Kamil Ahmad – Reflections on the Turkish Earthquake (2023)
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In Alhamdulillah
Muhammad who and Estelle you know who want to start with Pharaoh.
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the blessings of Allah subhanho wa Taala upon us are many and countless.
And so among the blessings of Allah subhanho wa Taala
is this world that we live in, and how he Subhanahu wa Taala has created it for us
in order for us to live in it
in comfort.
And so Allah subhanho wa Taala says,
Concerning the creation of the Earth,
Allahu Lidija iLok como el oro doc Aurora,
Allah is the one who made the earth as a place of settlement for you.
steady and stable was Santa abena
in the sky, to be a canopy like a ceiling over it.
And so even cathedral Rahim Allahu taala, he says,
what this means is that Allah made the earth stable and stationary, so that it does not move or shake, because if it was to do so, it would not be possible to live in it. But by His grace, and by His mercy, He has made it smooth and calm, not shaking or moving.
However, from time to time, Allah subhanho wa Taala he takes away his blessings from us.
And so from time to time, Allah subhanho wa Taala will allow will allow this earth which he has created by default to be stationary and stable. Allah will allow it to shake and move.
And so a few days ago, we saw an example of that.
And how this massive earthquake
that took place in Turkey, how it shook the ground, and cause the devastation that it did. And so everyone saw those horrifying scenes and everyone has been commenting and talking about it. And so let us
let us reflect
over these events.
In light of what Allah subhanahu wata, Allah has told us in the Quran, and what his messenger sallallahu alayhi wa sallam has informed us
first and foremost, the frequent occurrence of earthquakes is something that our Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam spoke about,
as being one of the signs of the Day of Judgment. And so the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, letter comesa had
that the our will not be established until knowledge is taken away. What took there as well as
and earthquakes become more frequent.
And he mentioned other signs, and time will pass by quickly and Phaeton
afflictions will appear, and murders will increase,
and wealth will overflow in our hands. And the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam also said In another Hadith
bein a de Assa mu eternal Chedid
before the coming of the our
depth, depth will become widespread.
We're back to who sent away to Zazzle. And after that will be years of earthquakes. Now, we cannot say, per se precisely
that
certain signs of the day of judgment that were mentioned by the Prophet sallallahu, alayhi wasallam point to certain events that are taking place today, we cannot say that with certainty that this means this that we are seeing today for sure.
But what we are certain of is
that this is one of the signs of the Day of Judgment. And we know for sure that we are at the end of times, and we are closer than ever before, to the coming of the day of judgment. Secondly,
when talking about the reasons behind why
such catastrophes occur,
such natural disasters occur.
On the one hand, we have the scientific explanation.
In on the other hand, we have
the Divine Wisdom of Allah subhanahu wa Tada.
And so the two do not contradict,
but there are people out there who will want to only focus on one, and they want to brush away the other. And so they say that all of these natural disasters, have their scientific explanations. And so we don't need we don't need to go back to the Quran, and to the words of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam, who have informed us as to why Allah subhana wa Taala allows such calamities to occur.
And so, for the believer, there is no contradiction that yes,
whatever scientific advancements have told us
concerning these occurrences, yes, earthquakes can be explained today, in ways that they were not explained in the past.
Likewise, other
other natural disasters, whether it be volcanoes, whether it be floods, whether it be hurricanes, they all have explanations, that science has led us to today. But that does not mean that we do away with the decree of Allah subhanahu wa taala.
And so Allah subhanahu Attallah is the one in whose hands is control of everything. And he is the one who wills and decrees for these occurrences to happen, due to the reasons that he knows. And he is the one who causes them to happen, when and where they happen.
And so that brings us to the next point, what are the divine wisdoms? What are the reasons behind why Allah subhanho wa Taala allows
such calamities to occur?
And so we say first and foremost, now Allah subhanahu Attallah decrees whatever He wills
ALLAH SubhanA wa Tada. He decrees whatever he wishes
and it's not up to us to question Allah subhanho wa taala. to object to the decrees of Allah subhanho wa Taala where we lay yourself off the island of Oahu alone.
Allah tells us that he subhanahu wa taala. is not to be questioned about what he does.
Who are you to be questioned Allah subhanho wa Taala Hannah
well whom use alone but it is they who will be questioned.
Focus on yourself because a day will come when you are the one who is going to be questioned by Allah subhanahu wa taala.
However,
although we do not question Allah subhanho wa Taala
Allah subhanahu wa Tada and His Messenger sallallahu alayhi wa sallam have told us reasonings behind why such calamities occur. And so, the first
is that such
tusks refuse
Allah subhanahu wa Italia decrees
to remind us
as a reminder, as a mo Eva as an admonition, as a wake up call for those
who are blinded
in their heedless life,
who are living in their dunya and in their comfortable lives, a wake up call for them, that these blessings that you are enjoying.
The source of them are Allah subhanahu Attallah. And at any moment, whenever he wants, he'll take care away from you. And so Allah subhanahu Atlanta, He decrees such calamities as a wake up call for us. Allah subhanho wa Taala says, Well, according to Salah era umami, Min Kabhi leikam
Welaka the auto Sellner Isla umami mill Kubelik
now homebuilt back sir, he will Bara
we have sent
to the people before your donations before you Omer Hammond.
And we took them
we took them by suffering
and hardship. We cause them to go through calamities. For what reason? Law I love whom you thought Ron, so that perhaps they will humble themselves.
Those people were arrogant.
And so Allah sent such catastrophes to them, so that perhaps the alarm your Tada role, so that perhaps they will humble themselves, perhaps they will go back to Allah.
Perhaps they will stop their rebellion.
And so Allah subhanahu Attallah sins and decrees such disasters, to remind us as a wake up call for us to strike fear in our hearts, when I notice Hello, Bill, T letter, whoever, and we do not send our signs except as a warning, except
to cause fear,
to cause fear of who of Allah subhanahu wa taala. And so whoever sees the kinds of scenes that we saw
in this recent earthquake, whoever sees these seems
and it doesn't cause any fear in his heart, and it doesn't cause his heart to shake with the fear of Allah subhanahu Attallah then it is a sign that his heart is hardened which is why Allah subhanahu wa Tada says right after that, but Allah Allah either Joe and that sunnah towbar ro. What
if only when
our calamities came upon them, they humble themselves, but instead of humbling themselves, their hearts became Harding.
The second reason why Allah subhanahu wa Tada sins, such calamities is as a test
as a test for the believers.
And so in the Battle of offered
when the Muslims
when the Muslims had the upper hand
and they were gaining
victory over their enemy.
The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam had warned one group of his army to remain stationed on the hill. And so they were the archers.
They were stationed there. And they were told with clear instructions by the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam. Not to move, no matter what, even if the Muslims were gaining victory.
But being the human beings that they were,
they were attracted by the booty and attracted by that dunya and so they wanted to, they wanted to participate with their brothers. And so they came down from their positions.
So Harley Davidson will lead who was with the enemy at that time.
He took he took the Muslims by surprise.
And then the table's turned
And so the Muslims started to suffer defeat and they started to retreat.
And so ALLAH SubhanA who Italia reminding the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, and the Sahaba about that day
was of Hernan who had to Allah says in surah two area Imran, what to kill a yam Ananda, we do have been a nurse, that these days of victory. We alternate them.
Just because Allah loves you, it doesn't mean that he's always going to give you victory. He's going to make you suffer at times. Just because Allah does not love your enemy. It doesn't mean he's going to always make them suffer defeat. No. Sometimes victory will be with you. And sometimes victory will be with your enemy. And then Allah subhanho wa Taala starts mentioning some of the wisdoms behind behind that suffering loss. And so Allah subhana wa Tada says, What will kill a yarmulke? We do have a nurse. Well, yeah, Allah who led ina M and who?
And so that Allah subhanho wa Taala can know who the true believers are a test of your Eman?
Who are the true believers? Allah wants to see? Are the believers going to be only those who come out on the day of victory? And when things become tough? They went away?
Are the believers going to be those?
Are they going to be those who are going to submit and surrender to the decree of Allah? When things become tough? Or are they going to be those who always object to the decree of Allah? And question Allah? Are they those who submit and say, We believe in Allah, no matter what suffering we go through, we believe that Allah is just, and he is fear. And he is the all merciful and all loving, and this suffering that he makes us go through, there is a wisdom behind it. Or are they going to be those who say that I'm not going to believe in an all loving God who cleans he's all loving, but then he causes humans to suffer the way they do. It's a test of your Eman.
And then Allah subhanahu Attallah says, Well, you Duffy the mean Come Shuhada.
And so also among the wisdoms behind such suffering, to take murders from among us
to take from among us martyrs, people who Allah has chosen to be to be chosen as martyrs to raise their hand.
And so there are some people
who have a dunya centered worldview.
They look at such suffering, they see
lives being lost. And they say, where is the all loving God?
They say this is a waste of life. Why? Because they have a dunya centered worldview. They don't believe in anything that comes after this life. But for the believer, he knows that such lives were not lost in vain,
but rather the opposite.
What awaits these people with a recive Heron who went to Allah as long as they died upon Eman
is What does not await anyone else? What is with Allah is far more superior and for better, but only for a people who believe
in that eternal life, and the rewards that Allah has promised for such people, and that brings us to the next point.
The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam told us
a Shuhada Hamza,
that the murders are five kinds. Many of us when we think of a Shaheed when we think of a murderer, we immediately think of those who die on the battlefield. They gave up their lives for the cause of Allah. And while yes, that is true, there are other kinds of shahada as well, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said the shahada are five, and then he listed them
and unlocked the rune, the one who dies from a plague.
I love the tone, the one who dies from a stomach disease, a hurry, the one who dies drowning or
saw he will hit him and the one who dies as a result of Jibreel.
As a result of debris falling over him, he's in a building and the building comes down, comes crashing down onto him. He is a Shahid and the fifth was shahidul visa vie Rila. The Shaheed who dies on the battlefield.
Finally,
besides what we mentioned, among the reasons for why Allah subhanahu Attallah sins, such calamities, such natural disasters, besides what we have mentioned, there is also another reason
and that reason
is that for some,
it is a punishment from Allah subhanho wa taala.
And this is something that we cannot deny.
On the one hand, one event, one catastrophe
for one person it could be to raise his rank to the level of the shahada, the murders and on the other hand, it could be a punishment in this life before the eternal punishment of the akhira
ALLAH SubhanA wa Tada says, one or swashbuckle min musi Bettin
30 My cursor but add como Yahoo and Kathy, that whatever calamity befalls you. It is because of what your own hands has sent forth.
It is because of what you have done yourself. Whatever calamity befalls you. It is a punishment from Allah for you for your disobedient life that you're living, for your life of Cooper, for your life of disobedience and wickedness.
So such calamities,
such calamities from Allah subhanho wa Taala are either for the believers, for the righteous believers to raise them in rent, or for the wicked, and for the disbelievers
an early punishment
in this life,
when Allah subhanahu wa taala
punished the nations that came before us.
He punished them with similar natural disasters. So how can you say that such disasters are not a punishment from Allah subhanho wa taala. When Allah subhanahu Attallah himself gave so many examples in the Quran, sometimes it was a flood. Other times it was meteor showers. Other times it was an earthquake,
that the previous people and the previous nations, they were punished weird. Why? Because of their persistent disobedience to Allah, their persistence Cofer and denial of Allah subhanahu wa taala
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connect you. Ask the brothers to come forward to make room for the brothers who are standing in the back.
Allah subhanahu wa
addressing all of mankind
He says in the beginning of Souter hedge Yeah, uh you Hannah Sutopo Rob back home. Oh people all mankind feared or Lord have Taqwa of Allah in zealot, Assa T shaped on our whim. Indeed, the shaking of the hour, the earthquake that will take place on the Day of Judgment is a terrible thing.
