Al Manar International Tolerance Convention, 04/04/2019
Mufti Menk – Islam – A Message of Peace
AI: Summary ©
The importance of peace is highlighted, including the creator's plan to create peace and happiness for everyone. forgiveness and time to achieve peace are also emphasized. The importance of avoiding sin and embracing the almighty is emphasized, as it is important to achieve peace and happiness. The speaker emphasizes the need to be forgiven and be happy with what one looks, and to be a good person and not give up. The importance of building a "globe" together to achieve peace and change the world is also emphasized.
AI: Transcript ©
Salam Alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh
smilla rahmanir rahim In the name of Allah subhanho wa Taala the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. We always praise the almighty we always ask him to bless every one of us and to grant us goodness, I almost asked to go into that microphone because being quite sensitive to what the microphones are all about. I noticed when the recital was reading it was fluctuating and that is quite
disturbing. So we ask Allah subhanho wa Taala, to bless the organizers to be able inshallah, to live with each other as is without it fluctuating. And that also will be our little message of peace today. May Allah Subhana Allah, Allah grant His goodness.
Normally, things happen for us to be able to prove ourselves, and I'm just diverting for a moment, a lot happens in our lives, situations occur. We are,
you know, we go through accident, sometimes we go through, missing a flight, missing a train missing a plane, all of that is in order for us to prove ourselves, who are you? Who are you really when things go wrong, that is when you actually show your true colors. May Allah subhanahu wa taala bless every one of us and grant us ease. We're speaking this evening, my brothers and sisters about the message of peace. And when we say the message of peace, I'm sure you know that across the globe, there is everything but peace. Within our lives, there is everything but peace within our communities, everything but peace. Within a broader circle, there is everything but peace. We start
off in the name of the owner of peace, expressing our gratitude to him, or thanks to him, saying Alhamdulillah help Allah mean All praise is indeed due to the almighty Lord of the worlds he calls himself a solemn, one of his names is the source of peace, the owner of peace, the giver of peace, all of that is included in the meaning of his name the maker. So if I am to submit to the maker, I should be getting the first level of peace and that is peace within myself.
peace within myself, we can never ever be people who truly taste peace, if we are not at peace with ourselves. And in order for me to be at peace with myself, I need to ask myself, where did I come from.
And you and I know. And it is something amazing, I love talking about it. We came from the wombs of our mothers. And prior to that, so halala, we were somewhere that Allah wanted us to be, we cannot remember but Allah knows. And he told us, so much so that every one of us knows for a fact we were in the wombs of our mothers, we all know it for a fact. But we cannot remember it for ourselves. We were told later on, we may have been shown videos of little scans as we were in the bellies of our moms and talking of the millennials probably. But what definitely did happen is none of us remembered the day and the moment we were born.
So Allah Almighty kept it that way for us to be able to believe others about what happened. For us to be able to believe the message of those who were sent by the almighty known as messengers, telling us what happened, where were you. And one thing I know is, I'm going to die one day. And when I die, I'm confident that I'm going back to the same loving maker, who is so merciful, who is full of peace, who is the source of peace, the giver of peace, and he will grant me that peace. I'm confident because I tried my best, my best to worship Him alone and to understand why he made me and to live in accordance with that. This is the beauty and this is where the peace starts. It starts
with the maker himself is the source of peace. and thereafter with your recognition of that maker, you you gain internal peace. If I were to ask you this evening,
how many of you have no problems at all throughout your life? You've never had a problem. You've never had issues. You've never had a sad day. Not a single one of you can say Yes, it's me. Not one. Every one of us has faced difficult days sad days. In fact, my brothers and sisters life itself is a challenge. It's a challenge to get up in the morning to go to work perhaps to earn a living, to put food on the table perhaps to look after yourself to take care of your health. If the almighty wanted he would never have let your hair grow but he let it grow so that you can take care of yourself. Wow. So panela he wanted he could have never let you go out to work to earn he would have kept
everybody's food miraculously somehow in front
Have them all, he would not have kept the need for us to eat, but rather, he kept that need in order for us to continue through the struggles of life, because life is a challenge.
