Yousuf Raza – Ramadan Conversations We have you in Our Eyes Surah atTur
AI: Summary ©
AI: Transcript ©
Okay, bismillah wa salatu wa salamu ala Rasulullah
wa ala alihi wa ashabihi ajma'in.
As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu, everybody
listening.
Before I do move on, I do want
to thank all of you who have reached
out personally as well as publicly appreciating the
effort.
It does mean a lot.
It is encouraging.
It helps us continue flowing and going.
It gives us an idea of what it
is that we're doing right and, of course,
what it is that we need to be
doing differently.
Feel free to please continue to do that.
Reach out in any way possible, publicly, privately,
and share your feedback with us.
And whatever it is that you find beneficial,
feel free to share with others.
Okay, that done and said, moving right along.
Today, what we're going to be talking about
is Surah Tuttur, a beautiful surah, as is
every other surah.
But something about this particular surah, for me
personally, has always stood out for, again, the
intimacy that is communicated between Allah, from Allah
to Rasulullah ﷺ.
How this shows Allah's imminence, His closeness to
the human being, to human pain, in particular.
The way it demonstrates itself here, the way
it demonstrates in this particular surah, it's very
unique.
It's something that you will not be able
to find in many other places.
It's like reaching out, consoling, putting your arm
around the other person, telling them it's okay,
and that you're there for them.
That's as close of an analogy as I
can possibly come up with as to how
this surah reaches out to you.
What I want to do is I want
to actually go over the entire surah.
It's surah number 52.
It's not a very long surah.
It's one of the shorter ones.
Of course, it's not as short as the
surahs in the last juz, the last ibadah,
but it's still only a couple of rukus,
two or three rukus.
So it won't take us long.
It's for those of you who were used
to Ramadan nights, this may be reminiscent of
that.
We used to cover the entire Qur'an
cover to cover there.
So we moved pretty fast and went into
a reasonable explanation, not too much.
But the background is, again, the similar circumstances
to what we have been speaking about.
Rasulullah ﷺ having to face the abuse, the
criticism of the Quraysh in the first few
years in Mecca.
Now, Rasulullah ﷺ was confronted with a lot
of calumny.
He was confronted with a lot of character
assassination, as we have spoken about, and he
felt it.
The Qur'an reassures him, but the Quraysh
keep coming back with more criticism as well.
He's not the only one suffering.
What adds to the pain of Rasulullah ﷺ
is that the people who accept him also
suffer.
That they are tortured, not just verbally, but
physically as well.
The physical assaults on Rasulullah ﷺ are also
there.
They're, of course, restricted because of his status
in the Quraysh, because of the protection of
Abu Talib.
Nevertheless, he was physically assaulted as well, and
we will talk about that.
The assaults against Rasulullah ﷺ are about his
character, about his trustworthiness, about his motivation.
His intent is questioned.
You're doing this for money.
You're doing this for power.
Who is it that you want to marry?
We'll get you married to her.
Who is it that, whatever you want, we
don't make kings, we'll make you king.
Everything was suspected, and it tells us more
about the people that the Quraysh were than
it tells us about Rasulullah ﷺ.
They're coming to Rasulullah ﷺ and saying, what
do you want?
You want power?
We'll make you king.
We don't make kings, but we'll make you
king.
And imagine what can be done with that
power.
So it isn't a small offer.
Rasulullah ﷺ is looking to do good.
Compromising on a part of the message and
accepting power allows you to do a considerable
amount of good, right?
So lesson in history, political situation, you make
compromises, you will have to suffer.
I don't want to get into that just
yet.
The conversation is going to get hijacked.
You already hear a lot of political commentary
as it is.
I don't want to jump the bandwagon.
Rasulullah ﷺ refuses that offer.
He's also offered money.
He's offered, he said how, they literally give
him a blank check.
How much money do you possibly want?
We'll give it to you.
Rasulullah ﷺ is told, who do you want
to marry?
You pick a girl, she's yours.
It's important to note that for the people
of Quraysh, the more intelligent of them, there
is this recognition that this practice of religiosity
and spirituality is rooted in the pursuit of
power, the pursuit of pleasure, the pursuit of
wealth.
And so they plainly put these offers out
on the table for Rasulullah ﷺ.
