Ahmad Kutty – Gratitude And Patience
AI: Summary ©
AI: Transcript ©
My respected to you,
my beloved brothers and sisters and children,
May the peace and blessings and mercy of
be upon all of you.
Once again, on this blessed day of Jum'ah,
I would like to welcome each and every
one of you to the Islamic Institute of
Toronto.
And we pray that the Allah, subhanahu wa
ta'ala, accept our prayers and our supplications.
A few very quick reminders.
First of all,
we are planning for our fall semester,
alhamdulillah, we're already in the month of August,
so fall semester begins in September.
And both the resumption of the academy, the
school,
and also all of our education programs. So
please, keep on,
taking a look at our website and our
social media pages.
We already have some courses,
that we can we can announce. One of
them is a continuation
of Sheikh Ahmed Kooti's course. He has been
doing,
a really interesting series on,
giants of Islamic civilization.
These are personalities in the 20th century
who have actually
distinguished
themselves
in the field of Islamic leadership and scholarship.
And so in September, he will continue with
that. Also, Sheikh Muslikhon
will be continuing with
his in-depth, exploration of the Quran, and this
semester will be on Surat Al Aqzab.
So please take a look at our fall
semester
as we build it out Insha'Allah.
Secondly,
our,
summer camp continues. Next week is the last
week. So if you would like your children
to experience the summer camp,
we have,
for ages 5 to 12,
and also a youth camp for ages 13
to 15.
The registration forms are on our website, Insha'Allah.
And today, I'd like to encourage you also
to
purchase the food from our food sale.
Brother Fazro has been asking me to announce
this, so please ensure
that he is not disappointed and everything is
sold out, Insha'Allah, today.
You will see also the brothers
in the in in the, safety jackets. This
is an army from Uzbekistan.
I'm actually,
you know, our brothers are from the Uzbek
community,
and they have an Islamic foundation called Ajir
Islamic Foundation,
and they are,
here today to solicit your support to help
them with their mussallah, the Bukhari Center.
As you know,
they are the people from where Imam Bukhari
comes from, and we love them very much.
So please ensure that you support them today,
to help them with their mussallah, inshallah.
I will ask our volunteers
to go through the lines, and insha'Allah, please
donate generously.
May Allah
reward all of you.
Please continue to check our website, islam.ca,
for programs that are coming up. Yesterday, we
had a beautiful session
by Sheikh Muslikh Khan on,
Suratul Kahf,
and we will have another session on Wednesday,
August 21st.
Inshallah, as we continue to provide some amount
of education,
during the summer.
Yes. And just, very quickly, they are for
a prayer time update starting from tomorrow.
Will be at 5:30
AM
and at 10 PM. This is the
time,
5:30 AM, and
at 10 PM.
And constantly check the website for the prayer
updates and for all other
updates. InshaAllah, we will ask. I think Hatem
is here, so InshaAllah,
I would ask all of you to move
up,
ensure that you fill the spaces.
We may have to lead the prayer from
the classroom,
so we'll ask Hatem to come up in
front here inshallah. He will be leading it.
Our kateeb today,
brothers and sisters,
our praises to Allah
and our gratitude to Allah
He has surrounded us
with his countless blessings and mercies.
And may Allah inspire us all
to begin our days
by being grateful,
by counting the blessings of Allah,
and asking Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala to honor
us,
to remember him,
and to thank him,
and to worship him.
I bear
witness, there is none worthy of worship, but
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala,
the creator, sustainer, and treasure of the worlds,
the the all compassionate,
and the all merciful.
I also bear witness
that Rasulullah Muhammad
sallallahu alaihi wa sallam
is indeed the final messenger of Allah.
He is the perfect exemplar for humanity.
Allah has sent him
as a warner
and a bringer of good news
and a source of mercy for the entire
creation.
So may Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, continue to
bless him
and his family,
and his companions,
and each and every believer
who shall strive hard
to walk in the footsteps
of the messenger of mercy.
And my prayer is that Allah include me
and you among them, insha'Allah.
So that we join their August company
when we are resurrected,
brought back to life.
Today,
I would like to talk about
the spiritual fitness,
especially focusing zeroing on
the 2 fundamental virtues
or states
that we should strive for,
we should practice.
