 The two prayers that are called the Cool Prayers are the Cold Prayers, Fajr and A'asar. The Fajr, the Sun is just starting to come up and things are a little bit cooler than they are in midday and the same thing at A'asar. In both those times you feel the significance of the coolness. So whoever maintains them, whoever makes an effort to pray them on time. So we're in the chapter of the Kethra or the Plenitude. All of the multi-therias ways of doing good in the D. And one of them is to just maintain these two prayers. There's transitive and intransitive goods. There's a good that is intransitive and that you're the one who benefits. You're devotions with Allah SWT. You're good intentions of Allah SWT, right? This is a way of doing good and then there's transitive benefits which are the benefits that return to others. An effort that you might do for another person. And it can be as small as just smiling as someone. And lightning the gel, lightning the atmosphere. And it can be as much as helping someone out when they have a time of need. And here's one just adhering to the devotions of Allah SWT and he makes these things available. In Hadith number 17. If the slave gets sick or travels, whatever those things that they would do when they're at home or healthy on a regular basis of voluntary actions that are consistent, Allah SWT will give that to them, will record that to them. Subhanallah. So generous, right? You're in the hands of someone who's generous. Part of the Eman is realizing whose hands you're in. You're in the hands of Allah SWT. And part of the beauty of Ihsan is realizing how generous he is. Subhanallah. And it's worth it to invest in some consistent actions because there may be a time when you need them. There may come a time when you can no longer do them. But as you develop the consistency in them, Allah SWT promises that he'll maintain giving you the reward for them. In Hadith number 18. From Jabi Al-Radi Allahu Anhu. Qa'a Qa'ala Rasulullah SAW, Kullum Ma'arufim Sadaqa Every good thing is considered Sadaqa. So there's an edger for the Sadaqa that you're going to give. We understand that as one of those voluntary actions that we gain increase from. But every good turn that you might do to another. Everything that is Ma'aruf. Ma'alumun Orfan Bil Orfi. That this is something that's recognized by the society as being a good thing. And each of it is a Sadaqa. This is a hallmark of Ihsan. This is a hallmark of the way of the believer in the world. About increasing the good in the world. About looking out for the good. Even when the return may not come back to us. But it does come back. Even when we do something for the sake of another and there's no immediate dunya we gain for us. Allah SWT is still going to give a return to you. But more importantly is our affiliation to Allah SWT. Who's all about good. And has made the Deen of Ihsan a way of goodness. Subhanallah. Shaykhuna Musab al-Turkmani. Rahmatullahi alayh. He used to always say when he was teaching he would pause for a moment and say Salli al-Mu'allim al-Nas al-Khayth. Send blessings on the one who teaches people what's good. Or to do good. That was his way of saying say salawat on the Prophet alayh. Salli al-Mu'allim al-Nas al-Khayth. Say, Salallahu alayhi wa salam on the one who teaches people what's good. That's the message of the Fawafil alayhi salatu wa salam. For those who he is ma'aruf too well known to they will know that he's all about spreading what is ma'aruf in the world. And the ones who would follow the Prophet Muhammad alayhi salatu wa salam while knowing him intimately and loving him passionately will also truly be about spreading good in the world. But that good that we would spread in the world is a good that must be ma'aruf. It's not a good that I think is good. It's not a good that makes me feel good. It's a good that people know and recognize this is a good deed. This has actually helped people. This has actually helped me. And it's recognized by the Dean of Islam as being effective as well. So sometimes we have to stop and listen or look at ourselves in the mirror. I see myself as a good person. I see myself as someone who goes around doing good. Sometimes we have to stop and take stock, body ourselves. Am I really doing good or am I just making myself feel good? Am I just inflating my own ego? Or is the good that I do effective because it actually does touch people's lives? SubhanAllah. And for a people whose worldview is all about doing good and bringing goodness to the world, you would think that they would be interested in making these assessments to make sure they're on target, to make sure that the efforts that they're making are on point and effective in the world and making changes in people's lives and of course changes in our own lives. SubhanAllah. He says in Hadith number 19, also from Javier, the Messenger of Allah SAW said, There is no Muslim who plants a tree except that whatever is eaten from that tree is going to be a Sadaqah for him. For her. SubhanAllah, the brothers and sisters in Memphis. First they bought a plot of land in the middle of the city and they built a garden. They handed out the produce. Some families would take some of it home and they would hand it out to the non-Muslim neighbors. And then a few of the churches in the area actually started their own community gardens after that. SubhanAllah, spreading good. It's infectious. Initiated by Muslims and Islam. And of course out of the neighbors, the elders, they knew who got this started. But then that wasn't enough for them. They got another plot of land and a grant from the city and they started a community orchard where they planted trees and they gave the fruit and the produce that came from the tree was out to the neighbors