 We are starting a new series of the commentaries of the Holy Quran, which we have titled the practical guidance from the revelation. Within the history of Quran and Muslim, if we look into it, interpretation of Quran started from the time of the Holy Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa alayhi. Every verse that was revealed, his companions would ask him and he would explain what is the significance and why this verse has been revealed. And on and on and on. Through the life of Ahl al-Bayt, we see the same things that they will ask an Imam, what is the significance and what is the meaning of this verse when it was revealed, why it was revealed, on whom it was revealed. Ahl al-Bayt would explain it to us that, for example, during the time of the Prophet, this event happened and this verse was revealed to the Holy Prophet, and so on and so forth. But unfortunately, many of these hadith were destroyed by the enemies of Ahl al-Bayt, where Ahl al-Bayt interpreted and explained to us the hadith and the verses of Quran. Alhamdulillah, we have received a good amount of ahadith and the meanings and the interpretation of Quran by Ahl al-Bayt, alayhum salam. Within the school of Ahl al-Bayt, alayhum salam, there are more than 100 commentaries written by different scholars. Until today, many commentaries have been compiled. Each commentary has looked into this book, into this holy book from different perspectives, some narration based. For example, Tafsir al-Burhan, we see it to be a narration based. Some philosophical background the author had, and he looked at the Holy Quran, scientific perspective, Arabic grammar and so on and so forth. Every commentator of the Holy Quran looked at the Holy Quran from different perspectives. And adding all of these commentary together, there's room for additional commentary. And we can't say that Alhamdulillah, we have understood the Holy Quran completely. Every day, new science that comes out, we find out that it has a base within the Holy Quran. We can never argue that we have understood the Holy Quran completely. However, the more we expand our horizon, we can gain more and more from this holy book. Insha'Allah, within this series that we have prepared for you, which we are going to start with in the first chapter, Surat al-Hamd, insha'Allah, and continue all the way to the last chapter, insha'Allah, if we have that life granted to us by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, that is our aim. So there won't be any excuse for any of the youth or any of the people in the West who are trying to understand the Quran, who are trying to gain more knowledge of the Holy Quran. They won't be able to say, well, we don't have an access to an interpretation of Holy Quran in English. And it was hard and difficult for us. This was the reason why we started the series that, insha'Allah, we can continue for people to gain from the Holy Quran, insha'Allah. In this series, we are looking to between 10 to 15 different commentaries of the Holy Quran from different scholars. And we are trying to be as much as possible practical. For those of you who have followed my lectures, you know that I have always an action planned within my lectures. Because if it's about us listening to a lecture and being thankful to it that, Alhamdulillah, we attended a Majlis, we listened to a good lecture. But if we are asked, what did you learn? What is it that you are going to do starting now after this lecture? Sometimes it becomes difficult for people to summarize what they heard in one lecture. So we will make that simple, insha'Allah. We will have an action plan as many as possible. So we can bring Quran, insha'Allah, to our life. The most dangerous method of commentary of the Holy Quran is when an individual takes the Quran as a teacher. What do I mean? I am a teacher. For example, I take the Quran, I have some understanding myself, and I try to bring and back my information with the Holy Quran. I have a specific mindset. I have specific, for the lack of better term, we can say a specific agenda. Then I look into Holy Quran and I'll try to find verses of the Holy Quran which backs my point of view, which backs my perspective, which backs my agenda. It's not a good term, but for the lack of better term, my agenda, my ideology, this is very, very, very dangerous. Because if we look into that, we can find that, for example, the enemies of Quran, the enemies of Muslims, the enemies of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala, they do the same thing. They say Islam is the religion of terrorism. So that's basically an ideology that they have of Islam. Say, look, Quran says, for example, kill them wherever you find them. He has an ideology. With that ideology, he comes into Holy Quran and he looks at it and he finds verses which supports his mindset and his agenda. So when we get to the Holy Quran, we have to be completely free, not looking at Quran with any perspective, any agenda. No, I want to see what Quran has for me. How many lessons I can learn from every verse, every word. What I can learn? What is Quran trying to convey to me? What is that message? So we have to keep our mind completely wide open and not trying to pick and choose some of the verses that we are comfortable with and some of the verses that we are not comfortable with. No, Quran needs to be taken completely. So for these people, rather than learning from the Holy Quran, they impose their ideology rather than Quran being their guidance, they use some of the Quran to prove their personal opinion, which is very, very, very dangerous. Where Hadith says by Imam al-Sadiq, Imam al-Sadiq, states anyone who interprets and brings the meaning of the Quran based on his own understanding, how many times, unfortunately, we see within the Facebook, social media, within some gatherings that we are in, that they say, okay, this is what I understand from the Holy Quran. And based on that, they build a very strong argument and they are willing to fight for it. Imam says, anyone who interprets an ayah, a verse of the Holy Quran, based on his perspective, he is a disbeliever because our perspective is being shaped by the books that we have read, the environment that we are in and by people who are around us, by the movies that we watch, everything affects our perspective. So if we look at the Holy Quran within this perspective and we try to say, okay, this is what Quran means, Imam says again, if you interpret a verse of Holy Quran based on your understanding, you have become a disbeliever. So that starts a good action plan. From now onward, anytime that we see a verse of Quran that we think this is what it means, we have to make sure we find a backing within the commentaries book which has been written, please pay attention. We have some commentaries of the Holy Quran by our scholars that is based on their perspective. We're not talking about those commentaries, no. We are focusing on the books