 Eid Mubarak to all the viewers out there. It's an honourable day, a day of great happiness and hopefully we can share this with all of the viewers that are out there. I think talking about the period we've just gone through, the morning period, two months and eight days, is this cultural that we anticipate in a day for us to you know stop grieving or is this based on religion? The two months and eight days period of morning beginning with Muharram, as we all know, and ending last night with the commemoration of the martyrdom of Ma'am Al-Asker, alaihi salam, is something cultural. It's not something which is set in stone religiously. But if I was to say that one of the most beautiful cultural acts that we have is this one where people honour Imam Al-Husayn alaihi salam, commemorate Imam Al-Husayn alaihi salam in the first ten or so nights of Muharram. And then after that, honour the journey of the family of Imam Al-Husayn alaihi salam, say the Zaynab alaihi salam through Kufa and onwards to Sham, back to Karbala then to Medina. Some then of course honour the passing away of the daughter of Imam Al-Husayn alaihi salam, some then remember the 40 Imam Al-Husayn alaihi salam. And then of course people remember the death of the Holy Prophet peace be upon his family, the death of Imam Al-Husayn alaihi salam. So because there's one occasion after the other, you have this two months and eight days where there are many who will go to the mosque and listen to maybe 30 to 40 lectures over this period. I know certain centres which have lectures which go on for 68 days. I remember a few years ago, I had given 60 lectures and 68 nights. Now put this way, I took like a five month break after those lectures because I was going to explode, but it was a great feeling to go to so many centres which continuously remembered the Ahlul Bayt alaihi salam. Now it's vital that we do bring up our children with the love of the Ahlul Bayt alaihi salam, with the dissociation from the enemies of the Ahlul Bayt. We of course have a Tawalli and Tabarra within the roots of the religion of Islam. But it's great to be happy in the days of joy for the Ahlul Bayt alaihi salam and also sad in their days of sadness. And I have full respect for people who have been going to the mosque for the last couple of months. But I suppose now we come to a period of wonderful celebration. I see you're looking as amazing as a strawberry looks on this day. And if the people, the viewers were to see how the rest of the camera crew look today, all of them are sparkling in red. So it's a wonderful occasion for us. It's an Eid for us. And really it's a blessed period with the birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him. It's finally my Masadaq coming upon us very soon. InshaAllah. So many religions have their days of celebration and their occasions. Islam is no different to this? I have the utmost respect for all the religions' days of celebrations. Truly, I personally am honored that I grew up in London because I was able to meet the variety of people in our society who come from different religious backgrounds, but all have a common goal in their celebrations. Whether it's Hanukkah, whether it's Christmas, whether it's Diwali, or whether it's any of the festivals of the world religions, it's always great when people are smiling in a world full of sadness. In Islam, one of the greatest forms of charity is to smile. Look at that smile. The viewers have to have to have a look at that smile. It's a wonderful smile. No, as good as you'll say it. You're probably right about that, but you still have a nice smile. And one of the greatest forms of charity is to smile. And when you look in the streets of London, I do sometimes feel sorry for those Muslims in the world who don't live in pluralistic societies. You look in the streets of London, you see Christmas coming up, the lights are up. People are in a great mood. They're in a festive mood. And really, that's the spirit of Eid as well. In Islam, when we have the celebration of Eid, it's a period of festivity. I know sometimes people imagine Muslims as these people who follow a rigid, structured legal system where they never smile. But what many people don't realize is that no, we have some wonderful days of Eid. And the same way people have the festival of lights that is Diwali, people have that festival honoring the birth of Christ that is Christmas. People have that festival such as Hanukkah and recognizing how God will look after the oppressed within the nations that came before us against all oppressors. That is what we share in Eid as well, a spiritual connection to the Lord. The word Eid itself, I mean, what's its origin, what's its meaning? Interesting that there's different opinions as to the origin of the word Eid. Some look at the word Aouda or Yaoud, a return. And really, it is a return upon us. Like last year, we celebrated Eid. Eid, for example, celebrated at the period of Hajj at the end of the holy month of Ramadhan, in the period of the Hajj and the Wilayah, it keeps returning to us. And it really is a Rahma from Allah, Subhanahu wa Ta'ala, because it's the Aouda of the Rahma of God. It's the return of God's mercy into our lives. One should always reflect that when they are blessed in this world, they should always say Alhamd and always do Shukr, always praise Allah and be thankful to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala. And Eid is