Abdur Rahman ibn Yusuf Mangera – Qur’anic Reflections How to Acquire Intense Love for Allah Part 1
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Now there's a really really important question that raises
here right? A very important question that look human beings
have an actual have an intelligence at the end of the
day. If it was that it's these idols that people are worshipping
right now, okay? If they if they're taking the lead as, as as
something, then the leaders that can be understood that they're
human beings and so on so they might see a bit more efficacy or a
bit more effect and a bit more ability coming from human beings
because they are living walking and kicking people. However, when
you're talking about idols, are you serious? I mean, were these
people just so dull? Were they just so dumb? Were they just so
silly about this that even though they had an intellect, I mean,
these people were very intelligent people. These weren't people have
totally, you know, degenerated intellect. I mean, they, they knew
what to do in many other parts, many other aspects of life. So how
is it possible that they could love these people like they love
Allah? Especially when they believed in Allah anyway? Right.
So how is it possible that they would have loved their idols just
like they love Allah? How is it possible that we can love money
even though we know that money can only take us so far? How can it be
that we can love position? Even though we know it can only take us
so far and eventually it's going to come because everybody knows a
mortality? Everybody knows that humans will eventually die.
Smilla Rahmanir Rahim Salam Alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh
are all the winner Humana Shavon Raji maybe Smilla Rahmanir Rahim,
Armenian nurse he may talk to me Do we need
daddy your hipbone a hunger have been
one Latina man or a shed do hope burnin
whether we are on lady you know whatever who is your own either
but and then with any hegemony.
What en la Shaadi do lie the
dear listeners Dear Brothers dear friends dear sisters,
we are looking at verse 165, Psalter Bacara. It's a very, very
profound verse I've thought of this verse many, many times.
And it's very profound because it tells us something very, very
important regarding our success in this world and the Hereafter, and
it's about our Creator. So what Allah subhanho wa Taala says here
is that among people are those who
adopt and who take
other than Allah subhanho wa Taala as equals to him, as parallel to
him as associates with him, they can be multiple translations here.
They take other people besides a lot of other things besides Allah
objects and so on. Like Allah subhanaw taala how they should be
with Allah, that's how they treat these people, your head bone or
hunger Billa and they love them, the way they love Allah or the
they, I mean, literally what it means is, they love them like the
love of Allah. So if we keep it general like that, I'll be able to
explain to you what exactly it means that they love them like the
love of Allah. Then Allah subhanho wa Taala he singles out the videos
it says that those people who believe they are intense and
ardent, most ardent and intense in their love for Allah. That's how
believers should be there after that Allah subhanho wa Taala
discusses the punishment and ALLAH subhanaw taala being intense in
punishment. So we want to discuss this first part today insha Allah.
Firstly, the word here that Allah subhanaw taala uses for equals to
Allah is and dad, the plural of NID need done, it's an Arabic word
obviously, and multiple meanings of Nidan here as to what it refers
to the one of the opinions, which is probably the stronger opinion
saying that this is referring to their idols. So in the context of
where the Quran was revealed in Makkah, the people, this was their
problem, we have different problems, we have different idols.
So this is the idols that they had taken as their gods, and they
would make offerings to them, they would somehow have some kind of
trust in them and feel some kind of emotion towards them and
feeling a liking towards them and be attached to them. Today we've
replaced those idols with different idols, we have virtual
idols and multiple other types of idols, we've got many, many more
they probably had a 360 or whatever it was, right? And they
had their focus on them and they represented past people and, and
so on and so forth. So
according to one understanding of this, this is referring to the
idols that they used to take us there gods and what it means Gods
it means they're intermediaries to Allah Himself. So they believed in
Allah they believed in Allah himself, but they would believe
that these are kind of the more
eminent and more closer people that they can or closer objects
they can see. So they used to attach themselves to that. And
they used to intend from them harm and benefit. So they literally
used to think that there's harm and benefit coming from there. And
they used to go and make petitions, and please, and
give offerings, and then ask for things from these things. And they
used to even make vows on them, that if so, and so happens, I'll
go to lat and I'll go to Rosa and SOA and all of these others that
they had that I would go and visit them, and I would go and give an
offering to them. So that's that's what they would do.
The other opinion is that this isn't necessarily referring to
Gods anymore, this is actually referring to their leaders. And I
think this is very relevant, to be honest, that this is whenever you
take any of your leaders as gods themselves as those who give the
ultimate legislation as who tell you what's right and wrong. I
think that is very, very, I mean, above relevant today. I mean,
people made other items today, like money is a major idol, right?
Money is a major idol. And it dictates what we do and what we
don't do, and how much effort we put in and how we tire ourselves
and how much sacrifice we make and how less we worship in place of it
and how we miss prayers and so on. Right. But for other people who,
for example, are very politically motivated, or are really, really
intense in some kind of following of an individual or something like
that. So it's like that, that they will follow these people, they
will follow their style, they will follow whatever they say they take
their word to be the Holy Grail, they take their word as final.
Right, it's just complete blindness with regards to with
regards to that they don't see a more higher power than that. They
think that that is all that's the end all of everything. So that is
another opinion that
this you're referring to people who you follow, right? And you
take them and you make halal and you consider permissible what they
say it's permissible and bad and unlawful and evil, what they say
is bad and evil. Most people are like sheep, so they just follow
something or someone without any kind of critical assessment.
Now, there's a really, really important question that raises
here, right? A very important question that look human beings
have an Apple have an intelligence at the end of the day. If it was
that it's these idols that people are worshipping right now, okay,
if they if they're taking the leaders as as something then the
leaders that can be understood that they're human beings and so
on, so they might see a bit more efficacy, or a bit more effect and
a bit more ability coming from human beings because they are
living walking and kicking people. However, when you're talking about
idols, are you serious? I mean, were these people just so dull?
Were they just so dumb? Were they just so silly about this, that
even though they had an intellect, I mean, these people were
intelligent people. These weren't people have totally, you know,
degenerated intellect. I mean, they, they knew what to do in many
other parts, many other aspects of life. So how is it possible that
they could love these people like they love Allah? Especially when
they believed in Allah anyway? Right? So how is it possible that
they would have loved their idols just like they love Allah? How is
it possible that we can love money even though we know that money can
only take us so far? How can it be that we can love position, even
though we know it can only take us so far, and eventually it's going
to come? Because everybody knows a mortality? Everybody knows that
humans will eventually die.
So how is that possible?
So these people, they would know that these are idols, these are
stones. They're motionless. They can't really harm they can't, you
know, you can topple them over. In fact, some of them they would
bake, and then they would eat if they got hungry, because it was
made out of dough. These things can't really listen to they don't
even make a movement. They don't even respond. They can't
understand they can't think for themselves.
And they they believed at the end of the day, they did believe that
it was God and it was ALLAH SubhanA wa Tada who did things in
this world, they definitely believe that right? He was the
ultimate
will ultimate, the one to have the ultimate will and decision for
this world. They knew that so that's why Allah subhanho wa Taala
says in Surah blooper man verse 25, whether in the human heart of
a center where it will lay a golden Allah, that if you do ask
them who created the heavens and earth They will say, Allah subhana
wa Tada. So they did believe in a God.
So if they hold this belief, they held this belief, then how is it
possible that they could love these idols the way they love
Allah subhanaw taala so the other thing is that
Allah subhanaw taala makes it very clear that insert is Zuma verse
three
That man Agudo home Illa yo curry buena Illa Allah Islam for we only
worship them so that they can make bring us closer to Allah subhana
wa Tada. So they, they see them as intermediaries. They see them as
intermediaries. So how is it possible that they still believe
all of these things about that?
And at the end of the day, if that was the case, that they worship
them to get them close to Allah, that means that they were actually
doing all of this failed worship, right? They were doing all of
this.
For the pleasure of Allah. That's another question that arises,
then, that they must have done all of this for the pleasure of Allah.
So how can then if they if they if they're worshipping these idols,
how is it possible that they're worshipping them the same as
Allah? How is it that they can love these idols the same as they
love Allah, even though they know Allah is their ultimate pleasure?
You know, they're seeking Allah's ultimate pleasure. So how is it
possible that they're there you hit buena home girl Billa, that
they love these things as much as they love Allah subhanaw taala.
So
that just is not rational, it just doesn't make sense of how that can
be possible.
So that one of the possibilities
of one of the ways to reconcile that and to understand that is
that what they mean by they, they love them the way they love Allah
is meaning they love to obey them, and magnify them, and revere them
the way they do to Allah. So they clearly can't think that they're
the same as Allah and that they love. They love these things
exactly, for the same reason as they love Allah. But in some
aspects, they're doing exactly that. And equating both of them,
if not actually giving the ideas more of that, which is that they,
in terms of what they're offering, it seems like the entire focus of
devotion and a bar and worship is for them, meaning for these idols,
and not for Allah, most of their time is spent for that. So while
ideologically, rationally, they do believe that God is supreme, as
many, many Muslims do as well, right? However,
what the issue is, is that the amount of time that we spend the
amount of devotion we show the amount of sacrifice we make is for
everything else, but Allah subhanaw taala. That's why there's
a recent very wise man who's passed away. Now he said that
money is so attractive today as a god, that everybody's after it.
We're very lucky as Muslims, he says that
once a week, for those who pray once a week, at least the Friday
that they get reminded of God, that there is a God that exist and
you do worship Him. So we go to the masjid. And for those who pray
five times a day, well, they're lucky here. They're more
fortunate. So they remember five times a day that there is a God
that you worship. And that's obviously if we have some
concentration in our prayer. Otherwise, even in our prayer,
we're probably thinking about who owes us and how has that person
paid, and how we can make a bigger sale and how many orders have come
in today. And there's a good deal going here and so on Subhan, Allah
may Allah subhanaw taala accept us may Allah subhanaw taala accept
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