Mirza Yawar Baig – Islam is a way of life

Mirza Yawar Baig
Share Page

AI: Summary ©

The importance of protecting one's Islam is highlighted, with a quote that only Islam is needed to be saved. The speakers emphasize the need for one to not become a Muslim if one is not practicing it, and the common practice in many countries is practicing in a time frame of two years and practicing in a similar pattern. Personal and professional growth is also emphasized, with a person named[unsure] who used to pray in a different language and talks about practicing it in their life.

AI: Summary ©

00:00:00 --> 00:00:08
			As salamu alaikum
		
00:00:08 --> 00:00:12
			warahmatullahi wabarakatuhu.
		
00:00:12 --> 00:00:16
			My brother, sister, somebody sent me a very
		
00:00:16 --> 00:00:18
			nice little quote.
		
00:00:19 --> 00:00:22
			And he said, our Shaykh, I don't know
		
00:00:22 --> 00:00:24
			which Shaykh this is, but whoever it is,
		
00:00:24 --> 00:00:27
			may Allah Allah bless him and increase him
		
00:00:27 --> 00:00:30
			in knowledge and taqwa and be pleased with
		
00:00:30 --> 00:00:32
			him and never be displeased.
		
00:00:33 --> 00:00:36
			He says, our Sheikh says, the only Islam
		
00:00:36 --> 00:00:39
			you need to save is that which is
		
00:00:39 --> 00:00:40
			in your heart.
		
00:00:41 --> 00:00:45
			The only Islam you need to save is
		
00:00:45 --> 00:00:47
			that which is in your heart.
		
00:00:47 --> 00:00:50
			Allah Ta'ala doesn't need Islam.
		
00:00:51 --> 00:00:52
			It is not a religion.
		
00:00:52 --> 00:00:54
			It is a way of life which is
		
00:00:54 --> 00:00:57
			sent down to make the human species better
		
00:00:57 --> 00:00:59
			versions of themselves.
		
00:01:00 --> 00:01:01
			Don't worry about Islam in the world.
		
00:01:02 --> 00:01:04
			Worry about the Islam within yourself.
		
00:01:05 --> 00:01:09
			And the world will automatically get better because
		
00:01:09 --> 00:01:10
			Islam is not a face.
		
00:01:11 --> 00:01:12
			It is positive conduct.
		
00:01:13 --> 00:01:17
			More the positive conduct, more positivity in the
		
00:01:17 --> 00:01:20
			world because again it was sent to make
		
00:01:20 --> 00:01:21
			humans better.
		
00:01:21 --> 00:01:22
			So let me repeat that.
		
00:01:23 --> 00:01:26
			The only Islam you need to save is
		
00:01:26 --> 00:01:27
			that which is in your heart.
		
00:01:28 --> 00:01:30
			Allah Ta'ala doesn't need Islam.
		
00:01:31 --> 00:01:32
			It is not a religion.
		
00:01:33 --> 00:01:34
			It is a way of life which is
		
00:01:34 --> 00:01:37
			sent down to make the human species better
		
00:01:37 --> 00:01:39
			versions of themselves.
		
00:01:40 --> 00:01:42
			Don't worry about Islam in the world.
		
00:01:43 --> 00:01:45
			Worry about the Islam within.
		
00:01:45 --> 00:01:51
			And the world automatically gets better because Islam
		
00:01:51 --> 00:01:52
			is not a face.
		
00:01:52 --> 00:01:54
			It is positive conduct.
		
00:01:55 --> 00:01:59
			More the positive conduct, more positivity in the
		
00:01:59 --> 00:02:02
			world because again it was sent to make
		
00:02:02 --> 00:02:03
			humans better.
		
00:02:06 --> 00:02:11
			SubhanAllah, if there is one thing, one reminder
		
00:02:11 --> 00:02:18
			that I can say which completely and totally
		
00:02:18 --> 00:02:25
			Alhamdulillah encapsulates where our focus should be, then
		
00:02:25 --> 00:02:26
			it is this reminder.
		
00:02:26 --> 00:02:29
			I ask Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala to
		
00:02:29 --> 00:02:34
			help us to remember and to practice.
		
00:02:36 --> 00:02:39
			Islam is not a theory.
		
00:02:39 --> 00:02:41
			It is not a philosophy.
		