And so, whoever saw the horrifying scenes from this past earthquake will realize the power and the meat of Allah subhanho wa Taala
his power and his mate that no one can resist.
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on the day that you see it, meaning on the Day of Judgment, when the earth will be shaking the wait, it will. On that day you will see
the nursing mother who had a baby that she was nursing, she will throw away her baby
and the pregnant woman she will abort what is within her.
And Allah says, and you will see the people as if they are drunk.
They will be wondering about
not knowing where they're going, as if they are drunk, but they are not drunk, while our kin Nadab Allah He should eat. But the punishment of Allah is indeed severe. And so what we saw a few days ago, was a minimized version of what each and every single one of us will go through
on the day that we rise from our graves. But that time, on that day, it will be for a few seconds. It won't be for a few moments, but it will last for a very long time. And so this is where each and every single one of us needs to pause
and reflect.
We need to pause and reflect.
Today it was them.
And Allah saved us what our brothers and sisters went through in Turkey and Syria.
Allah subhanahu wa Tada did not make us to go through the same.
We are safe in the comfort of our homes
and our families. But what guarantee do you have
that something similar will take place in your life affecting you directly? Isn't it time for us to wake up from this and take heed from this and let it be a reminder for us to turn back to Allah subhanahu wa Sahana In such times, turn back to Allah subhana wa Tada repent to Him. And that is why the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, he said regarding another,
another natural
calamity.
And that was a solar eclipse. The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said when you see it, rush to Salah.
When you see it, rush to the worship of Allah, why? Because this is Allah subhanahu Uttara
reminding us that everything is in his hands. He is the one who controls this universe, and he could change. He could change the course of everything within a few seconds. Everything is in the hands of Allah. Let this be a reminder for us and let us wake up from our heedless lives. Finally
the devastation that has resulted from this earthquake is enormous.
And so more than 21,000
people have died.
Hundreds of 1000s
have been injured. We have all seen the scenes.
Hundreds and 1000s
of children have become orphans.
Hundreds of 1000s of women have been left widows.
The devastation is enormous.
Hundreds of buildings
are destroyed hundreds of 1000s other buildings, although they may not have come crashing down, they are not suitable to live in.
Hundreds and 1000s of our brothers and sisters are homeless at this very moment. What makes matters worse,
is the extreme cold weather. And so if it's cold outside here, it's also cold over there.
And they have nowhere to go.
They have no home to go back to
what makes it worse for our brothers and sisters in Syria
is
this decades long war that they have been living through.
And so, no one has seen it worse than them.
Already, they are going through the catastrophe that they are going through and now add to that this earthquake. And so,
let us not forget
the among the wisdoms behind why Allah subhanho wa Taala sins such catastrophes is also to test each and every single one of us.
Yes, Allah subhanahu retallack is testing them
through the suffering that they are going through, but Allah is also testing me and you to see who will come to their aid.
They are in need of aid, like never before.
As a Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said that the believer to the believer
is like one body. If one part of it feels pain, then the rest of the body is going to respond and also feel that pain. You need to ask yourself, if you don't feel if you don't feel the pain of your brothers and sisters who are suffering today,
then it means one of two things. Either you are not from this ummah, that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam spoke us and give us that example. Or that part of the body is drugged, you are drugged.
You are drugged by your dunya and that's why you don't feel the pain.
The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, and meno little mini California,
you should do bow to who God's law that the believer to the believer is like one structure, one building, what happens if one part of the building
is damaged or is missing, then the building is going to come crashing down? We need to support our brothers and sisters in such times of need. And so there are many relief organizations who have been collecting our donations in the last few days. There are some who are collecting it in the form of money. And there are others who are even collecting clothing and blankets and so on and so forth.
We need to be generous with our wealth. And so among the organizations who have
who have their feet on the ground in Turkey and also in Syria is Islamic Relief and they are at the back today. Make sure make sure that you do not leave this mystery today. Until you have given something no matter how small it may be.
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