Tariq Appleby – Build Your Legacy – Ramadan & Beyond
AI: Summary ©
The importance of legacy in man-made and fasting is emphasized, along with the need to maintain consistency and avoid disrespectful behavior. The importance of praying for good deeds and finding one's success is emphasized, along with the importance of managing time properly and avoiding wasting time. The speakers emphasize the need for individuals to show their intentions to achieve success in life and avoid negative consequences, and advise individuals to focus on school education and not spend too much time on online lectures. Additionally, individuals should tap into the source of bad habits and work out to manage their time to avoid negative consequences.
AI: Summary ©
As
Salam or Aleikum, wa rahmatullahi wa barakaatuh that Hamdulillah we think a loss of a high number one to Ida for giving us the opportunity to gather for his sake, we ask Allah Subhana Allah to Allah bestows upon us beneficial knowledge and righteous action. We all said Allah subhana wa Tada, except from us, all of our dua, and our ibadah, generally, in this month of Ramadan and beyond. The topic that I was asked to address is building your legacy in Ramadan, and of course, after Ramadan, because that's exactly what a legacy is a legacy is something that you are going to leave behind. And we'll talk about, you know, that concept from an Islamic perspective a little bit later. But
what I do want to focus on before discussing anything else is that the month of Ramadan is a it's a school, it's a university, it comes every year to teach us to educate us. So before I begin, I would like you to think about how Ramadan this year has educated you. What have you learned about yourself? What have you learned about your relationship with Allah subhanho wa Taala in this month, and what lessons are you personally going to take from this month that will be of benefit to you in the ER often. So if you can do that, if you can take stock of where you are, what you've done thus far, and what you've learned, not only about yourself, but perhaps you've learned something from
someone else, or you've seen someone else doing something and then that acts as a reminder, you know, to you you say you saw someone doing something really you know, pleasing to Allah something really great in terms of very bad, that's really impressive. You know, you love what you've seen, and you tell yourself that I want to be that way I want to I want to adopt those practices, those habits that that person has, or it could be the opposite. You've seen someone do something despicable something that you saw and immediately disapproved of, and you tell yourself or Allah or you say your Allah protect me from those actions and from being like that person. So the month of
Ramadan, as I said, is a very good time to reflect and Hamdulillah we have that, that additional
motivation, and that is in knowing that the month of Ramadan is meant to develop our Taqwa. So, we should be assessing where we are. Now, the first issue that we want to discuss this afternoon is how do we practically keep our iman consistently on a higher level after Ramadan? Because that day is a challenge that every single person has, you know, as Ramadan is ending, and after Ramadan, there is this anxiety and you know, this feeling of Alhamdulillah I, I fasted, I gave charity, I read the Quran as much as possible. I, you know, did tarawih or TR will lay with the Imam, I didn't want to have these things. But how do I maintain that and how do I keep myself constant. So that's what I
want to share with you and I'll only share two, I don't want to call them tips because they do come to us from the Quran and the Sunnah. So sometimes I feel reluctant to use those kinds of words. Because that means that I'm referring to the guidance of Allah as a tip as a you know, a you know, a point of,
of benefit if you like, but it's so much more than that. So that's why I feel it sometimes it might be disrespectful, but I will share with you two points of guidance from the Quran and from the Sunnah as to how we can keep our Imam consistently on a higher level of the Ramadan something that we all struggle with. And that we all you know, deal with. Now, the first thing that we need to focus on in terms of developing this turquoise, something that our brother mentioned in the introduction, which I will mention again, and that is that the month of Ramadan is Allah tells us in soluble Bukhara is so that we have we have been obligated to fast so that we might achieve Taqwa
that that will of course isn't something that is dedicated or that is limited to a particular day or month or year. But and it's not to a particular you know, time whether you're alone or whether you are you know, in the company of others, but Dakhla is something that you have with you all the time because how could you not be conscious and aware of Allah subhanho wa Taala wherever you might find yourself. So that's why the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said in the Hadith, that it the killer, hate Omar Khan, that fear Allah wherever you are, wherever you are, however you are fear Allah subhanho wa Taala have Taqwa of Allah. So this is the first reminder that you know order the
first point that we need to remind ourselves about and that is the fasting had been legislated and prescribed and decreed.
If so that each and every one of us might attain taqwa, then we have to ask ourselves whether or not we have achieved and fulfilled the objective of fasting. Because if it's limited only to the month of Ramadan, where you find and this is obviously all about experience on a personal level, we first the month of Ramadan and we find out that our Taqwa has increased our iman increases, we find that we pray on time that we make sure that we stay away from haram as much as possible, we avoid the sins that we used to do before Ramadan. But then of course, the best way to know if Ramadan if you have been successful this Ramadan and if you have obtained and you have attained that objective,
then is to know that after Ramadan ends, if that same Taqwa is there, if that same willingness to obey Allah subhana wa Taala that we had in the month of Ramadan is still with us. So that is a self assessment that each and every one of us needs to do needs to needs to take or we need to pay attention to i Al Hamdulillah. And you we were better in Ramadan, and we were motivated, we went through the plastic. So is that the case of the Ramadan, that is something that we should all be we should all be aware of. So that is the first thing that I wanted to discuss with you have I realized that what and do I want to continue on this path of Taqwa even after the month of Ramadan has ended?
That day is what we need to be asking ourselves. The second reminder or the second point of guidance that I wanted to share with you regarding the month of Ramadan is that think of the Hadith that everyone quotes towards the end of Ramadan, and that is the Hadith, in which the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said that whoever fast during the month of Ramadan and then follows it with six days of show well will be rewarded as if he fasted the entire month. So in this hadith narrated by avoya, human Ansari, and recorded by Imam, Muslim, Rama, Hola, and of course other scholars, but the point is, the Prophet said, Whoever first the month of Ramadan and then follows it up with six days.
It says if the Prophet is saying that fasting is not limited to the month of Ramadan, our Muslim, be of those people that are constantly in the Riba of Allah know that fasting is not limited to the month of Ramadan, but the worship of Allah extends to even after Ramadan. So knowing that knowing that there's this 29 or 30 days that you force in the month of Ramadan, which you then follow up with six days off the show, well, is an indication or it is guidance from the messenger of allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, that there is continued continuity, that you're a binder continues, that is not something that now ends at Hamdulillah, the day of eight, a day of celebration and
eating and drinking. And then you go back to the way things were before Ramadan, you know, you immediately go back to the way the way things were before eight, which is you start fasting again, and you fast, you know, the second and the third and the fourth, and so forth. This is what I want us to understand, does that day, the day of aid way, you know, subhanAllah, it's prohibited to fast. But immediately after that, you want to follow it up, because that eagerness for worshiping Allah for a Verda it's still there, it's still fresh. And so you'll follow it up with another six days of fasting, and you're the reward will be as if you had fasted every single day of the year, and
Wallahi that is a great reward. And that brings me to the third point that I want to make. And that is what motivated you in Ramadan should motivate you for the rest of your life. What motivated you perhaps we should spend time asking ourselves why did we force this month? Why are we fasting? Why do we worship Allah subhanho wa Taala why do we pray? Why do we lower our gaze? Why do we avoid those foods that Allah has prohibited? Why do we make sure that we cover our oil? Why do we do any of these things? What motivates you? What causes you to get up off the last night of sleep? You know, sleepy and tired perhaps, but the time of Fajr has arrived now in Ramadan? Look at the
eagerness that we have Masha Allah people waking up one hour before heading to the kitchen, making sure that everything's prepared. Enthusiasm, motivation, commitment, sincerity. It's all concepts that we had in the month of Ramadan. So where did they go? The same person who fostered the month of Ramadan is obviously not a different person, a different DNA and different facial, you know, features. You are you are you and I am I am the same person that I was a few weeks ago. And that means that there was something that you need you took hold of something that you your heart was attached
too, it can't just be that, oh, it's the month of Ramadan. Because you and I both know people and individuals Masha Allah that are dedicated sincere Muslims in Ramadan and outside of Ramadan. The only difference between Ramadan and the other 11 months of the year is that these people do more in Ramadan than they do outside of Ramadan. So what is it, that we should take the time today and for the rest of the month to make dua that Allah subhanaw taala increases that, I would say that, I would say that it's Iman, it is an unwavering belief that you and I have in Allah subhana wa Tada as our creative as our Sustainer as our ILA the only one who is worthy of our worship, the only one
worthy of all of our praise subhanho wa taala. That's why we are doing what we are doing. And that is why we must continue to do what we are doing until the day that we meet him Subhana wa Jalla. So if you're going to build that legacy, in Ramadan, and outside of Ramadan, these need to be your guiding lights and your motivation. But there's one more thing that we will share with you that perhaps will, will give us guidance on this issue. And that is the Hadith that I'm sure all of you are familiar with the hadith of Abu Huraira or the Allahu Allah and that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said that when a person dies, is deeds come to an end, his actions come to an end,
except for three. The first of them is a sadaqa jariya, a continuous charity, something that continues to benefit people, even though the one who the one who gave it is no longer alive. Think about all of the things, think about the masajid. And think about orphanages, and think about wells and so many different things that benefit people, the ones who paid for them, the ones who built them, and are no longer with us. Think also now is the second example the Prophet gave were the second. The second issue was knowledge by which people derive benefit. I think about just in our modern times, those are the mad that are leaving behind now all these YouTube videos, you know,
