 If we can work together, inshallah, move faster so we can start, because now if someone comes they would have to find a place to sit. So let's try to provide a space that when newcomers come they can just sit down. And I have to protest this one issue, huh? They tell me that you have to stay, you know, your time is specific time, but the announcements they get longer every day and, you know, but thank you, they were, they were beautiful announcements. I am only joking, huh? Don't put anything in my tea. Peace be upon you, O messenger of Allah. Peace be upon you, O master and master of Abdullah. O mercy of Allah the Exalted, O doorkeeper of the nation, O prophet of every believer and believer, I fear not Allah, I fear not Allah, Who has touched you. And I fear not Allah, Who has touched you. O our Lord, O our Lord, we have been with you for a long time. We have been with you for a long time. Allah says in His Noble Book of Judgment, and His Word is the Truth, and it is the most truthful. I seek refuge with Allah from the accursed Satan. In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful. Be patient with those who believe. This way, you are gathering with a lot of remembrance upon Muhammed and his family. As a gift to the soul of Sayyidi and the master of Ali, the eldest son of Hussain, the son of Ali, the son of Abi Talib, recite the second Salawat. As a gift to the soul of Sayyidi and the master of Ali, recite the third Salawat with the loudest of your voices. Patience is a virtue which must exist within every believing man and every believing woman. Sabr is a quality that every mu'min and every mu'minah must enjoy within their existence. And Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, enumerous verses within the Holy Quran, speaks to us of the virtue of sabr and the quality of sabr. Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala within the Holy Quran tells his prophet, tells his messengers. He informs him that since the inception of life on the face of this earth, since God created the very first human being, and until the last existence of the last human being on the face of this earth, Allah will test every single one of us. Allah in the Holy Quran states, every one of you will be tested, this is a promise from Allah, with no exceptions, with fear, starvation, hunger, financial crisis, poverty, and the people with illnesses, with death, with threats. Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala states, Wa Bashir Al-Saberin, and give glad tidings and good news to those who exercise patience. Wa Bashir Al-Saberin, Alladina Ida Asadatum Mus'ibah, those who are inflicted by a tragedy, those who are inflicted by poverty, by illness, by death, Alladina Ida Asadatum Mus'ibah, they say, Inna Lillah, we belong to Allah, Inna Lillah, Wa Inna Ilayhi Rajiun, and to Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala we shall return. And if you examine the Holy Quran, the number one theme within the Holy Quran is the theme of Sabr. Because Allah speaks of numerous prophets within the Holy Quran. Allah mentions 25 prophets within the Holy Quran. And from the story of every prophet, we learn Sabr, we learn patience. When Allah tells us of the story of the prophet Nuh, Nuh lived for a thousand years amongst his people. And for a thousand years he kept trying to install faith and piety and righteousness and the oneness of Allah within his community. But no one believed in him. No one recognized him and no one recognized his call. Allah in the Holy Quran states, Rabbi Inni kullama de'autum Nuh says, Oh Allah, every time I called on to them, Rabbi Inni kullama de'autum litagafira lahum for them to embrace you. For you to forgive them, Rabbi Inni kullama de'autum litagafira lahum jaaloo assabi'ahum fi aadahnim wa staghshaw thiaabahum wa asarru wa stakbaru stikbara They would put their fingers in their ears and they would cover their heads and they would run away. Then Allah says to him, Nuh built an ark. When Nuh began to build the ark, he was not in close proximity of water. So they mocked him. They made fun of him, but he exercised patience. Allah also gives us the story of the prophet Yaqub. His sons took away his beloved Yusuf and they returned with a shirt stained with blood. They said to him, Oh father, the wolf attacked Yusuf and he ate him and this is his shirt. So Yaqub says that you cannot fool me with your fabricated lies. Walakin sabbrun jameel, wallahu al mustaanu ala maa taqoolun. But I will exercise the beautiful patience. Sabbrun jameel. What is the difference between the beautiful patience and the patience that is not beautiful? The mufessereen have stated that the patience that is beautiful is that patience, is that sabr where we only confine to Allah, where we speak to Allah, where we share our problems only and only with Allah. That is sabrun jameel. And of course it's difficult, it's not easy. Therefore the prophet says, wallahu al mustaanu and Allah shall help me in this process. Wallahu al mustaanu ala maa taqoolun. And Allah similarly gives us the example of his son Yusuf. Yusuf that goes with 10 of his brothers and they take him and they collaborate against him and they conspire against him and they threw him in the well. When they threw him in the well, he smiled. So they said, Yusuf, what's wrong with you? Why you're smiling? He said, as I was coming in this journey to the desert with you, I was thinking to myself, who can hurt me? Who can harass me? Who can come near me? I have 10 strong brothers who will protect me, who will look after me. But now that you threw me in here, all by myself I have realized that I have no one besides Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And then they took him away from the well as a slave. His brothers sold him as a slave and he had to exercise sabr and patience. They sold him with several dirhams. The young Yusuf, they sold him with several dirhams to get rid of him. They sold him with several dirhams. The Mufassireen state that the price in which they sold Yusuf in was equivalent to purchasing a guard dog. That's it, they sold their brother. He had to exercise patience. Then