Mirza Yawar Baig – Believe and stand firm
AI: Summary ©
AI: Transcript ©
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious,
the Most Merciful.
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of
the worlds.
And peace and blessings be upon the messengers
and the prophets, Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah,
peace and blessings be upon him and his
family and his companions.
May the peace and blessings of Allah be
upon you.
After this, my brothers and sisters, the Holy
Prophet said in one hadith, which is in
Al-Nawawiya, which is the forty hadiths that
Imam Nawawi, may Allah have mercy on him,
he compiled, it's called the forty hadiths of
Imam Nawawi.
It's a very famous book.
They say that after the Quran, this is
probably the book which is most published anywhere
in the world.
So it's a very famous book.
It's a small book, and it has a
selection of forty of the teachings of the
Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, and
the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him.
And in that one hadith, he said that
the Messenger of Allah said, have Iman and
stand firm on it.
Stand firm on this Iman.
So, Ustaqeem.
Now, in the Quran also, Allah SWT said,
Inna allatheena qaloo Rabbuna Allahu thumma istaqaamu.
Right, he said, qaloo Rabbuna Allah thumma istaqaamu.
That's the same thing the Messenger of Allah
said.
He said, who are the believers who are
Muslims?
Those who say Allah is my Rabb, Allah
is my Lord, Allah is my Creator.
Allah is my sustainer, maintainer, protector.
Allah is the only one worthy of worship.
I don't worship anyone other than Allah.
So all of that, when you say qaloo
Rabbuna Allah, they say Allah is my Rabb.
It's not simply just three words, Allah is
my Rabb, no.
It's what does it mean?
All the implications of saying Rabbuna Allah, Allah
is our Rabb, what does it mean?
If I say Rabbi Allah, what exactly am
I saying?
So, I'm saying all this.
I'm saying Allah is my Rabb, meaning I
don't worship anyone other than Allah.
I don't seek help from anyone other than
Allah.
Allah is my Creator, my Protector, my Maintainer,
my Sustainer.
He's the one who I ask, he's the
one who answers.
All of this together is in Rabbi Allah.
Qaloo Rabbuna Allaho, thumma istiqamah.
And they have istiqamah.
Istiqamah is steadfastness, stand firm on it, right?
It's not that one day you say something,
the next day you say something else and
then they say, no, no, but this one
forced me, that happened.
Once you have decided this is what I
am on, that's it.
Allah is my Rabb, Allah is my Rabb,
khalas.
Nobody can move me from this, nobody can
do anything.
If anyone tries to move me, I ask
Allah.
Allah help me, right?
Because the thing I remind myself when you,
is that Islam is the name of a
relationship.
It's not a theory, it's not a philosophy,
it's not even a theology.
It is the name of a relationship.
Between the person, the individual, and his Creator.
Direct relationship between Allah and us, you and
me.
A relationship that does not need anyone in
between.
That does not have anyone in between.
If you want to talk to Allah, you
don't have to come to me.
And say, please, Chef, say this to Allah
on my behalf.
No, if you want to talk to Allah,
talk to Allah.
If you want to ask Allah something, ask
Allah something.
Ta'ala Allahu wa'l-Ansari, we say
Allah is above all examples, but we give
an example to illustrate.
Supposing you want to say something to me,
what do you need to do?
Say it exactly, talk to me.
Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala is in our
lives.
We are, Allah is, He is present and
He sees.
He is the one who hears and He
is the one who sees.
He is the one who knows what is
in the hearts.
He even knows what we are thinking, He
knows what we are feeling.
The relationship with Allah is a closer relationship
than the relationship with anyone on the face
of the earth, anyone.
Supposing you say, my relationship with my mother
is the closest.
Does your mother know what you are thinking?
No, she can't know.
Does your mother know what you are feeling
24-7?
No.
Can your mother see you all the time?
Can your mother see you now?
No.
So even the closest relationships we have, have
no comparison with the closest to Allah Subhanahu
wa ta'ala.
Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala is with us
24-7.
Allah said, He is with you wherever you
are.
So when we have that sense of awareness,
my God is with me, Allah is with
me, it produces a huge amount of strength
and confidence and power.
Allah is with me.
Who can harm me?
Who can touch me?
Who can do anything to me?
Who can do anything?
Nobody can do anything to me.
Allah is with me.
In India, I was going to visit a
wildlife sanctuary once.
We were supposed to go through an area
which was, safety-wise, not so great.