But before doing so
I invoke the mercy of Allah Subhanahu Wa
Ta'ala
and I pray for those,
our brothers and sisters
in Gaza and Palestine
and all other parts of the world
where they are persecuted,
tortured,
displaced,
humiliated.
And may Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala come to
the raid,
and may Allah bring them ease from the
suffering.
May Allah
turn their trials and tribulations
into a source of mercy for them,
and a source of purification
and redemption
so that
they will be honored.
Especially, I remember the leader,
Ismailania,
who was martyred. And, of course, there are
others. I don't remember their names.
In Lebanon
and Iran, everywhere,
May Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala receive the mala
to heed his mercy
and raise their status
as the shuhada
witnesses
who have given their lives for the truth
and justice.
And let us also be reminded
that we should never be slack.
We should not give up,
and educating for them,
standing up for truth and justice
so that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
so that we can see the results insha'Allah.
When we do so,
by praying to Allah,
and counting on his help, insha'Allah,
the relief will come.
So the 2
Islam teaches us that human being in this
world,
Allah created each one of us
with 3 different components.
We have the physical body,
physical faculties,
and we have the mental faculties,
reasoning, articulation,
thinking,
imagination.
These are faculties, these are instincts, or you
may whatever way you describe it.
And then we have spiritual
faculties.
So
as Muslims,
Islam is a complete way of life.
We need to develop all the 3 components.
I'm not going to
dwell on developing the body, you know it
better than me,
but never
fail to do so. This is the time
you should be out in the wood,
out near the water,
out in the field. Take your children, your
families,
and smile, smell the flowers,
do so.
And the developing mind,
I don't need to dwell on it, but
I will focus today
on developing the spiritual fitness,
and of course this is a vast topic.
I taught a course here, 5 sessions
on spiritual fitness that only touched the surface
of it.
But
two traits that I want to focus
today is
gratitude
and patience,
asshukr was sabr.
These are fundamental virtues.
One of the ways of describing the believer
in Islam
as Imam Ibn Ullkay, imrahima Allah said,
is like a bird.
2 feet
and 2 wings.
And the 2 feet is al khaafuurraja.
Fear of the wrath of Allah
and hope in the mercy of Allah.
And the two wings
the believer uses
to fly to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, to
fly to the next world is Ashukur Was
Sabr.
Gratitude for the blessings of Allah and
patience
in facing the trials
and tribulations of life.
I want to bring you back to the
fundamental text
because we should start with that.
Allah says
in Surah Al Baqarah, verse
151, 152,
even as he has
sent
for you a messenger from among yourselves.
You can dwell on this because messenger from
among yourselves
is a human being like me and you,
walking, talking, sitting,
resting,
eating,
drinking.
Reciting our signs for you.
And purifying
you,
the spiritual filth, the moral filth,
purging out,
purifying you, making you morally and spiritually fit.
And teaching you the scripture and wisdom.
And teaching you that which you never knew.
So Quran
is a source of wisdom for us,
it is teaching us
things that we should repeat, we should
practice,
and also teaching us
the ways of purification,
moral and spiritual
development,
A developing Islamic personality.
And then Allah says, father kururiya the kurukum,
remember me, I will remember you, waskuruli
waratakfuroon,
and give thanks to me. Be grateful to
me,
and do not be ungrateful.
Let us go back
just for
a story, for an example,
in one of the prophets of Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala was blessed so
much.
He was given the kingdom,
the authority, the power
that was unsurpassed. Prophet
Suleiman or Solomon.
Prophet Solomon was walking with his army,
and then he heard an ant
talking to the other ants.
Oh, ants,
go back, flee,
and take refuge in your holes.
Let Lord Solomon and his army
crush you to death
unknowingly,
because they wouldn't do that knowingly,
but unknowingly.
Fatabasamalahika
milqawdiha.
So prophet Suri Layman smiled,
laughing at her words, and said, Rabiawaziri,
immediately
this incident
reminded him
to thank Allah for the blessings he has
bestowed on him.
Rubi'auzayani,
grant that my my lord,
grant that I am I have the power
to thank you for the blessings you have
bestowed upon me and my parents.
