Ahmad Arshad – Discourse At Khanqah #18

Ahmad Arshad
AI: Summary ©
The speakers discuss the various types of or's a seeker might have, including a polar opposite of a gay fear and a desire to achieve small small steps to change behavior. They stress the importance of realistic and authentic expectations in achieving success, rejecting the duniya, and bringing change to people's lives. The hope of Islam is a real thing but requires small small steps to achieve success.
AI: Transcript ©
00:00:29 --> 00:00:31

So as we traverse and discuss

00:00:31 --> 00:00:32

a little bit of

00:00:33 --> 00:00:34

the the

00:00:36 --> 00:00:39

states and conditions that a seeker goes through.

00:00:39 --> 00:00:40

Different

00:00:41 --> 00:00:42

that a person might

00:00:43 --> 00:00:45

come across. There is one

00:00:46 --> 00:00:49

that usually stays with the person from the

00:00:49 --> 00:00:50

start to the end,

00:00:50 --> 00:00:53

and that is called the or.

00:00:54 --> 00:00:55

If you remember,

00:00:56 --> 00:00:59

we did discuss a little bit about fear

00:01:00 --> 00:01:01

of Allah

00:01:03 --> 00:01:06

So this could be considered as the the

00:01:06 --> 00:01:08

polar opposite of that gay fear.

00:01:09 --> 00:01:12

And some musha'id have written that

00:01:12 --> 00:01:14

when a person is young

00:01:15 --> 00:01:17

and when a person is healthy,

00:01:19 --> 00:01:20

they should have

00:01:21 --> 00:01:23

because it helps them stay away from a

00:01:23 --> 00:01:25

life of sin and disobedience.

00:01:26 --> 00:01:28

But as a person gets older,

00:01:29 --> 00:01:32

as a person gets maybe sicker or they

00:01:32 --> 00:01:34

get suffer from any ailment then

00:01:35 --> 00:01:36

this

00:01:36 --> 00:01:39

of raja or hope in Allah subhanahu wa

00:01:39 --> 00:01:39

ta'ala should prevail.

00:01:41 --> 00:01:43

This guy fit his energy because it is

00:01:43 --> 00:01:44

something that

00:01:45 --> 00:01:46

brings us joy,

00:01:47 --> 00:01:48

brings us pleasure, and

00:01:49 --> 00:01:50

it gives us

00:01:51 --> 00:01:52

towards Allah

00:01:54 --> 00:01:55

However,

00:01:55 --> 00:01:56

it is a thing that some

00:01:57 --> 00:02:01

had considered this to be an interference of

00:02:01 --> 00:02:01

sort.

00:02:02 --> 00:02:04

And the reason might be because

00:02:05 --> 00:02:05

at certain

00:02:08 --> 00:02:10

the tafees with Allah

00:02:11 --> 00:02:13

and what we call the razabir qazab is

00:02:13 --> 00:02:14

so solid for a person

00:02:16 --> 00:02:17

that they consider

00:02:19 --> 00:02:21

hoping for certain things to be

00:02:27 --> 00:02:28

hoping, you know, to to be a little

00:02:28 --> 00:02:29

bit of,

00:02:30 --> 00:02:31

complaining.

00:02:31 --> 00:02:32

Think of it as like a

00:02:33 --> 00:02:35

that they're complaining with Allah.

00:02:36 --> 00:02:36

However,

00:02:38 --> 00:02:40

for us, this is a a good kafir

00:02:40 --> 00:02:43

to have because if a person does not

00:02:43 --> 00:02:44

have hope,

00:02:45 --> 00:02:47

it is extremely easy to fall into despair,

00:02:47 --> 00:02:48

especially nowadays.

00:02:49 --> 00:02:51

It is very easy to become hopeless

00:02:52 --> 00:02:54

and fall in despair. And as we know

00:02:54 --> 00:02:55

that Allah mentioned

00:02:56 --> 00:02:56

in the Quran

00:03:03 --> 00:03:04

that They do not despair

00:03:06 --> 00:03:08

from the rahmet, from the mercy of Allah

00:03:09 --> 00:03:12

So, a nuance there could be where does

00:03:12 --> 00:03:15

the hope lie? Is the hope in us,

00:03:15 --> 00:03:15

in ourselves,

00:03:16 --> 00:03:18

or is the hope in Allah subhanahu wa

00:03:18 --> 00:03:19

ta'ala?