Take it, let the rest go.
For them, it is inconceivable, unimaginable that there
can be a pursuit of spirituality, of religiosity,
which is above and beyond these things, which
is more than these things, which is actually
based in a commitment to Allah, which is
actually based in getting people what they deserve,
which is actually for truth and justice.
They can't wrap their heads around it.
Their practice of spirituality and religiosity is about
power.
It is about wealth.
It is about pleasure.
And as they make this offer to Rasulullah
ﷺ, they're insulting him by saying, this is
what you're after.
And these insults are, they're compounded by all
the other accusations that are more blatant, more
blunt.
These insults, what adds salt to the wounds
of Rasulullah ﷺ, and that's a very, that's
a gross understatement.
That's not, it was so much more painful
for him.
To see the person who has said labaik
to your call, and to see them physically
tortured in front of your very eyes.
Bilal radiyallahu ta'ala anhu and everything that
he was subjected to, Rasulullah ﷺ was witnessing
that.
Yasir and Sumayya radiyallahu ta'ala anhuma, who
were tortured in the most gruesome ways by
Abu Jahl, that was right in front of
Rasulullah ﷺ.
He could see that.
All the slaves who accepted Islam, and what
they were subjected to, Rasulullah ﷺ saw that.
It was in front of him to accept
all of these offers, and to say, okay,
you win.
Give me the power.
I'll do with the power whatever I can
for that justice, for that truth, for these
people.
For Islam.
For the Riyasat-e-Madinah, I can't help
myself.
He was offered compromises, and he ﷺ did
not accept them.
Allah ﷻ continues to reassure him.
The reassurance that comes in this particular surah,
Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.
Wattur, by the mountain of Thur.
The mountain of Thur representing the experience of
Musa ﷺ.
The experience of Musa ﷺ bears witness to
the experience of Rasulullah ﷺ.
It is a lineage.
It is a prophetic lineage.
It is a continuity.
وَكِتَابٍ مَسْطُورٍ And a written book.
The book that Musa ﷺ was given, the
Torah, the Ten Commandments particularly, they were in
inscribed form, in written form.
فِي رَقِمٍ مَنْشُورٍ On an outstretched parchment.
وَالْبَيْتِ الْمَعْمُورِ By the frequently visited house.
And it is said that these, the first
three ayahs relate to Musa ﷺ.
His struggle was by no means easy.
He didn't get the results that he was
looking for.
Definitely not immediately.
Definitely not always.
He experienced revelation.
Allah ﷻ in reassuring Rasulullah ﷺ is giving
him examples of his forerunners, those who came
before him.
Musa ﷺ being the most immediate example.
وَالْبَيْتِ الْمَعْمُورِ The frequently visited home.
And it is important to, this Bayt al
-Ma'mur is said to be a replica, if
you will, of Ka'bah.
Replica is not the right word, but something
analogous to the Ka'bah in the heavens,
in the seventh heaven, or in one of
the heavens, and angels circumambulated all the time.
It is always filled.
It is always crowded.
It is always crowded.
Rasulullah ﷺ is being given a reminder that
this Bayt of Allah, the Baytullah, the Ka
'bah, the one built by Ibrahim ﷺ in
Mecca, that is not Ma'mur, that is not
frequently visited, or that's not filled with people
the way Rasulullah ﷺ would like.
For one thing, the people who are there,
they're not there for tawheed.
They're not there for what Allah, what Ibrahim
ﷺ stood for, what Allah wants from these
people.
He would want that this house is occupied,
that the people of the world are crowding
in to celebrate tawheed, to commemorate tawheed, and
taking that message back with them.
And the whole world is oriented around this
message of justice and true relationships.
Rasulullah ﷺ would not want anything more.
He's being reminded that, Ya Rasulullah, if Allah
wanted that could have happened, He already has
that.
He already has that, angels are doing it.
And in a sense, this is destiny for
this house as well on earth.
But it is so much more beautiful in
its fulfillment, because it will involve human effort,
human volition, freely chosen struggles and sacrifices, which
will result in the population of this house,
of this Ka'bah, and the people around
it.
We commemorate Hajj every year.
