 A sound hadith related by Sayyidina Anas Ibn Malik that the Messenger of Allah SAW said If A'lul khayra dahrakum, do the good in your entire lifetime. Wa ta'arradu lina fahati rahmatillah, but turn yourselves to the breezes of Divine Mercy. Do the good in your entire life, but turn yourself, make yourself ready and avail yourself of the breezes of Divine Mercy. Because there are times when there are special opportunities that Allah SWT facilitates. And one of these times is the month of Ramadan, but in our lifetimes each of us knows that there are opportunities where there's some good that we could do, some act of care, of concern, of assistance of turning to Allah SWT that one could avail oneself of an opportunity of drawing close to Allah SWT that we could take. So the Prophet SAW said, do the good your entire lifetime, but make the most of the breaths of Divine Mercy. Wa ta'arradu lina fahati laa, fa'inna lillahi azzawajal nafahati min rahmatihi, yusibu biha man yashā'u min ibadih. For Allah has breaths of Divine Mercy, these winds of opportunity that reach whomever He wills of His servants. So turn yourself to those opportunities. And one of those opportunities is this month. And what is the opportunity in this month? The opportunity in this month is not simply the acts of good that we do. The opportunity in this month is not the acts of good that we do, but what there a means to. Allah SWT tells us in Surat Al-Baqarah about the month of fasting. And what is it a means of? That But what people don't pay attention to, that even taqwa of Allah SWT is not an end in itself. Thankfulness of Allah SWT is not an end in itself. Typically when people quote the verses on fasting, they quote verses 183 to 185. But many of the scholars of tafsir and the ulema of Islam have mentioned that the ultimate purpose of fasting is mentioned in the very next verse. After the verses of fasting, the very next verse is And if my servants ask you regarding me, then I am indeed near. If my servants ask you regarding me, what is my reality? I am indeed near. I am close. This is the purpose of fasting. The acts of worship that we engage in. Those spiritual aims that we have of attaining taqwa of Allah, of attaining thankfulness for His blessings, these are all means to what? To closeness to Allah SWT is what we should be striving for and which fasting opens a door of realization for the one who reflects. And Allah SWT tells us I answer the call of the one who calls upon me when they call. So let them answer my call because we call upon Allah and this calling upon Allah of course is not just through dua. Your prayer, your fasting, your charity and your life are all potentially calls to Allah SWT. The sincere believer, their state at any moment is expressing a calling upon Allah. The righteous believer breathes with a sense of neediness for Allah. Their state calls to Allah. They are yearning for Allah SWT. I answer the call of those who call upon me when they call. But then Allah SWT says So let them answer my call. And let them believe in me. So that they may be rightly guided, rightly guided to what? To realize that closeness, that is reality. And very often we forget the higher aim of our religion. That what are we seeking in life? And ultimately it is this reality of closeness to Allah SWT in the Hadith related by Imam Bukhari. And it's a Divine Hadith, it's a Hadith Qudsi. The Prophet SAW relates that Allah SWT says whoever shows enmity to a friend of mine, to one of the Awliya of Allah, I declare war upon. And then who are the Awliya of Allah? Those beloved to Allah SWT. Allah SWT tells us, my servant draws close to me by nothing more beloved to me than what I've made obligatory upon them. And my servant continues to draw close to me through supra-rogatory works until I love them. But who is a friend of Allah, someone who's close to Allah SWT? The acts of good, both obligatory and supra-rogatory are Nawafil, the Sunnahs. These are means, they're not ends in themselves. But they're the necessary means to what? To attain closeness to Allah SWT. And this is a reality that is repeated. And we recite Surat Al-Waqe'a. And Allah SWT tells us of three categories of people. There's those of the left hand who are the failures, who fail, who turn away from Allah SWT. But then of those who are successful, there's Ashab-ul-Yameen, the people of the right. But then, what's the other category? There's the Muqarrabun, the Sa'biqun, the foremost. Wa Sa'biquna Sa'biqun ulaika al-Muqarrabun, the foremost. Who are they? Ulaika al-Muqarrabun, they're those who've been brought close to Allah SWT. And this is something that we should reflect on because it's a reality that Allah SWT reminds us of. In Surat Al-Fatih, Allah SWT categorizes His creation, actually His servants from amongst creation into three levels. In Surat Al-Fatih, verse 28. Amongst them are those who have wronged themselves. Wa minhum muqtasid. And amongst those who are, and muqtasid has several senses. Those who are moderate, who are doing a moderate amount. Or it can also mean that they're between excellence and struggle. Sometimes they do well, and sometimes they have serious struggle. Wa minhum Sa'biqum bil-khairati bi-iznillah. And amongst them are those who outstrip others by permission of Allah. Outstrip others in what? In drawing close to Allah SWT, in attaining closeness. So all these spiritual works that we're engaged in, and all the great social dimensions of Ramadan that we're engaged in, we should strive to make these clearly a means of seeking the closeness of Allah SWT. Don't just have an iftar because, oh my goodness, I've invited my uncles for iftar. So you just invite them for iftar just because make all these actions means to seek closeness to Allah SWT. There's people in Canada who are kind of worried because I just came from Toronto because there's a phenomenon that Muslims are congregating in large numbers at 12.30 at night at Tim Hortons. Which is like our more refined version of Dunkin Donuts. And there's like long lineups at 12.30, quarter to one, one o'clock. I know because I've been part of those lineups. So you take your kids for some donuts or some ice cream at one o'clock at night. And you could just do it because they're kind of upset that they had to be in Tarawih. I was standing next to this one kid at our Tarawih in Toronto. And after six rakaz, the ma'am got up and said, Allah, but the kid looked up at his dad and said, there's more. So you just did it to placate your kids. But all of these things, why would you do it? To seek closeness to Allah, to earn His pleasure through the good in all its manifestations. But to be able to seek the closeness to Allah, there's a few things that we need to remind ourselves of. The first of them is to be able to seek the closeness of Allah, we need to gain beneficial knowledge. What is beneficial knowledge? Imam Ghazali defined it really beautifully. He said, it is the knowledge that will enable you to draw closer to Allah. And it's not just what's called the BIM, the bare Islamic minimum. That you just want to know, can I get out of the haram? But there's much more than that. For example, this recently, a few of us were going through the sunnas of travel. We were covering the fifth of travel in this class. So I paused and covered, Imam Naoui in his encyclopedic work on Majmour, covers 62 sunnas related to travel. And there's amazing sunnas, almost 10 of them. If you want to learn about what Islam has to say about the treatment of animals and the environment, read the sunnas of travel. Many of those don't apply directly to us, although they do at one level, because if you treat your car properly it will pollute less and give you more mileage and it's advantageous. But 8 to 10 of the sunnas relate to how you treat your animal and travel, which teaches you so much just about the broad ethos of our religion. That not only do you take care of the animal but Imam, the expression of Imam Naoui is that you take care of the best interests of the animal in terms of how long you ride the animal. How much you burden it with when you stop. And he mentions a whole number of considerations related not just to fulfilling the rights of the animal but the best interests of the animal. To learn how to draw closer to Allah, we need to gain knowledge that I'm traveling. There's all kinds of opportunities. And you appreciate not just by the things you do but you appreciate the beauty of the teachings of the blessed Prophet, one of the sunnas of travel is that if you're going in a group and you're either the person responsible for the group or you're able to assist the group, the sunnas to walk behind the group. And it's not just out of humility, it's out of practicality. If you've ever been at an airport, one of the common things to see is these young people who are carrying all the luggage and stuff and they look back and their elderly parents are lost like 20, 30 steps behind or the kid ran into the toy shop because the parents got ahead. The Prophet, Salaam, used to walk behind his companions. Why? To look, did someone need assistance? Could someone be helped? Is someone struggling so they should slow down a bit? So he was commanding the people he was going with from behind. And it also expresses humility. It's not just, okay, follow me. It's going together. There's many, many lessons to be learned from it. But this is a critical aspect and very often we get complacent, right? Because seeking beneficial knowledge is not just, okay, I know how to pray, I know this, I know that. My Deen is in functional mode. But it is about bringing excellence, bringing the beauty of the prophetic way is taking advantage of all those opportunities that the Prophet, Salaam, has shown us of seeking the closeness to Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. And that's something one should always connect to. This is why the Prophet, Salaam, said in the Hadith related by Bukhari Muslim whomever Allah wishes well for, من يُرِد إِلَّهُ بِهِ خَيْرًا يُفَقِهُ فِدِّينَ He grants deep understanding of religion. Deep understanding of religion is what? Is to have the ability and understanding to seek Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala in whatever circumstances he's placed you in. Like how do you seek Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala at work? There's all kinds of sunnahs related to work. And many people when they become religious, they see work as a distraction from their spiritual life. But if you look at the sunnah of the Prophet, Salaam, your work is central to your spiritual life. It is a key daily spiritual work you engage in. The Prophet, Salaam, said, طلب الحلال فريضة بعد الفرائض that seeking Allah for living is a duty after the prescribed duties. That it too is of the most beloved means of drawing closer to Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. But how do you do that? You need to gain understanding of religion to be able to seek Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. And that's a commitment that one should be nurturing in this month. That how do I take the means of drawing closer? Knowledge is not just about learning new things. It's also about reminding oneself. If you did a personal analysis and you looked at your prayer and ask yourself, are they sunnahs that I'm forgetfully omitting? You could try this. Any one of us could easily identify five sunnahs that we don't do just because, oh, I forgot about that. Or, you know, just you stopped caring about doing that. One of the benefits of knowledge is that it reminds you of what you already knew. Otherwise, you just read the Qur'an once and I read it. You keep repeating it because the lessons take time to be internalized. The second key of seeking closeness to Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala is that you have to bring consistency in your spiritual works. The Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, is described by his beloved wife, Sayyid-e-Aisha and that the most beloved of religion, meaning the most beloved of religious practice to the Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam and therefore to Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala was that which was done most consistently by someone. Because that consistency is indicative of sincerity, of trueness. And that's one of the things that one should be thinking of as we slowly begin to enter the second half of this month. That of the spiritual works that Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, has reminded me of in this month, what can I make part of my consistent routine? And what routine of fasting will I have after Ramadan? What routine of night worship will I have? The Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, but the ulama mentioned the hadith about praying eight rakahs at night. The Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam used to do that in Ramadan and after Ramadan. And one of the wisdoms why the ulama mentioned that hadith in the chapter on tarawih is that if you do tarawih in the month of Ramadan, there's something that comes after. Which is this is meant to be a bridge