Yasmin Mogahed – Serenity – What Happens After The High Has Passed
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Santa Monica, this is your screen, which I hit and you're listening to serenity streaming live on one legacy radio, today's topic is something that has to do with the sort of instability of this life. And instability is, in fact, one of the definitions by definition, this dunya is unstable. And Subhanallah, there are a number of reflections, personal reflections, that I, that I kind of want to share things that I that I went through actually just just this last week, that relate to this topic. And, and, and, and, you know, I want to go on and show let's talk about, what do we do? And how do we cope with this instability and what happens after what, what feels like a high has passed
away, and in a lot of different elements of life, there are aspects of life. So here's a lesson for me, I was perfectly well, on Wednesday, and Subhanallah, you know, the only thing that I noticed was, you know, I was feeling fine. But I noticed that when I touched the size of my neck, like where your lymph nodes are, it was, like, hurt when I touched them. And I thought that was strange, that it was, you know, swollen, and even Actually, there was like a tenderness was actually sore when you would when you would touch it. And, you know, those of you who who have, you know, a background in medicine know that usually, you know, when you go to a doctor and their tests, they're checking, you
know, to see how basically a checkup, they tend to feel your neck right, your lymph nodes, what what that is, is that when you when you're sick part of your immune responses that
you know, that that the body lets out these, these white blood cells, which which fight the infection, and part of that is that your lymph nodes become become inflamed, or they become swollen, and you can feel it. But the weird thing is, I didn't feel sick. And this was this was Wednesday, and even Tuesday, but I didn't, I didn't, I did notice that my neck, the lymph nodes in my neck were swollen and they and they hurt. So anyway, I guess for future reference. I'll I'll take note of that. But I noticed it and I just didn't know why I just I just thought it was kind of strange, because typically, I knew that happens when you're sick, and I didn't feel sick. The strange thing
is that the next day on Thursday,
I woke up the middle of the night, it was like 3:30am. And my throat was just killing me just suddenly like that I was fine when I went to sleep. And when I woke up in the middle of the night, it just hurts so bad. And those of you who've had strep throat, know that the sort of the throat pain that that comes with strep throat is unlike any other throat pain. You know, it's it's very different than just having the flu or having a scratchy throat but it's extremely, extremely painful. And it hurts so much when you swallow. So I had this very, very intense throat pain. And I was I was kind of thinking like, okay, maybe I have
maybe it was just like dryness or something. Anyway, I was able to sort of go back to sleep. And when I woke up in the morning, I was just so much worse. And then pretty soon, like, and it just happened so, so rapidly. I was hit, you know, hit by a fever, and panela I became almost incapacitated, within just you know, within just like hours. And I went from really being totally completely well, to being feverish and incapacitated in bed. It was unbelievable. And I knew, you know, right away that there was it wasn't just a flu in the sense of a virus, but that I needed medical, I needed medicine. So I you know, this whole process of trying to you know, get a hold of
the doctor and getting a prescription. You know, in that time the bacteria is just multiplying and Subhanallah it was it was it was very, very painful. And it was it was really hard even to get out of bed, let alone do the things I needed to do. I had about three different
things I had to had to cancel that that day, actually probably five. I had two meetings and then I had
I had actually, the radio show, which which those of you who who tried to listen last Thursday, saw that it didn't happen. So I had to I had two meetings, and then I had the radio show. And then I had office hours and then I had halaqa. And that was my Thursday and it just completely erased my day. I was not able to do any of those things. Subhan Allah, but what's what's even more amazing is yes, I did put up a status and in him that he left for this amazing network of people. And this amazing network of dogs. It's, it's, it's one of the greatest gifts of what I do. And I'm relatable. I mean, so I asked for your dogs and Alhamdulilah you know, Allah subhanaw taala heard your dogs and what
was amazing is by Friday, so now we're talking I was fine on Wednesday. I was completely incapacitated on Thursday, almost completely incapacitated. And then on Friday,
I actually had to Friday morning. So this is all happening Thursday. And you know, I had to cancel all those things. And then Friday morning, I was actually scheduled to leave in the early morning to go to Chicago for some lectures at Leola and then at IIT, Illinois Institute of Technology. And so I was scheduled to have to travel the next day. And Subhanallah I woke up in the morning on Friday, and I was almost completely well so panela you know, the the the metas I had started taking the antibiotic and some medicine for some pretty strong medication for pain. And Subhanallah I traveled on Friday, and by the time I got to Chicago Friday morning, I was completely fine. And and I mean
this is this is a loss of Hannah with Allah and what the reflection I really want to share about this experience is that Allah subhanaw taala is the Turner of states. We need to realize that you know, one of the the most common the one of the guys that the prophets a lot of send them would make most often is Yama coliban kulu, Sabbath kulu benalla denecke Oh Turner of hearts, keep our hearts firm, on your deen on your, on your, on your path or on your way or on your on your on your religion this, this, this path, we ask Allah subhanaw taala to keep our hearts firm on it. But But what I really want us to know is this is this word, called the word clump is in Arabic means heart, but
