What does Ramadan teach us about unity? Care for each other? Solving our disputes? Consumption? Material vs. spiritual living? Plus, an important discussion of the last Ten Nights of Ramadan.
Ali Albarghouthi – Ramadan Teaches – 2
AI: Summary ©
AI: Transcript ©
When I mean Sheree and fusina was a Tia Melina Mayor De La Villa de la one minute lil fella de Allah.
Allah Allah Illallah hula hula Sheree Kela one Mohammed Abu Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa ala alihi wa sahbihi wa sallam. I'm about to fire in Iran Howdy.
Howdy howdy Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam or Chateau de to have a llama desert in beta Hakuna Matata item banana logona, Latina tintina All praise belongs to Allah the Most High we thank him and we seek His help and aid and we ask conducted forgive us and we seek His refuge from the evil of ourselves and the sins that we commit. Indeed, whomsoever Allah guides, no one can lead astray, and whomsoever Allah leads astray, no one can guide and I've ever witnessed that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah alone, that Mohammed Salalah alayhi wa sallam is his slave and messenger. The best of speech is the book of Allah. And the best of guidance is that of Mohamed Salah Salem and
the worst of religious matters are those that are innovated. Every religious innovation is a bid on every bid is misguidance and every misguidance will be in Hellfire a madman
when we look at
the major a Baghdad worships
the that Allah subhana wa Taala had obligated and legislated we will see that Allah on purpose made most of them commanded that they be performed in congregation in a jamaa in unison.
You look at the Salah, for instance, Allah obligated for Muslims to congregate five times a day. Then once a week they all congregate and larger groups in the Friday prayer.
Then on a twice a year they even congregate in either bigger groups so that they can meet each other you look at Hajin Allah subhana wa tada did the same thing. Allah subhanaw taala could have made Hajj like Umrah its time could have been spread throughout the years people could not or would not have to crowd in one place at one time. But Allah subhana wa Taala made it so that today we have millions and people in one or in few days old gathering in one place and a lot wanted something from all of that because Allah Subhana Allah knew that there is power in this, that there is benefit in this there is religious power, and there is emotional power. And there is psychological power and
all other levels of power are there to for our benefit. And you look at fasting, and you consider that more than 1 billion people are fasting today a conservative estimate of at least a billion people are fasting Ramadan, all together. And this Allah knows best is unique in human affairs, to find a billion people who are fasting an entire month throughout the day. They're staying
In a way from food and drink all of them, that is power
and there is not highlighted enough. And all of this teaches us something about Ramadan. Ramadan teaches us that Allah Subhana Allah loves the Jamaat and loves unity and everything that will strengthen that unity and hates everything that will weaken it. And that is today especially today an important lesson that we have to learn from Ramadan.
That is the great objective or of the great objectives of Sharia is Alicia is to be united is to be together.
Listen to the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said he said are so we'll masamune will fit through Yama to Pharaoh is fasting is when all of us start your fast and and in your fast is when all of you and your fast. That is the beginning of Ramadan and the end of Ramadan. According to that how did some of the olema have said that if a person sees the healer by himself, he submits that testimony that testimony is rejected for whatever reason, and they choose the group that Gemma they choose another opinion. He is not too fast according to his own testimony. He's not too fast according to his own witness, he has to follow them.
Though he saw the healer, but their fasting contradicts what he saw he is too fast with them. And that will tell you that Allah subhana wa tada and His Prophet sallallahu wasallam wanted to preserve that unity and you will not fail to see it in the Quran.
Allah subhanho wa Taala for instance says
to me, you know this well hold on to the rope of Allah subhanho wa Taala together and do not divide. What is the rope of Allah, as interpreted as the Quran as the hate in the Tafseer and also as the Gema
meaning hold on to the drama that is based on the toe hate on the Quran and do not divide. And Allah says, Allah Allah,
Allah subhanahu lubicon.
Juana remember In the name of Allah upon you, when you were enemies, and Allah brought your hearts together, and by his Nana, you became brothers and sisters.
You want to understand the extent of that enmity.
Allah says in another ILO and Dr. Murthy lovely Jimmy Appleby, Molokini Allah, Allah, ya know, the extent of their enmity was the division that was between them, that if you were to spend everything on this earth to bring them together, you won't be able to, but a lot brought their hearts together.