there's chef Meyer al-farhan from Iraq, you know, someone I greatly admire, you know, as a scholar of Hadith as a person that you know, is dedicated to knowledge as someone Masha Allah who's always busy, you know, for the sake of Allah subhanho wa taala. So he's, he's now
uploading every single day, these little short clips, because his goal, and this is something that we will discuss later. His goal as he states on his YouTube channel, is that I want to, I want to do a, an explanation of the books of Hadith. And he's doing Bukhari and Muslim in Abu Dhabi, who didn't tell me the and other books. And his goal is to do a brief explanation of all of the Hadith in the major books of Hadith. And he's uploading that so that he says that when I die, I continue to get the benefit of that of those actions. I continue to get the benefit of those, you know, those lectures and that knowledge that I leave behind, he's written numerous books, and every single day
without fail, there's only a few weeks ago, a few months ago, when he went for surgery, that he didn't upload anything for like a week or something. But then as soon as he was back at home and you know, recovered to a certain degree, he started uploading those those videos again. So, knowledge that people benefit from and we now this is something that I must stress, there has never been in the history of, of human beings, a better time or an easier time to disseminate knowledge than it has been that it is in our time. Think about the knowledge as available. But also, of course, I know that there are many harms, but just let us focus on the positive. Now, there are so many different
ways in which you can benefit yourself and others. So be a part of something that is going to provide the kind of benefit. So help you know, let's say that you are a graphic designer, or you are a person involved in editing, whatever it might be, or you are a person that excels in research, because I know for myself that sometimes it is not the delivery of a lecture or a class that is the problem. It is finding the time to make sure that you are properly research the topic that you are going to present. So can you be involved in something like that. And of course, they are those of us that would want to present and feel comfortable doing so we all have something to contribute. And we
all can have a share of this legacy. If only we would we would make the effort. And we would actually start the last of these three things that benefit you after your death, of course, is a pious child that makes to ask for you. And so for those of you that are married, and have children may Allah superhigh those of you that are married and you don't
Have children may Allah grant you these pious children, for those of you that have children may Allah subhanho wa Taala let them grow up in his in his worship. And for those of you that are not yet married, the question is why? And but on a serious note, the question is, or the DUA should be that Allah subhanho wa Taala grants you a pious spouse and righteous children may Allah subhanaw taala make that all of that a reason for you to enter Jannah so that is the first of our of our discussions or topics that we want to that we want to share with you. And that is building that legacy and developing consistency of video after Ramadan and hamdulillah the Prophet sallallahu
alayhi wa sallam has given us guidance on that. Our next topic that we want to address is the issue of charity. And charity and sadaqa, I should say, is stressed in the month of Ramadan, because we know that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa salam was generally very generous, but in the month of Ramadan, he sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was even more generous. And the reason for that is because the prophets of Allah where it was set up live the Quran,
his character, his actions, that was the Quran, Allah subhanho wa Taala tells us in SoCal Bacara in is number two 161 Allah says, Are all the way learn him initiate law, neurology methylone lay the field owner
fees I mean, he covers any
damage any habit in bed that several hours and BNF equally some boletim mayor to help while loving your life on me. Yes, you
will love my car on early. The example of those who spend they
have in the way.
Grace, seven spikes. And Allah multiplies is we work for him he wills and Allah is all encompassing and knowing. So what does this tell us? It tells us that when we give charity in the path of Allah subhanahu wata, Allah, Allah subhanho wa Taala makes it grow. In the month of Ramadan, we were doing these actions, and we spent for the sake of Allah, we performed our salah, and we did every other act of worship that we possibly could. Why did we do that there was this pursuit and that there was this intention for the reward of Allah Subhana Allah time. And so I want to remind you, that year Allah subhanho, wa Taala speaks about the sadaqa that you give in his path for his sake, and only
for him and how he multiplies that. So there are two reminders here for us. The reminder to give sadaqa the reminder to emulate the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam specifically, the prophet always gave charity, the Prophet was always generous, but he was even more generous in the month of Ramadan. And secondly, in the same way that you were pursuing and that we pursue greater rewards and greater
returns on our investments. Would you not want to do that for the sake of Allah as well, in terms of your Eva, and specifically your charity, so the month of Ramadan is a month of generosity Yes, but I also want to focus on that in addition to the fasting and everything else, that we do, that sadaqa is given for the sake of Allah because you realize that whatever you have, that is from Allah subhana wa taala. So, a lot of I want us to see that there is a very strong connection between all of them by that and the rewards and the merits that are attached to them, and how they are supposed to be there is this sometimes there is a clear definition of of the fact that it should be it should
reoccur and should happen all the time. And other times it is many it is merely alluded to, and there's this encouragement to do so. What do I mean there are certain things that you have to do every single day you have to pray, you have to force the month of Ramadan once a year, you have to perform the hajj once a lifetime if you are able to do so. So there are certain things that are reoccurring and they are demanded you are you are required to do them every day. But then they are those things that are not required every day. And you and I might come feel complacent by just doing them once. I'm going to give charity now in Ramadan insha Allah I'm going to do this in Ramadan and
that in Ramadan, but shouldn't this ayah motivate you that the rewards are there for you and they are multiplied for you? And of course this also means that they are multiplied even more in the month of Ramadan. But that day is not the point I want to make the point is what motivates you as we discussed earlier
To worship Allah more in the month of Ramadan, like charity,
it is multiplied in Ramadan and outside of Ramadan, so the motivation is the year long. And now that should motivate us. And that should cause us to really be enthusiastic. And even if you are giving charity, even if it is a little, then that shouldn't concern you. Because Allah will multiply it and make it more that's the baraka of sadaqa. Each and every one of us we would like to see an increase in our in our earnings, we'd like to see an increase in the baraka and the blessings that we have in our possessions. And one of the ways to ensure that is to make sure that you are spending from what Allah subhanho wa Taala has given you. So that's it number 261 of Surah Al Baqarah. And it shows us
the importance of of sadaqa. But there's one reminder that I want to share which is in the next is 600 262 Allah subhanho wa Taala says, I'm letting you know your filopodia I'm wider home fields have been in his mother used to be our own, some mother used to be our own
new
level, add your room, don't be him What else often I lay him whenever for now today Him whom is on those who spent their wealth in the way of Allah for the sake of Allah. And then do not follow up with they have spent with reminders of it or other injury, meaning they do not remind the person that they are giving charity to that I have given you charity, Aren't you grateful and Subhanallah look at our given this person charity, you know, this man was poor, but now that I have bestowed upon him, my great NEMA is no longer poor and in poverty. So the first is that I remind you that I have given you that money. And I call in a favor, you know that time when you didn't have money and
I gave you. And another way to cause injury to this person is to embarrass them, no one knew that you help them. And they felt very, they felt a sense of relief, knowing that others did not know that they had you know that you had been helped or that that helped you rather, I should say, but now you wish to embarrass them. Now you wish to show others your generosity and your favor. And so you say that, you know, he didn't have money, he lost his job. But then I paid his rent for him. And he didn't have money to pay for his daughter's medical treatment, but I took care of it. So the first of course is to make this person feels that you feel that you didn't do it out of the goodness
of your of your heart for the sake of Allah, but rather you did it so that you could always use it as something that you can hand over them for the rest of their lives. And the second obviously, is also hurtful and harmful because it causes embarrassment and humiliation to that person. And that is not something that a Muslim does to another Muslim, those who do this, they will have their reward with Allah and they will be no fear concerning them, nor will they grieve. Again, that reminder of that motivation, what's what's motivating you to do what you are doing. So whether you're fasting, building up that legacy, whether you're giving charity, all of this has a very specific or specific
reasons they will be you want that reward. And they you want that feeling where there will be no fear that you have to have about those things that are ahead of you. I'm not afraid of what's coming and nor will they grieve, meaning that I am not concerned about what has already passed. You know, Allah has Allah forgives. Allah is merciful and I've turned to him and sincere repentance, I don't have to worry about that. So again, charity, but as an example of continuity after the month of Ramadan. The next thing that we want to talk about is and this is where we will start you know, winding down our discussion and that is that one of the reasons why we struggle to maintain any sort
of consistency and it's the karma is that see how carefully the month of Ramadan is is scheduled? There is so whole and then there's Fajr and then there's work or the study and then we're very concerned about the whole prayer so we go we take although then we come to pray then there's not an acid look at how concerned Muslims are about time in the month of Ramadan Masha Allah how many hours until if for four and a half hours Yet Allah will be counting down the seconds time is extremely important in Ramadan, isn't it? We manage it carefully. We are cutting our ears listening for the alarm on the balcony every single every single night. So time is a time only important to us in the
month of Ramadan. We only concern that
About the clock the rest of the time, we couldn't care. I don't know about you, but in South Africa, you know, people say things like, so we're here now on the way on the way and the person hasn't left omit, or you know, how far are you 15 minutes, boss 15 minutes. And in reality, they also have a left home yet, and it's a 30 minute drive. That means that we as as individuals don't respect time. And secondly, we do not respect the time of others. You know, and there are cultures around the world where time is extremely important. And the question is, is it important in Islam? And the answer to that question is yes, it's very important. Well, how do you know? Well, there's Allah