he became a slave, he had to exercise patience. In the house of Zuleikha, he had to exercise patience. Allah gives us the example of the prophet Ayyub and he's famous for his patience, Sabru Ayyub. Ayyub who was the wealthiest man, who was the most loved, who was also a prophet of Allah. Allah tested Ayyub by taking away all his sons, all 10 of them at once. He said, Alhamdulillah, al-Lahil Ladi, A'ta. Then I asked, I thank Allah who gave me and took away. Then Allah took away all his wealth, all his property, everything he owned. He again said, I thank Allah who gave and now took away. Then Allah took away his health. He once again said, I thank Allah who gave me this health and now took it away. To a point where no one would go near Ayyub, people thought that his illness was contagious. Nobody would, he became a homeless on the side of the streets. His wife had to become a maid in the people's homes. And every day, Ayyub says, Alhamdulillah. This is easy for us to hear the story. It's easy for us. But imagine yourself for one second in his shoes. To a point where his wife one day was fatigued, she was tired, she was exhausted. She couldn't work. So she went and she sold her hair to bring a piece of bread and to give it to the prophet, Ayyub. Allah also gives us examples of women within the Holy Quran who are role models of patience. One of them is whom, Asya bint Muzahim, the wife of Far'aun. She said, Far'aun, I will no longer tell the people and lie to the people that you are a god and I'm a goddess. I believe in the Lord of Haroon. I believe in the Lord of Musa. He said to her, listen Asya, you can believe in whoever you like. You can worship whatever god you like, but not in public. Because as soon as he come and you say Far'aun is not god, people will say if his own wife says he's not a god, then he really isn't a god. So you get to do whatever you like in private, but in public, no. She went and she announced to the public, I believe in the Lord of Haroon and Musa. I worship the Lord of Haroon and Musa. He took her, he captured her. Traditions say he cut her body with a knife, the entire body. Then he threw her in a bucket of salt. He tortured her until she died. But what did she say? Listen to this. Daraballahu methalan li'l ladina amanu. She's an example for all the mu'mineen, man and woman. Daraballahu methalan li'l ladina amanu mu'mra'ata Far'aun, the wife of Far'aun. If the qalat, when she said, rabb ibn li'l yandaka baytan fil jannah, wana jini min Far'aun wa amalih, wana jini min al-Qaum al-Zalini. Oh Allah, I look forward to that rest, to that residence that you will put aside for me. Oh Allah, I look forward to entering paradise. And here I will exercise patience. Allah gives us the example of Maryam, Maryam ibn At-Tu'umran, al-Lati ahsanat farjahaa, who, the Prophet Zakaria, every time he went into the muhrab, to the sanctuary, he saw Maryam, and she had received heavenly food. Qaala ya Maryam wa anna laki haadha. Maryam, where did you get this food from? Qaala tawamin, al-Llah. Allah has sent me heavenly food. She goes and returns with a child. They accused her. They fought her. They excommunicated her. And all she said in return was to remain patient. Saabira, when Rasulullah arrived to Medina, he went to the house of Abu Talha al-Ansari. Abu Talha and his wife on Talha could not have children, but after Rasulullah left, they, Allah gave them a son by the name of Talha. Two years later, Talha became very ill. And Abu Talha loved this child. One day, Um Talha woke up, and she saw that Talha has passed away. So she washed his body, she wrapped him into the coffin, and she put him on the side of the room. Abu Talha came home for lunch. He said, Um Talha, where is our son Talha? She said he's sleeping in the side of the room. Have your lunch. So he had lunch, he relaxed, then Um Talha told him, listen, such a woman, Allahu Akbar. You cannot put a price, you cannot even, this is the tafsir of Rabbana atina fid dunya hasana. A good spouse, fid dunya hasana refers to, a good spouse, this is a good spouse. She said to him, Abu Talha, if the neighbors two years ago came and gave us an amana, they entrusted us with something. And now they've returned, and they want their amana back. What should I do? They said, Um Talha, of course, you give the amana back. She said, are you sure? He said, yes. She said to him, Abu Talha, two years ago, Allah gave us an amana, and today he took it away. Abu Talha took the baby. He went to Rasulullah, and he told Rasulullah the story. Rasulullah says, Alhamdulillah, al ladhi ja'ala fi umma ti nisaan ka ummi Talha. I thank Allah that has placed woman in my umma such as Um Talha. Rasulullah thanks, Allah for such woman. Rasulullah in our tradition states, al sabru min al iman ka raasi min al jasad. Patience to iman is like the head from the body. Can we have a functioning body without a head, without eyes, without ears, without a tongue, without our intellect? No. Similarly, that is the grand position of iman. That is the grand position of sabr, patience from iman. Rasulullah says in the day they place us in the grave. Our good deeds try to come to our rescue. So we see them, they're embodied in beautiful physical entities. They will come to our grave. And when they enter our grave, the salah comes, a beautiful entity. Tries to take care of us. If it fails, then it goes to our siyam. If it fails, then it goes to the Hajj. If it fails, then it goes to zakat. If it fails, then it goes to Amr, then it goes to Zakat. Then it goes to zakat. If it fails, then it goes to Amr glacur. If they all fail, then Rasulullah says Sabr comes. If it was there in the dunya. If we were amongst those who said what, إِنَّا اللّٰهُ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَجِعُونَ Al-L でْنَا إِذَа أصابتهم مصيبة If we were amongst those, then the sabr will come and there is no problem that the sabr and the patience cannot solve. Those are the words of Rasulullah. Rasulullah sallallahu alaihi wa alihi wasallam says inna lil jannati baban yuqalu lahababu s-sabr. For Paradise there is a small door and it's called the door of patience. Inna