Mohammad Elshinawy – The Tiers Of Taqwa & Levels Of Fasting

Mohammad Elshinawy
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The speakers discuss the benefits of fasting, including restoring spirituality and avoiding sinful behavior, as well as the importance of maintaining peace and avoiding sinful behavior. They also touch on the concept of Taqwa and the use of "has" in critical situations, such as caught on the street. The speakers emphasize the importance of practice and patient practices in achieving spiritual well-being and building capacity for empathy and learning. They also discuss the history of Islam, including the implementation of Islam as a means of achieving spiritual well-being and the use of animals as carriers for human desires.

AI: Summary ©

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			Oh
		
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			you can't start elsewhere. We just heard
		
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			our Lord subhanho wa Taala
		
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			his words being recited by our good brother Yeah, your levena Armano fasting has been prescribed for
you oh believers, just as it was prescribed for those before you so that you may attain Teflon.
		
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			So does that mean the believer needs to have tequila? Or does the believer already have Taqwa?
		
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			Or if the believer does not have to suffer, unless they fast?
		
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			These are things to think about. And maybe we'll circle back to them later on in the lecture in the
talk, inshallah. But let us just remember, what is the purpose? Ramadan is this priceless treasure
that allows the believer to embrace his high season by being a believer, we understand that there is
no such thing as an offseason, right? But there are high seasons because Allah knows us. Allah knows
that how heedless we are, how distracted we get, how much stamina we lose in the mundanity and just
the cycles and trials of life. And so he grants us this enormous opportunity and stack stacks the
odds in our favor for new beginnings for a refresh for a reset for a recharge for a rediscovery of
		
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			our purpose for a rediscovery also of our potential.
		
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			And that is the single greatest benefit of the fast that we find in that area. I like him that spoon
so that you will become more conscious of God of Allah azza wa jal subhanho wa Taala
		
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			the very first benefit of fasting is restoring the centrality of Allah in our life. And Islam is so
amazing Allah Islam is is so wise so genius so perfectly fitting for us as human beings. Because the
way anyone who simply fast their month of Ramadan gets Allah recenter in their life is remarkable.
It happens like subconsciously, you'll get rewired to the where you're where you're supposed to be.
You know, and some of these examples are helpful you think of like, the first day of Ramadan, you're
driving out, you know, enroute halfway to your local coffee. Stop, not Starbucks, of course.
		
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			I need to restrain myself.
		
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			I just had someone go on a tangent about why oh, why did the Muslims only BOYCOTT STARBUCKS? BOYCOTT
STARBUCKS. I think he likes Starbucks a lot. That's just that's what the fallout philosophical
discussion yielded. In the end. He hates McDonald's but McDonald's doesn't get trashed as much as
Starbucks apparently, in some spaces. Anyway, focus on hammer to focus, okay.
		
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			You're driving to your local coffee shop and grabbing your coffee because that's your habit. Right?
And then all of a sudden, you're like, oh, no, wait, it's Ramadan. You turn off we go.
		
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			What just happened there? Allah's in charge. Right. That's it. You don't even feel it happening. But
you're resetting this. The world doesn't revolve around me. And sort of the the passing winds of my
desires. You know, the healer, the healer. The desires come from the same word root is the word *
out the wind. You're no longer a feather in the wind. You're sort of anchored. You're purposeful.
You're centered around the god Isaiah jela subhanho wa Taala you know, you think of those moments
before melted up as well like this bottle of water is absolutely haram for me right now. Right?
Absolutely haram and I'm making my thick and I'm making my DUA and and then a minute later, this
		
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			same exact cup of water bottle of water becomes not just halal. It actually becomes most the hub
it's recommended and encouraged that you not delay in breaking your fast what's the difference? Same
you know, the difference is
		
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			he said so. So only difference, same bottle of water.
		
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			And so restoring the centrality of Allah in your life
		
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			that better not be mine.
		
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			I'll take the coffee, but this is like royalty. I'm not the Persian emperor. Please don't put any
grapes in my mouth. Just like gonna say it. Take it away because it stays up here for too long.
What's gonna happen someone's gonna hit it with Eli. Then the first one I have I'm gonna choke on so
just like he sent me it was like, everyone's gonna get I'll eat with everybody inshallah.
		