to bring the sunnah of night worship into one's life. Look at the other spiritual works. How does one bring them in a consistent basis, your Quran, etc. And to strive to bring excellence into them. Each of those things that you do in your religious life have this commitment. How will I be able to seek Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala through it? And to be always working on that. The third, and this is arguably the most important means of seeking the pleasure of Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, is that you have to always remember that the way of seeking Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala does not relate only to your relationship with Allah, but it relates to how you are with Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala's creation. The believers most perfect in faith are those best in character. They're not those who are best in worship and prayer and Quran. It's those who are best in character. The closest door to the pleasure of Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala is how you conduct yourself with his creation. And that's something that you have to be thinking about in this month. That how do I change my relationship with Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala's creation? Because that is the key to changing your relationship with Allah. You want to know what you're standing with Allah is, look at how you are in challenging encounters with other people. When someone annoys you, when someone upsets you, when someone says those harsh words, how do you respond? The believers most perfect in faith are those best in character, said the Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam. And where is this tested? It is tested in three relationships. And you want to see where you are in terms of closeness to Allah, look at how you are with your parents. The Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said, the pleasure of Allah is in the pleasure of one's parents. And Allah's displeasure, Allah's anger is in their anger. So ask yourself how you are in that relationship. How are you with your spouses in the hadith on the perfection of faith being excellence of character? It's a Sahih hadith related by Imam Tirmani. The Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam continued. And the best of you are those best to their spouses. And so if you're coming every day to the Masjid and praying Sunnahs, but you're harsh and mean and rude to your husband or your wife. This means that you have the forms of Islam, but its realities are not yet in your heart. And you need to rectify, because if you want to seek the closeness of Allah, you will not attain it without working on how you are with His creation. And the third critical relationship is how you are with children. The Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said, whoever is not respectful of our elders and merciful to our children is not of us. And that's critical. How are you with your children? And it's not how you are generally. It's when they test you is when character is manifest. When they annoy you, when they upset you, you convince yourself to get the new MacBook Pro with the retina display. And you're looking at it and your kid came and he saw some cartoon or something and threw it out of the window and it smashed. How are you then? That's the test of your character. And so this is one of the keys. Like how are you with Allah's creation? If you want to seek the closeness of Allah, remember the words of the Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam. It is only the merciful who are granted mercy by the all merciful. Be merciful to those on earth and the Lord of the heavens will be merciful to you. So you ask yourself, if I'm seeking the closeness to Allah, how am I with Allah's creation? And finally, in terms of seeking the closeness to Allah, one of the most important Sunnahs of the month of Ramadan A lot of people neglect is to make a great amount of dua during the fast. The Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said there's three categories of people whose dua is not rejected. One of them is the fasting person until they break their fast. And this is a Sunnah throughout the day to make dua and particularly when breaking the fast. Imam Shafi said as Imam Naoui relates from him in Kitab Al-Adkar that it is understood from the Sunnah that one should make dua not only for oneself and one's family and the people one knows but one should also be actively making dua for the general interests, the masalih of the believers and of humanity. You should be making dua for rain, you should be making dua for food prices not to go up because of the drought for relief for Allah's creation, you should be making dua for the environment. The Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam made dua for the milk that was in the udders and the crops that were in the fields that's part of concern for Allah's creation to make extensive dua and what does dua express? Dua expresses that meaning of closeness of recognizing your neediness to Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala and all creation's neediness for the mercy of Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala. So take advantage of that opportunity and the best of what you could ask from Allah is what he asks of you. The best of what you could ask Allah is what he asks of you. So these are three of the keys to seeking the closeness to Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala. The first being seek beneficial knowledge, knowledge that enables you to seek Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala and his closeness in your life. Secondly, have consistent spiritual routines of worship that you sustain throughout your life because that's the sunnah of the Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam. And the third is transform the way you are with Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala's creation. Have deep concern. What is religion? Addinun nasiha. Religion is sincere concern. Religion is sincere concern. None of you believes until they wish for others as they wish for themselves. That's not wishful thinking. It is wish that is concern expressed in righteous conduct when tested in those relationships, particularly with your parents, with your spouse, with your children. And that concern is manifest in your dua. What you care about in your relationship with Allah is manifest in what you ask Allah in your dua. What do you ask for in dua? Do you just parrot some words or just make demand lists to Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala? Or are you truly seeking his closeness and pleasure and love? And what you ask for his creation? How much dua do you make for others? That's a sign of how much you care about them. And these are tremendous days of opportunities. We'll close with this Hadith Qudsi. This Divine Hadith that the Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi Wasallam relates. That Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala says, إذا تقرب العبد إليه شبرا تقربت منه ذراعا that if my servant draws close to me by a hand span, I draw close to them by an arm's length. وإذا تقرب إليه ذراعا تقربت منه باعا and if they draw close to me by an arm's length, I draw close to them by two arm's lengths. وإذا أتان يمشي أتيته حرولا and if they come to me walking, I rush to them. This is the mercy of Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala. That door of mercy is always open. And we just have to direct ourselves to it and turn to it. And find a way of actually walking on the straight path. We are on the straight path if we have faith but we always ask, إِحْدِنَ الصِرَاتَ الْمُسْتَقِيمِ guide us to the straight path. Because you want to be of those who are taking consistent steps of seeking the closeness to Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala. This is the opportunity that we have throughout our lives. Do the good. Your entire lifetime said the Prophet ﷺ but Allah has in the days of your lifetime divine breaths of mercy. So avail yourselves of them. If my servants ask you regarding me then I am indeed near. This is what Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala tells us of this month. I am indeed near. I answer the call of the one who calls upon me when they call. So let them answer my call. Let them truly believe in order that they be rightly guided. We ask Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala to be of those who answer the divine call, who seek his closeness and who take the means of attaining his closeness and Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala does not let down the hopes of anyone who hopes in him. Since we are in this month of striving I just wanted to share just some of the guidance of the Prophet ﷺ and the early Muslims about rushing to make the most of the moments of one's life. The beloved Messenger ﷺ mentioned in the Sahih Hadith that There are two tremendous blessings that most people miss out on. Two blessings that most people miss out on, right? That they cheat it off, right? Because the term maqbun is from losing out in a transaction and Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala describes this life as being a transaction, right? Allah bought from the believers themselves and their money so that Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and their wealth in exchange for paradise. So this life is a transaction, right? And what you put into it, it's an investment. What you put into it is that you will have the return and the hereafter. The Prophet ﷺ says, There's two tremendous blessings that most people miss out on. What are they? Al-sikhatu al-faragh, right? Health and free time. And this Hadith is a Sahih Hadith related by Imam Bukhari and others and there's a number of similar narrations, right? Two great blessings that most people miss out on. Health and free time. And that health they say is at different levels. The health that you lose out on one is the health of youth, right? When you have strength and once you reach adulthood after a certain stage you're only going to get weaker and you're only going to get less able but the other aspect of losing out on it is the fact that while your heart is still beating while you're still breathing you still have some semblance of health. And as long as you have it, make the most of what you have, right? Make the most of what you have. Don't lose out on whatever you have because sometimes people say, Well, you know, what can I do anymore? I'm sick, I'm not well, this and that, but you still have the basic health. As long as you're breathing you can be remembering Allah ﷻ. You could be doing the good that is facilitated. But one of the other aspects of that as well is to see that that health is a trust from Allah ﷻ. It is a trust from Allah ﷻ and taking care of your health not just because you want to live for a long time but rather because this is the abode of opportunity. The Prophet ﷺ was asked who are the best of people. He said Whoever's life is long and whose actions are good. So being a little careful about what you eat at Suhur is a religious consideration. Not just because it's not a good thing to eat too much but because the preservation of your health is part of intelligence. Because you're trying to maximize the good that you can attain in this life because you want to maximize the returns in the hereafter. You want to attain Allah ﷻ as closeness. As one of the alimah put it so beautifully said your body is a horse that you ride into infinity. Your body is a horse that you ride into infinity. So take care of it. This is your don't lose out. And just to look at the kinds of things people do around Ramadan. You say we have some spectacular cases of ultimately it's foolishness the way we can take care of our bodies. You eat so much you're not able to get up for tahajjud. You eat so much you're not able. A lot of people say I had so much at so and so the star I couldn't even make it to Taraweeh. Masha'Allah that's great. So there's two tremendous blessings that most people miss out on. Health and the other is free time. But health we should really look at one the moments Allah ﷻ has given us of health that when you find within yourself the ability to pray standing to do these things make the most of it. Even if you're sick you still have the basic health and it's a religious responsibility. Why? It is the Fouqaha tell us it is personally obligatory to take the means to have the health that enables one to fulfill one's religious obligations. Which includes for example taking care of your health such that you're able to pray standing someone who out of their own remissness doesn't take care of their health so they're not able to pray standing they will be culpable for that because they've fallen short of worshipping Allah as he has commanded. There's things that are out of one's control. You have an accident you have a bad back trouble this and that but someone who just overeats and doesn't take care of their health etc. that could well be sinful. Similarly to have the health by which you are able