lil jannati baban yuqalu lahababu s-sabr. And those who enter from the door of s-sabr, first of all why is the door small? For obvious reasons because people don't have patience. Many of us don't have patience. The people that enter through this door enter without hesab. They don't go through the judgment. They don't go through the lines. As soon as they arrive to the judgment day they open the door for them, they say go in. So the melaika will ask man antum. You came through the back door, the VIP line. What type? Who are you? A antum al anbiya? Are you prophets? No. Are you saints? No. Man antum? Nahlu s-saberun. We are the patient ones. The melaika will ask wa ala ma sabrtum. What were you patient with? They said sabrna ala ta'atillah wa an ma'siyatillah. We exercised patience and obedience of Allah and we exercised patience not to disobey Allah. Two things. How do we exercise patience and the face of obedience of Allah and facing the obedience of Allah? It's not easy for us to wake up sometimes at 5 30 in the morning to get ourselves out of bed, to do wadhu, to pray salat al fajr and needs patience. It's not easy for some of the sisters to wah hijab and needs patience. It's not easy for some people to depart away from their wealth. Of course, it's easy to throw a dollar or two or five dollars. This is easy. No, I'm talking about the more difficult amounts. And you cannot really set a specific amount. Say, for example, the amount is five thousand dollars. No. This goes back to the capability of the person. It needs patience if we are departing from a great amount of wealth. Some of us have family members who we may dislike. Some of us, for example, have elder parents and we might not be on the best terms with them. But Allah says you have to be respectful to your family and especially to your parents. If your parents are old, uncle, aunts, grandparents, you still have to respect them. You still have to keep that relationship with them, even if you dislike them. This is being patient with the obedience of Allah. We also have to be patient not to disobey Allah, not to eat the haram, not to look at the haram, not to listen to the haram, not to engage with the haram and needs patience, especially for the youth living in this society. Today, if you sit in a vehicle and someone smokes, you go home and they ask you, did you smoke? You say, no, but the person next to me was smoking. If a simple cigarette can leave such an effect, do you think the high schools here don't leave such an effect on people? Do you think colleges don't leave such an effect on people? Do you think the television and the lifestyle today doesn't influence our youth? Of course it does. Of course it's difficult and that is why as parents, we also have to be kind and merciful to some of their mistakes. We have to be understanding to some of their mistakes and we have to help them to improve themselves. Therefore, those individuals are patient, not to disobey Allah and also to obey Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala. Ayatullah al-Uzma An-Naraqi about 250 years ago wrote a beautiful book by the name of Jam'il Kamalat, the abundance of virtues. He speaks of all the virtues and amongst the chapters in his book is a chapter dedicated to the virtue of patience, Sabr. The book reached the hands of Ayatullah al-Uzma, Sayyid Mahdi Bahra al-Uloom. Sayyid Mahdi Bahra al-Uloom was not only the Marja of the time residing in Najaf, but he was also the personal friend of Imam al-Mahdi. He got to meet the Imam whenever he wished. He had a grand position. He was the man who saw Imam al-Mahdi in the 10th of Muharram in the Aza of his grandfather Abu Abdullah al-Hussein. They saw the Sayyid, he was in the Aza, he was running, he was doing matam. He was crying and the Sayyid every year would go barefoot without his amama. Weeping and crying and doing matam for his grandfather Abu Abdullah al-Hussein, suddenly he collapsed. They said to him, Sayyid, what happened? He said, I saw, do not blame me for I saw Sayyidi wa Mawlai sahibu al-Asri wa al-Zaman, not only weeping, not only beating his chest, not only barefoot, but crying tears of blood for his grandfather Abu Abdullah al-Hussein. This was the position of Sayyid Bahra al-Uloom. Months later, maybe a year later, Iitullah al-Naraqi from Iran visited Najaf. So all the ulamas, all the Maraji, all the Mujtahids came to visit Naraqi, accept Bahra al-Uloom. Three days later, Naraqi said, I will go and visit Sayyid Bahra al-Uloom myself. There's no reason for him to come. So he went and he visited Bahra al-Uloom. Bahra al-Uloom was very cold. He didn't even stand up for him. He didn't respect him. So Naraqi sat and he left. The people said, Sheikh, you should not come back here. This man disrespected you. And you should treat him the same way if he comes and visits you. But the Sayyid never even came to visit him. Three days later, he said to his people, I'm going to go and visit the Sayyid again. Maybe on that day he was not feeling well. Maybe he had a bad day. So I'll visit him again. He visited him again and the condition was even worse. This time the Sayyid didn't even speak to him. So they said, maybe he's going to come and repay you the visit and tell you why. Tell you, maybe you've done something. Maybe he thinks something of you that is wrong. And the Sayyid never came to visit him. They say the night before Naraqi left Najaf, he secretly didn't tell his people because they wouldn't allow him. He secretly wore his clothes and he went to the door of Sayyid Bahra al-Uloom. He knocked at the door of Sayyid Bahra al-Uloom. The Sayyid came running without his amama, without his abaa. He opened the door. He held the hands of Naraqi and he kissed it. They said to him, Sayyid Bahra al-Uloom, one hour, one time. You don't speak to him. You don't stand up for him. You don't respect him. Now he kisses his hands. What's happening? He said, I read his book, The Abundance of the Virtues. I read his book, Jam'ul Kamalat. I wanted to see if he truly acts onto what he writes. And I found that he is not only the book, but he is beyond the book as well. I was testing him. And of course, do you think it was easy for Naraqi to overcome the feeling inside of him that the Sayyid is disrespecting me? The Sayyid is not visiting me? The Sayyid is not speaking to me? A Sayyid that respects children? Disrespect me? It was not easy. But yet, this man exercised sabr to obey Allah, to seek Allah SWT's satisfaction and pleasure. And today, in the past years, as I travel in different communities, I find many people complaining of the economic situation. Many people, I know them, they have lost their jobs after 30 years. 