 Allah's name, the beneficent, the merciful, and all praise belongs to Allah for giving us this ability to recognize wrong from right and that while we have propensities to take us away from Allah in the nafsah, لأمارتم بصوء إلا ما رحم ربي, yourself life has this desire to deviate, has this desire to be oblivious, has this desire to be reckless, has this desire to be very self-centered in a negative way, إلا ما رحم ربي, except by the mercy of Allah. What is the rahima? Allah has given us consciousness, He has given us a fitrah, He has given us a ruh, as you know, ruh and nafs are actually one entity, but one doesn't change, one is fixed, the other goes through evolutionary changes, meaning evolutionary social evolution, personal evolution, what we call, we change for the better inshallah, نفس أمار لوامة مطبئنا, whereas the ruh remains intact, and Allah has made us intelligent, and Allah has given us sensors, five major ones, sixth one being our intuition, it's the collection of the five that brings about a unique realization that you put all the sensors together to conclude in a direction, I have a hunch, I have an inclination, what is it, I don't know, it's a combination of many things, so Allah has enabled us, and given us all these capacities, and He has enabled us to go astray, but He has also enabled us with tremendous strength to remain on the right path. When Allah reveres His chosen agents in the Quran, meaning prophets, imams, the very close companions of such prophets, great personalities who were not prophets, but they were protagonists in society, they brought great results in society, they fought for truth, though they were not prophets, though they were not imams, Allah mentions them in the Quran, Luqman is a good example when Allah gives him hikmah, we gave Luqman wisdom, Luqman was an African person, dark-skinned, black-skinned individual, but Allah honors him so much, just like Allah honors the white, the brown, the yellow, but you notice that Allah swt honors people regardless of what nationality, what skin color, where they come from, Allah has created all of them as in His mercy, so we have created you male, female nations and tribes, so you know each other, and you find a person like Luqman, or you find a person in Asia who is Oriental, or a person in Middle East, you find that Allah swt has endowed every human being with His gifts, and Luqman was endowed with wisdom, we will talk about that tonight, the advice of Luqman to his son, and that's what you and I should be studying, the foundation of all truths, how do we solve our problems, yesterday I spoke about people who create trouble, people who are constantly stopping progress, today we need to talk about how do we progress, how do we reach progression, how do we avoid these pitfalls, how do we dodge the bullet, how do we remain steadfast and not stop and slow our progress, for time is limited, Allah has graced us with all of this, He has given us limited free will, but He has also made us weak, Allah says, we have made mankind in a state of trepidation, constant, no matter how rich you are or how poor you are, how powerful you are or how weak you are, there's always a moment of trepidation, you don't know, that the mere fact that death looms, when Allah says, it's all enough sin, every self shall taste death, and Allah says, and no self knows on which land they will die, there's a sense of trepidation, what do we mean by trepidation? Uncertainty, there are times you don't feel safe, it's like you in the ocean, you don't know if the ship will sink, you're in the car, you don't know if something will hit you, you're on the plane, you don't know if it will crash, there's always that period, that thought, that you can never guarantee total security, we made mankind in that state, and why is that the case? And then when we go deeper into life, we live in a circle of probabilities, chance, there are roughly eight billion human beings on earth, with variant emotions, some are happy, some are furious, and in between, there are those who are calm, and those who are agitated. Among our families, and among our friends and societies, and co-workers, and within our communities, people are modulating in those emotional states, and you don't know who you will cross, God forbid you're driving on the highway, and you pass somebody who gets annoyed, and now whips a gun out and shoots you because you annoyed him. It can happen, road rage is very popular in the world, people kill each other for absurd reasons. So that world of probability where things can clash, where we don't know if I'm going to be the recipient of a stray bullet, or somebody was shooting somebody else, but it ricocheted and hit this person, and this person died, there is that whole world of probability. And many of us are wondering, God, why did you make such a world? It's slippery, no matter how well I stand, I can feel the earth rumbling, or I feel the slipperiness, or the slope, and it seems like I just cannot secure myself. Allah says security is only with me, look how Allah elegantly tells us, if you reject the demigods, the false innuendos, the false, the distractions that take you away from Allah, who is the one who rejects the demigods, the demigods are anything, anyone other than Allah. You believe in Allah, and you hold on to your root cause of why you exist, and your root return to the one who created you. You believe in Allah, and you hold on to a rope tight. And Allah consoles me by saying, love is on her, and it doesn't break. What a security when God tells me that you hold on to this rope, and it won't break. You know if you're hanging on a cliff, your greatest fear while hanging before being rescued is will this rope break? Trapedation. But Allah says, I put Sakina into your heart. And I increase their faith upon their faith. Eman is what? Security. We translate it as, oh you who believe. But the actual pragmatic approach to this sentence is, oh you who are secure. Yeah, you are the one who means, oh you who are secure. Security. Nothing more important in