literally means that which turns because the word club shares the same root as, as the word for turning as the word for to turn. The heart by definition is something that constantly turns. And so we ask Allah subhanaw taala in this door and this was one of the most oft repeated doors of the Prophet sallallahu wasallam we asked Allah subhanaw taala to keep our hearts firm, and to keep this thing that constantly turns. And by definition and even the name itself comes from that same root, we ask a lot to keep that thing that turns which is the heart firm on his Deen Allah subhanaw taala is the Turner of states a person can be in one state one moment and can be in a completely different
state the next moment, and this is Allah subhana wa tada and what that what that really should show us is that we have to be very, very careful not to get too comfortable in any particular state. And know that everything in this life is constantly changing. Everything in this life is constantly turning. Now what does that have to do with the the high and then the lows of life? Well what it has to do with that is when you are in a low for example, knowing that this life is about change, that Allah subhanaw taala constantly changes our states gives you hope, because you may be low today you may be at a low today things are really hard today. But you know what? Tomorrow it'll change so
Pamela, the the the thing about this life is that nothing lasts that every state is constantly you know shifting and then we move to another state. And and so if you are low if you if you do you know you're in a difficult situation, the comforting aspect of this of this sort of characteristic of life is that it won't last too long. Because nothing lasts too long in this life and everything is constantly changing. You know, like they say this too shall pass. This too shall pass about every difficult state every low state. But this also applies to our highs. This also applies to those states that we don't we wish we
not pass. And those are the spiritual, emotional and relationship highs that we encounter in life. Now one really good example of this is what happens when someone enters into Islam, someone converts or reverts back to Islam, when someone takes their Shahada, they really a person who does that really knows what that spiritual high feels like. But this also applies to those people who maybe didn't realize who Allah subhanaw taala was, even if they were born Muslim, a lot of us are born Muslim. And yet we still have to go through a point in our life, where we have to come back to Allah subhanaw taala or where we sort of discover Allah in our life. And that point in which we come back
to Allah or that point in which we convert or revert, whether we were born Muslim, or we weren't. That point is a is a high, it is a very, very strong and an intense, spiritual high, that during that high, it becomes a lot easier to worship Allah subhanaw taala all of a sudden, we have this fuel this this almost unending, what feels like an unending source of energy and motivation and inspiration and fuel. We could we could stay up all night praying, we you know, it's easy for us to put on hijab, it's easy for us to pray PM, it's easy for us to leave behind all those things that that we maybe had been doing in our previous life, it's easy for us to to break, you know, to
separate ourselves from a hot arm relationship or, or from alcohol or drugs or whatever it was, during that high, it becomes easy to worship Allah subhana wa Tada. And this is a state on the path to Allah subhanaw taala that if no claim Rahim Allah talks about in madatha, just silicium where he talks about the different
the different stations on the path to Allah subhanaw taala. And this particular state or station is yakata. And, you know, it's a state more so because it's temporary. And that's what we really, really fail to sometimes realize this state of spiritual high or expansion and where everything becomes like, you know, you're you're, it's kind of sometimes referred to as the, the, quote, convert zeal. You know, we've all you know, those of us who have come back to Allah subhanaw taala. At that point, we've, we've experienced what this feels like, it's, it's a rush, and we have all this energy. That is what it no claim refers refers to as your cover, and your cover means
awakening, it's that awakening that happens when you've been asleep. And all of a sudden, something wakes you up something, you know, gets you out of that stupor, that state of, of heedlessness, and now you see a reality that you never knew before. And that is very, it's like this exhilarating feeling like a person. It's compared to a person who is living their entire life inside of a cave. And they think that that cave, you know, with its walls, and its narrowness and its darkness, they think that that's the entire world. And then something happens, and may discover that there's actually a world outside of the cave, and they step outside, and all of a sudden, they look around,
and there's a sky, and there's trees, and there's birds, and that that type of expansion. And that exhilaration is kind of how this how this Jaka this awakening is, is described, it's that it's that coming out of the cave and realizing, oh my god, there's another world out there. It's discovering Allah subhanaw taala for the first time, that is a state that is very powerful. But what we have to understand about that state is two things. And if we don't understand these two things, then we end up falling into a very dangerous trap later on. The first aspect of this state that we have to realize is that jacoba or awakening is by definition temporary. I'm going to repeat that because
this is what really really makes people despair later on this state of high spiritual high awakening. Yoga is temporary by definition.
