How to Give Dawah #1

Bismillah R Rahman r Rahim in Al hamdu lillah wa Salatu was Salam ala Rasulillah Brothers Sisters now Malik Rahmatullah.

So

the Tao, of course.

Firstly,

I'd like to let you know that I think it's very important that we have a sense of integrity, right as Muslims. So when we say we're going to start something at 10, we should start at 10. And not at

1031. Right. But hamdulillah it's all good. We are blessed even to be here, to be given the opportunity to share some ideas and interact with

an amazing group of brothers and sisters. But I think integrity is very important because when we talk about the Dawa, when we talk about sharing Islam, with our brothers and sisters in humanity,

what I've realized is that 90% of data is actually psychology and 10% is probably information, right?

And we have to take that into consideration because your behavior, your state of being, how you relate to yourself, how you relate to others, and how you relate to Allah subhanaw taala is extremely important because people can be guided through your state of being state of becoming, because Islam is not only a belief, and this is something very important for you to understand. Islam is not only a belief, but rather, it's a form of knowing that changes your heart changes what you say, and how you relate with yourself, how you relate with others, and how you relate to Allah subhanho wa taala. Because to be is to be related, okay. And we believe the greatest relationship

that anyone can have is the relationship between themselves and the creator. And that should effectively change who you are, how you become in the world. And I think it's very important for us to move away from an understanding of Islam that Islam is only a set of ideas, right? Because in philosophy,

I ideas and beliefs can be very mundane, like, this is a phone, I have a phone in my left hand, that's a proposition. Are you saying Islam is the same as saying there's a phone in my hand? I mean, who does say that? Are you saying Islam is the same as saying, I have a phone in my hand?

Does anyone who challenge me here? No, because it's not Islam is greater than that it transcends that Islam is a form of knowing that changes everything about you and it transforms how you relate to the world. It changes your state of being, because humans are human beings, not human doings. Okay? So it's very important for us to understand, generally speaking, that when it comes to Dawa, when it comes to interacting with our brothers and sisters in humanity, we have to learn how to become in the world, right?

Because how many times have we seen people have conversations, and they are speaking the truth. You know, Hawk 101, is the basic foundation of truth. But the way they express that truth, it's like, I don't want to speak to this guy. Okay.

And then then you have someone else who's maybe speaking and articulating half a truth, but because the way they are, it's far more attractive. It's far more attractive. That's why marketing works. That's why social media works. That's why people follow other people, even though those people don't have any basis, because the way they are and the way they showcase themselves. And, you know, you know, a parent beauty or a parent, whatever the case may be, they seem to be attractive in some way physically and psychologically. And that is very important to consider, because psychology is, is everything. So it's important to have integrity, because that's part of your character. And if you

have a good character, it will manifest itself in the real world, and people will be attracted to that. So that's very, very, something very important to consider. And that's coming from someone who, you know, became Muslim, like 17 years ago, was 1617 years ago. And in the early part of me being a Muslim, I thought it was all about abstract rational arguments. That's how you become Muslim. But you know, as you mature and you get older and you go through your experiences and you go back into academia, you realize that's neither here or there. That's like

10% on what's really important? What's essential to engaging with human beings is actually our psychology. Because we're going to learn in today's dollar course, is we're going to learn about what the human being is. Because, you know, when we give dollar, we're like, yes, let me learn how to give Dawa and disprove someone or prove me prove myself, right. But we don't learn what is the human being because you're talking to the human being. We missed that there's a big gap in the way we, you know, articulate ourselves concerning Islam, and wanting to show Islam and share Islam to the world. And that gap is that we don't know who the human beings, right? So yes, we know it's Tao

has an obligation, you know, that was very rewardable. And we're calling to Allah. And we have all these amazing arguments. But there's a there's a big gap. And the gap is, well, who are you talking to? Because if you don't know who you're talking to, then how are you going to address them. And this is why our data today, generally speaking, especially online, is what I call a

functional, physical or functional computerized model for the dour. We think if we type in some very clever algorithm, right? Someone's going to become a Muslim, we treat human beings as non human beings, but human doings computers, to give them this rational argument, colors that say they're going to become Muslim. But this is a huge failure on our part. And from that point of view, I think we have secularized our tradition. We have secularized Islam, from the point of view that we think if we give some people, some premises, and a conclusion, and it's very strong, just like a deductive argument, that means is going to transform someone is going to change someone. But that's not the

case. Because the human being is more than just the mind. Right? The human being is more than just an actual, the human being has a role. has a soul has a fitrah has an innate disposition has enough's. Yeah, that's for sure. Absolutely. So this is something very important to understand. So if you think you came in today, thinking right Holmes is gonna give me some great arguments. Forget about going on YouTube. I'm not here to give you arguments, right? Because our problem is arguments. That's the problem. That's why we're in a mess in the first place. Because we think we have to argue at the time. Just go on YouTube and check out, you know, Speaker's Corner, Hyde Park, you know, and

everyone's loving it. You know why? Because Muslim love drama, we just love a good drama, don't we? He said this, she said that he refused him. This is all utter, utter utter in all the language because it's rubbish. It is honestly, with all due respect. And this is someone who is known to debate academics and philosophers and all these people. But you know, everyone's on a journey. Everyone is on a journey, and we have to learn. And this is why I am so in love with Allah Ghazali. They live in a century theologian, may Allah have mentioned him because I think he is a symbol of our times, because al Ghazali went through those issues as well. You know, he learned philosophy, he

was a master of philosophy. And then he revered philosophy to half a Dell philosopher, the incoherence of the philosophers. And Allah Ghazali went on his journey as when he realized that eemaan eemaan, your spiritual conviction, your intellectual and spiritual conviction, is not going to come about as a result of a set of deductive arguments or premises and even mentioned, he writes about this. And he says, if someone is smarter than you, they could change your premise. And then your conclusion will contradict your belief. What are you going to do?

As essentially what he said, Well, you're going to do Imaan doesn't only come from good arguments, but rather it comes through experiencing Islam. So practicing the Quran in the prophetic way, and making it part of your life. Because there is another form of knowing in Asana, we don't really talk about which is the experiential aspect. Now, don't get me wrong, many early ama said you can't rely, you know, you can't rely on experience just for you know, your deen from that point of view because that could become quite problematic by some appreciates as different forms of knowing that we bring together we don't just focus on one and experience in the Quran and Sunnah can create awakenings

within you to strengthen your Eman. So the point I'm trying to make here is that it's not just about abstract rational arguments, because if someone is smarter than you, they could just play around with your premises and what you're going to do, and I've realized this, so I did a postgraduate certificate in philosophy. I've done a master's in philosophy and I'm continuing my postgraduate research. And I'm not saying this to boast, I'm saying this in in the other way to show

How dumb I am, right? Because in our seminal research papers, because at this level, you have to read seminal research papers. And when you read philosophy, it's not like reading a book in the beginning. And in the end, it's like, you read two sentences. And you said about half an hour thinking about those two sentences. Yeah. So in one seminal research, you know, when would reading the seminal research paper, we had to discuss the Darwinian mechanism and more realism, to worry about the philosophy. But the point is, we were discussing something. And, you know, it was a great argument was like, she's good at right. She's, she's a genius, right? She has shown that you can't

have objective moral truth. If you believe Darwinism, or evolution is the basis for that. I was like, she's brilliant. The week after we read the response. And I was like, well, she's smart, too. Right? Because what she did is exactly what Elexon is talking about. What she did was she took one of the premises and said, Ha, her argument works. But if he changed his premise, then it doesn't necessarily follow. And I was like, You know what it just goes to show, it just goes to show that we just have a pixelated understanding of reality, it goes to show that we have the pixel, and it's Allah that has the picture. Allah knows. And we don't, don't get me wrong. Islam has very good

arguments. But you can't present the data in such an abstract philosophical way. Yes, you could bring that into your repertoire, okay, into your toolset, but you can't rely on it. Because I'm telling you, there's always going to be someone smarter than you. I don't care what you think about yourself, there is always going to be someone smarter than you always right. So hopefully, what you're gonna learn in this tower workshop is that there are different ways to awaken the truth within people. And it's not only going to be just rational arguments, it's not only going to be being nice, it could be getting people to think teach them how to think, a Quranic method of

thinking, because what's very important is that we revive that neglected rabada that we revive that neglected spiritual practice intellectual practice in the Quran, which is the book, perfect God, we don't do that anymore. We don't do that anymore. It's a neglected act of worship. And the Quran many times

raises questions and doesn't give us direct answers. It's as if the Quran Allah is saying to us, if you ask these questions, and you're sincere, it would inevitably lead to the right answer. But we've neglected that as a practice. And we should use that to create awakenings and other people sometimes not giving people an answer, but just giving them a different way of thinking, you know, and that is very powerful. That's very powerful. And this is why sometimes when I interact with people, I don't even give people answers anymore, even though I may know the answer. I just get them to think to have a different paradigm shift in the way they see themselves and other people and, you know, even

Allah, and that would create a different awakening, you know, it's like someone's hungry, don't give them fish all the time, because they're going to be coming to you for fish, teach them how to fish, then they don't need you anymore, then they're empowered, they know how to ask the right questions and, and seek the answers. So that's another way of awakening the truth within and there are so many other ways it could be getting people to understand their spiritual experiences in a different way, or even their positive experiences, or their negative experiences, as Allah says in the Quran, about the Mushrikeen on the boat, right? And then there are clouds, the waves, the size of clouds coming

to engulf the boat, and temporarily they have the awakening that they supplicate to Allah alone. Right? They temporarily stopped doing the shirk as a result of that negative experience. And then what happens when when they go on the shore, they become thankless, but the point is negative experiences kind of weaken that truth within even looking at someone honestly, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam looking at him his, the Habibollah the love of Allah, the Prophet sallallahu ala who was I'm looking at his face could be a means for guidance. You know, just look at him saying he's not alive, call us. And that will create an awakening within you. They may think

hunger, this sounds so anti philosophical, anti rational. So what?

At the end of the day you're calling to do or you're not, right, if you want to be an abstract Theo philosopher, go for it. But as what you're gonna learn today, that all has its assumptions, and its first principles that can't even be proven anyway. Everything is based on some kind of faith or assumption and

You need it in order for your sphere of knowledge to grow, right in a particular field. The point I'm trying to articulate here is, when we want to give dower we need to understand what Islam is, we need to understand who we are. And we need to understand what, what creates those awakenings within people. If you just focus on one means abstract rational arguments, your data is going to be very limited. And you're going to realize very quickly, very quickly, that it's not that effective, you have to use different means to awaken the truth was in Now this may seem to be a bit disconnected because I haven't explained things in detail yet. But this is my introductory kind of breaking the

ice, you know, warming up

rant, as we say, but hopefully it's creating some you know, interest and it's like, well, I want to know more, hopefully. So

we're gonna do we're gonna spend most of the day talking about the data, what is data, okay? The obligations and rewards, the motivations, the characteristics of the dot, who must we become, in order to be able to be able to effectively reconnect human hearts to Allah subhanho wa taala. And also we're going to talk about, well, what is the human being and then that is going to be quite critical because it's going to basically unravel some of the things that I've just mentioned. Okay.