We are pained, we are hurt, when because
of the pandemic, there are not enough people
in and around the Ka'bah the past
two years.
It wasn't a pleasant sight.
What happened to all the pilgrims?
Where did they go?
Why not?
Happened after such a long time.
We're used to that sight of a crowd
of people, like an ocean of people.
Imagine the pain of Rasulullah ﷺ when he
doesn't see that.
He's being shown that in the future by
this analogy that it's already taking place in
the heavens, only now, you're going to do
it.
The pain of your companions, your pain, is
going to pave the way for this bayt
to be ma'moor, for this house on earth
to be populated with people.
والثقف المرفوع and the elevated canopy, والبحر المسجود
and the surging ocean, the sky, the ocean,
إِنَّ عَذَابَ رَبِّكَ لَوَقِّعُ All of this is
bearing witness to one reality, and that is
the reality of the hereafter, that the punishment
of your Rabbi, Rasulullah ﷺ, is going to
be executed.
ما له من دافع No one can avert
it, no one can stop it.
يَوْمَ تَمُورُ السَّمَاءُ مَوْرًا On the day, the
heaven will be in dreadful commotion.
وَتَسِيرُ الْجِبَالُ The mountains will be moving around.
فَوَيْلُهِ يَوْمَ إِذٍ لِّلْمُكَذِّبِينَ So destruction to the
deniers of truth on that day.
Allah ﷻ is resonating with the frustration and
anger of Rasulullah ﷺ and giving a voice
to it.
You're upset, you're angry, so are we.
How dare they do that to you?
How dare they say all of what they're
saying to you?
They're gonna get what's coming to them.
Don't you worry.
You're going to be avenged.
And that is why Allah has this...
It's not unseen all the pain that you
go through and what people go through.
There is going to be a punishment.
No one can stop that.
These people think they can defer it.
Again, see the anger as it comes to
a consolation.
Rasulullah ﷺ's deep-seated hurt, how it's responded
to by Allah.
You're hurt, we're upset.
You're frustrated, we're angry.
Damnation, damn these deniers.
الَّذِينَ هُمْ فِي خَلْدٍ يَلَّبُونَ These are just
people playing around in useless discourse.
The greatest ability that Allah has provided to
any creature which is that of speech and
what do they use that for?
Useless arguments.
Useless discussions.
Impractical discussions.
Very high-minded, intellectual sounding gymnastics.
Oh, this logic and that logic and this.
All of that for what?
No practical outcome.
The world is no better.
All that jargon, all that complex discourse, what
for?
No impact on the world.
Allah is offended by it.
How dare them?
خَوْض That's the sort of discourse خَوْض is.
Impractical, intellectual gymnastics.
No relevance to society.
يَوْمَ يُدَعُونَ إِلَى نَارِ جَهَنَّمَا دَعَى The day
they will be violently thrust into the fire.
هَذَهِ النَّارُ الَّتِي كُنتُم بِهَا تُكَذِّبُونَ This is
the fire that you've been denying.
فَسَيْحٌ هَذَا So is this magic now?
أَمَنْتُمْ لَا تُبْصِرُونَ You just don't see.
إِسْلَوْهَا بَرْنٍ فَاصْبِرُوا وَلَا تَصْبِرُوا سَوَامًا عَلَيْكُمْ Whether
you bear it patiently or not, it's all
the same for you.
It's going to continue to burn.
إِنَّمَا تُجْزَيُونَ مَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ You're being rewarded
for what you used to do.
Sense the anger, how that resonates with Rasulullah
ﷺ's pain.
إِنَّ الْمُتَّقِينَ فِي جَنَّاتٍ وَنَعِيمٍ And now the
consolation from the other side.
The people that are suffering here, Bilal, Yasir,
Sumayya, all of them, for them, for these
people of taqwa, there will be gardens and
pleasure.
فَاكَهِنَا بِمَا آتَاهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ Enjoying what their Rabb
has given them.
وَوَقَاهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ عَذَابَ الْجَحِيمِ And their Rabb will
save them from the punishment of the burning
fire.
قُلُوا وَاشْرَبُوا هَنِي أَمْدِ مَا كُنْتُمْ زَهْمَرُوا Eat
and drink to your satisfaction for what you
used to do.