to fulfill your worldly responsibilities in terms of earning a lawful living etc. This is a religious obligation and taking care of one's health for the sake of Allah ﷻ is a door of drawing closer to Allah ﷻ. The other tremendous blessing is time. Two great blessings that most people lose out on. Cheat themselves off. Free time. And one of the biggest lies that people say is I'm busy. And it's a lie. Many of the early Muslims there's certain things that they didn't like asking people nor did they like responding to. One of them was, How are you? They said it's both the question and the answer are dishonest. If I were to ask, How are you? Most of the time no one wants to hear that well there's 10 problems right now. It's like how are you? You don't really mean the question and the person will say I'm fine. They don't really mean the answer. Imagine you go to someone's iftar and say Uncle how are you doing? And they say You don't know all the trouble. What's wrong with this guy? Abu Talib Al-Meki mentioned this in Khutul Khur. Many of the early Muslims didn't like asking that question and they didn't like answering it. And similarly, another question that they didn't like was what's going on? How are things? Why? Because again the question is not honest and the typical answer would be seeing things like oh I've been really busy. It's a lie. And most people actually they say people who spend extra hours at work it is very rare that people put in extra hours at work are actually working. And it's just part of how the human being works that people like the stress so people have like a big deadline coming most people aren't actually doing a lot of hard work. They're sort of putting things off and drinking some coffee and stressing, doodling, surfing other websites, doing other things. I said oh my god the deadline's coming. And it's rare that someone's genuinely putting in 60, 70 hours a week. There's always a lot of fluff time. It can be clear fluff where they're just pretending to work and they're doing other things or they're doing other things on the side. And are you really busy? Usually the answer is no you're not. No you're not. Or okay, even if you are working 10 hours a day at work, 12 hours a day what's happening the rest of the time? What's happening the rest of the time? A lot of times when people get religious one of the questions they start asking is how do I reduce the number of hours I sleep? And the prophet saw I mentioned that excess is not in sleep. Excess is in waking. Don't worry about whether you're sleeping 6 hours or 8 hours. That's only a quarter or one third of the day. What's going on the rest of the day? What's going on the rest of the day? And that's something to ask oneself that the hours of one's day are we using them in a manner that optimizes one's standing with Allah SWT. They mention about the main teacher of Imam Abu Hanifa Hamad ibn Abi Sulaiman that if he said to Hamad that if you die tomorrow you won't be able to do anything that if Hamad was told that you're dying tomorrow he would not be able to increase in his good works because he was already going full tilt. And you see people like that who are that careful of their time. Imam Ahmad used to make dua for one of the biggest criminals of Baghdad whenever he was mentioned he would noticeably make dua for him so he was asked like why do you make dua for this man? He's a criminal. He said because when I consider this man and the vileness of what he's engaged in but then I look at how much he is striving to fulfill his vile aims I can't help but reflect on my own life and the nobility of what I'm striving to pursue and he reminds me of how intensely I should be pursuing that noble matter. These are signs like you know I had for no good reasons I had Sahur at a friend's house right in downtown Toronto after Sahur we prayed fajr and we're walking outside it's like 5.30 in the morning downtown we're walking there's fitness centers or there's one of my friends called the fitness centers they have the glass windows because they want people to see it and there's like most of the we walk by two or three of them I don't know where we're going actually because we could have taken a cab right in front of his house we're just talking about changing the world and they're half full at like 5.30 in the morning why? because people are seeking dunya and they're seeking it intensely but one should consider like in your time what are you trying to maximize are you losing out on time and that is one of the things one of the great spiritual works in the month of Ramadan is a work in which you're not actually doing anything outwardly it is reflection and one of the things to reflect on is your life and how are you spending your time and to do some personal accounting that my weekly schedule what do I actually do and a lot of times you ask people do you spend time with your children I'm so busy etc but it's not real because we have escapist tendencies and now we have a lot of comfort zones it's very easy to get into an internet argument with someone about something random I'm too busy for my son when's the last time you had a conversation with your daughter things are so hectic and stuff they're not we waste a lot of time you're following the Olympics and then you actually ask yourself do you really care about a lot of the Olympics aren't even sports there's an 80 year old there's an 80 year old horse riding this is an Olympian who's like 80 years old competing or this one in shooting what do they call it yeah no no shoot they shoot these guns I'm sort of this lady who's 8 months pregnant who's competing in the Olympics why do you care about how someone can shoot what does it do for you and you ask was there a big deal a lot of it you're emotionally attached to soccer it makes you happy but do you need to watch that much of it a lot of things that we do really to take oneself to account how are you spending your time it's not a question of just add extra worship of Allah one of the greatest doors of drawing closer to Allah is our social relations how much time do you spend with your parents how much time do you spend in excellent ways with family how much time do you spend serving others little things that have tremendous consequence but I'm too busy for that and it's not a question that you're too busy for too much of our time because in reality I'll sound like a friend of mine who's a senior HR manager for a very large company we're talking about like hiring someone for something broadly there's two theories of who you should hire one thing is to look at who's available but another way of hiring someone is look at who's the busiest person and give them the job I said why because the person who's busiest already is making the most of their time they're already doing eight things they could probably squeeze the ninth thing in but the person who's not really doing anything if you give them that one thing to do they probably won't do that either so this is something that requires serious reflection and that's why there's an entire surah about time and to look at how one is directing one's time one of the best things you can do in this month is to fix your direction in life so that you can honestly say what that my prayer and my devotion my life and my dying are all for the sake of Allah the lord of the worlds so this is something that one should be thinking about in this month this is one of the great wisdoms that there's both a spiritual dimension to this month and a deeply social dimension to this month so that we can recalibrate our social relations and they have the iftar is a sunnah we know that there's great reward in it so we can recalibrate those relationships as well and direct ourselves to Allah both by devotions and in our social life so take some time out and sometimes it helps to actually write these things down ask yourself how do I spend my time and how do I change the way I spend my time it's not just what you spend your time on but the things that you do themselves how do you use them the hours at work that am I going to work with a high am I working for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala what are the sunnahs of the prophets related to work such as keep your tongue moist with the remembrance of Allah have multiple high intentions in your work what are the opportunities of worship of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala at work people take breaks in the mid morning you know even productivity wise it helps to take breaks but you take that break spiritually you go pray salat al doha you look at what are other sunnahs related to work and there's dozens of sunnahs related to work you go to work with the intention of upholding good character of being of assistance to others it changes your attitude at work you're not just sort of minding your own business but you're striving to be of assistance to others so you go for your lunch break you know someone else on your work team they're not taking a lunch break because they have a deadline because they're slacking off the last three days so you go grab them a coffee and a sandwich maybe or something why you're not just working with what's called the GSB the general state of blah you're working with spiritual purpose that I'm here at work to seek the pleasure of Allah SWT by the way I conduct myself with work by the way I do the work itself the work itself is meant to be spiritual because you're trying to excel in that work not just because you want to get ahead in your career but because Allah is beautiful and he loves beauty Allah has decreed excellence in all matters so that work has a spiritual purpose you have the intention that people benefit from this work in the best of ways as you're thinking about your career you're thinking not just about how do I get to a place where I can make more money or have more procedure but you're thinking about how do I earn the pleasure of Allah SWT in my career because this time that Allah has gifted me with I want to maximize the good in it so you see okay what are career choices where I could be of greatest benefit to Allah's creation which maybe right now you're stuck in something that would be hard to argue of particular benefit but it pays the bills and said it's good but you could have a plan to gradually go to something that is of genuine benefit in some industries frankly some lines of work like if you're in the pharmaceutical industry there's some the kind of medicine that you're doing you're involved with is deeply problematic but pays the bills how can I be transitioning gradually to a genuine benefit to creation and that changes one's thinking so look carefully at your life and it helps to write these things down just look at what you do in the course of the week so that you don't fall under the category of people that the Prophet SAW mentioned in this hadith that there's two tremendous blessings that most people miss out on health and well-being and we'll close with another hadith of the Prophet SAW which you've that the Beloved Messenger SAW told a person whom he was advising that take advantage of five things before five your youth before your old age and your good health before your ill health and and your wealth before your poverty your wealth before your poverty so when you have when you have money you should be thinking how do I seek the pleasure of Allah SAW with this and your free time before you're busy because sometimes things happen that busy you that now you don't have that discretion you have a parent who slip down the stairs and you have to be taking full time care of them for example so now you don't have the discretion to go and study and learn and this and that so you missed out to some extent and your life before your death so may Allah SWT make us of those who take advantage of these matters because as one of the early Muslims Muawiyah bin Qura said that of the people who are most thoroughly take into account on the day of judgment is a person who had good health and free time who had good health and free time what did he do and really like look carefully because so many people my father is in the category of the wise old uncle and they say some very insightful things when they are just driving with my father he doesn't usually speak a lot sometimes it gets kind of awkward especially with fathers because you don't know what to say and he's driving and he says the potato came before the couch and I'm like what do you mean the way society work is structured people come back home and they're like drained it's like they've become a potato and all you can do with a potato is put it on the couch so the potato came before the couch and there's a lot of people they say I don't have time for anything but what time do you get back to work from work, what time do you go to sleep what do you do in those four hours five hours so really look at that the ways to get things done as well to get things done between every two things that you do put in a third so you're at home and now you get to work but what do you do on your commute to work that's a great opportunity so well radio and sometimes some spending of