Of course, the blessings
can be a boon
or it can be a curse.
It can be a boon.
When I use it
to do good works that are pleasing to
Allah.
And grant that I join the company
of the righteous.
What was the prayer
of prophet Yusuf alaihi salaam?
The come as he was concluding his mission
on this life.
And what was the prayer of Muhammad Sallallahu
Alaihi Wasallam
before his death?
My lord,
honor me to join that august company.
The company of the righteous, the prophets, and
the messengers, and the martyrs, and the righteous.
So, brothers and sisters,
the gratitude and patience,
these are the 2 virtues
we must develop. When we do so,
we will become composed,
we will become happy,
we will become contented,
we will come, we will feel that
inner peace,
the serenity,
the tranquility.
Ibrautai Mir Rama'u'llah,
he was confined in a dungeon.
And he said about his experience there,
I am
experiencing,
I am in my
paradise experience.
I will not part with it
even if you were to give me the
whole world as a treasure.
Because you don't need to have
so much
to be grateful,
and to be happy,
to be content,
because for a believer
this life is not the end of everything.
So when you see the suffering
of our fellow Muslims in various parts of
the world,
it's not the end.
It's not the end.
This life is fleeting and transient,
and we appear in the next world,
we look at the life here,
it was an hour or even little than
an hour that we started.
So,
brothers and sisters, Rasool Allah Subhul also reminded
us when we develop the 2 habit virtues,
the states,
it's a state, it's an experience, it's a
feeling.
We need
to develop
this. The psychologists say they have this concept
of atomic habits,
and you think these modern psychologists discovered this
thing?
No, it is
rooted in the Islamic wisdom.
Because Rasoolullah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam said,
Of all things, the dearest work to Allah
the work you do consistently.
So consistently being grateful,
consistently becoming patient
will make you
motivated.
Make you happy.
Good mood.
You can relate yourself to others,
but joy will come out and smile,
even though
you may be destined to doubt, the doctor
may have told you,
you have only 2 months to leave.
But this person could smile and say,
Alhamdulillah,
I was at McGill University
and you know it would be
storm
up to here.
And I would walk into the department,
and this professor will ask me, how are
you? I would smile and say, Alhamdulillah.
So this professor
mockingly said,
rain or shine, Alhamdulillah?
I told him, nahalulhammadunafi
sharaiwala
ra.
You know we are conditioned
to thank Allah, to praise Allah,
to be grateful to Allah,
whether we are experiencing
joy
or we are facing a trial.
And of course, the orientalists themselves say
they never saw something
like this
anywhere in the world.
They would go
to a hospital where this man
has only 2
days to leave and suffering from Canada.
So much pain.
And a visitor comes and asks him, How
are you?
He smiles,
Alhamdulillah.
So
the ability
conditioning ourselves
to be thankful to Allah,
even though
you have challenges,
even though you have trials,
is what makes the believer wonderful.
Aja bali amril mumin.
A believer is a wonderful person.
There is none like a believer
in the way he is.
He experiences
his state, his the virtue he has
make him unique
person.
In nasabhatu,
sara.
When he experiences a favor, a blessing, a
joy, whether it is religious,
because he acquired a lot of knowledge and
wisdom,
and he's recognized as a scholar or whatever,
and
he's able to do good works
to serve the community,
and to benefit himself.
He's thankful to Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. He
recognizes
it's all due to the blessings of Allah
Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
Just like prophet Suleyman,
just like prophet Yusuf alaihi wasalam.
How they recognize the blessings of Allah Subhanahu
Wa Ta'ala. How the messenger of Allah salallahu
alaihi wa sallam.
At one time, the same time in his
life
he was tested to be grateful to Allah.
Allah gave him victory
over the mushrikeen
in the battle of Badr.
He's so
thankful, appreciating,
and then he comes home to hear the
news that his daughter is dead.
Tested by Shukr and Sabr.
And that's why there is a beautiful story
of a Sufi
man marrying a Sufi woman.
This history, this has happened.
They were deeply religious and pious.
Of course, after living a whole life,
they were looking back at their life,
and the girl said, the woman said,
you know,
I was
the most coveted young girl
in my town.