30 years working for a company suddenly laid off. I know many people have lost their homes. I know many people have lost their vehicles. I know many million-dollar companies that have gone bankrupt. And when we come to this issue today, while being in the Madrasa of Imam Hussain, when we look at the school of Imam Hussain, the very first lesson on top of the list of the lessons that we learn from Imam Hussain is the lesson of sabr. Patience. The first lesson that we learn from his brother, Abul-Fadil Abbas, is the lesson of sabr. And in his ziyarah, when you go to him, what do you say? We say, Ash-Hadu An-Naka Sabar. The first lesson that we learn from Sayyid-e-Zaynab, sallallahu alayhi alayhi, is the lesson of patience and sabr. When Rasulullah was departing from this Ummah, he said, An-Nitarekun Fikumuthaqalain, Kitab Allah Wa Atrati Al-Bayti. I am leaving two weighty things amongst you. Number one is what? Kitab Allah. Today, if I cannot relate Kitab Allah, the Holy Qur'an to my life, that is not the problem within the Qur'an. That is the problem in me understanding the Qur'an. Some people say, What's the Qur'an? Today, how is it going to solve my problem today? We're going through a worldwide global economic crisis. I'm going through difficulty in my marriage. It's in the Qur'an. I'm going through difficulties at work. It's in the Qur'an. Rasulullah says there isn't anything, any cure to any problem, the solution to any problem, but it's been mentioned in the Holy Qur'an. Therefore, if we cannot bring the Qur'an into our lives today, that is not the problem of the Qur'an, but it is our problem of understanding the Qur'an. That is why Rasulullah says, An-Nitarek, I'm leaving the Qur'an amongst you. Then he says, I'm also leaving my family amongst you, my progeny. I'm leaving Hassan. I'm leaving Husayn. I'm leaving Aliyabna Abi Talib. And if I cannot relate the message of Husayn to my life today, that is my problem in understanding the message of Husayn. If I cannot relate to Aliyabna Abi Talib, that is my problem in understanding Aliyabna Abi Talib. Therefore, when we come to the School of Imam Husayn, we have to learn patience in facing the financial crisis. And I have to say this, not only for those here, but elsewhere as well, that Allah gives us a promise in the Holy Qur'an, a big promise, a huge promise coming from Allah, not from my insurance company, not from my boss, not from my family, from Allah. Allah says, inna ma'al usri. After all difficulties, there shall come ease. So, when you reach the peak of the difficulties, you have to realize that soon it will be the beginning of the ease. It's a promise from Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala. A beautiful tradition states that when we wait for the yusr to come after the usr, when we wait for the ease to come after the difficulty, we have to await this ease like a farmer awaits his crops. A farmer goes and he does whatever he needs to do. He plants the seeds, he waters them, he takes care of his plants. Then he goes and he sleeps. Comfortable. People come and say to him, are you sure those apple trees this year, they're going to give apples? I'm 100% sure. I know they'll give apples. Are you sure that the plants or the, for example, this tree will give oranges this year? He says, I don't think I know they will give oranges this year. Today, if someone comes and tells you this person in your family that's ill, do you think they will ever be cured? Say, I don't think I know they will be cured. Do you think in this crisis you're ever going to find a job? I don't think I know I will find a job. Do you think in this crisis you're going to buy the house you always wanted to buy? Say, I don't think. I know I will buy the house I always wanted because I entrust myself in Allah SWT. I put my faith in Allah SWT. And yes, maybe things don't look right today, but in the end everything is in Allah's hands. When Hussein was murdered, he was beheaded. His family was taken captive. Did anyone think that Hussein is going to be the victorious one? Hussein is ever going to be the man that's won this battle. Allah SWT decides otherwise. Allah SWT decides for Hussein to rise and to rise and to rise. And every year, year in, year out, Hussein becomes greater and greater. Many of you have gone to Ziyarat. Rivers of people, rivers of people, millions upon millions of people giving away everything, knowing that there could be danger in their ways walking all the way from Basra to Karbala. But yet they come and the love of Hussein is what drives them and motivates them. Another issue that we have to understand while being patient and receiving the ease from Allah SWT is that we also have to be the making of our decisions, not our circumstance. Don't say, well today the economy is terrible, so what am I going to do? I don't have any other options. No. A beautiful Persian anecdote says, if you feel that you're buried and everybody's walking all over you and you have no hope, think of yourself as a seed. The deeper you are buried, the stronger the roots will be. And the more powerful you arise and the bigger fruits you will give. They give an example of a farmer who lost his mule. So he walked around. Where is my mule? His mule had fallen in thee. Well, old mule. So he said, let me bury this guy. Let me bury the mule. It's over for him. So he began to take the dust and to throw it in the well to bury the mule. But the mule was not the making of his circumstance. He kept moving the dust, stepping over it and raising himself. And soon the farmer saw the ears of the mule. Some of