money is worth it instead of spending the time listening to the radio to figure out whether there's traffic on the route get a GPS that has live traffic updates you spend $50 but you don't have to listen to the radio anymore for that and instead listen to something of benefit or engage in the remembrance of Allah so look at those opportunities you have a lunch break of an hour what do you do in that hour you have a lot of discretionary time I have a good friend of mine, really successful professional he reads about two or three Juz of Quran daily during work I ask him how do you do that he works in bursts and stuff and as he's working read a few lines of Quran do some more work through the whole day lunch break before heading to lunch that's 10-15 minutes squeezes it throughout the day and he's exceptionally successful at work but he has that sense of urgency I am seeking Allah and the way that is facilitated for different people is different the doors of of good are many but we should strive to really do a personal accounting that what's going on in my life and it can help write it down and make a commitment and one of the things they say you can be rewarded for doing less more than you're rewarded for doing a lot how? the best that you take on is something that you're committed to making consistent throughout your life but there's not a call looking only pray four rakahs of tarawih instead but to look at all these things that you are doing how can you convert these after Ramadan into positive routines how can you maximize the good through them so we ask Allah SWT that he grant us insight and understanding and grant us beneficial knowledge and awareness of the sunnah of the Prophet SAW so that we're able to uphold the sunnah in the things that we do so that we can seek Allah SWT in whatever circumstances he places us in In the name of Allah In the name of Allah In the name of Allah One of the One of the reminders of the month of Ramadan is of our responsibility to remember Allah SWT and Subhanahu wa ta'ala. One of the most beautiful explanations of the reality and purpose and transformational nature of remembrance of Allah is one of the aphorisms, one of the hikm, of Ibn Ata Illa. Ibn Ata Illa was a distinguished Egyptian scholar from the seventh Islamic century. And he was a distinguished faqih and theologian, specialized in Islamic law and Islamic beliefs. But then he found his spiritual guide, Abul Abbas al-Mursi. And after being a very distinguished scholar he was teaching at Al-Azhar, he traveled the spiritual path as well. And he compiled these aphorisms. There's slightly over 200 spiritual wisdoms. And when he presented them to his sheikh, Abul Abbas al-Mursi said, My son, you have summarized the ihya of Imam al-Ghazali and added to it. And it's an incredible work. And at a peak of eloquence to it, it's very beautiful. And there's dozens and dozens of commentaries on it. Imam Ahmed Zarruq, who sheikh Hamza quotes so often, he himself has 34 commentaries on this because this is something that he used to systematically teach. It was part of his spiritual teaching. He'd always be teaching on a weekly basis, the hikm. And each time he'd write a different commentary on it about a number of those are published. And this is about not leaving the remembrance of Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, and the consequence of that. But there's a beautiful story related to this because one of the distinguished Imams of Islamic spirituality in the 20th century, who has a book written about him as well, is Sheikh Ahmed Al-Alawi from Algeria, from Mustaqanem. Martin Ling said a biography of his. In the early 1930s, he visited Damascus from North Africa, from Algeria. And Sheikh Abdulrahman Al-Shaghouri, who is the teacher of Sheikh Nuh Keller and one of the distinguished Imams of Islamic spirituality and a great theologian as well, he was at that time in his late teens or early 20s when Sheikh Ahmed Al-Alawi, this world famous scholar, came to Damascus. And everyone was talking about him because a big deal, Sheikh Ahmed Al-Alawi is in Damascus. And Sheikh Abdulrahman at that time was in his late teens, early 20s. He was quite excited too. He gathered his friends and let's go see him. And at that time, the French had, because after the First World War, Syria was under the French mandate. So there's quite strong anti-French sentiment. Sheikh Abdulrahman, when he first saw Sheikh Ahmed Al-Alawi, this great visiting scholar, the first thing he noticed about him was his socks. Because Sheikh Abdulrahman used to work in the textile industry. Like he was a scholar, but he used to work in the textile industry. And in Damascus at that time, the socks that they had available were thick socks. They're quite rudimentary. This Sheikh was wearing very fine socks. And he was in the textile industry, so he knew about good socks. And he was like, how could this be a Sheikh? Someone wearing socks like that would call himself a Sheikh. Because the only way you could get socks like that in Damascus were French imports. But the only people who'd wear imported French socks would be people who were deeply influenced by the French. So he's looking at him. And he said he was young at that time, and not as mature as he perhaps should have been. Like, what could he have to say about the subwoof, about Islamic spirituality, wearing socks like that? But he got curious. So he was following him. And the Sheikh took off his socks to make wudu, and he's standing there. The whole time is like, how could this man be a Sheikh? What could he have to say about the path to Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, wearing socks like that, like these really fine socks? Of course, North Africa had French influence, had actually trade with the French for hundreds of years. So these kinds of things were actually quite common from before. So then the Sheikh put on the socks, and Sheikh Abdul Rahman was looking at him. So he said he sort of sat at the back of the masjid, like, who is the Sheikh anyways? What does he have to say? But then the Sheikh explained this hikmah that I'll be reading to you about not leaving the remembrance of Allah. And Sheikh Abdul Rahman initially was like, you know, whatever, just get on with it. But then when Sheikh Ahmed Al-Alawi explained this hikmah very soon, Sheikh Abdul Rahman was completely attentive. And at the end he said, you know, I had to kick myself in the heels and say, you know, if that's how you talk about spirituality, I don't care what kind of socks you wear, right? Because it was very profound. The Prophet, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, said, La yasallu lisanuka ratban min zikrillah Keep your tongue moist with the remembrance of Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala. A man had come to the Prophet, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam asking for advice, right? That, O messenger of Allah, the teachings of Islam are very encompassing. So tell me something that I can hold fast to. The teachings of Islam are very expansive, right? Because at one level, Islam is very simple, right? But in another way, Islam is very deep, right? It has both aspects. Islam is an easy religion. It's not difficult. It's actually very beneficial in one's life to have the five obligatory prayers. Every religious obligation has obvious, even worldly benefits, if done properly, right? The Prophet, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, sumu tasihru, fast, and you'll become healthy. And if you make it a part of your regular routine and learn the lessons from it, right? So at one level it's very easy, but it also has great depth, right? It has great depth, which is why the Prophet, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, inna hadad dina matin, this religion is deep. Fa aughilu fihi bi-rifq, so enter into it gently, right? Gently, don't overwhelm yourself, right? This is the way of the one who's described in the Quran. Qumil layla illa qalila, stand at night in worship, except for a little, you know? Half the night, or a little more, or a little less, right? But you can't do that tomorrow, right? It requires, there's a high perfection, it requires a lot of striving. So this man came and said, oh messenger of Allah, the teachings of Islam are so encompassing, are so vast. Tell me something I can hold fast to. The Prophet, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, la yasalu lisannuka ratban min dhikrillah, keep your tongue moist with the remembrance of Allah. Keep your tongue moist with the remembrance of Allah. So ibn ataa illa, in this aphorism that we will read, explains why we should remember Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and the benefit of remembering Allah constantly, even if you're distracted, even if you're distracted. So ibn ataa illa says, la tattruki dhikr, li'adami hudurika ma'allahi fi. Do not leave the remembrance of Allah because of your heedlessness of Allah in your remembrance. I don't leave the remembrance of Allah despite your heedlessness of Allah during the remembrance. Because your heedlessness of the remembrance of Allah is worse for you than your heedlessness during the remembrance of Allah. So you're driving your car. You're going to work. You have 101 things in mind, right? Yeah, there's meetings in the morning and you have to do these projects that you have to follow up on and you have this and that. You have a whole schedule and you're thinking about all this stuff that's gonna happen and actually more important than that. Ramzan's over. You're saying, okay, where am I going for lunch? That's like number one, right? And then did I talk to the minister of interior about what we'll be having for dinner? And you're thinking about all these things so you think to yourself, like why should, and it's a sincere feeling perhaps that this is not an appropriate time to be making dhikr of Allah. My mind is busy. But Ibn Atali says, do not leave the remembrance of Allah despite your heedlessness of Allah during the remembrance because your heedlessness of the remembrance of Allah is worse for you than your heedlessness during the remembrance of Allah. Why? He says. Because it may well be that Allah will take you from remembrance in which there's heedlessness to remembrance in which there is wakefulness. Wa min dhikrin ma wujud yakadah ila dhikrin ma wujud hudur. And then he may take you up from remembrance in which there's wakefulness to remembrance in which there's presence of heart with Allah. Wa min dhikrin ma wujud hudur ila dhikrin ma ghaibatin amma siwa al-mathkoor. And then he may take you from remembrance in which there's presence of heart to remembrance in which there's absence from other than the one remembered. Subhanahu wa ta'ala. And that's the wisdom. That change does not happen by merely wishing it. A change happens by making something consistent. And with that consistency, you bring excellence into it, right? Because if we all decide, okay, from this moment, I'm not going to be heedless of Allah. It's not like, okay, it'll happen, right? You need to strive. And the nature of remembrance of Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala is that it necessarily begins with the tongue. And from the tongue, it goes towards the heart. So the heart becomes wakeful. Some of the meanings will come. But then from wakefulness, you have presence of heart. You're active. It's not just that you have moments of consciousness, but your heart is present with Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala. And then if that zikr continues, it goes from presence of heart with Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala to a state described by the Prophet, sallallahu alaihi wa sallam. That al-ihan and ta'abud Allah ka anna ka tarah. That spiritual excellence is that you enter into a state of worship of Allah as though you behold Him. And if you behold Allah, you're absent from other than Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala. So it goes from zikr in which there's heedfulness to zikr in which there's absence from other than the one remembered. And then Ibn Ataillah says, وما ذلك على الله بعزيز and that is not difficult for Allah. That is not difficult for Allah. That the fruits of one's spiritual works, of one's remembrance are from Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala. But we have to take the means. And this is one of the means that one should strive to bring into one's life. To make, it's a prophetic counsel. لا يزالوا لسانك رتبا من ذكر الله. Keep your tongue moist with the remembrance of Allah. Even if your heart and mind aren't all there. Because eventually it'll become like second nature. Like before when you start driving a car, that's, you have to be thinking. If you go back to when you first started having car, the whole mind, especially if you learn how to drive stick shift, right? You have to be thinking, first gear now put into second gear now put into third gear. It requires thinking. Automatic is a bit, is much easier. But still like, you don't have to be thinking, okay, you have to be, let me look around now, check rear view