Know Your Lord Audio Book 03 01 – Evidence of Our Lord
Date:
Channel: Karim Abuzaid
Series: Karim Abuzaid - Know Your Lord Audio Book
File Size: 22.51MB
Related
- Abu Usamah At-Thahabi – The 10 Nullifiers of Islam – The Polytheists
- Mufti Menk – Comfort in Times of Crisis #25
- Yasir Qadhi – The Importance of Akhlaq
- Taimiyyah Zubair – Taleem al Quran 2012 – P25 256C Tafsir Al-Zukhruf 66-73
- Muhammad Salah – Gardens Of The Pious #575 The Book Of Duas
- Mufti Menk – Ramadan 2014 – Day 5 – Ali Ibn Abi Talib
- Abdullah Oduro – Manners of the Mindful – Shyness
AI Generated Summary ©
The importance of proving to oneself that there is God and reconciling their natural state is crucial for their enculturation. They stress the need for nurturing people to their faith and affirming their existence. The importance of affirmations and revelations to understand and interpret the creator's qualities and attributes is emphasized, along with the use of Singh wider for guidance and individual behavior to achieve spiritual ease. The use of prophets and messages to show the existence of Allah's existence and potential is emphasized, along with the importance of practicing the natural law of the creator.AI Generated Transcript ©
Part 3,
belief
in Allah's lordship.
Chapter 1, evidence
of our Lord.
It is said to consider
that the fastest growing ideology in this world
right now
is atheism.
The breeding ground for atheism
is materialist doctrine
in the education system
and the moral failure of educators
in school
and universities.
Imagine a human being who was born a
Muslim then placed into an environment
where the slogan
is a separation between God and life.
Judeo Christian democracies
may have referred to this
as separation of church
and state
and by it they meant to protect the
individual right to choose and follow any faith
without compulsion
or persecution.
According to this ideal faith lies solely
between man
and his God. This theory is a breeding
ground for disbelief
kufr
as without guidance and reminder.
Even free individuals
are at risk of losing faith.
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala inferred
the institution of teaching, reminding
and establishing principles of faith.
The believing men and believing women
are allies of one another.
They enjoin what is right and forbid what
is wrong and establish prayer and give charity
and obey Allah and His Messenger.
Those
Allah will have mercy upon them. Indeed,
Allah is Exhorted
in Might and Wise.
Allah
said:
And let there be arising
from you a nation
inviting
to all that is good,
enjoining what is right
and forbidding what is wrong and those will
be the successful.
This is the condition
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala requires for his servants
to come to know him.
Unfortunately
faith is absent from the lives of most
individuals
when they live under the doctrine of autonomy
from a faith community
and detachment
from moral cultivation.
The message that is instilled
day in and day out
is that our Lord is not part of
our life.
It should be no surprise
that the core message of Al Usunawal JAMA
is the anti thesis to this.
We call to community
and we call to morality
by inviting towards our lord.
Calling such individuals back to the natural states
they were born into is the mission of
every Muslim living in this environment.
But we must realize
that we must start from the fundamentals of
faith. We must prove
to self identified atheists
that there is God.
While doing so we should be aware
that the use of revelation
as evidence is usually only effective
after they acknowledge
that God exists.
In this chapter we will furnish intellectual and
logical pieces of evidence
in 5 categories
each of which establishes
the existence of our Lord.
These are areas of emphasis
for the caller to islam.
1 the intuition
Al fitra.
2
the intellect.
3 the invocation
dua.
4, The Guidance.
5, Miracles of the Messengers.
The Intuition
Al Fitra,
The natural state
in which Allah
created humankind
is called the fitra. Abu Huraira
reported
that the messenger of Allah
said, 'There is no child who was not
born in a state of fitra.
Then he said, recite
Allah's fitra with which He has created mankind.
No change let there be in Khalqillah
that is a straight religion.
The prophet
informed us
that every child is born on the fitra.
This means
that he or she is free from wrong
beliefs
and is prepared to accept monotheism
and the inherent
truths in recognizing our lord.
The fitra does not mean that the people
embrace Islam and adhere to its rulings from
birth.