America's biggest businesses were formed in times of difficulties. Marie was a lady who came as a foreigner to this country. And she used to work in a restaurant six days a week. Her boss came to her and said, Marie, you have to work seven days a week from tomorrow. So she said, I can't work seven days a week. He said, you have to. People loved her pies. She began to only, for seven days a week, bake pies left and right. People coming now to the restaurant just to eat her pies. When she became famous, she left and she opened her first Marie calendar. Today, there are over 125 chapters of Marie calendar in America. When she felt that she has to work for the seventh day, that was the beginning, that was the last step of her misery. It was also the first step of her ease. So for many of us, let this be a lesson, a lesson of hope from the school of Imam Hussain from the Holy Quran. And when we come to the principle of patience, I have chosen to speak of this ayah in Surah Al-Ankabut. Ya Rasulallah, give yourself patience with those believers who stay up the day and the night and praying to Allah, Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. Why was this verse revealed? And what are the four stages of sabr associated within this verse? This verse was revealed in regards to Salman, and other companions, but mainly of those three. Those three were impoverished companions. They were poor. They could not afford two sets of clothes. So they wore the same thing that they wear in the winter, they wore it in the summer. And Salman himself, he says, he says summertime, you would sweat. And we would not have the best smells, obviously. And we could not afford to go and wash or to buy a new set of clothes. And we could not afford buying atar. So the rich would come, they would sit next to them, and they would be disturbed. So they came to Rasulallah. They said, Ya Rasulallah, make the masjid two shifts, one shift for the poor, one shift for the rich. So that when the rich come, and we will support Ya Rasulallah, we'll give big money, but those guys can't be here. So when we come, we sit next to you, we speak with you, and when we leave, they can come. But we can't be with those guys in the same place. Allah revealed this ayah, Ya Rasulallah, don't be fooled by what they're saying. Don't be fooled by their wealth and their money. Remain patient with those guys. Exercise sabr with those guys. You read on our wajah. Ya Rasulallah, those guys want Allah. Those guys love Allah. Those guys are there for the sake of Allah. And if the others want to come, they can also come. They're welcomed. If they really want to come for Allah, they're welcome. But if they want to come for any other reasons, no, Ya Rasulallah, you remain with them. You remain with them. The ulama have stated four stages of sabr. When defining sabr, wasb, nafsak, they have given four stages of sabr. The very first stage of sabr is defined as chastity for us to overcome our lust. The illegitimate desires, they said, al-alaam al-majlis narrates in Bihar al-Anwar. He says there was a abid in the time of Musa. When he would raise his hands to Allah, Allah would answer his dua. So people would bring their family, their friends, the L ones, and he would pray for them and they would be cured. But he would only do this one hour in the day. The rest he would be praying for himself, as in praying to Allah. So four brothers came and they brought their sister. They put her there. They said, you know, we'll come back and get her. This man prayed on every single one of them. They were cured. He went to this woman and he saw the beauty in the woman. And shaitan came to him right away. What does it mean? When the ayah was revealed that Allah forgives all the sins. Listen to this. Shaitan gathered all his guys, all his gang. He said to them, have you realized that Allah says he will forgive all the sins? They said, yes. He said, what should we do? They all said one thing. Waswas al-Khanas then said, I will whisper in their ears until they commit the sin. When they commit the sin, I will whisper in their ears to forget asking for repentance. Meaning the repetitive. He took advantage of this woman. This ill woman. Then shaitan, again, he came to him. Now her brothers are going to come. What are you going to do? Get rid of her. He murdered her. Rape, murder. After he murdered her, he buried her. Her brothers came. He said, I prayed on her for ease. She died. I buried her. They said, that's fine. But now we have to transport her to our city. We've lived far away. So then when they opened the grave, they realized that she had been murdered. They took him for a trial. When they took him for a trial, they wanted to execute him. Shaytan came to him, al-Waswas al-Khanas. He came to him, and he said to him, listen, you want me to get you out of your misery? Ask me for help. That's it. Say, oh, Shaytan, help me. That's it. Ya Shaytan, say ya Shaytan. So he was hesitant. He said, no, I can't. I know what you're doing. You've already got me to this. I can't do anything else. That's it. I'm not trusting you anymore. He said, listen, just once. It's worth a trial. Just once, say ya Shaytan, and that's it. And as soon as he said that, he was executed. Aabid, because of the lack of chastity and na'ffah, goes to that level. Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, in the holy Quran says, Tell the believers to lower their gaze, to look with modesty, and tell the believing woman to also lower their gaze, and to look with modesty. When Allah speaks of hijab, Allah says, Inazalna ilaykum libasan yuwari, so'atikum warishan, the hijab. Then he says wa libasu taqwa, but the greater hijab is the hijab of taqwa. Can you wear the hijab called taqwa? No, taqwa is the hijab of the heart. So this is the first form of sabr, chastity. Second form of sabr is halm, to forgive. Not only to forgive, but to control our anger. When we become angry, to control our emotions, to control our anger. Not to start breaking the plates, slapping our employees, using foul language. That happens. One of my teachers one time told me that he had gone for Muharramun in an Arab country. And he said a man came to me after the Majlis. He said, Said, I need to speak to you privately. So he said, I gave an appointment. He came. And he was in a very bad shape. He wasn't doing well at all. I said to him, what's wrong with you? He said, say it. I work very hard. I work many hours. And I'm tired when I come home. My wife that day decided that she's going to leave the newborn, six months you're old with me in the house. He was quiet. As soon as she left, he began to cry. So I gave him the bottle. He didn't stop crying. I held him. He didn't stop. I tried to play with him. He didn't stop crying. He said, I became very upset. Upset to a point where Sheban took all over my existence. I threw the kid. He said, I threw the kid. The kid, 10 seconds, 30 seconds later, I realized, what did I do? But the kid was sleeping. He stopped crying. So I went to pick him up, to put him in his bed. And I realized that he is dead. He's gone. Said, I killed my own son. Halm, patience. When we become upset, sometimes we don't know what we're going to get ourselves in. We don't know where we're headed. The third is Shaja'a bravery. And not the bravery that many of us are thinking now. Picking a fight everywhere we go and acting macho. No, that's not it. They say a story of one of the grand scholars of Irfan. One of the grand scholars of Irfan. He was a wrestler. Can you believe that? He was a fighter. He would fight for a living. He was a street fighter for a living. He would go from village to village, city to city, and fight. And then they would pay him, if he won, they would pay him. He arrived to a city, and he had the fight the next day. So they bring the biggest guy in town, and he fights him. And if he wins, they give him money. It's a show. Back then, people didn't have movie theaters. So he arrived to the city, and he overheard a woman in her balcony saying, oh, Allah. This guy that's coming, he is very strong. He never lost a battle. My poor son tomorrow has to go and face him. And he's going to crush him. He's going to defeat him. And my son is not going to be able to live with that defeat. Allah help him. Allah give him victory. And she was praying and praying for her son. The next day, this man woke up. They began the fight. And he continuously was allowing this man to win until his opponent defeated him. They gave the other guy the money and the prize. And this man was picking up his things to leave the city. As opponent came to him, he said, listen, I knew for a fact you let me win. I knew for a fact that I didn't win this fight. So what happened? He said to him the story. He said last night, I overheard your mother praying. And in that time, I realized, what am I trying to prove to those people that I am brave? Let me for once prove to myself that I am brave. For once, let me prove to myself that I'm brave. And I proved to myself that, yes, I was. And I let you win. This is bravery. Another brave man who was associated with Ashura and Imam Hussein. And I believe one of the 10 nights, we have to designate to this man, Meitham Uttammar. Meitham was one of the companions of Amir al-Mu'mineen, Ali ibn Abi Talib ibn Salawat, sallallahu alayhi. Amir al-Mu'mineen would tell his secrets to Meitham. Amir al-Mu'mineen would give Meitham the special knowledge of the unseen and the future. Many events, Amir al-Mu'mineen would share with Meitham. Once Meitham arrived to the house of Umsalama. Listen, from Kufa to Medina. He wasn't a companion of the prophet. Umsalama had never seen him after the demise of Rasulullah. He went to the house of Umsalama. He knocked at the door. She said, who is it? He said, my name is Meitham Uttammar. She said to him, yeah, Meitham, taalama. Listen to this, taalama. Sama'atu Rasulullah, yuhadithubika aliyyan fee jaufu l-layl. Yeah, Meitham, many nights I overheard Rasulullah speaking to Ali in your regard with your name, carrying out your name. Many years before Meitham existed. Many years before Amir al-Mu'mineen even moved to Kufa and became the Khalifa, Rasulullah in the middle of the night. Would speak to Ali and carry the name of Meitham, telling him what you should tell Meitham, how you should act with Meitham, who is Meitham. This is the position of Meitham Uttammar. He had a position that Amir al-Mu'mineen would go sell dates for him. Meitham didn't know anything. When Amir al-Mu'mineen purchased him as a slave, he said to him, Meitham, what do you know? He said, nothing. He said, you don't know anything? I said, so what are you going to do? He said, I know how to sell dates. I put the dates. I take the money. I give them the dates. That's it. So sometimes, Amir al-Mu'mineen would go to the store of Meitham. He would say, Meitham, take a break. I will sell the dates for you. This was Meitham Uttammar. Amir al-Mu'mineen also told Meitham exactly what will happen after Amir al-Mu'mineen all the way to his own demise. So Meitham was captured by whom, Ibn Ziyad? Days before Ashura, days before Ashura, he was captured by Ibn Ziyad. And he was imprisoned with Muhtar al-Thakfi in the same prison. And he told Muhtar that he was going to take the vengeance of those who murdered Imam Hussein. And he also told Muhtar what will happen to him. He said, Ibn Ziyad, soon will come and take me out of the prison. He will trial me. Then he will crucify me on a palm tree. And Amir al-Mu'mineen has told me this. That is why Meitham would go to that palm tree and he would water the palm tree and he would pray by the palm tree. He knew that this is the palm tree that he was going to be crucified on. So Ibn Ziyad came, he trialed him, and he said, we have to take you. He said, Ibn Ziyad, listen. Amir al-Mu'mineen has told me exactly what you will do to me. You want me to tell you? He said, tell me. He said, my Moula, Amir al-Mu'mineen told me the son of an adulteress will take you and he will take you to this specific palm tree and he will crucify you on the palm tree and then he will cut away your tongue. He will cut your tongue. He said to him, I'll make sure that I make your Moula Ali al-Lair. Meitham smiled, he said, my Moula Ali never lies. He's