Ali Albarghouthi – This is Love #16 Read the Quran to Love Allah
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AI: Transcript ©
Aloha Matt eliminare million photo and found me Mount Olympus was in Eagleman. autobill alameen. Allama. In the creek our shoe clicca was near Ebert attic Craske Allah zoodle To make us of those who seek the best and to teach us that and to allow us to me among those who follow it.
So today's Hadith as
some of us and asked this question and we frequently when we're talking about the love of Allah azza wa jal, you know, how do when do we then love him? subhanho wa Taala
so this hadith is one of those Hadith that answer that question. So it's important to keep it in mind because it practically tells you that if you want Allah to love you, and if you want to love Allah azza wa jal, you need to do one thing.
Very short Hadith, but you need to do one thing. And if you keep this in mind, you will get more of Allah's love. So it's an answer, but it's also a project. And it's also
informative and sense in the connection that you should have with a book of Allah azza wa jal of how you should look at it.
And why you should look at it that way. So Hadith 16.
And in that hadith, the prophet Alayhi Salatu was Salam said, Kyla, Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and Sarah who are your hip Allah or Sula who familia Quran feel most have?
He said that his Salatu was Salam, the one who is pleased, who's happy
that he would love Allah and His Messenger, let him read
the most half and the most half is the Quran.
Right? So sort of the contain the Quran is called the most half.
So he's saying here at least Salatu was Salam. He says, if that pleases you, if this makes you happy, and you want to love Allah azza wa jal, what should you do?
For Leah Cora film was half flood him read the Quran, let him read the most half.
And this hadith tells us in the beginning, and that's the first thing that I want to focus on, Min sutra, who, if this pleases you, if this makes you happy? Because if it makes you happy, then you'll pursue it, right? Because it means that you care about it.
But if you don't, then you're not going to pursue it. Something as simple as that. But it opens up the question of, what is it that pleases you? And me? What is the thing that makes you happy.
So remember, last time, we talked about goals and why goals are important. And that goals reveal something very specific and intimate about all of us. That a goal, goals, reveal our values. And goals also reveal what we revere? What is important, what we love, goals and love are connected. goals and values are connected. So if you want to understand what you love, look at your goal. And if you want to understand
your goals, look at what you love, they are always connected, they cannot be separated. It's the same thing when it comes to happiness. So if you ask yourself, really, what is the thing that makes you happy? Now without pretense don't pretend without already packaged answers, that what makes me happy? Is Allah and His messenger. That is a thing that you could say, in terms of I hope so.
But does it really reflect what makes you happy? So when you ask yourself, by yourself to yourself, no one is observing you? What's the thing that makes you happy? And the answer will come back that a lot of what makes us happy is the dunya.
And that, in a sense, is natural. It's not
reprehensible, that you have things in the dunya that make you happy. So ask yourself, What's the thing that makes you happy? Celia say, this particular meal makes me happy, this particular food that particular drink that particular spot, buying this thing selling that thing, promotions, graduations, all these things, they make me happy. And if you ask yourself, why is it that this makes you happy? It will reveal a lot of personal things about you. So why you like this particular drink, there's the story.
And there's a background and there is a connection and there's a memory, right? Meals are the same. It's not just simply a taste, but there's a taste, but there's always something there's family, there's history, there is present and there's future as well. A particular spot or a country it's always connected to you and it's always connected to what you will
love, happiness is connected to what you love. Why is it that it makes you happy? Because you love this particular thing? So happiness and
love
are intimately linked. So if we say, and if we ask ourselves
what is it that makes us happy? We're also asking ourselves, what is it that we love? And Allah in the Quran tells us
in one area, that there are multiple things that makes us happy. So he says, you know, in Surah Yunus this is on page 171, who will be thought leader he will be rahmati he Febi Delica Leah Farah who, who were your own me my age, my own.
So Allah as it says, say in the favor of Allah and His bounty, let them rejoice in the love them find happiness in that that is better than what they collect in a mess.
It means that Allah is telling you that what we collected a mass brings us for our happiness. But Allah is saying that Allah has favor and mercy is more of a reason for you to rejoice let them rejoice in that. So Allah is telling you, there are multiple things that will make you happy that dunya makes you happy, but Allah is redirecting your attention to something else that is more deserving of your happiness and pleasure, which is the what? Before Lillahi wa rahmati the favor of Allah and His mercy and if you open the books of Tafseer and you want to understand what is it that the Sahaba and the Tabea in and so on said to explain further Allah He was Ramadan, what is the
favor Allah because you could say well, everything from Allah is a favor from Allah. Right? How the fuck lawmen Allah. But that's not what they tell you. It means in a difficile bug of Allah he is not everything. But in particular for Lulu, the favor of Allah is what it says the Quran and Islam and guidance to Islam, the Quran, the Sunnah, things that bring you closer to Allah, this is what is called, Allah has favor and His mercy.
