A Commentary on the Hadith Qudsi on Becoming Allah’s Beloved
Hamza Tzortzis – Attaining Divine Love
AI: Summary ©
The Hadith is a belief that one who shows emnity to a friend is the one who wins war against them. The importance of language and shaping behavior and deeds is emphasized, along with the importance of serving others during the pandemic. Prayer, fasting, commitment, and staying in touch with one's spiritual presence are emphasized. The history and importance of Islam are highlighted, including the rise of spirituality and fulfilling obligations, and the need to build up spirituality and do service to others, particularly during the pandemic. The speakers stress the importance of serving others, particularly during the pandemic, and avoiding harming others' health and showing love for oneself.
AI: Summary ©
Bismillah al Rahman al Rahim in Alhamdulillah wa Salatu was Salam ala Rasulillah Assalamu alaykum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh. brothers, and sisters and friends and welcome to this very important video with me I have our beloved chef chef Alia. So now when it comes to love Maharlika how are you? Federal humbling yourself Alhamdulillah can't complain at all. I love bless you. I mean, I mean you to share. So brothers and sisters, what we're going to be going through is a very famous Hadith. It's a hadith that many love but sometimes we don't really know the implications of this hadith, or the commentary of this hadith, including myself. So I'm very ignorant when it comes to this hadith,
but we have a love for this hadith because it's about love. Okay. And I'm just going to hand it over to the chef and his student. I'm going to be taking notes asking questions if need be. But I'm going to allow the chef just to give us some amazing insights with regards to this hadith and it's a hadith curtsy, which is which is something that the Sheikh is going to explain as well. So brothers and sisters, please get your pen and paper take some notes and hopefully it will be a transformative experience a transformative video inshallah. So, this militia,
this ruler
Alhamdulillah Habib Alameen wa Salatu was Salam ala Baraka ala Sayidina Muhammad and while early he will be here in
a shadow Allah Allahu Allahu wa ala Shetty color wash Edwin Mohammed and abhor Sunnah wa Joseph mana hearing of style Hamza for inviting me on again to your show and for allowing us to discuss or as you put it, teach but I'll use we'll discuss this particular Hadith. The hadith is it's a sound Hadith, it's in saleable Hari are right towards the end.
It's also famous for being in the 40 Hadith collection of Imam nawawi where Imam nawawi Clegg's, 4142 Hadith, each Hadith, or statement of the prophets are awesome signifies one of the great principles of Islam. And this hadith is Hadith number 37, or perhaps 38. So again, it shows the significance of this hadith as one of the great principles of Islam.
In the books of sound does gear and spirituality this hadith has,
perhaps along with two or three other a hadith has a place of pride and joy. It's one of the great crowning glories of prophetic instruction, in terms of spiritual matters, in terms of journeying to Allah, in terms of
being drawn towards the divine love towards them of love of Allah subhanaw taala as you quite rightly said, the Hadith says it has love at its center. And it is transformative and it teaches us a way to be transformed through this way of love.
And it's as you rightly said as well it's a hadith kotse that is to say that the prophets of Allah holism said that Allah said
so the Hadith starts by saying that Abu Hurayrah may Allah be pleased pleased with him Radi Allahu Anhu relates that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, God Allah Jota Allah that Allah Exalted is He said, Nana had le Walia in fact, had done to who Bill
Tucker Robert Realejo appdb che in a heartbeat. Ilya mcdata Who la wala Zollo Abdi caribou lair, Ben noir Phil had thought a hippo for either either Bob Tahoe gone to some a whole levy yes ma'am obey or bus or a whole levy up Ruby? Well, yeah, the whole Lottie optische Obey. were originally the whole Letty Yong chi behalf while they insert Eleni la Odeon now, while in the state attorney, oh already then know
that the profits are awesome said that Allah said and this is the rough translation. Allah Exalted is He declares, whoever shows emnity to a friend of mine a Wally of mine, I shall be at war with him.
My servant does not draw closer to me with anything more beloved to me, than the religious obligations I have enjoined on him. And my servant continues to draw closer to me with the optional deeds, such that I love him and when I love him, I am his hearing with which he is his seeing with which he see
Is his hand with which he strikes and his foot with which he walks. Were he to ask something of me, I would surely give it to him. And were he to ask me for refuge, I would surely grant in it Subhan Allah. So this is the Hadith which is often known in our tradition as Hadith no arfield. The hadith about optional deeds,
which is mentioned here. Sometimes it's referred to as Hadith, Wali, the Hadith concerning Allah's friend, and we'll come to those two terms later on.
So Allah says, mana adder Liwa, LeighAnn facut, then Taco Bell herb, so we can perhaps break up the Hadith into five parts. The first part, whoever shows emnity, to a friend of mine, I will be at war with him.
The second part, my servant doesn't draw closer to me with anything more beloved to me than the obligations or the obligatory duties I have enjoined on him. The third part, my servant continues to draw closer to me through the optional days until I love him. The fourth part, and when I love him, I am his hearing which he hears he's seeing with which he sees until the end of that clause or sentence. And the fifth part words were he to ask are asked me of anything, I will give him it were he to seek refuge in Me, I would grant him it.
So those five five parts form this incredibly important Hadith. As I mentioned, it's one of the great crowning glories of of spiritual instruction in the Islamic tradition in our in our religion in our deen
and it starts with Manohar. durley. Well, Ian Thakur the dancehall Bill herb, whoever shows emnity
hatred, malice, Ill Will rankle and add whoever shows emnity to a friend of mine, a Wali
of mine, I will be at war with him. So the first thing that this hadith does is it grabs our entire attention. It makes our ears prick up, why, because whoever shows emnity to a friend of mine, I will be at war with him. And it instills a sense of trepidation or fear. And it begs that question.
I mean, it begs the attitude who would want to have war waged against them by a lot? Nobody? No believer would. And then it begs the obvious question, who is the friend or the Wali? Okay, so who? To whom hostility if we're hostile towards it, it invites war from Allah.
Okay, it can't be that question can't be overlooked. An ad only really and then to hope will help. Whoever shows emnity to a friend of mine. I will wage war against him who is the Wali for whom hostility towards invites this great calamity that no one will be able to withstand?
The hadith itself doesn't tell us who the Wali is.
Generally the prophets Allah Allah Allah isms, instructions and teachings
are not scholastic in the sense of how we would learn it as students of knowledge from our aroma our teachers or how scholars themselves would teach it. That kind of unpacking prophetic guidance and revealed guidance. That unpacking of the Scholastic tradition is something that a minority of human beings, believers do scholars students of knowledge, those who want to be instructed in the deeper, more formal ideas of religion, but for the vast majority of Muslims
it's that kind of deep scholarly knowledge isn't required, but an overall idea is required. And that's really important to understand the prophets of Allah Olufsen his message is for scholar and non scholar is for the educated and the not so educated is for the academic is for the farmer, the baker, the stat candlestick maker, it's for all of humanity. So the Hadith doesn't define who the Wali is. But those who would have heard these words, the prophets of Allah awesomes, direct disciples or companions, or may Allah be pleased with them or or even non Muslims at the time of the Prophet Salah Lawson, who would have heard of this would have known that the word wali as an Arabic
word is related to the idea of Wilaya
and Wilaya
has the connotation of love,
loyalty
closeness,
devotion,
dedication.