00:03:19 --> 00:03:20

Or is the hope

00:03:21 --> 00:03:23

with effort, or is the hope without effort?

00:03:23 --> 00:03:24

Right? So, I mean, those

00:03:25 --> 00:03:26

can result in

00:03:27 --> 00:03:29

very different outcomes. For example, if the hope

00:03:29 --> 00:03:31

is, yes, I can do this and I

00:03:31 --> 00:03:32

can do that,

00:03:33 --> 00:03:36

then maybe, you know, this person is readying

00:03:36 --> 00:03:38

himself or herself for

00:03:38 --> 00:03:40

tests and from Allah

00:03:41 --> 00:03:42

because,

00:03:44 --> 00:03:45

you know,

00:03:46 --> 00:03:46

this

00:03:47 --> 00:03:49

this hope should really be with Allah

00:03:51 --> 00:03:53

and his nusrah, his help,

00:03:53 --> 00:03:56

his and his tophi is what makes things

00:03:56 --> 00:03:56

happen.

00:03:57 --> 00:03:59

Now it does not mean and some people

00:04:00 --> 00:04:02

get confused by this. It does not mean

00:04:02 --> 00:04:02

that you

00:04:03 --> 00:04:04

don't put in the effort.

00:04:05 --> 00:04:07

Yes. That's just like Allah is raziq

00:04:09 --> 00:04:09

and

00:04:10 --> 00:04:12

there's no doubt about that.

00:04:14 --> 00:04:16

That, you know, your risk is,

00:04:17 --> 00:04:18

comes from the skies.

00:04:19 --> 00:04:21

There's absolutely no doubt. Now does it mean

00:04:21 --> 00:04:24

that you don't make any effort? Of course

00:04:24 --> 00:04:24

not.

00:04:25 --> 00:04:26

You make the effort, but

00:04:27 --> 00:04:29

the tawfiq to making the effort and the

00:04:29 --> 00:04:31

asr, the taseer in the effort is from

00:04:31 --> 00:04:33

Allah Ta'ala. Some people make a lot of

00:04:33 --> 00:04:34

effort and

00:04:34 --> 00:04:36

maybe they don't get anything, or they get

00:04:36 --> 00:04:37

something and it comes

00:04:38 --> 00:04:38

with without.

00:04:40 --> 00:04:42

Some people make very little effort,

00:04:43 --> 00:04:44

you know, subhanAllah.

00:04:44 --> 00:04:47

The asr is there, daseer is there,

00:04:47 --> 00:04:50

and it comes without without any kind of

00:04:50 --> 00:04:51

test associated.

00:04:53 --> 00:04:55

So our fear is that, you know, we

00:04:55 --> 00:04:57

put our trust and we put our hope

00:04:57 --> 00:04:58

in Allah

00:04:58 --> 00:05:00

but it has to be realistic too.

00:05:01 --> 00:05:03

It has to be realistic. For example,

00:05:04 --> 00:05:05

if a person is

00:05:05 --> 00:05:06

engaged in,

00:05:07 --> 00:05:10

this person does not control their gaze, does

00:05:10 --> 00:05:12

not control their tongue, does not control what

00:05:12 --> 00:05:15

goes in their ears, cannot control their thoughts.

00:05:15 --> 00:05:19

This person has become a for himself and

00:05:19 --> 00:05:19

for others.

00:05:20 --> 00:05:22

And then the hope is, you know, that

00:05:22 --> 00:05:23

I become a wale of Allah.

00:05:24 --> 00:05:25

You know?

00:05:26 --> 00:05:28

On some level, it's kind of doing like

00:05:28 --> 00:05:29

a joke with Allah.

00:05:30 --> 00:05:32

Because, I mean, then the question becomes how

00:05:32 --> 00:05:34

serious are you in that intentionality

00:05:34 --> 00:05:36

and that hope that you have with them.

00:05:38 --> 00:05:40

So, I mean, it's it's not a zero

00:05:40 --> 00:05:40

sum game

00:05:41 --> 00:05:43

because some people will say this, and and

00:05:43 --> 00:05:44

all of my written against this.

00:05:45 --> 00:05:48

They will live a life of their own,

00:05:48 --> 00:05:49

you know, nafsparasti.