and the neighborhood too. As well as I'm sure some families taking it home. I wouldn't get the specifics from them. Anything that comes from that is a Sadaqah but it doesn't stop there. He says and anything stolen from his trees or produce will also come back to him as a Sadaqah. SubhanAllah. Ajaal min amr al-Mu'min. How amazing is the way is the situation of the believer. Wa la yadza'uhu ahadun illa kaana la wa Sadaqah. And nobody diminishes the produce of his orchard or of his tree or of his effort except that it will still be considered a Sadaqah from him. SubhanAllah. And in another narration he says Wa la yadza'uhu ahadun illa kaana la wa Sadaqah ila yawm al-qiyamah. And no Muslim plants a tree and a person eats from it or an animal eats from it or a bird takes from it except that it will be a Sadaqah for them until the end of time. SubhanAllah. You plant a tree and a tree is something that remains giving and giving and giving. In its seasons. And even after the person has passed away having planted that tree and the tree keeps on giving or the effort keeps on giving or the project keeps on giving or the institution keeps on giving or that amount of time that they spent to help someone else enhance their skills and they went out as a skilled person and are giving to the world and maybe teach someone else again and those people are giving to the world except that it will remain as this Sadaqah area an ongoing, enduring charity that keeps giving returns even when this person has retired into their life of the grave. That is a very good 401k. But we have to look for an effective investment. What is an investment? What is an effort that has sustainability to it? And it's not just a weekend flash in the pan. Oof, lots of fireworks but then all you smell afterwards is the smell of smoke. Right? And nothing remains. What are the types of things that if we look with a civilizational vision if we look with a vision that goes all the way out into the future and we say this is that khayr that will remain in the earth and continue to benefit the population. As opposed to pouring our efforts and our money and our ihtimah and our hem into the Zebed into the foam that will eventually dissipate from the surface of the floodwaters but as for what benefits mankind the population it will remain in the earth. That's what we should be looking for but this takes a civilizational vision and a lot of heart. A lot of heart is not that sincerity that gets you into trouble but you know he means well. A lot of heart is courage to stand up and do what's right even when it's unpopular because you know where this is going and no community can survive without people who have that far reaching vision who see the bigger picture and are just swept away by you know little flashes in the pan and the little fireworks and things like that or he said she said right or whatever is trendy this week there are people who start the trend and set the trend there are the people who see there are the people who understand there are the people who believe and there are others who are the first ones to jump on to the trend and the majority of the people see them but why are they on it because it's trending the person who started the trend there is nothing trending they came and saw something and went to it built it, initiated it launched it because they knew that it met with their convictions it met with something that in their experience of reality and in their vision is important for its own sake and they did it and there are those others who recognize when something is beneficial and they jump on to the idea first released by another and then there are the ones who just follow along maybe even leaders in their own right but they're just talking about this thing they're just trying to do the same initiative because someone else did it and it met with a lot of popularity not because they believe in it but because it's trending that the Muslim is smart and intelligent perspicacious insightful Muslim fear that insight of the believer because he or she looks or sees with a light from Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala what can we do to be in tune with a light that we may receive and shines through us from Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala that's what we should be thinking about Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala now Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala Hadith number 20 also from Jalbir Qa'a Ar-Rada Ben Salimah ayyantatilu kurbal masjid fa badaqa dalika Rasool Allah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam fa qa'ala lahum the tribe of Ben Salimah their homes were far from the masjid out on the outskirts the edge of the city and it was a very long walk to get to the masjid so they had this idea that they would all purchase homes and move closer to the masjid so it would be easier to be present and accounted for and they wouldn't have to walk as far so what are they seeking to what the masjid at Medina is just a building no the teacher in the masjid at Medina and that in and of itself is a really good thing they desire closeness to Rasool Allah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam and why do they want to be close to Rasool Allah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam because he's handsome of course because he has a nice smile definitely because he's for the believers everybody wants to be close to someone who's both and compassionate of course but he's also changing their values he's also filling them with meaning he's also dispensing communication from the one who blew into them of his own created sacred soul that he made for the world and that is attracted to anyone who is not who has a heart and is paying attention