So one of my friends who is the
head of police there, he had two police
cars, one in front of me, one behind
me.
So I'm in this car, there's a car
in front of me with, you know, flashers,
you know, Pakistan or something.
And the one behind me with flashers and
stuff, that thing has a machine gun on
it.
So I'm thinking if they start shooting, they'll
kill me first, because I'm between the two.
But the point being that, if you are
a special person, then you are protected, nobody
will touch you.
You say, oh my God, even the criminals,
they say, no, don't touch this guy.
This is like big-time trouble.
You touch this guy, then we've got to
deal with all of this.
With Allah, everyone is special.
There are no specials.
You are special, I'm special, you're special.
Everybody's special.
We have to feel that.
We have to feel it in our hearts
and say, Subhanallah, I said, Allahu Akbar.
I said, La ilaha illallah.
This is my connection with Allah.
And the reason I'm saying that is, as
those of you who know what happens after
death, you know, when we die, they do
a usul, they bathe the body, then they
put the kafan, the shroud, and then they
put us in the grave.
So when they put us in the grave,
the two angels come, right?
What is it, anybody knows the names of
the angels who come?
Who comes, what are the names of the
angels who come?
The one on the shoulder.
No, those are different.
In the grave, who comes?
Yeah, okay, all right, no problem.
Munkir, Nakir, right?
Munkir and Nakir.
On the shoulders are called Kiram and Kathibir.
They are the ones who write the deeds,
Kiram and Kathibir.
In that grave, Munkir and Nakir.
Munkir and Nakir, when they come, what is
the first question they will ask you?
Anyone has that?
First question in the grave.
Who is your God, exactly?
Man rabuk, who is your Rab?
Now think about it, they're not saying, who
is the creator of the universe, right?
Who is the one who feeds everyone?
No, they know.
They're not asking about they don't know, no.
They want from you, man rabuk, who is
your Rab?
And what is the answer that we are
supposed to give?
Allah, Rabbi Allah, my Rab is Allah.
Only problem is that the only way we
will give that answer is if that was
really the case in our lives.
Meaning, if we lived our lives in disobedience
of Allah, Allah made something halal, we make
it halal.
Allah made something haram, we make it haram.
Allah says, eat this, we don't eat that.
Allah says, don't eat that, we eat that.
Allah says, pray, we don't pray.
And so on and so on, right?
So you do not obey Allah, subhanahu wa
ta'ala.
And believe me, when we are lying in
the grave, they say, man rabuk, we will
not be able to say, Rabbi Allah, because
we never obeyed Allah.
Because once we die, this mouth will be
sealed.
The actions will speak.
Here we can have all kinds of arguments
and clever tricks and what not.
Not in the grave.
In the grave, different world.
Rabbi Allah.
It's a connection.
The first question that is being asked is
what?
Who is your Rab?
What's your connection?
Who are you?
I am so and so, I am the
son of so and so.
Connections, connections.
This life is full of connections, right?
We are students of this university.
I am a chaplain in this university.
Connections, all connections.
I am a citizen of this country.
Same thing, connection.
What's your connection with Allah?
Rabbi Allah.
My connection with Allah is, I worshipped Allah.
Alhamdulillah.
So the whole issue of istiqawat is this.
They say Allah is my Rab, then istiqawat.
And then they are firm on that.
Meaning that once I have accepted Allah as
my Rab, then life is very simple.
I will do what Allah told me to
do.
I will not do what Allah did not
tell me to do.
There is no third person in the equation.
There is no third person in the equation,
me and Allah.
Allah told me to worship Him.
Allah said, do salah at the correct time,
I will do salah.
He wants to do salah, somebody says, no,
no, you can't pray.
No, sorry, I don't listen.
Between me and Allah, who are you?
What do you mean don't pray?
I will pray.
If you don't give me a place to
pray, to pray properly, you know, it's ruku,
sujood, I will pray sitting in my car.
But I will pray, there is nobody going
to stop me from praying at the correct
time because my Rab, Allah, ordered me to
pray.
I will be firm on that order.
Allah told me, don't do drugs, don't do
alcohol, don't do cigarettes, don't do any intoxicants.
And somebody says, come on, just one drink.
It's my birthday, you know, champagne.
No, no, no, sorry.
Doesn't work.
What Allah has prohibited, I will not do.
And so on, other things, right?