Another report of the above narration
from Abu Mu'awiya
included the wording.
There is no child
who is not born in a state of
fitra until he begins to speak.
The meaning may be that he or she
remains in the state of fitra
until they have learned from their parents the
religions,
symbols
and testifications
of Judaism,
Christianity
or other beliefs
instead of Islamic Monotheism.
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said,
they will say our lord we obeyed our
chiefs and elders
and they caused us to go astray.
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala also said,
in the same way
whenever we had sent a messenger
before you to warn a town,
The rich ones therein
said, we found our fathers
following
a certain belief
and we follow in their footsteps.
Ibn Taymiyrah
explained
that humans
have inherent capacity
to understand submission
to the creator.
He defended a position in which mankind
naturally perceives Tawhidah rubobiyah
just as our eyes are created
to perceive light.
The natural order inherent in the creation
is to know the creator.
Those who go astray from the correct response
to Tawhidar Rubobiya
worship other than Allah
because of deviant and culturation.
Amazingly
every human being
has Islam inside them
and fortunately
parents,
the educational system,
the social norms
or cultural practices
divert this natural state.
Moreover
most human beings throughout history
and across religious traditions
have affirmed
the existence
of the Almighty Creator. It is merely part
of our nature to recognize these signs
because Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has created us
this way.
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said, So direct your
face
toward the religion
inclining to truth.
Adhere to the fitra of Allah upon which
he has created all people.
No change
should there be in the creation of Allah.
That is the correct religion
but most of the people do not know.
The Quran and Sunnah prophetic tradition
tell us that this natural state in which
all humans were born
is reconciled
in our enculturation
when we go through 2 extreme moments
excessive joy or intense sorrow
distress.
For example,
Anas ibn Malik
reported
that the messenger of Allah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam
said,
Allah rejoices moreover
the repentance
of his servant
when he repents to him than one of
you who was on his mount in the
wilderness.
Then he lost it, and his food and
drink are on it,
and he despairs of finding it.
He goes to a tree and lies down
in its shade, having lost hope of finding
his mount.
And while he is like that, there it
is standing in front of him. So he
takes hold of its reins and say, 'Because
of this intense joy, O Allah, you are
my servant and I am your Lord. Making
this mistake
because of his intense joy.
This narration shows
how distress reminds us of the fitra
natural state of belief in which we were
born.
Allah
is pleased
with our return to fitra
and provides
us with experiences
of excessive sorrow
and desperation
as the liquid which polishes the fitra on
which we were born.
This is exemplified
in the story of Ikrima radiallahu anhu
who had been one of the fiercest opponents
of the muslims.
On the day of conquest of Makkah, Ekrimah
traveled by sea and he was caught in
a storm.
The crew of the ship said
turn sincerely
toward Allah,
for your false gods cannot help you at
all in this situation.'
Ikrima said, 'By Allah, if nothing came to
save me at sea except sincerity
towards Allah, then nothing else will save me
on land.
O Allah, I promise you that if you
save me from this predicament
I will go to Mohammed and put my
hand in his and I am sure that
I will find him generous and forgiving.'
So he came
and accepted Islam.
Understanding this element of fitra
is essential
in calling others to Islam
because
everyone has declined to submit to our Lord.
It can be nurtured
by calling them to Islam where the role
of the caller
is to awaken the ignorant to their fitra.
It is similar
to an installing new software
on to our computers.
The purchase software
typically searches inside the central processing unit
for a matching component.
Likewise
for Islam to be assimilated
and functional there is a fitra inside everybody
and needs nurturing, so continue calling people to
Islam,
never give up on them and do it
in the best manner possible.
Intellect
Some modernists
malign the sunnah,
prophetic tradition
as something
unsophisticated
and negligent
of humankind's
intellectual capacity.
This is wrong.
Revelation defines
where intellect
may be very beneficial
and where it has no benefit at all.
In some circumstances
intellect could become an obstacle
if it belies revelation. Here
is the essential subject in proving
that the Almighty exists,
the default
is to use the intellect.
Confirmation
that a creator exists
is in the creation,
which points
to his greatness and perfection.