So Allah, Allah says, Allah is saying these other things make you happy. But that in particular should be your cause for happiness. And there is a story from
also it's it gets mentioned in the tafsir as an explanation elaboration on
the distinction. And it's there on page 171 To Page 172. And it says there that the makadi Murthy, Raja Irati Ohara joola irata illa Omar, so when a rock sent its tax tumor or the Allahu anhu, he went out with his servant. And O'Meara is receiving this tax and he's counting that camels
because the tax was made up of camels and other things, maybe, but he's counting the camels that have arrived from Iraq. And there are a lot of them.
So Omar, started to praise Allah azza wa jal
and Omar servant he would say, Yeah, well, I mean, even though Allah He mean fugly Allah, he was Medina, he says, Oh Ameerul Momineen this what you see these camels, all of these things that Welford had arrived. This is from the favor of Allah and His mercy. So model the Allahu Anhu said character.
He said you're wrong and character doesn't always mean you light character also means you are wrong. So he says that you are wrong. Lisa who this is not it. Allah says befuddle Allah he will be Rama de Febi Delica Alia for who will hire me manage my own and Allah's favor and mercy let them rejoice This is better than what they collect and this is from what you collect.
Meaning this belongs to the dunya
even though it comes from sadaqa even though it comes right, from things that you will spend towards what Allah has Zota loves but it distinctly specifically for the Allah He what Rama do is what the thing that connects it to Allah azza wa jal so the Quran and Islam and Al Huda that
now, does that mean that it is wrong for us to be happy with the dunya when we get it?
No, it doesn't. Right? As long as it's all in check and under control.
So if the only thing that makes you happy is the duniya.
That's a problem.
Right, because what does that say?
That's the only thing that you love. And that is the dominant love in your heart.
So it's not Islam none Allah's favor. None of these things, not the Quran, but only the dunya. So, if I get promoted if I graduated, that could make me happy. And if I see in that Allah's favor, meaning Allah led me to it, so I use it in lawful ways, I don't become arrogant because of it. It brings me closer to Allah subhanho wa taala, or at least doesn't make me more rebellious and more distant.
And I thank Allah for it. So it's in check. So the duniya happy? Yes, that's always in check, then you're okay with it. So if I get a
raise, and that makes me happy. That's natural. Right? Although they will be some of the stuff. Some of the early Muslims were that would worry them. Why do I have extra money?
That's a test. It would worry them. Right.
But let's let's kind of stick to our own level. Right? And maybe later we can graduate to that level. It's natural that you would say it Hamdulillah this is beautiful, and I got it. But you don't use it in Haram. And you know, it came from Allah azza wa jal, and it doesn't cause any
internal sins, in terms of you know, arrogance,
then you're okay.
But then the issue becomes, if all these things are only things that make me happy.
So, if I go and travel, that makes me happy. If I eat something outside, that makes me happy, fine. That's okay. If I drink something outside, that makes me happy, fine, that's okay. But that these are the only things that make me happy, and where I would locate my happiness, then that reveals something about me and about my heart that's not so comfortable to confront, which is Allah is not making me happy. And the Prophet alayhi salatu salam is not making me happy. And duck was not making me happy. And the Quran doesn't make me happy. So how is it that I am applying or understanding that I where Allah says it's as if you should limit your happiness, to Allah's favor and His mercy? But
I'm not doing none of that?
Why isn't it that when I come to the masjid and pray, and I finish a Salah in Joomla, that doesn't make me happy. And I realized that there was a lot of reward in it, but it doesn't move me. Why is it that when I read or finish the Quran, one page of the Quran, that does not make me as happy as winning $50.
And it's much more rewarding and lasting than winning $50 Because the problem with the dunya and even if you want to think about it logically, so suppose for instance, you ate a meal outside, and it made you it made me happy, because you ate there, and you went outside. So what is the consequence of all of this, you ate it, and it's done.
So you're going to plan the next meal. The problem with the dunya is it doesn't last you spend you run after it, and it fades as soon as it is in your hand. So that happiness doesn't last. And it lets you down. So you keep looking and running. And it doesn't satisfy and it doesn't stay. Whereas if you read one page of the Quran, it stays for you, till we meet Allah azza wa jal and you expect the best because of it.
And you can count how many Hassan as you've just gathered just from one single page of the Quran, or if you give a sadaqa or if Allah has certain enables you to raise your hand and make dua why shouldn't this make us happier than buying a new phone? Because a new phone is something that is going to be consumed and discarded. But when you made a DUA, that is a connection from Allah Zota Why not imagine and receive that as a favor from Allah, and then thank him for it and say Alhamdulillah I was completely fortunate today. I was absolutely fortunate today that Allah azza wa jal
opened that door for me. What a NEMA. This was versus Oh, this was an incredible restaurant. Or this was an incredible thing that I watched online entertainment that made me happy, but not the Quran and not the Sunnah, not da and none of these things. So Allah azza wa jal, you know, he said,
Well, 30 who will hire the dunya and they're happy with the worldly life. Woman higher to dunya fella
allottee in the matter, this worldly life, compared to the earth era, is simply a matter of brief enjoyment.
What is this brief enjoyment, if you want to kind of understand what the Arabs would call a meta, the meta is if you were to travel. And they would hand you on your way out few dates that fill your hand, this is so that you would survive. This is meta.