life, security. The net result of security, peace. What is peace? Salama. Muslims meet each other, we say, salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah. We say, salamu alaykum, and you reply, salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah. How beautiful it is. You don't say, what's up? Yo, you don't say, how are you? How are you? Gotta put the little accent, how are you? No, good morning. Well that's not bad. This is a morning that's good at you. How are you? I'm dying. Oh, well in that case I'll pray for you since you are dying. Oh I feel great. Oh good. That's great. I'm happy to hear that. It's sort of convoluted, isn't it? Peace be upon you. Like, wow. Who cares about the day? Who cares about your health? It's all in one shot. As-salamu alaykum. Hey, peace be upon you. Wow, you give me security, we just met. Yeah, and Allah says when somebody gives you that salam, reply then with equal or better. Wa alaykum as-salam, wa rahmatul kalam. Salawat ala Muhammad wa al-Muhammad. Islam is a religion of peace. Salama, when we pray, it brings peace. When we fast, it brings peace. We have children and adults asking, why do I need to pray? Why do I need to fast? Why do I need to obey God? Allah says, if you do not engage in these disciplines that I've given you, Allah says I manufactured you. I engineered you. I'm the one who knows what lies. Allah says, نَحْلُ أَقْرَبْ وِلَيْ مِنْ حَبْلِ الْوَرِيدْ We are closer to you than your jugular vein. Allah knows, رَبُّكُمْ أَعْلَمُوا بِمَا فِي نُفُوسِكُمْ Your Lord knows what lies in you. So when Allah is telling me, do this, do this, do this, do this. Don't do this, don't do this. We're asking Allah why, why, why. The manufacturer is giving you instructions on how to keep this engine and the spirit at the maximum potential. Well, we question it. Modesty. Why brothers on this side, sisters on that side? Why can't we be brushing shoulders? Sisters, why do you have to, why do I have to cover myself when I come? I've come to gain knowledge. Why? I say, well, there's a demeanor, there's a decorum. You know? When you go to work, you dress a certain way. When you go to sleep, you dress a certain way. When you go for an interview, you dress a certain way. When you're going to present to a large audience, you dress a certain way. There's a time and a place to dress. But what better dress than the dress of modesty at all times? Even if you're in your house, even outside, for modesty is that barrier that protects the integrity of a human being. People have committed suicide because they were sexually abused. Because they felt their modesty was taken from them so they feel unclean. And those who have abused are wicked and they can never take it back. But the abuser now has committed something heinous and it is affected. I've seen children go astray because somebody abused them at a young age and they could never let go. No matter how intelligent they are, it just digs into their spirit and soul and they just cannot get out of it. So Allah is telling us, we have given you these injunctions for you. We've made these obligations for you. For yourself has a desire to deviate. But we guide you, illa ma rahima rabbi. So we are gifted with scriptures, prophets, imams and within every one of them, especially prophets and imams, we have examples in the highest forms of transactions for you and I to use as role models. That's why Allah says, اذكروا رحمة ربك عبدوا. وذكر في الكتاب مريم. Remember Maryam, remember Ibrahim, remember Musa. Why Allah says in the Quran? He says we reveal these revelations so we strengthen your heart. So we make you strong, we help you. We make you rich peace, tranquility. At the end of the day brothers and sisters, I could have a billion dollars in my bank account and be very unstable. I haven't achieved anything, anything. In fact, you become dangerous. When a person lacks peace and they have a lot of wealth, study them, you will see they're usually the most destructive. Because now they have power in their hands and they can destroy people because they're angry. But if you're calm and when we say tranquil and there is this inner peace within us, whether you're rich, middle class, or poor, mission accomplished. Because that's what the goal is about, tranquility. So this Dean of Allah, Subhanahu Ta'ala, has been designed for you and I to bring tranquility. So while the world is full of trials and tribulations, and as I mentioned yesterday, the troublemakers, they become a trial. Allah says, اِنَّمَ اَمْوَالُكُمْ وَأَولَا دُكُمْ فِتَّنَا Your wealth and your progeny and your people are a trial on you. اِمْوَالُكُمْ وَأَولَا دُكُمْ فِتَّنَا They cause trials to you. Sometimes our children go astray. Sometimes our spouses are a burden. Sometimes our parents. Sometimes our friends. Sometimes our neighbors. You'll always find somebody somewhere having an axe to grind. It's either your neighbor, whatever. Somebody's got some anger to release and they found somebody to release it on, like that rogue rage person, because they crossed them. It was nothing illegal to pass a person, but they were looking for the slightest excuse to explode because the rage is building and they're ready to kill. Then when they end up in prison for life, then they regret. It's an irony how stupid human beings can be, but it's exactly what Allah says. قُلْمُوتُ بِغَيْدِكُمْ Because when you forget that your objective in life is to reach peace and tranquility, instead we think money, power, you know, fame will give me peace and tranquility. I have never found a person with fame, with power or with money, naturally because of that, to have peace. Impossible, impossible. You cannot. In fact, money and everything else around it is a trial upon us. So we live in a world filled with possibilities of trials. Anytime we can die, we couldn't drink water and choke. You could be eating, you choke. I witnessed, I remember as a child, I was about six years old, I was at the hospital visiting somebody in Tanzania and they had these long stairs to go up to the second floor. And I'm at the base