and observance watching and seeing what's going on in his world as Allah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam says in the Quran so they want something that's good but when the news of their plan comes to Rasool Allah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam he adjusts their entire perspective we know now the steps that you take to the masjids have a blessing in it but how is it that they were going to know that unless they're informed of it by Rasool Allah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam during that brilliant period where revelation is coming where we're learning about the ultimate reality of the universe and he says to them Naam Ya Rasool Allah Qad Aradina Dariq Naam excuse me Qad badaqani anakom tu riduna an tantatidu qorbal masjid it's come to me that you all want to move closer to the masjid and they said yes messenger of Allah that is our intention and he said bani salimah tribe of bani salimah tiyarakum tuktad aatharakum your homes your traces will be written your home tiyarakum tuktad aatharakum your homes your traces will be written meaning stick to the houses you have now your original homes and stay there because your footsteps will be recorded and subhanallah imagine showing up to Allah and saying ya Allah I didn't get this right and I had these shortcomings and I made a mistake here but the fact that my house was at a distance from the masjid of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam didn't stop me from taking all of those steps to get there back and forth every day subhanallah the same thing applies here subhanallah the same thing applies here drive to the masjid go out your intention is to be in the house of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala your intention is to learn something from Allah's the messenger of Allah from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in the house of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala you want to go out to that masjid to just pray to our cats in the masjid and it's at a distance it's an effort one person might say is so far and there right there is the incitement the enticement let me make that effort to go out remember that what you came away with when you were last at the masjid was it some sakina was it some tranquility of soul was it some type of upliftment and remember that feeling you'll accomplish something or even that feeling that subhanallah I was in the house of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and I had a quiet moment to pray and that gives me a refreshing feeling remember that when you think should I go or should I stay right because it will be written for you even if you get in your car and you drive to your car somebody said to me that subhanallah maybe it will be good to park far from the masjid and walk to the masjid and get those footsteps the driving itself is an effort and that's a good idea but in that very idea is a solution for your majuma we say we don't have enough parking well there is parking it's just not as close as we like to have it but imagine if you parked at a distance where you could find a legitimate place to park with enough time to walk this lunch break suffices for that we understand but then we wouldn't be complaining about the parking lot is too small and because it's too small we're going to have two jumas one after the other we understand the utility and the expediency of having first jumas, second jumas in some places in the country they might even do a third jumas but the fact that our parking lots aren't big enough to make some policy decisions right now but should set us in motion to be planning well how can we rectify this situation such that when we're holding our Juma prayer we're achieving the wisdom of Juma itself Juma comes from Juma not just the word for Friday the day of the week is named for the fact that everybody comes together and not everyone is going to make it out to the Masjid during the five prayers during the week some people only come out for Juma that's the only time you see him and for many people Friday is the one contact point they have with the Dean some of us who are in the Masjid every day, work in the Masjid we're always there everybody we're accustomed to that not being our only contact but for many in the community they at least get Juma and that's when they come and the wisdom behind Juma is that there's one grand mosque in the area now all the smaller Musallahs in the town close down and everybody walks that extra distance to get to the larger mosque and here's one khital khutbah is the word for sermon but also from khataba is the word khital, discourse the discourse on the Dean that understanding of how the Dean works in the current affairs of the world that we're in right now and the entire community on Friday is receiving this single touji this single direction because the one giving the khutbah is a person who is delivering public tarbiyah community level tarbiyah and understand the needs of the community and understand what's going on with the community maybe there's a problem brewing in the community and there is a portion of people who are not handling that problem well maybe there is a there's an anxiety that the community is feeling and from one week to the next the discourse on Friday is going to the entirety of the people and in the way of tarbiyah itself and its philosophy it's taking them each week from level to level this is called pastoral care in this society and our Christian brothers understand this our Jewish brothers understand this and other faith communities understand this and that's why for example in the classical Christian churches here in the history of North America and in Europe the communities take their time