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			So that's number one.
		
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			Number two
		
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			By the way, let's before we even jumped to number two because we're not in a rush, how much
chocolate do you have?
		
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			Right? Well, it depends. It's there's actually a way to measure it. You need to know that every
believer has Taqwa. Because taco means to have pious restraint, right? Because of your piety, your
recognition of God your submissiveness with God, you're gonna restrain yourself from certain things.
So telkwa basically boils down to your ability to avoid things for religious reasons restraint,
right? And every single Muslim does some of that. We all are restrained from Shrek, we all avoid
worshipping idols or equating the creation with the Creator or you don't perform shirk. So that in
that sense, you have a Taqwa that is manifested or sort of embodied in your avoidance of shipwreck.
		
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			So every believer is a person of Taqwa. But there are levels to this.
		
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			The next level of Taqwa we're oversimplifying, just because that's helpful sometimes is enough.
Takota restrain you from
		
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			committing the major sins.
		
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			Allah azza wa jal when he speaks about our duty to compete in our racing for Jana.
		
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			This Jana he says, this is totally Emraan or is that little matzah teen it's been prepared sitting
there waiting for the competitors, right. It's been prepared for the people of Taqwa.
		
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			Part of that description in the second verse after saying it's been prepared for the people of
Taqwa. Now describing these people of Taqwa it says well Lavina either for alpha Heisha l Allah mu m
Fusa, whom veker Allah, they are those that if they commit affair hisher fair as you're here
essentially is referring to a major sin, el wala mu and Fusa home or wrong themselves in any way,
meaning by disobeying Allah, think of it as minor sins, okay?
		
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			Then Allah comes to mind. So this idea is implying that the people of Taqwa it's not that they're
able to avoid every last major sin till the day they die. No, you can even be a person of Level Two
Dakhla if you will, a higher level of tequila. And every once in a while your demons get to you your
weakness catches you off guard, and you commit even a major sin. But it doesn't say they commit
major sins sins, it says And if they happen to so they're few and far in between. So if you're
regularly missing a prayer, or sort of regularly, you know performing one of the major violations,
whatever it may be withholding your sec and disrespecting your parents not dressing inappropriately
		
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			backbiting and lie whatever it is right? If this is not few and far in between, then this means
there is a major wound in your spiritual heart. A major deficiency in your taqwa. Okay, so level two
is essentially your ability to be conscious of Allah enough to be restrained from the major sense.
		
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			You know, it's very important in our Islamic discourse in general, when we discuss Islam, that our
in our halacha is in our gatherings in our just, you know, informal discussions with each other, to
never
		
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			differentiate, never I'm sorry, conflate confuse between empathy and between validation. And we do
this sometimes, you want to give someone no matter what violations they're committing right now,
some sort of empathy, like I understand, and it's tough and like shaitan is tag teaming with your
friends, tag teaming with popular culture and everything else. You want to empathize. You don't want
it from a high horse act like you can never be in that same pit. What do we also want to not
validate it, there is such a thing called moral weakness. There is such a thing called sort of not
enough taco, there is such a thing called a bit. It's a bit we want to climb out of it. And we want
		
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			others to climb out of it. And so if we are not able to avoid the enormities as the default, even if
there might be some exceptions, then we're now at level two toilet. Okay? There's another level of
dukkha
		
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			that is referenced in the end of SoTL are off when Allah azza wa jal says
		
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			in a Levina taco either Mussar home pa if Amina shaytani to the Carew for either whom mobile see
rune
		
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			the people of tequila, the scholars say this is not just this is a very elite class of people of
Taqwa. The people of Taqwa either Mercer who wants their touched by a thought if from Shaytaan. So
what is the thought it from shaitan Minato off what's the left guys, like when you going around the
GABA is
		
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			Fast, pretty brief, right? Just you know, so shaitan blindsides you basically, quick jab basically,
he catches you off guard in a moment when you are blinking, right catches you spiritually blinking.
So this is a reference to an infrequent minor sub optimal decision or minor sin you commit the
people of Taqwa. When shaytaan just touches them in the lease to the cuddle, they immediately come
to their senses for either who mostly rune and swiftly they have full insight again, very quickly.
They rebound from the from these things that aren't even major sense, right? All of a sudden they're
just inside mobile zero and they see the hereafter in front of them paradise Hellfire grave
		
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			questions, it all sizes up very fast. They don't lose perspective for very long or on major issues.
These become people that shaitan himself doesn't want to attack anymore, because they drive him
crazy. Every time he makes a small suggestion. They punish him with doing 10 times as many good
deeds than they were doing a minute ago to compensate for it. May Allah make us of those people che
thorns afraid of these people, the more taco you have, the more shaitan is literally afraid of you.
There are some people who shaitan is restrained from them outside of Ramadan because of the levels
of tequila they have which we have an opportunity to build in Ramadan. Right? You see the equation
		
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			now
		
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			and of these people of course I'm gonna put up about the Allah on inside al Bukhari, Saddam Nabi la
casa de la Juan narrated the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, en la cabina hubub Melaka
shaytaan ofii Fechin il Celica Jen viologic
		
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			Like how incredible you are II in like, like, whoa, Ma, you're, you're unbelievable. Every time
shaitan sees you in a street, he takes the other street shaitan crosses the street literally.
		
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			As the youth say he doesn't want the smoke, right? He doesn't want it because you know, that's the
way it works by the way, you know, nucleon Rahim Allah Allah he says about shaitan he says you will
either punish shaytaan with your good deeds and your tequila, your tacos like your flame thrower
basically, or he will punish you in the hellfire.
		
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			And that's what it means also, when you read in the Quran, many times people reading the Quran we
will ask this question, it's a good question. It means you're thinking, what does it mean? shaytaan
is I'll do one more being I do want more being clear enemy clear enemy clear enemy. He's invisible.
How's the clear enemy? Meaning he is the clearest in his enmity to you. Nobody is a clear enemy for
you. There's no negotiation or shaitan there's no like maybe I can talk to him and I'll start
playing nice are like maybe i'll leave a cookie outside like we do for Santa or something. No. The
moment you were born, he stabbed you. He declared war before you even knew your name. He stabbed
		
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			you. As the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, right? That's why one of the reasons why the
baby comes out screaming or immediately screams upon coming out. So it's a battle to the death. And
your greatest weapon in this battle is growing your taco.
		
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			Clear.
		
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			It's not good, I swear.
		
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			Brother Hamdi it's good, I swear.
		
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			Okay, so Ramadan is the month to increase our tough one. I hope I gave you a little bit of a gauge
on how to measure your tequila. Time to pause and be honest with ourselves because if you can't
measure something, so good management rule for your tequila management, they use this in corporate
management a lot. If you can't measure it, you can't improve it. Right? You can't measure it, you
can't improve it.
		
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			A second very interrelated benefit of fasting
		
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			is fasting gives our spirits a chance to rise. You know for constantly just thinking about food.
It's not even just about being full. That's already a problem. I love Moroccans, any Moroccans in
here.
		
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			Except you guys. No, I'm just joking. I love all my rock. It's one of the nice parts of Moroccan
culture is that you guys eat your spot afterthought. All right, you guys usually either at night or
not you you've been hanging out to the Egyptians.
		
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			So Moroccans, a lot of them authentic Morocco.
		
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			A lot of times in some cultures, I think this is in the part of the Gulf culture as well. They'll
have something light, they'll break bread. They'll have some soup.
		
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			Of course water dates, milk, the likes, but they won't have their meal meal. They won't go hard,
except afterthought. Oh, yeah. And you should never really go hard as a Muslim. But at the very
least you don't sabotage your thought, are we right? Because
		
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			removing that constant cycle of how can I say she ate my body? You know, it's like my coffee and
then my snack and then my and then we're going to Google what spot we're going to have for lunch and
then like we got to try a new spot and this whole thing and then you know like grazing in between
and the
		
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			amount of, you know, mental bandwidth that takes actually has spiritual detriment
		
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			has spiritual detriment. On the one side you being full is already dangerous. That's why the Prophet
Alayhi Salatu was Salam warned us about full stomachs. And that's why you know, Al Imam Muhammad
Rahim Allah when he when he was asked, if coloboma, Shiva Cordillera can the heart sort of be soft
and tender on a full stomach, he says, I don't see how that's possible. Like, it's very, very
unlikely. And it's something you know, I mean, you know, how you feel brittle and fragile and broken
and intimate in your moments before if thought and the moment you break your will, you're not
you're, you're, you're fast, and you get up, it's already a little bit different. It's even I
		
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			noticed it, like even in the truck as before, and the door is just a little bit different. And so
that reminds you of the push pull, you know, mechanism between the body and the spirit. You are not
supposed to hurt yourself. Fasting is haram if it's gonna kill you, right? But the fasting does
allow you not to taste hunger. We taste food all the time. What if you were to taste hunger, it can
unlock for you, New Horizons in your spirit.
		
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			But if you're always just fixated on addressing the flesh, that came from the earth, and wants to
eat more and more of the food that came from this earth, because all food comes from the earth, our
place of origin, even your your wagyu and your burgers are they had grass, right? So it all and
likewise Your spirit is from the heavens, and it's looking for a heavenly experience. It's looking
for what came from the heavens. And that is why the month of fasting where we try to downscale a
little bit what we're eating, not just rearrange the schedule, same amount of calories would
rearrange supposed to downscale what you're eating a little bit.
		
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			You're also connecting with the Quran, right? Body and Spirit are supposed to switch places.
Otherwise all year we've been suffocating the spirit holding it down, allowing it sort of to be
suppressed. Fasting is your opportunity to let it rise. Let it taste its Aqua. Because that's
another component of TEPCO we should not fall short of recognizing and appreciating telkwa is the
most enjoyable experience you can have. Because the same way your body sort of craves food, drink,
whatever else it may, your soul craves to love Allah and fear Him and rely on Him and to have a
relationship with him and see the veils sort of little getting lifted little by little peeling away
		
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			the layers between that's the oxygen that's the food, that's the drink, that's the exhilaration of
the soul, and that's far eclipses the exhilaration of the body.
		
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			A person would effectively be dead, if they would ignore the spirit altogether. That's why the
Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam he said, method Allah the ethical robber who will let the lie of
Cora Belk MFL how you were made in the famous Hadith Omarosa Hello the Allah Han said the one who
remembers his Lord, the one who doesn't remember his lord is like living in the dead. What is TEPCO
remembering your Lord, avoiding his prohibitions? Is there any greater remembrance of Allah than
remembering him and your actions, like you're remembering Him and you hate your behavior? That is
the remembrance of Allah subhanho wa Taala that is what brings your spirit back to life. So that's
		
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			the second benefit. 720 So, the third benefit very quickly, of fasting is that fasting is an
exercise in moral restraint. Think of it in the context now between people, right? It's you all know
the Hadith about like, don't fight and if someone fights you sort of like, you know, de escalate it
and say, I'm fasting and you all know this.
		
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			First thing is patience and patience. Your capacity for patience, is growable. And many people don't
know that or many people refuse to remember that, you know? And the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa
sallam brought us teachings that remind us that no, it is possible. You know, the idea of like, I
can't change just who I am. It's just my personality type. It's just this that and the fairer than
not true. So many aspects of this are just not true. That's just sort of the easy way out. It's a
cheap way to end the conversation you don't want to have with yourself of where am I falling short
in doing my part to improve myself morally behaviorally. So he said sallallahu alayhi wa sallam?
		
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			Enamel Elmo Vita Aloma enamel hidden with the Hello, my name is Sabra with the sidebar, that
knowledge is only through learning, putting in the work, right? And forbearance, putting up with
offense. Tolerating offenses is only through exercising forbearance and patience is only through
exercising patience. It's a muscle to be grown.
		
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			Sada Can I pick on you? Can I bother you? I'm so sorry.
		
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			You remember why the relationship between knowledge and morality in this hadith?
		
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			You don't have to answer. No, it's fine. I'm gonna just the book
		
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			li she's in my Mischka classes, one of our most dedicated students. Mashallah. So I have to put her
on the spot.
		
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			Why do you think, Okay, why do you think he said knowledge is through learning and patient is
through practicing patients? Anybody?
		
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			Yes, sir.
		
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			Okay,
		
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			so good. You won't know your faults until you actually practice it won't recognize where you make
mistakes unless you actually
		
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			potentially you're plagiarizing, you know.
		
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			And he doesn't have his driver's license.
		
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			Exactly. Okay. Now, these are both important angles. Anybody else?
		
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			You see, everyone knows that knowledge is through learning. Right?
		
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			It's almost like why did he say that? We all know, the only way to learn to know something is to
learn it. Right?
		
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			He's using that as sort of the analog. I'm not gonna sort of use geeky terms here. I'm sorry. We all
know that you can't just say listen, I'm just not smart. No Well, too bad you got to learn there's
no such thing as I'm not smart. Yes, for sure. We have varying you know, intellectual capacities.
Okay, well, you still got to try you still got to go to school. No, I'm not sort of the the
intelligent type. Well, he's still got to max out in trying to write we all know this. No one except
for the excuse of that's just who I am when it comes to learning when it comes to knowledge. But a
whole lot of us try to pull that excuse off when it comes to patience. So he's saying in the same
		
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			way we will not accept humans don't accept. I'm just not smart. We're gonna say it's through
learning. We all know that's the only path likewise patience. The only path to it is by exercising
patience. It is a muscle to be grown and it can be grown and Allah gifts you Ramadan, to show you
you can
		
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			you can stay away from the halal you can stay away from the haram. Right?
		
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			You can stay away from avenging yourself immediately, even with when it's when sometimes it's fair.
Right? Not right now. I'm gonna bootcamp. He's showing you you can.
		
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			And so practicing restraint is something that Ramadan is so powerful at inculcating in our
personalities.
		
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			The fourth and final one, and I'll be brief here, because I do want to pivot over to a similar
subject.
		
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			Is that fasting benefits us in
		
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			growing our ability
		
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			to care for others and to be selfless, right? No one was ever. No one was ever more generous than
our Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam right? But he was more generous than himself in Ramadan, as
if nobis Hodie Allah Juan Houma said, right.
		
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			And there are many reasons for this. One of them is the fact itself.
		
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			The other reason is if it's a male or female, Allah says you have increased nearness to the Quran.
And with your increased nearness to the Quran, you see yourself more and more as an agent of God.
Right? Not as an agent of self serving pursuits. Some of us could be that never are Prophet
sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, but he was even increased in his selflessness, sallallahu alayhi wa
sallam, but let's just talk about the fasting itself. Quran is a for another time in sha Allah. The
		
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			saying goes that a picture speaks 1000 words we all know this right? If I were to tell you people
are struggling right now. If you have a heart and you're paying attention, you will sort of be moved
by this but if I were to show you
		
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			that is a completely different story. Right? As they say the game changer in the war of narratives,
when it comes to Palestine is because social media has not just leveled the playing field. The
Zionist side is basically telling the world what's happening and the Palestinian side is showing the
world what's happening and so there's no contest anymore, right?
		
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			May Allah azza wa jal be with them and allow for a quick vengeance to be seen by us to cure our
hearts with it against their oppressors Allahumma Amin
		
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			May we see it within our lifetime
		
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			like I don't know said I'm not gonna hang out with you anti Semites anymore.
		
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			I said May we see it within our lifetime?
		
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			Aloma mean yada, yada. May Allah make it a reality.
		
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			Is that like a reference to seafood?
		
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			I'm trying to protect myself here I've got I got a long drive home.
		
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			Seeing is so much more powerful then
		
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			Hearing right? But you know, it's more powerful than seeing, experiencing.
		
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			And that is the power of the past, to carve in you long standing empathy for those that cannot break
their fast at metric time.
		