of the stairs. I'm six years old. And a man from the Indian subcontinent is coming down and I'm watching him and he slipped. And he tumbled in front of me and he came down on the floor. I went towards him, he was cold. He snapped his neck. Dead. The family came there to visit somebody and the wife comes and she's screaming. Children are screaming, I'm watching. I'm myself crying. I could not believe what I witnessed. I was a six year old. But Allah told me, did you see that? Wa maa tadri nafsun bi ayi ardintamoot. No self knows on which land they will die. For the next second, you're planning, you've got vacations, you've got your bank accounts, you're planning strategies to build empires on this earth. And he takes one slip and you're gone. Everything changes. The dynamics change. All the contracts you were probably going to sign, they've all now just been nullified, potentially. Then, and they're waking this person up and I'm watching. And for the first time I witnessed death in front of me. And he was a profound state of mind. But Allah has showed it to me many, many, many times. And the only thing that has come out of it, Allah says, did you see that? Did you Allah, He witnessed it? Allah says, maybe you naps. What are you going to do about it? Are you going to waste your time? Are you going to waste your time doing dumb things? Are you going to create trouble? Are you going to find faults in people? Are you going to backbite? Are you going to spy? Are you going to be suspicious? Are you going to steal and cheat? Or are you going to straighten out yourself because any second I will take your soul. It's amazing. And how about when you meet people? Are you nice to them? Well, maybe they will die in front of you and you won't be able to say sorry. I remember when I was about eight years old. There were a group of boys in my school. I was going to a Catholic school. And they were bullying him. I've mentioned this before. I'll share it again. And they were bullying him and I was standing there paralyzed. And you know what to do? Eight year old learning, feeling weak, and children they love to get into fights unnecessarily because they're already starting to have insecurities. And shaitan has taught them, you want to be secure? They could say, yes. Okay, go beat that boy up. Kick him. Slap him. Wrestle him down. Show him how strong you are. Allah says, اَلَذِنْ آمَنُوا لَا يَسْخَرْ قَوْمٌ مِنْ قَوْمٍ عَسَاً يَكُونُ خَيْرَمْ مِنْ هُنْ وَلَا نِسَاءٌ مِنْ نِسَاءٍ عَسَاً يَكُونْ نَخْيْرَمْ مِنْ هُنْ وَلَا تَلْمِزُواَنْ فُسَكُمْ وَلَا تَنَابُزُ بِلَالْقَابْ بِئْسَ الْإِسْمُ الْفُسُوقُ بَعْدَ الْإِيمَانْ وَمَنْ لَمْ يَتُبْ فَأُولَائِكَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونْ Oh, you who believe, let not one group look down and laugh at another group and laugh at them and bully them. Don't bully. Don't look down at others. Oh, those are people of different religions. Are you see how they pray? Are you see? Don't. لا يَسْخَرْ قَوْمٌ مِنْ قَوْمٍ. Meaning, it doesn't mean for between Muslims. For the human race, one group should not laugh at another group. And women. وَلَا نِسَاءٌ مِنْ نِسَاءٍ عَسَاءٍ يَكُنَّ خَيْرًا مِنْهُنْ In case you women are better than the other group, do not mock the other women. Oh, look at our hijab, it's a bit torn. Or that fashion is so outdated. Or the jewelry she wears. You know, we make comments like that. Oh, she doesn't look right. We make silly comments. Allah says لا يَسْخَرْ. Don't. So I remember when they bullied this young boy, I stood there. I felt really sad. You know, almost like I wish I could jump in, but there was like four, five of them ganging up on this young innocent boy. The reason I'm sharing that with you, with heart to heart, is to tell you one of the reasons why I'm standing in front of you. You know, from age childhood, you have these profound moments that builds your personality and shapes you. Eventually you rise to become a protagonist, hopefully, where you want to stay and grow where nobody can bully anyone in our environment. We want to stop negatives. We're going to build positive institutions. We're going to promote positive messages. And we're not going to sit and stand on the sidelines, weak, wondering what are we going to do to this injustice that takes place. But something that Allah touched my life at that young age, it has never left me. It bothered me. I went home. But in Africa, we go to the Masjid for Salah. Maghrib, Aisha, Fajr, Zahar. The Masjid is not far from us. So I get ready to go for Maghrib Salah in the Masjid. And as I'm entering the Masjid, there is a maqsal, you know, where they wash dead persons. The door was wide open and a small little body was lying on this platform. And how Allah took me there, I still pondered. Why did I go there in that direction? Why did I look? Why did I go towards it? And why was I curious? And I approached the body and there was no one in the room. The body was lying. No one on the room. So nobody stopped me from going in. And I approached and I said, it was that same boy who was bullied. But he had gone for tonsil surgery that afternoon. He needed to go for emergency tonsils. And it failed. And the boy died. And I looked at his body and so many thoughts came in my head. I said, wow, I didn't get a chance to fight for your justice. I witnessed you. But I didn't get a chance to fight for you. And I regret that. But I made it. But Allah also said, did you see that? Don't ever be harsh with people. For the next second I may take them away. And then you'll go to them and ask them for forgiveness. It'll be too late. So why not be nice to everyone and shake hands with everybody. And make peace between them as Islam is the religion of peace. And don't burn bridges. And be nice to them. You may be even firm. Sometimes in business we have to be firm. But people take it personal. You're attacking me. They want to break bonds. They want to attack you. Because they expect you to bow down to their principles. Be principled. Be nice to them. But don't bend either way like a leaf in one direction or