So the Wali
who has this Wilaya is someone who is loyal to someone else devoted to them, loves them, wants to be drawn close to them, is amiable to them is friendly to them. And so in the English language, we tend to translate the word Wally. And it's not, you know, it's not a perfect translation, by all means, but we tend to translate the word wali as the friend of God,
the close friend of God or sometimes, saint.
Now,
I know.
I know that some people who might hear this will think, oh, you know, but we don't have an eye. We don't have this Catholic idea, or Christian idea of saints. Well, yes and no, we don't have the Christian idea of saints in the way Christians have the idea of saints. But we do have the idea that from the Quran itself from the teachings of the Prophet salallahu, Alaihe, salam, and so on, and from the collective agreement of the Alomar that some people seek salvation, just to be safe from the fire full stop.
Salvation.
And some people yearn for sanctification in that, yes, they want to be safe from the fire, but they want to be drawn closer to the presence of God Himself.
Or as Imam Ibn Al Al Rahmatullah Ali puts it and he is not unique in this people before him. Oh, huzzah. Lee Rahmatullah la for example, our or slightly after chef de cada al Gilani, Rahim Allah would express it in the same way, there are believers who work for rewards.
I pray inshallah Allah will give me x y Zed, in this world, and in in the hereafter. So there are those who work for rewards and their relationship with Allah subhanaw taala is very much like a trader. I give you this, Oh Allah, you give me something else in return. So those are the traders as Allah bizarrely cause and or if not, okay, and cause them the workers, the working class.
And then there are the lovers.
The workers work for salvation, the lovers, the more hipbone work for sanctification.
If this language seems strange to us, it's not because it's strange to the Islamic tradition, or to the Scholastic tradition of classical Islam. It's simply that we Muslims, we can't dissociate ourselves from the highly secular materialistic de spiritualize culture. That is the modern world today. And
unbeknown to many of us, will Slim's We are deeply affected by it. And we have turned a deeply spiritual way of life, or religion into a highly moralistic religion. So the peak of religion now is morality, Do this, don't do that. Do do do don't, don't don't.
That's right, this is wrong.
And morality is definitely part of religion.
Absolutely part of religion. But morality points, there's something deeper, a deeper ethical tradition, a deeper spiritual tradition, which we tend to
forget. But anyway.
The word wali which I'm now going to flip between the word friend of Allah
and St. Because there are some people who want to be close to Allah for salvation, but there are a few who wants to be close due to sanctification, workers and lovers.
Friend and St. Just a quick question that comes to my mind. So obviously, we want to be lovers of Allah subhanho wa taala. We want Allah to love us as well, which is central to this hadith. A quick question. Does it also include with regards to being of the lovers of Allah and wanting to be sanctified in that way that we want to have Allah's love and special love and for us to love him?
Doesn't also include that we also do deeds because
He has He's worthy of those deeds and we want, we want the reward of the Beloved. So it's not, is it just, it's not like a dichotomy is basically there's the workers who want rewards for sure. But the lovers, they want Allah's love, they want to love Allah, but they also want the reward because they see it as coming from the beloved, is that true? Beautiful?
And you're absolutely right in what you say, because it's unimaginable for a believer
to not want to do the works of love, found the works of faith.
And nor is it unimaginable, or nor is it imaginable for any believer that they will do the works of faith but not want the love of Allah know, every Muslim, whatever category we may put them in for the sake of discussion.
Wish to love to do works of faith
and love that Allah love them. However, it's the degree to which those things take over our life. Okay, brilliant. So the vast majority of us we have some yearning for Allah.
But our love is dissipated towards other things, even if it's halal things
whereby there are times we remember Allah intensely and there are times where not that we forget a lot. But there are other loves that we have in our lives that overtake divine love.
And the yearning, that pining for Allah
isn't really there but there is some level of love.
And then there are those who
Jana just wouldn't be Jana, if they couldn't be in the presence of Allah
and that overtakes their lives. And it's not a claim that is made with mouths I love Allah. And if you go to a bar, Ali's profile pic on social media, I've got that eye with a heart, love and then Allah that's our it's on my bumper sticker on my car. No one can see that these are yours. These are lovers. Simply because we understand when when Majnoon is deeply in love with Leila, when Romeo deeply your loves Juliet, we generally know the psychological signs of the lover, because they do manifest themselves. So there are some people who are like that, okay. And because Islam is a religious way of life, a spiritual way of life, which encompasses all types of human beings, then
there are always going to be human beings, in whom love so predominates, that it's not just that they worship Allah because he's deserving of it. They worship Allah purely for his love, and his reward. The rewards that they get for worship, prayer, fasting and other acts of obedience.
It's almost by the by,
they are not motivated by the rivers of milk and honey, the palaces of pearls and gold and silver in paradise, even though that is from Allah and they recognize that, that the Most Generous Lord, but they want a lot. So we go back to the Quran as an as an example. And the Quran is full of beautiful exemplars, and one of the exemplars on law gives us is the lady asiyah, the wife of Pharaoh.
So at some point, her husband, the pharaoh discovered she is a Muslim, she is a follower of Moses, she believes in the message message of Musa Ali Salaam. And he's enraged, and just as he's killed and slaughtered other followers of Moses within his court and within his palace, he's going to do the same with his wife now, irrespective of how much he did or didn't love her, so he buries her neck deep in, in the burning hot sand. Okay, knowing that a few hours of this agonizing heat your roasted death and you're dehydrate and die, an agonizing painful death. And the
quotes though the art or the final words of her or, or from her final words, and from her final words as she is dying, she says, Oh Allah, grant me a house
in your presence in paradise, so it's not enough for her to say grant me a house in paradise.
But it has to be in your presence.
Because those lovers who in this world were
As the Prophet sallallahu Sallam says, in the Hadith Jibreel, in the Hadith for the angel Gabriel, what is S and spiritual excellence and dab with Allah and Nikita, that you worship Allah as though seeing Him, those who have been gifted and it is a gift by Allah, of worshiping Allah with presence of heart so that the spiritual either ain't all about theater sees Allah, the spiritual heart sees Allah not the eyes of the head, which is for the hereafter.
Then, as the scholar say, oh Jazza Min Jin cyl Amma, the recompense is proportional to the deed. They're trying to worship Allah as though seeing him they are gifted with seeing him in his in the very presence.
So there are those people in the Quran speaks about. If again, if we are unfamiliar with that.
I would like to reassure
the listeners and I don't believe there are many, many of your listeners who would dealt with this or who would be who would not believe that this is part of Islam, but I would like to reassure the listeners. This is pure orthodoxy.
No scholar of have Allison novalja Ma, of Sunni orthodoxy of mainstream orthodoxy, orthodox Islam has ever doubted this, these ideas, whether they, whether they've discussed them or not in their writings, or those who have how much they have discussed them or not. That's a different question. But it's an idea that is as rooted in Islam as anything else as praying five times a day as fasting in Ramadan, for example,
that there are those who worship Allah, predominantly, through acts of loving love, not really seeking any specific physical reward and remember all of January's created
so they don't seek created rewards, they just seek ALLAH and then there are those who seek ALLAH for sure. But they also seek rewards from Allah subhanaw taala am both of those are good. Both of those are Eman. No one can deny them. It's just that one is higher and pure than the other. And merely because I don't have that yearning or aspiration, it doesn't mean I deny from others. Sure. So going back to this volley, friend or St.