one of those days where a person is grateful to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala because of that return. You know, this time last year, we had some of our close friends and now they've passed away. We had family members who were with us and they've passed away, relatives who were with us and they've passed away. And so when the Eid returns upon us, it's the return of Allah's mercy as well as a period of reflection for us where we should ask ourselves, have we got closer to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala? When today we come and celebrate the festival of Eid, one should be thankful to Allah of the blessings. And that's why it's recommended on a day like this, that person goes out and gives food to others, feeds others. You yourself, I don't think have, well, you have fed me with a great steak. I remember back in the day which I'm indebted to you for, although you did charge us big money that day. A big discount too, a big discount as well. That was a big discount that day, that was a big discount. But it really is the day where we should all congratulate one another, you know, and that is the beauty of the word Eid, the return of God's mercy upon us. That's right. And what about the word Eid mentioned in the Qur'an or any Qur'anic references in regards to the days of Eid? Yes, the word Eid is mentioned in the Qur'an on one occasion. In chapter 5, from verse 111 to 114, you see a discussion of the Ma'ida, you know, that supper, that dining spread where Christ and his disciples have an interesting conversation. You know, many non-Muslims don't know how much Christ is discussed and his mother Mary is discussed in the Qur'an. And what's beautiful is that in this discussion, the disciples asked Christ, can your Lord send us down food from heaven? He said to them, what is it? You're not certain about me? Not certain about the Lord sending us blessings? They said, we are, but we want an increase in our certainty. The Qur'an mentions that he begins by saying, it begins by saying, and says that Jesus, son of Mary said, oh my lord, my nourisher, send us down food from the heavens. This day will become a day of Eid for the first of us and for the last of us. What did we say Eid is? The return. Yes. For the first of us, awalina wa akhirina, wa ayat and mink, the day of Eid is a day in which you celebrate one of the signs of Allah, a sign of Allah. And so the only ayah in the Holy Qur'an where the word Eid is mentioned is this one. So the idea on this occasion was that when God sends a form of guidance or blessings upon man, that day is to be honoured by the first people who were there to witness it, as well as to be honoured by those who come later on. Because it's a sign of Allah. And what else do you ask that when the day of Eid comes to tell Allah, you are the provider of rizq. There is none who provides rizq and sustenance like Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Today, there are families in the world. When it comes to the day of Eid, I remember in Iraq, in Iraq on Eid al-Adha, many people had gone to Hajj, I had gone to Arafah to visit Imam al-Husayn's grave. And I remember going to the displaced people, you know, orphans, widows of the people of Iraq. InshaAllah on Saturday, I look forward to seeing the community of Toronto. We're going to be fundraising for the orphans and the widows of Iraq and of other parts of the world. And I can't wait to see our brethren in Canada on Saturday at the Ja'farah centre in Bathurst. You find that when it comes to these people, I remember one of the mothers wanting just some money so she could buy Eid gifts, Eid presents for her children. It broke the heart because for us, when it comes to a day of Eid, we know that Allah has the greatest of sustenance. Our rizq is in front of us. My father today, for example, he bought a nice meal home. We sit together, you're able to have food with your family. You're able to sit together early on the day with a few of our friends, have a lunch together. But Nabi Aisa says, Allahumma Rabbana anzil alayna ma'idatan minas samayitakunu lana aidan li'awwalina wa aakhirina wa aayatan minkwa rzuqna wa anta khairur razikin. The Nabi Aisa reminds us that remember the day of Eid is the day of rizq for you. Day of rizq in which ways? If I mentioned the word rizq to you, what's the first thing that comes in your head? Said Muhsin. Food. Food, mashaAllah. Well, you just completely destroyed the point I was about to make. But thank you very much. Really, rizq, what's the first thing? Rizq is... It helps us stay in mal. Money. Let's be realistic. When someone says, you know, we want an increase in our rizq, normally we think something monetary. Our health is rizq. Wealth is rizq. Having our parents with us is rizq. Having food on the table is rizq. Health. All of these are forms of sustenance from Allah. So Nabi Aisa ends the verse on Eid by saying, wa rzuqna wa anta khairur razikin. And so it's fundamental that any celebration we have as human beings, the respective of which religious background we're from, any celebration that we have should be a day where we thank Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala truly for sustaining us to be able to see such a joyous occasion. One would ask, you okay there with the air? Yeah. One would ask, I mean, how many different types of Eids are there? I mean, at school when we look at a textbook, two days are