Winter Conference London
Mufti Menk – When The Poor Pay For The Rich To Worship Allah
AI: Summary ©
The importance of Islam's five daily prayers is emphasized, including praying five times a day and not doing a specific thing. The speaker also discusses various events and topics related to money, including a free event, a poorer event, and fundraising. The importance of pranking people to receive a reward for their prayer is emphasized, and the speaker gives examples of mistakes and mistakes made by others. The speaker also discusses various aspects of religion, including Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents, Sunless Sunents,
AI: Summary ©
As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu.
Bismillah walhamdulillahi wassalatu wassalamu ala rasulullahi wa ala
alihi wa sahbihi ajma'in.
My brothers and sisters, every one of us
is supposed to pray five times a day.
Prayer as in Salah.
If you look at the word Salah, it
is unique in the Arabic language.
It does not actually translate in English as
prayer, but we use the word prayer because
it's the closest term to explain that we're
actually connecting with our Maker.
But Salah is not actually the word prayer
because prayer could also be dua or supplication.
If I were to raise my hands and
beg from Allah in any language, even if
it's my imagination and I'm trying to word
it and I'm not so good at wording
what I want, you and I know that
that's a supplication.
It's also called a prayer.
If I say to you, for example, pray.
Pray.
Pray what?
Pray that we have a good event.
Is that Salah?
It's not Salah.
It's a dua.
I'm asking you to make a dua that
we have a good event.
What language is that in?
In any language whatsoever, it's irrelevant to Allah.
The fact is you're calling out to your
Maker for you to achieve something.
MashaAllah tabarakallah.
Now, when it comes to the five daily
prayers, we're talking of a specific set of
actions and words with an intention that starts
in a specific way with Allahu Akbar and
it ends in a specific way with Assalamualaikum
warahmatullah.
Right?
That's Salah.
You pray five times a day.
We are taught that it's one of the
most important pillars of Islam.
The second pillar of Islam is prayer.
In fact, we're taught that if your prayer
is in order, everything else will be in
order on the day of judgment.
And if your prayer is not in order,
you may have a major disaster on that
particular day.
May Allah forgive us.
May He make us steadfast on our prayers.
Say, Ameen.
Ameen, Ameen, Ameen, Ameen.
So, imagine if I were to tell you
that the caller who calls to the prayer,
known as the what?
Say it?
Mu'adhin.
The caller who calls to prayer gets a
full reward for everyone who came to pray
and who prayed as a result of the
reminder that he offered through the Adhan.
Hayya ala Salah.
What did he just say?
He said, come to prayer.
And then you came to prayer.
Who gets a reward?
The one who called you to pray.
أَطْوَلُ النَّاسِ أَعْنَاقًا يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ المُؤَذِّنُونَ The Prophet
ﷺ says in a narration, the most conspicuous
people on the day of judgment with the
longest necks, meaning you'll see them, are the
ones who used to call others to pray.
Those who used to call the Adhan.
One of the reasons is they get a
full reward for everyone who prayed.
And if you know a Mu'adhin who's
been there for 10 years, 15 years, and
more, imagine how much reward they're getting.
I'm getting a reward for my prayer alone.
He's getting a reward for a thousand people
a day.
The bigger the masjid, the more the reward.
And sometimes you have people at home, like
the women and the others, who may have
heard the prayer as a reminder and then
prayed, who gets a reward?
The one who prayed, fulfilled and you get
a reward.
But the one who encouraged or reminded you
in any way or participated in facilitating your
prayer gets a full reward for your entire
prayer.
Now, I want to take that somewhere else.
The men who are here, how many of
you have been to the masjid?
Put up your hands.
That's everyone.
Everyone.
MashaAllah, TabarakAllah.
Okay.
How many of you have been to the
masjid in the last week?
Put up your hands.
Everyone again.
How many of you have been to the
masjid on Friday?
Jumu'ah.
This last Jumu'ah.
Put up your hands.
Same number of hands.
MashaAllah, TabarakAllah.
Okay.
I want to tell you something.
Do you know someone paid?
Someone paid for where you parked your car,
if it was a parking within the boundaries
of the masjid or within the boundaries of
the property of the masjid.
Someone paid for the place where you took
your shoes out and put them there.
Someone paid for the cleaning of the tiles
or the carpet as you walked in.
Someone paid for the water that you use
to make wudu.
Someone paid for the towels that you use
to actually wipe yourself.
Someone paid for the bathroom, if there is
a bathroom or facilities to relieve yourself somewhere
within that compound.
Someone paid for that.
Someone pays the workers who work there on
your behalf because you are a beneficiary.
You actually have benefited from what someone has
given and someone has paid for the cleaning
of the carpet, the salaries of the imams,
the electricity and so much more.
A lot of the times those are people
who, those are people who have put money
in the tins and the boxes and they've
sent money to the accounts of the masajid
and you could be a person who's never
ever paid.
What value would you put at one prayer
in the masjid?
Can you tell me?
If I were to tell you, put a
value, a monetary value at your salatul fajr
that you made at your masjid.
How much is it?
Can you tell me?
Anyone wants to say something?
Come on, scream the answer, yell it out.
A million?
Anyone wants to go higher than that?
A billion?
Anyone wants to go higher than that?
A trillion?
Anyone wants to go higher than that?
It is priceless.
رَكَعَتَا الْفَجْرِ خَيْرٌ مِّنَ الدُّنْيَا وَمَا فِيهَا See,
I've been affected by brother Rahim, right?
So, I tell you what, my brothers and
sisters, the two units of fajr, the sunnah
of fajr are better in value than the
whole world and whatever it has.
If that is the two units of sunnah
of fajr before the obligatory two, imagine what
the farad is worth.
If the two sunnah is worth the whole
world, the farad is worth way more than
all of that.
You see?
So, I want to say to you my
brothers and sisters, if someone were to tell
you, pay one pound for every time you
went to the masjid, it is cheap, it
is almost free.
Today you came here, I'm sure you paid
a fiver or a tenner.
What did you pay?
Fifteen, that was a late ticket.
Early bird, what was the early bird?
Seven, there we are, five.
Someone's paid five, seven, ten, fifteen.
That's how it's staggered going up, right?
And I saw some tickets for sale from
people who couldn't make it online and they
said, I have a ticket for this date,
anyone who wants it, you can buy it
from me.
Those must have even paid twenty, who knows.
But nonetheless, why do you pay?
Why do we let you pay?
Do you know what's the reason?
We don't want someone else to pay for
you.
This venue costs, the lighting costs, the sound
costs, the volunteers, masha'Allah, they will be
rewarded because the bulk of them are doing
it free.
But you have costs, for example, of the
sound system, the videography, and everything else to
put it together.
It costs money.
If you knew the amount, you would be
shocked.
Many a time, they actually have an amount
that they compensate for you.
But they want you to participate in this
beautiful event with your money as well.
What's the point of making it free?
Everybody will book up, and you know what
happens when it's free?
They book 10 tickets, 20 tickets, and no
one's going to come because they're going to
say, this is for me and my family.
Recently, we had an event and we said,
free.
Everyone started booking, one email, 20 tickets, 30
tickets.
I went to the organizers, I said, no,
one email, one ticket.
Why?
You must use your email because you're serious
to come.
Because it's free, people think, and then on
the day, there are hardly anyone because, oh,
I booked 20 tickets, I'm only one guy,
the rest of them didn't want to come.
Who told you to book for them?
We'd rather you participate with your money so
you get a reward, not just for your
participation and your attendance, but for everyone who
benefited.
You're five pounds, you're seven pounds, you're 15
pounds.
Today we have thousands of people here.
I haven't seen this place as full as
this.
Honestly, this particular venue, I've not seen it
as full as this.
Subhanallah.
For a light upon light conference.
Yes, in the Ramadan, we have many more
people, but that's the taraweeh and the iftar,
inshallah.
Are you going to join us this coming
year, inshallah?
We have three events, 2025 Ramadan, 25th night,
27th night, 29th night.
All three nights will be just in London,
inshallah.
We're not going to go elsewhere.
We're going to have all of them in
London and we're going to have thousands of
people.
And you know what?
If you're paying, you're not paying for the
taraweeh, you're not paying for the...
you're paying for your own food.
Or would you like a poorer person than
you to pay for your food?
Is that what you want?
You'd rather pay for your food and put
a bit more and say, this is for
someone who might not be able to afford
it for their food, subhanallah.
Okay.
So, we charge in order to give you
a chance and opportunity.
People say, why do you charge?
What for?
It's an Islamic event.
Well, would you like someone poorer than you
to cover the cost of your attendance here?
What a shame, what a shame.
If you really cannot afford it, we have
this Qur'an.ly app, right?
Qur'an.ly app, it costs a lot
of money.
There is a lot that goes behind the
scenes and so on.
And on it, we say, whoever cannot afford,
click here.
When you click there, it says, it makes
you like take a note that you really
can't afford it and you get it for
free.
There are more people who've taken it free
and we don't mind than those who have
paid.
But I tell you what, someone somewhere is
covering the cost.
Would you not like to be someone who
says, listen, this is my five pounds.
Here's another 50 pounds for 10 other people
who can't afford it.
Do it.
You can, I can.
I do it a lot of the times.
If I have sometimes some causes that I
know is a good cause, I'll give my
own money and tell the guy, cancel the
event.
I've done this.
Someone invited me for a fundraiser, more than
once.
I say, how much do you want to
raise?
They say, we want to raise 20,000.
Okay, we get someone to transfer the 20
,000, cancel the event.
Oh, is it?
I say, yes.
What's the point of having?
How much money do you...
We need 20,000.
We give you the 20,000, cancel the
event.
Don't waste your time.
No, but no.
Cancel the event.
I will cover.
Why?
I know the cause.
I want the reward.
I know what happens.
You know, when we travel and go to
so many different countries, do you really think
that everyone is paying?
No, they're not.
We've been to Sierra Leone.
We've been to Gambia.
We've been to Nigeria.
We've been to so many countries.
We've been to Liberia.
In fact, I will miss some of the
names.
We've been to Tanzania.
Besides one or two events that are paid,
the rest of them are free.
Who covers the cost?
There are people who care, who say, look,
when you have an event like this, I
want to participate.
What is that?
It's called a sadaqa jariyya.
It's a waqf.
It means, I will pay so that someone
can change their lives.
Every time they do a good deed, I
will get rewarded for it.
And when they teach their children, I will
get rewarded in my grave for something that
will continue beyond my life.
Subhanallah.
So we said, when we had a meeting,
let's give people the opportunity to participate in
this.
Don't be selfish and do it all on
your own.
If I wanted, I could, and we have
done it.
It's easy.
But you want to participate?
Come join us.
Let's go.
Iman legacy.
Any other waqf.
MashaAllah, Tabarakallah.
Here we go.
It's an opportunity given to you.
It's an opportunity that Allah Almighty opened up.
Others will scramble it.
Like I said, we go to the masjid.
I want to ask you a question.
It's going to be embarrassing.
But I want you to put up your
hands because I want to prove a point.
How many of you have donated more than
a hundred pounds to your masjid in the
last month?
To your local masjid in the last month?
Don't be shy.
Don't put your hands up if you haven't.
If you've donated a hundred pounds or more
in the last month to your local masjid,
please put up your hands high.
I see one.
I see maybe two, three, four, five, six
from the thousands.
Now, for one month, I read salah in
the masjid.
I haven't even given them a hundred pounds
and I'm saying, no, these sheikhs don't pay
them.
I don't get paid by the way, alhamdulillah.
But you've got to pay the people what
is their livelihood.
The imam salary should be more than a
doctor or less than a doctor.
Tell me.
I heard more.
Where's the money?
Come on.
We rely on you to donate that money.
Everyone will become imams.
You know, many years ago in 2007, I
traveled to Saudi Arabia and I saw a
Toyota Camry, the new shape.
It's a true story and I loved it.
2007, the Camry changed shape and I loved
it because I'm always a Toyota guy.
So, I decided to order one because I
come from Zimbabwe, we ordered one from Japan,
right?
Through a certain company, Toyota Japan.
And they delivered it in 2008.
It wasn't such an expensive vehicle and the
brothers who helped me do it, mashallah, and
it was black in color and it was
an amazing vehicle.
And I drove it to some of my,
you know, events at the time.
So, we asked people, what do you want
to become?
What are you going to become?
So, a few of the boys said, I
want to become a mufti.
So they asked, how come?
He says, have you seen the car he
drives?
Did you hear what I just said?
I want to become a mufti.
He says, but why?
He says, have you seen the car he
drives?
What does that mean?
You look at the car and the guys
say, I want to be this.
Wallahi, if we paid the mashayikh a top
-notch salary, mashallah, what would happen?
The kids would say, check the ranger, I'm
going to be an imam.
Allahu Akbar, mashallah.
Allah bless you guys.
Allah bless you guys.
I'm not saying it's connected but I am
saying, take care of them.
They take care of you.
They come to do the adhan in your
ears when you're born.
And they are the ones who do janazah
when you die and you haven't even paid
them a penny.
Come on, is it fair?
Wallahi, this is the time.
There are others paying for you.
I've seen wealthy guys say, I'm not going
to give to the masjid because I disagree
with the committee.
But you're fulfilling salah there.
Your salah costed someone else at least five
pounds.
You used water, you used the towels, you
used the bathroom.
Many people don't use the bathroom in their
own houses.
They go to the masjid.
Don't you know that guys?
See, they're laughing because you know what?
They are guilty.
You know what I'm talking about.
They'll tell you, hey, I need the bathroom.
I just need...
And they'll go to the masjid.
Why?
Come on, because someone's paid for beautiful bathrooms.
There's water there.
There's everything there.
And mashallah, someone else is going to clean
it.
If it's at home, who's going to clean
it?
Someone from among the family, right?
May Allah make it easy.
So, this is what I mean.
Start thinking about how poor people have paid
for you in so many things you do.
In Ramadan, how much do we give the
masjid?
Yes, we'll donate everywhere else, but we did
taraweeh the whole month.
I reckon you should pay a minimum of
30 quid, one quid a day.
That is nothing.
But still, if the whole masjid with 1
,000 people paid 30 quid for the whole
month, you've got 30 grand, right?
Sorry for using these slang languages, but you
know I'm using British slang, right?
30,000.
30,000 from 1,000 people.
It will cover some of the cost.
Many of us go for iftar.
We eat, we munch away like we've never
seen food before because it's free.
That's why, am I right?
We had the light upon light event here.
We gave one hot meal in Ramadan as
iftar to everyone.
And then when we were done, we told
the brothers, anyone who needs a second one,
there are a few left over.
I think there were about 15,000 people.
We had about 15,000 meals and they
always come up with extras just in case,
you know.
My tank is about 45 liters, but I've
seen guys with 145 liter tanks.
MashaAllah.
I don't know where it's going.
It just goes one, two, three, and you're
watching, say, mashaAllah, Allahumma barik, Allahumma barik.
I got to do a dhikr just now.
He says, you know, mufti looked at me
and I had the runs.
Astaghfirullah, astaghfirullah.
Sorry about that.
But nonetheless, nobody paid.
So when we made an announcement, you can
have a second one.
Wallahi, with these eyes, I saw people taking
10 meals.
And I'm thinking they want to go and
distribute it to who?
It's a free meal.
Do not become of the habit that when
something is free, you take it unnecessarily.
You want it?
MashaAllah, take another one and say, alhamdulillah, no
problem.
They've offered you and don't be shy.
It's fine.
But to take 10, it means you need
to be shy.
Come on.
I'd love to have taken a photo, but
we don't expose people and we don't want
to do.
We're only mentioning it in passing.
Look, I'm mentioning it after almost 7 months
of me witnessing it.
I'm saying without any, you know, particular names.
But my brothers and sisters, someone's paid.
When you pay for that meal, ask yourself,
how much is it?
I promise you, it is subsidized.
Do you know that?
You pay for an event and you have
a meal and you have a...
And it is so subsidized if you know
the costs.
There are others who are paying it for
you.
Wallahi, mostly.
That's why when I got up a little
bit earlier, I said, I want to show
you how the poor pay for the ibadah
of the rich, facilitated.
Your Ramadan, you didn't really give the masjid,
you gave everywhere else.
No.
There will always be politics in every single
mosque in the world.
In order for you to be tested, how
are you going to navigate through it?
Are you going to not give?
Simply because I didn't like that imam.
Put the money.
What's 30 quid?
What's 5 quid?
What is it?
Get used to giving a little bit.
Ask yourself, look, they used their money for
me.
Subhanallah.
So, when you see a good cause, and
the growth of a good cause, and you
see something happening across the world, and it's
something good, ask yourself, how can I be
a part of this?
And then when you want to be a
part of it and Allah has accepted your
money in it because Allah only invites those
whom He wants to be a part of
the cause, to donate the rest of them,
perhaps Allah did not want the money.
The cause will continue with you or without
you.
If you say, I'm not going to give
the masjid, you didn't give for the last
10 years.
Guess what?
The masjid grew, they renovated, they expanded, you
kept using it and you didn't give, and
other people kept giving.
But the masjid did not stop.
The masjid didn't stop.
It continued.
The project did not stop.
It continued better than what it would have
been had you been a part of it.
So Allah says, this guy, keep him out.
You know why?
Some people when they donate, they want to
control.
That's a problem.
That's not a donation.
That is an investment where you want the
return for yourself, not for the ummah.
I know people who say, look, I'm giving
money.
What do I get in return?
You get a reward.
What do you mean?
It's a corporate world.
Is this a material item for the world?
Look, we've got things set.
Things are moving.
Everything is happening.
It's growing.
What expertise do you have in this field?
If you have expertise, we take you on.
You don't have expertise.
Besides money, you've got nothing else.
We don't need the money.
Keep it.
You know why?
You're not giving it to the cause.
You're actually pushing yourself with money into position.
Many people do this.
Many people push themselves into position because they
have money.
They say, I'll give.
But I want to have a seat here
and a say here.
Well, then keep your money.
It will proceed without you, won't it?
So this is why we say, my brothers
and sisters, ask Allah to use you and
to use your money to do good.
Oh Allah, use me to do good.
Oh Allah, I'm weak.
I'm sinful.
I've done so many mistakes, but I need
to do so much of good.
Help me to invest my deeds in a
way that brings back the biggest return ever.
Then when you see a massive event in
Sierra Leone, for example, you can just smile
and say, Allahumma lakal hamd.
Oh Allah, I thank you for using me
to be a small part of those who
contributed towards the success of this event.
You would know, Allah would know.
The day they raised funds for this, you
gave them 50 pounds.
That was good.
That was amazing.
You gave them 5 pounds.
Amazing, amazing, beautiful.
Why?
Because you helped all this happening behind the
scenes.
Innama nu'ta'imukum li wajhi Allahi la nureedu
minkum jaza'an wala shukura The true worshippers
of Allah, when they donate food or they
give something in charity, what do they say?
They say, we have fed you for the
sake of Allah.
We don't want a recompense from you and
we don't even want to thank you from
you.
The fact that Allah saw it and it
was for Allah is sufficient for us.
Imagine you give someone a lot of good.
You donated to a cause.
You gave food.
And those people don't even say thank you.
They look at you and they nod their
heads by right.
If you gave it for Allah, you would
not mind.
You wouldn't mind.
I'm sure you've heard me say this.
And I say it because of these verses
that I will do good to you even
if you don't do good back to me.
It's okay because you're not a part of
my full equation.
It's me and Allah.
I'm doing it for Allah.
Oh Allah, I gave.
You saw it.
I saw it.
Khalas.
How you took it and didn't take it,
I really don't mind.
That is what Allah says in Surah Al
-Dahr.
إِنَّمَا نُطْعِمُكُمْ لِوَجْهِ اللَّهِ We feed you for
the sake of Allah.
We don't want a thank you from you.
We don't even want you to be good
to us in return for the goodness we
gave.
If you did it, good to you, not
good to me.
If someone does good to you and you
say, may Allah reward you.
That may Allah reward you is good for
you, not for them.
Allah will reward them without you saying, may
Allah reward you.
Have you ever understood that system?
If you say, jazakallah, who's the benefit for?
Jazakallahu khayran.
That's how you should say it, right?
That statement benefits the one who said it
more than the one who is actually receiving
that prayer.
Because when I gave you, I gave for
Allah.
Allah has rewarded me before you said jazakallah.
It's already there.
What's the point of your jazakallah?
It's important.
It's a sunnah.
It shows gratitude.
But it's more your merit, not mine.
That's how we look at things.
This is Allah.
This is the plan of Allah, the system
of Allah, where He accepts those who have
a kind heart.
He accepts those who have a clean heart.
He accepts those who care for others.
And He says, come, let's use you to
do the good.
We won't use the others.
Therefore, my brothers and sisters, cleanse your heart.
Remove hatred, envy, jealousy, ill feelings.
Don't be vulgar and abusive.
Don't hurt people with your language.
Try to care for others.
Care for everyone.
You see people, different race, different nationality, different
part of the world, different size, different financial
level, different social standing.
Treat everyone with utmost respect.
Utmost respect.
You know, as I was coming up, I
stood here in the holding area for a
little while, waiting for my turn.
And I saw some of the kids coming
to greet.
And I'm torn between not disturbing the man
who was speaking, who was brother Rahim, and
greeting this person that doesn't really cost me
much and they want to talk to you.
And then one came and another came and
a third came and I'm torn between telling
them no and telling them, okay, it's fine.
What do you do then?
It's very hard.
Some people might dislike you.
They might say, look at this guy, he's
arrogant.
And so on.
You might have heard what happened to us
in Birmingham the other night.
I felt so hurt that I had to
call these boys up.
I'm sure you saw the story, right?
So, I'm torn.
But then I still saw some of the
kids.
I said, okay, let's see some of them.
And I tried to be as polite as
possible because I treat them as though they
are my own kids.
And that's a fact.
I will treat the children no matter who
they are as though they are my own
kids because I would like you to treat
my kids like that inshallah.
And so therefore, even when I said no
to a few of them, I said, you
know what, I need to go up.
And I was about to go up.
And I said, I greet you, but I
can't sign this paper because I'm about to
go up.
If I sign yours, I've got to sign
everyone else's.
So, don't worry, I love you and you
guys can go and sit back on your
seats.
They might have been a bit upset, but
I tried to be as polite as possible.
I wouldn't mind if you put my kids
in their place in such a polite way.
It would be a bonus.
It would teach them as well.
But the reason I say this is try
hard to work on yourself.
Be good to people even sometimes when you're
in a situation where it's hard to be
good.
That's your test.
And I don't mean that let people wrong
you and say, it's okay, it's okay.
They slapped you, it's fine.
Gave you another slap, it's fine.
They damaged your car, it's okay.
They did something wrong to you, it's no,
no, no, no.
You damage my car, you pay.
Am I right?
But I'm not going to swear you.
I'm not going to...
You know, sometimes people make an accident and
then you find a guy come out of
the car, swear Fs and Bs.
It's called an accident because it was by
accident.
I don't know of anyone who goes in
and rams intentionally unless they're crazy or cuckoos,
right?
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala forgive us.
Allah forgive us.
Wallahi, crazy people.
Those need to be dealt with because they
are perhaps criminal sometimes.
But if you look at the rest of
the world, the 99.99999% the accident
is I made a mistake, okay.
But you were on your phone, okay.
They have to pay for the fact that
they were on their phone.
They have to pay for the repairing of
the vehicle.
They will get points on their license.
Whatever else happens.
That does not justify you becoming disrespectful and
abusive.
Not at all.
When you came out and you started swearing,
I'm going to be late.
I'm going to this.
All of that is against you.
It's irrelevant.
Allah wanted you to go through what He
designed for you perhaps even before you were
born.
Sorry about that.
But my brothers and sisters, many of us
get cross and upset and we become abusive
and we don't realize.
Even in our own homes, the way we
talk to our family members is ridiculous.
That is a sign of a dirty heart
that needs to be cleansed.
Clean your heart.
Let it be the most beautiful experience for
those living with you or around you or
those who interact with you.
Let it be an amazing experience.
The day you die, they will say, I
really, really, really miss my mother-in-law
so much.
She was one of the best.
Ameen.
Why was there no Ameen there?
Please guys, just be fair.
I'm trying to just tell you to be
calm and cool.
MashaAllah.
I know some of the best sisters who
are mothers-in-law and their kids-in
-law always say, Oh mashaAllah, my mother-in
-law.
The only problem is she's standing right there.
But nonetheless, my brothers and sisters, here we
go, clean your heart.
You know what?
Why I say clean your heart?
When your heart is clean and you are
making an effort to worship Allah, those two
when they come hand in hand, Allah uses
you to do a lot of good.
I know some people very knowledgeable, but very
arrogant.
Allah does not use them.
Your knowledge can be a mountain.
No one wants to hear what you have
to say because of your arrogance.
The way you think you're such a big
dude and the way you think everyone else
is astray and they all are really, you
know, they don't even deserve my presence.
And so that is attitude.
The messengers of Allah did not have that
attitude.
Who are you man?
So Allah doesn't use a person with knowledge.
No, not necessarily.
But when you have the knowledge with what
is right and you calm yourself down and
humble yourself and understand it's a trust entrusted
to me by Allah, He can take it
away at any time.
But for as long as Allah has given
me, I'm going to hold it and take
it and beautify it in the most beautiful
way.
I'm a salesman.
I'm trying to market the deen of Allah
to you in a way that is palatable
and beautiful, recognizing who you are to me
and what your condition is.
They asked me a few days ago, what
is one thing you learned over the da
'wah that you've been calling towards for so
many years?
And I said, one thing I've learned where
I've changed myself is to put myself in
the shoes of those whom I'm talking to
and think about it hard before I open
my mouth.
Today I'm talking to you.
I know there are so many different people,
different levels of perhaps practicing, different levels of
community, society, but all of you are just
like me, human.
You all want a connection with Allah just
like I do.
We're all trying to get paradise just like
I do.
May Allah gather us in paradise.
Ameen.
I'm convinced, inshallah.
The love we have, the beauty, the heart.
Right now our hearts are softened.
We are sitting listening to what?
To goodness.
I'm not calling you towards me.
I'm calling you towards doing good for the
sake of Allah because we want to please
Allah.
Two things.
Worship Allah, build your connection with Him, and
learn to be kind to the rest of
the creatures of Allah.
That's what Islam is all about.
There's something called huququllah, the rights of Allah.
And there's something called huququl ibad, the rights
of the rest of the creatures of Allah
or the worshippers of Allah.
If you've done both of those, you're good
to go.
Yours is paradise.
Seek the forgiveness of Allah because I'm a
human.
You're a human.
I have faltered.
I make mistakes.
I've sinned.
I still do wrong.
I continue to do wrong sometimes on different
levels.
May Allah forgive me and forgive all of
us.
But I have hope because I'm dealing with
a Lord and a Creator and the one
who's in charge of every aspect of me.
He is merciful.
He is kind.
He is amazing.
He's beautiful.
He's the most forgiving, the most beneficent.
Wow, I can't wait for the day I
meet him and I'll just be smiling.
Oh Allah, I tried.
I tried.
Oh Allah, have mercy on me.
Oh Allah, I was not an evil person.
I tried to be kind.
I tried to navigate through every situation in
the best possible way.
As a human, I have faltered and I
may have faltered at times without knowing.
You know better than I do.
Oh Allah, here I am standing in front
of you.
You are my only hope and you are
the one whom those who have hope turn
to.
Forgive me.
You reckon Allah's gonna say, No, go to
*.
Nah, no chance.
No chance.
I don't think so.
We're trying.
Are you not trying to fulfill your prayer
on time?
Are you not trying to improve?
Are you not trying to dress more modestly
every day?
Do you not have something you're aiming at?
Inshallah, one day I want to get there.
And slowly working towards that.
If you have the intention and you're slowly
working towards it, even if you died halfway
up the ladder, Allah will count you as
though you're right at the top of the
ladder.
How's Allah?
Allah says, we judge you with your intention.
You work towards it?
Yes.
Let me give you a quick example.
Few.
I plan to go for tahajjud or to
do tahajjud.
I get up one day, two day, three
days, right?
The fourth day, I overslept.
Guess what?
The angels wrote that I was there.
How?
Because I intended to get up but somehow
I overslept.
When I arrive on the day of judgment,
I'll see so many tahajjuds that I didn't
really do.
What happened?
Allah says, I'm the most merciful.
I know you are my worshipper.
Didn't you want to get up?
Yes, I did.
Well, I just wrote the reward for you.
Allahu Akbar!
Allahu Akbar!
Thinking about it, it's hair-raising.
How merciful is Allah?
That is what is the meaning of the
most merciful.
Allah says, you know what?
You wanted to do it, didn't you?
Well, I just wrote the reward for you.
Allahu Akbar!
Imagine you want to memorize the Quran.
You start now doing one line a day,
one verse a day.
And you're 60 years old, 70 years old.
One verse a day.
Oh Allah, I want to memorize the Quran.
One verse a day, one verse a day.
How long will it take?
I don't even know.
I don't even know.
It's going to take you years and years,
but you're doing one verse a day.
You lived up to the age of 80,
and you only did five juz, and you
passed away.
Guess what?
You're resurrected with those who've memorized the Quran.
Takbeer!
You're resurrected with those who memorized the Quran.
You know why?
You used to do one verse a day.
But you kept going.
And Allah knew your life is not going
to be as long as is required to
complete this.
But because you had the intention.
Didn't you have the intention?
Yes, I did.
Well, I just wrote your name from among
those who did it.
Subhanallah.
My brothers and sisters, we go back to
basics.
We fill our pillars of Islam.
Take your zakat seriously.
Give and you shall be given.
Anfiq ya ibn Adama, unfiq alaik.
Allah promises you, O son of Adam, spend.
And when I see you spending, I'm going
to spend on you.
I will give you.
You gave.
You know, I met a wealthy man, wallahi.
And he told me, for me, it's a
three-year cycle.
I said, what do you mean?
He said, whenever I've given something, three years
later, I get back more than a thousand
times what I gave.
Wallahi.
You give humbly and that's it.
And he says, I gave.
And he mentioned a massive amount.
He was just explaining it to me out
of gratitude to Allah.
He says, I gave something at a time
when it was very difficult to give.
And people couldn't give because of the economic
situation.
He says, wallahi, three years passed and Allah
returned it in a flash one thousand times
more than...
And I was just like, subhanAllah, subhanAllah.
So give, Allah will give you.
Spend, O son of Adam, I will spend
on you.
That's zakat.
And on top of zakat is something beyond
that you can give and should give from
your own money.
Every act of worship has with it the
voluntary aspects if it has a compulsory side
to it.
Like for example, you have prayer five times
a day.
A part of it is farad.
That means it's obligatory.
You have to.
Allah gives you an opportunity to show your
connection with Him by doing more than farad.
So what else is there?
Sunnah.
And what else is there?
Come on.
Nafl.
You can do your sunnah which is voluntary
but recommended.
You can do that which is nafl which
is not even recommended, which is not like
recommended on the same level but you do
it, you'll be rewarded.
You left it out, you're not going to
be sinful.
That's nafila, completely.
The same applies to your fasting.
You have the farad in Ramadan, you can't
let go.
And if you've missed any for a reason,
you have to make them up later.
But then you have that which is sunnah,
nafl.
Sunnah is the 13th, 14th, 15th of every
month, the Monday and the Thursday.
You have a nafila, you can fast sometimes
the other fast.
The fast of Ashura, for example.
The fast of Dhul Hijjah, for example.
And mashallah, tabarakallah.
What are you doing?
It's the act of worship that has a
compulsory side to it and it's also got
a voluntary.
Allah wants to see you, this is mine.
Are you going to give any more from
you?
Let's see.
Same applies to zakat.
I tell you, there's a compulsory side is
what percentage?
Say it.
2.5%. Mashallah, we know it.
2.5% of your savings.
2.5% of your cash at hand
or what you've saved, your gold and silver
and so on.
I tell you my brothers and sisters, beyond
that, Allah says, okay, that two and a
half was mine.
But what are you going to give now
from you?
Have you ever thought of it?
Two and a half is Allah's.
If you don't give it, you're sinful.
If you give it, you're done.
You get a reward and mashallah.
But Allah says, let's see.
We are going to dangle causes in front
of you and you've got the money, are
you going to give some?
Some, at least a little bit.
You know the companions, they used to come
with everything they had.
This is what I'm worth, all of it
is yours.
The same applies to hajj.
Hajj is compulsory, but you have a minor
pilgrimage called the Umrah.
How many of you have not been for
Umrah?
Never seen the Kaaba?
Put up your hands.
May Allah gather us there.
May Allah take you there again and again.
And even those who've been, may Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala grant you the opportunity to
visit again and again and again.
It is life-changing.
It is the most sacred, most powerful place
on earth.
Nobody can explain to you what it's like
without you going there.
You won't know the exact extent.
They might tell you, they might be able
to explain a little bit, but not exactly
how it is.
You need to go and experience it yourself.
Make du'a.
And that's why one of the first places
you want to visit outside of your place
of living, if given the opportunity, is the
house of Allah.
Sometimes you might not be able to go
for the hajj, but at least you can
go for the one that's not compulsory, it
is voluntary.
Go again.
The hadith says you are forgiven.
Your sins between the two Umrahs are forgiven.
Your sins between the two Jumu'ahs are
forgiven.
Jumu'ah is a Friday, you went to
the masjid or you did your salah, the
Friday prayer.
The next Friday prayer you do, the minor
sins between the two wiped out.
Subhanallah, that is Allah.
So Allah wants us to give, Allah wants
us to respect each other.
I end with a verse.
Allah Almighty says, يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا
تُبْطِلُوا صَدَقَاتِكُمْ بِالْمَنِّ وَالْأَذَاءِ O you who believe,
don't nullify the reward of your charities by
being abusive and by bragging about it.
That means the accepted charity is that which
is given in a way that there is
no abuse and no bragging.
You can give publicly, no problem.
You can give privately, no problem.
But if you are giving in a way
where you're going to belittle the one you're
giving, Allah says, it's going to harm you.
It's going to harm you.
If you are going to brag about it
and say, oh, you know these guys, when
they had nothing, I gave them, they came
up, now look at how big they are.
Don't talk about it.
Why should you mention particular people to say
I gave them?
If you want to say I gave to
a cause in order to encourage someone else,
by all means do that.
Look brother, you are my friend.
I tell you I gave to this cause,
I don't regret it.
Ever since I gave, Allah has blessed me
with so much this, this, this.
I suggest you give.
MashaAllah, that's good.
I'm telling you based on an encouragement.
That's fair, it's okay.
But to brag about it and to have
a chip on your shoulder and to lift
your nose up one inch above everyone else.
That's me, I gave, it was me.
Come on, who are you, man?
May Allah Almighty forgive us all.
Nonetheless, my time has just come to an
end.
But I really, really, thoroughly appreciated my time
here.
Whenever you're invited to any event and you
have to make a little payment, please by
all means give.
Don't ever complain.
Thank Allah for using you to be a
part of making this whole thing happen.
Today we have an event.
How did it happen?
It happened because of you.
It happened because you came.
It happens because you wanted to come.
Do you know how this event came about?
Let me explain.
We had a few events and they were
all sold out.
And the wait list had 4,000 people
on it.
And so immediately the organizers say to us,
to me, can you stay over for one
more day?
I said, by all means I'll stay over.
4,000 people, okay, go for it, bismillah.
And there we are.
May Allah Almighty accept us all.
Grant us ease and goodness.
May Allah love you.
May Allah use you to do good.
May our hearts be softened towards the right
things.
And may Allah protect us from harm, from
evil, from loss, from sin, and from being
nasty people whom nobody wants to associate with.