always truthful. So they took him to the same palm tree. And they crucified him but they didn't cut his tongue. What did he do? This brave man began to speak of the fadah of Ali ibn Abi Talib. He began to uncover the true reality behind Bani Umayyah and Ibn Ziyad. He began to expose Bani Umayyah and he began to speak of the position of Hussain ibn Ali, welcoming people towards Ahl al-Bayt. People would gather 10, 200, 5,000, he would have a huge crowd and he would speak to them. Then he was reached ibn Ziyad. Ibn Ziyad said, go and cut away his tongue. When the man came to cut his tongue, he said, I told you, my Moula never lies. This is a brave man. A brave man that dedicated his entire existence for the cause of Ahl al-Bayt, for the cause of Amir al-Mu'mineen. A brave man like Zuhair ibn al-Qayn who he mentioned in the night of Ashura stood, this man was Uthmani yul-Hawa. I spoke of Zuhair ibn al-Qayn. He was one of the supporters of those who took the vengeance of Uthman from Ali. We spoke of this several nights ago but he was transformed to a point that in the eve of Ashura, Zuhair ibn al-Qayn gave a speech. And his speech he said, Ya'aba Abdullah, if they took me and they chopped me into pieces and they burned me and they turned me into ashes and they gave me life again, I will do it a thousand times for you, Ya'aba Abdullah. This is the position of a brave man. Today, we barely even give time for Ahl al-Bayt. We barely even show our love for Ahl al-Bayt. This is the truth, true bravery. The second stage is Qana'ah to be content with Allah and it needs patience, it needs patience to be content. I don't have time to dwell over the notion of being content and Qana'ah but I'll give you the story. Rasulullah states, Qad amarani Rabbi, Allah has ordered me to love four people of my Ummah. He's ordered me. One is Meqdad, Meqdad al-Kindi. One is Ammar, Ibn Yasir. Third, Salman al-Muhammadi and fourth Ali Ibn Abi Talib. Allah has asked me to love them. This companion that was in Uhud, this companion that was in Badr, this companion that was in every battle and he has such a position after the demise of Rasulullah, Amir al-Mu'mineen would no longer receive money from the treasury. Meqdad would not receive money from the treasury. Salman would not receive money from the treasury. Ammar would not receive. Abu Dhar would not receive. They were excommunicated. Meqdad could have easily said, I'm not content with what I have. Let me go, give my allegiance. I am Meqdad al-Kindi and I will not only receive my share from the bayt al-mal but I'll receive triple bayt al-mal. But he didn't. He was content. He was content with a state of poverty and impoverishment. One day Fatima al-Zahraa said to him, Ya Amir al-Mu'mineen, listen. Allahu Akbar. She said to him, Ya Amir al-Mu'mineen, for the past three days, Hassan, Hussain, and Zainab have not ate. They have not ate anything. This is how they fought Al-Muhammad. Al-Muhammad for three days, they don't have food to eat after the demise of Rasulullah. Amir al-Mu'mineen went to borrow money but from whom? Allah, this is the greatest Masa'at. He went to go and get a loan of one dinar. One dinar from a Jewish man, a Jewish man. Fatima says, Ali, when you go on the streets, do people give salam to you? He said, no. Ya Fatima, when I give salam to them, they don't respond to my salam. So Amir al-Mu'mineen went and he took the dinar and the dirham and he was going to purchase bread for his children. He saw Meqdad. He said, Meqdad, it's in the middle of the heat. It's noon time. What are you doing out here? He said, Ya Amir al-Mu'mineen, Ya Abul Hassan, for three days, my children have not ate anything. And my wife asked me to go and get them some food. Amir al-Mu'mineen said, Ya Meqdad, Allah, Meqdad, the reason why you are out of your house today has driven me out of my house as well. Take this dinar. Take it. And he gave him the dinar. Bana'a, being content, not to bring disgrace to ourselves because of what we do not have. Sometimes when we don't have something, if we're content, we say, Alhamdulillah, I am content. As long as I have my dignity, as long as I have my honor, that's what's important to me. But others sometimes they're willing to give their dignity and their honor to gain what they don't have, whether it's money, whether it's popularity, whether it's position. Amir al-Mu'mineen says, Al-qana'atu kenzun laifna. Bana'a is the greatest treasure. Allah's stage of sabr that was only and only observed from al-Muhammad is the stage of ridah, the acceptance, to accept everything, to be content, completely content with what Allah has chosen for us. And this is the message of Imam Hussein. He was content. Ilahi ridhan beridak. Ilahi ridhan beridak la ma'budah siwak. Every time they gave him the news of a calamity, every time they told him this companion has been murdered, this companion has been slaughtered, this family member died, he would say, Ilahi ridhan beridak. I am content, ya Allah. Ridhan beridak la ma'budah siwak. There's no Lord besides you. And tonight is a special night that belongs to the man that sleeps next to Imam Hussein, the son of Hussein, the love of Hussein, the light of his eyes, Allahu Akbar. Hussein kept him close, right next to him. So that every man and woman, every believing man and woman, every mu'min and mu'mina, when they go to the grave of Hussein, they also stand in front of the grave of that young man that brave man. And they say to him, As-salamu alayka yabna Rasulillah. As-salamu alayka yabna al-Husayn al-Shahid. As-salamu alayka ayyuh al-Shahid bin al-Shahid. Allahu Akbar. They say the whole journey Imam Hussein kept telling everyone, including his brother Abbas, Qasim, everyone, that you are free to go. You are free. But only keep Aliyun al-Akbar with me. I cannot separate myself from my son Ali. Allahu Akbar. Ajarak Allahu ya'aba Abdullah. And Aliyun al-Akbar holds a dear position in the heart of Imam Hussein. Let us go to Karbala. Let us take our hearts, our souls, our minds, our entire existence to that shrine of Hussein. Let us imagine ourselves standing in front of the shrine. We say to