Omar Suleiman – Saying Alhamdulillah, When it Hurts

Omar Suleiman
AI: Summary ©
The transcript describes the meaning behind a term used by the Prophet sallahu, which is "back to the source" in Islam. It discusses various phrases used, including "back to the source" and "back to the source" to describe the importance of being identified. The speakers emphasize the importance of being recognized for being a Muslim person and stress the importance of proper humility and praise for individuals who complain regularly.
AI: Transcript ©
00:00:00 --> 00:00:36

Bismillah Ar-Rahman Ar-Raheem Ar

00:00:36 --> 00:00:52

-Rahman

00:00:52 --> 00:01:02

Ar-Raheem Ya ayyuhal nasu ittaqoo rabbakum

00:01:02 --> 00:01:05

allathee khalaqakum min nafsin wahida wa khalaqa minha

00:01:05 --> 00:01:09

zawjaha wa battha minhuma rijalan kathiran wa nisaa

00:01:09 --> 00:01:11

wa ittaqoo Allah allathee tasa'aloon bihi wal

00:01:11 --> 00:01:14

arhaam inna Allaha kana alaykum raqeeba Ya ayyuhal

00:01:14 --> 00:01:17

ladheena amanoo ittaqoo Allaha wa quloo qawlan sadeeda

00:01:17 --> 00:01:22

yuslih lakum a'malakum wa yaghfir lakum dhunubakum wa

00:01:22 --> 00:01:24

man yuta'il laaha wa rasoolahu faqad faaza

00:01:24 --> 00:01:29

fawzan azeema We begin by praising Allah subhanahu

00:01:29 --> 00:01:33

wa ta'ala in every situation and we

00:01:33 --> 00:01:36

bear witness that he alone is to be

00:01:36 --> 00:01:40

worshipped and unconditionally obeyed and we begin by

00:01:40 --> 00:01:42

invoking his peace and blessings upon our beloved

00:01:42 --> 00:01:45

messenger sallallahu alayhi wasallam on the prophets and

00:01:45 --> 00:01:48

messengers that came before him and on his

00:01:48 --> 00:01:50

family and companions that served alongside him and

00:01:50 --> 00:01:52

those that follow in his blessed path until

00:01:52 --> 00:01:53

the day of judgment and we ask Allah

00:01:53 --> 00:01:55

to make us amongst them Allahumma ameen.

00:01:56 --> 00:01:58

All praise is due to Allah in every

00:01:58 --> 00:01:59

situation.

00:02:00 --> 00:02:04

It was a note written by our brother

00:02:04 --> 00:02:07

Imam Marcellus Williams rahimahullah ta'ala may Allah

00:02:07 --> 00:02:11

have mercy on him his final testimony before

00:02:11 --> 00:02:14

he was executed and the first time that

00:02:14 --> 00:02:18

many people were introduced to this term alhamdulillah

00:02:19 --> 00:02:22

All praise is due to Allah in every

00:02:22 --> 00:02:23

situation.

00:02:24 --> 00:02:26

There are many celebrities and many athletes and

00:02:26 --> 00:02:28

many people who at the height of their

00:02:28 --> 00:02:32

success introduced the world to this term alhamdulillah

00:02:32 --> 00:02:35

as they stood in triumph in a ring

00:02:35 --> 00:02:38

or in an arena but probably none so

00:02:38 --> 00:02:42

more powerful than the written words of an

00:02:42 --> 00:02:45

innocent man as he was executed by a

00:02:45 --> 00:02:49

criminal criminal justice system alhamdulillah ala kulli hal.

00:02:49 --> 00:02:52

All praise is due to Allah in every

00:02:52 --> 00:02:53

situation.