another. No, be firm. But be a man of peace. So to me, my life, from that time onwards, it culminated watching these instant moments of a person that can die. I said, what a precarious world. There is no security. Anything can happen at any time. But then I would ask as a teenager, God, why did you create such a system? You're merciful. You're caring. You're loving. You're kind. You protect us. Why put us in this cesspool of precariousness? And it dawned on me many years later. I see why it's there. Allah says, if I didn't do that, would you come to me? You would forget me. You would say I don't need God. We're secured. Allah says I put that. So you know who your lord is. And I make you shake. And I will make you shake. And I will make you shake. And I will make you shake. I will make you shake. And I will make you shake. When they are in that state of trepidation and trial when they are being tested with their life may be taken this fear Oh, yeah, Allah. There's a flood coming the earth is shaking The Bashirah Sabirin that when they have this Qalu inna lillah wa inna ilayhi raji'un They say we are from God and we return to God Allah says secure yourself there and watch for even if death overtakes you your mind We don't have I Was in Philippines and there was an earthquake in my hotel in the area and my hotel was experiencing my whole room was moving Literally a foot on each side. It was like the most uncomfortable feeling You don't know do I go to the safe and take my passport? Do I go into the elevator? I'm on the top floor of the hotel Do I run down the stairs? Do I hold on to the bed? Do I hold on to the wall? Everything is moving Allah says if I was all zillatil ardu zil zalah, you think you're so secure But when I shake it and you think you're so proud with your stiff necks walking you think you're something great in the world I Rattled the earth a little bit and you fall like flies. I bring water and you sink I bring wind and you get blown away yet you walk hotly on this earth like you're some the greatest thing that ever Walked this earth. We are the greatest thing that ever walked this earth, but how with humbleness Yamshuna lalhauni wa idhaa khattabahumul jahiluna Qalu salama they walk with humbleness Allah says now you are my servant salawat ala Muhammad wa ala Muhammad This difficulty you wake up in the morning. You don't know. It's gonna be angry with you You don't know which fight you're gonna have you don't know which letter from the attorney you're gonna get today Potential lawsuit people are ever so willing to sue each other like this I don't like the way I'm gonna contact in my attorney when I sue you Attorneys are like having a field day. Yes, please please please come. Oh business right So you find well litigation Arbitration we gotta go for it. Why? Why not? Well, I love the peace makers Well, I love the good doers now we have an axe to grind because we're here on this earth forever Allah says you don't know they will attack you from every angle. I remember History Imam Ali bin abit Ali Balaysat waslam. Who was the shadow of Rasulillah the protector of Rasulillah the center of deem is Rasulillah Rahmatul ala alameen Amir al-Mu'mineen alaysalam the day. He's born. He's born in the Kaaba When his mother Fatima binti Assad brings Amir al-Mu'mineen as a baby. She hands him to the holy prophets Historians say that Imam Ali al-Salam did not open his eyes Until the Prophet held him then he opened it and looked at him And when the Prophet breathed his last At the age of 63 Imam Ali al-Salam had his eyes towards his eyes and they said the Prophet whispered in his ears and the saliva That was even coming from the Prophet's mouth was by Imam Ali hugging it 63 years Imam Ali al-Salam gave his life to defend promote protect with wisdom with patience with strength unafraid in khaybar Amir bin abd wood in khandak every battle Imam Ali al-Salam in uhud. You see he always was from unafraid Yet people were sharpening their blades to kill him In the dark of the night they were looking for ways to annihilate him Gave his own life to Islam you and I are not worthy of those comments What a little bait have done for Allah subhanahu ta'ala to promote their message you and I if we live a thousand years on this earth We cannot equate to what they have done Yet they were being attacked. They only had a handful of friends Only handful Imam Ali al-Salam holds the hand of kumail ibn ziyad. This is kumail come with me As they are walking on the path. He says oh kumail preach to me preach Give me Hidayah He says Amir al-Mumineen you are the Hidayah You are the wealth of knowledge. We learn from you. He says I know but I also love to hear from you. I Love to hear what you say This is Imam Ali al-Salam who has to take one companion and walk and say give me Hidayah. What is he trying to say? There's hardly Hidayah in town There's hardly Haqq in town. There's hardly the mention of Allah in town Zulam is constant people are bashing cheating finding ways to destroy each other Imam is what worried what will happen to this humanity So I cry When I read his khutaba I cry not in Najul Balagh in khutba shak shakiyah when Imam says there is a bone stuck in my throat I am on this camel It is so wild Imam says I'm on a wild camel this analogy You know shak shakiyah is the foam that comes out of her stressed camel When a camel is stressed it starts giving a foam in its mouth It's called shak shakiyah That's why it's khutba shak shakiyah He says I am on this camel. He's talking about his position in the caliphate and those around him who are trying to manipulate his scenario He says I'm on this camel it is wild People So say wow You don't know who to say what you say one thing. They'll sue you. You say this they'll come up to you You say that they'll point a finger at you He gives 63 years of his life Allah praises him so much Rajalun laatun hihim Rajalatun wa la bay'un An dhikrillah wa iqami salati wa itaiz zakati Never gave up his salah never gave up his truth always charitable So careful that even the candle he lit when Talha and