And you look at countries and people around us today, the enmity and the hatred that exists in some countries between black and whites, the rich and the poor. Those be the people and those who rule them rule on top of them, the colonizers and those who were colonized. And you wonder, can anything erase the hatred that has added new foods that is in the heart,
even if you give them billions of dollars that will still remain in their hearts and nothing but Allah subhanho wa Taala can erase it from the hearts and bring these things together, bring people closer together. So remember the name of Allah upon you and do not divide. Now Allah says in another idea
was to allow a soldier who
who can obey Allah subhana wa tada and His Messenger This is the basis of any unity that you're going to have and do not dispute because if you do that, you will lose and your power will leave you.
This is evident.
So the power or the purpose or the basis of every unity that any Muslim is going to have or I can aspire for is the book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam to hold on to it completely, because why do people divide? One of the main reasons that people divide and Muslims divide is because we don't hold on to the entirety of the religion of Allah subhanho wa Taala. We don't do that. We hold on to something and then we ignore some other people hold to the part that we ignored and ignore the part that we are holding on to so we fight.
But if we were like the companions of Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wasallam and those who followed them who held on to the religion of Allah in its entirety, then we will be united over it.
And considered here the past as an example.
We are united because we have accepted a command from Allah subhanho wa Taala to begin the
class on a particular day and ended on a particular day, to stop doing certain things and to do some other things, because we accepted that all of us from Allah subhanho wa Taala, that belief is in our hearts, then it got translated into action. It brought us all together. Where would you start changing that? Some of us start saying that fasting is not an obligation, or start tempering with the times of fasting, we will divide and fight among each other. It's only the religion of Allah subhanho wa Taala that can unite us.
And when it comes to unity, we go to extremes.
Some of us work to one extreme, we see and we look at all the divisions that are devastating, the mad and we want you not to unite them. But there's no principle upon which we want to unite the people. So just based on the title of Muslim, we said, we want to create this big tent, no matter what you believe.
No matter what you believe, no matter what you do, no matter who you are, as long as you have that title, Muslim, then you're included in that big tent.
And that is the wrong way to go about it. That is the wrong way to bring unity. Because we don't have that title of Muslim, because we were born with it.
We have that title of Muslim. Because there is something that is called Islam that Allah subhana wa Taala revealed. And we decided to adhere to it. And when we decide to adhere to it, who SM Ackerman was limited, he had called you Muslims. It's not a tribal name.
I'm born with Muslim and I'm going to die with Muslim no matter what I do and no matter what I believe it's something that you earn and cherish. That is the title of Muslim, Allah called you Muslim.
So you adhere to that title by following the commands of Allah subhanaw taala and only then you will be united. So any Unity has to be based on principle on the structure that Allah created on the borders of Islam. Without them there is no unity, it's false. It's a mirage.
On the other extreme are those of us our brothers and sisters who become hypersensitive to every mistake.
A small mistake is equated to a large mistake without distinguishing between matters of consensus matters of age matter matters where the evidence Humala is clear cut.
And that is agreement if there is disagreement is very weak, versus other matters, that are matters of at heart, where the evidence is not so clear cut, where the disagreement is strong, even historically, where people strive. And sometimes they make mistake, they don't distinguish, or we sometimes don't distinguish between these two. So we treat both as the same. Every small mistakes become a major mistake, every small mistakes become a reason for us to condemn the other person and boycott the other person and speak ill of them. We don't distinguish between the person who's on the sooner who apparently desires to please Allah Subhana Allah and His Prophet yet makes mistakes,
versus the person who is not.
We don't sometimes distinguish between times and places where Islam is strong, and its supporters are plenty. Versus times and places like a lot of the times in places we live in today, where Islam is not very strong and the truth is very faint. And it takes supporters are far and few.
These are not the same.
And as an individual, Allah subhanho wa Taala tasked me with something
tasked me with strengthening that unity
and prohibits me from anything that will weaken it. Listen to the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam when he said, I know we have already been directed this polarity was sadaqa to see. Shall I not tell you what is about or should I not tell you about what is better? A degree higher than trade praying and fasting and charity, the voluntary act of praying fasting and charity. Yes, O Messenger of Allah, Allah Islam, that in vain. He said mending relations between people in the saddle bait that invade
corruptions, between relations between people is the shaver. I do not say that it shaves, hair, it shaves religion. In other words, it demolishes religions completely. And take a look at what happens today and how disagreement starts small and they are not contained. And people start quarreling and then they start fighting and they start breaking Alice commands one after the other because of that quarrel, and they end up doing what killing each other.