to choose who their pastor is going to be who the minister will be because they know they're going to put themselves in that person's hand to receive life guidance and to lead the community so they don't rush into this because they realize what it means and each Sunday the sermon builds on the sermon from the Sunday before and so too is the wisdom of shepherding a flock on Fridays and that's why if we find that the parking lot is too small we should set in motion a plan to get a bigger parking lot or if the mosque is too small then clearly there needs to be a larger mosque when mosques are delivering on their raison d'etre their reason for existence people will find that they can expand their massage because people find that that's the place where they can get the sweet flowing water that they need to quench a spiritual thirst and it will happen the wisdom of Juma is that the entire community is receiving the same message every week and so when they meet one another and operate with one another and even go out into the society there's a little bit of solidarity there's a little bit of unity people are working on the same page because they've understood the same discourse and directives of how we should be growing as Muslims together how the things that we should be avoiding so that we're not polarized and that becomes next to impossible to install in a community or to bring about in a community when everyone's hearing different messages and scheduling problems and all of this and we've got people maybe talking to the Muslims who maybe haven't figured all of this out yet so it's one group's hearing this thing and maybe the person comes and tells the exact opposite to another group and we lose the wisdom of the Juma Subhanallah Yeah In the next hadith 21 Abul-Mundir said as if a man doesn't know a man who is far away from the mosque he doesn't pray Abul-Mundir says that there was a man and I didn't know anyone whose house was further from the masjid than this person but he never missed a prayer and it was said to him once if you bought a donkey if you bought a donkey you could ride it in the darkness, you were not going to trip over anything and you'll get home a little bit faster whether it's riding to the masjid before Fajr or riding home from the masjid after Isha or when the sand is at its harist and you know what it's like to walk on sand with bare feet it would help you during the Ramadhan which is where the word Ramadhan comes from He said I would not be happy of my house was next to the masjid I want to write to the masjid and return to my family and be recorded for me and the messenger heard what this man said and he said Allah has given you Allah has given you all of that that's the power of intention he's not complaining but he's enjoying the fact that his house is that far because he knows that he's showing Allah what he's got he's showing Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala as dedication and he has certainty in the statement of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in the Quran that Allah will not allow the effort of any male or female of a believer to be lost and here is his effort and this is what he has things like this have become a subtlety in our day in our age life can knock you about and everything has to be so brash and straightforward and we lose our grip on the subtleties we lose our grip on the yakeen the certainty in the promise of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and sometimes we lose our memory we forget what Allah has promised we forget where Allah is at we forget the involvement of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and each and every one of our moments and with that heedlessness or that forgetfulness we lose the laddah we lose that sweet taste that sweet pleasure of feeling in the marrow of our bones that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is with us in and present in each of our footsteps during the day he's with us as a comfort he's aware and he's also the cause of what's coming and is looking to be impressed with our responses but this requires A an awareness an attentiveness to the world of subtlety and the remembrance and that's what our dikker is for subhanahu wa ta'ala when we lose something from our effort our project someone takes from it a person who plants the trees and receives that sadaqa we get disturbed we lose our temper we forget the fact that that edger is counted by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala or that effort is recorded by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and it counts for us a sadaqa because we've tried to put good in the world or with good intention we're doing something maybe to benefit our family planting an orchard, making an effort working a job and there's some losses incurred maybe even someone comes and steals from it but good went somewhere in the world and that's the mark of the believer that's the worldview of Islam that the believer is here to increase that volume of good in the world and this is a hikmah and a wisdom for which Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala was subhanahu wa ta'ala and the idea of orchards I was once talking to one of my neighbors in midan in Damascus and they said you know that place where midan sadaqa is where the railroad tracks are and for a period I lived next to the Hejaz railway the railway station that used to go from Medina all the way to Damascus if anybody's ever seen the movie there's always attacking the Ottomans they're always attacking the Ottomans on the railway trying to derail the trains that's the train tracks and they used to go by my house and there are new buildings there and they said all of that used to be orchards and this man is telling