It is a challenge to prove that you are going to do something. And this is why initially when you were born, He created us in a unique way, a way that we are all interconnected, so that we feel for one another.
When you were born, if people didn't feel for you, if your parents didn't feel for you, they wouldn't have cared for you. And what would have happened, perhaps you would have died. At the point of birth, you are in desperate need of your mother, you are in need of parents, someone who's going to look after you take care of you. That was the plan and the system of the Almighty. He could have had us multiply like plants or like some other creatures, but no the almighty chose for us to have parents and that connection with those parents is such that both parties earn paradise through serving each other. A mother status is not given to her for no reason, but because she has
struggled. She has
the burden that she carried for such a long time she gave birth to you somehow Allah surely she's old, at least respect
to say the least. So this is the plan of the Almighty. Why do I start this way when talking about peace?
Islam focuses on the maker. And Islam tells us the maker is the source of peace. After the prayer five times a day we say Allahumma anta salam, woman, salam, O Allah, you are a Salaam, that term as salam refers to every single aspect of peace. The peace comes from Allah, it belongs to Allah is given from Allah subhanho wa Taala. He gives it he owns it completely. When you want the peace, you ask the almighty the owner of peace, to give you the peace. May Allah subhanho wa Taala grant us inner peace. So when you understand that it is an honor to face the challenges of life, you will then be smiling at something that appears to be negative, why you're at peace inside. I know my
maker, someone who missed the flight. I'll give you an example of Ethiopian Airlines flight number 83 02 that crashed. There were two people who didn't make the plane.
One of them had a boarding pass. And he got to the gate a moment after the flight had closed after the gate had closed. He tackled them he desperately wanted to get there. I have a policy, because we're at peace. If we missed it, we'll smile hamdulillah Al Hamdulillah. Notice I said Alhamdulillah two times when something happened my way I say Alhamdulillah when it did not happen my way I say Alhamdulillah twice. That means Praise be to Allah all praises due to Allah. Why twice, because now he has chosen for me something far better than I think was good for me.
Later on, when he discovered and the other brother discovered that this flight had lost all the passengers, they all died. May Allah grant them goodness, I promise you my brothers and sisters, the relief was such that Oh, the Almighty saved me. But moments ago you are fighting to be on there. Imagine. This is why we say the inner peace comes when you understand the plan of the Almighty. You made a little accident you come out of the car and start yelling at the sister or the brother who might have bumped into you or you may have bumped into without realizing Calm down, relax, perhaps the almighty didn't want you to get into a crash further up, which could have broken your limbs and
you didn't know and you will never know.
So to recognize the maker brings about a unique type of peace, contentment and happiness that everyone is searching for. When you're ill and sick for example, people become frustrated, how long am I going to suffer? I promise you suffering never lasts. The maximum is to the point of the worldly death beyond which there is no suffering thereafter. Even the prophets Allah Allah has taught us that beyond that point of death, they will not be any suffering.
Fatima Allahu Allah makes mention of it I shall be Allah one has speaks of it. It will not be any
her hurt or harm. After this day, the day of what the day of death.
We came on to this world or onto the earth.
We were crying. I think you perhaps would know that we were crying. If we weren't crying. The nurse spanked us a little bit to say, let's make sure that the lungs are all inflated properly. And this child is normal. And then we started crying. The louder the cry, the happier they were the render your face became the happier they were. Why?
Because they knew you're alive little Did anyone know that the difficulties you're going to face throughout your life. If it were not for the help of the Almighty, we would all be absolutely depressed. But we have conviction that whatever he chooses is the best for us on condition that we're trying, as human beings we falter, we, I always tell those who sin, when you sin and transgress, your peace will be snatched away, because you've done something that is definitely not within the ingredients of contentment, your peace will be snatched away. But you need to know the sooner you turn to the Almighty, the better it is for you. And I want to give you one beautiful
consolation. And that is a believer does not sin out of defiance of the maker. Therefore he deserves forgiveness. Because he is sending out of human weakness, not out of the defiance of the maker. If I commit a sin, I'm not committing a sin because I want to say to Allah subhanaw taala that you made this prohibited, I'm going to show you I will do it and you're going to do nothing about it. That is called defiance. A believer does not do that. But rather a believer says Oh Allah, through my human nature, my weakness, I perpetrated a sin, I did something that was wrong. Forgive me, you have already recognized the supremacy of your maker, you have already recognized that, yes, his law
stands his way. And his entire system is according to what he wanted, not according to what I wanted. So if you'd like peace, you need to understand that the Almighty has set rules, regulations, you know, we have the prayer. The prayer, prayer brings about a unique piece, if you were to wash yourself, and you were to stand in front of your maker in the early hours of the morning, I swear, there is a piece that we should be speaking about that is interior before exterior that we achieve that cannot be described. But it can only be felt by those who are willing to share that type of a moment with them.
Try it my brothers and sisters get up at least once a month, at least maybe twice a month, early hours of the morning between you and your maker. And you know what sometimes the Almighty knows that you may not do that. So guess what he does, he decides to inflict you with something that will result in you realizing I need to turn to my maker. Whoa, we looked at it as negative but it was actually positive. I had a brother who was terminally ill he passed away May Allah give him and all those who passed on Gen metal photos and paradise. I mean,
he was so sad at the time when he was diagnosed with his cancer. May Allah grant cure to those who are struggling with the same disease and other diseases. I mean,
he was so sad. And I told him my brother, imagine if the almighty took you away on your date of death without even giving you a warning? Don't you think that right now, at least while we're hoping that you get cured, at least you have the time to make peace with your makeup.
I also recall a family who asked me Our grandma has been diagnosed a certain disease that is terminal. We're thinking because she's so old. We don't want to tell her let her die just like that. And I said no, no, you need to tell her because give her the opportunity to make peace with her maker to get ready to meet with homemaker. And you know, once upon a law, they did tell the granny.
And guess what? I believe that it helped and it will help and it definitely helps everyone. Imagine if someone told you, brother, you have 15 days or you have 20 days, who knows Allah can give you another 15 years or 20 years. But at the same time, it gives you a moment to reflect you made peace with who with your maker and with those around you. You realized you know what I am nothing. Today we are distracted because of our status, our wealth, our authority, our looks. So Allah says hang on as time passes, I take your looks away. No matter how old you think you are, you know, we get excited and someone says, you know, you just look 28 you look about 30 I think you but you don't
know.
In actual fact, you are thanking them for having told you that you are being deceived by this age and you're saying that's so good.
So Hannah law Now I'm not saying it's a good or bad thing to look young, but I am saying to be deceived, is something you need to watch out about. Because your pieces snatched away. When you feel young you start doing things as though you're a teenager. But Allah says you know what, those days are gone. You need to make sure every day is better than the previous day. That's when you will achieve this. You've committed sin. You've done everything that was in the book of don't do
Isn't it time to stop it and to say, you know what, that's enough. Let me turn to Allah subhanho wa Taala You don't know how long you're gonna live for. So when we talk of Islam being the message of peace, we must definitely make peace within ourselves, make peace with the maker, make peace with ourselves in the sense that we quit the bad habits, I promise you. People told me why is it that when I have done something, Haram, I feel this uneasiness. And I said, you know what it's like committing a crime. If a person has committed a crime or broken the law of the country, they are not satisfied at all. They are worried. When is my fine going to come? If you seen the camera flash on
the roads, right? You know what I'm talking about internationally, it happens. As you're driving, the cameras flashed.
And you don't know is it my car or the car next to me? And you're worried? Am I When am I going to get the message? How much is going to be and so on? Recently, I saw a little joke someone had on WhatsApp.
They showed the four corners. In fact, five. They showed the Pentagon,
a hexagon, octagon, all these little shapes. And then they showed the poll the traffic poll, and they said this is salary gone. SubhanAllah.
And in reality, it's true. If we are not careful, and we are breaking the law, we are worried what's going to happen perhaps I'm going to get a fine back and you live on edge for a whole month and when the ticket doesn't come you sigh a sigh of relief. But deep down, you know, it might just come what's gonna happen.
If you break the law, as simple driving rule. What about when you have transgressed against law police that you will you have gone way against your maker, and you think that it's not going to cause the loss of that peace within your heart. And this is where Islam comes in. I have seen people including today who are interested in Islam, some of them ask questions. And they say but there are too many rules too many regulations. I said you know what these rules and regulations are placed in order to ensure your peace in order to ensure your contentment, you are a disciplined person, you lead your life focused, because you are totally focused on the objectives what you want. You don't
dilly dally to the left and the right because then when you lose focus, you cannot be a leader. And you won't have holistic success, even though you might be a multimillionaire. And this is why you have people with a lot of wealth at times, but they don't have the peace. They don't have the contentment, why the owner of peace is not in their equation. So put him into the equation, put him in, it's simple. No matter who you are, pray, and try your best to fulfill it in a beautiful way five times a day.
On top of that, you will only achieve peace when you realize and now we're getting to the core of the subject.
Together with making peace with yourself and your maker. Part of it is to be able to make peace with the rest of the creatures of the same maker starting with your family members.
You're at home How do you speak to your spouse, I promise you we need to change this. We have complaint upon complaint we have divorce upon divorce. We have so much of breaking of homes, one after the other because we have not understood the value of courtesy, politeness humbleness, reaching out, helping, being selfless, being considerate all of these don't feature in our dictionary at all. So that's why we like peace. You will only achieve peace when you make sure your wife is at peace from your mouth. When you make sure that your children or your husband are at peace from your mouth to begin with, say beautiful words and smile and see the type of peace it brings you
when you're ready to forgive. You will be forgiven by the almighty one near
Allah to him.
Whoa, whoa me so two more. Allah says forgive and embrace for it wouldn't you like to be forgiven by the almighty indeed he is most forgiving, Most Merciful.
So if you'd like to be forgiven by the almighty learn to forgive others and when you are forgiven by the Almighty, you will have peace. My brothers and sisters when you don't forgive others, it is a burden more on your shoulders than anyone elses. It is perhaps going to crack your back more than anyone else's. Learn to forgive, especially small matters to panela we hold grudges. We become jealous we become envious. We have characteristics that * our peace, hence
This is what Islam talks about in al hacer de Kooning has entered Kamata.
Jealousy will eat away even at your good deeds in the same way that fuel or the fire will eat away at a dry lager Subhan Allah, why did the Prophet peace be upon him say this, because he knows that if you have that jealousy, your peace is gone. Be happy with what the Almighty has given you. Be happy with what you look like, be happy with your complexion, be happy with your hair, be happy with your hands and your feet. Be happy with your race, be happy with how the almighty made you and be proud of that for Indeed, he loves you. He made you the way he wanted you.
Now, Allah subhanahu wa taala. Grant us goodness, if we don't do that, what type of peace Are we going to have? I remember a sister. And with all due respect, with all due respect to all our brothers and sisters, a sister came to me telling me I'm too embarrassed about my complexion, I'm the darkest in my home. And I said it's got nothing to do with complexion, if you are helpful and you're you are courteous and you are a loving person and you are kind and you reach out with a smile and you yourself are the best of character, they will have no option but to acknowledge your goodness over their own.
What makes you your character, what makes you your conduct that is in the eyes of people, and even in the eyes of Allah has been the best form amongst you are those who are best in character and conduct. Imagine. So now you find people painting their faces because they are upset, they are not happy with themselves. Yes, a little bit of makeup may be a good idea, but so much that you're actually embarrassed about what you look like is surely an ingredient of the lack of contentment.
May Allah subhanho wa Taala make us happy with what we have and who we are be satisfied. And if you are satisfied in an open way, you definitely will be from those who tasted some of the contentment and you will actually teach others you will actually help promote this goodness, people say Wow, look at how simply you're dressed, you're looking so good, Mashallah. They will also want to dress as simply as that. May Allah grant us goodness,
to resolve your problems and your matters and your disputes that you have in your homes is an act of worship that brings about peace, to be able to forgive and seek forgiveness to apologize is something that will bring about the greatest of peace, learn to apologize, many of us don't apologize why.
The question is, why should I apologize to my wife and the husband? or Why should I apologize? That's my daughter in law. Why should I say sorry? They must say sorry, why should I I'm wealthy I'm this I just say I'm sorry. If that is going to solve the problem, I promise you a mountain of a burden from your back shall be. crumb shall crumble come down crumbling, actually. But that is only if you're prepared to look at it from a very spiritual angle. Look at it from an Islamic perspective. Learn to let go learn to apologize, learn to accept apologies. Learn to be the best in your home. That's why the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him says hi eurocom
the best form amongst you, he or she who is best to his spouse or her spouse? Are we really the best.
We get upset, we get angry. When we speak on the phone. It's like, it's like we're speaking to some criminal. We have no good words to say. We are so abrupt. Why change that and taste the peace. What is the point of the whole world thinking that you're such a cool dude, and your own family really believes that you're some vampire from outer space. Now Allah subhanho wa Taala forgive us.
You'd like the peace. While I promise you it starts within the home thereafter. Those who work for you, the helping hands in your home, you need to treat them with utmost respect and you will release yourself into the peace of the Almighty, you will get the contentment to see another human being circumstances have driven that human being to work for you. But if the almighty wanted it could have been the other way around and it can be some generations down. So treat them with respect. Give them some form of goodness and you will have the piece
I promise you thereafter the circle becomes broader and broader in society and community how you speak to people, the people you work for don't cheat when it comes to time. The Prophet peace be upon him warns both sides, the employer and the employee as for the employer, he is told to pay the payment on time and he is told not to abuse etc etc. Yes, that is when you will taste true peace. Imagine people will pray for you. The goodness look at the charity
That Islam teaches to be charitable to strangers who are in need. What about those who are not strangers who are not in need, perhaps of your wealth, but just of your kindness?
To be charitable to a stranger, can actually earn you paradise? What about charity to those whom, you know, in a way that is not monetary, perhaps, and even if it were monetary.
And I want to take it further, when you are at peace with the rest of the creation of the maker, including the animals. And remember animals, there are several types of animals as Muslims, we can, we have some that we may consume under certain circumstances, and some we cannot, and some that are considered animals we should be staying away from when it comes to consumption.
But the almighty teaches us that if you were to be kind, even to a dog, you would earn perhaps Paradise by that good deed. Imagine, if you were good to a dog there is a Hadith of the prophets of Salaam. And I've mentioned it so many times, I'm not going to repeat it, but in it, a man who was compassionate to a dog by quenching the thirst of the dog, and forgiveness. Imagine if that was a human being. And imagine if that human being was a family member. And imagine if that family members, your spouse, or you see, are you seeing the way we're going, if you got peace through serving a dog for the sake of Allah,
quenching the thirst of the dog for the sake of Allah. Imagine if the circle became closer and closer and closer. It's amazing. It's just amazing. You would like peace, learn to appreciate if you're wealthy, give, if you have any goodness, don't keep it to yourself, give. Show your character show the good side of your expressions, and you will achieve the piece.
Two days ago, I read the true story of a young boy
who said Our Father, wealthy man, but very, very miserly, stingy. He didn't like to spend, not even on his family one day, we decided that we're going to pinch some of his money steal some of his money. As children, I think it was the little boy with his mom. And they decided to pick up some money and feed. I think 500 people from the community who were poor.
And the name they used was the name of the man will bring them all in for lunch at a certain place. And we'll invite our dad as well. They had the luncheon The next day, and they invited the dad and what happened, these people, the whole community, thanking him thanking him, he would never have done it. He's never done it. He didn't think of it, you know, he would just get money. And his his aim in life perhaps was to make that bank account, balance, grow and grow and grow and grow and grow. That's the focus, I need to get to my first 100,000 I've got 1000 I've got 10,000 now from 10 is going to 20 from 20. Wow. And you just thanking and smiling every time there's a few 1000 that
goes into saying I'm closer and closer, but you don't realize if you want it to grow, you're going to take some out and give it Whoa, if you give you attain peace that is priceless. What's the point of reaching the 100,000 but you can't sleep at night.
I'd rather have 50,000 75,000 Mashallah, a little bit more, a little bit less whatever the almighty wants. But I've helped I've given I have compassion. When I see people I give a little bit, you know, it's so it's amazing. So this man comes and he sees the people thanking Him, and really appreciating and praising him for the first time in greeting him and appreciating, and he looked for the first time in his life, he felt the value, the true value of this wealth, the true value of the money, he spent this money.
But actually it was his children who did it for him. And after that, they kept greeting him through the week. And later on, they greeted him so much. And they acknowledged him and they smiled at him. And he built a good community. Just look at one example I'm giving you of a person whose wealth was used behind his back by his own family members to prove a point that what is more valuable than amassing is giving you will never taste true peace until you learn to give what you have to those who may not have it.
So we ask the almighty to grant us goodness. You know, when I was asked to speak about peace, I thought I changed it a little bit because or speak from a different angle. Because every time we say Islam, the message of peace, the first thing that comes to the mind of people, is perhaps we're going to talk about terrorism and the opposite of it. We're going to talk about what's going on across the globe. But people forget that it starts within you. It starts with the recognition of the Almighty when you're happy you reach out to others you look at those who are Jewish, Christian, Hindu, Buddhist, whatever other faith they may be, you look at them not with the eye of hate, but
with the eye of compassion goodness
With the idea of contentment and that of being a brother or a sister to them in humanity, which a lot of us tend to forget
the example of the dog I gave earlier, where a person achieved paradise or forgiveness through quenching the thirst of an animal. Imagine if you had to reach out to someone who you disagreed with, but they were human beings.
What type of peace and contentment Do you think you would achieve? Subhanallah through forgiveness, we achieve peace. Through mercy, we achieve peace when you're addressing your children, be merciful. When you're addressing others who are lower than you in authority, be merciful. And when you have those who are older than you above you, be respectful, be honorable, be respectful. Even within our own homes, the prophet peace be upon him says he is not from us who does not have mercy on the young and does not respect the old when you see an older person.
Today, it's important for us to remind the young ones, you will only get peace when you respect the elderly, when you help them when you are courteous. Where is the courtesy gone. In today's world, it's gone with the wind.
people worry about themselves. And that's why we are lacking contentment. It's all about myself. That's what it is. I need to get there. But you see an older person, let them go in front of you Mashallah, we still have some of these qualities, but I notice it diminishing among the younger generation, we need to develop and speak about these qualities. Once again, you want a successful life, help others cross the road, help them achieve something, say a good word for them. Reach out to them in a good way. Be polite, and you will see the contentment you feel at night. When you're about to recline, and you say your little prayer as you are going to sleep, you will have a smile
that only you and the Lord knows what it is all about.
You will have a smile Why? Today I helped 10 people and Alhamdulillah I thank you all Allah for giving me the opportunity. I promise you, a day will come when you and I will need help. If we have started the strength, there will be others to help us. The Almighty will create people to reach out to us. He will create people to reach out to us. But if we have not, what do we expect? What do we want?
When you differ with someone speaking about tolerance,
tolerance and peace are interconnected because without tolerance that can never be peace. If you're not going to respect others, there will never be peace, when you're not willing to acknowledge difference of opinion. They cannot be peace. When you're not willing to peacefully coexist. How do you expect contentment Subhanallah we all different every one of us. If I were to bring pizzas right now for free for everyone to eat, I'm sure a lot of us would say I don't eat pizza, I'm on a diet, I can't have this. And I cannot eat cheese and I cannot eat this. And I cannot do that. And I'm gonna I'm intolerant of whatever else and gluten and so on. We'll have so many who don't do we say right
all of you guys, we're going to hang you because you're not having part of the pizza.
If they don't want it, they don't want it. I remember someone asking me.
You know, I have two wives when I buy a pizza for this one. I buy a pizza for that one. That's what the brother was telling me. So have I fulfilled their rights? I said, Look, that's a silly question. I'm sure there's a catch to it. What exactly is it? He says, Well, one of them keep saying I don't want the beat. So I said, Well, I asked her what she wants. As simple as that. You cannot shove down the throats of both people the same thing. One might not want what you bought for the other SubhanAllah. Anyway, that's a topic on its own. But the reason I mentioned it is that peaceful coexistence is impossible. If you don't acknowledge we are different. Every one of us is different.
You might like an apple and I might like a pear. You might like a banana and I might like a cucumber Subhanallah so what we're eating but if I don't acknowledge your right to think differently, just acknowledging the right I will never be able to achieve peace or even inner contentment. I will live as though I want to hit this man and attack this man and fix this man. I even people even religious people sometimes say we're gonna fix these people because you know what they are like this and they're like, hang on, hang on, where is the communists? If you have something and you are so confident about what you have presented in a respectful way and stuff. Marlena. Our duty is only but
to convey. The rest of it is handled by Allah Almighty. But when you are so
you know, so small in your knowledge and when you are so
lacking of self confidence, you want to attack you want to hurt, you want to harm because you have not yet polished your character, your conduct, you have not refined yourself as a human being, you don't understand differences. And you don't know we all will differ right now in this poll, you see all the colors, Mashallah everyone's chosen a different color to wear everyone's chosen different type of clothing to wear, some have this and some have covered more than others and so on. We're all brothers and sisters, they have a right to wear red, just like you have a right to a green and orange and whatever other color in there, there may be.
They may disagree with you, that doesn't mean we don't like we hate etc. Now,
we will acknowledge that right. And that is why we say you need to be willing, willing to peacefully coexist from the beginning. Yesterday, I gave an example of Adam alayhis salam at his time how when his children had a dispute and one wanted to fight the other based on the virtue that the almighty have blessed one win, and not the other. Imagine that coexistence was already damaged from very early on. In the creation of mankind, it was a lesson for all of us.
We would all be killing one another. If we felt we're the only ones who have the right to exist on earth. And unfortunately, there are some very small number who actually believe that we are the only ones who have the right to exist on Earth, the rest of the people need to be eliminated. That ideology needs to be tackled.
It was never ever a heavenly ideology. If the almighty did not want others, he was powerful enough not to make them in the first place. He's the giver of life. He is powerful enough to take him away. Without your interference. He is powerful enough, he is the giver and the taker of life. Do you really think the almighty made you and I to come on to earth and kill each other? To come onto the earth and argue and fight and destroy each other? Absolutely not. Never.
But learn. Educate yourself. Keep on learning. Learn what people have to say learn about revelation. Learn about what is right and wrong. Learn from the good source, teach others in a beautiful manner, hope and pray for them pray for their goodness. When your child is on drugs, for example, and you want to see the child
helped. What will you do? You take the child from pillar to post from this rehab to the other and you pray for the child and you want goodness for the child. And you keep on going from one person to another and you keep praying. Imagine if someone else came and said your child does not have the right to exist. And they were five centimeters away from being cured. So Allah, how would you feel as a parent? Well, I can tell you we are all creatures of the Almighty. In the same way that you think others need help. They may be thinking you need help. When you have to present the matter and pray to the almighty the day they come along and they see the goodness of Han Allah, it will be a
day of inner contentment, inner peace, we all get closer to the almighty by worshiping Him alone, we ask Allah subhanho wa Taala to grant every one of us goodness.
Another aspect of the peace that Islam teaches
is impatience. Yeah, I
saw many of you who believe, seek assistance through prayer and patience or through patience and prayer. What is this patience.
Patience is a topic that is very broad, you need to have supper, you need to have forbearance, you need to practice restraint. You need to hold yourself back at times, it will bring about contentment. One narration says that if a person in fact there is a verse of the Quran, praising those who, when they are becoming angry, they quickly suppress that anger. Quickly suppress that anger. Why? There is an inner peace that you achieve. People swear you
recently someone called me a baboon online, you might have seen it.
What did I say? I screenshotted it and posted it on Instagram and I said, Hey, love you look just like me. SubhanAllah That's what I said. Exactly. I'm sure you might have seen it. I was not offended. Because I know I'm not a baboon.
And then someone comes and says no baboon in Arabic means a dog. Get lost. Allahu Akbar.
Bye Barbon you know above is a door
but I know what they meant an insult. Why get angry? Imagine if I said okay. I know the
Boom, you're an eighth. And then he sent sent me back a message to say you're a dog and I sent you a swine and so it doesn't stop. But you can extinguish it from minute one. After that, if you did not extinguish it, you don't know where it's going to go.
The moment it gets out of your hand, it might go beyond control, it might fly down to you and want to attack. Who knows, it started off with a little message for now we laughed at it. And we said, Whoa, SubhanAllah. And really, before when I was a little bit younger, I would have got very cross very upset. But now you realize social media and people's tongues will keep wagging you cannot stop them, but you can control how to react to it. You can control how to retaliate, or how to just remain calm, or how to give back in a unique ways you have a lot, they can give back. Smile about it, make a joke of it, they might get more irritated. Imagine someone trying to poke you trying to
really make you angry, and you're just smiling. Whoa Subhan Allah.
So this type of patience, this restraint, you will enjoy it at a certain stage, it will bring about that peace, where with a smile, you react with all who swear you. If someone calls you a dog doesn't make you a dog. It doesn't. If someone calls you a bad word, does it make you that, but sometimes your reaction is a vindication. So what happens is the way you react proves that you're actually a person who might have a few of these bad qualities that the person called you by. And this is why my brothers and sisters, the religion of peace, the religion that brings about peace, there are people across the globe who might provoke, by perhaps, cartoons and videos and images and other swear
words, etc. against those whom we consider very lofty in rank such as the messenger, peace be upon him, such as the pious and the other prophets of Allah O Allah Himself, or maybe the Kaaba, and places that we consider very, very holy. If they are to engage in something negative, yes, it will hurt us. But our reaction should not create a bigger problem. That's what I want to say.
The way we react to someone's bad deed should be number one. Yes, we felt hurt in the sense that if it was blasphemous to our religion, we feel it. We pray for them. And we will do whatever we can in a very dignified way to stop that. But without becoming hooligans, I remember some time back. There were cartoons that were drawn against the Prophet sallallahu sallam, and they were videos that were made against the Prophet peace be upon him.
And rightly so they were people who were very upset. We were all quite upset every one of us but people reacted differently. Some became hooligans, hooligans, to the degree that they there was loss of life as a result. There was loss of life. So people started saying, Look at these Muslims, my brothers and sisters, you know what, those who prayed,
I promise you, I'm going to say something very touching
those who prayed with a sincere heart for the guidance of the others who had perpetrated these crimes, the result of those prayers in this hole. We heard from one of those who was engaged in the initial blaspheming who became a Muslim as a result, a few years later.
This venue, the same venue we are at today
Subhan Allah What happened? The Almighty guided them to the goodness look at the Allah when he came out to commit murder. Moments later the almighty guided him Why? Because the Prophet peace be upon him I had made a prayer for him to say Oh Allah, guide him to the deen guide him towards goodness, how many of us have that good heart. When you have the good heart, you're able to reach out to people with a peaceful prayer. It's a very high level. I am not telling you that you should allow people to slap you and you should allow people to be unjust know, when you're standing up for justice, do it in a dignified way. When you are standing up for justice, do it in a responsible,
respectful way. People would know this person was wronged they have actually dealt with it in a very dignified way. But don't become a hooligan. Don't be a disgrace to yourself and to your deen to your religion to your people and to everyone else. We have to build this globe together. My brothers and sisters my 45 minutes are up Can you believe it?
But I asked the almighty to grant us all goodness the message I have said it's come from the heart and I really mean it. We are witnessing a lot on the globe today. And some of it is common sense. Some of it is common sense. That is
not so common these days. So we have to talk about it and we have to keep reminding each other to say you know, my brothers and sisters, it is very, very important for us to be at peace with our maker, with ourselves, with our family members with our communities and inshallah with the broader creation of the Almighty. When we have achieved that peace, through patience, through service through good character through conduct, through forgiveness, through mercy, through through so many other good ways through charity, then inshallah we would have changed the entire globe with that goodness apollonia Hava Allahu wa Sallim wa barik ala nabina Muhammad