subhanho wa Taala not swayed by it in the Quran, while also there's Allah subhanho wa Taala also not swayed by different times while Virgil does Allah subhanho wa Taala also not swayed by a Buddha with all times of the day. This is also time and Allah is informing us that time is precious, but the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said something and this means that what I want to talk to you about now in this last the last of our topics, which is the one on managing our time, better, is firstly to recognize that time is special, it is worth preserving, it is worth managing, it is worth taking care of and giving importance. Okay, so what why I said earlier that Allah swears by time and
different times of the day and the night in the Quran, what Baja while federal while also
then the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said now I'm antonym of bone on female Kathy Roman and NASCI a Suharto for in a hadith narrated by Abdullah bin or Abbas or the Allahu I'm Houma and recorded by Imam Al Bukhari in his saw here, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said that they are to blessings in which people incur loss, they are to blessings that Allah has bestowed upon each and every one of us that we lose, and that we do not make the best of, we are completely as as if we are cheated out of them. And how upset Are you that if you went to the supermarket or to the store to buy something, and you would treat it, you pay 20 ringgit for something that is typically only
worth 12, or you bought something and it was of an inferior quality, how upset Are you? If you buy if you go to the store right now and you buy something, you spend 100 ringgit on that product, you get home and you figure out that it's broken, you find out that it's damaged, you just going to use it or put it back on the shelf, or put it back in the packaging and leave it like that, no, you're gonna get back in your car, you're gonna drive back to the supermarket, and you're going to insist that they either refund you or they give you another product.
Because you think that wealth is important. But why do we not think that health and free time is important? I never met any, you know, this is those two, those two things that we take for granted. And we really do not pay attention to them. That is our health and our free time. And our free time is the time that we could either we could decide, and this is where the loss comes in. Are you using that time for the sake of Allah? Or are you using that time for the disobedience of Allah? How are you using the time that Allah has given you because one law, he is limited, no one has ever lived forever, and no one will, the only people who will live forever, and they will enjoy it are the
people of gender. So the first thing that when it comes to time management is to understand the status. And to understand what time is that we have very little of it. So it's a precious resource that needs to be managed. Think about water management. Think about, you know, my country, South Africa, where we've had routes, you know, for the last few years in different parts of the country, where many people have lost their income and they farms have been destroyed because of no water for two to three years. So this water management, we're going to make sure that we allocate the right water for the right purposes is a is a lot of attention is paid to that. So if you recognize that
time is also a resource, you will do everything that in your power to protect it. Which then brings us to the issue of which brings us to the actual time management that we need to that we need to have. The first thing that we need to understand after having understood the status of of time.
Understanding that it's limited. It is to know that the companions of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, one of the ways to manage your time better is to have goals and objectives. And so you might say, Well, we know where exactly do we find these goals and objectives, while the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam shared them with the Sahaba one of those companions he shared them with is how bourbon or rot or the Allah mine now kebab came to the Prophet
sallallahu alayhi wa sallam to complain about the persecution that they were experiencing at the hands of the Polish, but the Prophet and this is in Makkah, this is before the hinge of the Prophet 1000, that there will come a time where you will where you will conquer the Persians and the Romans, and you will take their treasures. And imagine now you sitting there and you are that Sahabi And subhanAllah, what is the prophet talking about? Yeah, we are in Makkah, we are being persecuted, we are being killed. And he's talking about concrete Persia and rope. The Sahaba understood that when the prophets of Allah Mario's in speaks like this, then it is working in revelation from Allah. But
that isn't the point I want to make. The point I want to make is that the Sahaba heard Rome and Persia SubhanAllah. That is a goal. That is something that's an objective that needs to that the prophet has set. So we have to work towards that. So the first, the first practical step that you can take when it comes to managing your time better is to having goals that you want to achieve, to making sure that there is a place that a position that you want to reach for the Prophet it was to make the Sahaba understand that peace and safety and security and prosperity is going to be found once the Sharia is implemented and implemented in full. And once you have that, then everything else
will fall into place. That's the goal. The goal is such and such that my goal is to memorize the Quran. So that's my goal. And so to what extent should I now plan, you know, and should I plan my life around that goal?
So I know that I asked myself, okay, when would you like to finish your mount your Quran memorization? I'd say December 2021. Okay, now that's 30 Jews, you haven't memorized any of the Quran yet? So how practical would it be for you to memorize the Quran? In less than a year now? Right? How many months eight months now? Subhan Allah, so you have eight months to memorize the whole Quran, how would you go about doing that? So the more specific the objective is, and the more specific the goals become, you're breaking them down into bite sized, bite sized pieces is an excellent book called atomic habits that I forget the author's name, but I highly recommend that you
read that. Because one of the things that we find in the Sunnah, which summarizes the whole book, you know, one Hadith summarizes the whole book The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, a humble family in Allah, he had one more hour in kala, the most beloved deeds to Allah subhanho wa Taala are those that are done or done consistent ly, even if they are small and insignificant, at least in the eyes of others. But every day if you memorize one page of the Quran, or half a page in bite, you might not be able to reach your objective of memorizing the whole Quran in eight months, but slowly, but surely, you will get there. And that is that is the another reminder, when it comes
to time management, you have to have a goal, but you should also have the practical steps that you are going to have to reach your goal. And you want to be more specific. I'm going to sit off the Fajr for 14 minutes, and I'm going to repeat, you know as many times as I can, these ayat, I'm also going to read the Tafseer of the ayat and the translation, so that I have a better understanding, perhaps that will facilitate my memorization. So your goal is clear. The steps that you are going to take to reach that goal is also clear. And the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam emphasizes the importance of continuity and not quantity. The Prophet salallahu alayhi wa sallam focused on two
things in his in his in his sunnah. The first of them is quality. The second one is continuity, meaning that there is consistency in what you are what you are doing. So if you can do that, look at the Sahaba they fought that offered at battle at hand up at the Battle of Moto and the expedition to the book and for name and all of these different places, constantly just moving and towards that goal the entire time and all of those things are happening in the life of the prophets of Allah what they knew was salah. You find that in Makkah that well, there was no there was no jihad. But in Medina, there was the Sahaba continued to fight why? Because they had not yet reached a goal. They
had not yet reached their objective, their objective was to meet Allah subhanho wa Taala to perhaps gain martyrdom in his path. So if that's your goal, your entire life will be geared towards it, but when it comes to the actual management of your time, then it is to schedule it is to make sure that you are as I wanted to say earlier that you need to you need to rid yourself of bad company if that company keeps you away from from doing your from doing know from attaining your objectives. So I hope that is absolutely clear. We ask Allah subhanho wa Taala
Uh, for his understanding, the last thing that I wanted to discuss with you, and inshallah we'll end with that, and that is to say the following, that the ultimate goal of the Muslim is to meet Allah subhanho wa Taala and to be successful, it is to meet Allah with the help of Calvin Saleem, a pure and upright, and a heart that is that has no diseases, a heart that is pure and sincere for the sake of Allah. So the question is, if that is my first and most important goal, how can I, how can I how can I get my life towards achieving that goal? The month of Ramadan is that opportunity for us to to make that commitment to the future, that my goal is Jana. My goal is that I want to be a person of
Jana, I want to protect myself and my family from the fire of Johanna. So that's my ultimate goal, everything else
is secondary. So what secondary one would I do now to be able to achieve that goal set up your set up your schedule, write your timetable, and make sure that you are prepared for the journey, my dua for myself and for you is that Allah Subhana Allah Allah grants us understanding, may Allah grant us a legacy that will go through that will continue even after we pass away. May Allah Subhana Allah Allah make us of the Mutasa to clean those who give charity the saw mean those who fast May Allah guide us to every every act of worship that pleases Him that He loves to the high notes Allah? May Allah subhanaw taala make us of those that will understand the value of time and approach it in the
right the right frame of mind. May Allah make us of those who benefit from the time and may Allah subhanho wa Taala as he has gathered us all here today, gather us again in the company of the Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam agenda to Phil dos BarakAllahu li Walakum wa salaamu alaykum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh
while ACHEMA Salam or amatola Hua barakato Zakka Hara and Chef Tarik for sharing your knowledge on building your legacy Ramadan and beyond. Hi Alicia, how are you? I'm good. How are you? hamdulillah hamdulillah doing great chef Baraka Luffy
Okay, so before we continue our session inshallah just to remind our brothers and sisters out there we're still accepting questions if you have any throughout the relevant topic inshallah. So the link for the pigeon hole will be shared, you can send them here
at pigeonhole.at/t AC eight. Yep, you can submit any questions that you have and you can upvote any other questions that you've seen submitted and you would like to see those questions being asked as well. Yeah, so we please we do welcome them and we'll be addressing them towards the end of the session inshallah.