This is your meta. So Allah is saying this dunya, all of it is like these few dates that they are putting your hand when you are about to travel, simply to sustain you on your way until you arrive. It's nothing else. So it's not fancy. And it's not a lot. And when you look at it, you will know it will barely be enough. This is what the dunya is in yet. He said, You're happy with this, which is nothing compared to the earth here, which is everything. So why is our perception that the dunya is everything, and the earth era is nothing that makes us neither happy nor sad. But it's only the dunya that makes us so and that tells us that priorities are messed up.
And what we love
is not there, but here. And what we work for what we focus on is what is here and not there. And that's why it makes us happy
to lose as some of I'm not sure. Maybe it was Ibrahim um, no Adam or someone similar to him. Who was asked, why is it that we love the dunya and hate the earth? He says because you've built this up and neglected the other.
And no one would love it to move from a built up place to a ruin, meaning you have nothing in the earth. You've invested nothing over there. So it's like a barren land for you. You don't even think about it. And you haven't paid anything in advance for it. So it's empty wasteland. Right? You don't even think about it. Where all your investments are in the dunya where your house my house is here. My car is here. My family's here is basically everything that I love is here. And it's not there. So how could you move from here to there? How is this migration Hijra is supposed to happen? That will never happen. So how did the Prophet alayhi salatu salam move away from Mecca to Medina.
Medina is not his home.
Medina doesn't have his people. It doesn't have his relatives doesn't have his particular house. How did he move from one place to the other? Unless? And did he love Makkah, by the way?
Absolutely right. Didn't he say Alayhi Salatu was Salam Yuri? Don't you are the most beloved piece of land to Allah azza wa jal, and if not, that your people had forced me to leave, I would not leave.
Right meaning I did not want to leave. They forced me they made this a reality. The but still, with all of this, what forced him to leave this place that Allah loves the most, and he loves the most to a new land, unless it was the love of Allah azza wa jal that pushes you to move and relocate and make a new home.
So if we don't love the akhira, as much as we love the dunya, at least as much as we love the dunya it'd be hard to migrate to the earth era, or think that we can go there and one of the Hadith that would help us
kind of understand
the value of obeying Allah azza wa jal in comparison to the dunya is this hadith is on page 173. He said the Prophet Alayhi Salatu was Salam.
He says, He came out the Sahaba saying he came out to us one day, when an office sofa, were sitting in the sofa. And the sofa is the back of the masjid, the covered back of the mystery of the Prophet Alayhi Salatu was Salam where
it was the exclusive home of those who are had no homes,
the exclusive home of those who migrated from Mecca to Medina, they have no money and no people in Medina to host them. So why would they stay in the sofa until such a time that they could move on? Right and have money or find someone who can assist them. So, if they are sitting in the sofa, it means that they are in need, and they have nothing, you know, except the clothes on their back, are very little beyond that. So this is the audience that I saw this on you to understand. The audience was receiving this from the Prophet Alayhi Salatu was Salam. So he says a Eukanuba you have to do a coup later on. He says Who among you would like to leave in the morning? To what Han or an arcade
the
is our valleys
in Medina or at the edge of Medina and he brings
every day to camels you know with big humps coma will make coma why you need to add some in Walla Katya Tierra hem. So two camels with big humps, without sin or have having to sever any kinship,
any ties of kinship, meaning you would take it easily, without any sin.
Two camels each day, say you said O Messenger of Allah, all of us would love this, like each day go and easily grab two camels and bring them back and they are your own. And these are expensive camels, and you are in need, he says, All of us are Prophet of ALLAH. So he said that as Salatu was Salam says, if one of you goes to the masjid, and he learns or reads to is of the book of Allah azza wa jal, that is better than two camels. And if he learns or reads three that is better than three camels and four are better than four. And whatever you read is better than their number of camels.
That is, the
what do you want to call it? This is how we're supposed to look at everything in life.
That is, if you get one area from the Quran that's better than a camel. So translate camel today into what? Because you're not going to get camels today. So what are you going to translate this into? What can we say a car, or $1,000, moderate moderately, let's say moderately $1,000. Because camels will cost more than that. So who among you would like to go to a any place spot in the city, grab $2,000 Without any burden without any question, and take them and put them in your pocket and come back home? Who
say
2000 each day? Just that easily? You said yes. says one is better than 1000.
That requires an adjustment, and how you see the world around you, and what really is valuable. So even when you see people running after the dunya, you still see them the favor of Allah is better. And it doesn't mean you have that you're not going to work and earn and support yourself and your family. No, you will. But you will still see the favor of Allah as better than all of this, and half hour that you sit learning and teaching the Quran is better than the dunya and whatever is in it.
So then, your heart will be with the Quran. And then you will value that. So if you look at every Iraq I like this, and every I like this and every dollar in sadaqa like that, and every Do I like this, that that is actually better in the sight of Allah azza wa jal than this meal and that drink and this trip and all of this, and you keep reminding yourself of that, then you will favor Allah and His mercy, more than the dunya and then he that will please you. You say it hamdulillah today, I woke up and I went for Fajr
it hamdulillah today, I was able to make dua,
or do between also and method on Friday. What a blessing from Allah azza wa jal, it was a blessing. And you have to remind yourself that it was a blessing today and Hamdulillah I was able to help someone, I found someone who was in need of help, and I was able to help him. And that pleases you. So the more that you remind yourself of how great this is with Allah azza wa jal, and that it will last, the more pleasure it will bring to us.