Zubair come to him. They said Ali Ibn Abi Talim I'm Iroh Maumineen. We have a matter to talk to you In baitul mal he had a camel that I mean he had a candle He said what is your matter personal or state-related? He said personal Imam just extinguishes the that one and he lights another camel candle So Talha and Zubair said to him why did you turn that off? He says that's a state matter. This is personal matter This is Salam alaykum Because they were coming to ask for wasta like can you give us some more money from the treasury? He said if you're careful with the candle We can't talk to you this Is the justice of Amir al-Mu'mineen? Subhanallah Salawat Allah Muhammad wa al-Muhammad He says I'm on this camel It is wild It wants to throw me off I Cry when I read this but but it's short. You know why it's short. It was so powerful The crowd couldn't handle it. So they sent him a note be quiet stop talking Imam reads the note and he stops Amir al-Mu'mineen I Think about there was no greater man after the Prophet than him His eloquence in speech is second to none It is being told to be quiet because he's speaking the truth He said if I pull The reins of this camel to subdue it. I will tear its nostrils The nose I will tear it and I will kill the camel And if I let go of it, it will throw me off What an analogy Sometimes we live this world. We feel that camel. Yeah, I see that distressed camel in my life For if I pull the reins and take control I will tear everything and if I let go it will throw me and there's this fine thing in between to manage Balance when Allah says Maintain the balance difficult. Do you say don't you say do you see the what do you do? Do you answer do you remain silent? You know how much wisdom that is Allah wants us to gain knowledge The Prophet says Acquire knowledge from the cradle to the grave Because knowledge will strengthen you it will seep into you when you start acting on it It will give you stability. It will make you honorable. The world will love you For the Prophet has said nothing more beautiful is possessed by a human being then their intellect and The knowledge they're in and its transactions Rasulillah Talibul iln faridatun ala kulli muslim Here muslim is gender neutral acquire knowledge For all muslims it is an obligation in you to acquire knowledge Acquire it. It's good for you when you gain knowledge you gain stability And when you understand what this knowledge is about You will see that when you pray to God God says I made your life difficult Not me difficult what it means when Allah said well enough Luannakum Bishay Imin al-Khalf What he means is that since he has allowed us free will and he has allowed the human race to go positive and negative Any person who goes negative is going to be held for the rest of humanity That's the trial that Allah has allowed So when a troublemaker comes to you and creates trouble and wants to harm you and wants to Push you and wants to stop you to progress. It is not Allah who is doing that Allah has allowed it and says I have allowed you to do this on the condition that you bring peace and harmony But every one of you is responsible for your deeds either you promote good or you forbid evil either You're a believer or you are a kafir here kafir is willful rejection of God's mercy and we become stoppers of progress That's what Allah wants from us. So you find this ill Acquire knowledge and then there are three stages imam Ali al-Sannaj al-Balaghas is the following Al-Alamu al-Thalathati Ashbar If he reached the first month Tkabbar And if he reached the second month Tawada And if he reached the third month Alima that he doesn't know anything three stages Knowledge is of three stages imam Ali al-Sannaj is when a person reaches the first stage They become proud That stage is the first stage anybody who has knowledge and the arrogant then the first stage Imam says when you reach the second stage you become humble and when you reach the third stage You realize you know nothing It's the third stage you and I need to be in because when we realize we know nothing Then for the rest of our lives, we will be gaining knowledge And when we gain knowledge and we ponder then Allah gives us wisdom Allah says you tell Hikmata man yashaal Women you tell Hikmata faqad oot ya kheiran katheera we give wisdom to who we will and whoever We have given wisdom to we have given much good. What is wisdom knowing how to connect the dots? What is knowledge the dots? The more dots you have the more knowledge you have but there are people highly knowledgeable, but foolish It's the ones who know how to connect the dots we call them wise people erudites people who are connectors of the dots People who have erudition Hikmah, they are what we call highly skilled They take exactly what's needed and they fulfill it in the shortest amount of time That's what you and I need to achieve. How do we get that read Quran? reflect and Then ask for Allah to help us Allah says to the Prophet wa qul Rabbe zidni ilma And say the Prophet was the most knowledgeable man Honored His knowledge traversed the universe universes But yet Allah is telling him wa qul Rabbe zidni ilma Say my lord increase my knowledge because the trajectory of increase is Ibadah And when we have that we pray we understand how to pray so Allah says that the unni Astagib lakum. How would you do dua in the right way when you and I are busy gaining knowledge when you sit you reflect You talk you question, but there's also an adab and an akhlaq on how to question When you go questioning in an arrogant way in a condescending way in an impatient way in a rude way then we have Negated the purpose of the acquisition We've tainted the idea of knowledge and what knowledge should we really have the knowledge of us all? That's why you notice we who do taqleed We follow Maraji Much Tahideen you will find each tihad is only in matters of Furu Not in matters of us all because us all you and I which is foundational the roots of religion you and I must gain it Without any emulation of a scholar we can learn from them, but we make our