mirror, check this. Thinking about all these things. But then become second nature. You can have a conversation with someone while driving the car. You can be listening to a podcast or the radio or whatever and you're driving the car, right? Similarly with the remembrance of Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala and other activities, right? Of course, this is not at every moment. You're having a meeting with someone. You might not be, it may not be appropriate to be engaged in remembrance of Allah while someone's telling you about the business report, right? Or someone is making a presentation and you're obviously engaged in Zikr. But much of our, much of the moments of our life, you're sitting with friends and family and uncles talking about episode 246 of Pakistani politics. So what do you do? Instead of just sitting there passively, you can still listen, you quietly to yourself without making a show. Just engage in the remembrance of Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala and that is, that becomes transformative, right? This is the prophetic council, right? So there's a few comments regarding this that Imam Ahmad Zarruq from one of his commentaries on the Hikm that he mentions, that when the author says, don't leave the remembrance of Allah because of your lack of heedlessness of Allah in the remembrance, he says that rather, you know, what we understand, i.e. from Islamic teachings from the Sunnah of the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, is that one should be striving to remember Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala in whatever circumstances. One is in why? Because Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala says regarding, remembering Allah, ka zikrikum abaikum aw ashadda zikra, that you should remember Allah as you remember your parents or more intensely than that. Meaning, the way you think about worldly matters, right? You're always thinking about something that you should be thinking about Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala remembering Allah like you remember worldly matters but rather even more so. I mean, if you think about how much time you spend, think about worldly matters, how much time you spend thinking about Allah, we should be thinking about Allah at least as much if not more. But the way you do it is you engage in the remembrance of Allah, regardless of what you're engaged in, okay? And this is one of the aspects of Islamic spirituality, that the Islamic spirituality is lived not in retreat from one's worldly concerns but it's lived through one's worldly concerns, right? The believer, they're at work and they're excelling at work but their heart is with Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala. You're with family and you strive to have the best of character to be the most helpful and most concerned member of your family. But your heart is with Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala, right? They say it's a bit like the court of the king, right? That the king has a court but then he has private chambers, right? And the one who loves Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala is with Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala both in their general life, they're in the court but they're also with Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala in their private moments, right? That and it becomes a situation where one is conscious of Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala even if one's tongue is not busy with Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta'ala. And that was a state of the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam. The Sahaba were once shocked because the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam went to sleep and he was lying down and he got up and he went to pray. And the Sahaba had immaculate adab with the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam but they're also very straightforward. If they saw something that they didn't understand with the utmost of adab and respect, they would ask. And that's one of the aspects of adab that are ignored and that we should instill that we should have the highest of manners and respect for our scholars, for our elders and instill that even in our children, right? That they should be able to question us but with respect that if they see us doing something strange to ask that I just wanted to know, you know? And with full respect that they should be able to object, right? But respectfully. So the Sahaba said, Ya Rasulullah, you've told us that if you go to sleep lying down, we should make wudu but we saw you sleeping and now you're praying. And he said, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, I am not like you. My eyes sleep, yet my heart is awake. My eyes sleep and the ruling of that is unique to the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam because his sleep was a state of complete wakefulness. So I said he was in a complete state of remembrance for Allah. And that's from what's considered, there's an aspect of the sunnah. You know, the sunnah can be haram to follow. The sunnah, there's certain things that the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam did that are haram to follow. They call the khasais, the things that are unique to the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam. And there's a wisdom to them that we are commanded to emulate him but there's certain things that are distinct about the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, right? And these are things that are not like dispensations for the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam but they all show his high rank and higher level of relationship with Allah S.W. Even while sleeping, his heart was still in slavehood to Allah S.W.T, in worship of Allah S.W.T, right? But it becomes a constant state because true remembrance is remembrance of the heart, right? And the tongue wakes up the heart. They say it's like a house, right? In which on the ground floor is this really lazy person who's asleep. And your goal is to wake up that lazy person and get them to be doing something meaningful in life. So to wake the person up, you have to make some noise, right? So you're on the, your bedroom is on the first floor, right? That's like where the tongue is. The heart is asleep on the ground floor. So you gotta make some noise so that eventually the heart wakes up and it's like, what's going on up there? And once it wakes up, it'll start hearing what it's saying. Then it'll get closer to, okay, what exactly are you talking about? And then it'll understand. And then the meaning of what was being said will go into the heart. But you have to wake up the heart and the heart takes time to wake up. And one of the wisdoms of that struggle is that it expresses sincerity, right? It expresses sincerity because if being conscious of Allah was so easy that you didn't have to strive for it, it wouldn't require any sincerity. Anyone could do it, right? But it's just a, Sunnah of Allah swt that something that is precious requires effort, right? And part of that requirement of effort is do you really want it, right? Do you really want it? This is why they say, alama tuhubilla hubbu dhikrihi The sign of loving Allah is the love of His remembrance. The sign of loving Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is loving His remembrance. And this is a divine command. And Allah swt tells us in Surah Al-Ahzab, verse 42, uskuru Allah zikran kathira Remember Allah with much remembrance, zikran kathira wa sabbihuhu bukratan wa asila Because He doesn't simply say, uskuru Allah kathiran. He says, uskuru Allah zikran kathira Remember Allah with much remembrance. And that's not sufficient. He says, wa sabbihuhu bukratan wa asila and glorify Him by morning and by night. Sabbihuhu from tasbih. Right? But they say here, it's not referring simply to saying subhan Allah, for example, but glorify Him in your remembrance by morning and by night. And many, many other universes wa al-lathina amanu, ashadduh, hubban lillah, right? Those who believe, what is their say? They're more intense in their remembrance of Allah, in their love of Allah. Why? Because they remember Allah at all their times. al-lathina yathkuru nalah qiyaman wa qoodan wa al-alajunubim. Those who remember Allah, standing and sitting and on their sides, right? And the prophet, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, alaa ukhbirukum bi khayri a'amalikum. Right? Should I not tell you of the best of your actions? It's a sahih hadith. wa azgaha inda malikikum and the purest of your actions with your Lord, right? wa khayri lakum min infaqid zahabi wal-wariq and better for you than giving gold and silver in charity and better for you than for you to meet your enemy and for you to fight them and for them to fight you. The Sahaba said, do tell us, O messenger of Allah. You know, what is better for you than any other work, more beloved to Allah, better than charity, better than jihad? Do tell us, O messenger of Allah. He said, zikrullahi azzawajal, the remembrance of Allah, mighty and majestic. Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani in Fath-Halbari, his commenter in Sahih al-Bukhari explains, because anything that is done with the remembrance of Allah is greater than that very same thing done without the remembrance of Allah, SubhanAllah. In any action. And in reality, the very purpose of every other action is the remembrance of Allah. Why do we pray? Allah, SubhanAllah says, inlani an'Allah la ilaha illa ana indeed, I am Allah. There is no God but me. Fa'budni, so therefore worship me. Wa aqimil salata li zikri, and establish the prayer for my remembrance. What is meant to be the state of the believer in their work, in their business, in their leisure? Allah, SubhanAllah, tells us in the, you know, right after the ayat al-Nur, the verse of light, rijalul laatul hihim, tijaratun wala bay'un an'zikri laa, right? Those accomplished ones, whom neither trade nor transaction, busy away from the remembrance of Allah and establish in the prayer and giving zakat, et cetera, right? So the state, the desired state of the believer at work is what? That their work does not distract them from the remembrance of Allah, SubhanAllah. They work and they excel in their work but they're working because the work itself is done for the sake of Allah, seeking the pleasure of Allah, striving in everything they do at work to make it pleasing to Allah, SubhanAllah. But in that, they are engaged in the remembrance of Allah and one of the aspects of the remembrance of Allah is the remembrance of Allah beautifies everything else. Why? Because if you're walking down the street, right? So Zubayr's walking down the street and he's sort of just in a GSB, general state of blah. He's just sort of thinking about Zubayr and how will he ever talk to Uncle Jameel that he wants to marry her and he's scared stiff of Uncle Jameel, right? Because he used to give him a hard time doing tarawih when he was a kid and he's been scared of him since, right? So he's just thinking about this and that and looking here and there, checking his Twitter feed and just distracted, right? So how will he be in his walking, right? He'd be drifting down the street. Whereas what was the sunnah of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi sallam while walking, right? It won't even be in his mind but someone who walks, remembering Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala will be walking with purpose and if you're remembering Allah with your tongue it's only a step or two away from the critical question in life. How do I walk in a manner that's pleasing to Allah? So you're going to walk with purpose. You're going to walk. How did the Prophet sallallahu alayhi sallam walk? Because that's, right? So you'll walk with resolve. The Prophet sallallahu alayhi sallam, you know, read about his walking. It's incredible. The sahaba talked so much about how the Prophet sallallahu alayhi sallam walked. He walked as if he was walking down a hill, right? He used to walk with purpose. He used to walk fast. The sahaba said we were younger than him but we used to struggle to keep up with him. Yet he used to walk with complete composure and grace. They said it was like a ship that was cutting through the ocean, right? Majestic. Yet, you know, people who walk fast, right? If you have like, you know, if your boss is walking down the corridor and they're walking fast, would you stop them? No. You know, someone who's walking like purposefully, you know, they're going somewhere. So you just leave them alone. Like after a relative's like headed out of the door. They must be busy. You leave them alone. But though he walked fast and with purpose and resolve, he walked with such calm and grace and concern for those around him that no one would hesitate to stop him sallallahu alayhi sallam. Because he combined between complete majesty and complete mercy and complete concern, right? So, but if you remember Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala you'll be reminded of these sunnahs, right? You