Beauty.
And you were not all that beautiful,
but I married you for your virtue.
I was
patient,
and you
being religious,
deeply pious,
you were so grateful
that you got a beautiful woman.
So, we practiced sabra and shukr,
and we lived a good life together.
Of course this is a lesson for all
of us,
that we want to develop the habit of
sugar and sabar. How do we do that?
Because the time is short,
you know, there is great psychology
that they are developing on gratitude
and patience.
We don't have time.
Could be the topic of a seminar,
but here I want to conclude, but how
do we
practice
this gratitude and saber?
Number 1,
as you wake
up, how do you start your day?
Remind yourself,
The prophet of Allah, as he opened his
eye from sleep, thank you, Allah,
for the gift of life,
for the gift of remembrance,
and the gift of health,
and the honor
that you gave me, bestowed on me to
take your name to remember you.
Thank you, Allah.
You
brought me back to life.
You had caused me to die because sleep
is a semi death.
So
wake up
expressing that gratitude to Allah, saying, Alhamdulillah,
Alhamdulillah,
Alhamdulillah,
And then spend, after fajid, a few half
an hour
counting the blessings of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala,
reciting the Quran.
At least try to read 1 juz of
Quran if you can, otherwise at least 1
page minimum.
Yes. Do that.
And also
condition yourself to say Bismillah
when you start to eat or drink,
or do anything good and when you complete
it say Alhamdulillah.
Thank you Allah. Because Allah likes, Rasool Allah
said.
When you sip,
take a sip of butter
or eat a morsel of food, Allah loves
you, say thank him.
Because this morsel
is given to you by Allah.
Think of the source.
And I also repeat the words, Alhamdulillah
SubhanAllah,
or bihamdihi
SubhanAllah hilalim.
These are beautiful words, but heavy in the
scales of the judgment day,
and of course when faced with overwhelming
tasks
be patient.
Say, laha'u'llawalaku
wata'illabillah.
And
when you are faced with hardships and trials,
think of the trials faced by the messengers
of Allah.
Practice patience.
The messengers
would form determination
and resolution.
Persevere in patience.
Of course, we have no time to go
over the sorrows.
It took 35 years of suffering and trial
for Yusuf alaihi salaam
to see the victory at the end,
to triumph.
And also consider
all the trials
is a source of blessing and purification.
Rasoolullah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam said,
any grief, any pain, any suffering, even the
prick of a thorn,
Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala, through that Allah will
expiate.
Remember this world is treating and transgained,
and we will all die
and appear before the Lord of the worlds,
and when we look back at this life,
it was so short.
There are so many young people,
boys and girls looking for marriage partners.
I pray for them that Allah Subhanahu Wa
Ta'ala inspire them and guide them to find
righteous partners
to be assets for their life here and
hereafter.
And
let us pray for our brothers.
Just give us a minute so we can
organize ourselves here.
Do you need the headset?
Thank you everyone.
May Allah
reward you.
Just as we announced earlier,
we have the brothers from the Aja Islamic
Foundation.
They are from,
the community, the Uzbek community,
and they are looking to,
build their mausala,
which is a Dufferin and Finch,
Abu Dhabi Buhari Center.
So inshallah, as you as you go outside,
please ensure that you support them
with the financial
contribution.
We've also posted their website on our Facebook
page. So if you can't donate today, you
can go on our Facebook page and you
can get the link to donate their project,
Insha'Allah. Jazakumullah khair.
Also, our summer camp is continuing. Next week
is the last week.
So if you have children and youth who
would benefit from it, please take a look
and register them.
We are continuing with some programs in the
summer. So our next session
for summer inspirations is on Wednesday, August 21st
with Sheikh Mosley Khan. The details will be
posted soon.
And we are looking forward to the to
the new semester. I wanna encourage you and
remind you that we do have a food
drive. So when you're coming next to IIT,
bring a non perishable item, and you can
put it in the container that is in
the lobby or near to the lobby. And
we will provide that to the Muslim welfare
center
so that families that are struggling
can have something,
to eat.
And there are many families who are struggling
to even have something to eat.
May Allah reward all of you.