own decisions We learn from the Quran from the prophets from the imams from the scholars from the books from the professors But we become our own believers in God In prophethood in guidance in leadership and in justice and in day of judgment what we call Eschatology Study of the hereafter what will happen in the hereafter? What am I designed for these? Reflections many of our community members have very shallow understanding Hence they're like a tree Planted with a very shallow root and a little breeze brings the tree down Those who have deep roots Not only are the roots highly extended long distance To receive the nutrients of the earth But they are secure that even if there is a storm. They will not be dislodged Well So we tonight I'm gonna continue this conversation tomorrow. Do I how do we pray? We say God I'm praying I'm praying I'm praying. It's not getting answered. There is a problem With our behavior. There's our problem with how we understand Once you understand you will notice that the whole system will come into fruition and clarity Marriages are breaking Children are going astray fathers are calling me my son is becoming an atheist is becoming an agnostic I don't know what to do rightly so because we're not giving them the answers they need They don't want to become atheists, but they're getting frustrated. No one's talking their lingo We're just throwing traditions at them recycled traditions and they're getting tired of it and they say this is not working This is not giving me peace. I don't want this. I want something deeper. I want something more valuable I want to be a soldier of goodness. I don't want to be fooled by stories and What we call hashed out ideas of our forefathers. I need reason Many a parent's son when I was your age, I didn't question my father when he told me there's God The son says dad. We're living in a different world Welcome to the reality of this world. That's as well when I was young. I just followed Now he looks good, but is he really good? See blind following is dangerous Even if it's right for even if it is right if we're following blindly then through that following we may be destructive It's better to question and to say I am doing all of this I'm not going to stop praying and I'm not going to stop fasting I'm not going to stop believing in God, but I'm going to question it until I get certainty and Allah says keep struggling Till you achieve certainty Dalika kitabu la raiba fihi hudan lil muttaqeen in this book There is no doubt for those who are God conscious. How did they become God conscious? They acquired knowledge God gave them wisdom and there was a strategy and they established us all a dean Firmly now when they drink something halal haram. Why why should I drink this? Is it allowed for me or not? I should I dress like this? Is it allowed or not? The Usul is directing you. The Usul is guiding you The Usul is saying now go study and listen to the scholars You will see they will give you rules when they give you rules You have every right to question them when I go and meet the Maraji one-on-one. I ask them You have passed this fatwa show me the Dalil. I Won't prove am I questioning the Marja? No the Marja is smiling I'm so glad you asked. He didn't say you are not in Bethel college You didn't go to the house over 25 years like who are you to ask me shoe? No I've sat with Maraji for hours and they're talking and they're talking and they're talking and I would ask them Difficult questions and they're answering and they're answering. I said wow This is the Sunnah of Rasulillah This is the Sunnah of Ahlulbayt. O Amir al-Mu'mineen said salooni salooni Qabla an taqqidooni. Ask me ask me for that acquisition of knowledge Even if Malakul Mot was decreed to come and take our souls at that time. Allah says delay it for this creature This creation of mine is seeking knowledge. Let him stay longer This is Deen So Luqman Allah said walla qadaateena Luqman al-Hikmah. We gave Luqman Hikmah. What did Luqman say? Wa idhqaala Luqman ule ibnihi wa huwa ya'izuhu Ya'buniyya laa tushrik bil laa Inna shikka laa dolmun azeem. Listen to these verse magnificent verses You know when I read suit Luqman the 31st chapter Two things that came out from it although Quran is rich with so many dimensions eternal dimensions I have read Quran many a times and each time I read I feel like I've read it the first time It's an endless ocean and 31st chapter Allah says tilka ayatul kitab al-hakeem. These are verses from a book that is wise Tilka ayatul kitab al-hakeem. This word wise resonates in its highest form And Allah says this is a book of wisdom ودن ورحمة للمحسينين It's a guidance and a mercy for good doers. I like that I said ya Allah I want this gift wisdom give it to me I will fight it till I die give it to me I want it In the same surah Allah said وَلَقَدْ آتَيْنَ لُقْمَانَ الْحِكْمَانَ We gave Luqman wisdom Because he wanted it So what did Luqman say? So I looked at these two themes that attracted me and I fell in love with this surah This surah is my friend I walk talk I quote it often you will listen if you listen to my lectures I quote often from surah Luqman Often because it's a real being Imam Khomeini rahmatullahi alaih says On Judgement Day the most magnificent creations will come in front of you And you will wish you could possess them And you will say who are you you're so beautiful That creature that creation will look at you He says I'm surah such and such When I was on earth if you made me your friend I would be with you So Imam says make friends with this surah they're real The second theme of the surah love of parents Especially fatherhood How to be a father? I resonate I said I want this I want to learn how to be a father I want to learn how to be this leader that Allah is exemplifying So Luqman is advising his son how many fathers would sit with their son Son come let me give you some advice Why are our sons running away? Why are they doing dumb things and dying on the streets? Why? This conversation is hardly there So Luqman is saying ya'a bune'ya Laa tu shrik bil laa foundation My son do not associate anyone with Allah Inna shirkala dolmon azeem This is the grievous act Ya'a bune'ya So then Allah swt jumps Wa wassainal insana bi waliday Hamalatu ummu hu wahnan ala wahnin Wa fisaalhu fi amayni Anishkulli wal i waliday Ilayil masir Parenthetical Quran takes over Actually Luqman is talking to his son But Quran is presenting it Because if Luqman says to his son My son God has made it obligatory upon you to be kind to me Your parent It would be self-serving So Allah talks Look at the hikmah of the Quran Luqman is talking to his son Son do this, do this, do this, do this But as a parent to the child Allah takes over and says Parents very important to you Talking to the human race Look at the beauty of the Quran Even in its flow of delivery of knowledge That Allah honors Luqman That Luqman should not sound like he's promoting himself Wa wassainal insana bi waliday The mother suffers pain upon pain For two years Therefore be grateful to me And to your parents Anishkulli wal i waliday Wa injahadak ala ntushil kabima Laysala kabihi ilm Falatu tihuma If your parents ask you to worship other than Allah Don't obey them Falatu tihuma Watta bi assabeela man anaba ilay Follow those who are right in this matter Your parents obey them It is conditional Imams and prophets No condition Obey them a hundred percent The Quran is saying Then Allah comes back To Luqman Ya'bunaya aqim al-salaa Wa amur bil-ma'roof Wa anha anil-monkar Wa asbir ala ma'asabak Inna dhalika min azmil umoor Wa la tu'sa'ir haddaka linnaz Wa la tamshi fil ardi maraha Inna Allah la yuhibbu kulla muhtalin fahul Wa qasid fee mashik Wa qadud bin sautik Inna ankar al-aswad Na sautul hamir Can you imagine a son Listen to his father talk like that My son keep prayers Aqim al-salaa Wa amur bil-ma'roof Do good deeds Wa anha anil-monkar Wa asbir ala ma'asabak Be patient with the trials that will come to you Indeed it is a difficult thing Inna dhalika It's difficult Father is saying My son you will be tested This world is slippery But it's okay Be patient Hold on It's good And don't turn your face away from people Don't be arrogant You see a person coming You turn this way La tu'sa'ir haddaka linnaz Look at humans and smile Shake hands with them Peace Quran says that La tu'sa'ir haddaka linnaz Wa la tamshi fil ardi maraha Don't walk on earth exultingly Proud Hitting the ground hard La tamshi fil ardi maraha God doesn't love anyone Who is a show off Who walks around telling you How educated they are And how strong they are And how many successes they have And their businesses are doing so well And what famous people they are with Inna allaha la You hebbu kulla muhtalin fakhur Waqsid fee mashyik Lower your demeanor Be humble Waqdud min sotik Lower your voice when you talk Don't speak too loud Allah says When you speak loud like that You sound like a donkey Allah is giving us advice You find that's the parent rule When we understand this rule Tomorrow we will talk about dua When we raise our hands Allahumma inni asaluka bi rahmatika allateen Wasyaat kulla shay When Imam Zaynul A'bideen Aleyhis salamu alayhi wa sallam He says Saifah al-Sajjadiyah One tahi biniyati la ahsan inniyyat Wa bi amali ila ahsan il'amal Make my intention The best of intentions Make my deeds The best of deeds There is a dua for every transaction Allah says Now you connect the dua And watch how Allah answers you When Allah says Adu'uni astajiblakum Ask me I will answer you This ayah It's with ghafir Allah swt When he says Ask me I will answer It's unconditional There is no condition to when you ask Even if you are a person Who's going astray Even an atheist Even a Hindu Buddhist Christian Jew Doesn't matter When they talk to God Allah replies them Adu'uni astajiblakum If you ask me I will answer you I will answer you I will answer you I will answer you I will answer you Don't worry But sometimes When you are asking for something It takes time to get it Do you have the patience Maybe it's not good for you Allah says Asan takraw shay'an Wa wa khairul lakum Asan tuhibbu shay'an Wa khairul lakum That which you don't like Could be good for you That which you like Could be bad for you Allah says Are you not satisfied If you pray to me Then let me give you What is best for you We'll talk about this du'at tomorrow Tonight I conclude Father to son You know tonight is the shahada We commemorate the shahada Of Ali Al Akbar The son His mother was Layla She said she was there The women were there for sure Ali Akbar was 18 years of age Young His older brother was Imam Zain Al-Abedin And you find that Ali Al-Akbar Had shujads And I told you He looked identical to the prophet The young prophet Was Ali Al-Akbar And I want us to remember That Ali Akbar Was such a beautiful child 18 Our Imam, Ahlul Bayt SubhanAllah Their children Noorun ala Noor Light upon light Each one was magnificent Their akhlaq You look at Abbas A.S You look at Ja'far You look at Abdullah You look at Othman All of them became shaheed They were standing Side by side Brother with brother Fighting against the kuffar And they were smiling Talking about Akhirah Talking about seeing the prophet You don't reach that stage If you don't gain knowledge You don't reach that stage If you don't have firmness in your soul You don't reach that stage If you don't apply it You don't reach that stage Unless you understand the gravity Of the message of God Through the Quran This is why I say to us all You and I deserve to be Among the sabaikun The sabaikun You and I deserve to be The foremost of the foremost That inshallah on judgment day Allah will raise us With the ultimate human beings And tell us enter paradise For you have struggled on this earth In your own little capacity For you've kept away from all the Destructions of the world And you did the right thing So Ali Akbar is travelling With his father to Karbala Strong Very strong person And as he is writing Imam Hussein alaihi salam Some historians say He saw creatures Eating away carcass Imam looks at that This is inna lilah wa inna ilaihi rajean Some historians says He's writing Imam got very tired Because you know it was sleepless How do you sleep? You're going towards your massacre You're going towards your destiny Where your women will be taken prisoners Your infant's child is going to be Receiving a spear in its neck Your son's heads will be placed on spear How can you sleep? You will be thirsty, hungry How? But this son is riding with his father Proud I see an 18 year old boy Such strength We would love to have sons like that We would love to have daughters like that Our daughters and sons Firm and afraid Zaynab, the daughter of Ali ibn Abi Talib Firm, not afraid You know Zaynab alaihi salam She addresses Yazid She's in chains Yazid is pontificating on the throne Hitting the lips of Imam Hussein's head You know lips, but the head was severed She addresses him Ya ibn al-Tulaka O you son of a freed slave That's how firm, unafraid Yazid was stunned He was addressed as a son of a freed slave Because his father and him were both slaves Freed by the Prophet Firm Ali Akbar is riding So Imam falls asleep And he says he wakes up He says He says Baba, what happened? He said, I just saw in my dream The Holy Prophet, our grandfather Calling out That soon you're going to unite with me Soon Ali Akbar knew as an 18-year-old boy He's going to get killed He said, Baba, are we not on Haqq? Are we not on Haqq? Are we not on the truth? The father said, Bilash Haqq No question, we are on the truth Then Ali Akbar smiles and says If that is what Allah wants from us The way his grandfather Ismail And Ibrahim says to him I saw in my dream I must sacrifice you God has commanded me to sacrifice Ismail says Do it If God has decreed it Do it God will place me among the patient one What a father Which father would want to let such a son go On the day of Ashura Historians say one of the first members Of the Prophet's family in Karbala To go forward and to fight and to die And Ali Akbar And Ali Akbar comes to his father He says, father, it is my time Imam says, before you go Take permission from your mother The women of the... Go ask their permission He goes in there Which mother, which aunt Which cousin would want to let go Of such a beautiful person They were holding on to Ali Akbar Don't leave For if you leave We will be broken, ya Ali Akbar He loves Ali Akbar He looks at them and says Our destiny is there, we need to go Historians say Imam Hussein alaihi salam woke up At Fajr time Woke up in the sense, prepared Salah They weren't sleeping as you know Imam Hussein alaihi salam Tells Ali Akbar, recite Adhan You know the Fajr Salah Adhan was recited by Ali Akbar In Karbala And as he's reciting People thought the prophet is reciting Adhan And they were crying Imam Hussein alaihi salam was crying Remembering his grandfather And he says to Ali Akbar, my son They're gonna take you away from me Or when I want to remember my grandfather I look at you Now you even you will be taken from me So Ali Akbar recites Adhan in the morning At Salah time Historians say That the father reluctantly says Ali Akbar go So he helps him Alight on the horse As an 18 year old I have a daughter If anything happens to her Even a scratch We all know his parents We don't want any harm to our children What father has the courage to Place his son on a horse No he's not coming back So Ali Akbar is now Lightly moving with the horse Going towards the enemy And he stops He hears footsteps He stops He looks back He sees Imam Hussein walking towards him Ali Akbar says to his father Father We bid goodbye Why are you walking towards me The father looks at him Imam Hussein says Ali Akbar you're not a father When you become a father You'll know what I'm going through right now Letting you go It's very very difficult For me to let you go But you have to go You have to go Ali Akbar goes Historians say When he arrived in front of the enemy As he's moving his horse And swinging his sword The enemy would come near him And run Because Ali Akbar was also known as Amr Bani Hashem But they would come near him They would walk away Historians noted That they went to their superiors And said that's the prophet Oh my god that's the prophet On horse That's the prophet fighting us They told you want your money You want to get paid by the Khalifa Then go kill him So they jump towards him And they fight And they say Ali Akbar Killed many Tens of persons If not more individually As an 18 year old Then he came back to his father Historians say He came to his father I don't know how He comes He says father The thirst is overwhelming And Imam puts his tongue On his tongue He says go my son Go Ali Akbar goes back Now there was a man By the name of Mura Ibn Markab And he come And as Ali Akbar is fighting He lunges A spear into his chest And as Ali Akbar is falling His face is Peace be upon you my father Peace be upon you my father Or I have been struck They say Mura breaks the stick With a sword You know where the spear is So the blade remains in his chest And Ali Akbar falls Imam comes swooping towards him And holds on to And places him on his shoulders And Ali Akbar has his hand here Breathing his lungs He says I see the Prophet I see the Prophet calling me And the father is looking at him Breathing his lungs Leaving his soul Allah Allah Allah And peace be upon you And peace be upon you Who is the one who has been struck By the heart Peace be upon you my father Or I have been struck By the heart And on the soul We have solved by свои Peace be upon you I have not remained Still awaited the night And the day And do not make pass My visit May peace uponnyt Wa ala Ali ibn al-Husayn, wa ala al-Husayn, wa ala ashab al-Husayn. Wa ala Ali ibn al-Husayn, wa ala ashab al-Husayn, wa ala ashab al-Husayn. Wa ala Ali ibn al-Husayn, wa ala ashab al-Husayn, wa ala ashab al-Husayn. Salawatuka wa fi kulli wa qaida wa dalina hatta tutskinahu warudaka wa tumati'u fi rahmatika. Ya ar-Rahmar wa yajshif al-Sum, an ma yajimu n-ultarra yajshif al-Sum, an yajshif al-Sum, li rahmatika. Ya ar-Rahmar wa yajshif al-Sum, li rahmatika. Ya ar-Rahmar wa yajshif al-Sum, li rahmatika.