of commentaries which have been compiled by scholars, which they have based their argument and their understanding of the Holy Quran from the Hadith of Ahl al Bayt, alaykum as-salam. This is our main focus, to look at the Holy Quran from the right teacher, from those teachers who Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala appoint as a teacher for this holy book, the teacher of the Quran. The Quran is a holy, infallible, airless, mistakeless, so the teacher who teaches this holy book must be infallible. So when we are trying to understand the Holy Quran, we should refer again to those action plan will be for us not to give our understanding of the Holy Quran. This is what I think Quran is telling me, no. Let me refer to a book of commentary of those authors, those commentators who have brought a Hadith of Ahl al Bayt. Their understanding of Quran is based on the knowledge of Ahl al Bayt, alaykum as-salam, which we have received. That will be, inshallah, our action plan. Somebody has an argument, we sit within a gathering and he says, well, this is my understanding. As soon as you're about to say, well, no, this is my understanding. Remember, man fassara bi-ra'ihi aaya. Whoever interprets an aaya, a verse of Holy Quran based on his own understanding, faqat kafat. He's a disbeliever. So we don't want to be amongst those people. So we will say, well, I don't know. This has to start to become part of our personality. When we don't know something, we'll say, I don't know. Well, is this halal or haram? Well, I don't know. I have to go back to the books of our foqaa, if it's a faqh question, if it's about our jurisprudence and ahkam, well, I go to the book of the marja that I follow. If not, well, if it's about the tafsir of the Holy Quran, let me look into the tafsir of those authors who base their argument and understanding of the Holy Quran based on the hadith of Ahl al Bayt, alayhim as-salam. It's a very, very important action plan that we have to keep in mind and put it as our foundation in approaching the Holy Quran and understanding this Holy Book, which has been revealed to the Holy Prophet Muhammad, sallallahu alayhi wa ala. So why do we need the Holy Quran? Why Quran? Why not other books? We see a beautiful hadith by Imam al-Mussadah, alayh salam. Why we need to focus? These, inshallah, these first couple of episodes will be about introduction of ours to the Holy Quran. We have to have these ideas in our minds before we dive into this endless ocean of the knowledge of Quran and Ahl al Bayt, alayhim as-salam. Imam al-Mussadah, alayh salam, narrates, ma'min amrin yakhtalifu feehe ethanan, a beautiful narration that if we really think of this narration and we put it bold in our minds, our lifestyle will be completely different. Imam says, there is no affair that two people disagree on something, this affair. How many times we have a disagreement, wife with a husband, husband with wife, parents with kids, kids with parents, two brothers, two sisters, community members, relatives, friends, co-worker, classmate, and so on and so forth, we have a disagreement because we have different perspective, we have different understanding, we have different personality, so we have a disagreement. On every affair if we see, there is a different point of view and there is a disagreement. Imam says, ma'min amrin yakhtalifu feehe ethanan, every affair, every affair that two people disagree on, you will definitely find its foundation within the Holy Quran. In other words, every problem that we face within our societies, within our families, within our relationships, at work, at school, with our families and relatives and so on and so forth, every problem that exists, the solution we will find it in the Holy Quran. Where is Quran within our life? Do we have it? Do we have every verse of the Holy Quran present within every minute of our life that I'm about to approach something? There is a disagreement, there is a dispute. Will I say, let me refer back to the Holy Quran, see what Quran has as an answer to this problem? Or no, I will try to go to science, I will try to go to psychologists, to philosophers, to different fields, different knowledge and try to find an answer rather than Quran to be our number one source for us to return to and come and find the solution from it. That's what we are trying to, insha'Allah, accomplish again the practical, the title of the show, the practical guidance, practical guidance from the revelation. How can we bring Quran to our lives and make it alive where we will see the benefit ourselves and our families? That's one hadith. Why the book of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala? Because for every problem that exists, there is a solution within the Holy Quran. Another narration, where Imam says, Allah has revealed in the Holy Quran, everything that exists, Allah has brought its points, it has referred within the Holy Quran. Hatta wa Allah by God. Why? Why Allah did this? Why He brought from every affair, He brought a point within the Holy Quran? Why He did so? A disagreement, a dispute, a problem that we can say, oh we wish we had an answer for this question, for this problem, for this challenge, I wish there was something within the Holy Quran about it. Anything that we are in need of it as a solution within the problems that we are facing, Imam says you will find it within the Holy Quran. So we won't be able to say on the Day of Judgement, oh Allah, I faced a challenge, I faced a difficulties, I faced a problem within life, I referred back to the Holy Quran, but I didn't find the answer. Imam says you won't have that excuse. No one will be able to say that I wish this affair, this problem, this challenge, this difficulties was referred within the Holy Quran. Every circumstances that we are in, we can find a verse of Quran as a foundation, as a base, as a backbone, as a right solution to the problems that we are facing. And how many are those? Many. On a daily basis we face challenges, on a daily basis we find difficulties, which insha'Allah again, by the grace of Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala. An ahlul bayt, alaykum wa salam, we are trying to bring these verses of Quran, understanding from the book of Quran, an ahlul bayt, alaykum wa salam, bring it to our life and you will see one after one, one after one, chapter after chapter, verse after verse, how it helps us resolve our issues, insha'Allah. There are more to discussion, insha'Allah. We will leave it to the next episode. We will conclude, insha'Allah, with the most important du'a that we should always remember, and that should be the focal of our du'as and nothing else, and that would be, insha'Allah, du'a al faraj, raise your hand, insha'Allah, all of us together in the presence of the ahadith of Ahlul bayt, alaykum wa salam and the Holy Quran, we read together, insha'Allah, du'a al faraj, Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Raheem.