Faraz Rabbani – The Rawha #141 The Harms of Heedlessness and Staying in the Remembrance of Allah
AI: Summary ©
The importance of transformation through actions and actions in one's life is emphasized, as heed obtainments can lead to negative behavior and negative thinking. The speakers stress the importance of seeking Allah's help in renewing one's resolve to urgently resolve one's sin, identifying one's values and commitment to seeking Allah's help in renewing one's resolve to complain and not let fear control one's behavior. The speakers emphasize the importance of achieving comprehensive dedication to Allah's path, learning about one's potential, and shaming one's lower self. The speakers stress the importance of realizing one's goals and potential, breaking bad habits, pursuing a focus on the good pleasure of Allah, and constantly renewing one's resolve to complain and not let fear control one's behavior.
AI: Summary ©
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In our sessions on healing hearts
in which we're looking at
imam Soleami's treatise
on the blameworthy traits of the self
and their cure.
We've looked at the first 10 blameworthy traits,
and we're continuing
from
traits 11 onwards.
So we'll be looking at the harms of
heedlessness.
Right?
And then
of beholding the self. Right?
Conceit
and
excessive
focus on outward adornment without taking care
of the health
of one's
heart and soul.
And having a sense of spiritual
entitlement,
of expecting reward for one's actions without being
sure about one's
sincerity.
Losing the taste of obedience,
laziness,
and then
seeking knowledge
for status,
for influence.
And this is one of the harms that
can arise
from seeking knowledge, which one needs to be
careful about.
So the first trait that we'll look at
is
heedlessness.
Right? So
he says,
and he combines a few blameworthy qualities that
are interrelated under this. So
he says,
from the blameworthy traits of the self,
From the blameworthy traits
of one's lower self
is heedlessness,
shortcomings,
remaining in sin,
putting things off,
having false hopes,
and considering
one's end
to be distant.
That, yeah, well, there's a long time. I'll
change later.
Right? Let me take care of my deen
now,
my dunya now. Deen will come.
Right?
And
so he mentions
a number of these
qualities,
and they have some underlying causes.
Heedlessness,
shortcomings,
remaining in sin, putting things off, false hopes.
Right?
There are certain causes for this.
One
is worldliness,
duniya.
Right?
Because duniya
is close.
It is palpable.
It is tangible.
So it seems more real
than
the hereafter.
It seems more real
than its creator even though it's absurd.
Allah tells
us that truly the next life, that is
the real life
because it lasts.
How could
something created be more real
than the one who created it?
When when the creative thing is fleeting,
the one who created it is eternal.
Right? So worldliness is a cause of heedlessness,
etcetera.
The second is just weakness of faith.
Because if a man was nurtured,
then you would strive for consciousness of Allah.
You would strive to redress your shortcomings.
You would leave sin, etcetera.
Alright. So weakness of faith causes each of
these harmful
effects.
Another
is sin itself.
Right?
And there's an interrelationship.
Heedlessness
leads to sin,
but sin
deepens one state of heedlessness of Allah.
Unless
one is broken by one's sin.
Unless one
responds to the sin with
repentance,
with sincere
remorseful,
resolved
repentance.
Another cause of heedlessness and
just drifting.
Right? Just
drifting away
from
Allah
and the straight path to Allah is heedless
company.
Is heedless company.
The company of the heedless will make you
heedless.
And
5th thing is lack of zuhud, lack of
renunciation,
and these are interrelated.
Lack of zuhud, lack of renunciation.
Right?
You become
attached
to
the material.
You develop
attachments and you don't
have
restraint.
And a 6th
is
that you don't have a sense of purpose
in life.
Where
then are you headed? Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala
asked.
Who will to whom
will
guidance serve
as a transformative example?
Truly you have
in the messenger of Allah the most beautiful
examples for whoever seeks Allah in the last
day, whoever hopes in Allah in the last
day. So they have a purpose. What are
you doing? I'm seeking Allah. I'm seeking the
hereafter.
So if you if that is the goal,
then it affects
your
outlook and purpose,
your priority
in life.
So these are
some of the causes.
And heedlessness,
Allah
tells us regarding these.
Right?
That is Allah's promise.
And Allah does not
fail his promise.
But most people
are unaware.
They know not.
They are aware only of the outward appearances
of the life of this world.
And because what is the
of this worldly of created things?
They're pointing to Allah.
Right? Creation is a mirror
reflecting
the light of its creator.
Allah is the light of the heavens and
the earth. And that is,
they reflect
the the light of his creator. There are
signs. They point
to to him.
What appears to us is
the mere outward appearance of this worldly life.
Most people are unaware because they only know
the outward appearances
of
the life of this world.
And they are
regarding
the next life
truly heedless.
Right? And it's very interesting.
And they are
regarding
the next line.
They are truly
like, it repeats the they
for emphasis.
Right? Completely heedless.
Right? How much do you know about the
hereafter?
Not much. So then what do you mean
by that you're really
serious about the?
Describe to it.
Right?
And say, now Ali
said, I could describe
the the pathways to paradise
better than you could describe the pathways
of this life.
Right?
That's
that's the true life.
So, right, ibn Ajeebah
comments here that worldly life has an outward
form and an inward reality.
Right?
Right?
Right? The outward form
is
that
it is
enjoyment. It is things you like and dislike,
pleasing,
satisfying,
interesting.
You know? Wow.
Right?
Or, you know, whatever other
emoticons
that you have.
Right?
Right?
Ladas says the outward appearances.
The inward reality of this world, ibn Ajiba
says,
The inward reality of this life is that
it is a bridge to the next life.
Right?
That's
the reality of this life as a whole.
It's a bridge to the next life.
And the purpose of righteous deeds,
it its purpose is righteous deeds and the
realization of knowledge of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
K. So the intelligent
realize that. It's a it's a it's a
bridge.
So the provision on it is righteous deeds
and to be to truly know Allah, so
when you reach him, you are ready.
Right?
Right? And that's why Imam al Qusayri,
in his tafsir
of this verse, he says
that
the
he relates the words of that
the worth of each person
that the worth of each person is what
they master.
What what do you do well in life?
What are you good at?
Right? What are you good at?
I'm really good
at
someone
I don't know why people tell me this.
They they
they they they spent over
$1,000
on one of these war games online.
And then they asked, is it bad for
them to buy
a PS 4, a PlayStation 4,
and hide it from their wife?
And blah blah blah blah, all this all
this kind of stuff.
So what are you good at in life?
This person is very intelligent,
has a lot of skills,
doesn't maintain ties with his family,
doesn't do anything for the community,
neglectful
of his own
wife and children. What's he doing? Playing war
of whatever it is.
That's what you're good at,
and then you're
gonna
die.
K?
So
say.
K?
The worth of each person is what they
master, and the ignorant are ever at enmity
with those who
know. Right?
So strive to be good
at what matters,
which is,
you know, that which will get you to
Allah, that which counts in the hereafter.
So that's,
you know, that's how one,
you know, one has to have awareness of
it. This this life really
is
just fleeting and the promise of Allah
of the hereafter. That is what really counts.
So how does one deal with it?
Right? So what do you do about this?
Al Sulami, he says,
so.
What's the cure for this heedlessness and this
laxity and this
this kind of attitude.
To her, he says,
Right? So what I heard from Al Hussein
ibn
So Imam Junaid was asked,
What is the way
to devote oneself fully
to Allah most high?
And what is the way to be able
to devote oneself to Allah?
To actualize
one's devotion to Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
Right? So he mentioned 5 things.
Right?
Right? The first he says,
with a repentance
that break
the habit of sin.
Is to become
habitualized on something.
To become habituated to sin.
And with a repentance
that breaks the habit of sin.
And
the
is you
but it's a beautiful expression
because
the habits of sin become knotted.
Right?
So you have to identify
what is causing the habit of sin.
Right? And this is what's called successful repentance.
That unwinds.
Right?
The the
the rope end of the the of habituation
because habit there's different there's different threads that
come together
that
make it a knotted thing.
And, you know, you can
tug
in all day at a knot. You have
to identify
where is the
where is it stuck and you have to
loosen it
and break it. Right? And it requires
constant attention.
But it's but most knots are very readily
breakable. Right? And repentance does that
if you apply the art of repentance
of genuine remorse.
Genuine
resolve
to leave the sin.
Genuine commitment not to return.
Right? Genuine consideration
of whom you disobeyed.
Genuine consideration
of the debt of gratitude
you owe,
the one you disobeyed.
Right? With repentance that breaks the habit of
sin.
Right?
So one should be consistently renewing one's resolve
to repent. And all the gifts
that Allah gave the ummah of the beloved
messenger
is we are it
is valid
and sound
and accepted
to have general repentance from all sin
If you fulfill
the conditions.
You don't have to remember every sin.
Right?
You make
comprehensive
repentance, and you keep renewing that.
Right? And that's although, Majinu, Leila was told
to repent
because he was behaving kinda crazy
in love of Leila.
So he would they took him to the
Kaaba,
and there,
said, Oh lord, I repent to you from
every sin.
Except for the love of Leila.
From that, I'll never repent.
But they say,
that
you you you have to let go
of the the attachment
to particular sins. You say, oh, Allah, I
seek I repent to you from everything, except
that one thing. Because that one, I'm not
gonna let go.
You can't do that.
Right? Like, true repentance,
right, you have to
realize what it it may be that that
one sin you know, most people have a
pretty good optimistic opinion of themselves. Right? That
I'm fine. I'm generally fine. I just have
a few problems.
I'll deal with them later.
Yeah. That's the put putting off here.
You have to ask for what is your
worst problem?
You have to tackle it.
That's.
Right? Because saying, well, you know, I pray,
I fast, I give charity, I do this,
I do that.
You know? Yeah. But I have shortcoming,
Right? But you're not really tackling it. So
you have to identify what are the cords
of sin in your life, and you have
to break those.
That's number 1.
2nd,
And with a fear
that removes
from 1
all
procrastination.
Actually, Osama Cannon was saying, you know,
because he asked us he said a few
words at Telif, and as you know, he's,
you know, has ALS. Said if if I
wanted to be like that crazy guy at
the airport, I tell I I just tell
people, you're gonna
die. Right? There's but it's a beautiful, like,
Like, you know, he's
you know?
That's the reality. You're gonna die.
You're gonna stand before Allah.
Puts a very beautiful criteria that if you
want
is just
to remind yourself
that you're going to stand before Allah and
that you could die at this moment. Are
you and you're not. And then you're not
only going to stand before Allah in the
hereafter, you're standing before Allah right now.
Right?
So you have
that
awe of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
You're gonna stand before him
and you could die now, but you're standing
before him right now.
So what do you do if you know
that you're standing before him? Do what he
seeks from you
and leave
their opposite.
The third
is
And a hope
that
and it's a focused hope.
Right?
And a hope
that limits
one's aspirations
to the pathways of action.
Now what should you be hoping for?
Right?
Whoever seeks Allah in the last day, What
she right?
So what what do you seek
besides Allah?
This
the good pleasure of Allah
and the good pleasure of
those beloved to Allah. That's it. They they
say, all I want is the good pleasure
of Allah.
Yeah. That's all
yeah. The
the the, you know, the the true believer
seeks. Everything else falls under that
because
that's hope.
Right? That is hope that you seek that
which is worth seeking.
And anything worth seeking is connected with
the pathways to attain it.
K. That's focus.
With the hope that limits
your aspirations
to the pathways of acting for Allah.
So why are you starting the new start
up?
It's part of your it's your
your
plan of hope.
Right?
You have like, what what's your plan in
life?
Right? That is
how you will be realizing your hope in
the hereafter.
Right?
You live
a
an Allah focused life.
And
all your plans, etcetera, these are all how
you
will you're seeking to realize your hope in
Allah.
If it doesn't fit in that, you leave
it.
The the 4th,
and
constant remembrance of Allah.
And so what what is it
what are the keys to how you devote
yourself to Allah? Ahmed Junaid mentioned this. Repentance
that breaks the habit of sin. Fear that
lifts procrastination.
Focused hope that is connected
only to the pathways
of action.
That action that will get you to what
you are hoping for, which is Allah and
the last day.
Right?
And the 5th,
And the 5th is to shaming one's lower
self, meaning one's desires and whims. So desire
pops up.
A whimsical
thought pops up.
By reminding it
of how
close is one's
how close is the end of one's life
and how distant one is from one's aspiration.
K?
So these these are 5 and this is,
you know,
there's a lot to think about there. Right?
We ask a lot to realize this then.
Then
he was asked this question by someone very
intelligent. Right? The questioner was pretty special.
Relates that Junaid was asked.
That benefit of good
if of good company is not just what
you can
seek from the good company, but what is
found
in that good company.
K. Because where much of what you gain
from good company is not what you are
seeking,
but what do you find right there?
Like, by the questions of others, for example.
But that's a lot of stuff to do.
So the the question was asked,
how do I these are 5 things to
do. There's repentance and hope and remembrance and
so the question are asked.
So with what will the servant attain these
qualities?
These five things that you need
to truly devote yourself to Allah.
So Imam
al Junaid
summarized.
Right? He said,
Right? So, Imam al Junaid was asked, how
does one the servant achieve this
this comprehensive
devotedness to Allah?
He said,
right,
with a with a singularized
heart,
right,
that has pure divine oneness.
K?
The singularized heart,
what do you want?
You don't have a list of things you
want.
You know, like,
the heart
The heart can only have one face.
Otherwise,
it's
out of focus. Right? It's not that that's
not a living heart. It's a heart that
maybe has a potential of life,
but it's not it's not living.
Right?
My singular heart. A heart,
that has been singularized
for Allah.
Right? And if you live that singular concern
for Allah,
what would be found in it?
Knowledge of Allah.
Right? The best thing that you can know,
you know, the the worth of a person
is what they know well.
The best thing that you can know well
is to know Allah.
Oh, Allah, what is one ignorant of who
knows you?
And what does one know who is ignorant
of you?
K.
This is,
you know, by putting Allah
before everything else.
Right?
And striving for a state where one is
conscious of Allah without anything else.
Right?
So this is,
you know,
Imam
laying out these big,
you know, these big,
blame worthy traits, as we'll see.
They they they get briefer. These are very
comprehensive.
Right?
And
but they they also remind us this heedlessness
and putting things off, etcetera.
All of them,
right,
return
to a lack of purpose.
Right? A lack of purpose.
Right? And that's why the of all of
all these,
right, they say,
is the key. Why?
Because everything else is much harder
than. Like, if you if we recap just
for a moment,
you consider everything else you have to do.
Right? The 5 cures that imam,
Right? The imam of this
of the spiritual path.
Right? It says, each of these is tough.
Repentance that breaks the habit of sin. That's
difficult.
Yeah. It's what are what are the things
that cause you
to become habituated to a sin?
K. What's going to make you
really repent?
Is they these are something that is
that drives that.
What will nurture the fear?
That wards off procrastination.
What's going to give you that focused hope?
Right?
What's going to allow you
to shame yourself? Like, when you get that
bad thought, you'll be like, what are you
talking about? Right? Like,
k?
Like, someone's busy with the one they love
and someone says, you know, can we can
we talk a little bit?
Like,
I mean,
you're not even going to pay attention to
them. Right?
Yeah. Finally,
brother Jack
got married to sister Jill.
K?
And it's their first night together.
And there's
brother Rehan calling.
He's not gonna say, hold on. Let me
talk to Rehan for a little bit. I
wanna talk about his coffee business. No. You're
gonna ignore him. Alright. So you treat,
like, the the thoughts of your lower self,
your whims, or they're that silly friend of
yours,
Bob. He just calls, hey. What's up? That's
Wim. So Rehan's, you like your nephews? Let's
go get coffee.
Right?
Whereas Bob is just like, yo, what's up?
Why you call? Just nothing.
Now if you're really busy with the one
you love,
you're not gonna
pay attention to them. You're gonna be like,
what is like,
and to the extent you're busy, you're not
you're gonna put your nafs and women silent.
It's a do not disturb.
All of this is fueled by constant
remembrance of Allah.
Right? That is the facilitative
means. All the other parts of the spiritual
path require a lot more effort than the
remembrance of Allah Which is why the prophetic
council
was and
is
Keep your tongue moist with the remembrance of
Allah. Yeah.
So we ask Allah
to make us
of the.
And a lot can be said about about
dhikr, but
constant dhikr.
Right?
And also the very the the, you know,
the the the all the different types of
sunnah dhikrs
to adopt them, to make them habits
in
in one's life because that is the fuel
for all other change in the spiritual path,
in the path of acquiring
those virtues. Right? Allah says,
I am the sitting companion
of the one who remembers me.
So that's the state you that Dhikr can
get you into.
So now Jack's with Jill.
Suddenly, Rehan doesn't seem that interesting anymore.
Right?
So what if you you're with Allah?
Then Naf says,
come on. Join me for a little bit
of sin.
He like
right? That's
why you say what? Right? When when the
dawn rises,
there's no more need for a lamp.
When the when dawn breaks,
no lamps are needed.
Right? And that's the, you know, that's the
purpose of zikr.
Right? That,
we ask Allah
to enable us to be of the people
of the
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