to be placed in there, and there
needs to be compassion and mercy. He says, while I'm under whom
matters Don't be seen at in Calarco.
Right after the intent that using your intellect using the intellect
you have, he says that no, that nobody has been given any
adornment as good as intellect
because it helps you earn your money. It helps you develop
friendships.
It helps you
get your way around in the world because without that were
dependent on others
so that is one of the greatest things that Allah subhanaw taala
has has given us
that's why the great Derby alright ignorance is available the younger
one is a brother of as a hobby he is known as a hobby. Right? This
is actually the Allah one has nephew. So I'm do liveness debate
as a hobby, but his brother always a debate.
So he says that after Luma tea and a bird of dunya, Rocco.
I mean, it's something that he's confessing to saying that the most
superior thing that the seven that slaves of Allah have been given in
the dunya is the intellect. Have you ever thought about our
intellect like that?
Right? And we ever thought about our intellect like that it's a
gift of Allah. Right? Well, after tomorrow, we just given a
sacredness right now because we know intellect like you're very
intelligent. He's very intelligent. We talked about that.
But then now to give it a spiritual realm, right to say it's
a God given idea like you know, so suddenly we can a sacred idea that
helps us to focus on in the right way then Right.
There's a concept of
I don't want to get into Malaysia, this in the International Islamic
University in Malaysia, the concept of the Islamization of
everything right so this is almost like they say this is Islam or
sizing the concept of the upper
but we're not doing that alcohol is an Islamic idea anyway, they
just were just raising awareness that Look man, this is a sacred ID
you got the intellect is something that you need to be, you need to
value. And then he said well, after Luma autofill, Akira did one
Allah He has the origin.
The greatest thing you will be given in the hereafter will be the
satisfaction of Allah. satisfaction of Allah may Allah
allow us to use our intellect for the satisfaction of Allah subhanaw
taala in the hereafter to use our intellect in the right way. I
think he's saying that inshallah you will get the satisfaction of
Elijah hereafter. And then he says, not him back to Mojave. He
says, Well, I live with Tobin, he melamine Alerion is all related to
what we've just been saying. Nobody's ever worn a garment
superior to knowledge.
Now, you know that, you know, when people come up with a lot of
knowledge, people generally respect them for that. So focus
less than what's interesting is that if you read business books,
so the reason why, what's the guy's name with eight
jobs, the reason why he just wore those very casual, one line
clothing, one color clothing, do you know one of the reasons for
that? So you don't have to bother about clothing, some mundane
aspects of life. So you don't have to worry about that. Just focus on
using your intellect for what you're supposed to. He obviously
used it for the dunya. Right? But what I'm saying is that people who
are very smart in this world, they're less focused on everything
else, because that's just an obstacle. It's too much to worry
about. Let's put all of our deliberation all of our acumen
into progress into advancing something. And clothing that's
just for myself. So that's Subhanallah is saying, nobody's
worn any garments superior it doesn't mean that you'd be scruffy
right? Because tidiness is part of Islam. Navara is part of Islam.
Right? Decency and moderation and Jamal is part of Islam. And what
is Jamal says Allah is German. And Allah is German and he loves
German. Allah is beautiful, and he loves beauty. What is beauty?
Right, beauty is proportion. Beauty is moderation. Beauty is
symmetry. So that's all part of the normal, you know, tightness of
Islam is beauty.
And then he says, The End The Humar already for Allah Illa
Bulacan. The reason why our code is so important that he says, he
says the two things he says basically, that nobody's been
adorned by anything more than the intellect. And nobody's want
clothing that are more beautiful than knowledge. And he says why he
gives the reason he says because
Allah cannot be recognized except with the intellect. That's why
some highlights that tool is the tool Allah has given us to be able
to recognize him with that. That's what makes it makes it so great.
Wonder who to elaborate.
And
why is knowledge the greatest garment you can wear is because
there's no way you can be obedient to Allah without knowledge. So
it's knowledge that allows you to be obedient to him, and his uncle
and intellect that allows you to recognize him. So now in sha Allah
from now on, let us understand our intellect to be a great gift of
Allah and to be used in the right way. Not just an arbitrary
part of us, but really secret idea within us, and may Allah subhanaw
taala allow us to record to value the knowledge as well and grant us
beneficial knowledge