walk, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi was walked, he'd always be smiling. He'd always be cheerful. If you pass by someone, he would be the first to initiate greetings. And it's not just a sunnah for Muslims. You're walking down the street. You pass by someone, we should be the first of people to be upholding those social graces, right? Of making eye contact, of smiling, of saying those little things, you know. Sometimes this issue, sometimes just a nod would be appropriate. Other times you greet, you know, with the best of the etiquette that is suitable to one's context. In other situations at work, you know someone, you know, you'd say those social niceties. But if you're in a state of remembrance of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, your walking would be different. You're remembering Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, your talking would be different. You remember Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, your spending time with your parents would be different. And you having sahur would be different because you wouldn't just sit there. You remember all the opportunities you have of seeking Allah's pleasure. I don't understand sitting there waiting for everyone else to do whatever. You'd be the first person to serve other people, to try to give them water, to help clear up, right? Because that's, you know, so that's one of the aspects of the remembrance of Allah that it beautifies all else, which is why, and we'll close with this, when Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala tells us about the prophetic example, he says, لقد كان لكم في رصور الله أسوة حسنة, verily you have in the messenger of Allah the most beautiful of examples. لمن كان يرجو الله و اليوم الأخير, for whoever seeks Allah and the last day, right? You have in the messenger of Allah the most beautiful of examples for whoever seeks Allah and the last day. But then it mentioned something that people forget. وذكر الله كثيرة and makes much remembrance of Allah. Why? Because if you go to sister Zubaydah, who Zubair wants to marry, and she's sort of just drifting in her deen. You know, she used to have 10 classes at the MCC when Sheikh Yahya was here, but then Sheikh Yahya left, and she didn't take any of the new classes that MCC started after Ramadan. So she's just drifting, you know. So you ask her, do you think you should be following the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ? No Muslim would say, no, I don't think so. It's not in my 2012 plans. No one would say that. You see your family members who may be not as religious, you ask her, do you think you should be following the Prophet ﷺ? No one would say, no, I don't think so. But why doesn't it happen? Everyone would accept that, yes, we have in the messenger of Allah the most beautiful of examples. But there's two aspects that make us not follow the Prophet ﷺ. One is, Allah the Almighty says, you have in him the most beautiful of examples. For whoever seeks Allah in the last day. So you need to have that sense of purpose that you're seeking Allah the Almighty in life. But the other one is, what that could Allah haqithira and makes much remembrance of Allah. What brings that sense of purpose into one's life that I need to be seeking Allah? No one would say, no, I don't think I should be seeking Allah and the next life. Dunya is enough for me. No Muslim would say that. But what is it that keeps them from actually making that a reality in their life? It's the lack of remembrance of Allah. You have in the messenger of Allah the most beautiful of examples. For whoever seeks Allah in the last day, how is that sense of seeking Allah stirred up through the remembrance of Allah? Because that's exactly what you're doing. You're making Allah primary in your concern and consciousness. That's what remembrance of Allah is. And it is that remembrance that brings into mind the urgency of taking the messenger of Allah as your example. And not just as any example. To take him as the example in the most beautiful of ways. Because he's the most beautiful of examples. He's not just an example. He's the most beautiful of examples. Whoever seeks Allah in the last day and makes much remembrance of Allah. That's why the remembrance of Allah is something that we should strive to make an integral part of our life. How do we do that? First is, have daily routines of remembrance. And the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam told us how and when. He said, strive for complete uprightness in life. But know that you'll fall short. So what do you do? He gave us three keys. He said. And this is from the Jawaamil Kelim, the encompassing words of the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam. Fasadidu, remain steadfastly committed. Do the best you can. If you can't do something completely, you know you're falling short. They'll say, well, that's how I am. No, do the best you can. You know you're falling short. Yeah, you're not. You know, you heard that the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam prayed eight rakaz of night worship. So first few days of Ramadan you did it. Now you're struggling to do eight rakaz. Can't do it. Can't do the whole thing. Do the best you can. You're not able to do eight, two, four. Can't do four, do two. I can't do them like lengthy. Do them fast, right? But fasadidu, remain steadfastly committed. Do the best you can. Wa abshiru, and be of glad tidings. Because it's a tremendous gift. You're trying to seek Allah's Prentah. Doing the best you can to do that. It's a tremendous place to be. And then he said, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, wa sta'inu bil ghadwati warrohati wa shi'im min ad-dulja and seek assistance in the early mornings and the late afternoons and a little of the depths of the night. Seek assistance in what? In striving for that complete uprightness. That complete Allah's centricity. But you know you'll fall short. So what do you do? Remain steadfastly committed. Do your best and be of glad tidings. How do you make that happen in your life? Seek assistance in three critical times. The early mornings, diradwati, which is the beginning of the day. And he left in general, because someone could do it at Fajr time. Someone could do it before they head off to work. Most people take an incredible amount of time. Even if they think they're in a rush, take a, you know, it doesn't take that long to have breakfast, you know, reading the, you know, you check your flip board app on your iPad and, you know, even though you live on the West Coast, you're subscribed to the New York Times. And, you know, just, you know, if you were to do some, what's called, you know, you know, net eternal analysis, NEA, right? Or ERA, eternal return analysis. Anything you read in the New York Times couldn't possibly be as beneficial to you as remembering Allah, as reciting a little bit of Quran, right? The fact that Romney, Dist Obama in Oklahoma has nothing to do with, the only thing that matters is really to be informed that on election day, when you put your vote, who should he be voting for? Most of the news that you find out about is kind of useless anyway. It's not that important to know that did Phelps finally win his 22nd medal or not. Big deal, you could find that out. But seek assistance in the early mornings. Have some routine of remembrance of Allah, of Quran, of zikr at that time. What rohati, and the rohah refers to the time of rest, which is when people finish work and they get home. Or it also refers to the time of returning home, right? That late afternoon, once you're done work, and this is usually they say around Asr time, but the process I'm left to general, because people's circumstances are different, on your return home, because you're done work now. Actually, even productivity-wise, people who stretch their work to all times of the day, it's not good for stress levels. It's actually not good for productivity. You'll get actually less done at work. It's good to have a time where you're focused on work and time when you're doing other things. So you're done work, take a break on your car ride back, unless it's something really urgent, which most things aren't, right? Take a break, remember Allah swt, or do something else of benefit. Or once you get home, right? What do you do once you get home? You spend some time with the family, you freshen up, et cetera, then what are you doing? Engage in a little remembrance of Allah, right? And by little, five minutes, right? We're not saying hours. Once you got home every day, you engage in five minutes of remembrance of Allah. After spending time with the family, et cetera, by the end of the year, that would add up to 30 hours of worship that you've engaged in. Washi in min ad-dulja, and something of the depths of the night. And the expression in Arabic is so beautiful. Washi in min ad-dulja, something of the depths of the night, as if the depths of the night are this really rich treasure. You just dip into it just a little bit. I was telling this to a relative of mine from my wife's side, one of my in-laws. I said, so it's like, you mentioned a Hadrabadi sweet dish, right? So it's like that, like it's really rich. I don't like that sweet dish. I said, well, something like that. It's like this something really rich, that shay in min ad-dulja, and a little of the depths of the night, right? That even a little worship at that time, will change your life, right? And this is something you, if you could institute that in your life. And this is what Ramadan is teaching us, right? That one of the great wisdoms, they say even if you're full, you should still get up for sahur and have a little something. One of the wisdoms of that is that it's easier to convince yourself to have some sahur. It's harder to convince yourself to get up and pray to rakahs. But we finish sahur 10, 12 minutes before Fajr time. Why? So you can engage in a little remembrance of Allah at that time. But try to make a commitment. You're able to do it for 30 days in this month, or 29. Try to carry that on the rest of your life. Get up 10 minutes before Fajr, engage in some worship. And you're able to get to work the rest of the, during this month, you can do it the rest of the year, right? And this will be transformative. If you can't do it all the time, do it on weekends, right? And keep your tongue moist with the remembrance of Allah. In your daily business of life, it's not that difficult to walk to your car. Most of us can do it without too much struggle. Although I have a tendency to stumble and trip and bump into things, but it's not that difficult to walk. So what are you doing while you're walking? Nothing much. Remember Allah swt. You're driving, remember Allah swt. You're in the mall. It's not that difficult to get to the store you want to get to. You want to get to the Apple store and finally buy the MacBook Pro with a retina display. What are you doing in the meantime? Nothing much, really. Remember Allah swt. And it'll take you up in the levels of remembrance, from remembrance in which there's heedlessness, to remembrance in which there's wakefulness, and remembrance in which there's wakefulness, to remembrance in which there's presence of heart with Allah swt. To that remembrance in which there's absence from other than the one remembered. And that's not difficult for Allah swt. Allah swt make us of those who become of those who are constant in their remembrance of Allah and whose remembrance is transformative. So it changes us in our relationship with Allah and changes how we are in our relating to Allah's creation. So that brings beauty and virtue and excellence to our work. So we bring that excellence of the sunnah into our work. That brings the beauty and virtue and excellence of the prophetic way into our dealings with people in our relating to family in the way we spend our time. So that our entire life can be a manifestation of beauty because Allah is beautiful and He loves beauty. And it is the remembrance of Allah that brings beauty into one's life, that brings the light of prophetic guidance into our lives. And may Allah illuminate our hearts with His remembrance and with consciousness of the way of His beloved messenger peace be upon him and peace be upon him and peace be upon his family and his companions and his friends. And may Allah's praise and praise be upon them. Any questions before we go? Go ahead. So what's the best way of remembering Allah swt? There's different ways of remembering Allah swt. And there's a wisdom in it. Because each type of remembrance has a different spiritual effect. Ibn Atay al-Lasat tenaw'at wa ridat al-Amal li tenaw'i wa ridat al-Ahwal that the spiritual works have been made variegated, have been made different by Allah swt because each has a different spiritual impact. The prayer benefits you in a way that's different from the fast. That's different from the way, the benefit of charity. That's different from Quran. There's different benefits. And it's part of a spiritual shepherding. You're like a herd of sheep. And there's different things that are needed to corral all your