00:02:42 --> 00:02:44
			When we say it is not a religion,
		
00:02:44 --> 00:02:47
			we mean it's not a set of actions
		
00:02:47 --> 00:02:50
			or set of worship rituals.
		
00:02:51 --> 00:02:52
			Islam is a way of life.
		
00:02:53 --> 00:02:55
			Islam is a practice.
		
00:02:56 --> 00:02:58
			The one who is a Muslim is the
		
00:02:58 --> 00:03:01
			one who practices Islam, not the one who
		
00:03:01 --> 00:03:02
			knows about Islam.
		
00:03:02 --> 00:03:05
			It is entirely possible that a person may
		
00:03:05 --> 00:03:09
			know about Islam a great deal, but they
		
00:03:09 --> 00:03:11
			will not be practicing Islam.
		
00:03:11 --> 00:03:14
			But in that case, they will still be
		
00:03:14 --> 00:03:19
			called Islamic scholars, but they will not be
		
00:03:19 --> 00:03:20
			Muslim scholars.
		
00:03:21 --> 00:03:23
			And there is a world of difference between
		
00:03:23 --> 00:03:27
			an Islamic scholar and a Muslim scholar, world
		
00:03:27 --> 00:03:28
			of difference.
		
00:03:30 --> 00:03:32
			So the same thing applies to anything else.
		
00:03:33 --> 00:03:36
			Somebody who knows a great deal about Christianity
		
00:03:36 --> 00:03:39
			but does not practice is not a Christian.
		
00:03:39 --> 00:03:41
			Now the Christians have, and the others have,
		
00:03:41 --> 00:03:44
			they have got these terms they have invented
		
00:03:45 --> 00:03:50
			called non-practicing Christian, non-practicing Jew, and
		
00:03:50 --> 00:03:50
			so forth.
		
00:03:51 --> 00:03:52
			Fine, no problem, that's their choice.
		
00:03:53 --> 00:03:55
			But let me assure you that there is
		
00:03:55 --> 00:03:57
			no such thing as an NPM, non-practicing
		
00:03:57 --> 00:03:58
			Muslim.
		
00:03:58 --> 00:04:01
			You become Muslim by practicing Islam.
		
00:04:01 --> 00:04:04
			You don't become Muslim by knowing about Islam.
		
00:04:05 --> 00:04:07
			Now obviously we need to know about something
		
00:04:07 --> 00:04:09
			because if we are going to practice it,
		
00:04:09 --> 00:04:10
			we need to know about it.
		
00:04:10 --> 00:04:14
			So all knowledge of Islam that is gained,
		
00:04:15 --> 00:04:19
			everything about Islam that we study, must be
		
00:04:19 --> 00:04:22
			studied with one purpose and one goal and
		
00:04:22 --> 00:04:24
			one niyyah and one intention only.
		
00:04:25 --> 00:04:27
			And that is to apply it in our
		
00:04:27 --> 00:04:27
			lives.
		
00:04:28 --> 00:04:31
			This is what the Sahaba, the companions of
		
00:04:31 --> 00:04:32
			Rasulullah did.
		
00:04:33 --> 00:04:35
			They did not learn anything for the sake
		
00:04:35 --> 00:04:36
			of learning.
		
00:04:37 --> 00:04:39
			They did not memorize Quran for the sake
		
00:04:39 --> 00:04:40
			of memorizing Quran.
		
00:04:40 --> 00:04:43
			They did not memorize Quran for the sake
		
00:04:43 --> 00:04:47
			of reciting it in this and that riwayah.
		
00:04:47 --> 00:04:50
			They did not memorize Quran in order to
		
00:04:50 --> 00:04:51
			analyze its grammar.
		
00:04:52 --> 00:04:56
			No, they memorized Quran al-Karim for one
		
00:04:56 --> 00:04:58
			purpose only, which is to practice it.
		
00:04:59 --> 00:05:02
			We have the famous story of Abdullah ibn
		
00:05:02 --> 00:05:08
			Umar, which is known, I'm sure, to all
		
00:05:08 --> 00:05:08
			of you.
		
00:05:09 --> 00:05:12
			And that is that he memorized Surah al
		
00:05:12 --> 00:05:14
			-Baqarah in 12 years.
		
00:05:16 --> 00:05:18
			And at the end of that period, he
		
00:05:18 --> 00:05:21
			gave a walima, he gave a dinner.
		
00:05:22 --> 00:05:25
			He slaughtered a camel and he invited all
		
00:05:25 --> 00:05:27
			his friends for dinner.
		
00:05:28 --> 00:05:30
			And now they asked him, why did it
		
00:05:30 --> 00:05:33
			take you 12 years to memorize this one
		
00:05:33 --> 00:05:34
			surah?
		
00:05:35 --> 00:05:37
			Surah al-Baqarah is two and a half
		
00:05:37 --> 00:05:46
			juz and at least for the subcontinent, India,
		
00:05:46 --> 00:05:51
			Pakistan, Bangladesh, Muslims, in our Dar-ul-Tahfiz,
		
00:05:51 --> 00:05:55
			in our Hindu madrasas, two years is the
		
00:05:55 --> 00:05:58
			time taken for a student to memorize the
		
00:05:58 --> 00:05:59
			entire Quran, 30 juz.
		
00:06:00 --> 00:06:03
			And if it takes longer than two years,
		
00:06:03 --> 00:06:04
			if it takes about two and a half
		
00:06:04 --> 00:06:06
			to three years, then they say the boy
		
00:06:06 --> 00:06:08
			is slow or the girl is slow and
		
00:06:08 --> 00:06:10
			their memory is not that great.
		
00:06:10 --> 00:06:13
			And if they seem to take longer than
		
00:06:13 --> 00:06:14
			that, then usually they are sent home.
		
00:06:15 --> 00:06:17
			They said, OK, this child is not capable
		
00:06:17 --> 00:06:18
			of memorizing the Quran.
		
00:06:19 --> 00:06:21
			So whatever they memorize is good for them,
		
00:06:21 --> 00:06:25
			but they cannot remain in the madrasa after
		
00:06:25 --> 00:06:26
			that period of three years.
		
00:06:27 --> 00:06:28
			This is the usual practice.
		
00:06:29 --> 00:06:31
			Now, I don't know what happens in the
		
00:06:31 --> 00:06:32
			Middle Eastern countries, but I think it's about
		
00:06:32 --> 00:06:34
			the same thing, which is two years is
		
00:06:34 --> 00:06:38
			given as the time that is necessary to
		
00:06:38 --> 00:06:39
			memorize the entire Quran.
		
00:06:40 --> 00:06:45
			Conversely, we have here a case of somebody
		
00:06:45 --> 00:06:47
			who was the son of Umar ibn al
		
00:06:47 --> 00:06:52
			-Khattab al-Dinan, one of the closest people
		
00:06:52 --> 00:06:57
			to Rasulullah, one of his favorite students, Abdullah
		
00:06:57 --> 00:07:01
			ibn Umar about whom our mother Sayyida Aisha
		
00:07:01 --> 00:07:04
			Siddiqa said that there is nobody in the
		
00:07:04 --> 00:07:07
			Companions, there is nobody among the Sahaba who
		
00:07:07 --> 00:07:12
			follows the Sunnah of Rasulullah as closely as
		
00:07:12 --> 00:07:13
			Abdullah ibn Umar.
		
00:07:15 --> 00:07:16
			So here is a very special person.
		
00:07:16 --> 00:07:19
			On top of that, he is an Arab.
		
00:07:19 --> 00:07:21
			The Quran al-Karim came in his language.
		
00:07:22 --> 00:07:27
			He heard the Quran from the blessed voice
		
00:07:27 --> 00:07:29
			of Rasulullah ﷺ.
		
00:07:30 --> 00:07:32
			He used to pray Salah behind Rasulullah ﷺ.
		
00:07:33 --> 00:07:35
			He took part in all the Ghazwah, he
		
00:07:35 --> 00:07:37
			took part in all the expeditions of Rasulullah
		
00:07:37 --> 00:07:38
			ﷺ.
		
00:07:38 --> 00:07:40
			He spent his time to the extent that
		
00:07:40 --> 00:07:43
			even though he was not a poor man,
		
00:07:44 --> 00:07:44
			he was wealthy.
		
00:07:44 --> 00:07:48
			He spent time with the Ashab of Sufah.
		
00:07:48 --> 00:07:52
			In Sufah, he literally made I'tikaf in Masjid
		
00:07:52 --> 00:07:55
			al-Nabawi al-Sharif in Sufah just to
		
00:07:55 --> 00:07:57
			be close to Rasulullah ﷺ and to learn
		
00:07:57 --> 00:07:57
			from him.
		
00:07:57 --> 00:08:00
			Now somebody with all of these fatahs, why
		
00:08:00 --> 00:08:01
			does he take 12 years?
		
00:08:03 --> 00:08:04
			They asked him and he gave them the
		
00:08:04 --> 00:08:04
			answer.
		
00:08:04 --> 00:08:06
			He said this is how we, and he's
		
00:08:06 --> 00:08:08
			not talking about himself alone, he's talking about
		
00:08:08 --> 00:08:10
			all those who learned the Quran from Rasulullah
		
00:08:10 --> 00:08:10
			ﷺ.
		
00:08:11 --> 00:08:14
			He said we would take 10 ayahs from
		
00:08:14 --> 00:08:15
			Rasulullah ﷺ.
		
00:08:16 --> 00:08:18
			Then we would memorize those 10 ayahs.
		
00:08:19 --> 00:08:21
			We would practice those 10 ayahs.
		
00:08:22 --> 00:08:24
			If there were any questions, we would get
		
00:08:24 --> 00:08:24
			them clarified.
		
00:08:24 --> 00:08:26
			We would ask those questions, Rasulullah ﷺ would
		
00:08:26 --> 00:08:27
			answer us.
		
00:08:28 --> 00:08:31
			Any doubts and so forth, we would clarify.
		
00:08:32 --> 00:08:32
			Why not?
		
00:08:33 --> 00:08:37
			And then once we were satisfied with the
		
00:08:37 --> 00:08:40
			learning and the practice of those 10 ayahs,
		
00:08:40 --> 00:08:41
			we would go to take the next 10.
		
00:08:43 --> 00:08:44
			And so he said that is why it
		
00:08:44 --> 00:08:45
			took us this long.
		
00:08:45 --> 00:08:47
			The question I asked myself when I knew
		
00:08:47 --> 00:08:50
			is, Alhamdulillah, we all read the Quran, we
		
00:08:50 --> 00:08:52
			all try to memorize that as much as
		
00:08:52 --> 00:08:55
			we can, how many of us are focused
		
00:08:55 --> 00:08:57
			on practicing it in our lives?
		
00:08:58 --> 00:08:59
			A simple question.
		
00:08:59 --> 00:09:02
			How many of us are focused on practicing
		
00:09:02 --> 00:09:03
			it in our lives?
		
00:09:04 --> 00:09:06
			The Quran did not come to be recited.
		
00:09:07 --> 00:09:08
			It did not come to be memorized.
		
00:09:08 --> 00:09:10
			It did not come to be written down
		
00:09:10 --> 00:09:13
			in calligraphic styles.
		
00:09:13 --> 00:09:15
			It did not come to be beautified with
		
00:09:15 --> 00:09:17
			illustrations and so on and so forth.
		
00:09:17 --> 00:09:20
			What we call illumination, illuminating on the sides
		
00:09:20 --> 00:09:23
			and so forth, right, and printed into beautiful
		
00:09:23 --> 00:09:25
			versions.
		
00:09:27 --> 00:09:30
			It came only for one reason, which is
		
00:09:30 --> 00:09:35
			that people should read it, should understand it
		
00:09:35 --> 00:09:36
			and should practice it.
		
00:09:37 --> 00:09:39
			So that those same people, as the Sheikh
		
00:09:39 --> 00:09:43
			says, could become the best version of themselves.
		
00:09:44 --> 00:09:46
			So I remind myself when you let us
		
00:09:46 --> 00:09:49
			ask ourselves this question and say, am I
		
00:09:49 --> 00:09:50
			doing that?
		
00:09:51 --> 00:09:53
			And if I'm not doing that, then the
		
00:09:53 --> 00:09:54
			time to start is now.
		
00:09:56 --> 00:10:00
			Start anywhere with the Quran al-Karim, read
		
00:10:00 --> 00:10:03
			the ayat, read the meanings, and then look
		
00:10:03 --> 00:10:05
			in your own life and say, am I
		
00:10:05 --> 00:10:07
			practicing this in my life?
		
00:10:09 --> 00:10:10
			Just to give you an example to finish,
		
00:10:11 --> 00:10:14
			Allah said, Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim.
		
00:10:14 --> 00:10:16
			I begin in the name of Allah, the
		
00:10:16 --> 00:10:17
			most beneficent, the most merciful.
		
00:10:18 --> 00:10:20
			How aware am I of this in everything
		
00:10:20 --> 00:10:21
			that I bear?
		
00:10:22 --> 00:10:24
			Then Allah says, Alhamdulillahi Rabbil Alameen.
		
00:10:25 --> 00:10:29
			All praise, all thanks are to Allah, who
		
00:10:29 --> 00:10:32
			is the Rabb, who is the creator, sustainer,
		
00:10:32 --> 00:10:36
			protector, maintainer of all creation.
		
00:10:38 --> 00:10:42
			Question to ask myself is, how grateful am
		
00:10:42 --> 00:10:42
			I to Allah?
		
00:10:42 --> 00:10:45
			How much gratitude do I express to Allah?
		
00:10:45 --> 00:10:48
			How many times am I in sujood before
		
00:10:48 --> 00:10:50
			Allah, thanking him for what he has given
		
00:10:50 --> 00:10:50
			me?
		
00:10:51 --> 00:10:53
			How many times do I look outside and
		
00:10:53 --> 00:10:56
			see the world and say, Alhamdulillah, that Allah
		
00:10:56 --> 00:10:59
			gave me eyesight to see, gave me full
		
00:10:59 --> 00:11:02
			color vision to appreciate what I'm seeing, and
		
00:11:02 --> 00:11:04
			then gave me these beautiful scenes to see,
		
00:11:05 --> 00:11:06
			to appreciate, and so on.
		
00:11:06 --> 00:11:08
			I won't do the whole surah, just this
		
00:11:08 --> 00:11:09
			one ayah.
		
00:11:09 --> 00:11:12
			Ask yourself, if I ask myself, how grateful
		
00:11:12 --> 00:11:13
			am I to Allah?
		
00:11:14 --> 00:11:16
			How grateful am I to Allah for all
		
00:11:16 --> 00:11:17
			that he has given me?
		
00:11:17 --> 00:11:19
			How grateful am I to Allah for my
		
00:11:19 --> 00:11:22
			spouse, for my children, for my parents, for
		
00:11:22 --> 00:11:26
			my teachers, for my students, for the people
		
00:11:26 --> 00:11:27
			who work for me, for the people I
		
00:11:27 --> 00:11:29
			work for, because I have a job, Alhamdulillah.
		
00:11:30 --> 00:11:32
			I'm not sitting as a homeless person on
		
00:11:32 --> 00:11:35
			a street corner begging because I have no
		
00:11:35 --> 00:11:37
			employer, I have no work, I have no
		
00:11:37 --> 00:11:40
			employment, but I still have hunger.
		
00:11:41 --> 00:11:44
			How grateful am I to Allah for all
		
00:11:44 --> 00:11:44
			of these things?
		
00:11:44 --> 00:11:47
			And surely Allah said, and it is true,
		
00:11:47 --> 00:11:49
			and I am the witness, and Allah said,
		
00:11:49 --> 00:11:52
			وَإِن تَعُدُّوا نَعْمَةَ اللَّهِ لَا تُرْسُوهَا If you
		
00:11:52 --> 00:11:54
			try to count the blessings of Allah, you
		
00:11:54 --> 00:11:55
			will not be able to count them, and
		
00:11:55 --> 00:11:56
			Allah is witness, this is true.
		
00:11:57 --> 00:11:58
			So, do we even try?
		
00:11:59 --> 00:12:00
			Do we count the blessings?
		
00:12:00 --> 00:12:01
			Do we make the effort?
		
00:12:01 --> 00:12:02
			That is the question.
		
00:12:03 --> 00:12:04
			We will not be questioned about the results.
		
00:12:05 --> 00:12:07
			We will be questioned about the effort.
		
00:12:07 --> 00:12:09
			Allah will not ask us, what happened?
		
00:12:09 --> 00:12:11
			Allah will ask us, what did you do?
		
00:12:12 --> 00:12:14
			وَصَلَّ اللَّهَ عَلَى نَبِي الْكَرِيمِ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحِبِهِ
		
00:12:14 --> 00:12:16
			الْمَعِيمِ بِرَحْوَةِكَ يَا أَرْحَمَ الْوَاحِبِينَ