But again, it does say a lot about where our hearts reside. And what makes us happy. You we may ask ourselves, well, how do we do this? Well, we say we need a lot of dua. And plus, of course, we're going to talk about the recommendation of the Prophet Alayhi Salatu was Salam here in this hadith, but we need for us to be at that level, we need a lot of dua, and we need also to start detaching from the dunya.
And why is this making me so happy and it's gonna leave me anyway? Why not invest more in the earthier why not invest more so that I would be pleased by the Quran or be pleased by or be pleased by praying to rock as or reading an Islamic book and conjure in all the bring in all the reward of Allah azza wa jal that accompanies all of this so that it would excite you and also so that you'd be grateful when you take it not so that Oh, I just prayed and that's fine.
And I don't care how I prayed. But now I'm gonna go out with my friends and I'm really looking forward to do that. But I was not really looking forward to any connection with Allah azza wa jal, but connections with human. Why is it that these humans matter more than Allah azza wa jal, and then when we are in trouble, we can rely on on them. And when we go back to Allah as soldiers, so I find him I find Allah when I'm in trouble, but at times of ease when I'm happy, I ignore him and I go with my friends and I go with my family and they are the ones that make me happy. And Allah as Odin is way back there. Until what until I need him Subhana wa Tada. And I find out that no one can help.
So why isn't he also the primary one, when I'm also happy?
So
so what we can do is do is important to start to detach from the dunya. And when I'm saying detach from the dunya, I don't mean to hate it.
Because it's not possible to hate the dunya I'm not telling you don't get married, don't have kids, quit your jobs, all of these things. No, do these things for the sake of Allah says which, or at least if not for the sake of Allah, not in conflict with because these are two levels, you do them, but they're not in conflict with what Allah loves. And the next one is you do them for Allah sake if possible. But that is the detachment that we're talking about. And then as you detach from here, you are attached to Allah azza wa jal, meaning you insert into your days and into your nights, things that keep you connected to Allah azza wa jal, and the one that we want to focus on today is the book
of Allah has is it is the greatest connection to him. subhanho wa taala. So in the Hadith, the Prophet alayhi salatu salam is telling you his teaching you,
you want to love Allah. You see, yes, that there is a goal that I have, that will make me really happy. So if you want to love Allah azza wa jal read the Quran.
And there is no better teacher than the Prophet Alayhi Salatu was Salam in telling you how to love Allah as the model and the tool that you can use to love him. So if ever quite wondered, What should I do, one of the things that you should do read the Quran is as simple as this. Right. And there's your statement from Abdullah ibn Umar Radi Allahu Anhu uma
and he's talking about the virtue of reading the Quran he says Lobethal Raja noon fugu dinar en de nada, Majid hum and dinar, the Rama. It says if a man spent the whole night
and he is spending dinner after dinner,
or dyrham After her gold and silver, silver and gold coins, were human to God if he said we learned is equipping
horses and people for the sake of Allah azza wa jal, and a man spent the night reciting the book of Allah azza wa jal until the morning and that was accepted from him. And I also
spent the night reciting the proof of the book of Allah azza wa jal until it is accepted for me in the morning, he says, I would not wish that I would have their deeds instead of mine, that he's talking about someone who is spending the entire night, one gold coin or one silver coin after the other. And he is equipping those who will fight in jihad for the sake of Allah azza wa jal, so and understand how meritorious how rewarding these acts are. Sadaqa with golden silver, or these people here, how many hundreds or 1000s of dollars you need to go and fight for the sake of Allah, you and you and you and he's doing this the whole night, he says, but what I'm doing is I'm learning the
Quran and reciting it till the morning. And Allah accepts that from me. He says, I would not think or believe that they are superior to me. And what he is trying to say, what are the Allahu Anhu is what is saying, don't look down on the Quran, and its recitation, and when it gives you because it's going to equal all of this. He's not telling people if they are giving sadaqa your sadaqa doesn't matter. It matters Allah
and the good that you do with your money matters a lot but he is saying Don't look down on the Quran because the Quran if Allah enables you to recite it for an hour, or at night or in the morning, then understand that Allah has given you something that most of humanity is deprived of today.
Right or wrong? Most of humanity and also Allah Allah Muslims.
If you spend half an hour 15 minutes reading the Quran every day you understand the law I've given you something that most Muslims are not doing today.
And the rest of humanity definitely.
So is this not a gift?
Should you not consider
for yourself to be fortunate, not arrogant, not proud, but fortunate that Allah asserted had made that possible. Because once you start feeling that this is because of me, you will lose it.
When you stop the an understanding that this is a gift tofield min Allah azza wa jal, Allah is gifting you this.
And it's because of your humility because of your DUA because of your dedication that Allah is giving you this. When you stop thinking these things and you say, Look at me, and what I'm doing, you'll lose it.
So it's a NEMA from Allah subhanho wa taala. And it should be appreciated as an emerald be taken away but and again appreciate that it's an honor and appreciate the connection and appreciate all the things that is doing. The Quran is doing to you. And hubub no arati
the Allahu Anhu he says in his tatata and Takara Illa HIPAA in Nicola Karabo eat Allah He be che in a high beta him in Konami, is this if you want to get closer to Allah azza wa jal, you're not going to get closer to Allah Who is something that is more beloved to him than his words and speech.
And that will shed light on why.
Why the Quran?
Because we need to remind ourselves of what the Quran is to understand the value of the Quran, what is the Quran
it's Allah speech.
The closest that you have to the Divine is what
the Quran
can see Allah as origin
can see him. So it was the closest that you can have
the divine word that you could memorize.
Or even if you cannot memorize, but you can read.
And imagine just the divine Word is running on your tongue and entering your ears and your heart.
Just think about that.
And think about its effect.
And the other thing is also, if Allah azza wa jal, right, he wanted to reveal and say something to humanity,
that Allah is going to reveal one thing
to explain who he is, who we are, where we are going, what's going to happen to us where we came from, an understanding of the world around us, if Allah were to reveal one thing, and he revealed it.
How precious would that be? Because that's the only thing we have to answer all of these questions, none of it, who is Allah, who is God? Who is the Creator?
So Allah says, All of these things, where is it is in the Quran?
Because that's the amount of wisdom it has. That's the amount of information Allah could have said what he could have said volumes. He just said this, which means that everything you want and need is here. You just have to read it and extract it and learn from it.
So that is the beauty of the Quran. And that is the wisdom and that's the benefit that is in it. This is how we have to reacquaint ourselves with
its beauty. And this is the word of Allah azza wa jal, and this is everything that Allah wanted to say to me, and to say about this world, this is the thing that's going to heal me and heal the entire world if we understand it.
And if I want to know Allah azza wa jal, there is nothing better than the Quran. That's what Bob is saying. You want to know you want to come close to Allah, what is the thing that will bring you closest to him? It's the thing that came out of him.
The Word of Allah azza wa jal came out of him, so that you would listen to it so that he could go back to Allah subhanaw taala would be closure. So the Quran is powerful like that. And it's beautiful like that because what it does is what, as I said,
Allah reveals himself.
It's called Revelation where he right?
Allah reveals himself, all His Names, all His attributes, what makes him happy, what makes him angry, the way to him and the way away from him. All of that is in the Quran. And of course, the second revelation was the second revelation. The Sunnah, the Sunnah explains it. So if it is general in one area, the Sunnah comes in tells you in detail what Allah has zoodle wants from you. So it's eight FC of the Quran, so indispensable. So we're not talking about the Quran. We're not just saying the Quran and stuff. We're seeing the Sunnah is a necessity in understanding the Quran. But here, you will not know Allah, unless you read the Quran. And according to the Prophet Alayhi Salatu was
Salam, if you really want to love Allah, is through his knowledge of who Allah is that you will get to know Him. Allah is this and this and this you just know what Allah
is from the beginning of creation till now. And also the Quran tells us about who we are.
Right?
Like, what is our nature?
Right that we have Voltaren gel in us. Right in that in Santa Julio Kahala tells you about your anxiety, a lack of patience, tells you how to medicate all of that how to treat it. It does, right and if you read the Quran, whether you're conscious of it or not, as long as you understand it, the Quran is treating you and it's changing that nature.
But the Quran has to be listened to in order for us to understand this. Allah warns you in the Quran about the deceptiveness of this world.
Which tricks us every single hour, not either every single day, every single hour with its advertisement, false advertisement. So Allah reawakens you every time you read the Quran that this is false. What you hear is false. What you see is false. You know how they say fake news. Right? And you forget that it's fake when you listen to it unless somebody comes and says, You know what, they are still lying to you.
And then you say, Yeah, okay, so I, I really have to scrutinize not everything that I hear is right.
So it's the same thing. It's all false advertisement. And then the here you hear from Allah azza wa jal wake up. And they say yes, so that was false. This is false. These are bad promises. And Allah's promises are the true genuine ones. So Allah keeps reminding you of that in the Quran. If you want wisdom and good character,
wisdom in terms of understanding and insight, knowing right from wrong and deciding to do the right thing and then character in terms of how you will behave, and having the energy and power to continue that behavior, righteous behavior, how are you going to maintain this unless ALLAH azul supplies you with that wisdom in the Quran, so the Quran tells you this, and the Quran makes you bigger and stronger than your problems.
So if you feel that you're gonna collapse with all of these things around you, then Allah azza wa jal brings this fuel in the Quran and you become stronger. And not only can you withstand, you could push back and you could overcome and you could teach other people how they could overcome these issues. But the only happens with the Quran, so reading the Quran, here
is a companion back the Quran becomes a companion. The Quran becomes something that you read continuously, not only for follow up, reward,
the lab reward is the thing that brings you in.
While you're reading the Quran, I want Allah to forgive my sins. I want a lot of Hasina, beautiful, good, great intention, but are you going to stop there
because if this is the only thing that you want to extract from the Quran, you're not going to be looking for anything further.
Right? Coming to the Quran is coming like to a body of water to a river with a small bucket or a big bucket. It whatever you're going to get from it is how ready you are what you looking for. If you're looking for a lot, you're gonna get a lot back. If the only thing is that I just want to finish the surah for the follow up and you want to leave, you will finish the surah get this up and you will leave but you will not understand what Allah is saying to you. But if you carry a bigger bucket, which is yes, I want to throw up but why should I stop there?
There's a lesson there's a message.
Right? And there's there's some people if somebody you know, was commenting on the left,
like an idea.
And that idea is that, you know, I just wanted to point to this so that we understand the way we approach the Quran should be the way that the prophets Allah He was known for, which is the Quran. So So if I'm looking for an answer in the Quran, I'll just flip through it, and then randomly stop and read.
And if there's an answer on that, on that page, if we're not on the page, then in that chapter,
the question here is, is that a legitimate
right way of seeking answers from the Quran to flip randomly?
Now, you may say to yourself, well, what's wrong with it?
A very quick answer is
that Rasul Allah Salah is hidden and do something like that.
Well, you could say, well, I mean, they didn't really have a must have done right. Right. So you'll catch me and say, well, they they never must have. So of course they didn't do it. Okay, fine. I'll give you that. The worker
Omar with man, highly Sahaba then they started to have most have would they flip randomly and just
Take a page and say my answer is here. No. See, understand then that that's not how you would seek answers from the Quran. Yes, keep start reading. And if you're looking for an answer, sooner or later you'll find it.
Sooner or later be vanilla guaranteed, as long as you're looking, sooner or later you'll find the answer, but not randomly. Because I don't want you to think that somehow whatever you find on that page, or in that Surah, must be an answer to your question, because the answer could be on the other page, or in the other Surah, you do not know. But what is legitimate is what the prophet Alayhi Salatu was Salam did and he did not, or the Sahaba, or the tabby in directors, to such a process of finding answers from the Quran. But going back to what we were talking about, do seek answers from the Quran, come with this bigger bucket. And you could also seek comfort and you could so also seek
solace and consolation. And you could also seek refocusing on the earth here instead of the dunya. And you also could seek reform of manners and greater wisdom and learning history and learning present and learning about the future. As much as you can bear of the Quran will teach you. So learn from the Quran as much as you can, but you have to make it a companion in order to win the love of Allah as origin. Now,
I make the claim there in the in the in the book that I'm calling the Quran, the Book of Love.
Right? And I'm saying why is it the Book of Love because the prophets a lot he said them said if you want to love Allah do what?
Read the Quran. So the Quran is what leads you to the love of Allah as origin. They say then it must be that the Quran is the Book of Love because the Quran is what makes you love Allah as though did and what would make Allah azza wa jal or what, how Allah has lived with love you. So the question that some people may pose is, like when I read the Quran,
there's a lot of mentioned in the Quran of hellfire, right, and punishment, and punishment in the earth era and punishment for those in the dunya. And what happens to you if you don't listen to ALLAH SubhanA who are to Allah. So some people may say, well, it doesn't meet my expectations of a book of love, when there is a lot of punishment and damnation in it. And the Quran is not all about punishment and damnation. But there is punishment and damnation in it. But it doesn't really fit what I perceived a book of love to be. So how could you call the Quran a Book of Love and at the same time, it has these things in it. Like I feel that there is a gap between that claim and reality
will say, first of all, what do you expect a book of love to be?
This word first of all, let's investigate the expectation itself. You have an idea of what a book of love would be, meaning a thing that will be all embracing, all affirming will talk to you in a very emotional language, almost a romantic language, what do you expect the Book of Love to be? Because these expectations that you have of what love is or how the Book of Love should be or your expectations of them.
But this is not how Allah azza wa jal decides what love is. That if you think of love in human terms, right?
And you say, okay, the way that I love my spouse, my romantic, romantic love or my children or my father or what have you, that's the way that I'm expecting love to be found in the Quran.
But we say, Who is speaking here, Allah azza wa jal, right. And Allah's love and Allah's level, status is not of that of a human being. You will love a human being as an equal.
But the love of Allah assorted is completely on a different part completely different than any human love that you have. So when Allah is going to reveal how is he to be loved, how you're supposed to love him, what his book that leads to His love is it would be completely unique. So you need to kind of make an adjustment and say I will see how the divine how the Creator reveals love to me and absorb that rather than meet Allah azza wa jal with my own expectation and say, you're not meeting mine. You see the difference between the two.
So Allah reveals to you how he wants that love to unfold. Now you say to yourself, Well, why is it that there is fear and punishment and this and that in the Quran? Whereas I wanted the book, I love to feel to say, you're the best and you're the greatest Allah is waiting for you and he wants to embrace you and all of that. Say, Okay, I mean, some of that is in the Quran and some of that is definitely is in the Sunnah. But
how are you going to be worthy of Allah's love?