him, Sayyidi, ya'aliyun al-Akbar, the beloved of Hussein, yabna Rasulillah, inna tawajjahna, wastashfa'na, wa tawassalna bika ilallah. Tonight I want this place. All of us, every man and woman and child and everyone in this Majlis to cry with Hussein because Imam Hussein cried for Hassan Ali and Al-Akbar. He wept for Hassan Ali and Al-Akbar. Ya Sayyidana wa maulana, tawajjahna wastashfa'na, wa tawassalna bika ilallah. Tawajjahna wastashfa'na, wa tawassalna bika ilallah. Wa qaddamna kaba'ina yada'i, hajatna. All of you, ya wajihahna, wa tawassalna bika ilallah. Ya wajihahna, he came into the tent of his father, Abu Abdullah. Imam Hussein looked at Ali and Al-Akbar. He realized why Ali and Al-Akbar had come to him. He said to him, buna'ya Ali, buna'ya Ali, kaya shumka wa tashummuni, wa waddi'uka wa tawaddi'uni, my son, come and hug your father. Come and embrace your father. I would like to smell your scent. And I would like you to smell my scent so we can say our goodbyes. They hugged and they cried and they cried. And tell him, Imam Hussein fainted. Allahu Akbar. They woke him up. Traditions say he never gave permission for Ali and Al-Akbar, only with the hand gestures. He told him, buna'ya Ali, buna'ya Ali, after you, ya Ali, my son, my life will have no more meaning to it. I will not enjoy life after you, o Ali, buna'ya alad dunya, min ba'di kalla afaa. Ali sat on the back of the horse as he was exiting his father's tent. Imam Hussein went outside the tent without his amama. Barefoot. He raised his hands to the skies. He said, Allahumma jihad ala haa. Ashbaghunnaasi khalqan wa khuluqan wa bantqan l-Rasulillah. Wa kunnaa anda mashtaqna ila Rasulillah. Imam Hussein says, ya Allah, be a witness. Allahu Akbar. That the man that is going to them now resembles Rasulullah. And this Rasulullah, he would look at the face of Ali and al-Akbar. Allah, ex-Muslims, look at the face of Rasulullah and come and stand in front of him and fight him. And then Imam Hussein stated, ya Umar ibn Asad, ta'ta rahmi. It's like you're taking my son Ali and al-Akbar. Imam Hussein then went and he stood next to the tent of his mother Layla. He was observing his son Ali, the brave Ali, the grandson of Ali ibn Abi Talib, the nephew of Abbas. He stood in front of them and traditions say they removed themselves away from Ali and al-Akbar. So he actually went to them. He says, aanaa naahnoa azribukur bagulamin haashimi. He began with those lines of poetry those who do not know me. I am Ali, the son of Hussein, the grandson of Ali ibn Abi Talib. And today I will protect my father. I will protect the son of Rasulullah with my sword. faqaa ta'laum qita'laan kathiraan hatta qata laa tamaa maa maa maa maatain. He fought and he killed 200 men. Then he returned to his father Abba Abdullah. This shows that he, until that point, was even shy to tell his father that he wants water. Imam Hussein satan bunaia Ali, come back. He came. He said, Ali, feel my tongue. He said, I touched the tongue of my father and it was like a piece of wood. So he returned to his father. He said, I touched the tongue of my father and it was like a piece of wood. So he returned to the enemy. He looked at the face of his father. She said, Abba Abdullah, why is your face changing? What's occurred? He said, Layla, Layla, go to the tent and pray to Allah to return your son to you. The mothers tonight, the mothers cry with Hussein. She went inside the tent with Layla. She said, Ilahi, who returned Yusuf to Yaqub, returned my son Ali to me. Then she made this powerful dua. Allahu Akbar. What did she say? Layla said, Ilahi, Rabat al-Hussein, Atash al-Hussein. Oh Allah, in the thirst of Hussein, in the loneliness of Hussein, return my son Ali to me. Ali in Al-Akbar came. He came to his father. His father said, Ali, go and say your final goodbyes to your mother. He went, he embraced his mother. He said his goodbyes to his mother. And he went to the enemy. They surrounded him from every. Shimr said, Do not allow this man to fight. You have to go to him from every angle. They surrounded him and they bombarded him with arrows. Imam Hussein, I see my grandfather. This is the grandfather of the messenger. He has stabbed me from the heart of the infidels. Oh my father Hussein. I see my grandfather, the messenger of Allah. And quenching my thirst, Imam Hussein went to Ali in Al-Akbar. I want you to imagine the state of Hussein. Assaid, Zainab says that when Hussein heard the call of Ali in Al-Akbar, we all felt that he was good was going to die in that moment. Going to go towards his son? Is he going to stay in the tent? Imam Hussain was confused. He ran towards his son. He held his son. He said, Oh son, Ali, if they killed you into pieces, your father is not in a good state. What should I do? He said, she got out of the tent because she didn't do this for her own sons. She came out of the tent, she called out, as soon as Imam Hussain saw his sister Zainab, he then went to his sister. He said, sister, go back to the tent. It's not time for you now. Then he came. He said, Oh the youth of Bani Hashem, come and carry Ali, you're like war, but they couldn't carry him. Last night, we didn't do this tonight because he is named after his grandfather, Amir al-Mu'mineen, those who have hajjat, it is Thursday night. The time of istijabah to dua, all of us, those who have shed tears especially, do not forget me and others in your family, and the mu'mineen and mu'minat and your dua. We go to this dua with this application, with this dhikr. I said, Allah gave this dhikr to His Prophet Rasulullah. He said, Ya Rasulullah, if you are in need, if you need Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to remove your agony, then say this. I want you to shake this building with Ya Ali. The Malaika love this. How can you be not present in this Majlis? We are calling the name of your grandfather Ali, Ya Rasulullah, we are calling the name of your brother Ali, Ya Hussain, give us that visit in the first night of our graves. We want you to take us by the hand. Step us as one of your followers, Ya Amir al-Mu'mineen. We all have hajjat, we all have our prayers, one more last time.