00:02:53 --> 00:02:56

I want us to reflect on this term

00:02:56 --> 00:03:01

and particularly how difficult and how rewardable it

00:03:01 --> 00:03:04

is to say alhamdulillah when it's hard to

00:03:04 --> 00:03:09

say alhamdulillah alhamdulillah when it hurts alhamdulillah not

00:03:09 --> 00:03:12

in a moment of triumph but in a

00:03:12 --> 00:03:15

moment of trauma alhamdulillah not in a moment

00:03:15 --> 00:03:18

of victory but in a moment of in

00:03:18 --> 00:03:22

quotation marks defeat alhamdulillah not when an obvious

00:03:22 --> 00:03:25

blessing has been born into your life and

00:03:25 --> 00:03:27

you're carrying your child for the first time

00:03:27 --> 00:03:31

but the alhamdulillah when Allah tests you to

00:03:31 --> 00:03:33

have to bury that child that you welcomed

00:03:33 --> 00:03:36

into this world the one that the Prophet

00:03:36 --> 00:03:39

sallallahu alayhi wasallam said that a house of

00:03:39 --> 00:03:43

praise baytul hamd is built for because it's

00:03:43 --> 00:03:47

so much easier to say alhamdulillah at the

00:03:47 --> 00:03:50

moment of receiving a blessing than it is

00:03:50 --> 00:03:53

to say alhamdulillah at the moment of losing

00:03:53 --> 00:03:57

a blessing and there is a difference there

00:03:57 --> 00:04:01

are two phrases of dhikr two phrases of

00:04:01 --> 00:04:03

the remembrance of Allah subhanahu wa'ta'ala that

00:04:03 --> 00:04:06

are probably the most frequent in our lives

00:04:06 --> 00:04:09

and the most difficult and rewardable to say

00:04:09 --> 00:04:11

at certain points in our lives the Prophet

00:04:11 --> 00:04:14

sallallahu alayhi wasallam said in the afdala dhikr

00:04:14 --> 00:04:18

la ilaha illallah the best form of remembrance

00:04:18 --> 00:04:21

of Allah subhanahu wa'ta'ala is la ilaha

00:04:21 --> 00:04:25

illallah wa afdala duaa and the best supplication

00:04:25 --> 00:04:28

is alhamdulillah the best form of dhikr is

00:04:28 --> 00:04:30

la ilaha illallah and the best form of

00:04:30 --> 00:04:35

duaa is alhamdulillah now those already are the

00:04:35 --> 00:04:38

best phrases that you can say but there

00:04:38 --> 00:04:40

is a time in your life and la

00:04:40 --> 00:04:42

ilaha illallah is probably the most frequent dhikr

00:04:42 --> 00:04:44

that you make as a Muslim but there

00:04:44 --> 00:04:46

is a time in your life where it

00:04:46 --> 00:04:49

will be harder to say than any other

00:04:49 --> 00:04:53

possible word in your vocabulary and that is

00:04:53 --> 00:04:56

the moment that you're leaving this world yuthabbitullahu

00:04:56 --> 00:05:00

allatheena amanu bilqawli thabit Allah azawajal gives firmness

00:05:00 --> 00:05:03

to those who believe with a firm word

00:05:03 --> 00:05:06

what is that firm word that moment of

00:05:06 --> 00:05:09

leaving this world and someone says to you

00:05:09 --> 00:05:11

and the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam says prompt

00:05:11 --> 00:05:13

your dying ones to say la ilaha illallah

00:05:13 --> 00:05:16

it's so hard to say at those moments

00:05:16 --> 00:05:19

you see tongues tied you see hearts shut

00:05:19 --> 00:05:22

you see eyes closed before someone can utter

00:05:22 --> 00:05:24

la ilaha illallah may Allah allow each and

00:05:24 --> 00:05:26

every single one of us to have their

00:05:26 --> 00:05:31

dying words be la ilaha illallah because the

00:05:31 --> 00:05:33

first thing you're asked in your grave man

00:05:33 --> 00:05:37

rabbuk who is your Lord and it doesn't

00:05:37 --> 00:05:38

matter at that point how many people stood

00:05:38 --> 00:05:40

over you as you were being buried and

00:05:40 --> 00:05:42

said when the angel comes to you say

00:05:42 --> 00:05:45

Allah because when the angel comes to you

00:05:45 --> 00:05:48

it will shake you in a way that

00:05:48 --> 00:05:52

only a person who has that deep foundation

00:05:52 --> 00:05:53

of la ilaha illallah will be able to

00:05:53 --> 00:05:55

say la ilaha illallah so it's a frequent

00:05:55 --> 00:05:59

dhikr the best form of remembrance is la

00:05:59 --> 00:06:02

ilaha illallah and the best time to say

00:06:02 --> 00:06:05

it is the hardest time of your life

00:06:05 --> 00:06:09

which is the last moment of your life

00:06:09 --> 00:06:10

may Allah azawajal allow us to say it

00:06:10 --> 00:06:15

likewise when it comes to alhamdulillah the Prophet

00:06:15 --> 00:06:17

sallallahu alayhi wasallam taught us about the blessings

00:06:17 --> 00:06:21

of alhamdulillah the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam said

00:06:21 --> 00:06:24

that whoever eats food and says alhamdulillah all

00:06:24 --> 00:06:29

praise is due to Allah who provided this

00:06:29 --> 00:06:33

to me sufficed me with it with absolutely

00:06:33 --> 00:06:35

no power or capacity of my own the

00:06:35 --> 00:06:39

Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam said Allah will forgive

00:06:39 --> 00:06:41

him for everything that came before and the

00:06:41 --> 00:06:43

one who wears a new a new dress

00:06:43 --> 00:06:48

or a new garment and says alhamdulillah all

00:06:48 --> 00:06:50

praises be to Allah who clothed me with

00:06:50 --> 00:06:54

this without any power or capacity of my

00:06:54 --> 00:06:58

own Allah will forgive them for everything that

00:06:58 --> 00:07:02

preceded because there's an obvious blessing the easiest

00:07:02 --> 00:07:04

thing to say when Allah gifts you with

00:07:04 --> 00:07:08

a blessing it's instinctive as alhamdulillah alhamdulillah alhamdulillah

00:07:08 --> 00:07:12

you won't find many Muslims tongue-tied at

00:07:12 --> 00:07:15

that moment when you shake them and say

00:07:15 --> 00:07:18

hey congratulations alhamdulillah even a person who's barely

00:07:18 --> 00:07:21

practicing Islam at their graduation at their wedding

00:07:21 --> 00:07:24

or when something obvious happens alhamdulillah alhamdulillah alhamdulillah

00:07:24 --> 00:07:29

the real test is when a blessing is

00:07:29 --> 00:07:31

being taken away and it's more rewardable at

00:07:31 --> 00:07:34

that point the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam said

00:07:34 --> 00:07:37

in an authentic narration in the afdala ibadillah

00:07:37 --> 00:07:41

that the most blessed and virtuous of the

00:07:41 --> 00:07:42

slaves of Allah on the day of judgment

00:07:42 --> 00:07:46

are alhamdulillah may Allah make us amongst them

00:07:46 --> 00:07:49

people of praise people of praise you see

00:07:49 --> 00:07:51

they are identified by that praise because it's

00:07:51 --> 00:07:54

not circumstantial praise it's a condition that they

00:07:54 --> 00:07:57

have they are people of hamd they're people

00:07:57 --> 00:08:00

who praise Allah subhanaw taala as the Prophet

00:08:00 --> 00:08:02

sallallahu alayhi wasallam said in good and in

00:08:02 --> 00:08:05

bad times they're hamdulillah they're identified by the

00:08:05 --> 00:08:08

praise because the praise is not circumstantial it's

00:08:08 --> 00:08:11

not conditional it's who they are anything that

00:08:11 --> 00:08:14

happens to them they immediately say alhamdulillah alhamdulillah

00:08:14 --> 00:08:18

and who was the most obvious manifestation of

00:08:18 --> 00:08:21

that Habibuna sallallahu alayhi wasallam our beloved one

00:08:21 --> 00:08:24

alayhi salatu wassalam who was authentically narrated that

00:08:24 --> 00:08:26

when the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam had something

00:08:26 --> 00:08:28

good happen to him something that made him

00:08:28 --> 00:08:35

happy he said alhamdulillah all praise is due

00:08:35 --> 00:08:37

to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala who by

00:08:37 --> 00:08:40

his favor all favors are completed all blessings

00:08:40 --> 00:08:44

are made complete so he praised Allah specifically

00:08:44 --> 00:08:48

alhamdulillah ladhi bni'matihi tatimu sarihat it's by his

00:08:48 --> 00:08:52

favor that these blessings became complete when something

00:08:52 --> 00:08:55

good came to him sallallahu alayhi wasallam and

00:08:55 --> 00:08:59

when something bad happened to him or something

00:08:59 --> 00:09:03

distressed him he responded alhamdulillahi ala kulli hal

00:09:03 --> 00:09:07

alhamdulillahi ala kulli hal all praise is due

00:09:07 --> 00:09:09

to Allah in every situation the words that

00:09:09 --> 00:09:12

Marcellus wrote on his last statement all praise

00:09:12 --> 00:09:16

is due to Allah in every situation and

00:09:16 --> 00:09:18

he used to seek refuge alayhi salatu wassalam

00:09:18 --> 00:09:22

to be from those who are minhali ahlin

00:09:22 --> 00:09:25

nar to be in the situation of the

00:09:25 --> 00:09:27

people of * so he would thank Allah

00:09:27 --> 00:09:29

subhanahu wa ta'ala ala kulli hal for

00:09:29 --> 00:09:31

every situation he would seek refuge in Allah

00:09:31 --> 00:09:33

subhanahu wa ta'ala minhali ahlin nar to

00:09:33 --> 00:09:36

be from the circumstances or to have a

00:09:36 --> 00:09:39

circumstance or to be of the state of

00:09:39 --> 00:09:41

the people of hellfire so it was hand

00:09:41 --> 00:09:44

from him sallallahu alayhi wasallam he was always

00:09:44 --> 00:09:46

grateful to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala he

00:09:46 --> 00:09:51

every single time when he suffers alayhi salatu

00:09:51 --> 00:09:54

wassalam or when he is satisfied he's driven

00:09:54 --> 00:09:57

to the same state and words of praise

00:09:57 --> 00:09:59

if you saw him in sajda alayhi salatu

00:09:59 --> 00:10:01

wassalam if you walked into a masjid and

00:10:01 --> 00:10:04

you saw him in prostration you wouldn't know

00:10:04 --> 00:10:06

if something really bad just happened to him

00:10:06 --> 00:10:07

or if something really good just happened to

00:10:07 --> 00:10:11

him because both the bad and the good

00:10:11 --> 00:10:14

drove him to the same place his sajda

00:10:14 --> 00:10:17

alayhi salatu wassalam drove him to the same

00:10:17 --> 00:10:21

praise his hamd sallallahu alayhi wassalam his tears

00:10:21 --> 00:10:26

were of gratitude no matter what alhamdulillah alhamdulillah

00:10:26 --> 00:10:31

alhamdulillah lali bini'matihi tatimu salihat alhamdulillahi ala kulli

00:10:31 --> 00:10:33

hat sometimes your body language when someone asks

00:10:33 --> 00:10:36

you how are you you say alhamdulillah your

00:10:36 --> 00:10:39

body language contradicts your words the Prophet sallallahu

00:10:39 --> 00:10:42

alayhi wasallam said the words and he explained

00:10:42 --> 00:10:44

what he meant by the words alayhi salatu

00:10:44 --> 00:10:48

wassalam what's the difference between the two and

00:10:48 --> 00:10:49

I want us to reflect on this bi

00:10:49 --> 00:10:50

'idhnillahi ta'ala with the few minutes that

00:10:50 --> 00:10:54

we have when Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala

00:10:54 --> 00:10:57

gives you a blessing there is an obvious

00:10:57 --> 00:11:01

manifestation of his karam an obvious manifestation of

00:11:01 --> 00:11:04

his bounty of his generosity and so your

00:11:04 --> 00:11:08

alhamdulillah is thanking Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala

00:11:08 --> 00:11:13

for an obvious blessing and a seen attribute

00:11:13 --> 00:11:16

of his generosity subhanahu wa ta'ala it's

00:11:16 --> 00:11:21

different the opposite is true when Allah subhanahu

00:11:21 --> 00:11:23

wa ta'ala tests you with something when

00:11:23 --> 00:11:25

he afflicts you with something when you say

00:11:25 --> 00:11:28

alhamdulillah ala kulli hat when you praise Allah

00:11:28 --> 00:11:30

subhanahu wa ta'ala and thank Allah subhanahu

00:11:30 --> 00:11:32

wa ta'ala for every situation in that

00:11:32 --> 00:11:35

state you are praising Allah subhanahu wa ta

00:11:35 --> 00:11:41

'ala for an unseen blessing behind a seen

00:11:41 --> 00:11:46

trial and you are explicitly praising Allah subhanahu

00:11:46 --> 00:11:49

wa ta'ala from a place of tawakkul

00:11:49 --> 00:11:52

from a place of trusting Allah subhanahu wa

00:11:52 --> 00:11:56

ta'ala's wisdom his unseen wisdom rather than

00:11:56 --> 00:11:59

his obvious generosity so there's a different manifestation

00:11:59 --> 00:12:02

of a blessing and there's a different attribute

00:12:02 --> 00:12:03

of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that you're

00:12:03 --> 00:12:05

connecting yourself to and if you were to

00:12:05 --> 00:12:07

take any one of us and you were

00:12:07 --> 00:12:09

to say which one is harder to recognize

00:12:09 --> 00:12:13

obviously it's the latter not the former obviously

00:12:13 --> 00:12:15

it's the latter not the former and the

00:12:15 --> 00:12:17

former is to prepare you for the latter

00:12:17 --> 00:12:21

just like your practice of la ilaha illallah

00:12:21 --> 00:12:25

in times of ease and in times where

00:12:25 --> 00:12:28

you're not dying where you're alive where you

00:12:28 --> 00:12:31

can feel your heart beating where it's easy

00:12:31 --> 00:12:33

to say la ilaha illallah is to train

00:12:33 --> 00:12:36

you to say la ilaha illallah for the

00:12:36 --> 00:12:39

most consequential time in your existence on this

00:12:39 --> 00:12:43

earth likewise your hamd alhamdulillah you get yourself

00:12:43 --> 00:12:48

used to alhamdulillah alhamdulillah alhamdulillah so that as

00:12:48 --> 00:12:52

soon as something strikes you your heart your

00:12:52 --> 00:12:56

mind your tongue go to a familiar place

00:12:56 --> 00:13:00

you know subhanAllah you think about a person

00:13:00 --> 00:13:04

who curses regularly who complains regularly what makes

00:13:04 --> 00:13:06

you think that if you curse and complain

00:13:06 --> 00:13:11

regularly you're suddenly going to garner up the

00:13:11 --> 00:13:14

most important word of your life that contradicts

00:13:14 --> 00:13:19

your nature under more distressing circumstances look at

00:13:19 --> 00:13:26

brother marcellus and i hold myself guilty guilty

00:13:26 --> 00:13:28

i haven't followed his case until last week

00:13:28 --> 00:13:32

guilty i didn't know about the brother guilty

00:13:32 --> 00:13:37

unfortunately we wait sometimes until people are at

00:13:37 --> 00:13:39

the end of their journey to take interest

00:13:39 --> 00:13:42

in their plight may allah forgive us for

00:13:42 --> 00:13:44

our deficiency in regards to him and the

00:13:44 --> 00:13:48

many innocent people innocent people that are in

00:13:48 --> 00:13:53

this criminal criminal justice system but i started

00:13:53 --> 00:13:55

to watch some of his old interviews hamd

00:13:55 --> 00:14:00

flows alhamdulillah alhamdulillah i guarantee you that's a

00:14:00 --> 00:14:02

brother who on death row and in prison

00:14:02 --> 00:14:04

they don't serve you good food on death

00:14:04 --> 00:14:06

that would say alhamdulillah when he finished his

00:14:06 --> 00:14:09

food i guarantee you that's a brother who

00:14:09 --> 00:14:10

if he got a moment with his family

00:14:10 --> 00:14:13

would say alhamdulillah you don't garner that stuff

00:14:13 --> 00:14:15

up at the last moment of your life

00:14:15 --> 00:14:17

unless it was a familiar place during your

00:14:17 --> 00:14:21

entire life so when is the most praiseworthy

00:14:21 --> 00:14:27

praise it's when the least obvious blessing is

00:14:27 --> 00:14:30

present to you when tests you and afflicts

00:14:30 --> 00:14:33

you and at that moment the same person

00:14:33 --> 00:14:35

the same heart the same tongue that would

00:14:35 --> 00:14:38

praise allah for the obvious blessing for his

00:14:38 --> 00:14:41

obvious karam for his obvious generosity can praise

00:14:41 --> 00:14:43

allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for the unseen

00:14:43 --> 00:14:46

blessing and the unseen wisdom and that is

00:14:50 --> 00:14:53

all of these are expressions of praise to

00:14:53 --> 00:14:55

allah subhanahu wa ta'ala because at the

00:14:55 --> 00:14:56

end of the day they are all admissions

00:14:56 --> 00:15:02

of our vulnerability to understand to think to

00:15:02 --> 00:15:05

do in a way that matches what allah

00:15:05 --> 00:15:08

subhanahu wa ta'ala has given to us

00:15:08 --> 00:15:12

we're admitting deficiency with all of those statements

00:15:12 --> 00:15:15

and so they are all statements of hamd

00:15:15 --> 00:15:20

they're all statements of praise alhamdulillah we belong

00:15:20 --> 00:15:25

to allah a statement of humility allah azzawajal

00:15:25 --> 00:15:26

knows and i don't know a statement of

00:15:26 --> 00:15:28

humility a statement of praise you're praising allah's

00:15:28 --> 00:15:31

knowledge allah subhanahu wa ta'ala controls and

00:15:31 --> 00:15:34

i don't control you're praising allah subhanahu wa

00:15:34 --> 00:15:36

ta'ala's power you're praising allah subhanahu wa

00:15:36 --> 00:15:40

ta'ala's authority and the best alhamdulillah is

00:15:40 --> 00:15:42

the one you say with a smile on

00:15:42 --> 00:15:44

your face or the heart that's beating with

00:15:44 --> 00:15:48

praise because let me tell you something rasulullah

00:15:48 --> 00:15:49

sallallahu alaihi wasallam didn't feel sorry for himself

00:15:49 --> 00:15:55

we read his seerah we feel sorry when

00:15:55 --> 00:15:58

we go through the moments of devastation the

00:15:58 --> 00:16:01

moments of him burying his children the moments

00:16:01 --> 00:16:04

of rejection the prophet sallallahu alaihi wasallam didn't

00:16:04 --> 00:16:07

feel sorry for himself it's important for us

00:16:07 --> 00:16:09

as well not to feel sorry for ourselves

00:16:09 --> 00:16:12

but to say alhamdulillah for everything that allah

00:16:12 --> 00:16:13

azawajal has given to us to be grateful

00:16:13 --> 00:16:16

for may allah make us from alhamadun may

00:16:16 --> 00:16:18

allah make us from those who praise him

00:16:18 --> 00:16:20

in every situation may allah subhanahu wa ta

00:16:20 --> 00:16:24

'ala enable us to properly thank him to

00:16:24 --> 00:16:27

properly remember him to properly praise him allahumma

00:17:52 --> 00:17:52

you

Share Page