Then ask yourself the following question. Who created
all of what we perceive in its complexity?
There must be a creator
otherwise
you will have to conclude the 2 intellectually
force conclusions.
Either the creation was created
out of nothing
or it established itself.
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said
Have they been created from nothing
or are they themselves
their own creators?
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala also said, Does man
not remember
that we created him before
while he was nothing?
The universe
must necessarily have a creator
because it is impossible for the world
to have created itself
or to have spontaneously
originated
as energy and mass from nothing.
Therefore,
there must have been a creator
who provided
the initial force and energy needed to set
the universe in motion.
It is sometimes called the cosmological
argument
or argument from existence.
A well known narration
has been reported in various forms
that Imam Abu Hanifa
used the motion of the universe
to establish the existence of the creator
and his
debate with the atheists.
While the validity
of the narration comes under question,
The method of rational thought is brought as
a means of knowing your Lord.
Ibn Abu al-'Aiz or Rahim Allah reported,
this familiar anecdote
Abu Hanifa,
may Allah have mercy on him, was approached
by some speculative theologians
who intended to discuss
Allah's lordship and oneness.
He said,
Before we discuss this question
tell me what you think about a boat
in the Euphrates
which goes to shore, loads itself with food
and other things
then returns,
anchors
and unloads all by itself without anyone sailing
or controlling it. They said this is impossible.
Abu Hanifa said, if it is impossible
with a boat,
how is it possible for the world to
move by itself
in all its vastness?
Ibn Kathir Rahimullah
mentioned
a classical formulation of this argument.
Once a Bedouin was asked about the evidence
of the existence of Allah,
he responded,
'All praise is due to Allah. The camel's
dung testifies
to the existence of the camel
and the tract testifies
to the fact that someone was walking. A
sky holds the giant stars,
a land
that has fairways,
and a sea that has waves.
Does not all of this testify
that the most kind,
most knowledgeable exists?
Ibn Kathir
further commented,
As Shafa'ai said, the leaves of a berry
bush all have one taste,
worms eat it and produce silk, bees eat
it and produce honey,
boats, camels, and cows eat
it and deliver offspring,
deer devour it and produce musk,
yet all of these come from one thing.
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala refers
to the diversity in creation from a common
source as evidence
of his divine plan.
Allah
said, And within the land and neighboring plots
and gardens of grapevines
and crops and palm trees,
several from a root or otherwise
watered with one water,
but we make some of them exceed others
in quality of fruit.
Indeed in that
are signs for a people who reason.
The first intellectual argument
a caller to Islam
must use
that there must be a creator
because of the evidence of creation. The second
argument
is an assumption
of the nature of the creator
based on qualities and attributes
which must be of higher status than those
of the creation. To learn intellectually about the
qualities and characteristics
of the creator
is beyond our grasp.
Use of intellect is limited
to experiential
and perceptual competence
but our Lord is greater than what we
can experience and perceive in this life.
Instead,
revelation
is necessary
to comprehend
and conceptualize
our Lord as he describes himself.
The Invocation
Du'a
Allah
answers the supplication
of the distressed
whether they are believers or otherwise.
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala asks
the disbelievers about their own experiences in the
Quran.
Are the idols worthier or the one who
answers the prayers
of the distressed ones,
removes their hardship
and makes you the successors in the land?
Is there any Lord besides God? In fact,
you take very little heed.
In this
verse Allah
makes it clear to the disbelievers
that when they sincerely asked him for help
at times of distress
or dire need they felt a certainty
that there is a higher power
out there
ready to
help when invoked.
This higher power is Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala,
the divine. Hence every human being will call
out to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
during times of calamity
as it is an innate
instinct
to turn to the creator
in times of distress.
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said,
say, who rescues you from the darkness of
the land? And see,
when you call upon him imploring aloud and
privately,
if he should save us from this crisis,
we will surely be among the thankful.
When the distressed sincerely calls to the creator,
he answers,
who then can deny
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala as Lord
and sovereign
over our affairs except those who reject guidance.
Therefore the individual
who is sincere
in her or his search for our Lord
need only ask him for guidance to gain
a clear understanding
of who our Lord truly is and which
religion he intends for humanity.