impulses and inclinations towards Allah swt. That's one aspect. The other aspect is we're created fickle. If we just had one thing to do, we'd become tired of it. It wouldn't be fresh. So there's different spiritual works for that. So it's not just do this and that's enough. So what's the best of works? Best of zikr? The Quran. But it's not absolutely best in every circumstance. As soon as you finish prayer, what's the best of zikr at that time? The specific sunnah zikr is related to that time. You're standing in prayer. At that point, the best zikr is the fatihah because that's what you're called upon to do. In other situations, the best zikr is silence. Because that's what you're called upon in a particular situation. But in general terms, the Quran is the best of zikr. But the Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, also mentioned about the best of zikr being la ilaha illallah, like a statement of faith. Sending blessings on the Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam has been mentioned as being of tremendous consequence. So what one should strive to do is to bring the sunnahs of the Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, related to remembrance into one's life after the obligatory prayers, to hold fast to those routines and to say them with presence of heart. To say them with presence of heart. So in general, what's the best of zikr? The best way of engaging in zikr is to follow the sunnah of the Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, related to zikr. To have regular routines of recitation of Quran, to take advantage of those three times, early mornings, late afternoons, and a little off the depths of the night. And to learn that the sunnah zikr is related to these and to bring them in a regular way into one's life. What's the difference between tasbih and zikr? Tasbih has a specific sense that tasbih is from saying subhanallah, from glorifying Allah, to affirm that glorified are you or Allah. But tasbih also spiritually refers to exalting, just the act of glorifying Allah, Subhanallah. Which is not restricted to simply saying subhanallah. So sabbihuhu bukratan wasila glorify him by morning and night is either by engaging in tasbih by morning and night or by engaging in remembrance of Allah, Subhanallah. Because the remembrance of Allah with an attentive heart is glorification of Allah, Subhanahu Alaihi Wasallam. And one of the ways to have presence of heart in one's zikr, they say, and people make a mistake in this all the time, even with your Quran recitation. What people, most of us typically do, is we say something and then we think about its meaning. And that's a complete mistake. Because what comes first? Meanings or words. Let's be having a conversation with brother Asif. So brother Asif is setting up a new committee for some planning that they have in mind. So he's asking you some questions. So you don't just say something and think, what did I say, right? The meaning comes first and then you express it with your words, right? But the same thing should apply to one's remembrance, right? To one's Quran. That don't say, Alhamdulillahi rabbil alamin, I say, that means all praises due to Allah, Lord of the Worlds. And you know, you bring to mind the meaning first and then you say it. So don't just start saying, Subhanallah, Subhanallah, Subhanallah. And they say, oh yeah, this means glorify Allah, so you're thinking about what does it mean, right? But rather pause for a second, focus on the meaning and then say what you're saying. And that's one of the wisdoms why, how did the Prophet, peace be upon him, recite the Quran? He used to recite the Quran verse by verse and he'd elongate the last syllable, right? And then he paused and then say the next verse. And one of the wisdoms that I paused is to teach us that bring to heart the meaning and then say it with your tongue. And that applies to remembrance and also to Quran, right? So strive never to say anything until you've brought the meaning to your heart before you say it. Wallahu ala, is Wudu a requirement for doing zikr? No, right? You can make zikr of Allah in any state, right? There's certain circumstances where it's obviously inappropriate to engage in zikr of the tongue when you're in the toilet, for example, you know, et cetera. You're in a state of, you know, you're undressed. But even if you need to make wudu, you can still engage in zikr. There's a useful distinction. There's a difference between a toilet and a washroom. A toilet refers to, you know, the place you relieve yourself only, right? So if you have just a toilet on its own, it would be makrute to make zikr there or while you're at the toilet, you're sitting on the toilet, right? That's when it'd be makrute to engage in zikr. But a washroom, which is a multi-purpose facility, right? There's the toilet, there's the sink, there's the bathtub, et cetera. That place, it's not makrute to engage in zikr of Allah swt there. Of course, you wouldn't go and, you know, this brother Zubair decides, where do I make my daily zikr? You sit in the washroom and make zikr there. There's better places in the house to make zikr in the washroom, but there's nothing makrute in making zikr in the washroom. So you're making wudu. You can recite all the sunnah, du'az, because the washroom is not a toilet. But you wouldn't make it either in a state of undress or when you're at the toilet or in the presence of filth, right? So, you know, flush the toilet, right? Or if you're some kind of interesting environmentalist, at least you'll close the lid, right? Because I have friends who don't flush every time. They want to save water. To each his own, right? It's not haram, right? So you can engage in zikr of Allah swt there, right? And that's actually, it's useful to know why? Because often it happens, like I've dealt with many cases, for example, someone became Muslim, or even know Muslims who started practicing and their parents were completely opposed to them praying five times a day. But she liked Fajr, for example. That they would actually cause a big problem. So what do you do? Like a couple of months ago, I was at this program and this woman had converted. She was a Coptic Christian before. And Arab Christians take their religion just as seriously as we take our religion. You don't mess with religion. So her parents would kill her or at least disown her. She was very pragmatic. I said, look, I'm finishing med school. My parents are paying for me. Right now I can't afford to be kicked out of my house and disowned. And so she can't pray and they won't let her lock her door, in her bedroom door. So what do I do? Sometimes she has to restart the prayer five, seven, eight times out of fear that they come in. So just go pray in the washroom. I asked, are there other places you can pray in the house? No, because they're a bit suspicious of her because she changed how she was dressing, et cetera. She started dressing even with them very much more modestly, et cetera. So they were suspicious. Just pray in the washroom. It's not a toilet, right? It's not a toilet. You have a neocon as your CEO and they're giving you a hard time. Can't find anywhere else. Go to the disabled washroom, put something down, pray there, right? Because that's not legally a toilet. I don't do it in front of the toilet, whatever, but of course, I'm not suggesting that's your solution to where you pray at work, right? If you can take any reasonable means to pray anywhere else, do so. But one can engage in the remembrance of Allah in a multi-purpose washroom. No, so if one struggles to understand the meanings, is the impact diminished? No, because these are spiritual medicines, right? The medicine has benefit even if you don't understand, right? But if you understand, it's like light upon light, right? But at the same time, what really benefits you? It's not just knowing the meaning, right? There's a sort of new religiosity that you see in our community. If you just contrast that to some of the elders in the community, right? So yeah, some young people, they're really sophisticated. They've been to all kinds of intensives and seminars and this and that, and they know all these things, but just sit and watch them pray, watch them recite Quran and see some of the elders. They may not understand all these meanings and stuff, but whose worship seems more meaningful, right? Because what is the reality of worship? It's Shawwal-e-Allah ad-dahlawi in his Hujjat-Allah al-Baligha. He says, the essence of all religion is ta'veem, is veneration, it is deep awe and respect. That is the essence of religion. And so the one who prays, someone who recites the Quran, they don't understand, but they recite the Quran with deep respect, with deep awe, with a sense of magnification of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. They don't understand what they're saying, but they have that sense of awe in the heart. Will they benefit more? Or someone who recites it, like an academic, right? So he said, Alhamdulillah, the L here is this kind of L, Hamd refers to this, you know? So they feel very sophisticated. But what is the reality of their connection with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala there? Generally disconnected, right? So it's not just about meanings, right? The real essence of one's worship, and of course there's not discount meaning, meaning is, that's what maximizes the impact of one's worship and so on. But at the heart of Ibadah, right? Is for one's heart to be completely submissive to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, to be in complete awe and magnification, to have yearning and longing and love. And these are meanings that one should stir in one's heart. Like before you engage in the remembrance of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, to stir these meanings of awe, of love, of yearning in one's heart, right? Before one's prayer, before, like in Taraweeh, right? Most of us don't understand much of what's being said in Taraweeh, but you could just stand there, okay, let's get on with this. Or you bring to mind the greatness of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. This is one of the wisdoms why they say, why is it that, you know, according to, you know, certainly the Hanafi school and in some of the other schools as well in the loud prayers, the follower is silent behind the Imam. And one of the things is to instill that sense of, even in the silent prayer, why? Because you worship Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, not simply by what you say, but also by learning how to stand reverently before your Lord, right? It, that that meaning of reverence is stirred. So the remembrance still benefits, right? I mean, it expresses that meaning, even if it's weekly. Like someone's making zikr, but they're kind of heedless, but still if you ask them, why are you remembering Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala? Well, just because we asked deep down, there's a sense of reverence of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. But one should take the means to deepen one's understanding, to deepen one's understanding. And there's books about that and so on that one should always be working on, to deepen one's understanding. And also the zikrs and duas, they teach us about the reality of our relationship with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, right? So they mentioned, they called to, the Prophet Muhammad encompassing duas. They're really brief, but asked for the greatest of things. So you make it up, you learn a dua. Allahumma ni'saluka al-huda wa tuk'a wa al-afafa wa al-ghina. The Prophet Muhammad asked for four things. Allah asked you for guidance, al-huda wa tuk'a, and tuk'a taqwa, for mindfulness, wa al-afafa, and dignified restraint, wa al-ghina, and freedom of need. So you learn the dua, even if you know the basis, even if you didn't know the meaning, you're asking for Allah, I'll give it to you. He's generous. But you know the meaning, you'll benefit a little. But any time you learn a dua, make it a thing. What does this mean? Like these critical, these key religious concepts. What is guidance? Say guidance is, as most people honestly, what is guidance? Could they give you a deep understanding of guidance? No. So that's something, that's one of the ways one seeks knowledge is to always ask the question, what and why? What does this mean? And why is it important, right? Why is the process, so as I'm asking for guidance? So you put a circle around it, right? The verses that you recite, those key terms, right? إذا جاء نصر الله والفتح, right? What is the nasr of Allah, victory of Allah? Say victory of Allah means victory of Allah. But what does it signify? How does that relate to my life? So you ask those questions, and sometimes you'll find the answer through your reading. Sometimes you don't know where to read. That's a good question to ask. You know that where would I find it? This is an opportunity. So Imam Zaid comes in, he's giving a talk here. These kinds of things you go and ask. So just think of a question on top of your head. You ask. But you don't just ask just