He has spoken the truths of the law.
You are yourself, it will destroy religion.
So we cannot allow minor things to disrupt the greater objective of God which is what?
The unity and the Juma.
So even in fasting, let's take an example from fasting. We may disagree sometimes about this Surya Hera was seen here or wasn't seen there about this, Tara, we prayed this way or prayed that way about what invalidates the past 5050 disagreements this invalidates This doesn't. But all of these things, when are put in proportion to the great objective that Allah subhanaw taala wants are very minor, because they are always to the greater path. And the greater path is what for us all to pass this religion, or to pass this month that Allah had obligated and come close together, because of the religion of Allah, and on one heart to have 100. That's the great objective. Everything else is
minor.
And what Ramadan teaches is for us to concentrate on what benefits us and leave these disputes and arguments aside.
Look at the harsh reality of the oma today. And ask yourself, let me ask myself, does it need more disputes? And does it need more arguments? This is not to say that when you know what the truth is, share it with others indeed share it. And let the truth always be manifest. But we have to do that with kindness, and with good manners and with mercy and with the intent with the intention that I want that other person to come to the truth. It's not that I want to prove him or her wrong, it's not that I want to condemn them. It's not that I want to shame them.
That's why Allah subhanaw taala had asked us
to conceal the sins of other Muslims. He said so Allah, Allah UID or cillum, montserrado, Muslim, etc. Our data, woman data by our Muslim
debating, it says if you conceal the sin and the mistake of a Muslim Allah would conceal your mistake.
And you follow the mistake of another Muslim Allah will follow your mistake, and he will disgrace you even if you are inside your own home. Even if that mistake is contained within the within your four walls of the home. Even then Allah will expose it and allow this grace to pan along.
That's why a lot prohibited backbiting and Ramadan when we talk about control our tongues that's why Alaska prevented backbiting mocking others and ridiculing them gossip because they break relationships. And that's why Allah subhanho wa Taala praise the opposite all of that and concealing mistakes because they strengthen relationships in the community.
So no, do not divide and remember Allah blessings upon you and do not dispute because one thing that disputes do is that they take the Baraka away.
They take the Baraka away, once the prophets of Allah Allah you and he was in them, he was asleep he woke up
and he went to the message and he asked the people of salata, Jamia gathered
then he ministered to the member on the member he's told them
in your limb today,
I was told about the exact date of later to cut for that here. And I came out here to tell you
how to have a higher need to buy a home.
And I found these two people fighting and I separated between them and I moved made I was made to forget it.
For me suhaila Srila was so secret in the last 10 days or
so the dispute between these two people and the profits only center was not part of that dispute. The fact that was present was enough for that knowledge to be taken away from whom from Mohammed Salah Lau Allah you it was him after he knew it from Allah subhanho wa Taala so I asked about how many disputes and arguments that we go through on an individual level communal level on the level of a taker with a blessing that Allah subhana wa tada otherwise would send our way.
Explain what the truth is. Bring the evidence.
But don't dispute don't argue.
Especially when that argument is not done with the right intention. And let the Ramadan heat here be the great teacher. Ramadan is not only teaching us to stay away from food and drink, as we said before, but also to control what is this tongue saying? What harm is it causing? And when I meet a loss apana with Allah will I be counted as a person who actually fasted? Or is there a person who's just physically stayed away from things but turn people around with what he says?
than what he has done.
So let the Ramadan teach us these valuable lessons already how there was stuck in a line you're looking for stuff
hamdu Lillahi Rabbil alameen
wa sallahu wa salam ala rasulillah Mohammed Sall Allahu Allahu Allah and he was so happy you're sending them about.
Ramadan teaches us especially the last 10 nights, to take the time to examine ourselves and to examine our hearts and see where we stand in relation to Allah subhanho wa Taala. And in relation to this dunya
and this looking inward, this introspection is necessary. Unfortunately, what happens sometimes is the opposite.
When we when we look out at ourselves when we don't look at our spirits,
and our neffs but we look at our body and bodily needs
and we look at our material needs.
There's a phenomena now that is called the Ramadan rush.
The Ramadan rush is an increased consumption of Muslims in the days and nights of Ramadan.
And it had reached our average household consumption and expenditure and Ramadan in the Muslim world, on average is higher normal in the normal month, on average compared to the rest of the year. We spend more per family we spend more in Ramadan on food and otherwise than the rest of the year.
And this phenomenon has reached sort of an international level.
So even in non Muslim countries, they realize that they're Muslims are going to spend more and more and more in Ramadan. And there are famous brands that cater today have nothing to do with Islam but they cater today to Muslims and their fascination with spending in the month of Ramadan.
1000s of dollars get spent. And you look now is this the spirit and the intention of Ramadan or otherwise? Where is my heart?
Is it attached to that dress to that shoe?
To that purse
to that car to that brand to that house? To that paycheck to that dollar? Is this what has Ramadan come to where I take that occasion of Ramadan to turn it as they say, into a Muslim Christmas?
Is this what I've had to run into?
Or is there something else that my heart should be occupied with? I should be looking at.
And Ramadan is not about selling and buying and selling and buying is not wrong but it's not about selling and buying. And it shouldn't be the thing that is most important in our life. Unless
we want to sell and buy with someone else and the merchandise is different. In the lifestyle I'm in anymore mean and Kusama homie and Allahu Allah wants to trade with you.
It's not something physical, Allah wants you and your money in exchange for paradise. So there is this type of commerce that takes place in Ramadan, and that is the Praiseworthy commerce and there is another type of commerce that takes place in Ramadan that distracts from it and slowly is in fact the name of Ramadan.
So if there is or should there be a Ramadan rush, it should be a rush towards Allah subhanho wa Taala not to rush towards the material.
And how we are going to explain to anyone who is non Muslim was coming and say you have a month of fasting we say yes.
I said yes. You spent most in this month than in other times and you ate most of this month when in other times. Now explain back to me how this is supposed to be among the fasting and a month of contemplation.
When all you care about is money
what would we say?
So we want to understand where the oma is at this level. Look at what it's doing in Ramadan. And you will understand if it is mature enough for Allah subhanho wa Taala to give it a victory or that it still needs to work on itself.
The last thing I want to say
is that we can't leave this club without talking about the last 10 nights of Ramadan.
And this is something also that Ramadan teaches.
Not long ago we said Ramadan was born like our life Ramadan is born.
animonda was one day or two years old, two days old three days old. Soon Ramadan has reached its middle and when it reaches at the middle you start the countdown and down we are saying Ramadan is about to end, the last third of Ramadan is coming. This is our life
and what has passed from this Ramadan? What do we remember about it in the last 1516 days past? What do we remember about it? What will stay with Allah subhana wa tada when we meet him, or the hardship if we had hardship, all the struggles and the challenges, these are gone. These are forgotten. But what will stay? Is there a better what is stay is your tequila. That is what you will read in your book when you meet Allah subhanho wa Taala. And if you are unable to do anything, or you're unable to do what you wanted to do, don't despair because Allah subhana wa Taala saves the best for last.
If you lose what has remained, then you've lost Ramadan. And you say no, Linda, you were in a lake, you're on your own, like someone has died.
But remember all the anticipation, the excitement, the wishes, the planning that you had in the beginning of Ramadan, now regenerate all of that, because then the price is in the last 10 nights of Ramadan, and the satirizing of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam that once these things come once these days start
he intensifies his worship,
and takes it even more seriously than he did before and he was very serious before.
can either de la la la la la, la la,
la la la he was seldom he would enliven his nights with worship of Allah subhanho wa Taala and command his family to pray and be steadfast in doing so.
That is his Sunnah.
And Allah subhanho wa Taala had legislated in that the sooner
and the Prophet sallallahu Sallam used to take it and practice it in order to capture and pray to Allah subhanaw taala during later to Qatar and the synovia t calf here. Maybe some of us are able to do the entire night or the entire 10 days and nights have did not have behind me. If you're unable to. Then few days and few nights, the weekends.
If you're even unable to truly unable to. Don't Don't miss at least spending as much time as you can in the masjid during these days and nights. Because what is the essence of etica? What is the meaning vertical takeoff is not in the sense of vacation, we come to the masjid we meet our friends and we start chatting. We start drinking tea and what have you and having good time. That's not the essence of etiquette, etiquette holy cow ilaha zildjian is for you to suspend all relations except that between you and Allah subhanho wa Taala you know that people before had monks and the monks who live in isolation and a lot rebutted that in Islam. But what Allah wanted us to do is for a few
days, every year to taste some of it, and proportion that Allah approves. And that is Attica for you to come not worry about anything else. Leave the worries of the dunya behind and just concentrate on online, concentrate on your heart and concentrate on the Koran and concentrate on
that is the essence of Attica and you will notice
if you haven't tried it, please try it a day, you will notice that Allah subhanho wa Taala will change your heart. And you will notice that your attachments to this dunya will start to change, your perspective will change it will start to correct and that is all a blessing of staying close to Allah subhana wa tada and away from this dunya do that and remind you lastly of the price later to
better than 1000 months,
better than 83 years. It's not equivalent to 83 years. It's not 84 years. It's better than 83 years. To what extent to what level Allah knows.
And some of us might look at our past life
and say I've wasted a lot of it. I wish that I prayed and I wish that I fasted and wished I did and this so much of my past life is wasted. Can I make this up?
And the answer is if you want to make this up later to cut
because this is life that is added to your life. Life that is added to your life. Some of the older man counted it. He says on average if you live from 15
to 65 you pray every Ramadan leader to come so we can play the toccata for you every Ramadan. You know what the total that you will add to your life 4000 years
it'll be as if you live towards
1000 years
old Doing what? not sleeping and eating 4000 years of reading the Quran and praying to Allah subhanho wa Taala and seeing the whole law and making dua.
Can you imagine missing this?
I asked you by Allah Do you can you imagine missing this? Even if you have some time to take a vacation even sometimes you have to do whatever you can just to spend every hour of that night worshiping Allah subhana wa tada 4000 years
so don't miss it brothers and sisters and let me just emphasize before we leave, there's an erroneous you know, belief that later to clutter is only on the 27th. That is not true. Even the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam when he was alive, one of those Ramadan's later to Qatar was on the 21st.
So don't think is just the 27th is the entire last 10 days and then last night's and also it is more likely to be on the odd nights, but not exclusive.
It could be on an even night.
And when you look at all the Hadith of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam. I'm not going to go into detail, but when he says Lita, see I think polysorbate 80 comes into play when he says that when you want to understand what nine remaining days, seven remaining days, five remaining days mean in the Hadith, you have to look at the end of the month, because if the month is 30 days, it's different. You will have odd days that are later to cut but if the month is 29 days is different, you'll have even nights that are later to cut.
And you will not notice a panel until the end
right until the end because Allah subhanaw taala wants you to worship throughout.
So worship Allah subhanho wa Taala allow me nikka hoon to hit Bulava for me. This is a long enough to hit Buddha for me. This is him said if you can't ask anything else of Allah subhanho wa Taala and you have too many things you want to ask and you want to ask just one thing as this is if Allah gives you He will give you everything.
So Allah in the car food
alone in the car,
alone in the car
you're most forgiving and you love forgiveness so forgive us he Allah you are most forgiving and you love forgiveness. So forgive us your law you are most forgiving and you love forgiveness. So forgive us. Allah make us who pray during data to cut the email and YT Sabha, the lawmakers of those who pray during later to cut the email and YT sobre el la Vegas among those who pray during labor to cut the man and watch the Sabbath. He Allah forgive us all of our sins in Ramadan, the sins that we know about and the sins that we do not know about Allah accept all of our dua in Ramadan he Allah accept all of our Eva in Ramadan he ALLAH forgive all the Muslims in Ramadan you lift all the pain and
suffering to the Muslims in the manifesto Ramadan Allah protect the Muslims from all the fittest in the month of Ramadan. He Allah protect the Muslims from all the Pitons and tribulations in the month of Ramadan. He Allah protect the Muslims from all the Fitton and tribulations in the month of Ramadan. Aloha. Camarena, countrymen and
women calm and a little country man and YT sobre la Magellan me man commelina to the man and YT server Aloma Tabatha, Tina Ramadan
Murakami
NAR hammer Rahimi ultimate
hammer Rock me gentlemen Ramadan number four on the Anaconda Omaha tuna region amin Ramadan aka basura Nakama
tuna message Nam in Ramadan Amma foreign dinner Gamma Delta Omaha tuna Aloma in Fianna the cricket, cricket anybody along
the cricket, Cricket
Cricket Cricket
Allah hamata Helena lubaina Minister Kiwanuka.
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