Those Muslims who would have first heard this word would have understood that there are people that the Wali being spoken of, in this in this hadith is, is a wali because of a Wilaya I love loyalty, devotion of focus and commitment to Allah subhanaw taala and the will to draw close to Him the desire to draw close them. Of course,
each individual will have this Wilaya this loyalty, love and yearning to draw closer like different levels.
There will be different levels of Wilaya or wali ship, friendship with Allah or Saint ship with Allah but the first set of Muslims would have understood that it's about devotion, friendship, saintliness towards Allah's manner to Allah and awkward answers
about the Wali that in the old era, in the old era, in Hola Hola, la joven Allah him who Allah whom ye has unknown Alladhina amanu where can we get the cone? Indeed the Olia of Allah which is the plural of Wally. Wally Alia, Singular plural. Indeed the friends of Allah no fear shall come upon them. Neither shall they agree. A Lavina. Abdominal or can or yet the cone. Who are these only are these Wally's. Those who have a man
and have Taqwa those who believe and have piety or fear of God.
It's probably worth saying here even though it's not necessary to know this to just get the
the idea of wali but it's in the Islamic tradition as an aqidah as a point of belief, Muslim belief and it's in the AKI the Tao and the texts of aqidah Dalia
that we believe because the Wali is a livina M and o akan. Or yet the corn the one who has Eman and Dakwah. Then every believer by definition, from the most saintly to the most sinful Muslim, has some level of Eman faith and has some level of Taqwa.
Okay?
Which means that every Muslim every believer by definition, has some wali ship or friendship with Allah which is why
As an anarchy, the point as a point of Muslim creed, we believe as stated in the aqidah to Tao, we're a minnow on Kulu, whom only are Ramnad. The believers, all of them are friends of Allah Most Merciful.
Why? Because every Muslim every believer has some level of Eman and has some level of Duckworth of piety and fear of God.
But that's volley in the general sense, but that's really not what's sought after that I have one ounce, half an ounce of worship and the rest of my life is lived in disobedience and forgetfulness and rebelliousness allows one or two other but hey, I have I have a mustard seeds worth of Eman and Taqwa therefore I am a Muslim by definition Alhamdulillah that's not really what's been spoke of, let alone sought after. It's when Eman is filling the heart. It's when the soul is illuminated and attached to divine guidance, obedience, loving submission, journeying to Allah, turning their backs on haram, even turning their backs on things that Allah hasn't made haram but dislikes. That's the
type of wali that this hadith as we will soon see is really speaking about. So, general level, every Muslim is a wali of Allah, but not in the sense that we conventionally use it. Conventionally our lost friends are only our are the saints who have devoted themselves entirely and exclusively to him, and are under Allah's constant protection, care, and solicitude.
This is the is the friendship or the Wilaya that the Hadith wants us to yearn for, and aspire to, and ultimately put at the center of our lives. Right.
So that's the idea of wali and Wilaya. And then the whole Hadith after grabbing our attention that these people, you show me towards them, and you could be inviting we could be inviting war of Allah against us now the bill lemon, garlic, May Allah save us from that calamity. Now that it's grabbed our attention and it's instilled in us a sense of fear, and it's, it's, it begs in us the question one who is this Wally, and then we found out the Wali is related to Wilaya love loyalty, being close to seeking closeness to a particular thing or person, in this case, Allah, then the rest of the Hadith. Okay, the next two parts of the Hadith unfold, will how do we as individual Muslims make
this worship or Wilaya part of our practical lives?
Okay. Which really, beyond more than teaching Islam, more than doing talks more than dower more than service to parents more than charity more than more than it's got to be the believers concern. It's got to be the Muslims vocation. That actually, if someone asked me What is Islam in a nutshell, it's about becoming a wali of Allah becoming his friend, and close as one of my teachers, one of the one of the spiritual masters, spiritual chefs of our time. He's, he said, we come into this world as a last slaves. Let us not leave this world except as a last friends.
And once we just have that simplistic teaching, it doesn't require a PhD It doesn't require studying some deep theological texts at the feet of scholars for several months or several years. It's just something that any ordinary Muslim could really understand and internalize that I'm Allah slave I'm brilliant I'll handle in one sense that was the highest epithet that any any human being could had the slave of God fantastic, but just to kind of give it a spin that the ordinary heart and mind relates to we generally slave okay but friend all even though the word ad itself is of the highest quality as we know.
But we we want to leave this word as unmasked friend.
It makes my Islam my outlook on what it means to be a Muslim, wholly different.
I'm seeking friendship with Allah. I want to be Allah's friend. I want a lot of be my friend. I want to have that love and affinity
to Allah, I want all of you back. It puts a different spin on what it means to be a Muslim. No, it actually tells us that the whole journey can be one of joy.
When we understand that it's about becoming beloved to Allah, a friend of Allah, to hubub, illa Allah.
But if it's, I'm a slave of God, He is the master, and I am the servant. And there are duties, that's good.
But it could also be a chore, it could you people, we generally as Muslims, we internalize it as a chore.
And so sometimes when we come across a Christian, and the Christian is, rightly or wrongly, or however they express it, they're talking about the love of God, even if they may use the word love of love of Christ. And then we say, Yeah, but we were about, were about doing deeds. It's a slave master relationship. They look very puzzled.
One, it reminds them of the Jews, the Jews and the Old Testament. And they think, Well, you know, the New Testament has come to supersede all of that. We've spiritually matured. But more importantly, when we don't tell them that we have a slave master relationship, which is a reality. But that reality includes the idea that it can be a love, love, relationship. But the love lover relationship is never isn't,
is never dissolved, or sorry, the lover lover relationship
never negates the slave master relationship, because the reality is, we are needy, and Allah's not in need. Allah is the Owner. And We own nothing except our own sins.
And there is no fudging that equation. And so therefore Allah is the master, and we are always the slave.
But the slave can be a lover.
And that's something unfortunately, we tend to miss out in our own personal aspiration and journey, and in communicating it to others and servitude is an expression of love anyway, it could be except that as an English word servitude, it tends to have more negative connotations. And words, the meanings of words, or make a huge difference. So even though the word servitude to you and me, is honorable, is of the highest degree of spiritual excellence, or Bodia, or abdiel. However, we want to put the Arabic on it. But when the I suspect when the average English speaking, non Muslim, here's servitude, they think of something of the slave trade, the negative type of slavery, that
it's all about the whip over us, and so on and so forth. And so we might find that
there's nothing wrong with the concept or Bodia. But we might want to
either change the translation or bring in a few words that might explain it. Yes, servitude in Islam is about God being the Lord master, but it's also about commitment and commitment is normally associated with a degree of love. Yes, yes. And that's fine. As long as we're not fudging the matter that
that we are thorough.
Yeah, you're living in an animal for Cara Yeah, who another animal for Cara, Allah who will run your honey answers. Are you a people of mankind? You are the needy ones. And Allah He is Allah, honey, the independent needing nothing outside of themselves worthy of all praise? Yes. Allah doesn't need our worship, he doesn't need us. He doesn't need us to have faith in Him. Allah is Allah.