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			It is not the primary function of the fest. It's one of the great wisdoms of the first. I'm very
glad, by the way, the Muslim community sort of stopped saying we fast so we can feel how poor people
feel. Because like, that's not what the Quran says. And that also doesn't make sense, because the
poor people need to be fasting as well. So why are they fasting? Exactly? Right? But is it one of
the benefits? Yes, it does. It increases our ability to be empathic to feel the suffering and the
pain and the need of others ourselves. You know, it was said, that
		
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			use of Alayhis Salam, during the famine during the sort of the global hunger that was playing out
during his adulthood, he would never eat, he would refuse to eat, until he fed everyone within reach
family and his relatives and the neighbors and everyone he could reach that day. And they would tell
him sort of Eat up, you need to strengthen yourself. So you can be a better servant of the people
who said I'm afraid to eat, I'm afraid to eat and forget what it feels like to be hungry.
		
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			And there's some truth to this, right. There's always a balance, but there is some truth to this.
And so
		
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			building our capacity for empathy for forgetting, not forgetting that we are not here, you know, to
outdo each other in our in our consumerism
		
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			is a powerful, powerful, powerful bonus that we get out of a simple pillar of Islam, a basic entry
level pillar of our great Deen. Okay, so how much of these four? Because I said, there's layers to
it, when I gave the example of TEPCO, how much of these four will you get out of your fast? It
depends on what you put into your fast. You think all people fast, fast on the same level?
Absolutely not.
		
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			Some of the scholars have sudo Cortez gear at the soul, they say that fasting happens on three
levels. There's going to be lots of threes tonight, actually, it happens on three levels. Level one
is a cm or I need to move through a lot for you to abstain from things that break your fast. If you
do that you stay away from the food and the drink in America relations and everything you know, in
this environment and all that stuff. If you do your basic homework learn and you must learn where
the red lines are, or else How else do you submit to Allah when you don't know the framework of
submission he expects from you. That's why knowledge and Islam are inseparable. But let once you do
		
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			that, call us. Level one is in the books.
		
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			But that level one does not mean you're going to be rewarded for your fast. It just means Allah who
will not ask you. Why didn't you fast? It's a different issue. The validity of your fast from a
legal perspective in Islamic law does not mean there's a fruit that's coming out of your fats, like
the fruits we're talking about. Earlier in this talk. Earlier tonight, right? It's not the same
thing. The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said roba saw him in lay Salah hoomin See me he
illogical approach perhaps a fasting person so he is fasting. He didn't know if I as fast will get
nothing out. There is no sort of fruit yielded. There's no benefit gained. There is no
		
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			transformative experience happening. Perhaps a fasting person will get nothing out of his fast
except hunger and thirst like he's trying to tell us all Allah Allah is Allah. Do you really think
that is why Allah ordained this and all the prophets tell their people to fast so that our sugar
levels will go low and stuff just a little bit hunger and like you think that's why it is
		
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			to become what is it hypoglycemic is the word. If no one knows that, I'm gonna make up words, it's
just, I think it's hypo or hyper, which one is the hypo? Right. Dr. Weatherwise. Here, hypo. Yes, I
got it. Right.
		
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			Exactly. So do you think that's the point of the fasts, a little bit of like, chemical fluctuation
in the bodies or no way? It's about this to bring you to a beautiful place. So that becomes a level
two, what is level two? It's very, there's a quite a parallel with the levels of tuckaway drew
earlier right. Level two is when you
		
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			abstain fast from that which displeases Allah subhanho wa taala. And that should be because like, if
we're staying away from the halal that should increase our ability to stay even farther away from
the Haram and that is why these questions sometimes come that you know, like, Chef, if, if I did
this, or I did that or like, I'm not wearing this or I accidentally said that does it break my fast?
No, it doesn't technically break your fast in terms of level one fast thing, right? Meaning, at
least according to the form of the hip, if the husband would disagree, but according to the form of
that hip, you don't need to make up the day
		
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			Didn't invalidate your fast that we have food or drink wood. Right? But it does mean there. It did
break the reward of your fast right there you should be extra vigilant about the haram. Yes, just or
else what are we doing? So that is the second one sort of asleep come on in Mohammed to stay away
from the boundaries of Allah and that would be prohibited and deemed unlawful. They said, level
three.
		