00:05:50 --> 00:05:52

They will do whatever they want

00:05:53 --> 00:05:55

and then, you know, when you give them

00:05:55 --> 00:05:55

and

00:05:56 --> 00:05:57

they'll be like, oh, I love it for

00:05:58 --> 00:05:59

you.

00:06:00 --> 00:06:02

So this is, like, misplaced hope.

00:06:03 --> 00:06:04

Right? Because

00:06:04 --> 00:06:06

you do the effort, you ask

00:06:07 --> 00:06:09

for, you know, you you do you ask

00:06:09 --> 00:06:12

for istighfar and then the hope is to

00:06:12 --> 00:06:13

O Allah

00:06:14 --> 00:06:17

that I've put in everything that I possibly

00:06:17 --> 00:06:19

could, and then I leave

00:06:19 --> 00:06:21

that acceptance of

00:06:27 --> 00:06:29

we have been taught over and over and

00:06:29 --> 00:06:31

even today we

00:06:32 --> 00:06:33

you know heard the Dua

00:06:34 --> 00:06:34

I

00:06:37 --> 00:06:39

mean you know it's that acceptance yes I

00:06:39 --> 00:06:40

made this mistake and

00:06:40 --> 00:06:42

I'm going to correct myself.

00:06:43 --> 00:06:45

So that's the hope that Allah will

00:06:46 --> 00:06:46

accept

00:06:47 --> 00:06:49

that Tawbah and help us change and the

00:06:49 --> 00:06:50

Tawfee.

00:06:50 --> 00:06:52

Okay? So we have to be a little

00:06:52 --> 00:06:54

careful that, you know, this hope

00:06:55 --> 00:06:58

does not put in a black state, and

00:06:58 --> 00:07:00

this is why some some

00:07:01 --> 00:07:03

have considered it to be like an interference

00:07:03 --> 00:07:04

with the with Allah

00:07:05 --> 00:07:06

like as it can

00:07:07 --> 00:07:09

sometimes put a person in in, you know,

00:07:09 --> 00:07:12

you know, put their guards down. Everything is

00:07:12 --> 00:07:15

fine, you know, nothing to worry about. You

00:07:15 --> 00:07:16

know, why do we have to worry?

00:07:17 --> 00:07:17

So,

00:07:18 --> 00:07:20

you know, some of those have to be

00:07:20 --> 00:07:21

kept in check.

00:07:22 --> 00:07:23

But, you know, it's

00:07:24 --> 00:07:26

for a, it's it's a good thing it's

00:07:26 --> 00:07:28

a good thing to have hope because it

00:07:28 --> 00:07:29

helps them

00:07:29 --> 00:07:31

perhaps put in the effort,

00:07:32 --> 00:07:34

have energy about it, you know, like, oh,

00:07:34 --> 00:07:35

yes. I have to do this. Yes. I

00:07:35 --> 00:07:37

can do this. You know? Yes. I can

00:07:37 --> 00:07:37

attitude.

00:07:38 --> 00:07:39

So it's good to have that.

00:07:40 --> 00:07:42

But, you know, for people who are spiritually

00:07:42 --> 00:07:44

mature and who have,

00:07:46 --> 00:07:49

you know, this hope changes because now they're

00:07:49 --> 00:07:51

already doing all of that. Yes. I can,

00:07:51 --> 00:07:53

and they have done it. And now the

00:07:53 --> 00:07:54

hope is really about,

00:07:55 --> 00:07:58

you know, making sure that purity of intentions

00:07:58 --> 00:07:59

come in.

00:07:59 --> 00:08:01

Right? That the comes in,

00:08:01 --> 00:08:02

that that

00:08:03 --> 00:08:05

emptiness of heart comes in, meaning you empty

00:08:05 --> 00:08:08

your hearts from all other intentions, but Allah,

00:08:10 --> 00:08:11

so, you know, they,

00:08:12 --> 00:08:14

you know, it's necessarily you know, the result

00:08:14 --> 00:08:16

is that they they will reject the duniya.

00:08:16 --> 00:08:16

They will,

00:08:17 --> 00:08:19

you know, they will learn how to

00:08:21 --> 00:08:23

exercise self restraint.