for the question. You also ask about where will I find these answers? Because you're striving not just to be a mere follower, but to gain understanding of the deen, so that you can walk with insight on the spiritual, on the path to Allah, so that's a good thing to do, to always be thinking, OK, what does this mean? You read some verses, and Allah mentioned two of his names. So you ask it, and you just make a note of it. It's good when you're reciting Quran to keep pen and paper next to you. And don't keep interrupting your recitation, but just make a little point. What does this mean? So you have a list of questions. And you seek answers to them. Because sometimes it's intriguing. What does it mean that Allah is a Shakur? Shakur means the thankful, the grateful. How is Allah grateful? What does that mean? So you ask, and you say, OK, I need to find that out. And so, but yeah, to deepen one's understanding of those terms is very powerful. Like what I call the Baqiyat-ul-Salehah, the lasting good deeds, to say, subhanallah, wa-alhamdulillah, wa-la ilaha illallah, wa-lahu akbar. One of the great scholars of Islam, explains how all Islamic belief returns to these four statements. Actually, all of it can be taken back to la ilaha illallah. All that we believe about Allah, can be understood by the expression, indication, and implication of our saying la ilaha illallah. And if someone understands that, they're saying la ilaha illallah, conscious of those meanings, but with the consciousness that is not an academic consciousness. But it's a reverent consciousness. It's very dangerous, because a lot of people, they start learning, and they feel that their relationship to Allah has weakened. Because from going into a state of neediness to Allah, you go to a state of sophistication. I know what's going on. And that's not a good place to be. As well, wa-lahu as-salamu ala ala wa-la ilaha illallah. The one is, push yourself to cry. But sometimes, yes, I can't further. Sometimes, and the second question is, I fall asleep one night. So the first thing that so many scholars incur, I mean, the Prophet, as I said, cry when you recite the Qur'an. And if you can't cry, make yourself cry. But sometimes you try to make yourself cry, and you can't cry. You're not responsible for crying itself, right? You're responsible for striving. And that's in general, right? The Ulema asked this intriguing question right in the beginning of Surah Al-Baqarah. The Qur'an, Allah Almighty describes the Qur'an as being, hudallil mutaqeen, a guidance for the mutaqeen. So they say that, is this not a problem? Because the mutaqeen have things sorted out in life. And so if it's guidance for them, then what about the poor people who are not mutaqeen? If it's not guidance for them, then they're struggling, and this won't help them. But they say that the mutaqeen are at two levels. They're someone who's realized in what taqwa is. Taqwa entails a certain state of affairs in your life. Some people are realized in that virtue, and they're mutaqeen. But another category of people who are considered of the mutaqeen, who are they? They're the people who have four qualities. They're seeking that virtue, like taqwa, for example. So they're seeking it. Number two, they're striving for it. So they're taking the means. Number three, if they ever fall short of that virtue, they repent. And fourth, they return to what that virtue entails. So it's SSRR, seeking, striving, repenting, returning. Anyone who has those four qualities is considered to have that virtue. So let's say you're hot-blooded. You get angry really quickly. You could still be considered, with Allah swt, to be of the forbearant, of those who have ilm, of those who control their anger, even though you lose control once in a while. How? You have those four qualities. You're striving to be forbearant, to have ilm. You're seeking it. You're striving to take the means to it. So you find out, how do I control my anger? How do I stay calm? What are the sunnahs related to it? And you're trying to, you're taking the means. So you're seeking it, you're striving. The third is, anytime you fall short, you repent. And fourth, you hasten to return. Follow a bad deed with a good deed, and it will wipe it out. So you got upset at your dad. So you repent, and you try to redress it. You apologize, et cetera. That little gesture, that will endear him. So your mom's upstairs, your dad's diabetic, but your mom denied him rasmalai. But you took some rasmalai anyway, said, dad, here you go. I'll cover for you. So when mom comes down, you take the bowl and pretend you're eating. So you take the means of rectifying. And this applies to any virtue that one's struggling with. You're considered to have that virtue if you do those four things. Same thing with crying, for example. You try to stir your heart. You think about Allah's favors, and so on. But you're not responsible for results. You're responsible for taking the means. And they say, fake it till you make it. Initially, you have to kind of force yourself. And eventually, it'll be second nature. Actually, on Seekers' Guidance, we have a course on Islamic parenting. So you may want to check that out. All the courses are completely free. So it's like, if you just go seekersguidance.org, you may want to hurry, though, because that's one course that gets filled before any others. Is that an Islamic marriage course? They get full, right away. But that's because we cover a classical text on Islamic parenting. I was amazed by the text. There's incredible insight. I have three kids. It was incredible. There's some amazing things in it. But in short, aim high. It's simple as that. We have all these worldly ambitions. We want to get them to the best of universities and to the best of careers and this and that. But in terms of the dean, we have sort of a defensive remorse. We say, I want my kids just to be good Muslims. And that's a bid'ah. To want oneself just to be a good Muslim or wants kids to be good Muslims is a bid'ah. Why? Because the Prophet never asked, oh, Allah, make us good Muslims. All the du'a is asking for excellence. The Prophet said, Inna Allah, yuhibbu ma'al yalumur. Allah loves high matters. And this likes paltry ones. And he said, so if you ask Allah, ask for the highest of paradise. Ask for jannah al-Firdous. Don't just say, oh, Allah wants all the sinners come out of hell after being punished for a long time and have been roasted and toasted. Drag me out by my burnt toenail and find me a corner of paradise where I can fit in. Because you're asking not according to how you are. I ask according to Allah's generosity. And what's the sunnah in the Quran? What's the du'a for our family and our children? Rabbena hablana min azwajina wa dhuryatina qurata ayun. Oh, Lord, grant us, in our spouses and in our offspring, a joy for our eyes. Wajjalna l-muttaqina imama. And make us the foremost of the foremost. Make us the foremost of the people of Taqwa. Not just make us among the people of Taqwa. Who's an imam? An imam is an exemplar. An imam is someone who's worthy of emulating because of what they encompass of virtuous qualities. That's an imam. An imam is an exemplar, someone worthy of following. So make us imams of the people of Taqwa. That's how you aim. You want your children not just to be good Muslims. I want my kids to be praying five times a day. That's sad. If you look at it at a community level, all we want to do is hear this rhetoric in our community. We want to preserve Islam for our kids. Imam Zayn puts it so beautifully. If you say, aim for the moon, aim for the stars. Because if you fall short, you might just land on the moon. But if you aim just to pass, if you fall a little short, you'll fail. So it's sort of a siege mentality, no. We should be aiming really high. And the du'a is incredible. You should have someone do tafsir of this du'a. It's incredible. There's so many meanings. Firstly, you don't ask it for yourself. It says, Rabbanahablana, grant us. Because you cannot raise righteous children on your own. You need family. You need community. And then, as wajina, in our spouses, wazurriyatina, Allah swt does not teach us to say, in our children. It says, children is awlaad, dhurriyatina. What's the difference between dhurriya and awlaad? Dhurriya is your offspring. Are all those who are descended from you till no specified end? Children would refer to your own children. And maybe, by extension, your grandchildren. But dhurriya, your offspring, are all those who are descended from you. Because you think long term. Because you are rewarded, not just for the good of your children, but what you establish for the long term. And that's how the believer thinks. You don't just think, OK, our masjid, how can we just get, I'm president till 2012, end of 2012, so let's just keep things running. The believer looks into the horizon of eternity, looks long term. Not just get by, but to have excellence. And that applies to children, too. To aim high, ask from the most high, and take the highest of means, and their facility. It's not difficult. It's not difficult, but if one has the right intention and takes the right means in the right way, one should be hopeful of right results. But if one's intention isn't right, one doesn't take the right means. It's wishful thinking to expect right results. Like, I was sitting at actually my parents' house, and there's a relative is asking, I'm kind of worried my daughter's 11 now, and she's not showing a lot of interest in wearing hijab. And he's a religious guy. And there she's sitting playing on some console, and she's playing some tennis game with a female character, all wearing this little piece of cloth wrapped around their mid-areas. You couldn't even call it a skirt, I don't think. Like, there's this obvious dissonance. But if one does take the right means, one should be hopeful of the right results. Because that's the sunnah of Allah swt in creation. And even if one doesn't want non-responsible results, if you had the right intention, you took the right means you're considered to have, fulfilled your duty with excellence. And he says, if you raise righteous children, even if they come out and differ. Because at the end of the day, Allah is the turner of hearts. There's prophets whose children strayed from the straight path. Sayyidina Nuh, alaihi salam, he said, he's not of your family. When he made dua for his son, who refused to come on the boat. But that's the exception rather than the rule. And there's incredible. And we let ourselves, the number of Muslim parents who read all these books on parenting. And you ask them, so what have you read about the sunnahs of the Prophet as someone with respect to parenting? Nothing. And the ultimate self-help guide is the sunnah of the Prophet, alaihi salam. You won't find anything that comes anywhere close to it. Because this is the one who said, he was giving encompassing speech. And there's no one who encompassed wisdom like the Prophet, alaihi salam, in anything, alaihi salam. You had mentioned about the secret guidance. Can you tell what is the secret guidance? Who can enroll? Yeah, secret guidance, it's an Islamic learning initiative. So we have online courses, both for general religious learning and also for people who are students of knowledge and want to learn their religion systematically at a high level. And we have a question and answer service and podcasts and other services as well. But the core offering is our courses. And we follow this initiative called Knowledge Without Barriers. So all our services, including all the courses, are completely free. There's no charge for them. So registration actually opened last week for the second quarter or third quarter. I'm really bad with numbers. So do check them out. You ask about parenting. There's a course on Islamic parenting. And there's courses in Islamic beliefs and worship and spirituality. Sheikh Yahya has a number of courses there, which he taught here over the last year. He has a number of courses. Imam Afroz Ali from Australia is an incredible scholar, Masha'Allah. He has a number of excellent courses. And there's a number of other teachers who have courses. And these courses are downloadable. The actual lessons you can download. And there's an online forum to ask questions. And once a month, there's a live session where you can interact with the teacher and ask questions in person, et cetera, as well. And we also have some live classes. They're paused during Ramadan. We have some live classes throughout the year, which gives the opportunity for live interaction. So there's a number of live classes, as well, with some leading scholars. You may want to check that. So it's not secret guidance. Someone asked, I was in Michigan. So someone asked, could you say something about secret guidance? But this older uncle came and said, son, I have one concern about what you're saying. I said, yes, uncle. He says, why did you call your project secret guidance? Islamic teaching should be public. Secret guidance is seekers' guidance. Yeah, seekers' guidance, all one word, .org. Alhamdulillah, Alhamdulillah, Alhamdulillah, Alhamdulillah.