But we're but this hadith is
talking about getting us to think in a slightly different way or adding some some ingredient to this relationship. So that's Wali, and if we get that and if that's all we left with, right kind of like walked out the door from this video.
That would be a good thing that Subhan Allah, I have been created to have a wali ship with Allah.
Well, I better listen to the rest of this hadith because this hadith then tells me how to have this worldly ship with Allah. Well, part two have been begun with fear.
Whoever shows them in a TITO
undermine I will be at war with him. Fear of being on the wrong side of Allah subhanaw taala. Or by being on the wrong side of his Olia Okay, there is an ethical point here. Since every Muslim is a Wali, at some degree, some Muslims are more, have a more worldly ship with Allah than others.
Do we really want to be annoying, upsetting, harming, having ill will against any Muslim to planula because whoever shows emnity to a friend of mine, I will be at war with him. So if I don't have a shadier justification
of having emnity towards another Muslim, another believer, and only in the degree that Allah allows, because each sin might be different violation of our law, right may be different
than I could be finding in my day to day life.
The reason why my life isn't blessed,
and I don't feel the sweetness of worship.
And religiously I feel dry inside. It might not be because I haven't studied enough I haven't attended so many courses, it might simply be because in my life on a daily basis, I have beef with Muslims,
practicing on practicing righteous, not so righteous. And each of them has a Wilaya with Allah and at some point, some of these have a Wilaya a friendship with Laura St. She with Allah in a way that Allah is very displeased that we are upset or angry with them or have bad, bad feelings against them for no justified reason.
The safest thing would be is just to treat every Muslim with the risk with respect. And if there's if Allah is waging war against you, you're never going to win. Absolutely. It's unfair. I mean, there is there is a chance that Ukraine may be able to stave off the Russian attack through European help in some form or fashion or Russia just might get tired or worn out. That's not going to happen with God.
And this has an implication from a doubt perspective, because sometimes when this is some a phobia, this seems to mean attacking against Islam from a worldview ideological perspective, then really the waging war against the friends of Allah, and then
a lower wage war against you, and you're never going to win that war. But that also for us means that we should now try to increase our degree of being a friend of Allah subhanho wa taala. So we are protected. And we will have that protection from Allah Subhana Allah
Subhan Allah, that's why people who are engaged in Dawa shouldn't just talk, there should be friends of Allah. Because if you're on the frontline, you're an ambassador for Islam, and you're dealing with these ideological challenges, we're going to get that heat, we're going to get that aggression or we're going to get that kind of challenge. But in order for us to be protected, and for us to have a lot to have our backs, if you like, then increase your friendship with Allah subhanaw taala. And that includes what you're going to be discussing concerning the kind of spiritual deeds, the acts of worship. And that's why it's so important when we're somehow disheartened or we feel, you
know, we're losing a sense of hope, when it comes to Islam and you know, some of phobia and attacks against Muslims, and so on and so forth. Then it's not just about talking, doing videos and doing all of this data. But an essential element of it is that you have to be close to Allah subhanho wa taala. Do acts of worship, worship Allah love Allah, do the things that's recommended in this hadith, and then Allah would will take care of everything, Subhan Allah, you know, we can literally wrap up at this point, because that is just spot on Subhan Allah, bless your sloth, it's exactly as it should be.
And I suspect that it's not that we don't have that basic knowledge of Islam to realize that what you said is exactly how it should be. It's that we tend to lack the will to carry it out. There are some of us who don't know, but I suspect that most of us have a rough idea and overall idea that that's how it should be. But we lacked the will. And one of the reasons we lacked the will is because we're not motivated by Divine Love.
Or we're not motivated enough by divine love. So part two, so part two of the Hadith flips, it starts with fear. And now it talks about love. So it instills fear of us. And then the very next thing it does is that it's in a very surprising manner because you don't think it's coming but it says My servant doesn't draw closer to me with anything more beloved to me than the obligatory duties then then the fluoride
Okay,
So, if our attention was caught by by fear at the beginning,
it's now magnetized by love
Subhan Allah
so Allah subhanaw taala is saying in this hadith kotse, that the Prophet sallallaahu Salam said that on the last day, and it's slightly different than the Quran because the prophets are some says, what Allah puts in his mouth of Quran exactly as Allah says it and according to the majority of the scholars, in a hadith Bootsy, the prophets lost me saying what Allah says, but in the prophets own words,
that is the majority of definition there is some discussion about how accurate or not that is, but that is a good working definition for the time being.
And we don't want to get into that because we have a more important focus. So Allah says that more than anything else in this hadith, he loves the obligations, the fluoride and what is what is the fluoride, it's fulfilling the obligatory
and keeping away from the Haram, all of that is included under the word fluoride.
So at the beginning of our journey,
okay, we may not be very lovable,
because we're not doing the deeds of love. Or we're doing one deed of love, you know, say, in when I was growing up in the, in the 70s, and 80s.
It was a norm for most Muslims in Muslim communities in the UK, it's I can't speak outside of the UK, that, no doubt at all, all effort would be, would be, would be focused in praying the Juma prayer, even if all the other prayers that the 34 other prayers of the of the wing or laboratory hadn't been prayed, but don't miss JAMA, how can you miss a job? Okay, there were one or two people one or 2% it was not drama, you can't miss Eat, Pray. Right. Okay.
So, most of the time, we're not doing lovable deeds, we're actually missing lovable deeds. So we're not that lovable. We're incredibly not lovable. Okay, so in the beginning of our journey, we may not be very lovable, but this is the way you framed it. Because, according to this hadith, the Fuhrer it, the obligatory actions
are deeds of love. So imagine we bring up our children, and describe these actions as deeds of love Subhanallah, everything changes. So it's a different framing. And that's why language is so important. It is it is. And
I mean, I know that you're, you're very conscientious about your language as well, Mashallah. And you're and as you've rightly said, that language is important.
One of the things that
we need to pay more attention to
is language and the way things are said not just what is said but how things are set. The Quran doesn't just come down in any older Arabic. It comes down in the purest, most inspirational, most poetic, okay, language that can not just intellectually grab your intention, but it can move souls and transform hearts. It's and the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam when he spoke, he spoke that level of force have pure Arabic. Okay, he's speaking to those who also speak pure Arabic, but he's also speaking to many of those who don't speak pure Arabic. He's speaking to those who are not Arabs by nature, that Arabic speakers by nature, they are, you know, they have learned Arabic as a
secondary language and he's speaking to them in the finest Arabic. Why? Because existential truths universal truths sometimes need to be expressed in the most eloquent manner for them to make the impact on the on the mind or the heart. Yes.
And so when we listen to people, and this is something that I encourage all my students I have been encouraging for over two or three decades.
Really read books, not just written about Islam, but are written well about Islam because there does seem to be
an incredible lack of literacy
and the ability to articulate well
in the Muslim communities today, so if we look at if we go to files or Waterstones and pick up a book written by a non Muslim, Christian atheists and see the level of English and then you pick up a book written by a Muslim and it's worse when it comes from so called scholars or students of knowledge,
who some who there are too many of us whose English is actually inadequate for that
Ask. And of course, even though it's Allah who transformed souls, but Allah gives means us about. And one of those means is beautiful language in English language. And an English can be
very beautiful, very poetic and we need to really get over this idea that all do Farsi, Turkish Arabic, absolutely These are beautiful languages.
But the English has shown itself in its literature, not necessarily in its Islamic religious literature, but just in its literature to be highly beautiful. Why are we not caught in that beauty?
Why are we, you know, anyway, so that's something some of our books have been written by machines.
You can't connect with the language, although although by Ziff, people, they have no love. They don't have any emotions. So going back to your point, so maybe we want to start parenting less with our wagging finger, and more with the setting of introducing our children to deeds of loving submission or deeds of commitment, as well as well as the fear of God. Because initially when we are young and not so spiritually, spiritually mature, we need more of a stick than a carrot. But it's not that there is no carrot. It means that there just needs to be the stick because the knifes is much more in control when the mouse is in control. There needs to be a stick, no doubt at all. So in
terms of part two, you're saying that
Allah subhana wa Tada says that nothing is more beloved to Allah than the flora it defies the obligation. And to be clear, even though I don't think any clarity is needed. Feride praying the five daily prayers, fasting in the month of Ramadan, given the obligatory wealth tax of zakat,
keeping away from the forbidden.
Not seeing the Haram things with the eyes, listening with the ears, not drinking or eating haram food, for example. Not stealing or cheating. Yes, for sure. So the thing is, in Ramadan, for example, people love to do the tearaway prayers. And some people don't even do the fluoride. And we have to remind them that and Ramadan is coming close
rum and so they have to re reevaluate the connection with Allah and understand that they have to focus on the Fuhrer it, like Allah loves the five daily prayers more than the tarawih prayers, but many brothers, especially in our communities, the like, they may not be praying five times a day, but they're going to go to the mosque and pray the supernatural prayer of the that book, The Night pray or the taraweeh prayer, right. And they think they're achieving something but this is a delusion, right. And they have to really, and we have to remind them, and although it comes from a good place, you know, they still have an maybe an element of Iman and love for Allah. But we have to
show them the correct way on how to achieve that. And that is you have to focus on the photo, absolutely.
My servant doesn't draw closer to me with anything more beloved to me than the Feride the the obligatory duties. And as you quite rightly said, the taraweeh is not from the obligations. It's coming from a beautiful place. But it's a misplaced beauty. It needs to come along, after praying the obligatory Of course. And it could be just cultural as well, we have to admit that it could be nothing to do with love. It could just be cultural, indeed, because everyone's doing it. It's part of my I don't know, Pakistani or Tunisian or Moroccan or Bengali cultural tradition, and this is what we do, right? But there's no escaping this reality, which is that
when we do these obligations and turn away from the Haram, then that is the most lovable way of drawing closer to Allah and of approaching him okay. hamdulillah Good, okay. That's really the reality. It's when we're fulfilling the five pillars of Islam. We're keeping our promises. We're making good on our on our oaths and commitments, when we're guarding our tongue against backbiting, slandering,
tail caring and the other hat arms, when we're fulfilling the religious obligations, keeping away from the religious prohibitions, that is the most lovable way of drawing closer to Allah subhanaw taala that is, those are the deeds of love. Okay, whereby the Divine Love comes pouring down on us. This is where the hubbub Illa, Allah Bhima, Yehuda, at the hubbub in Allah Bhima Yalda, becoming beloved to Allah by doing that which pleases Him, actually begins to take concrete shape
in
All eyes becomes manifested, in a way pleasing to ALLAH SubhanA to Allah.
If we're a bit rusty on what these obligations are beyond five daily prayers and fasting in Ramadan, it is absolutely imperative that we spend half an hour with our local imam in the masjid, or getting a decent book. Okay, a small little book, just to remind us of some of the basic obligations. Because there are a few more obligations than just praying. five daily prayers and fasting in Ramadan. In fact, you can find religious people, those who you know, we use the word religious or religiously observant, who may pray and fast and read Quran a lot. But when it comes to guarding their tongue against haram, it's not happening when it comes to fulfilling their, their their
promises and their contracts and their agreements. It's not happening when it comes to dividing out inheritance because parents have passed away. It's not happening, about all of those things are also obligatory. When I sign a contract at work, that I work these hours and I do this work, I can't then be skiving off and say, Well, you know what our, it's our just instead of taking 10 minutes for my prayer, which is an obligation to pray, I would just take 45 minutes with my prayer and do it really slowly. Because actually, I'm only allowed 20 minutes to break for example, then I need to fulfill whatever I want to personally fulfill in that time and there's enough time for that. without
actually breaking my contract and my commitment to my work. It's it's the same thing with Juma prayers drummer is important. It's an obligation for Muslim men.
It's not an obligation for Muslim women. But that doesn't mean that I can then park my car in someone else's drive or in front of someone else's you're off street parking drive such they cut their car can't get out because I think I have the excuse have should have because I'm going to the mosque No, I need to go to the masjid park my car in a way that is not obstructing someone else's right. And that is just as part as much as Islam. So this the photo includes the that you do not violate the rights of others. Absolutely. You fulfill the rights of others that are absolutely in charlatan, and it's something maybe we're a bit slow to take up the shore.
Third point so these are deeds of love. Okay, where we're doing is this part three, now we're going to be doing a part three. So part two was that the ferocity, the obligations, they are the works of love, the deeds of love, loving submission to Allah subhanaw taala loving obedience. Then the Hadith continues, then my servant draws closer to then my servant continues to draw closer to me, with optional actions, no orphan
such that I love him.
And this is where this is probably
the central message of this hadith in terms of wali ship,
and drawing closer a few things, my servant continue to draw close to me.
In reality, it's not we who draw closer to Allah. It's Allah who draws us close, because the reality is La hawla wala Quwata illa biLlah there is no mic nor power except with Allah we don't have the power the ability to draw closer to Allah. Allah draws us close. However out of Allah's kindness, and wishing to honor us, it is expressed in this way
that we continue the servant continues to draw closer to Allah. That's point 1.2 Is
Allah describes himself in the Quran as curried.
The near Allah never describes himself in the Quran has buried far.
Allah describes that there are some human beings who are far from Allah, and some human beings who are close to Allah. But Allah himself never describes. Allah never describes himself as being buried, but describes himself as Carib. The near
either the Quran says either Salah Kariba the Omni for in the Corinne wu ji bo TAO to die either Danny, when my servant asks you concerning me.
Literally the translation I am close, it should read when my surface A asked yet but when my servant asks you concern and me say call. Say I am close, but the word say has been omitted to show
close
to meeting rhetorical Absolutely it's beautiful. Say I am close. I hear that the prayer of I hear the supplication of every supplicant when they supplicate to me I hear the call of every caller when they call upon me I am carry elsewhere the Quran will say that Matt No accruable mean I mean hardly Willie I'm close I never upload what you leave him in Abilene worried. I'm closer to him than his jugular vein. So Allah is Clary, Allah talks about his mercy and victory as close as well. Absolutely yes. To Allah here. Corrib Subhan Allah for Allah here, parry Salafi come. So it's that orb, that nearness, that closeness that we're seeking in our lives. And this closeness, that love is
not a spatial closeness. Okay? It's the closest through submission, through love, through mercy through being drawn closer to Allah through being favored by Allah, so on and so forth. But Kareem and the Quran will say, just talking about prayer, that prostrate, and be close,
prostrate, and be close, and in another had in a hadith, that's a verse of the Quran, the prophet Salas and says, and my servant is never as close to me as he is when he's in frustration to the final.
So what are these super catchy deeds that we have to do right? So, so the second thing is that that Allah describes himself as hurried, okay. And the first thing was that Allah is the One who draws us closer okay.
Then what are the no often
that they say no Orfila which is the plural of nothing on knuffel or nanofiller.
nephila means anything extra in religious terms, it means anything extra, beyond the obligatory duties.
So, there are five obligatory prayers. Any other prayers we pray are additional or extra and they will be called nanofiller optional supererogatory extra. Some extras are very important, and we might call them Somenath. And some extras are not as important but we will just call them optional. Nuffield nephila.
Optional fasts. Okay, the Ramadan fast is an obligation upon those who are required to fast, fast fasting outside of Ramadan is optional. pilgrimage is optional. For Muslims at least once in a lifetime if they have the means. Going to Amara, according to the majority of the Nittany is optional, so Hajj is obligation. How do you sorry means yes, Hajj is obligatory if you have the means. And Amara is optional nephila.
Learning the core amount of religious knowledge,
not just about how to pray and fast, but also the fact that while actually you know what, God forbid, but one of my parents are going to be dying soon, they're on their deathbed. And they will come within a few days, a few weeks the issue of inheritance, I as a son or daughter or a mother or a father dependent on that situation, have an obligation, the fact somewhere in the family, there is an obligation to know what Allah has specifically said about how the wealth is divided up from paying off any debts sure to fulfilling
wills, then whatever is left after that is inheritance.
Okay, and I didn't get through knowledge. Absolutely. But it's not obligatory knowledge. If Well, you know, my father, my father and mother is very healthy is they're unlikely to kind of statistically die soon. Okay, statistically, of course, so anything can happen, therefore, therefore, it's reasonable. I'm reasonably excuse that I haven't learned inheritance law. Sure. But let's say it happened tomorrow God forbid, then I have you know, I have you know, I have to find out at some point inheritance and not divide inheritance until I find out. So would you argue therefore, then that non obligatory knowledge in your context, if you do engage in that is part of the Norfolk?
Yes, absolutely. And I would or I would also remind ourselves that
we all want to die in a way lovable to Allah.
Of course, we want to die with lightly loving Allah, the Kalama on our tongue or something similar.
Let us not die with the Kalama on our tongue, la la la now tongue and I have not made a will
We are reminded my children or my offspring are my inheritors of the will sites that I pass away. And the family that was once United just 24 hours ago,
is now fighting over inheritance because they have not been, they they have not been taught or have refused to learn the obligatory knowledge of how Allah wants inheritance to be divided up, sure. Because that means I either die or sinful, God forbid, or I die, leaving confusion, which is both not a good thing. And it's something that the Muslim community needs to pay greater attention to. And it's something that just, it's it's a huge problem in.
So in terms of the NAWAPA, this would include, for example, the night prayer, absolutely. Had you heard your prayer, we pray God in the morning in the evening, it will be all optional. Absolutely. And the more we do these consistently, the more we are drawing closer to home, right, and my servant continues to draw closer to me through the noir feel. And then something happens.
And tell I love him. Had a hippo until I love him.
So there's no arfield deeds, optional, fasting, optional charity, optional vicar.
reciting Quran outside of the obligatory prayer, for example.
Putting myself in service of others, okay, beyond those who have a right over me. So it's an obligation upon me to like children, that it's not an optional thing like that to serve my children. And, you know, they have certain rights over me as a parent, but although my children are grown up now,
but these optional deeds, it's now it's not a case of just Allah loving the deeds, and we become lovable because we're doing the deeds of love. Now, it's the matter of matter becomes deeper and, and profound. For now, it's not just the labors of love
by fulfilling the fluoride or doing the free ride, but the actual person is loved. Until I love him. Check. So there's this. So here's a practical question from a spiritual point of view. Do we now do all of the supernatural deeds in order to achieve that state? Or do you pick a few? Like, for example, someone does the ferocity they do the basic obligations, and they say, You know what, my thing is going to be reciting lots of Quran with the Buddha and pondering over the Quran, and also the deacon in the morning in the evening. And I'll do one or two night prayers a month.
If they do that consistently over time. Is that enough?
I know these are qualitative matters. It's very difficult to pinpoint. But do they have to do everything? The first thing, the tahajjud, every day, all gaining new knowledge. And, you know, because it could be overwhelming for someone because some will be like, I want to be beloved to Allah, I want his special love. I want to be on that path. But what do I have to do? Do I have to do everything like there are, you know, there are so many supernatural, supernatural acts to fulfill and to revive a special the Sunnah, is sometimes practically impossible for one person to do it. So do they pick a few things? I mean, what, what? Give us some advice. So first of all, was your
question this question.
It's not being pedantic or qualitative, any sense? It is actually putting the necessary flesh on the bones. Okay. And it's something that I daresay everybody listening to this on. Most people listening to this would be asking themselves if they haven't already asked themselves. And without this question, this becomes a little bit it could become if we're not careful, a bit academic, or at least a little bit abstract. So your question is probably the question. Allah bless you.
And if you permit, I just like to make a few observations about the question. Yes.
There is a
it highlights. See, if you had asked me this, say 2025 years ago, I would have said, Well, look, just do just do optional does the Quran the Hadith says, do optional days. So, you know, maybe you should do all of them as much as you can and whatever. Or I might have said something else. But what I wouldn't have said I wouldn't have said it from any type of wise, trained, informed, instructive perspective.
Just like some of the brothers some of the students of knowledge, some of our colleagues from the students have knowledge of Islam. Often when they asked about spirituality, they may suggest Oh, you know what, read it now times modality docile again.
For those of you who are familiar with Imam Abdullah Al Haman,
hematol Ali and his mythologist Salah keen.
They will understand what I mean, those of you are not, or you need to know, as Madame regicide again in in modern print is in three or four large volumes.
It has never been, and can never be, and will never be a book where you learn spirituality from.
It wasn't written for that matter for that purpose.
And the way it is written with the complexities with the nuances with the been three or four volumes,
is clear that it can never be a book of spirituality, that can be a manual that can guide me those who think it can.
My
My guess is, those are people who haven't studied with the Messiah, the the spiritual masters, and so they are people who just think any book will do Sure. And just like you would never say to a beginner in fact, I'll learn from money. If knockdown was Makani, or Imam no is a much more shadowed Mahad. You know, each 14 1518 volumes. It's just you know, you start with a primer, a book of for a beginner, then some scholars,
some scholars have written small manuals
for spirituality and some scholars are the manual for spirituality then there are others whose intention and objective wasn't to write a manual. If Malcolm didn't set out to write a manual, he set out to write a a solid critique
plus positive things so there's positive there's construction and deconstruction, but what it isn't isn't a manual. However, from that group of scholars around Imam Ibn Taymiyyah Shah, Ibrahim Anwar city, the most senior and age
he was the one that dare I say, the Tamie and Jamara. Okay, the group of highly trained scholars
around Imam even to me, there are a handful of them about 10 of them.
Awasthi wrote small booklets and instruction manuals, and he himself was the instruction manual and Ibn Taymiyyah handed over that task to Chef Adam and Ibrahim Awasthi. In terms of his own team, his own students.
He was even team he was the chef of Taleem he was the teacher who taught religious instruction physicals or lackey either what have you
and Chef Nick Rahim whilst he was alive. He died 1518 years before we've been Samia he was the share of data via share of Tallinn share of tarbiyah and that's common in Islam.
Shehab the Todra Gilani through still doing the humbly line okay. She had the cardinal Jelani a few 100 years before he may Allah sanctify so called the Salado
when he was a seasoned humbly scholar, one of the leading humbly scholars of Baghdad
in his age.
He sat with her mother the bus, who was a share of tarbiyah, but not an alum. And tell Shahab the thought that became not just a share of Taleem of religious knowledge of faith and Hadith and whatever. But he became a share of Third way as well.
Sometimes the individual unites even team as a chef today as well. But his most his his his majority time was spent on Taleem on surely just teaching, so what would someone like Chef Ibrahim Awasthi and I have met at the best what would they advise with regards to this question. So we, we now in this day and age where once upon a time 1950s 1940s 1960s Britain, you breed religiousness, even if it was even if it was Christianity, you breed some type of religiousness. Okay, but by the by the mid 60s That was changing until we're now we don't breed religiousness we breathe secularism and atheistic ideas, even if we're not atheists, atheistic ideas. The world is very much like that, once
upon a time, wherever you are in the world, you would breathe religion even if it was God's supreme beings, mystical deities, let alone the one true God. But you would breathe religiousness spiritual spirituality in an age in which you don't believe spirituality and just to be spiritual or religious is an effort swimming upstream,
the spiritual scholars and masters today in our contemporary times, they say
The reality the reality is, this is not the time. This is the time for that hallelujah mean the people have the right hand, the muck to see dawn.
It's translated as moderates. I can't think of a better word. It's now no longer the time of the macabre bone. The people who are drawn closer to Allah, the people who are drawn closer Allah were those people who not only did they fulfill the ferocity generally the obligations generally and kept away from the harms generally now and again, they might slip and they will make things over.
But do do
quite a lot of optional fasting, quite a lot of optional charity, probably quite a lot of honors quite a lot of other optional no awful deeds.
Not limited to one or two optional deeds but quite spread out.
Along with the obligations. These were, these were the Mahara born those who are drawn closer to Allah. But we're not really in that age, there might be one or two individuals like that on the face of this earth, but by and large, that religious resolve has has all but been vanished. They say today.
The path to Allah is making sure
we fulfill the obligations keeping away from the Haram and try to do it with excellence and as much perfection and presence of art as possible.
And then if we can
focus on one or two or three optional dates, night prayer,
or easier than that, vicar
because what vicar does is it begins to help us yearn and aspire for Allah, which then becomes a trigger for night prayer. Okay, excellent.
And not only something personal for yourself, the thicker Quran reflecting upon Quran, or tahajjud night prayer, I mean, if we can do all three, brilliant sadaqa, but do something for others, service to others, who admit to others, charity to others. Okay, so there should be something optional of the vicar, or night prayer, or optional fasting or spending qualitative qualitative time with contemplating the Quran.
And so maybe start with one of them. Okay, I'd probably start with that, which is easy for you. So that it becomes ingrained as a spiritual virtue in Hamlet, and then move on to adding another one of the rules. And along with that, do service to others normally in the form of charity. Yes. So the advice here is, obviously do the follow up it. But then after pick something that maybe you have an affinity towards like vicar and then once you start doing that, then you could add sadaqa and you could do service to others notice, sorry, mindful. So you've picked a vicar or tahajjud, and do service to others. Yes, at the same time, okay, good, or service to others, you have to do in
something more devotional and private. So start with that start with service to others, and something devotional like the care or the hygiene and so on. So when you have ingrained those habits and build ups, then you can build more like the dogma of the Quran, the fasting, this three white days, the fasting on Mondays and Thursdays. And so in a spot where it compromises the Feride the obligations, I pay attention to the obligations and the obligations more beloved to Allah. Absolutely. more beloved to Allah, it's more or it's obligatory upon us. And I just want to make this clear. You know, this is a day and age in which it's very easy to fall into haram. If so, the
screens become our screens, our phones, our our computers,
laptops, they become a gateway into haram things.
Alright, so So what I'm just saying is
mindful watching, lowering the gaze is an obligation. Sure. Not listening to Backbiting
is an obligation to keep what is it's It's haram. So it's an obligation to keep away from and being just
in a being just unfair in dealings with others. Whether it's money or whether it's right is an obligation. i It's important for us to know that spirituality doesn't just mean that I'm on my prayer mat with my prayer beads.
When Mohammed ibn Al Hassan a che Barney Rahmatullah Allah, one of the great students, imams of students of Abu Hanifa, who became one of the great outstanding, much the heads of early Islam, when he was asked,
Will you not write a book about zoo hood about worldly
worldly renunciation? He said, I already have done so, having read my book on Kitab al Boyu, the book of business transactions
because how are we going to draw closer to Allah in our buying and selling, if I'm doing haram in my buying and selling because I haven't learned the basic rules of business transactions. But the first way that we renounce the world is by renouncing the Haram in the world. That's the heart. That's the first and most important level of sort of loudly detachment or worldly renunciation.
So actually the one who's doing their best to keep away from the Haram and fulfilling the obligation, that person is desired. And we mustn't forget that and doing that level of spirituality. With the fire I secured under our belt and where we fall short. We make Toba and then fix fix the issue.
spiritual masters say without making us complacent in this day and age, that is the spiritual path, seizing it with a little bit of no artefill, either tahajjud either vicar either dub word of the Quran, as well as some act of service to others, sure, and then try to increase but for most people, that will be the Fuhrer, it will be difficult in in itself. But even for the aspiring seeker, you might find that for most aspiring seekers, 90% of them, it's only a few optional deeds here and there. But Allah takes into consideration the nature of the age and the nature of an age in which you breed the religion and religiousness and sacredness and sanctity.
Were becoming religious in any sense of the word is far easier. Instinctively. It's far different than an age in which everything religious is uphill, sure, not just because of the knifes because of society. And that is why the prophets awesome says this it Hadith
that you are in an age in which whoever leaves 1/10
will be destroyed. But then there will come an age that whoever doesn't want 10 will be saved Subhan Allah, that doesn't mean that one tent that means that I, I pray one obligatory prayer every two days, one, one out of 10 prayers. No, it just means that somehow the divine magnificence the Divine Generosity takes into account that this is an irreligious irreverent age, where even being religiously basically religious, and committed is harder than it was, say 50 or 100 years ago. Dr. Hirsch has a very good point. And there's a difference between having book knowledge of spiritual matters. And actually being a physician. There's a difference between being a chemist and having all
of the medicines on your shelf and being a doctor to know what medicine you have to actually give the the spiritual masters today this the scholars have Suruc they are the doctors, the rest of us, even if we've read some books on spirituality Road, even our game we read earlier, we're probably just pharmacists that we have some we have some already kind of on the shelf solutions, but those on the sell shelf solutions might not be practical. That's a very good point because the people have wisdom the seek the context they make LM irrelevant, absolutely understand these nuances even from a social and individual. Absolutely. And that requires a lot of insight and quite requires a lot of
emotional intelligence spiritual intelligence. Indeed, you don't pick that up from a book. Absolutely. So they are the people that we good to go to pot for now. Indeed, indeed. So Part four is
and my son continues to draw closer to me through optional deeds until I love him so now the past and is loved That's a profound things have hung out to the actual person is love. Just one last point than that.
They say it just in English.
As
they say that
the definition of ultimate frustration is to love and not be loved.
Okay.
We might have a sense of what that might be like, either because it's happened in our lives or we know someone who's loved and have not received that love in return. That's a human truism. Okay.
The, probably the greatest definition of human misery is to love and not be loved in return. So everyone will play him says in one of his books, he says, The affair is not that you love Allah.
But rather that you are loved by Allah. And there's a piece of Arabic poetry that they quote Lisa shad and unto him in the Masha and and to have the affair isn't that you love but you'd be loved. Which is why the path to Allah we need to remind ourselves and we can describe the path in so many words and terms, but one helpful term is I want to be
loss friend, or another term at the hub Illa Allah Bhima Yaga it's about becoming beloved to Allah loved by Allah by doing that which pleases him starting with the obligations keeping away from the Haram obviously and then doing the optional deeds which part of the optional deeds if you flip it is keeping away from the macro from the disliked things
so let's take the a small thing, so it's nothing priority so what I'm saying now it doesn't have any priority anyone's life is just examples that come to my mind.
So according to the vast majority of scholars
and I think as far as I'm aware, the four scores are normal rolling in the force on the scores orthodox schools, is that the lower garment of the Muslim man if it falls below his ankles without him intending to do it through prior pride, it's McRel mini gets recommended or sunnah to raise it up a
bit above the ankles. I mean, that's definitely how it is in the humbling and the HRV score.
Let's just say so if I did that, for example, I mean, and I don't want the audience to make a big issue out of this because I'm not trying to make an issue but I'm just showing doing a macro keeping away from a macro a dislike Act which isn't quite Haram
is itself an optional deed
just one of the know often you're keeping away from the macro here, but it's but it's one of the No offers which is on par with doing a sunnah act rather than just a non sunnah option.
Okay, and and you know if someone is confused about that I suggest that they go online find a good
video by one of the scholars simple video that describes the the degrees of optional x because some optional acts are more beloved to Allah than other optional acts. So the Sunnah prayers after the obligatory prayers, and before the obligatory prayers, you know, the took after maghrib for example, the tutor kabhi for Fajr these are Sunnah prayers, but they are far more beloved to Allah than a normal optional act that why I might do
Yes.
Fasting on Mondays and Thursdays optional is far more beloved to Allah than fasting on Wednesdays and yes, so for example, the two on the the two units of prayer before Fajr is more beloved than
two units after the Sunnah of Isha.
So leave that because I don't want to confuse the Hanafi is right. Okay. All right. Okay, so the two recart Sonoda causa Fajr, it's done before the fourth fourth prayer is more beloved to Allah than to raka done just anytime during the day, optionally. Okay. So there are there are degrees of the super cataria. Yeah, for sure. And I don't want to get into that, too. All I'm showing that if we keep away from dislike things, it's also an extra, okay. And why is it? Why does that person become beloved, because they go above and beyond the call of duty, the Call of Duty was just the ferocity of the obligations. But love is clearly being demonstrated by going beyond the call of duty. The
Muslim sister or the Muslim man who brotherhood stands on the prayer mat, in the depth of the night, are clearly going beyond the call of duty. Right? Sure. And so how can they you know, in that sense, how can you not be loved, they are lovers they are seeking, which is why they're going to be on the call. Otherwise, normally, it's a matter of, well, I'll just do the minimum.
Whatever, fine Alhamdulillah so there is some love there, there is some fear of God there and there's something but standing on the premise, or doing a lot of subtle art or doing extra is the far or giving much more charity okay for the sake of Allah. Not just because it's become a habitual routine thing know that Allah
which is why they say vicar needs to be the foundation of all our optional acts simply because it makes the purpose of why we're doing things clearer.
And we become more conscious of why we're doing it otherwise even good. Optional deeds can become habitual in a way that we kind of forget the deeper purpose or the deeper motive that is Allah
and then we come to the fourth point which is it's not fully apart for us which is and when I love him, so the person is love not just the deeds where we're lovable because what we do initially and then we're love for who we are because of our commitment but admin on by and by divine grace and divine and Divine Generosity. And when I love him, I am is
Hearing with which he hears he's seeing with which he sees his hand with which he strikes and his foot with which he walks.
The scholars are eager to point out I mean, I can't think of a single scholarly classical commentary that doesn't point this out.
We must, whatever else we believe about this, what this means we must not believe that somehow God in dwells in us, that somehow Allah becomes my seeing actually in the in the physical sense of indwelling or incarnation.
No, Allah doesn't indwell in his creatures, and Allah is not incarnated into any person, holy person or non Adi person. Allah is Allah and will and always remains Allah so we maintain his transcend unicity transcendence and his unique one year in Akita turns we always maintain Allah's dunsey Absolute Allah's otherness, Allah's transcendence, SNESs Absolutely.
So then, what does it mean that I am is I am his hearing with Richie, here's the scene with which he sees until the end of that sentence.
Scholars have actually had a number of opinions about this, as you might suspect. In fact, if you look into the commentary on Sahadi, by Ben Hur, journalist Kalani, there are about 15 to 17 sayings on, even though some of those sayings overlap, and I think if you can harmonize them, you can whittle it down to seven or eight.
The one that scholars tend to run with more than, you know more than any other.
And it's the one that kind of
is the one that if you if one gave it a bit more thought with the tunzi in mind, it's probably the one that makes more sense
that he man, so fills the heart of that individual Valley, because what's happening now, Allah started with whoever shows immunity to a colleague of mine, I shall be at war with him, and then says, My servant doesn't draw closer to me with anything more loved by me than obligations. Allah is now telling us this is the path of Wilaya.
So you've you want to see what I do for my friend, I protect him when you start dissing him or cussing him or having ill will against him. I waged war against you. You want to know how to become my friend,
how to love me how to get how for my love to be on you. My obligatory deeds, you want to know how to deepen that optional deeds. So it's Wilaya. It's the powerful Wilaya that is being unfolded for us.
They say that when a person has that level of will either doing the phosphorite keeping away from the Haram, doing the option or keeping away from the detestable detested, macro, macro heart, macro things,
their fate their their hearts are so filled with faith, piety, mindfulness of Allah, their souls are so illumined
Allah
allows love, Allah's care unless protection is on them, far, far, far greater than on the ordinary Muslim.
Then Allah makes it such that he helps them guard their eyes, from not only that which he hates, and forbids of the Haram, but even of the disliked.
And that Allah guides their hands in their feet, to walk into the right places that he loves, and making them avoid the places that he doesn't.
That Allah, God's there is and their thoughts such that they hear and think the right things.
So that these people, these friends, the saints,
they become for Allah, by Allah.
They don't move except by Allah. They don't see except for Allah.
They don't speak except in Allah Subhan Allah and what you see is a manifestation
of that very reality.
That revelation came
to meet people.
And that's why even if and only Josie not If not pay your mother Josie we're
not even our aim. But another humbly scholar about 150 years earlier, Ibn Allah Josie of the Rana