If you don't change
say Allah is Love is supposed to Cana lower itself to all of us and say you as you are, you're fine. Or should it push us to change?
All we have to change?
The How do we change? So look at humanity?
How do we regulate our society? Is it with love? or fear?
Love or fear?
Fear? Fear, right? So why do we regulate society with fear?
Because that is the thing that we're most responsive to, at all level at a basic level, right? Not love. So if you tell people, whether you like paying taxes or not, right, it doesn't really matter here. But for the love of humanity, pay your taxes.
Don't want to pay their taxes, for the love of humanity don't speed.
Okay? No one will do that. For the love of humanity, don't steal. We're not going to do anything. We're not going to teach you but please don't steal.
We're going to steal.
But then when you say there's punishment, that at a basic level at a natural level, everybody says I won't do it.
So Allah zodion understands that about nature and human nature. In the Quran, I told you, Allah azza wa jal reveals that nature, in the Quran, he knows what you have, what you are responsive to. So in the Quran at that basic level, that is why there is a stress on if you don't do this, this will happen to look at the nations before we were and how they will destroy because Allah is not talking to the most intelligent and refined human beings in history only. He's talking to all of us, all of us.
So Allah has lived and wants to move all of humanity into a state where when he starts talking about his love, you'd be ready for it.
Right? You'd be ready for it.
And you know, Tamia Rahim Allah, he says something similar about the Quran.
You remember when we talked about a shaker of gratitude. And we said that you can be grateful to Allah azza wa jal, because of Natomas that he had given you.
And you also can be grateful because Allah is worthy of that gratitude in himself, because he's the most beautiful, and the most forgiving, and the most sublime and so he in himself is worthy of that praise and gratitude, even if he did not give you a thing. But also he's worthy of it because of all the things he gave you remember that thing we talked about? So routine, he said that most of the Quran focuses on gratitude because of things that Allah has given us.
He says, why is that because people respond to that.
If Allah were to address them, about gratitude, because of Allah's worthy of worthiness of it, a lot of people will not respond. He says, so you will focus on what focus on the thing that brings people in, and they understand and they can process and he says, then the Quran once he brings you in, he tells you about the other.
But that's not as prevalent, but it's there.
So in a similar way, the Quran is doing that. His priming you getting you ready, it brings all your humanity into the fold, do this pray or else and then when you start praying, then you discover the love of Allah as so good because you've been disciplined.
So the love of Allah azza wa jal comes with the discipline and the love of Allah as it is mixed with awe and reverence. It's not love between equals. So a lot of the people who conceive the love of Allah as they conceive of it as loving,
a equal or loving a father.
And that's why it's wrong to refer to Allah azza wa jal as our father.
Right? Because Allah Allah does not our father Allah is greater than that. His love is greater than the love of a father or a mother. So Allah says love is completely unique. So yes, if you read the book of Allah azza wa jal and you submit to it, you will find the love of Allah azza wa jal right there.
But the Allah azza wa jal wants you to do what
wants you to reform and to fix, and he knows the impulses that cannot be fixed, unless you're afraid of something, unless you're motivated to leave it and then you will do it. But love on its own is incapable of producing these effects. And we will come to that court later on. We're worried said if you worship Allah with fear alone, it will be insufficient.
If you worship him with love alone, it would be insufficient. If you love were worshiping with hope alone would be insufficient, unless you have all three.
So if you think only love could work, I'm telling you, it doesn't. You need love. But at times what motivates you is a little bit of fear. And at times what motivates you is a little bit of hope. And when you mix them all, then you have the combination that Allah azza wa jal wants from all of us.
And the last thing in sha Allah that I mentioned, you know, that, remember that again, if Islam or if the Quran is the Book of Love, then Islam itself is the path of love because at the end of it is the love of Allah has origin. That is your goal. That's what you want to achieve. Not just simply salah, not just simply escaping Hellfire while escaping Hellfire towards what you're running towards something. And that is Allah azza wa jal and there that is the love of Him. subhanho wa taala. So that is also the path of love. So think of Islam in those terms. And think of the Quran as that vehicle that will allow you to love Allah as origin, and also the Dhikr of Allah as urgent. So the
Hadith or the Dhikr that I conclude this chapter with, is where he said at a Salatu was Salam to sentences that are easy on the tongue, and easy to say. But they're heavy in this scale and morb and beloved to the Moors, that to the Most Merciful Subhan Allah he will be handy he Subhana light I'll be saying Subhan Allah, He will be handy he Subhan Allah he'll have them he said Alia Salatu was Salam. But this is something that is easy on the tongue. Right? The tongue can move frequently with this thicker, but they're very heavy in the scale. So now when you say it, you imagine your scale, and it's getting heavier as you say, each one of them because that will give you contentment
hamdulillah now it's heavier because of what I'm saying. It's actually something physically happening in the universe, because of it.
And he said, Habeeb attorney era man, beloved, to the Most Merciful. So when you say it with that attitude that this is something that Allah loves to hear from me, you will have you will feel that love back Subhan Allah will be Hamdi Subhan Allah, he'll have been. So you will feel the love of Allah elevating in your heart and in your surroundings, and you will grow attached to this dhikr and we will grow attached to the Quran as the word of Allah that will bring the love of Allah. So
what hamdulillah Arabella aalameen. So we'll stop here with Nila xojo, and see if you have questions.