00:08:24 --> 00:08:24

They will

00:08:25 --> 00:08:26

conform to the sharia

00:08:27 --> 00:08:30

more easily. Right? So so the the hope

00:08:30 --> 00:08:33

is the same thing, but depends on where

00:08:33 --> 00:08:34

you are in your journey.

00:08:34 --> 00:08:36

You know, some of the

00:08:37 --> 00:08:39

some of what what the person might be

00:08:39 --> 00:08:40

focusing on changes

00:08:41 --> 00:08:42

but what about the Ikahullah?

00:08:43 --> 00:08:45

I mean they have hope as well their

00:08:45 --> 00:08:46

hope is that, you know,

00:08:49 --> 00:08:51

their hope is to really get the mushaida

00:08:51 --> 00:08:51

of Allah

00:08:52 --> 00:08:54

Their hope is for Allah

00:08:55 --> 00:08:55

So

00:08:56 --> 00:08:57

that really

00:08:58 --> 00:09:01

that really just kinda disconnects them from the

00:09:01 --> 00:09:01

duniya.

00:09:02 --> 00:09:04

They disconnect you know, they like, they don't

00:09:04 --> 00:09:07

have any hope with the insanid not

00:09:08 --> 00:09:08

anymore.

00:09:09 --> 00:09:10

Right? Because all of that just returns back

00:09:10 --> 00:09:12

to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And

00:09:14 --> 00:09:16

they're, you know here, like, in the second

00:09:16 --> 00:09:19

state, maybe if you're rejecting the dunya,

00:09:19 --> 00:09:21

here you have rejected the dunya.

00:09:22 --> 00:09:24

Right? So there you you're kind of put

00:09:24 --> 00:09:25

putting the effort, yes. I have to do

00:09:25 --> 00:09:26

this to reject it,

00:09:27 --> 00:09:27

But, you know,

00:09:28 --> 00:09:30

will will will have rejected the dunya, and,

00:09:30 --> 00:09:33

you know, we understood understand it that from

00:09:33 --> 00:09:35

their heart, that it does not have any

00:09:35 --> 00:09:37

place in their heart anymore.

00:09:38 --> 00:09:40

So, you know, this is, again, this is

00:09:41 --> 00:09:44

a a use useful case field to have,

00:09:45 --> 00:09:46

but it should not

00:09:47 --> 00:09:48

be used in a way that

00:09:49 --> 00:09:50

weakens our,

00:09:52 --> 00:09:53

that weakens our resolve,

00:09:54 --> 00:09:55

and that,

00:09:55 --> 00:09:57

you know, on some level puts, like,

00:09:59 --> 00:10:01

in a sense of everything is going to

00:10:01 --> 00:10:03

work out for me no matter what. Right?

00:10:03 --> 00:10:05

That's now because Allah

00:10:05 --> 00:10:07

is a Adil as well.

00:10:07 --> 00:10:08

And Allah

00:10:08 --> 00:10:11

you know, I mean, if we are focusing

00:10:11 --> 00:10:13

on the rahmah, which we really should in

00:10:13 --> 00:10:13

general,

00:10:14 --> 00:10:15

but, I mean, the other aspect of jilagah

00:10:15 --> 00:10:16

for Allah,

00:10:17 --> 00:10:17

is just

00:10:18 --> 00:10:20

as much present there as well. So maybe

00:10:20 --> 00:10:21

we have to be you know, we have

00:10:21 --> 00:10:22

to use it very carefully.

00:10:22 --> 00:10:23

Okay?

00:10:24 --> 00:10:26

So we make dua to Allah

00:10:27 --> 00:10:28

and we hope to

00:10:29 --> 00:10:32

Allah that Allah allows this time of Ramadan

00:10:32 --> 00:10:34

to be a source of redemption,

00:10:34 --> 00:10:36

a source of our change and transformation,

00:10:37 --> 00:10:40

A true a true in our words Allah

00:10:41 --> 00:10:43

and we hope that Allah gives us the

00:10:43 --> 00:10:44

for

00:10:45 --> 00:10:46

that will

00:10:47 --> 00:10:49

please him, for that

00:10:49 --> 00:10:50

will rectify us

00:10:51 --> 00:10:54

and really change our direction completely from inside.

00:10:54 --> 00:10:55

You know? So

00:10:56 --> 00:10:57

becomes our

00:10:57 --> 00:10:58

only true in

00:10:59 --> 00:10:59

our lives.

Share Page