These people are being denied food and water.
They're being thrust on the desert.
Hungry, thirsty, parched, starving, almost dying.
Allah says they will be given endlessly.
مُتَّقِينَ عَلَى صُرُورِ مَصْلُوفَ Reclining on couches lined
up.
Imagine Bilal رضي الله عنه relining on couches,
couches upon couches, with his companions, with his
friends.
The one that he had a rock on
his back in the desert.
وَزَوَّجْنَهُمْ بِحُورٍئِنْ We will marry them to beautiful
women.
Again, a lot of them, a lot of
the sahaba at that time suffering the torture,
not sure if they're going to make it.
Single men.
Never experienced family.
Don't know what that's like.
Allah says we will give them companionship.
وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَاتَّبَعَتْهُمْ ذُرِّيَّتُهُمْ بِإِيمَانٍ لَحَقْنَا بِهِمْ
ذُرِّيَّتُهُمْ And those who believed in their followers
and iman from their offspring.
We will unite them with their descendants.
Again, there is a threat.
You're not going to be with your family
anymore.
You're going to be taken away from them.
They're going to be taken away from you.
Allah says no, no, no, we'll bring them
all together.
We'll bring them all together.
One of the beautiful expressions of paradise is
that it's companionship.
Togetherness.
وَمَا أَلَتْنَاهُمْ مِنْ عَمَلِهِمْ مِنْ شَيْءٍ We will
not deprive them anything of their deeds.
كُلُّ امْرِهِمْ بِمَا كَسَبَ رَهِيمٍ Everyone is responsible
for what they earn of their own deeds.
Every individual is responsible for what they do
for themselves.
It's not that anyone will be unjustly elevated
to heaven if they haven't earned it.
Yeah, but if they get the baseline right,
heaven, they just qualify for the bare minimum,
they will be elevated to other members of
their family who are higher up.
وَأَمْدَدْنَاهُمْ بِفَاكِهَةٍ وَلَحْمٍ مِّمَّا يَشْتَهُمْ We will provide
them with fruit and meat of their choice.
يَتَنَازَعُونَ فِيهَا كَأْسَ لَا لَغُونْ فِيهَا وَلَا تَأْثِيمُ
And they will be snatching from each other
cups of wine, playing around.
And that wine is not going to induce
any idle talk nor sinful act.
وَيَطُوفُوا عَلَيْهِمْ غِلْمَانٌ لَهُمْ And young boys will
be serving them, circulating among them.
كَأَنَّهُمْ لُؤْلُهُمْ مَقْنُونَ As beautiful as protected pearls.
وَأَقْبَلَ بَعْضُهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ يَتَسَأْمُ They will be
turning to one another asking.
قَالُوا إِنَّا كُنَّا قَبْلُ فِي أَهْلِنَا مُشْفِقِينَ And
they would say, we were among our families
really afraid, fearful.
What was your state in dunya?
Not in complete calm, tranquility, nirvana, peace, yay.
No.
We were afraid.
We were anxious for our families.
We weren't safe.
فَمَنَّ اللَّهُ عَلَيْنَا So Allah conferred a favor
on us.
وَوَقَّانَا عَذَابَ السَّمُو And He saved us from
the torment of the scorching wind.
إِنَّا كُنَّا مِنْ قَبْلُ نَدْعُوهُ We used to
call on Him before.
In that state, in that time, in that
phase in Makkah, their du'a, their connection
with Allah, the desperation with which they turned
to Him and then relied upon Him, standing
strong.
They said that's what we used to do.
State of heart, fear.
State of action, du'a.
And perseverance on that du'a, continuing to
be reminded.
إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْبَرُّ الرَّحِيمِ He is the Beneficent,
the Merciful.
فَذَكِّرْ فَمَا أَنْتَ بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّكَ بِكَاهِنِ وَلَا مَجْلِمٍ
Second ruku begins with very direct consolation.
So Ya Rasulullah, continue to remind.
And you are not, by the ni'mah, by
the favor, by the blessing of your Rabb,
a kahin, a soothsayer.
وَلَا مَجْلُمٍ You're not mad.
You're not crazy.
You're not possessed.