That means that once you know and and this actually also applies You know, I've used it in the in the spiritual context, but this also applies to
You know, when you first you know, you first get married, or you first fall in love, or you first started, you know, a new job that that's just like so fulfilling, you know, you just got into into college and there's all this, you know, these these firsts, right? When when something is new and exciting, and it's just, it just fills you and you feel like this high, you feel this high. So that high, you know, is created in, in, in a lot of different situations in life, this state of, of high, you know, when you first when you have your first child, you know, and like those people, you know, I always, I always look at people, sometimes I'm sitting at the airport, and just observing, you
know, because the airport is a place, which I spent, you know, quite quite a bit of time sometimes. And it's also a place where you, where you have a mix, right of all different people from all different, you know, places, they live all over the world, from all over the world, all different walks of life. So it's interesting to observe, and sometimes, you know, I'll observe certain, certain situations, and I'll always be able to pick out those people who are who, who are dealing with their first child, you know, you you know, that something, you know, that someone just has that, you know, that that this child is their first child, by the way they act. It's just like a
person who just fell in love, right? It's just like, their entire world is this child and like, you know, they're taking a zillion pictures, and they're just, you know, the very, very overprotective, and, you know, there's this whole,
this whole like, state that comes with with having your first child that these are, these are the highs of life. So panela, and it's in this realization, you know, like this, this, this state itself is something that makes you feel as though you wish it would never pass. And, and, and yet, and yet, that is one of the characteristics of this life that we have to understand in order not to fail or fall later on. And that is that every state every had in life is by definition, temporary, because this life is by definition, temporary, something can be absolutely breathtaking. I mean, I have seen breathtaking flowers, I have seen, I mean,
you know, some of you who may have read some of my posts, know that, that I'm very attached in to the beauty of trees, and Subhanallah, you know, especially when, during the fall, and just Allah subhanaw taala, the way he decorates the fall foliage is absolutely breathtaking to me. And, you know, for, for example, for my for me, I'm living right now in California, in Southern California. So I'm a little bit deprived of the fall foliage, because everything is a palm tree, with a lead hand, you know, those who haven't seen palm trees, they love the palm trees and, and you know, but I really missed that fall foliage in in the in the fall in the autumn. And so I got, you know, when I
got to travel to the east coast a couple times in the last few months, and it was just breathtaking, right, I got to go in the beginning of October, to Connecticut, and you know, different parts of Connecticut and then Toronto, and it was just, it was just beautiful. And Ohio as well. And when I went to Ohio, at this point, it was like the end of September, beginning of October, the foliage was amazing. And of course, I was just you know, taking pictures. And I think I posted one of my pics one of the pictures of like a heart shaped red tree, it was just amazing. It was red, and it was a heart shaped panel. You could probably find it on my wall somewhere. But it was just, it was just
amazing. It was so beautiful. And then, and then I went back to California, and I came back to Ohio the same exact place in Ohio A month later. And it's completely different. Now, the trees, I mean, the leaves are dead. I mean, it just looks so different. And so Pamela that's the reality of this life, that things can be absolutely breathtaking and few things can feel breathtaking, but it is limited, it is temporary, by its very nature and when we can understand that, instead of being devastated and disappointed, and then losing hope when that passes away, we can actually keep going. So it's extremely important to understand the temporary nature of this life in order to not get
hopeless and and and and you know to fall and not be able to get back up once it does pass. And so you know that the beauty you know the beauty in this also Allah subhanaw taala talks about when he describes the life of this world as being something temporary temporary enjoyment metabo that this is a temporary, you know tool as well. One of the meanings of metalloys is a tool, something you use and
It's something it's a resource. It's it's also for enjoyment, but it is temporary. And one of the, the metaphors that Allah subhanaw taala uses, for example, in sort of Al Hadid is like a garden that that, you know, it makes the farmer really pleased in the farmers pleased with the garden, because it's, it's beautiful, you know, like flowers are, are beautiful roses are, are I mean, just perfect for for for about a moment, right? And then what happens over time Allah subhanaw taala describes is that, that this garden, or what's in the garden starts to dry up and then eventually it crumbles. You know, he unless ponferrada describes it, as you know, turns yellow and it crumbles. That this is
Ally's saying that this is a metaphor for this life, that that that what happens to a garden, you know that this is a sign and a metaphor for this entire life. And that is that, you know, Subhanallah there are moments of absolute beauty, there are moments of, of highs, and yet those things are just temporary. Now I ask you to reflect on why why would that be the case? Why would Allah subhanaw taala even give us those things, and then they're temporary and they pass away? Well, you know, like everything else in this life.
It is a means it is a way to bring us closer to Allah subhana wa Tada. But someone might ask, Well, why how would that bring me closer to Allah soprano data, the fact that I, I got this amazing glimpse of beauty or I got this amazing glimpse of exhilaration or this high, and then now it's gone. Well think about this, if I ask you this,
if you are, you know, you go to a department store, and if the department store wants to sell something to you wants you to buy their perfume, for example, you go to bath and Bodyworks, or you go to a high end department store and they want to sell this, they want you to go and buy their perfume, which is which is somewhat expensive. What do they do, what they do is they they pass out samples, right, they'll give you a sample of the perfume or the lotion for you to try it for you to smell it for you to just, you know, just to get a
just a glimpse of it. And and the idea is that when you get that glimpse, and you see how amazing this perfume is or how amazing you are, or in the case of food, you get a sample, you taste it, you just taste a little bit of it, that that's going to motivate you to want to buy it that's going to motivate you to want to get the perfect thing to want to get that that lotion to want to buy that food. Allah subhanaw taala gives us glimpses in this life, He gives us samples, samples of what samples of the hereafter. So everything that's beautiful, is a sample of Jenna, everything that makes us happy is a sample of Jenna, everything that that that we you know those highs, those, those
those emotions, that that that we wish wouldn't pass away. Those are glimpses of Jenna in a place where the those emotions don't pass away where that beauty doesn't pass away. The beauty of Jenna doesn't end the the trees and Jenna never crumble. They never turn yellow and and and then and then crumble and pass away. This is a sample of what gem of what Jenna is like. It's a way to make us one, buy it right to one a stripe and want to work hard to get the real thing because it's just a sample. On the other hand, it's also Allah subhanaw taala also gives us samples of jahannam Wow, they've been there. Because this life isn't all you know, glimpses of good things. But this life is
also mixed in with glimpses of very bad things. We also have to feel pain in this life. We also have to see things pass away in this life. We also experience fire in this life, but it is only a sample we know from the Sunnah of the Prophet sallallahu sallam, that the fire of this life is nothing compared to the fire of jahannam. Wow, the villa. So again, it's just a sample every time you feel pain in this life every time you feel, you know, you see fire or if you get burned, this is Allah subhanaw taala showing us in His signs. These are samples of jahannam Wow, the villa. What's the point of that? The point of that is so that we will protect ourselves from the real thing. Allah
gives us the glimpses or the samples of Jenna so that we'll want to strive for the real thing and he gives us glimpses and samples of jahannam Why would we be less so that we will
protect ourselves from the real thing. inshallah, we will go ahead and take a break now. And when we return, we will go ahead and open up the chat box and take your questions and your reflections in sha Allah
Assalamu alaikum This is Yasmin Mujahid and you're listening to serenity streaming live on one legacy radio. We are talking today about what happens when those highs, whether they are, and you know, in our personal lives, whether they are spiritual highs or emotional highs, what happens when they pass and then how do we cope? We have spoken earlier about two things to keep in mind about the high. The first one was that it is by definition temporary, when you realize that something is temporary, you don't break and lose hope once it passes, because, you know, that doesn't mean that all is lost, it just means that this is a this is a fundamental characteristic of this life. And a
characteristic of every state is that nothing, no state is ever temporary in this life, we are we are still moving towards Allah subhanaw taala. And just like the you know, the great shift said, what you seek is still beyond, you know, it's it's not that we ever really get there in this life, because it's a constant path. It's a constant struggle, and a constant journey to Allah subhanaw taala we can't get there in this life, because we're not at a loss upon we're not there yet. And so we have to remember that it keeps changing and we keep moving, but we just have to keep going. The second aspect of that high, the second characteristic of that high that we have to understand in
order not to fall into the trap that may come afterwards, or as a result is that the high itself and the characteristics of the high themselves of the of the fuel and the end the energy and the motivation and the inspiration is a gift. Those things are gifts from Allah subhanho wa Taala. What do I mean by that? I mean that as soon as I now enter into Islam, whether it's coming back to Allah subhanaw taala, even though I was born Muslim, or being or as a convert, that as soon as I enter into it, and I come back, and now I'm, you know, I'm in this awakening, I'm in this high, you know, this zeal, that this is not because I am a better person than the than my neighbor, it isn't because
the fact that the fact that I'm now able to stay up all night and pray to hedges, and now I'm able to wear hijab much more easily than my friend, and she's struggling with it, but I'm not struggling with it or, or I'm not struggling with, with growing, you know, one person is not struggling with growing a beard and this is and whatever these things, you know, that happened, this, the fact that these things, these, you know, whatever acts of worship, you know, that I can give money easily, I'm not stingy, whatever it is, whatever acts of worship become easy for you, during your high or during your awakening period. That is not because I am fundamentally a better person, but it is just a gift
from Allah subhanaw taala. To me, it is a gift and a characteristic of the state. And remember that every state is temporary. If during that state, the fact that I am able to do these things more easily makes me arrogant, or makes me look down on those who are not able to do it as easily. So now I look at you know, a friend and what's you know, what's wrong with her? Why is she having so much trouble, you know, breaking off that hot relationship? Or why is that, you know, person having so much trouble waking up and praying to them or, or with their prayers or with their, with their hijab or with their, whatever it is or whatever it is that they're having a lot of trouble with that I
look at that. And I look down on that person. And I think that, you know, I'm not having trouble with that. It's easy for me, and that, that if that puts in my heart a sense of arrogance, then I am in for a very rude awakening. After this has passed away. What happens to people who do that is that there comes a period in time once the state has passed once that that temporary high has passed, where that person will also end up
Falling down and those things that we use to look down on others for doing, we also may end up falling into those same things, those things that we look down on others for not being able to do, we also will not be able to do those things in the future, that the prophets I send them told us, for example, in a Hadith, that no person ridicules another person for something except that they end up falling into that same thing, that you're ridiculing another for. So what might my advice to you and myself is to be very, very careful not to look down on others who don't have that same energy, that same ease in worship that same zeal, because a yours is temporary. And be it is a gift from
Allah subhanaw taala upon you, it isn't because you're a better person than your than then your friend or than your brother or than your sister, it is that Allah subhanaw taala has gifted you and you have to be very grateful for these gifts because those gifts that we think come from ourselves, those gifts, which we are not grateful for, are taken away from us. And that's the Sunnah of Allah subhanaw taala is that when you're not grateful things are taken from you. And when you are grateful, what in Chicago Toma as he then netcom and when you are grateful, Allah increases you. So it's also important to thank Allah subhanaw taala, the fact that you are able to stand up and pray
at night that you think Allah subhanaw taala the fact that it's easy for you to put on the hijab, that it's easy for you to leave your bottom relationship that it's easy for you to to break off from poisonous company, the fact that Allah has enabled you to do those things is a gift from him to you, not a gift from you to him. That's so important to understand our good deeds and acts of worship are not gifts from us to Allah subhanaw taala they are gifts from Allah subhanaw taala to us, so we have to be grateful for them and never ever be arrogant, or self righteous at the fact that you are able to do these things and others are not.
When you have those two things in mind, the fact that these states are temporary, and the fact that these are gifts from Allah subhanaw taala, then what that helps you do is not become hopeless, and devastated and disappointed. Once it does pass, what I've seen is that a person who, whatever the high may be, if the highest from being in love, and then as soon as that that feeling of, of, you know, that comes with being in love has passed away, you think, you know, there must be something wrong, I don't love the person anymore, you know, the relationship is over. And that's as a result of not understanding the nature of these highs and the nature of these temporary states. They are by
definition temporary. However, when you get and this is this is the this is the whole and this is the awesome thing about the path Allah subhanho wa Taala Yes, the states are temporary. And yes, we you know, they change, but we're always going to another state, we're always moving, you know, to its Yes, you may not be in that same, you know, that same exact state, but inshallah you'll enter another one and a different form. And I think those people who, who have been married for for a long period of time, can can really relate to this point that yes, maybe that butterflies in the stomach, you know, state, yes, that passes away after a certain point, but then it develops into something
else. And you know, a lot of people argue that it then develops into something deeper and something more stable. So it isn't just you know, that we're that we're just sad that the that the state has passed, but we always enter into a new state and we ask Allah subhanaw taala to constantly be taking us through these states on the path to Allah subhanaw taala and it works the same thing with the, with the with the the stations on the path to Allah, you know, you have that awakening at the beginning. And then it's followed by a dip, it's followed by the the sort of the fall from the high, that dip or that low. So we'll you know, we're saying that there's highs and there's lows, that low,
we have to realize is a normal part of the path to Allah subhanaw taala when you reach that point, do not give up. Because this is where shaitan will try to get you you know, now you're not really it's a lot harder to get up for km, it's a lot harder to pray. Now all of a sudden, it's a lot harder to wear hijab it's a lot harder to not, you know to stay away from the from the hot arm and, and certain relationships or whatever it is, and now it becomes more of a struggle and you wonder like, what's wrong with me, right, like I must have just lost everything. And this is where many people lose hope. This is where many people fall and keep falling because they lose hope. Instead of
it being just a little low or a little
little dip in the path, it becomes an abyss. And the reason that happens is we give up, we feel like Oh man, I made I committed this sin. Now I made it, I slipped. Whereas before you held yourself to this really, really high standard, and you're like, I'm never allowed to slip. And I'm never allowed to make a mistake. And something else to note is when we treat other people this way, Subhanallah, you'll find this to be the case, those people who hold others to this standard, like no one is ever allowed to be anything less than perfect. No one is ever allowed to slip, that also then applies to yourself. And that's very, very dangerous. Because what it means is you're not allowing anyone to be
imperfect, including yourself. And the reality is, no one is perfect. So when you make a mistake, which inevitably you will, because you're you're not an angel, you're a human being. When you do slip, you are absolutely unforgiving of yourself, and you don't accept it from yourself. And it actually ends up harming you. Because what you do is you look at yourself, and you say Wait, but I wasn't allowed to be imperfect, I wasn't allowed to make any mistakes. And since I did make this mistake, I might as well give up completely. And this is what happens with people like that who are so rigid and unforgiving of others. And then they become so rigid and unforgiving of them their own
selves. And as a result, ironically, it ends up pushing them to the other extreme. As soon as they make a tiny mistake in their Deen, a tiny slip, then they just give up. Oh, I made this mistake. So I might as well just stop praying, or I made this mistake. You know, what, what's the point of wearing Hijab anymore, I might as well just take it off because I'm being a hypocrite. And that's the idea. This is how shaitan gets us. He gets us through hopelessness. He gets us through first convincing us that we were ever supposed to be perfect, or that we ever could be perfect. And then once we aren't perfect, now we feel completely worthless. And now well, we might as well just give
up completely. And now he's won. Because what he's made us do is despair and the hope in the in the mercy of Allah subhanaw taala. And now we're not even seeking that mercy anymore. Now we've just given up. That is what we have to fight by realizing by realizing that we will slip and when we do slip, we just have to come back to Allah subhanaw taala. Don't give up hope and understand that these states are temporary, we rise and fall in our Amen. And that is an absolute fundamental characteristic of the past to Allah subhana wa Tada. And this is really beautifully summed up in one of the Hadith of the Prophet, Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam were Abu Bakar the line and
another companion had come to the Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, and said, Hans, Allah is is a hypocrite, this was the other companion rhodiola hun, O Messenger of Allah. So they came to the Prophet, so I sent him and they were so worried that they had become hypocrites. And the Prophet asked, Why is that? And he said to the Prophet, messenger of Allah, when we are with you, you remind us of the guardian and fire, as if it was that we could see them with our eyes, when the messenger and then when we leave your presence, we attend to our wives and daughters, you know, our spouses, children and estates in a state of great heedlessness. So what is this companion saying him
and Abu Bakar Golan is that he felt that he was a hypocrite, because he could not be in the same state all the time. He could not be in that same spiritual high. He's He's saying that when I'm with you, autosol a lot. I we feel as though we see Jenna and jahannam as though we see it with our eyes. And then when we go to our families and our spouses, we get involved with that and we become more heedless. Basically what he's saying is we're not at that same state of Eman rush of that, amen. Hi, of that spiritual high all the time. So the Messenger of Allah sallallahu wasallam says something very, very important. He says, By the one in whose hand my soul is, if you were to remain in the
same state you are in when you are in my presence, and in the thicket. The angels would shake hands with you on your bed and in the street.
But Huns Allah, different times are not the same. And he repeats this three times. Here the prophets I send them is saying to him, that if you remained in that same spiritual high in that same exact state all the time that the angels would shake hands with you in the street, how could angels shake hands with you? Well, you would be an angel that this is
Not a part of the human experience of this life of staying in that same state. And he tell and he goes on to say sat and was sad that this is there there are times and then there are other times there are times of high and there are times of low what we ask Allah subhanaw taala is that at least in our lows, we are still according to the Sunnah of Mohamed Salah lottosend them and that is what the prophets I send them says, you know, he tells us that as long as during the low we are still within the Sunnah of the Prophet sallallahu sallam, then we'll be okay. We ask Allah subhanaw taala that during those lows, we don't give up the basics. Even though you're not feeling it even though
you you're making a mistake even though you're slipping Do not let go of the rope of Allah subhanaw taala Do not let go of your salon Do not let go of your salon on time even if you're waking up 4pm and you at this point you're just you're not you know you're not there you're not in it you know you're maybe you're just your your state is not the same just show up you know there's you know how I'm in school sometimes you get points just for showing up right you get participation points just for showing up. Allah subhanaw taala will give you points inshallah, at least for showing up, just keep showing up, and then your state will you'll state will change and inshallah you will go back
up, but don't give up. You know, if you're feeling like, oh, man, I don't even know why I'm wearing this hijab. I'm not feeling I'm totally empty inside I'm, I feel like a hypocrite. Keep it on, keep showing up and Allah subhanaw taala will change your state know that Allah is the changer of states Allah is the Turner of hearts. Just keep seeking Him and keep showing up, keep doing what you're doing. And Allah subhanaw taala will change your state from low back to high inshallah to Allah. And we pray that as we keep going in this path, and in this process, every high, you know, today's high will be higher than last week's high in sha Allah or this month high will be higher than last week's
month, last month's high. You know, each Ramadan, we get to a high and then eventually we get back down. But we ask that this Ramadan, we got to a higher high than last Ramadan. And this is the process towards Allah subhana wa Tada. Now looking at some of the questions in the chat box, one person says, recently, I have been feeling like my schoolwork has been exceedingly hard. And I try and I keep trying, but I just keep failing every time I feel so defeated. And I want to know how I can I can achieve sub, or patients. One of the reasons why I think we, we sometimes we keep trying we fail, we keep trying and we fail, we keep trying and we fail, sometimes we are too reliant on our
own self, or too reliant on our own actions, our own means our own efforts, what we need to do is we need to keep trying, we need to keep working, but be careful that you're you're you're expecting the results not from your efforts, but from Allah subhanaw taala because all all results come from him. And and I think that this is you know, this is something I personally have experienced a lot where you might be trying for something but you're trying for it through an avenue other than Allah subhanaw taala and it just, it just doesn't happen. And again, you try and it just doesn't happen again, you try and it just doesn't happen. And it's not until you seek it through Allah subhanaw
taala and you know, you know who is the source that it ends up working out. So you have to remember that while you're trying and while you keep going and you're studying for the exam, you're studying really hard, you know, that that you still realize that it's not your efforts that will make you pass that exam but it's from Allah subhanaw taala so so seek it from him. Another listener writes at the beginning of every month I almost always feel at a high and hamdulillah but towards the end, it gets difficult and shaitan knows to target me at this point. Sister yes mean other than just striving Is there any constructive advice that you can give me my my constructive advice to you and
to myself and to all of us is first to realize that we all go through these lows it isn't because there's something wrong with you. But this is part of the path, not giving up hope.
practical advice that I would give you is is is solidify those things which are obligatory, solidify those things which are Fatah and do not compromise in them no matter what you're feeling. No matter what mood you're in no matter how high or how low you are. Those things have to be non negotiables you don't negotiate in your salon you don't negotiate in your in your fasting in Ramadan you don't negotiate in years Okay, you don't negotiate in in these, you know, staying away from the the major sense
These are things that you have to really tell yourself, no matter what I'm feeling, these must be non negotiables, they have to be in place, and really solidify those things. That's first. And then after that, I would say, Institute certain extra things that you do, no matter what. And for each person, it might be different, it's a certain way, that's a certain, it's a certain thing that you do daily, and you and it just becomes a habit, it becomes something that you must do. No, for some people it's reading sort of the month before they sleep. For some people it's read, it's reading sort of TSC. And everyday, for some people, it's, I'm certain that they say in the morning, or
certain call, they say in the evening, or preferably in the morning and the evening, the code of the day, that those are things that they do no matter what, whether I'm having a good day, whether I'm having a bad day, whether I'm tired, whether I'm not tired, that those are things that you will do, whether or not you're feeling high or low, what that does, and being.
And I mean, what I'm saying is, is pick something that you can be constant in something that again, just just pick something and focus on it, of course out after solidifying the obligatory actions and solidifying the fall, and just be consistent, Allah subhanaw taala tells us that he loves those actions which are consistent, even if they are small, along loves for us to be consistent more than he loves for us to do these big grand, you know, big these bigger deeds, right, these grander type type deeds of, you know, you, maybe you you went for a calf when he left his hands, but then you didn't do anything for the rest of the year, that that's not going to be effective for your
spiritual growth, as someone who does something small, but does it consistently. And you see this reality in the physical world as well, if you want to get in shape, isn't it isn't going to work, to go on at work, you know, a workout marathon for a week and then not work out for two months, that's not going to tone your body, that's not going to get you in shape. But those who, who really know about about, you know, getting in shape, know that it's just about consistency, even if it's just the half an hour, you know, a day or every other day, as long as it's consistent. That's what works for the body. And it's the same thing for the soul, it's the same thing for the heart, it just needs
to be consistent. If I go on a binge, and I eat, you know, enough for an army for three days straight, and then I don't eat for two weeks, that's not gonna work. That doesn't, that doesn't work with our body, but we have to be consistent and eat, you know, meals regularly, I can't, I can't, you know, say I don't need to eat today, because I had a really, really heavy meal last week, right? It doesn't work like that, we have to be consistent in feeding our bodies, taking care of our bodies. In the same way, we have to be consistent in feeding and taking care of our hearts and our souls. So when I say practically pick something that you can be consistent in, and no matter what
the circumstances around you are, that that is something you will do no matter what. And having done that those who do have something like that really see the benefit, you know, that that for the last, you know, 20 years, for the last 10 years, I always do XYZ, I always make this particular action every single day. That's how we keep the heart, you know, from getting from from getting from dying, we keep the heart from falling into that deep, deep low, and then you know, losing hope. So that's that's what I would say to you sisters is you know, keeping those
keeping the photo, it's solid, and then having something of a weird, it's something of extra deeds, that you always do, as you know, and it's uncompromised, that no matter what state you are in, no matter where you are, you know emotionally or or psychologically that that you always stick to that what this will do is it will protect you from getting too too low, it will protect you from shaitan and inshallah you will come back up sooner and quicker. You know, and and of course shaitan the way he gets us is through hopelessness. So just hold on to those things hold on to the rope of Allah subhanaw taala and remember that this too shall pass. This too shall pass everything passes if
you're feeling low, know that it's going to pass and then inshallah you know Allah subhanaw taala will get you back up, and then you know, you may go low again, this is the cycle of this life. But this is you know, it's okay because this is the path and eventually as Allah subhanaw taala says, Yeah, you have incense iNec Acadian Arabic aka De Anza mala key. So this is the hope for a believer is Allah is telling us all mankind. Nola here is addressing all of mankind in Mecca care down in Arabic aka the hand some malarkey indeed you are toiling ever painting
toiling towards your Lord, but you shall meet him and that really is the comfort for a believer that yes, this is a toil yes there's a struggle yes there's an up yes there's a down but eventually we meet Allah subhana wa tada and listen to one listener right Sr. Yes mean Allah subhanaw taala blessed me with hedge this year and hamdulillah the very day I came back from hedge, I came to know I failed in a test. I was in tears, but those tears were different. I had endurance. This was acid test of my patience. I don't know how to keep that clean slate of my heart from taints. Subhana Allah I know how you feel sister about wanting to keep that. That that pure, that purity that comes
after Hajj. What I say to you sister is no state is forever. I don't want you to lose hope once the the the high and the purity of Hajj has passed away. Realize that yes, everything gets you know rusted as the prophets I send them tells us everything gets rusted, but for everything there is a Polish and the Polish of the heart is the remembrance of Allah subhanaw taala so my advice to you of how you keep this is two things. One is that you keep cleaning the heart with Toba realize that everything gets you know dusty, everything gets dirty. It's It's It's just the part of this life. There's nothing that's going to stay completely constant. so clean it clean it through Toba. Keep
coming back to Allah subhanaw taala every time you know we are going to slip come back to Allah, you know, ask for forgiveness is to fod. Remember that the prophets lie Selim said that he made you know he did his default at least 70 you know, some some narration say 70 times a day some say 100 times a day. So constantly be cleaning the heart This is the prophet SAW that I said them constantly be cleaning the heart. And second is the remembrance of Allah fill your life in, you know, make sure that the remembrance of Allah is a constant in your life, that's what's going to keep your heart alive. Basically, you know, when we're taking care of the body, there's two things we need to do, we
need to feed the body, and we need to clean the body, right, we eat regularly, and we take baths regularly. What happens if you don't take a bath for a while, you get very dirty, right? And you're gonna, you're gonna end up smelling bad. And what happens if you don't feed your body for a while is you starve. The same thing works for the heart. If you're not feeding it, then your heart also starves. And if you're not cleaning it, then your heart also gets dirty and starts to smell that. So the food of the heart is the remembrance of Allah subhanaw taala and the cleansing of the heart is Toba and it's default. So the that the same way we take care of the body we need to take care of the
heart through cleaning it and feeding it inshallah to Allah neuron says, I've been a hardship. I've been through a hardship a few days ago. And it ended up bringing me closer to Allah, how can I keep this spirit? And there were a number of questions about how to keep this spirit. And someone else also wrote that whenever you know things are going easy for her, she starts to sort of get distracted from Allah subhanaw taala. And then when something becomes difficult, she comes back to Allah subhana wa Tada. So she's asking this, you know, similar question of how do we keep that spirit of, of being close to Allah even you know, without bad things having to happen? First is
again, reminding ourselves we're never going to be in the exact same state eternally in this life. But But rather, we want again, yes, we want to keep that closeness to Allah subhanaw taala even when things are easy, how do you do that? Well, a few things. One is through gratitude. Allah again, you know, like we said, Allah subhanaw taala says, What in Chicago Toma as he then nachum, that when things are good, when things are easy, be conscious that this is from Allah subhanaw taala that this is a gift from Allah, and be grateful, be thankful to Allah subhana wa Tada. And that's how Allah increases us in in his blessings and does not take them away from us. Gratitude, one of the
deceptions of ease is that we start to depend on other than Him, we start to see the source of the ease or the source of the happiness or the source of the provision as something other than Allah subhanaw taala that is the trap of ease. And so what happens is Allah subhanaw taala may withhold those things. And so we realize who the real source is, we need to always remember even in ease, that everything is from Allah subhanaw taala and it is not coming from our boss, the provision and the happiness is not coming from, you know, our friend or our spouse, that that these things these blessings are only from Allah subhanaw taala
If people love you, it isn't because of you. If people love you, it's because Allah subhanaw taala has made them love you. It's because Allah subhanaw taala has put that love in their heart has commanded their heart to love you. And it is because Allah subhanaw taala has hidden your faults from that person. So realize even when you have people around you and that love of the people make you happy, realize even that is a creation of Allah subhanaw taala It is only because of Allah subhanho data that those people love you it is only because of Allah subhanaw taala that they're with you and that they're around you. Allah is the one who gives an Allah is the one who takes
always remember even in ease that everything comes from Allah subhanaw taala according Kohli Heather was stuck for a while you will come in our forum Rahim. subhanak Hello the ham duck. Nish hello and let Illa Allah and Mr. Federico Anna to bow Lake wa salam o Alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh