 الشيطان الرجيم بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم رب شرح لي صدري ويسر لي أمر وحل العقدة من لساني يفقه قولي الحمد لله رب العالمين وصل الله على سيدنا وحبيب قلوبنا وشفيع نفوسنا أبل قاسم محمد وعلى البيته الطيبين الطاهرين المعصومين لاسيما بقية الله روحي وأرواح العالمين اللترى بمقدمه الفدأ أما بعد رسبكتد سكولرز، ألدز، برلز وستز، السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته إن شاء الله as a recap as we've been discussing for the last week so it seems we've been discussing particular issues in reference to knowledge the importance of gaining knowledge, the importance of utilizing knowledge and the importance of application of knowledge and we found yesterday as we discussed one of the applications in reference to the aspect of dialogue as we did say that we were going to finalize it in yesterday's topic however I've been asked to talk about particular dot points that I have mentioned yesterday which are in reference to interfaith dialogue and if I could elaborate on that. إن شاء الله I'll start tonight's topic by elaborating on that aspect and إن شاء الله moving on which will be the topic in reference to علي ابن أبي طالب in the upcoming nights and the power and the قدرة that الله سبحانه وتعالى has entrusted in the أهل البيت and especially محمد وقال محمد so to start off tonight's topic إن شاء الله and a recap from yesterday when we mentioned dialogue we mentioned particular aspect in which we looked at علي ابن أبي طالب we looked at the dialogue for إمام رضا علي أفضل الصلاة والسلام when he debates in his منافرة the Christian the Jews and the atheists and the replies that he came up with obviously it was a very long dialogue which I didn't mention all of it because it needs a couple of hours however I looked at particular examples in which the إمام used his knowledge when he uses his knowledge because he knows the people that he's debating he knows what arguments they have and obviously he knows how to reply now the aspect I've been asked to talk about is what are we to learn when there's interfaith dialogue and when I say interfaith in the faith of Islam in different schools of thought whether it be the حنفي مالكي شافعي or حنبلي we find that these are interfaith as in they are in the ككون which is Islam we might have differences of even so to say the idea that we have of prophethood as you know we have the idea that the prophet is infallible other schools of thought of theology of jurisprudence say that the prophet wasn't infallible in all aspects this can be a source of debate and dialogue you may find that we have a difference and remember do not quote something if you want to just realize exactly what I'm about to say we may have not a different God but it's a very important aspect we have a different definition of our God the school of thought of أهل البيت and those from other schools of thought have a different definition of God as you know our God he's infinite when إمام رضا is asked by the Christian where is your God? show him to me and he says in your very question lies your own answer he says what do you mean? he says God cannot be seen if you could see God it means you can objectify him you can limit him to your eyesight therefore he's not infinite he says your answer is in your own question when someone comes to إمام الصادق عليه أفضل الصلاة والسلام he says show me God إمام الصادق says look at the sun the man looks at the sun quickly looks away he says what's wrong he says I can't bear to look at it he says you can't bear to look at the creation that Allah has created do you want to look at the Creator? he says there's no way you can come near the Creator you cannot see him because if you can see him you can limit him if you can limit him is not infinite so there's a massive loophole in which you have to look at and when I say we have a difference in Allah in the context in the idea which is Allah سبحانه وتعالى as you know other schools of thought have the Ahadith in which they believe that Allah سبحانه وتعالى والعياذ بالله rides a particular animal he has a foot to them that he puts it into the Hellfire and it makes the Hellfire keep calm or be quiet objectifying objectifying in our main sources that's shirk in its essence however do we go about when we have dialogue and debate with other schools of thought do we say that you are such and such that you are we can't say that we don't go out and say that because there's no way in which we can have debates there's no way we can have dialogue have you ever found one of our scholars one of someone that's of a pious perspective or characteristics going up to someone which is a kafir and saying that you're a kafir I don't want to talk to you I don't want to debate what did our imams do people and they had this ideology Imam Ali A.S. passes by a church or a synagogue I can't remember but either way the context is what it was a place which was not Muslim that they worshipped in whether it be the synagogue or whether it be the church Imam Ali is riding past it one of his companions and the people that were with him they look at Ali ibn Abi Talib and they want to when we are around scholars and we are around someone that's of a higher educational background you find that you want to kind of impress them or when acting in a certain manner we said yesterday when there was a scholar in the mosque that pretended to pray at a longer period of time because he thought someone walked in so the person next to Ali ibn Abi Talib he says to Ali ibn Abi Talib look at this place it's worn down how much has Allah سبحانه وتعالى has people done kufr in this place how much has Allah's name been lowered in this place how much have people committed atrocities in this place Ali ibn Abi Talib look at the reply Ali could have turned around like anyone of us and says yes well imagine what kind of things were done in this place what knowledge was taught in that place but look at Ali ibn Abi Talib look at how he replies to this man he says why do you always look at that perspective he says why don't you look at this place and say to yourselves how much was Allah worshipped how much was Allah thanked how much was Allah found to be talked to and asked from how much did people want to get closeness to Allah don't always look at the negative aspect of the differences in one manner let's look at what we have in common when in the Quran says hold on to the rope of Allah he realizes to us that there is one path hold on do it don't worry about your differences don't make that the main source of your arguments and the main source of your problems within one another this main source of one party going against another party because if we remember brothers and sisters if we look back 50 years ago was there such an aspect as this particular person is from this sect or this particular person from that sect it's a whole context of divide and conquer nowadays nowadays we find ourselves if this person doesn't believe in a particular ideology from the same merger you find he's denounced he's looked down upon the imams teach us the ethics of dialogue is to look at what's good rather than that which is bad that's why when we have nowadays when we have anything that comes to the surface within our same medheb within تشيئة leave other schools of thought within تشيئة when we have something that we may find as being a controversial topic you find that's the only thing that's being talked about one of the aspects is شعار for example and this is very very very important when شعار come and you find when we're getting closer and closer to محرم the same four topics come to the surface same four topics come to the surface ABCD we all know them and you find people from this particular part of the world this particular part of the world debating these issues if someone believes in this aspect let them believe in it they believe that they're getting closer towards Allah doing this particular action of شعار but you find no other people say شعار that shouldn't be doing it that's a wrong approach that's a wrong approach if they're getting closer towards Allah in a particular aspect who are we to say that this is wrong as in do we have anything from the Imam saying that this is wrong do we have anything that goes against the Ahlul Bayt going against Islam no you believe in a particular aspect not a problem don't take your ideologies and enforce them on others and you can't force someone into religion or thinking in the same manner that you think you can't have everyone in the same wavelength that's why there's an importance of dialogue that's why there's an importance when we look at the religion and how our Imam spoke and we have to cater it on how we speak because someone may come to you and you might not know what their background is what sect of Islam if he's Muslim at all he's saying what kind of person is he what's his thought process I'm gonna go and tell people people came towards Imam Zain Al-Abideen after the massacre in Karbala and they want to come push him see what he says take down notes spy on him go towards Yazid what do they ask him what do you say about Yazid what do you think of Yazid Yazid just killed his father إله الحسين the image of the prophet of Islam Islam he kills him the second G he goes and he massacres and he burns the Ka'bah the Jadar caught fire the Ka'bah people still told today say والأياد بلاد say رضي الله and still today look at the ignorance that we have in society and he tried to desecrate and desecrate to the prophet shrine so this is what they think this is one of our Imam they say these three things that he did people come to Imam Zain Al-Abideen they say what do you think of Yazid they want to take anything from his mouth to say that you know they want to cause fitna look at the reply of Imam Zain Al-Abideen to give us an aspect of knowledge of how to act how to react when someone comes and tells us because we're very easy to give opinions we're very opinionated people of course but is it always in a place where our opinions have to be heard and have to be explored if they may hurt the other person or may cause fitna that's something to think about Imam Zain Al-Abideen replies by saying one thing he could have said anything he could have said Yazid is the person that has alcohols in his courtrooms the person that puts gold chains on his monkeys he enjoys the fighting of the bears the frogs the monkeys and other two animals he enjoys them fighting that's the sport that he used to watch he used to put the monkeys on the horses and watch them ride one day he had a special monkey he actually named that monkey Abaqais many of us might know many of us might not he named the monkey Abaqais one of his best friends was a monkey when a monkey is supposed to ride a horse he hits his head and dies he kills a martyr doesn't shed a tea and he plays with the mouth of Abaqa Abdullah on a plata however when the monkey dies he has a three day and three night commemoration for his monkey tells the people come towards me I want you to give me your commemoration because my monkey died Yazid they come to Imam Zain Al-Abideen what does all of that it says Yazid was a good poet it's the only thing he says it says Yazid was a good poet because he knows the intentions of the people that are asking him they know that his words may be taken against him may cause harm to him that's the perfection of knowledge and where to speak and how to speak Imam Hassan which we celebrated a couple of nights ago Imam Hassan when everyone went against him he was close members that he entrusted the main generals of his army the close companions or so he thought close companions that he trusted in the battlefield that stabbed him literally stabbed him in the leg what did we know everything was against Imam Hassan he didn't have any followers anyone to follow him because Muawiyah was throwing money left right and center he's throwing money that wasn't his he didn't care he just wanted people to come towards him he wanted that chair he's throwing money left right and center in Imam Hassan so called companions Imam Hassan thought to himself I don't have anyone to help me if we continue on this people will die and continue to die so he said I'll write a treaty in this treaty you'll find knowledge eloquence and you'll find what is the essence of dialogue and debate because by your speech by the way you act and react the way you speak can bring out the other person and I'll give you the example of Imam Hassan Imam Hassan of the points that he had in the treaty he wanted to show Muawiyah for who he is he wanted to reveal to the people who Muawiyah is what did he write he says if I sign this treaty and hand over the خلافة number one he says when you die the خلافة goes back to Hussein number one let's see when he died what did the خلافة go did it go back to Imam Hussein he went to Yazid so that's the first point he revealed that Muawiyah didn't follow second point he says all the sunan of the prophet will not be changed you can't have the sunan of the second the third because remember أثمان when he was chosen they gave the option to علي بنبي طالب first they said علي is the best this is after the first خلافة and the second خلافة as we know the first خليفة two and a bit ease he ruled four I believe ten and a bit ease then the third person was أثمان who ruled for thirteen years however before he got the حكم it was given to علي بنبي طالب he says here would you like it what's the essence what's the catch to it he says you have to rule based on the Qur'an the sunnah of the prophet and the sunnah of the first and second خليفة علي بنبي طالب says I won't take it they say why he says I will do with the Qur'an and the sunnah of the prophet because that's what Islam is where does it say in Islam the second and third خليفة I have to follow this sunnah especially if it goes against the sunnah of the prophet of Islam so they said you didn't want it he says no they go to أثمان and says do you want it of course the خلافة or who can reject it give me it takes it Imam حسن tells معاوية he says don't change any of the sunnah of the prophet I'll give you one example of the sunnah of the prophet which was the way he lived or what he did or what he said جمعة what do we all know when is جمعة prayed صلاة جمعة after خطبة دستورك عات when is it prayed what day it's in the name it's in جمعة isn't it on the Friday معاوية goes and prays it on a Wednesday because he feels like it as an example one of the examples I want to pray it on a Wednesday I'm the خليفة of the time I can do whatever I want second point revealed who he is third point he says the companions in the land will not be harmed معاوية prosecuted whoever he wanted third point fourth point he says the شيع the followers of عليب نبي طالب will not be harmed he says it's not a problem I want everyone before the end of رمضان to go and look at how معاوية goes and prosecutes and kills no other but the right hand man of عليب نبي طالب one of عليب نبي طالب's generals the top figures which was actually أبو بكر's son by the name of محمد ابن أبو بكر I want you to go and look at how he killed him how he killed محمد ابن أبو بكر go and look at it and you'll think to yourself what kind of atrocity is this person was capable of the mannerisms in which he killed this companion the mannerisms will leave you speechless honestly if you go and look it up four five he says I want you to stop the cursing of my father عليب نبي طالب on the pulpits he says it's not a problem the cursing of عليب نبي طالب with every أذان was continued up until خليفة آفت أمام بكر's time he stopped it أمر بن عبد العزيز he says I'll stop this because عليب نبي طالب he heard a story in his youth and half of the people that died in bedar he says this is a great man why are we cursing him that's one story he had and he stopped the cursing of عليب نبي طالب معاوية didn't but it's to show us what that dialogue has such an important aspect that it can be used in our mannerism in which you can act the way you associate with other people معا علي has a beautiful statement he says tell me who your friends are and what character is show me who a person's friends are I'll tell you what kind of person he is because it's a reflection of who he hangs around with the example is the blacksmith and the person that goes with the fragrance if you go to someone even if you don't do anything or you've mentioned this you don't do anything you have a person that you associate with don't talk with him don't do any action rather just walk with him towards his work he's a blacksmith he says the prophet says it will be guaranteed some dirt on your clothes and it will be visible he says that's an effect of a bad friend you don't know how it will affect you how it will rub off on you but it will the same is the example of a person that works with fragrance he says if you only go with him walk with him, talk with him he says you don't work with him no but you're just next to him he says that beautiful smell will rub off on you and that's an example of good friends he says number one just being around these people is an aspect one that's without talking now look at dialogue he says look at the dialogue and it gives us examples of how we can act and react to particular situations if you look into the lives of the imams and with our speech process we can take out that which is good about someone and take out that which is negative so let's take this into our lives insha'Allah let's bring up this particular aspect and insha'Allah in the upcoming nights we're going to be discussing the essence which makes our imams who they are I'm not going to go into detail about the stories in which encompass how they reacted with people no, I want to go into the detail of the manifestation of Allah's beauty the power that Allah has given these people why he has given these people these power and this Qudra and what have they done in return and can we achieve that particular what they have achieved and that will be the discussion up until the third ليلة القدر insha'Allah we pray to Allah on this aspect that he may give us the Tawfiq that will act, react and walk like that which Imam صاحب العصر والزمان wants from us with the blessed Surah المباركة الفاتحة but before the three of your loudest صلوات على محمد وقال محمد