Hamza Yusuf – Sacred Text Messages S01 E08 – Dunya: A Zero-Sum Game

			As Salaam Alaikum warahmatullah wabarakatuh Bismillah R Rahman Rahim o salat wa salam ala Sayyidina
Muhammad wa ala alihi wa sahbihi wa sallam to sliema Alhamdulillah Allah subhana wa Taala revealed
his book of origin, and in this book are many messages. And yet there's one central message, which
is that Allah subhanaw taala is one, and that his creation should enter into a covenant with him
freely and worship him. But one of the most important things that the Quran does for a believer is
that the Quran essentially gives us
		

			a, an entire understanding of not only ourselves but of the world around us. And so within the book
of Allah subhanho wa Taala is really a,
		

			an explanation of why we're here where we came from what what we should do while we're here and then
where we're going. One of the most important
		

			realities that the Quran explains to us is that the nature of the Abode that we're in is an abode of
tribulation dato Bella, this is an abode of trials and tribulations. And this is the the Quran is
rife with verses that remind us of this fact. And so, one of these verses in which Allah Subhana
Allah says that he he is the one who hot up on motor Hyatt Leo Brewer calm, he created life and
death and he created life in order to test you. And then he says that, to see which one of you is
the best in actions or you come as an AMA, which of you is the best in actions, and then also
another text that was inserted then work in Surah nemen, Allah subhana wa tada tells us, that swill,
		

			a man who was given an immense dominion, actually says about what he was given how them informed
that he or abelia blue and he
		

			scored a mark for that do I ash Kuru. I'm a coral you know, do I am I grateful? Or am I an ingrate?
Do I have ingratitude and here, Cofer means to be ungrateful because that's the fundamental meaning
of the word woman Shakira, intermesh coralina FC, and whoever is grateful is grateful, really, for
the benefit of his own soul. Woman cafe Rafa in Arabi of anoon Kareem and then he says, and whoever
is ungrateful, then verily, my lord is independent, and, and Kareem, which one of these words in
Arabic that has many different meanings, but generous and noble exalted. So, my lord is honey Yon is
rich, without need and Kadeem, generous with his riches. So this is what Saudi man says. What's
		

			important here is that what Saudi man is essentially telling us is that tribulation is not just a
negative aspect of life, which a lot of people think, Oh, I'm going through a lot of trials and
tribulations. This is a reminder that tribulation is also blessing, that blessings are tribulations.
So depending on whether you're grateful or not, because a lot of people are pure ingrates with their
blessings. And one of the remarkable things about our time is that people are just filled with in
gratitude, even though there's so many blessings that people use, there are places where people are
definitely suffering considerably. But for many, many people especially here in the US and and I
		

			know there's other people listening that are in places like Malaysia or Europe or many places where
there's just immense blessing. So the the two fundamental blessings that if you have them, Allah
subhana wa tada expects you to worship Him. If you're lacking one or both of these two blessings.
You might have some excuses. But when you have these two blessings, you have no excuse with Allah
subhanho wa Taala. And those are security and freedom from hunger. This is the fundamental thing in
Saudi Arabia when Allah subhana wa tada says the dafi operation Rafi Miranda tushita, he will say
fairly Abu raha that bait. Let them worship the Lord of this house. Why? Because he has secured you.
		

			I'm at home and home. right he has secured you from any fear so you're in a state of security.
		

			Apart from enjoying what I'm at home and hope he has given you
		

			Food. So he's given you satiety from your hunger, and he has given you security from any fear. So
those are the two blessings that Allah is saying warrant, the worship of Allah subhanaw taala. And
that, you know, in Maslow's hierarchy of needs, the fundamental ones are the physiological needs he
calls them, but actually the prophesized them, I think, has a better hierarchy of needs than Maslow.
And of course he does. I mean, I, it's, I don't think I know, because the province is I'm actually
put what the first hotbar that he gave when he went into Medina was, he said, that you had NASS of
Shu Salaam, like spread peace, in other words, create security in your societies and in Sahaja,
		

			Bahati, one of the three hallmarks of faith is the third one is better of Salaam than alum,
spreading global peace, spreading peace around the world. So the Muslims are, we are supposed to be
spreaders of peace, right? global peace, so that peace is is what the prophet SAW a sim told us to
spread. And then he said Abu said on Bandicam. And then he said, What up anymore bomb and feed the
hungry. So there you have security at the very bottom of the pyramid. And then the next are the
physiological needs. Because if if, if you're about to have your lunch and and a bear or a lion
shows up, you're gonna forget your lunch. Security is the fundamental need before the physiological
		

			needs, you need security. And then he says we'll seal it or harm and then maintain kinship bonds
because family is the foundation of a society so you're moving up in this hierarchy. And then he
said, while Salchow, ba ba layli when nasrani yom and then prayer in the night when people are
asleep. So now you have to work on yourself because everything the hierarchy is there, your
securities are taken care of your food's taken care of you have family now war, work on yourself,
and get close to Allah subhanho wa Taala and then he says Ted's whole agenda to be set up so it
begins with peace and it ends with peace. Then he said you will enter Paradise in peace and and
		

			Solomonic fantasy, the prophets. RSM told him that no one will enter Paradise without a passport and
he literally you use the word Joe as in the Hades layered whole agenda to
		

			live full agenda ahead on Ellerbee Joe, as in mineral law. mk tuban Fie with Hello Happy ceram and
amany. In other words, that who you're more, like just laissez faire, let him pass. So here in
dunya, you have all these boundaries there in the Euro as well, Jenna has a border patrol. So you're
not going to get into paradise without a passport with a visa from Allah. But that visa is a it's
it's a permanent, you know, they call it like permanent residence visa, you'll have a comma that
EMA, right. And you become a citizen in Paris that's in the Hadees. So it's really quite
extraordinary. But one of the things so you've got that side of the dunya, which this is the half of
		

			the world that we're in, where people I feel are just total, like so many people. I hear people
whining all the time about how horrible things are. They don't know how I'm not. I'm I'm somewhat of
a historian, I've read a lot of history, you know, my, my, my I have a degree in history, but, you
know, so my reading of history, like don't complain, because you have no idea. What what, like what
has happened in the past in history. It's terrifying what's happened. Like what people have gone
through the hunger they've suffered. I mean, our province suffered immensely, but yet he never
complained, show me anywhere where he complains, the only complaint the prophets give us to Allah,
		

			they don't complain to anybody else. There's nowhere where he complains. So Lola I sent him because
they understood everything so now why didn't they complain? That's the important thing. And this is
what the Quran teaches us why they didn't complain. And, and, and, and here's the reason in the
heckum of Ibn ATI Allah, He says, and this is in the 100 and fourth heckum. And this is one of the
most important books that was written in, in in our tradition. In the science of Isaan recognized by
all of our scholars, it's commented on by so many people, one of the great Maliki scholars, Amazon
rock has over 25 commentaries on it, some say up to 32 and, and he would finish commenting on it. He
		

			was
		

			Start a new commentary because he was getting new insights into these things and for peeled banana.
He said, If it was permitted to read, other than the Quran in prayer, it would have been permitted
with the hichem, of even Atilla. I mean, that's hyperbole, obviously. But the point he was making
was, this is is such a stunning book with insights. So one of the things that he says, out of the
Aloha, I know if an ATI Mahara of the, of the of the Egyptian people that he was born and raised in
Egypt. In fact, some say because the head the the famous Hadith was a hadith and May Allah give
succor to our our brothers and sisters and
		

			sons and daughters in Yemen, who are just going through immense trials and tribulations. But
		

			even at Baylor was originally from USD, which is a Yemeni clan. And so when the prophets I sent him
said that Emanuel Yamani, some of the scholars said he was referring to Ahmed Hassan, who was from
the Benny Asha hora Yemeni tribe. And then when he said what Philco Yamani, and jurisprudence is
Yemeni, he was referring to Mr. Maddock, who was from the US, which is another Yemeni tribe, and
then when he said will hikma to Yamani and wisdom is his Yemeni as well, they say he was referring
to even our pilot because he was also Yemeni, from the US and there's as as the Kabir and as the
Sahara is, different people from that but it's one of the great tribes of the Arabs or clans. So
		

			anyway, even ATI, Allah, Allah, Allah and who says, You have Fifth Element Bella, anchor in mocha be
Anna who subhanho hulan mob Teddy lek. In order to diminish the pain of your tribulation.
		

			He has given you knowledge, glory be to him, that he is the one trying you.
		

			So once you know that, that diminishes the weight of the tribulation, and this is what our profits
are like I'm new and this is why at the lowest point of his life, which is thought if he does that
remarkable Dumas at bar if that as long as you're not upset with me, I'm fine with what's come to
me, as long as you're not upset with me. And and this is, this is from the book of Allah when the
Prophet was commanded was barely helped me or a baker for in Aqaba union in Surah, taco, be patient
with the hokum of your Lord, with this decree of your Lord.
		

			Because you are in our providential care, like the union, you're in our, in our care here, you
onomah say it's a Naya right, which is related in the etymology, the grave greater etymology to aim,
right.
		

			So.
		

			So then he says, phalodi Whaddya, had come in, who are Kadar, whoever they are wedeco lftr. So the
one who sends these trials and tribulations that you hate, he is also the one who has accustom you
to things that you love.
		

			And so he says, be mad to Hippo fish core, who Anima Oleg, this is Hammonds, a rock was well how
FEMA behaved to a lakh. So be grateful with the things you love from Allah, and be patient with
those things that Allah have sent you that are difficult. And this is why in the theoretical at any
curious about and shakar this Quran are Signs for people that are constantly patient, and constantly
grateful. You have to be one or the other in any given circumstance. If it's a trial, be patient. If
it's a blessing, which is also a trial, then the response is gratitude. Those are the those are the
responses. Even if Biola said he had an immense weight on his shoulder, and he was just really
		

			troubled. And he went to his share of bass and mercy in Egypt. And he was from Alexandria, and he
went into him and he told him, every human being is in one of four conditions. And each of those
conditions has an appropriate response. You're either in blessing and the response is gratitude.
You're in tribulation, and the response is patient. You're in obedience. And the response is to
witness God's tofi is that he's given you this success show that men need to see the blessing of
obedience from God, or you're in disobedience and the response is repentance. And that's it. And
even I'll tell you, I said when you heard that he felt like this.
		

			Incredible weight was taken from his shoulders. That's it. That is a Boolean algebraic formula for
how to live in this world. You're in one of those four states and so just be blessed. Now one of the
things he goes on I mean this is something amazing imama Junaid who was one of the great and again
if not even Tamia,
		

			Rahim Allah all of the scholars recognized a momager and ate all of them nobody said you know this
mama Junaid all of them but he mama Junaid in the result of Mr. Kashkari. You know, they mentioned a
story that he mama Junaid said come to know Him and under Sadie that was his uncle Sadie isapi. He
was a you know, Sati is like a he was he had a junkyard. And so he sold like from a junkyard that's
that was his arms. halau job. Amazing, right? I mean, the best food is from jobs that are halaal and
every job that's halaal is dignified. We don't Kenny Kuru. No, viola doe Kenny Coleman kaspi Eddie,
he was he was actually a Smith. So he was doing something that was labor. I'm one of the things
		

			about our culture is it denigrates labor, you know, which is really sad because labor like
carpenters and tailors and people that do these type of these are some of the most halau jobs now in
the world there. And you know, nobody should ever denigrate these type of jobs, because they're
actually very, very
		

			valuable for a society but anyway, he woke him up he was sleeping and he woke up early. Yeah. Junaid
he took any walk up to any day for holiday. He's telling him as vision that he saw it as if I was
standing before God. He had a dream. And he said and God said to me, I have knocked on Halper for
Coloma that Roma Huberty. I created creation and all of them claim to love me for haluk to dunya
bahawa Mini test to ashari him and then I created the world, and nine tenths of them fled.
		

			Well, Bucky miosha and only 1/10 remained for hot up to janitor for harbor mini tester to eyeshadow
brush off and then nine tenths of that 10th fled because I created paradise. And so now he only 1%
is left or Bucky ma Russia Russia for Salah or LA him the rotten mineral Bella for harbor minutess
ashari or shuttle and then
		

			I sent upon them an Adam's weight of tribulation and nine tenths of that 1/10 of that 1/10 left me
now you're literally down down at at just point one
		

			four put your lead back in my lead on your item you don't want dunya what algenist up or up Tom and
you don't want Jenna will lamina Natty hot optim and you don't flee from the fire will MNL Bella if
our autumn and you're not fleeing from tribulation for mother to the dawn What do you want to enter
that Roman read you know what we want for put to the home in Nimmo salutory Adecco mineral Bella be
added the unfair scicon Marla Tacoma * Bal or awasi or thorsby rune, I am going to subject you to
tribulation with the number of your * and and even the Mountain Time high mountains could not
stand it. Will you show patients? How do you come to enter mortality for fat and most shit? If
		

			you're the one sending the trial then do what you want for how will a bad happen? Those are my two
sermons. I mean this is a dream that one of the slides in saw but it's it's a remarkable dream and
and so here it is that the prophets Allah s&m was told us when he was asked Who are the people that
have the greatest tribulation suited out Rasulullah sallallahu said I'm
		

			your a your nasya shadow Bella and which people have the greatest tribulation in the world? For
Karla Salalah it said I'm the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said MBR thermal and farofa anthon
first the prophets and then those closers of the prophets and then those closest to them. You have
teller NASA at a party Dini him, people will have tribulations based upon the degree of their faith,
their religion their Deen Samantha Horner Dino who stood the better Oh, the ones whose Deen is very
strong, their religion is strong. They will have a shredder but they will have great difficulties.
Women that offer de novo that offer better oh and those who have weak religion, they will have weak
		

			tribulations. What in our rajala layer Cebu, Cebu, hol Bella had tm, Shia and an RD one
		

			Are you happier? There will be people who have so much trial that they will be walking on the earth
without any sin. This is a Sahih Hadith. So this is it. Now, even more extraordinary is that the
prophets are ladies and I'm told us that on the Day of Judgment, there will be the people of Africa
who had well being in this world when they see the rewards this isn't the Muslim female. When they
see the rewards of the people of tribulation in this dunya who had great suffering and difficulty,
they will wish that they were flayed alive in the dunya their skin to Corrado julu to home. Bill
Murray, the province of Assam said that their skin was flayed alive cut from them, in that that's
		

			what they would hope in the dunya. And this is people don't realize this. This is a difficult thing.
Now, do we want suffering? No. The prophesized him said a Salalah afia. And he went by some people
in Great Tribulation and suffering and he said Allah Musa Allah afia didn't they ask for the app for
well being and this is why in your circle of an alpha will ask you one more effort that mfe Dini
with dunya lever Malley was started our it while I'm in the row it these are the ones that we say
every day, every morning and every evening. Why? Because these are the daughters of asking Allah for
well being. So it's not like we want suffering, but when suffering comes see who the one who sent
		

			the suffering, why did he do it? The province Well, I sent him said that there are people that
suffer cuts at home and delay him and zillah that there there are people that have a station in the
in the dunya like they have a station with Allah lemmya blew her, the family, but but that person
did not reach the station with their actions. In other words, what Allah wanted from them, they did
not give to Allah Subhan Allah home. So then he tries them. So he will have todo Fie Jessa de he
will family he will be wetted, he had Tayyaba Mansehra to handle law until he achieves the station
that Allah subhanho wa Taala because he shows patients EMA America has already said that there are
		

			people who their sins will only be removed by depression.
		

			Like literally, Allah will give them sadness and grief. And this this is the removal there's this is
an abode of who isn't what it when look at the description of the Prophet, Canada, Imola, Hassan. He
was constantly in a state of huizen. But he was also in a state of joy with Allah. So this these are
not paradoxes. These are understanding the nature of the Abode when you see the world, you can't go
now on the internet without seeing things about Yemen, how could you not cry, or Palestine, or Syria
or Iraq? I mean, how many tears have been shed by our community over just looking at the tribulation
around the world, but you what you need to understand is, maybe those people aren't fulfilling what
		

			Allah expected from them as people of the Prophet Mohammed Omar, and maybe he's removing all of
their sins in this world. I mean, I saw three women on CNN, that from Syria, and they were literally
crossing into Turkey fleeing the crisis, and I just
		

			completely floored
		

			You know, this, the person that reported just said to this person,
		

			you know, what do you what do you think? What do you think about this situation? And she just looked
at me, she said, allama, rude.
		

			Allah exists. That's a believers response. You know, so on the um, yo, camel, what, what macom does
that person have? Because that's patience. I mean, all these Muslims have gone through all these
things. We've been through this before. I hear people saying, Oh, you know, people, I'm losing my
faith. There's people in America Muslims that are losing their faith because of what's happening in
Yemen. What? Like,
		

			what does that mean? Look at the people of Yemen like they're calling on Allah subhanho wa Taala. In
this is the difference. It's a made Don't lose your Acura because of somebody else's losing their
dunya
		

			I mean, we're people of our here we're not people have done this abode is what it is. And it's a
zero sum game. It's always has been, you know, some areas get better, others get worse, but it stays
dunya.
		

			And we've had a long run. Those of us who are over here, we've had a long run of blessings. So I see
dark clouds on the horizon. I'm not a negative person, but I see dark cars
		

			on the horizon, people should be doing spiritual exercises to get ready for what's coming because
you don't want to lose your faith just because everything falls apart and things fall apart. I mean,
World War Two, my goodness.
		

			Like, I don't know, people should be grateful that's my feeling my my advice to myself and everybody
else is just be grateful. And hamdulillah she could Illa stop complaining all the time. Everybody's
just, it's just amazing. The complaints, so this is it in order for him to mitigate the pain of your
tribulation, he gave you knowledge that he was the one trying the blue calm or ucommerce anomala so
now lawmakers people have patience and gratitude even better is to be grateful all of the time
because the the it thing that people that know Allah are grateful even in their tribulations because
even a bear said in every tribulation know that there are three blessings hidden that you have to
		

			see. The first is it could have been worse. You lost a child you could have lost all your children.
		

			You lost a hand you could have lost both hands.
		

			So and then know that it's it's in your dunya like it's it's in your worldly things and not in your
religious matters. So if you lose money, like he's stock market collapse, and you lost all your
money, just a hamdulillah it's just dunya
		

			and then the last one it's in this world and not the next world. So on the piano, maybe you're gonna
say I wish I had more tribulation like those people that see the people in tribulation getting all
their reward sayings. I wish I had more triple A's don't wish for more tribulation, just ask Allah
for it and for well being but know that if tribulation comes to you, it's probably because you're
closer to Allah than other people. And and just be grateful in sha Allah is Allah Hara, Salaam
Alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh