Sikander Hashmi – Spiritual Impact of Natural Disasters KMA Friday Message
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AI: Transcript ©
Respected elders,
dear brothers and sisters, my young friends,
As we speak, our brothers and sisters
in Libya and in Morocco are experiencing
unimaginable pain and anguish.
As you probably know, nearly 3,000 people have
perished
in the earthquake
that first struck struck Morocco,
and
close to 20,000
have either,
died or are missing
due to the massive floods in Libya.
These are staggering numbers.
And, of course,
earlier this year,
over 55 or close to 55,000
people lost their lives in the earthquakes in
Turkey and Syria.
We ask Allah
to shower his mercy and his forgiveness upon
those who have perished. We ask Allah
to heal the injuries
of those who have survived
and to mend the hearts of those
who are grieving and are traumatized.
Subhan Allah, I think the the scope and
the magnitude of such
disasters
is hard to appreciate.
Right? Because first, you know, we talk about
the lives that have been lost.
We talk about those who are injured.
And
on top of that, you know, on top
of all of that pain and that that
suffering,
there
is the the trauma, right, and the psychological
impact
of of losing,
in in many cases, you know, tens of
family members, entire,
you know, entire families, entire extended families.
Right? Homes, businesses,
vehicles, property,
you know, streets, neighborhoods. SubhanAllah.
Ask Allah,
to make it easy for everyone who has
been affected.
See, my brothers and sisters, the pain,
the grief, the helplessness
is something that we should all feel
because, as we know, we are
as 1 ummah, like one body.
And as a result, we have a responsibility
as the prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam has
told us to respond as well. And the
first thing that we respond with, of course,
is du'a.
Right? Because du'a is something that does not
require us to be in a specific place.
It does not require us to have any
particular resources.
It does not require us to fulfill
any particular requirements.
Dua
is our
plea to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that we
can make at any moment,
at any time, in any way, with any
words.
And,
of course, it must come from the heart.
Right? So whenever we hear
about such tragedies or any calamity for that
matter, right, our response always should be
and then we make a dua, you know,
in our hearts out loud. We whisper it
as we wish to Allah
for those who are impacted
by such calamities.
It was reported,
that when there was an earthquake,
the Khalifa, Omar Abdul Abdul Aziz,
Muhammadullah,
he would write to his governors
telling them to give in charity. Right? And
this is another way that we are also
called upon to respond. Right? Of course, with
dua, with feeling in our hearts,
but also respond intangible ways with whatever support
that we can offer
and with moral support through words
and deeds. So inshallah, today's collection at the
Masjid,
this Friday inshallah, will be going towards disaster
relief in Libya and Morocco inshallah.
May accept. Please do give generously.
When we think about the victims,
and we think about, you know, how
such calamities play out. Right? It is indeed
heartbreaking and really unimaginable.
Right? When you think about,
you know, people who are particularly inside of
homes, inside of buildings that collapse, when you
think about,
tidal waves, you know, 7 meters high, tsunami
coming in, essentially, something like a tsunami or
similar to a tsunami, sweeping in over a
city, catching people off guard. Right? It is
just unimaginable, and no one can fully understand
the wisdom of Allah
Right? But, of course, as human beings,
we may wonder about it. And this is
something which,
you know, is natural that these thoughts can
sometimes,
come to us. Of course, we accept the
decree of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. And we
know that Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala
is indeed in control. And these,
these calamities that come indeed come from Allah
subhanahu wa ta'ala.
So Allah knows best, you know, as to
his wisdom, his divine wisdom, that we have
been taught, you know, a few things. So
first of all, the messenger of Allah salallahu
alayhi wa sallam
has told us that the martyrs are of
5 kinds.
That the shuhada are
of 5 categories.
Right? One who dies of a plague.
A person who is the victim of a
plague is counted from amongst the shohada is
a shahid. One who dies of a disease
of the belly, right, of the stomach is
a shahid, the prophet salallahu alaihi wa sallam
has told us. The person who drowns
is counted as a shahid, and the one
who dies under debris is also counted as
a shahid. Right? So a person who drowns
regardless of the the method of the drowning,
regardless of the circumstances of the drowning, if
a person happens to die
through drowning, then inshallah, they'll be counted as
a shahid. Similarly, one who dies under debris.
Right? Regardless of what type of debris it
is,
of course, in earthquakes, normally when people,
lose their lives, it's due to debris falling
upon them. So they are also counted from
amongst the shohada and, of course, the martyrs
in the Allah's cause,
the prophet said, and those who
are the the the martyrs, the shohada in
the cause of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
All of these categories, these 5 categories of
people have been we are told are counted
as
and they will receive,
the same reward. Right? The same reception.
The same treatment
in the afterlife
as a person would for losing their lives.
Secondly, my brothers and sisters,
we know that the
the believers
are tested. Right? And believing
is not a shield against tests.
Believing
is not meant to be a shield against
tests, rather the test tend to increase
as a person's iman
rises. Right? As we read in Surat Al
Baqarah, Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala tells us in
the second
Allah says, or do you think that you
will enter Jannah?
Do you think
that you will enter enter Jannah, enter paradise
without such trials as came to those
who passed away before you? Right? And what
was their state? They were afflicted with severe
poverty
and ailments and were so shaken.
Right? That eve and was was and the
the scholars mentioned here that it's not necessarily,
like, physical earthquakes, but they were so shaken.
Right? Because of the circumstances. Whatever the circumstances
and the trials were, they were so shaken
by those by those those circumstances and those
trials that even the messenger and those who
believed along with him said, when
will the help of Allah come?
Right? When will the help of Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala come? So they didn't doubt the
help of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Right? They
didn't say where is the help of Allah,
but rather they said when will come the
help of Allah. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
responds and says,
that, yes, certainly the help of Allah is
near. Right? So for the believers,
for the people who will enter Jannah, right,
it is not unexpected
that they will go through hardships, they will
go through trials and tribulations as the people
of the past have also gone through.
And it is not unexpected that they will
look for the help of Allah Subhanahu Wa
Ta'ala. They will seek the assistance of Allah
Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. And Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala
reassures them and says that indeed the help
of Allah is near. Sa'd ibn Abi Baqas
radiAllahu anhu reported
that I said, oh messenger of Allah, which
people are tested most severely? And the messenger
of Allah salallahu alayhi wasalam said, they are
the prophets
then the next best and then the next
best. A man is put to trial according
to his religion. If he is firm in
his religion,
his trials will be more severe. If he
is weak in his religion, he is put
to trial according
to his strength
in religion. The servant will continue to be
put to trial until he is left walking
upon the earth without any sin. So my
brothers and sisters, we learn a few things
here. Right? First of all, the degree of
the trial will be in relation, will be
proportionate to
the level of a person's iman.
Right? This is for the believers. Right? So
for the believers,
the trials will be according to the level
of strength of their iman. Right? The level
of their religion. If the more firm a
person is in the religion, then the test
is also going to be more severe. Right?
And the weaker a person is in their
religion,
then their test will be according to the
weakness or whatever level of strength is of
their religion and a purse so that's the
first thing we learned. The second thing we
learned is that a person will continue to
be put through a believer will be will
be will continue to be put through trials
until he is left or she is left
walking upon the earth without any sin. So
what does this tell us? That these trials
and tribulations
provided that our response is correct
are actually a form of spiritual purification as
well. What are they? They are a form
of spiritual
purification
because there is no hardship. There is no
pain, there is no worry, there is no
anxiety that a person goes through as the
prophet salallahu alaihi wa sallam tells us. Even
the pricking of a thorn except that it
grant it gives a person, gives a believer
spiritual purification.
It forgives it leads to the forgiving of
a person's sins. So whenever such calamities occur,
indeed and of course they are difficult.
But let us remember that the severity and
the degree of the difficulty
will also be linked to the degree of
forgiveness, insha'Allah, and the degree of the reward
that will come from bearing such hardships.
Of course, that doesn't mean that we should
seek hardships.
We are not instructed to seek hardships.
We are instructed to seek ease from Allah
We are asked to seek Afiya from Allah
Right? To seek goodness, to seek wellness, to
seek peace from Allah
But if Allah
decides for us to go through these trials
and tribulations,
we are to try to look at it
as positively as possible and to understand that
even then we do have something to gain
even though we may have suffered great losses,
great apparent
losses. The prophet
also said, as related by Abu Musa,
That this nation of mine, this of mine
has been granted
mercy is the the recipient of mercy.
Their punishment
Their punishment is
in this world. Right? Their punishment is not
in the hereafter.
The punishment is in this world through fitan
to trials and persecution,
earthquakes,
and slaughter. Meaning, that if Allah
wants to punish
people within this, and it's not necessary that
it is going to be punishment. Right? It
could be a trial as well. But if
Allah
decides that he is going to punish us,
then he will put us through
pain and punishment in this world as opposed
to the hereafter.
And this is also a form of mercy
of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. Because if a
person is gonna get, you know, is is
going to bear the consequences of actions anyway.
If a person is going to bear, is
going to be made to bear the consequences
of their actions, meaning they're gonna be punished.
Is it better to be punished in this
world, or is it better to be punished
in the hereafter?
Of course, the punishment of this world is
much less severe than whatever than any punishment
of the hereafter.
Right? So if a person is going to
be punished anyway, and this is up to
the decision and the decree of Allah Subhanahu
Wa Ta'ala,
then Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala will make it
happen for this Ummah in this world as
opposed to the hereafter and that also is
a form of mercy. However, we must be
careful to understand
that we don't categorize every single calamity and
every single victim as being
receiving the punishment of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
Because we also just learned earlier that it
is also a test from Allah
as well. And we don't get to decide,
you know, what is punishment and what is
a test. This is something that Allah decides
and as many of the scholars tell us
that it also depends on how a person
responds.
If a person's
response to a calamity is one that brings
them closer to Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, and
they seek the forgiveness of Allah,
and they try to rectify their ways, and
they have introspection.
Right? Then that is, you know, a type
of mercy for them because,
you know, it is, it's a trial that
has brought them closer to Allah Subhanahu Wa
Ta'ala. Whereas,
a punishment is the same trial, the same
calamity, but it drives a person away from
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. Right? And a person
does not return to Allah and
does not take heed from it and continues
down their path, then that could be seen
as a type of punishment and Allah knows
best.
The prophet
has also said that if a certain status
has previously been decreed by Allah
for a person.
That if Allah
has decreed a certain status and certain position
for a person, and he does not attain
it by his deeds. Right? So Allah has
said he's gonna reach this level, but his
actions are not taking him to that point,
then Allah
will afflict him, may afflict him in his
body or wealth or children. And because of
bearing those the those those trials,
his status will be elevated, and he will
reach the the the place that Allah Subhanahu
Wa Ta'ala had decreed, and Allah knows best.
The prophet salallahu alaihi wa sallam has also
reported to have said that great reward comes
with great trials. When Allah loves a people,
he test them.
Right? When Allah
loves a people, he test them and whoever
accepts it attains his pleasure.
Whoever
accepts
it attains his pleasure, whereas whoever shows discontent
with it incurs
his wrath. And subhanAllah, you know, one of
the things that really stands out is that
when we look at, you know, such calamities
and especially when they affect the believers. Right?
You would think that the believers would lose
hope.
You would think that the believers would lose
their faith.
But instead, we don't see that happening generally.
Right? It's the opposite.
They are granted more strength and conviction in
their faith when they are faced with these
hardships, these calamities, and these disasters. Right? So
this is something, you know, beautiful that we
find within this Ummah, and especially, you know,
in in countries where there are a large
number of Muslims, masha'Allah,
that it doesn't affect their faith in this
way. Whereas the people who are watching, right,
the ones who are not
the the direct victims,
right, sometimes they are the ones, right, because
they have such ideas in their minds that
they start questioning their faith. Right? So it
should, you know,
give us strength in knowing that such trials
and such tribulations
can indeed be a sign of strength and
faith.
He said, do not resent the calamities that
come and the disasters that occur.
Do not resent
the calamities that come and the disasters that
occur. Why? For perhaps in something that you
dislike
will be your salvation,
for perhaps in something that you dislike
will be your salvation, and perhaps in something
that you prefer will be your doom.
Perhaps something that you dislike will actually be
a means of your salvation. And something that
you prefer,
perhaps maybe
that which causes your doom. And al Fadlub
Nasah al-'htulahi
alayhi he said, there is a blessing in
calamity
that the wise man should not ignore. For
it erases sins, It gives one the opportunity
to attain the reward of patience.
It dispels negligence.
It reminds one of the blessings at the
time of health and calls one to repent
and encourages one to give charity. So once
again, you see the scholars of this Ummah
trying to find, you know, looking for the
silver lining. So when they see a calamity
occur,
indeed, it is heartbreaking. Indeed, it is tragic,
and there is absolutely no denying that. But
at the same time, the believer, spiritually, looks
for the silver lining as to the response
that comes from such calamities and such disasters.
May Allah
protect us all. My brothers and sisters, very
quickly, such calamities
should have an effect on us as believers
even if we are thousands of kilometers away,
even if we don't know anyone in Libya,
in Morocco, in Turkey, in Syria, or anywhere
else where such tragedies and disasters have occurred,
it should all of these events, regardless of
where where they are, should have an effect
on us as believers. Number 1, it should
humble us. Right? Because it reminds us of
the power of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. Right?
It reminds us of human weakness
and human fragility.
Number 2, it should cause us to repent
because we know that such natural disasters
are jolts from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that
are meant to wake us up, that are
meant to, you know, take us out of
our distracted state.
And they should, as a result, make us
repent and reconnect with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
Number 3, my brothers and sisters, there should
be introspection
that where are we going wrong? You know,
what is the lesson in this? You know,
what could be the lesson here for me,
for society, for for the entire Ummah with
regards to our actions, with regards to our
attitudes, with regards to our beliefs and our
actions.
Particularly, you know, the effects of corruption and
infighting
that are so common in, you know, many
of our communities and many parts of the
world. May Allah forgive us. Number 4, my
brothers and sisters, recognizing
the blessings
in the absence of the disasters.
Right? So we recognize the blessings after we
have lost them in many cases. Right? So
this should make us think about the blessings
that we currently enjoy when there is no
disaster. Right? For example, you know, the blessing
of water, which of course we need for
life in measured quantities. Right? SubhanAllah, that same
water that we cannot live without, you know,
look at the tremendous
devastation it can cause when there's too much
of it. Right? So to have it in
measured quantities is indeed a blessing of Allah
Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. The stability of the ground,
right, when it's not shaking is a great
blessing of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. So we
become more grateful. And finally, it reminds us
of the day of judgment, my brothers and
sisters, as Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala tells us
when the earth is shaken with its final
earthquake,
and when the seas
burst forth, you know, on the day of
judgment,
Allah
tells us, oh, humanity, fear your lord for
the violent quaking, shaking at the hour is
surely a dreadful thing. We ask to
grant relief to all of our brothers and
sisters
who are impacted by these calamities. We ask
to elevate their ranks and to ease their
pain and suffering. May ask Allah
to forgive
each member, every single member of this ummah,
including us. May ask
Allah to guide us out of our weak
state and our distant state and to make
us people who are truly his servants protected
from such trials and tribulations.