يَقُولُنَ شَاعِرٌ نَتَرَبَّصُ بِهِ رَيْبُ الْمَنُّ Do they
say you're a sha'ir?
Imagine a kid who's bullied and all kinds
of horrible things are said to him and
he goes to his mother crying, devastated, shocked.
Why would they say these things about you?
The mother has her arm around the child
and said, did they say this to you?
Did they call you this?
How could they?
يَقُولُنَ شَاعِرٌ نَتَرَبَّصُ بِهِ رَيْبُ الْمَنُّ They say
he's a poet.
We're just waiting for some misfortune to befall
him for him to just die.
He's just messing with our gods anyway.
He's gonna be struck.
قُلْ تَرَبَّصُ So you go and tell them,
wait.
وَإِن فَإِنِّي مَعَكُمْ مِنَ الْمُتَرَبِّسِينَ I'll be waiting
with you.
All of these promises of paradise, afterlife, all
of that.
No, no, no.
The results are not just gonna come there.
The results are gonna come here too.
Wait and see.
You will see the outcome of these very
abstract attitudes.
صبر, شكر, إيمان You wait and see.
You see what this Tawheed brings.
فَإِنِّي مَعَكُمْ مِنَ الْمُتَرَبِّسِينَ I will wait for
you.
أَمْ تَأْمُرُهُمْ أَحْلَامُهُمْ بِهَذَا Do their intellects tell
them to say all of this?
They're very smart people.
أَمْ هُمْ قَوْمٌ طَاغُونَ Or is it their
sins, their rebelliousness that is leading them to
it?
They think they're very smart.
They have justifications for everything.
No, their intent is devious.
Their motivation is because they can't get out
of that rebellious lifestyle.
That's why they find it so difficult to
accept you.
أَمْ يَقُولُونَ تَقَوَّلًا They say that this man
has invented this Qur'an.
Is that what they say?
بَلَّا يُؤْمِنُونَ In fact, they don't believe.
The humility, the required to believe in what
is facing you, what is confronting you, in
the ayaat, what they're showing you.
They don't have that.
فَلْيَأْتُوا بِحَدِيثٍ مِثْلِ So let them produce something
like this.
إِن كُنتْ كَانُوا صَادِقًا If they really are
true.
أَمْ خُلِقُوا مِنْ غَيْرِ شَيْءٍ أَمْ هُمُ الْخَالِقُونَ
Were they created from nothing or did they
create themselves?
أَمْ خَلَقُوا السَّمَوَاتِ Did they also create the
heavens and the earth while they were at
it?
بَلَّا يُؤْمِنُونَ In fact, they do not.
They're not convinced.
أَمْ عِندَهُمْ خَزَائِنُوا رَبِّكُمْ Do they have the
treasures of their Rabb?
They have a problem that this was given
to you?
So they have control over the treasures of
your Rabb?
أَمْ هُمُ الْمُسَيْتِرُونَ They're the ones who control
it.
أَمْ لَهُمْ سُلَّمُوا يَسْتَمِعُونَ فِيهِ Or do they
have some sort of stairway to heaven?
So they can listen, know what's going on.
فَلْيَأْتِ مُسْلَمِعُهُمْ بِسُلْطَانِهُمْ So then let them bring
what they've heard with clear proof.
They keep on asking you for proof.
Where's their proof?
They keep on asking you to give this
evidence, that evidence, this, show them this, show
them that.
Why don't they hold themselves to similar standards?
Whatever they believe in, do they have similar
level of proof?
Bring it.
أَمْ لَهُ الْبَنَاتُ وَلَكُمْ الْغُنُونَ Or has He
daughters and you sons?
أَمْ تَسْأَلُهُمْ أَجْرُونَ Did you ask them for
a fee?
فَهُمْ بِمَغْرَمِ مَقْبَلُونَ So they're burdened down by
debt, it's so heavy upon them.
أَمْ إِنَّهُمْ الْغَيْبُ فَهُمْ يَبْتُونَ Or do they
have the knowledge of the unseen and they
write it down?
God's getting back at them for Rasulullah ﷺ.
As strict, staring at them in the eye
bluntly.
How dare you say this to my prophet?
How dare you hurt him?
أَمْ يُرِدُونَ قَيْدًا Or do they have a
plan?
فَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُهُمْ الْمَكِيدُونَ But those who have disbelieved
in you, they're the ones in the plot.
They've dug their own graves.
أَمْ لَهُمْ إِلَهٌ غَيْرُ اللَّهِ Do they have
any other god besides Allah?
سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ أَمْنَا يُشْرِغُونَ Allah is glorified above
all that they associate with Him.
Rasulullah ﷺ is being reminded, you're being abused,
Allah is being abused too.
But Allah is exalted above all of that.
وَإِن يَنْوَ كِسْفَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ السَّاقِطِ Even if
they see a fragment of the sky falling
down, يَقُولُوا صَحَابُ مَرْكُمْ they will say, this
is heaped up clouds.
Even if they see the athab in front
of them, they're so much in denial.
Their resistance is so deeply rooted.
Such strong defenses, they're even going to deny
that.
فَضَرْهُمْ حَتَّى يُلَاقُوا يَوْمَهُمُ الَّذِي فِيهِ أَقُولُوا صَلَّتْهَمْ
بِي Until they encounter their day on which
they will be struck insensible.
يَوْمَ لَا يُغْنِي أَنْهُمْ كَيْدْهُمْ شَيْئًا Then their
plans will not avail them at all.
وَلَا هُمْ يُنْصَرُونَ And they are not going
to be helped.
وَإِنَّ لِلَّذِينَ أَوَلَمُوا أَذَابًا دُونَ ذَلَكَ And for
sure, these oppressive people, these unjust people, there
is more punishment aside from that.
وَلَكِنَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ But they have no
idea.
وَاسْبِرْ لِحُكْمِ رَبِّكَ So Ya Rasulullah, keep holding
on to sabr for the hukm of your
Rabb, for the justice of your Rabb, for
the command of your Rabb.
فَإِنَّكَ بِأَعْيُنِنَا So for sure, we do have
you in our eyes.
You're visible.
We see you.
Because it really gets to you, the pain,
the hurt, the liberties that these people have,
that they're doing whatever it is that they're
doing.
And you feel alone.
You really do feel invisible, that no one's
watching, because no one's doing anything.
So this is Allah getting as close as
He possibly can, as close as a human
can possibly experience Him, and saying, we're watching,
we have you in our eyes.
You think you're invisible?
You're so visible, you're in our eyes.
We're carrying you in our eyes.
We're holding you in our eyes.
We're there, we see every single thing that
goes on.
That's as imminent as it gets, that's as
personal as it gets.
In the previous surah, in surah al-Hijr,
we spoke about how Allah says, we know
what's going on.
In other places He says, we hear everything
that goes on.
In here He says, we see what's going
on.
This is as close as you can humanly
conceive.
Seeing, hearing, knowing.
Allah uses all of these adjectives, all of
these non-adjectives, these actions, and says that,
me, you, that's how close we are.
فَإِنَّكَ بِأَعْيُنِنَا You're not invisible.
You're not unseen.
You're not alone.
وَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ حِينَ تَقُومُ So continue to
do the tasbih of your Rabb, and continue
to praise Him when you rise.
وَمِنَ اللَّيْلِ فَسَبِّحْ وَإِذْ بَعْرَ النَّجُومِ And glorify
Him during a part of the night when
the stars fade away.
Allah sees you, Allah hears you, Allah knows
everything that's going on with you.
You continue to hold on to these conversations,
to prayer, to remembering Him, to remind yourself
that you are seen, that you are visible,
very much visible, as visible as it possibly
gets.
Allah sees everything, but He especially sees you
in your pain, in your difficulty.
Don't ever think you're alone.
Don't ever think He's left your side.
He's right there.
He's right there, but He's not going to
coddle you.
He needs you to walk.
He needs you to face this.
He needs you to get stronger, and what
happens when you get stronger, you get closer
and closer to Him.
So hold on to your prayer.
Continue to remind yourself of this experience.
Let your prayer be a prayer in which
you feel the visibility in Allah's eyes.
Experience it.
Let that be how your pain is transmuted
to something so beautiful, something so incredible.
And Rasulullah ﷺ would do that and would
encourage everyone else to do that.
وآخر دعوانا أن الحمد لله رب العالمين