Suppose you want to get a, I want
to buy a house, okay, good, fantastic, buy
a house.
I got the money, no, I don't have
that.
I go to the bank and take an
interest-based mortgage.
No, no, no, sorry.
Allah swt declared war on the one who
deals in interest.
You, I want war with Allah?
Come on, give me a break.
Pick someone my size, right?
I tell people, you want to fight?
Pick someone your size.
Allah is not your size.
So, it's like trying to stand in front
of a Mack truck.
What's going to happen?
You'll turn into a pancake, that's it.
There's only one way that's going to end.
And that's not in a good way for
you.
So, you want to fight Allah?
Makes no sense, zero sense.
If I can, if I have the money
or if I can get the money in
a halal way, of course, no problem.
Get the money, borrow the money, repay the
money, halal, as long as it is no
interest involved.
I want to start a business, very good
business.
I want to start a gas station.
Oh, very nice, fantastic, no problem.
We sell gas.
No, no, not only gas.
In the gas station, there is also gambling,
there's also lotteries, there's also cigarettes.
No, no, can't do that.
Have a gas station, sell gas.
In the gas station, sell other things which
are halal.
There are millions, zillions of halal things to
sell.
Sell them.
No, but you know, the gas station franchise,
they insist that I have to have a
lottery thing there and I must sell cigarettes.
Sorry, then this is not my business.
Then that business is not for me because
Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, made these things
haram.
Gambling is haram.
Intoxication is haram.
Cigarettes are haram.
So, I can't do that.
You let me do it without those things,
no problem.
So, I can have 10,000 gas stations.
No, no gas.
Nothing wrong with selling gasoline.
It's the other stuff with which...
Somebody said, no, no, no, I'll tell you
what.
As long as 25% of your income
is, you know, out of 100, as long
as 75% is halal, just 25%, if
it is haram, no problem.
So, I'll tell you, here is a glass
of orange juice and then we'll go in
there, in the washroom, and put 25%
of...
You won't even know because that's also yellow,
this is also yellow, right?
All right.
You can think.
Think about it, you know, just think about
it.
Forget 25%.
Even if I don't do it, suppose I
say, here is this glass of orange juice,
there's only two drops.
Just two drops of urine in it.
Just two drops.
You won't even know, right?
You won't feel the taste.
Actually, I've put nothing in.
I'm just telling you.
Just like a joke or something, right?
Will you drink it?
You won't touch it.
It's one kind of disgusting garbage.
I mean, you're telling me to drink something
with urine in it.
Two drops.
I don't care about that.
I mean, I wouldn't...
Then how do we eat haram?
How do we eat haram?
How do we eat haram?
We earn haram.
We eat haram.
We raise our children on haram.
Those poor kids, what did they do, man?
I mean, they came into this world, you
know, innocent.
And you want to raise them on...
on haram stuff because you don't want to
get out of it?
No.
This is the main...
istiqamat, that is the reason.
You know, it seems very simple.
Whoever, Nabi Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said, whoever said
la ilaha illallah and died on it, Allah
will give you jannah.
Very nice.
Sounds very simple.
Let's say, I just said la ilaha illallah,
Muhammad Rasulullah, and I died 50 years later
or whatever.
Died on it means what?
Means lived by it.
Lived by it.
There's no other way to die on it.
Think about this.
Supposing somebody says, here is a Ferrari T
-shirt, right?
I get you a Ferrari T-shirt.
And then I say, I'll tell you what,
wear the T-shirt.
And I'll note to you, one day, Ferrari
is going to send an inspector.
And this person will come.
This person will come anytime, day, night, whatever,
right?
And no matter where you are.
You might be sleeping, you might be in
the toilet, you might be anywhere.
When this inspector comes, if you are wearing
that T-shirt, that inspector will give you
the keys to a brand new Enzo Ferrari,
right?
Million dollar plus car, free.
What will you do?
Exactly.
You will not, that T-shirt will be
like skin, okay?
That you probably won't even take it off
to wash it because, you know, God knows.
At that time when it's in the washer,
the guy comes, I lose my Ferrari.
Doesn't get dirty, anything.
It will become like skin because you say,
I am waiting.
Imagine this is a Ferrari.
Even if you get the Ferrari, when you
die, you leave it.
What about Jannah?
Allah says, whatever you want, Allah will give
you.
Whatever you want.
Anything you like.
And what is the best thing you can
ask for, for Jannah?
It's the Rida of Allah.
That Allah must be pleased with me.
Jannah is not, I mean, at least to
me, Jannah is not about just more material.
I must have 10 Ferraris.
I must have 50,000 Rolls Royces.
You know, I must have...
That stuff you can get in this world.
Who cares?
After you get one car, a car is
a car is a car is a car
is a car.
What does it matter?
I come from the state, Hyderabad, where our
last king, his name was Farli Khan.
He had five zero, 50 Rolls Royces.
Not one.
And he never rode in any of them.
He used to ride in an Austin.
He had them.
Why do you have them?
Because I can have them.
So what's a car is a car?
So you want to go to Jannah and
have 500 Rolls?
What's the point of that?
Jannah is not a garage.
Jannah, that is why we must talk about
these things.
So these become real to us.
These are real.
Al-jannatu haq, wa naru haq.
The Prophet said, Jannah is real.
The fire is here.
Then they stood firm.
They said, Our Lord is Allah.
Then they stood firm.
Allah said, Those who say, Our Lord is
Allah, then they stood firm, the angels descend
on them.
Do not fear, nor grieve, and rejoice in
the Jannah which you were promised.
We are your protectors in this life and
in the Hereafter.
And you will have therein what your souls
desire.
Allah said, For those people who say, Allah
is my Lord, and who stand firm on
it, when they are dying, Allah will send
the angels.
The angels will be sent to them.
They will descend on them.
And then they will say, Do not fear,
nor grieve, and rejoice in the Jannah Don't
be afraid, and don't be sad.
I remind myself with you that the journey
of death, when we leave this world, this
is the, this is the journey about which
everybody is afraid, without exception.
Everyone is anxious, including the Prophets, because nobody
has gone and come back.
Nobody has gone.
You can't say, you know what, I went
and came back, so I'll tell you how
it is.
No!
It's a one-way street.
So everyone is anxious.
Everyone is afraid.
No matter how powerful you were in this
life, when the time for death comes, get
up.
And then Allah says, at that time, Allah
sends the angels.
They will say, Don't worry.
Don't be sad.
Don't be anxious.
Don't be afraid, and don't be sad.
And rejoice in the Jannah that you have
been promised.
We have come with the glad tidings, with
the good news, that you will get Jannah.
It's right there.
You haven't even died.
You're still in the state of Naza.
Allah is saying that Allah is going to
give you Jannah.
Don't worry.
Then they will say, We were your protectors
and your friends and your companions in this
world, and we will continue with you in
the Akhirah.
So you are not alone.
We are with you.
We'll take you.
Don't worry.
And for you in that place, in the
Jannah, is everything you can desire.
And whatever you want, Allah will give you.
This is the good news.
This is the welcome from the Most Merciful
and the Most Beneficent, Allah Subh'anaHu Wa
Ta-A'la.
This is the reward of being firm.
Saying, Saying, Allah is my Rabb and being
firm on it.
Right?
So it's very simple.
Satisfy yourself that Allah is the one to
worship.
Worship Allah.
And worship means to obey.
Live our lives the way of whose life?
Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam.
According to the life of the Prophet Muhammad
Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam.
That's it.
And when the time comes, we go, and
then there's great goodness.
And may Allah give all of you long
and long productive lives with perfect health and
Iman, InshaAllah.
But nobody knows whose time comes when.
Hey, nobody knows.
The key thing to do, like I gave
you the example of the Pharaoh, keep that
T-shirt on.
You say, I belong to Allah.
Keep that on.
It's not a physical T-shirt, meaning in
the heart.
And everything we do must be on that
one.
Life is very simple, one criteria.
There's no complicated philosophy and theory.
Very simple.
Does Allah like this or not?
So you can have one of three answers.
Yes, Allah likes it.
Go ahead, do it.
No, Allah does not like it.
Don't go near it.
Third possibility, I don't know whether Allah likes
this or not.
Then what should you do?
Don't do it until you know.
That's it.
Don't do it until you find out.
So, by all means, find out, but until
you find out, don't do it.
Once you find out, yes, you can do
it, go ahead.
You can't do it, okay, Alhamdulillah.
I didn't do it, so I'm not in
the...
I didn't fall into that trap.
Right?
Clear, everyone?
Inshallah.
We ask Allah to give us Istiqamat, to
give us firmness and to give us steadfastness
on the way that Allah showed us and
to keep us in that state of steadfastness
and to take us in that state of
steadfastness.