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			Level three is
		
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			asleep Mo. Don't get deflated. Don't get deflated asleep. I'm one of ILA to stay away from
everything but Allah subhanho wa Taala is really beautiful.
		
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			For a lot of reasons. But what does that mean? That means you're no longer staying away from the
things that may displease an anger Allah.
		
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			You're not even avoiding what might like the gray area? What might harm you in the hereafter? Now
you're so locked in it's a very ambitious station, may Allah allow us to experience some of that
say, I mean,
		
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			you're not staying away from what might harm in the hereafter. No, you're staying away from whatever
does not benefit me in the hereafter.
		
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			Everything is mobilized towards the pleasure of Allah. My sleep is for Allah my waking is for Allah,
my eating is for Allah. My speaking is for Allah, my silence is for Allah, my thoughts and my
reflection, you're trying to do as much of that as possible. That is the highest station. It's a
very beautiful station. That is the station
		
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			714 That is the station in which you are trying to be angelic. You're trying to be an angel.
		
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			And this is what will make you superior to the angels in sha Allah. Right? Because Think, think
about Ramadan, like even the Ramadan. gradualism is very beautiful, right? You start off in this
way. And then why the last 10 That's when he would stay up the entire night. sallallahu alayhi
wasallam. And there's like layer two out there. You know, there's a buildup, a gradual buildup, but
you're pushing the hardest in the last 10. Right? You're trying to fight off sleep.
		
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			Can humans do without sleep? They can't do without sleep, what you're trying? Can Do humans do
without food? They can't what you're trying. So it's culminating. So I just it's easiest the example
of the last 10 It's culminating this pursuit of the practice of the angels themselves. And when
you're trying to be an angel,
		
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			when I know I'm overusing this lately, but the youth are always saying he's built different. She's
built different, right? When the angels are built different. You're trying to compete with them,
when you don't have what they have. That makes you better than them. Right or wrong?
		
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			Of course it does. Like imagine I'm locked up somewhere for 10 years. And you live in a neighborhood
with a bar for 10 years.
		
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			Should you praise me for not drinking alcohol for 10 years? No, there was nothing available. I'm
waiting to get stuck for a while but like I'm Chris, you get it right. But you you had to actively
resist and go to war with yourself right against this. And so likewise, the angels don't need to
sleep. You said behind the Laila on the hara life to ruin they glorify Allah by night and by day
they don't grow tired. The angels don't need to eat.
		
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			And so if you start competing with them, even if you can't match them, the fact that you're trying
gives you an edge over them. Isn't that beautiful?
		
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			And that is why as Abu Hurayrah Lavon is reported to have said when Allah Tabata kehlata Allah says
in surah Al Bayona in a Latina and men who are middle Saudi had to like go home Cairo, Berea those
who believe and work righteous deeds, they are the best of creation, Abu Hurayrah are the Allah who
answered waha Euro mineral melodica, even better than the angels The angels are among the creation
or creative beings as well. Even better than the angels. And this some scholars said is why?
		
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			In Sudha, Rod Allah azza wa jal said well, Mala Iike to the holy wanna lay him in Cooley Bab in
paradise, may Allah gather us all there, us and our loved ones. The angels enter upon the people of
Paradise from every gate, you know, like a celebrity everybody's trying to take a shot with like a
snapshot with them or something. The angels are entering from every gate, but that's not the point.
Here's the point of reference. They say what Salam Alaikum Peace be upon you be Moussa baritone for
the patients you've shown. Why the patient's you've shown the
		
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			Because the angels have never exhibited patience, why have they never exhibited patience? Because
they will never attempt it. They don't have desires, right? They do this involuntarily, lovingly
without friction without resistance without challenge without the limitations of the human being.
And so when they see you with all your limitations, still pulling it off. Once you're rinsed of
course, because we are sinful creatures, they're sinless. Once you're rinsed and you get to Jannah
then there's there's only the pluses none of the minuses. They're admiring you like man, you had
patients. I was so amazing. How did you guys How do humans do this?
		
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			That is the servant Cinderella story of sorry, we're boycotting Disney, I forgot. But that is the
story of the human experience with our imperfections with all the wrong turns we make Allah who will
make it right for us in sha Allah and bring us to Jannah and have the angels themselves admire us
will still arrive at the right location, by his permission, still be glorified and celebrated in
front of the sinless tireless angels.
		
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			And
		
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			maybe this will be the last thing I share before I open the floor to questions. This is also similar
to what's even Tamia Rahim Allah reports. I forgot from who but he says that him and a number of the
early Muslims used to say
		
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			that Allah azza wa jal created the animal
		
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			with desires and no intellect, right? Obviously animals have intellect but they don't have our
intellect Allah distinguish the human being with unique intellect, right? Desires and no intellect.
So they're impulsive creatures, compulsive creatures, because they don't have the intellect to
restrain them. He said, and he created angels that have intellect, of course there have intellect
and no desires.
		
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			There's no impulse, temptation to pull them away from acting upon their intellect, their pure
intellects. But then he created the human being in the middle
		
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			with desires and intellect. And so if the human being
		
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			allows his desires to smother to eclipse his intellect, they're not living for purpose. They're not
living, you know, to their potential. As we said, Ramadan does unlocks for us every year, if they
don't, if their desires smother their intellect, they become worse than the animals because the
animals couldn't do any better. Right? And that is why you find all throughout the Quran. QMF headed
Hema, like the donkey that carries a library can methyl Cal like the dog that's always panting Allah
it can kill an army well who medulla they're just like livestock just like grazing cattle. Rather,
they're more a stray. Why? Because they had the ability to not be that the animals didn't have any
		
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			options you did. You didn't capitalize and show your gratitude to Allah for it. So you become
inferior to the animal.
		
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			He said, on the flip side, and if he rains in his desires, restraints, saltwater fasting, right? If
he restrains his desires, using his intellect, of course, the intellect that Allah enlightens
further with Revelation, right but you use your intellect to rein in your desires, you become
		
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			superior to the angel. So may Allah azza wa jal teaches that which benefits us and benefit us that
which He has taught us and allow us to prepare correctly. If you know the value of what's in front
of you, you will not wait for it. Right you will prepare for it. And I saw the Allahu unsaid
		
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			that when the month of Shabbat which began tonight will hamdulillah begins the Muslims meaning the
Sahaba that were around and the earliest tab your own the generation after them, the Muslims would
all pay their Zeca they'd pay there's like a get it out now. When kept boo Island muscle if and they
would fully dedicate themselves to their Quran because there's just too much at stake. I need some
sort of prepare, right? can start stretching when the marathon starts
		
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			and Jabara the Allahu another Sahaba himself. He used to say, either Assumpta if you are fasting,
fairly awesome. Sam Rocha. Wa Vassallo can make sure your hearing
		
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			and your sight are fasting with you.
		
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			stopped listening to those things now. Start unsubscribing from whatever's on your doom scroll feed
now right make sure fast thing with you build up to it if you have to make sure fast thing with you
is your hearing and your sight. He said while he said okay, Anil qldb. Well math him and make sure
your tongue is also fasting consistently from lying and from any other sorts of in decencies.
Whether it's backbiting or vulgarity or otherwise, make sure you're hearing your sight and your
tongue are fasting while
		
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			Hakuna alayka Wakarusa Sakina and place yourself in a state there should be visible to others about
you the state of reverence, dignity, tranquility, he said, while cotton was Akina Wella yakun yo
mama filter rica wala Tagil yo mama Federica ye Elma soul Makossa and don't be that person, that the
day they're not fasting and the day they are fasting resemble each other are equal.
		
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			A person who starts on day one or day 21 of Ramadan, usually because that person may Allah azza wa
jal exclude us and you from not taking full advantage of what is in store ahead of us and allow us
to see it. Allah Houma Alameen wa sallahu wa Salam wa barakaatuh Vienna Muhammad wa ala alihi wa
sahbihi Adrain