me that my grandfather used to have an orchard and he was recounting what it was like to visit the orchard and all of this and he said you know he used to do something interesting that and a lot of the orchard owners used to do this and they called the orchard a ha'il because it would be surrounded by a wall inside of the trees so they would call it a wall and when they went to take all of the oranges or apples or whatever it is that they were producing lemons they would get the bushels ready to be taken to market but they would take a small percentage and they would put it in bins right outside the door of the orchard and anyone who wanted could just walk by and take whatever they wanted and go on their way and I said subhanallah they really used to do that he said yeah they used to do that I guess it's just the custom I said subhanallah don't you remember and the orchard Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says and the family that owned the orchard they said this year when we harvest we're going to go out really early in the morning so that none of the the poor people will see us taking the harvest and we're going to take it all away from the orchard we're going to take it all to market and then nobody is going to come and make us feel like we have to give them some right and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says so they got up that next morning right they went out in secret and they went down to the orchard but because of their intention by night Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala had sent a world wind that whipped up and destroyed the entire orchard such that when they got to their spot they looked and they said we must have taken a wrong turn because this is not how we left it in the wrong place but it ended up being the right place and they realized that they had made the wrong intention and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala had given them a spanky but what's interesting to me is how a whole society takes these things to heart and implements these things into their cultural practice to the point where people don't even realize where this practice originated subhanahu wa ta'ala that they integrated into their way of life teachings from the Quran these are Muslims these are believers they're not wearing Islam or even Quran on their shirt like a badge they're listening to the Dean they're hearing the resonances and they're seeing what it can do for their society their understanding that the wisdom the khikmah at the heart of zakat is community solidarity that's the khikmah that's there that your wealth not become a monopoly amongst some people involved and that people at different levels of life according to the design subhanahu wa ta'ala feel that everyone is looking out for everyone it adds to the unity of the society it's so palpable and so clear when we live in traditional societies where the wealthy and those of slimmer economic means are seeing one another on a regular basis and living together and it's clear how there's a need for that solidarity but when everyone's separated out with distances and they only see people from their same economic class and the others are over here we begin to think that we don't need that type of solidarity but there's always a need for solidarity you know and there's practical reasons for that need and there's spiritual reasons for that need and Islam is there to give us all of these different types of healthy things that we need even in the instructions of the relationship between a man and a woman and a husband and a wife there are things we're busying ourselves trying to shove Islam around and re-massage it and make it into something that suits us because of our sensitivities in the 21st century instead of trying to learn and understand why Islam is saying the relationship between for example a man and a woman or children and their parents should be the way it is which might bring a good, sustainable and enduring health to us and to our relationships subhanAllah we just need to listen and we need to understand and that's part of what it means we need it to believe Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is in charge Rasulullah is leading us and we're the followers we're not dictating to them how things should be we might learn something and we might gain from that learning we'll close here inshallah and we'll pick up next time with hadith number 21 barakah lafikum alhamdulillahi rabbian anameen our praise is due to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala our greatfulness is due to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala we ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to always keep our hearts conscious of his blessings and always keep our tongues wet with greatfulness and thanksgiving to him an awareness that we don't walk on the face of this earth except by the grace of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala we ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to give us a deep understanding that will be a comfort to our hearts and a light in our way and we ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to keep the love of Rasulinaas as an eternal spring in our hearts and that he show us the face of the messenger of Allah in our dreams we ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to bring good health and strength to our families both in their bodies and in their minds and in their hearts we ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that our efforts in this world be an illumination and a light in our graves that we will inevitably reach but with a good ending we ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to keep the love of Rasulinaas as an eternal spring in our hearts