Okay, so mashallah duckula here and Chef Tarik for sharing the knowledge on building our legacy. And perhaps just for some context, Chef if I can share some for the information of the audience out there. I somehow always bump into chef Tarik at our local supermarket at cheetah mall at Damansara
which is actually very strange. We should We should make it we should make it a plan a plan meeting for the future
say that
whenever I need you I have my my kids with me and if one could never have a decent discussion with those two around
martial law my buddy yeah, I think I shared it since the Coronavirus. I've met you like three times. And it's quite strange because this is locked, like locked down time and I rarely go out the house except for groceries and Masjid but for some reason, that Allah we bumped into each other like three times. So hamdulillah glad to finally meet on a plan session, which is ironically online, shall we?
So, maybe just coming back to the topic of being building our legacy. So just maybe coming from a perspective of somebody who may become like me a bit of a skeptic so maybe somebody might be asking a question why bother having a legacy at all the than the Prophet sallallahu Sallam say that if you perform the five root five pillars of Islam you pray you first use aka you do hygiene, isn't that enough to enter paradise? So how would we advise for us to have these high aspirations to seek something more which like, for example, that we've encouraged throughout this lecture inshallah.
Bismillah So, the same person who said that to that Bedouin man, that the man said your Rasul Allah, if I if I, what is your opinion of me? If I just pray the five obligatory prayers, and I forced them out of Ramadan? And I consider what is halal to be halal and consider what is haram to be haram when I enter Jannah The Prophet said yes. And then when he left the Prophet said you'll be you'll be successful if he's truthful. Alright,
you'll be successful if he's truthful. So the first of the same person, so Allah Azza wa taala, he was an Ambu ID who said those words for that video and man is the same person who said that when the son of Adam or when a person dies is good deeds come to an end, except because because of three. All right, so that's the same person. So we don't look at the Hadith of the Prophet SAW Allah Azza wa salam, or an idea of the Quran in isolation, but rather we tried to get the complete understanding and understanding that, yes, the prophets of Allah Islam say to that one man, such and such, but the Prophet also said, so and so. So how do we, how do we reconcile? How do we understand that and get
the full picture? The second thing is that the believer isn't satisfied with the bare minimum? Are we not mostly known? Are we not trying to perfect what we do? Or we're not trying to aspire? Or what was? Here's another way of putting this, why would Allah and His Messenger mentioned the merits of So of all of these good deeds, if it was not to motivate us and to encourage us to do more? And also we have in the the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and the Sahaba, we have the best example of people not being satisfied. Why would our bucket and Armand not stop doing good deeds even after they were told that they will people agenda? I mean, you and I will lie in this is another way to
answer this question. Then you and I, we don't have that guarantee. Do we? Did you? I mean, I don't know about you, Chef. But did you get a stamp on your birth certificate that says mean early agenda? No, no, you know, the martial law. This is a person of gender. Yeah. It just tells you when you were born, it doesn't really give you any, any guarantee. So for all of those reasons, we should not have that lackadaisical attitude, you know, of, you know, I'm doing the bare minimum, that's enough for me, but rather, we should aspire. And just think, and maybe one more way of answering this question is to think that I can this is never the case when it comes to the dunya that's true. I was
thinking, no one ever asked this question when it comes to the dunya let's see how much money is enough money to have a minimum for the amount of money you can rent? That's fine. Yeah, no one, no one is satisfied with the bare minimum when it comes to the dunya. But when it comes to Allah and ashira, the bare minimum is all that we need. Allah homestyle May Allah Get My Allah grant is still fake. Well, I know that for myself, I, you know, I'm most guilty of this kind of this kind of complacency. But it is, it is important to remind ourselves sometimes that you know, striving for doing more is is the way of the of the Prophet and the prophets. And it is the way of the Salah in
it is the way of those that are role models, and will continue to be so so this is what we need to aspire to. Allah knows best. I mean, Barco feature. So that's a very good point. So I didn't notice that because when it comes to methods of dunya, even when it comes to our careers, our hobbies, it's never enough. So if you're really passionate about something, you'll always want to aspire to have more. And I think the point that you shouldn't say sure about Abu Bakr and Omar they will promise paradise but Subhanallah it just struck my mind how striking is that they feared hellfire, they feared hypocrisy for themselves, but they were already given this guarantee which you and I don't
have so so how can we train ourselves to kind of have that lack of complacency and always just want to do more and more? How can we do that in our day to day lives? Like for example in today in our 21st century? How do we train to have this continuous striving mindset? Alright, so I'll answer that question. But I just want to highlight something where we mentioned with Abu Bakr and Arman and the other companions who were given great ideas of gender
what got them to that point didn't go away once they reached it.
Right?
I don't know I let let me not try to sound like a philosopher, some wise person, maybe put that in plain language, Taiwan EMA that led them and got them to that status with the prophet of allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, Abu Bakr. Phil Jana, we're on Modafinil. Jana, we're off minefield Jana did not leave them after they heard those words. Right. So that EMA that talked about their commitment to Allah and his messenger that didn't die as soon as they were given glad tidings of Jana. So what motivated them to get to that point, only continue to motivate them. And then also there was the fear, like grandma said, I fear that when he said that, why do you worry so much that
you are from the people of Nevada, that you are not going to die upon Islam? When the Prophet said you'll go to Jana? He says, I don't know if those words were those words were conditions were attached to those words. I fear that I am amazing those conditions. Yes, you will be like it's from in his perspective. Armor is one of the people of Jannah if our model continues to do X, Y and Zed, so I'm afraid that if I stopped
doing them that that hadith no longer applies. And so that is another way of looking at it. Okay, now to answer your question, the first thing that I that I would advise you is that if you have friends, or you have, if you have acquaintances that keep you away from Allah subhanho, wa taala, then you must change your company, right. And I don't only say this, because of my own personal experience with this, but this is the advice of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, you have two types of friends, one was going to be like the perfume seller, and the other one is going to be like the blacksmith. And if you want to enjoy, you know, the company of the perfume seller, who
either is you're going to enjoy, this is amazing smells, or he's going to give you some of the perfume or you'll buy some of the perfume, or he'll gift you some of that perfume. Just being in that person's company is a is an excellent way of improving. Whereas being in the company of the blacksmith, even though he's not going to dare to burn your clothing, you're going to be in that environment, it's breathing in that smoke. So even though your clothes you leave their pristine, and they're still very white with you breathing in the smoke, so you sometimes don't feel oh, but you know, my friend, you know, what's the harm of spending time with them. And you realize that your
friend never talks about Allah. And then your friend actively discourages you from, you know, talking about Allah, they don't want to hear they don't close their ears, but they make you feel uncomfortable, so that there is an indirect influence that they have over you, even though they're not actively inviting you to the, you know, to their lifestyle. So that is my first advice. The second advice is that the pursuit of knowledge and the seeking of knowledge, because Wallahi is what guides us and the more knowledge we have, the more the more understanding we'll have, the more understanding we have, the better, you know, the easier let me let me give you an analogy, and
inshallah we'll be clear.
A person who is stuck in the jungle, right and can't find his way out. How much is that person going to struggle to find you to finally save themselves from the predicament? I've lost? I don't know where the path is. And it's going to take a lot of effort. And I might, I might even lose my life, you know, trying to try to arrive at that at that goal. But the person who's windows, the jungle terrain, who studied the maps, who knows the signpost who knows how to you know how to work out direction who knows how to survive in the jungle, which one of these two people have the best chance of survival?
It's obviously the person with knowledge. So we are living in a jungle they say we live in the concrete jungles, I don't know. But we are living in the jungle of we are living in a jungle of desires and doubts that is, and so the predators out there are not lions and tigers, but they are these things that will steal away our iman and our Taqwa. So the personal knowledge is best able and our talking about the chef and a movie and and we'll start there all of us can learn. All of us can sit and memorize the Quran and learn Arabic and study FIP and know what it is that we as Muslims believe and, you know, just improve and increase your knowledge. We can all do that. We don't need
to go specifically to Islamic institutions to get that knowledge. I know many people on a personal level that have never set foot in a formal, you know, Islamic school, but these people are very knowledgeable. They have a good great deep understanding of the deen. So if you and I want to protect ourselves, then knowledge is that is that is that path? The perhaps the last thing I'll say in response to your question, Jeff, is that there are
many of us we are looking for we are looking for solutions when it comes to time management when it comes to relationship issues, financial issues, we're looking for the material means to solutions to those problems. But it's very, very rare that we turned to Allah subhanho wa Taala first and foremost, and begged him for his deliverance for his help for his assistance. And if if if there's anything that you know, we need to learn in the month of Ramadan is that it's the power of Doha, and it's the importance of the and the fact that now that your heart is softer than it was before Ramadan, this is the perfect time now to ask Allah and for ask Allah for that is the karma, that
guidance that you that you want for the rest of your life. Because you know, that is what that's ultimately the most important thing because that fluctuation that many people have is like this mashallah that peak you know in the month of Ramadan and then there's that crash of the eighth and then there's little you know, little bumps along the way and then Ramadan comes again then it's Oh, mashallah another another peak and looks like a Coronavirus sort of way. Allah, Allah protect us but you understand what I mean? So this is something that we need to aspire to and make dua for now.
mashallah particle FPGA. So the key here is good company seeking knowledge. And that's how practical advice
there's so much more to say but we leave it at that, you know, those those three things I think are sufficient for now on Windows first. Okay, mashallah vertical aphasia. So, okay, so maybe there's a question actually amongst the team here. So on one hand, we know having high aspirations, the prophets, Allah Salam says, when you ask Allah for Paradise, don't just ask for Paradise as far as he knows. So we know that number one, there's an encouragement to always go for the best. But also, there's another Hadith which is narrated and Buhari when the prophets of salaam puts like a sort of a parable, in which the hopes of a human being and then he draws like a line to say that our those
lines are like death. So that kind of encapsulates as well as our hopes just keep on going out beyond what we can with our capacity. So it's sort of like a so how some people perceive this is like, sort of like to say that, you know, your desires have no end. So how do you reconcile between, like, having high aspirations and like, this is like a daydreaming, like, oh, you can never achieve this. And so and so. So, sometimes the thought that comes to us when we think about that, it's like, oh, you know, I shouldn't aim So hi, you know, I can just do this and I know where you are, you put yourself in your place. So how do we reconcile this shift? Because
I, like I said earlier, I always find it very fascinating that people look at certain texts, and then they ignore the rest. Or they don't, they don't look further. If you would, if you spent more time reading the Quran and the Sunnah, it would become apparent to you that when Allah and His Messenger speak about high aspirations, they speak about high aspirations for the Ashkelon, and at the dunya is terribly I totally Dalek that the dunya follows that doesn't it? So when I when I aspire to be a billionaire, I don't aspire to be a billionaire for the sake of wealth, I aspire to be a billionaire for the sake of Allah. I plan to use that money for the sake of Allah. I'm not
going to want my wealth, but rather I am going to spend it for the sake of Allah. I think of this example of Soloman Raji, female, Allah mercy on him, you know, a person with an Allah had granted so much wealth, but that gave away so much of it, you know, throughout his life and with those organizations, and that sadaqa jariya that continues now, even after his death. So when you think about AI aspirations, and being able to I mean, what is wrong with a person saying that I aspire to provide for my family so that my family never, never has to ask or beg, like in the hadith of Saudi Arabia? Well, because the Prophet told him that it is better for you to leave your family, your
family wealthy than to leave them poor and in need, where they have to beg people. So creating that independence for your family this, that that is something that Allah loves. Which brings me to my second point. The first thing of course, the first point is one must have a comprehensive understanding of all the text and understand
that there is no contradiction between having high aspirations and achieving success in the dunya because from a Muslim perspective, those two things have always been combined. They're not two separate things. It's a secular understanding to think of the dunya and and then there's the there's the deen the dunya and the deen all interconnected as a Muslim. Because think about the fact that you you need the dunya for the deen you how are you going to pay your soccer? How are you going to go on Hajj, how are you provide for your family? Right and those? That's just the financial aspect? What about everything else that you would require from you need the dunya to cover your hour that
Allah subhanho wa Taala has as He has commanded you to cover? How are you going to do that? You need dunya when you're the defense defending yourself from your enemies, or when you are giving Dawa, you need the dunya dunya is integral to the deen the two are not separate. It is the secular understanding that Muslims have developed over the last few 100 years that has created this understanding of deen and duniya the masjid and whatever is outside of the masjid. And there's much more to say here. But chef
what is the chef's name? Subhan Allah I forget now.
i I'm such a big fan of his and I and I and I'm ashamed now that I can't even remember. Sami Amiri right is it Tunisian chef chef Sammy, I marry and these are either he wrote a book called secularism, the plague of the times the plague of the era with maybe a better translation. Okay, so really in depth discussion about you know, secularism and the way that it has affected and there's a Moroccan scholars also both books are in Arabic. So for those of you that read Arabic, Inshallah, you should make benefits of this. And for those of you that don't mean Arabic, you should ask those who read Arabic to explain the books to you
Okay, that was, that was a bad attempt at a joke chef. But the point is,
the book is called almanor, two minute daffin A secularism from within. And although the chef's focus is on political parties in the Muslim world that have been affected by secularism, I think that for us as Muslims on an individual basis, this is another problem that we are still we still dealing with. And that is, we view the world through in these two dimensions, deen and duniya. But we don't see them as being as being, you know, two sides of the same coin, if you like. The other point that I wanted to make, and that is related to this issue is that a person that strives for the sake of Allah subhanho wa Taala
wants to grow closer to Allah understands yes, that the
you know, your your life or your desires are constricted by your lifetime and your resources. But what did we say earlier, when we were discussing the issue of building a legacy, because the Muslim understands that striving for more and for having more allows you to leave behind knowledge that people will benefit from sadaqa that continues to benefit and pious children that will continue to make dua for you. So I understand that my desires, like my eating and drinking, etc, that is, it ends when I die. But those three actions continue even after my death. So why would I not want to have aspirations for leaving behind that kind of, of legacy? I hope I've answered the question. I
unfortunately, as many of my students will tell you have a bad habit of, of talking
and not actually answering the question. So head inshallah. Okay, that's good. It's good, Michelle. Very good, actionable tips there. So we're speaking about building a legacy shift. So maybe because I'm coming from an angle that, you know, somebody listening out there, somebody might feel that, you know, I don't have enough knowledge, I don't really have much skills, because like, as you highlighted in your talk, as well, like, all of us have something that we can contribute in doesn't necessarily have to be somebody who's doing the presentation itself. There are people out there or feeling like I don't really have that many skills and not not the student. I'm not, I'm not really
talented. I'm still, you know, even when it comes to charity and investing that akhira I'm a student, I can't even afford to give much charity. So I don't think I can contribute contribute much to the OMA in the first place. So where do I start? Like, how do I go with go with this idea about this legacy thing? I feel like it's such a faraway thing from me, I don't even feel I have much knowledge to begin with.
So when the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said in that hadith when a person dies, he is actions come to when these actions come to an end, except for three. So the first thing is his actions. The Prophet did not say his major actions, actions that are above 5000 ringgit actions that benefited a million people, the Prophet said his actions, so it's very general, what that would include the great and the and the small. Then secondly, the Prophet said sadaqa, jariya, he did not say sadaqa jariya above a million Ringgit. So whatever you left behind, let's say that someone was building a well in Cambodia, and it cost about $1,000 for this well, and your contribution is $10,
or $5, or $1, or a half dollar, you have contributed, right, left Karen nominal merit or fee che, you know, do not despise any, anything of good, don't look down upon it, don't think lesser of it, you know, just whatever you contribute it up into into pinata will be shipped Kitamura fear the Fire, even with a half a date. So this mindset, again, again, this is an attitude and mindset that the Muslims have. And it's, it's because of our lack of knowledge, our lack of knowledge, not just your lack of knowledge, we are all we know, it doesn't matter how I'm sure that if we all share, he probably knew who you know, and I knew him as a student. In Medina, he was my senior. And he was
always reading he was always studying, I consider him to be extremely knowledgeable. And now he has a PhD. And you know, so I'm sure that even if we asked him now, he would say, yes, there's still so much to learn politics, so much to learn, is just, you know, how ignorant are we? And yet I and many others consider him and I'm sure all of you consider him to be very knowledgeable, and, you know, but he will admit, there's so much more to know. So the reality is that we have these perceptions of certain things because of a lack of knowledge. If like those Hadith I just quoted, if you kept them at the back of your mind, you'd never feel that what I have nothing to contribute. You'd say well,
how much do I have? I have 50 cents Allah that is something I can contribute. That is something the Prophet told me not to look down on any good. And he told me to fear the Fire, even if it's worth a half a day, and that's a hobby that said you're also with the Prophet when the Prophet grabbed him from behind, you know, and held him and he said, you know, who will buy the slave from me?
You know that this is important. This is your Rasul Allah if you're going to sell me, then you know that you will not make a profit there will not be a very profitable exchange or transaction. And so what did the prophets say to him, that you know that you are in the sight of Allah subhanho wa Taala you are God, you're your worth is not judged by your contribution is like think about this from this. Let me let me try I'll try to connect these two thoughts Insha Allah, Allah says in surah Al Hadith, that those companions who fought and spent before the conquest of Makkah, their rewards are greater than those who accepted Islam after the conquest of Makkah, and fought and spent in the path
of Allah why we know that
many of them were poor, they were not doing much, but like Prophet also said, in the Hadith, you know, in response to an altercation between Khalid and Abdul Rahman, even if lead as simple as having, you know, don't kiss my companions. Because if if one of you was to spend the mountain of offers, I mean, and Khalid is a Sahabi, is a companion himself, he's one of you, meaning those of you that accepted Islam later was to spend the mountain of offered in gold, they would not even be that would not even be equal to a half, like a handful that my companions have spent, you know, for the sake of Allah subhanho data. So it's, it's about the, it's why you gave it and when you gave it,
not how much you gave and how much you contributed? Well, if there's any if there's anyone who's who's attending, and that person is from a country where the Muslims are being persecuted, and that person stands up for the rights of his brothers and sisters, and works to defend them, that is greater than if that person wants to do it. Yeah, in Malaysia, more rewarding. And I always tell my youngest students that you know, in these times of fitna where sins are so easily accessed accessible. Your obedience to Allah is worth more than what it means to a person who's growing up on a farm somewhere with no internet access, and no real, you know, temptation.
You know what I mean? I'm not talking about the past, the past is the past. But let's talk about people who are growing up in rural areas, and our children and our youth who are growing up in the cities with internet access and everything else. So a child, a young person who has sober now
and avoids what made haram even though the fit and are everywhere will lie, the reward of that person is greater than the person who's never exposed to the fitna and never has to make solid never has to say no, never has to avoid it. So I hope that answers the question chef.
narcotics, I love that point. So basically, the point here is that don't look down on what you can do. Because the physical value might look small, but in the sight of Allah, He can amplify that he can add the baraka to that, and you don't know where. So the point here is to say that as long as what we have to focus on is, is our sincerity our class, why you gave it in the first place? And then the baraka comes later? Can I Can we sum it up that way? Sure. Yes, definitely. And I'll add one more point to that. And that is that sometimes you don't see the effect of what you're doing now. So not only are you concerned about how small it is, you are also concerned about whether like
you posted something yesterday on social media, no one liked it.
No one, you know, no one shared it. No one commented, like, oh, no, why, what? What's wrong with these people? And you leave it there and you don't delete it, you just leave it there. I'm not saying you should, of course, but I can.
You posted something and no one, no one took any notice
of the personnel.
Six months from now,
that just explodes and it becomes something viral, or 10 years from now or after you die. How many people have passed away? And then they say social media, you know, accounts just became something of interest now. People want to read what they people want to read what they wrote, you know, they want to see the videos they want to Oh, so Hala, this guy has been publishing excellent stuff for years. I have no one knew about this. So what I'm saying to you is that number one, don't look down upon anything you do for the sake of Allah because Allah rewards you know, in ways you could never have imagined. Number two, that
whatever you do, Allah subhanho wa Taala either grants you the reward and the benefit of that in the dunya and in the Acura or only in the athalon in either way, it's a win win situation. So don't lose hope in any of that and Allah knows best. MashAllah article a fixture. Shed I just want to share something personal actually.
It's actually related to you as well. So it's part of the show, if you recall back in 2010, you were instructor for an Alcocer course called mercy to the worlds of the Meccan era and I was one of the students that actually mashallah and they are
words that you said in that course which I can still remember until today. So when when you think about like what you said, it really rings true to me because because I don't know when some of these things probably you forgot that you said them. So for example, I still remember there you saying that? Because the emphasis of the Meccan error was how the prophets I'm sorry. I'm just thinking about the fact that
I forget what I said did minutes ago.
But yeah,
I still remember that it was like 11 years ago, I remember one of the things that you highlighted was like the trials and tribulations that they faced. And I remember this was a phase in my life where I was just turning to the Sunnah just getting like, trying to understand the religion just a bit more, I was still like abandoning my old, like, bad ways. And one of the things that you said was that the more that you face trials and tribulations in Dawa, the more that you are marked, the more that you're, the more this is a sign that you're treading the path of the prophets wa salaam, the path of Dawa and I those words are kind of really carried me throughout the years because
throughout the years, I found that that you do face these things, and you do face a lot of self doubt. And one of the things you said as well in the session was that the path of sunnah is difficult, but it's worth it. And and these these tools are like, they're really brief. But throughout the years they had an impact to me And subhanAllah who knew Nakada Allah then years later, we'll be speaking about the idea of legacy. So Han Allah Masha, Allah my book. And I remember you saying like, this thing about sunnah as well, because I was just about that time, like trying to understand this idea about how our customs, some of them are not from the Sunnah. And some of them,
you know, they are not something that's that's that Allah azza wa jal rewards. And then you say that, you know, you have to ask yourself, the companions did it? And if and if they didn't do it, and if it was enough for them to enter Jannah, shouldn't it be enough for you and I? So Subhanallah share these words, I still remember them like 10 years later. So what this I find it very profound. I mean, we don't know the impact of the words that we have. And I really make the audit so Hanalei that just just this just from that session alone, I hope that what we say in our lives have that same impact to other people as well. You know, you know, what's funny, I also thought about
something now that then in that course that I taught in 2010, there is a brother, what is the brother's name Pablo Dean from from from Penang? The brother, okay, with with with that? And so what are the things I spoke to him? And I only thought about this now, because one of the things that we spoke about, remember, we spoke about the fact that that word is actually invitation? It's like, it's not just, it's not presentation, only. Its presentation, and then invitation. Right? So you tell people what Islam is. And then you say, Do you want to be a Muslim, active and active invitation. So that was something that he also spoke about. And he also thought was, you know, was
something that he needs to change in his Dawa, And subhanAllah throughout the two years after that, my wife accepted Islam at that center. Now, I'm not saying that two things are related. But I would like it to be.
I would like it to be the fact that, you know, Allah knows best that when I spoke to him in 2010, and I told him that Dawa isn't just telling someone okay, yes, Islam, very nice, five pillars and so on. Right? But it's not telling this person like, you know, if you want you should become a Muslim, do you want to be a Muslim? So I just thought about that now, while he was speaking about, and then the reality is that all of us have those stories, there was things that, you know, we met a teacher or we met a speaker, they said something, and now, you know, so many years later, you know, that has been those, those principles that continue to benefit us, you know, even now, like we go through, I
will never forget something my father told me my father wasn't a scholar, or even a student of knowledge, you know, in the formal sense, but my dad told me something, he said something, it was way back in probably 2000 2001. He said, My son, if you do something for the sake of Allah, He will never abandon you.
Wow. You know, and because at the time the reason why he told me this was because I said, I was on the phone with him. I was this was probably September, October, December 2000. I remember this because I was in tears. And I said, I can't take it anymore. I I don't think I'm supposed to be in Medina. I don't think that this is right for me. You know, I don't understand what the teachers are saying, I feel I'm going to fail. You know, I rather just want to come home. And then my dad told me these words and I was and those words have sustained me through a lot over the last 20 or 20 years. So my daughter is an Allah rewards him for that may Allah reward all of our teachers and those who
have you know, directly or indirectly guided us, Allah,
masha Allah, Allah MOBOTIX
so share mashallah, so it's speaking about maybe you just moved to topic of time management so Mashallah.
As you said, I love that point you said in Ramadan, Rama, timing always feels tight, right? Like, you always feel you don't have much time. So it always feels limited. He feels things are very well scheduled. But as soon as Ramadan is over somehow that that tightness kind of goes away. And I think one of the points that you said about building these good habits, right, so we'll get into that after this, but about the idea of, of building habits, it's one thing to be productive. But what we find ourselves getting in other bad habits, right? So it's for example, I mean, you're you're into, you do work out like Chef. So maybe it's, it's less about eating right, than it is about eating less
of the not so good stuff.
So, so coming back, the time of day is your time management. It's one thing to spend time any having these goals, everything, but it's those social media habits, those Netflix habits, that's what the rails is Chef SubhanAllah. So maybe, you know, some of us maybe coming into aid, maybe those those doors that subscriptions going to renew itself.
Maybe you can advise how can we maybe prevent us from going into this trap of this spiraling avalanche of habits, bad habits? I think that what motivated you to give them up before Ramadan should continue to motivate you after? It's good point? Why did why why? Why did you give them up? Why not? Why not continue? Continue doing everything you were doing before Ramadan? I mean, what? Why are you eating? So what I'm saying is tap into the source of what you know, caused you to give up all those bad habits that you had before Ramadan, okay, tap into that same source. Secondly, understand the benefit that you have acquired over the last, you know, month by not having those bad
habits in your life. Look at the labor, productivity, look at the levels of time that you swim in amount of time,
extra that you got to spend with your family, you know, with your spouse, with your children, with your extended family, think about the benefits that you've acquired in your professional life, because you're not distracted by your bad habits. So you gave them up for the sake of Allah. But in addition to that, they will all these other, you know, benefits that you were able to, you know, to gain over the last month, so don't you want that to continue? The third thing is that now that Ramadan is over, one of the reasons why we revert to those bad habits is because our time now has been you know,
there's two things actually number one, because it is typically a holiday and yeah, in Malaysia, it goes on for I don't know, what's it.
Yeah, so long as it's your well, but you get the point. And so that mindset now is the mind of festivities and enjoyment. Okay. So that's why it's important that we try to force those six days, you know, as soon as possible just to to get some sort of control over that. But the most important thing, or the second point that I wanted to make here was that you had a schedule. And it was really important, that schedule was important to you, you. You didn't micromanage everything, like you don't have to say that, you know, at 915, I'm going to the toilet, and at 925, I'm going to stop going to the toilet. Now, obviously, that's that's ridiculous. But what I am saying to you is that
Ramadan was structured. So continue to have that structure after Ramadan.
You don't make sure that you continue that one of our teachers told us, he said that Baraka tulawaka, feed them the meaning that the blessings of time, the blessings of your time is in you. It's it's careful organization. If you organize your time, if you plan your time, you will find Baraka in that. And you will have less opportunities to do anything else. You know, last year, my wife and my two, my son and my daughter were not allowed to return to Malaysia. So I spent six months the MCO alone,
right. So the way that I dealt with that at the beginning during the March and April was just to teach. So because the gyms were closed, and everything was closed, so I just taught as much as possible every day for like two months, right, seven days a week. And then when the gyms opened, that I started going, I started working out four times a week, I started doing jujitsu three times a week. And so I tried to focus my time as much as possible. Sometimes I you know, would come back from the gym, and then I would have another class like an hour later. So I tried to just fill in that time so that it would be as constructive as possible. And so we can all do this. I mean, I am
the worst, as my wife will tell you, I am the one who procrastinates the most and, you know, so maybe I'm not the best person to be giving advice on this, but I can speak from experience that I personally have benefited when I have implemented this advice. Does that make sense? Right. Yeah, I'm not. I'm not the shining example of time management and productivity, but I do
From my personal experience that when I do have, I take the time to manage my time and to be productive Alhamdulillah it is productive. And I do feel that it's constructive. So this is my advice to you.
Should I start answering some questions? Sure. Phase one.
Maybe just a couple of minutes here. So
yeah, I just want to summarize the point I really liked the point you said. So, for example, like, we tend to when we look back at what we've done in Ramadan, there's always that guilt that we haven't done enough. But the reality is, there's always a lot of positive progress as well. So when we look at the positive progress, we want to remind ourselves that what we've achieved throughout those months, we want to achieve that throughout the subsequent months because even dunya benefits, we get a lot from those things. And I think I like the point as well, you said that this is the in productivity, I believe, it's called time blocking. If something is important for you, you'll
actually schedule it. So what you've done is that you've scheduled it and because of that it keeps you away from distracting all these things. And also the if I can say my home on bahala here is that the reason why we drift away is because a lot of these things we don't schedule it like there's too much spare time that we just what should I do now? So then that then that term, time to kill starts to come in? And I think also one of the things sorry, oh no, all the time. You either kill the time or it kills you and then Snorky the laughter that prevails
that's upon Allah. I don't know what a quote by him okay him says that wasting time was worth worse than death because that separates you from dunya and wasting time separates you from Allah.
I came across a token on Wednesday about about Toba. And the topic was I want to repent but and so I came across a book written by an Egypt Egyptian chef that is just profound on so many different levels. So
Subhanallah I just I want to repeat but like so it basically the talk was about the obstacles that keep us from from making Toba
and one of them is that you begin to enjoy the sin
you like doing it? You're attached to it, isn't it?
You know like and so Ramadan has been disseminated so on the on the topic now, Ramadan has been this perfect time for you to wean yourself off those bad habits, many of them sinful, right. So you've you and you have replaced that with the love of Allah's worship, haven't you you want to read the Quran you fasting you you know what's what you say? You try to be the best person that you can. And so is it a tuning in now be easier for you to make Toba? Well, we make dua that Allah God says that. So Allah knows best. Allah knows fist.
Hmm, yeah, cool.
Okay, and maybe perhaps just the last part that we just want to say about the habits. So I think the book that you mentioned is by James clear, right, atomic habits. by James clear, now, I read that there's something interesting about the book, they say that if you want to start habits, and I think this is useful for us, too, as we leave this convention, as we leave Ramadan as well, like one of the habits that he writes about in the book is that if you want to start habits make it easy for you to do something. So that you can like make make, like make mechanisms where it's, it's easier for you to get into the habit of good habits. And those bad habits, for example, those things that you
tend to spiral down those bad eating habits, those bad time management habits, trying to make it difficult for you to access those things. So I find a lot of benefit. Like if we apply that in our Islamic lives, I find that a lot of us when we look at these productivity tips, right scheduling time, we do that a lot for our careers, but for our deen we kind of lack in that. So for example, the targets that you said like I want to I want to memorize Quran by so and so date. Like, why don't you put that part of the scheduling in our day in our day to day life? That's that's kind of the benefit that I got from our discussion in the session. Shala Oh, that book was really was was really
beneficial. I used it to talk about did a course on the Habits of Successful Muslim teenagers. It's nothing that I developed based on you know, I listen to a lecture by Chef Walid Pacioli. So let me not claim let me not claim, you know, mashallah, creativity and ingenuity. Right? As many people will tell you, that is also not one of my strong points. But I do like to benefit from different people. So I watched this lecture of his where he was speaking to a group of youth in, in Britain, Scotland or Wales, I'm not sure. Anyway, so he's speaking about different habits. So I took that and then I started doing more reading, and, you know, finding out you know, how one could How does one
develop good habits, and how do you rid yourself of bad habits, you know, and so that then became the basis of more, you know, a lengthier talk. But what I do want to point out here is look at how, in Islam, Allah doesn't just order you to do something. He sort of gives you a lot of steps to get there.
And Allah doesn't prohibit something
Think except that he provides additional barriers between you and that thing. Like we like to think about Zina, lower your gaze fast. The Prophet says,
Don't be alone with someone from the opposite *. And watch how you talk to someone from the opposite *. doesn't just say Don't get mad, Xena, but you're my slaves are a list of, of guidelines, by which I will facilitate for you the avoidance of what I have prohibited. Subhanallah think about the fact that the Prophet SAW Allah Azza wa sallam said that you should go to bed after a shot, right? Go to bed early. And then also the fact that the Sharia talks about the hygiene and talks about waking up for Fudger, and so on and so forth. So don't just you know, like, this is the problem with with the way that we talk to our children. And to our students. We just tell them to do
stuff, but we don't give them the inter you know, the intermediate steps towards
okay.
He talks about in the book, right atomic habits, because they swore they tiny, but they stack up one, you know, one after the other, and they lead towards, you know, ultimate success. So, like he says in the book, you know, go to the gym, but don't do anything, just sit there.
You pack your bag, you drive to the gym, and you just sit there in the reception area. 15 minutes, okay, 15 minutes are done. Now I'm driving.
While you will realize how ridiculous that is. And you actually do something, do something.
Do something anyway. So ALLAH SubhanA wa Tada and His Messenger, they command and they prohibit, they encourage, and they motivate, but then there are all these additional steps towards achieving that. And so this is something that we need to take, we need to take into consideration and we need to, we need to study this so that we understand that Allah Subhana Allah, Allah doesn't just command and prohibit, but that there is an entire so when we say when people I don't again, like these words, but when someone say that Islam is a holistic way of life, there's there's something there that needs to be unpacked in that statement. And the only way that it can be unpacked is if that you
and I actually in you know, educate ourselves, and then we can say, Oh, I see what you mean. Yes. Allah talks about salah, and he talks about South Africa. And he talks about don't like, like Allah says, Stay away from alcoholic drinks. But he also says the Prophet says don't sit at a table where alcohol is consumed.
You know what I mean? So
you shouldn't drink don't even come close to this stuff like precursor to it, though.
That's something that you will spit you you said earlier as well, you know, that you place like those barriers between yourself and the sins, the bad habits, you know, just cut yourself off from them. And I know Allah knows best. But one of the things I mentioned earlier was that one of the reasons why we relapse, if we can call it that is because we go back to that same company that we had before.
Yeah, I mean, I worked at a drug, a drug rehab in Cape Town, the one of the main causes for many of those brothers to go back to drugs with because they go, they're going back to the same environment. Same friends, the same circles, same friends, think about the man who killed 100 people, what did this
what does God have another place,
continue to live in the city you got to move. Right go and go to a place where the people are pious, so that is physical and a spiritual hijab.
You are cutting you're going for the sake of Allah, right? You making hijra, but you're also cutting yourself off from all of the influences that that you know will misguide you that will bring you back into, you know, into Cofer and into sins because this is the reality. That's why a person who accepts Islam needs a very strong community. If someone's coming into the deen you and I need to be there to support them. Because otherwise they can easily get pulled back into into the previous way of life that they had. Now I'm sure we all are Christians. Yeah. It's Allah inshallah. Allah Ferengi if it was very beneficial and mashallah it shows that our deen is very comprehensive and all these
tools actually that there are people discovering now it's actually already no no Quran and Sunnah Masha Allah we just have to see it in that right light and put our trust in Allah and act upon the deen, masha Allah All right.
Okay, so inshallah we'll move on to the questions. So, the first question is speaking of goal setting, how can a university student balance or integrate between his or her academic goals and his non Islamic goals? And also in seeking knowledge of the deen like for example, we see that the deen aspect of that knowledge of the deen is lacking but that that dunya
aspect of the degree itself, that seems to be always like the priority. Okay. So I will, I will, I will only mention one thing, because this is also one of those multi, you know, multi perspectives that we could have. But one perspective I want to share with you is that if you are doing a degree, let's say, in accounting or business or psychology, whatever it might be, then at least spend a dedicated time every single day to either going through a series of lectures, or reading a book, or making sure that they are lessons that you will attend by Chef Ibrahim or others on a regular basis. So don't try to do too much, you have one thing to focus on your parents, if your parents are paying
for your education. And you already started that education. And for those of you that are foreigners, here in Malaysia, it's even, you know, it's even more important that you focus on that. But at the same time, that isn't, that doesn't mean that you have to make a choice. So what I am asking for, or what I am, what I am suggesting is that you have
consistency in Islamic learning. That is not just this convention, or that conference, or that today, you know, talk, but it's that you are learning everyday, just think about the following fact, if you read 10 pages a day for 30 days, you would have read 300 pages. Most books on average are between three and 400 pages, am I right? Even if you're reading a multi volume book, right, if you reading five or six volumes, like indica Thea, I'm reading, you know the translation of indica theory with my students now every Saturday morning, right at seven. It's all online, of course, And Alhamdulillah, we read about 15 to 20 pages or sometimes 30 pages every week. That means that every
10 weeks, we
don't tend to 15 weeks, we finished a volume. And they all they are 10 volumes, which means that over the course of a year, a year and a half, two years, the students who stayed with me from the beginning until the end could say Alhamdulillah I read and I listened to the entire abridged version of the FCA if Nick Ethier
so yes, it's two years of your life. Yes, it's only an hour every week. But there's progress. And that is not exactly that's the nature of knowledge in any field. It takes time, there is no such thing as a two week Crash Course, the only thing that's crashing is you. Right, that's the only thing that's crashing in the crash course nothing else is crashing. So it takes time. And so that's my advice. You can you can you don't have to make a choice, but you can focus on your studies at university while at the same time increasing your Islamic knowledge. And then as soon as you graduate and you have more time, then you can perhaps pursue your Islamic studies with even more
vigor and Allah knows best Nashoba medical aphasia. So essentially, it's the same advice that you gave earlier on which is the Hadith where the prophets of salaam says consistency, even if it's small, you know, that's how we should apply knowledge. I would I would give the same advice. Okay, mashallah, exactly here and okay, we move to the second question Shala.
Now, people are old and not fasted many years ago during Ramadan, and now they've forgotten how many days they need to make up what should they do? Or if they have passed away? What can be done? So did they have an excuse? Many years ago? Or did they not have an excuse many years ago, if they broke the fast, you know,
in this obedience to Allah subhanaw taala with no valid excuse, then of course, the days that they had missed need to be made up, right, that is, at least according to one group of Ariana, but if we go with that opinion, which seems to be a safer opinion, then you will just have to calculate more or less how many days you have missed. Let's say you missed 20 years. You did not fast because
you refuse to fast you were lazy or, you know, you were your lifestyle at the time was not one in which you pursued the topo and the other the pleasure of Allah. Let's talk about this. I'll just some people talk about they talk about Jay Hillier, right? So I was born as a Muslim, but for many years, I did not fast. So now that I have coming back to Allah, I'm repenting. And I want to make Toba there was 20 years I didn't force 20 times 30 is what is it?
600 days, yes, 600 days. So the 600 days too fast, if you are old now, and you cannot force which brings us to the second part of the question. You are now old, unable to fast and you have 600 days that you have to make up for then in this case, you should you should feed a poor person for every one of those days. And that would be the best way to the best way to do cathedra of those days that you have missed. If they have passed away then you as the Wali of that person who is who is deceased can feed those poor people on their behalf and on