See if you have any online questions as well.
I don't see any hands up. Okay.
A question from last time, let me just answered very quickly, we didn't get a chance to answer it.
How do we differentiate between exposing our past sins because Allah has covered it, and sharing our experience to tell the moral of the story and teach others to make a difference. So if you're trying to advise someone, let's say and you're conflicted about, on the one hand, I have a past sins that is a past sin that is similar to what that person is going through. But I don't want to reveal it because Allah has often had, you know, protected me from it. And it's concealed. At the same time, I want to share the benefit of all of that, you could kind of grade it through a third person. Right? If you don't want to expose yourself, right and there is no need. I know of a person who was going
through something similar viewers, and he used to do this and she used to do that. And this is how they were able to overcome it and that's what they got from it. So you understand that it is true, right? But at the same time you're not referencing yourself. So if you do it that way insha Allah you get the best of two worlds on the one hand you're giving the advice that you want to give on the other you're not really revealing your own issues Allah Allah
How do you get your adult children to love Allah as when they were young? I did not guide them enough and wasn't into the deen
you make first of all, do ask for them.
Right as adults, and express to them, these sentiments that I wasn't able to do this and that when you were young, and that's something that I regret. And I wish I wish I could take this back but I cannot but now I realize how important it is and I want to share that with you as your mother as your father.
I really want to share that with you. So you share that with them as a parent, even if they resist you, even if they resent you, even if they don't want to listen, but at least you apologize for what was not done in the past. And you tell them why you're What do you want them to follow it to know about it in the present and in the future, and you keep making up with them, and send their way any lectures, any reminders, any books that could reveal the importance of all of that to them, and any acts that you personally have done that changed your life that had made you closer to Allah and how that could happen to them and what that could do to them? Share all of these things and the more
person that is the better and that's the only thing you could do. And don't don't forget about the Lord.
How do you help your parents love Allah while still respecting them?
Just remind them of Allah azza wa jal in the most pleasant respectful manners.
Allah Azza din loves this, Allah hates that. If you do this, Allah will love you more. Read how Ibrahim Allah is find it in the Quran. However, Rahim at a salon was giving Dawa to his father, and how we spoke to him. Yeah, Betty, oh, my father, and see how we addressed him without my utmost respect. And how he was telling him, let me guide you to Allah azza wa jal, let me guide you to the Most Merciful. So Express also, that I'm doing this on, I want to do this because I want to see you happy in the dunya and in the Africa, and I want the best for you. So when they realize that they at least understand that it's, it's not coming from a place of
instruction, or a lecture that you're giving to them, but it's coming out of love, and this is what it is. And it's not that I know more than you, I know that you are the one who always taught me but this is something that I got to know about something that Allah guided me to. And I want to also allow that guidance to pass through me to you is from Allah as a no. And it's always difficult to advise family members because of the tension that is always there because of the history that is always there. So you do your best and you make do and you express it in a very loving specialty your parents in a very subservient, humble manner. It's not like I'm on top, and I'm teaching you that
nobody likes this. And your parents will definitely hate that. Because you're always young, in their eyes. So no, I'm doing this in a way that seeks the best for you. And I'm just a truly humble servant of Allah zodion who accidentally got to know about this, I just want you to know about this. And if you do, Allah will bless you right? So I want the best for you. And again, never give up keep doing that until Allah azza wa jal right allows it so I don't see any questions. So one last glance at the brothers side, I think this is to say nothing the fair inshallah they then we conclude insha Allah Subhan Allah Oh, yes.
Now second law here, how do you divide your time between listening to the Quran versus reading it and is one better than the other. So of course, it depends a lot on whether you understand what is being read or not. So it's always superior, that
understanding the Quran is always superior. So if you listen, and you understand, then reading and listening are almost equal. If you listen, but you don't understand, then reading would be better. But there's always a room for listening. Because you could read and read and read, but then comes a time when you simply get tired. Human beings, right, we simply get tired. And you could do more with the Quran when you start listening to it because of the reciter. Or because there's ease in it. So how you divided depends on how much you understand of it,
and your energy. And if you find that
you could read some and listen to some then and hamdulillah
we're not gonna nobody should ever restrict you and say, only read but don't listen or only listen to not read. Because the prophets a lot. He said them, you know, he even said in your head won't smell him and I agree, I like to hear it from someone else being recited by someone else. So that's even the Prophet alayhi salatu salam who received that revelation. So sometimes it has a greater impact when you listen to it. So there is no formula right? There is no formula. Read as much as you can especially
If that's the best for understanding when you find that you can't anymore, or your heart is with listening rather than reading switch, right? And that's how can a human over until you find what is comfortable and what is comfortable could keep changing. So there's no one particular formula you know, keep keep at it, there's there's good in it no matter what you do keep at it.
Okay
Subhanak alarm behenic A shadow law a dentist, go to where they could handle a little bit and I mean Salam aleikum wa rahmatullah wa barakato.