The Guidance
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala created us with a
deliberate design. He revealed the manual,
guidelines and manuscript
for us to implement
and if we choose to do so
we will become content with our lives in
this world and thriving high
in the hereafter.
If we refuse guidance
out of arrogance,
contentment
will be elusive.
This is a legacy of wisdom
known
since the time of our parents
prophet Adam and
our mother Hawa.
The story is mentioned in the Quran as
Allah said, Descend from Paradise,
all your descendants being enemies to one another.
If they should come to your guidance from
me, then whoever
follows my guidance
will neither go astray in the world nor
suffer in the hereafter.
How many people
live in dysfunction
and self abuse?
Many
may be smoking and consuming drugs or alcohol
or have many other behavioral problems.
Once they start implementing guidance
from their creator
their lives will improve
and they will gain ease.
There is a profound example
in Umar
before
and after Islam.
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala said,
and is one who was dead
and we gave him life
and made for him light by which to
walk among the people
like one who is in darkness,
never to emerge therefrom.
Thus it has been made pleasing to the
disbelievers
that which they were doing.
Ease will certainly come after
asking for guidance.
Allah
said, and those who are guided,
He increases them in guidance
and gives them their righteousness.'
Divine guidance
is extended
to all of humanity,
but it is upon the individual to recognize
it
and follow willingly.
That Allah
may ease their further process.
Such is the case with moral inclinations
which are constructs
of divine guidance
for those who are aware. Human nature
recognizes
the existence of the creator by recognizing objective
moral values
shared across
religions
and cultures throughout time.
This is known to philosophers
as the natural law of the creator.
This is sometimes called
the moral argument.
Recognizing
that the moral argument
or natural law
is proof of a creator
is only one part of success.
The second necessity to achieve success
is to follow the authentic guidance from that
creator.
Since morality is not relative nor can it
be interpreted
by the whims of sectarianism.
True loss is to recognize
that the moral argument is evidence for Allah
and then distort or reject the evidence.
Allah
refers to the moral argument.
Every soul will be held in pledge for
its deeds.
Moralists
recognize that action or inaction
has an effect on self
and environment
and the accountability for this effect
can only be universally
rendered
The one who is free from accountability
and
the disposer
of all affairs of creations.
The miracles of the messengers.
Allah
has sent down miracles,
revelations
and messengers
to give clear proof that he exists
and more importantly
what we should do once we come to
this realization.
Allah
has sent prophets and messengers
with many proofs
throughout the ages. These were expressly designed for
people to see clearly
with their own eyes.
Miracles were also sent
to their other senses to help mankind
experience them as evidence
that Allah exists.
Miracles of prophets and messengers
have come to people through the ages.
Prophet Musa,
Moses
showed many wonders to the pharaoh
and the children of Israel,
Plagues,
locusts,
water turning to blood, his stick becoming a
snake,
the voice in the burning bush, and the
parting of the Red Sea are manifest miracles
of the people of his time.
Christians
among the people of the book,
Ahlul Kitab,
acknowledge
that Allah sent prophet A'eha,
Jesus
the son of Maryam Bint Amran
with miracles as evidence for the people of
his time.
He spoke from the cradle,
while he was still a new born infant.
Animated birds from clay,
cured the sick,
gave sight to the blind,
and raised the dead man back to life.
All
clear signs by the permission
and empowerment of Allah to direct the people
to know that prophet Isa Jesus Alaihi Salam
was a messenger
of our Lord as was prophet Musa,
Moses
Alaihi Salam before him.
Prophet Muhammad
was the last and final messenger of Allah
and sent him with the evidence of all
humankind.
Allah
sent him
with several miracles.
But the one miracle
which stands out
with continuity
is the Quran.
If someone who did not see the other
physical wonders is to ask,
what is his miracle? The Quran
is the answer
to anyone even after the time of the
prophet
The nature and qualities of the Quran
as evidence
of the existence of our lord are voluminous.
It suffices to invite to our Lord using
his own words
so that the sincere
and intelligent seekers
through his own attributes.
through his own attributes.