mentioned. But I mean, according to the School of Ahlul Bayt, how many Eids do we actually have? Well, I'd say the four main Eids in the School of Ahlul Bayt, the main ayat you would come across. No doubt the greatest Eid al-Ghadeer. Some say, why is Eid al-Ghadeer so important? Just look at the main discussions that people have in the world today. It's about the Imama or the Khalafa of Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib, alaihi s-salam, until today. Go in any part of the world. The main difference between the Shia and the Sunni school is the discussion concerning the Imam of Ali. That's enough for me to know just how important Ghadeer was as a form of guidance. Otherwise, today you'll find people still asking the question, is Khalafa man-made? Is it a bid'ah? Is it from God? Is there any such thing as importance given to leaders? If there's no importance given to leaders, why is there a set of leaders called rightly guided? Who called them rightly guided? Until that's the beauty of Eid al-Ghadeer, because I as a Shia, I'm confident that on the 18th of the Hajjah and the 10th year after Hijrah, I'm confident that my Prophet, peace be upon his family, made an announcement to everybody. Instead of all of you debating who's who, there is one man. You'll never find anyone like him in knowledge, none like him in bravery, none like him in humility, none like him in spirituality, none like him in ethics, and none bought him up like I raised him, and that is Ali. I said, who's better than the one raised by Rasulallah, sallallahu alaihi wa ala? I wasn't raised in the lap of idols, nor was I raised slapping my sisters, nor was I raised with the umayyids. I was raised in the cradle of Rasulallah, sallallahu alaihi wa alaihi wa sallam. So that day, the day of Ghadeer is a wonderful day, and that's why when the Shia all congregate on this day to remember the announcement of the guardianship of Imam Ali, peace be upon him, and those famous lines, alas to awla abikum min anfusikum. Am I not the first in authority from amongst all you Muslims? When they all say, yes, he says, man kuntu maula fa aadah aliyum maula, Allahumma wali man wala wa aadi man aadah, waansul man nasarah, waqdun man qadr. O Allah, be a guardian to whoever takes Imam Ali, as his guardian. Be an enemy to whoever is an enemy to Ali. Be a supporter to those who support his cause, and finish the plans of those who try to attack him. When we look at this, therefore, that day for us is such a joyous day. I'm not surprised when Imam Al-Sadaq, alayhis salam, says it's the greatest aid. But naturally, when I celebrate Ali al-Ghadeer, I have to reflect upon myself how much of Imam Ali's characteristics am I applying into my life. It's not just about celebrating a day of aid. That's a day of reflection, a day of asking myself, have I made a website in the name of Imam Ali, have I written a book in the name of Imam Ali, have I made an orphanage or built a mosque in the name of Imam Ali, alayhis salam. Then you have, for example, people come and sacrifice in the period of Hajj, day of celebration, reminding oneself of the greatness of Nabi Ibrahim, alayhis salam, and how I'm trying to kick Shaytan out of my life. A celebration, 30 days or so of intense discipline, remembering those who are poverty stricken. Remembering the bounties of Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala. Showing that I can discipline myself and reach the best of levels. That wonderful day where Rasulullah, sallallahu alayhi wa alayhi wa alayhi, Fatwa al-Zahra Imam Ali ibn Abit, al-Hassan, Imam Hussain represent the religion of Islam as quoted in Surah 3 verse 61. That they took, the Prophet took his woman, he took Fatima, his sons Hassan and Hussain, his self Imam Ali to represent the religion of Islam. So all of these a'eeds, a'eeds which remind us of the blessings that Allah gave us in life and what greater blessing than Muhammad an-Ali, Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa alayhi wa alayhi Hussain. I mean, I remember there's a hadith from Imam Ali, I believe and it is, you know, a day that a believer has sinned is also a day of a'eed. I mean, how can one feel a'eed like every day? The hadith speaks for itself. Every day that you don't sin is a day of a'eed. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is so merciful. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is so merciful that He opens the doors of mercy for us to ensure that even when we have sinned in the day because still be forgiven by the night. What's the one act where your sins in the days can be forgiven because of an act in the night? Salat al-layl. Salat al-layl, what is it? Salat al-layl is that act that if al-mal wal-banun, your wealth and your children are the zina of this world, Salat al-layl is the zina of the hereafter. And Salat al-layl, if a person prays it, may Allah give us the strength to become of those who pray it. Salat al-layl is that act where your sins in the day are expiated because of that prayer in the night. So Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala also shows us if you have a good intention, I'll reward you. If you act upon it, I'll multiply it by 10. If you have a bad intention, you don't get any sin. If you act upon it, I'll multiply by one. Look how much Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala wants to show us that look, I'm going to try and make it as easy for you to accumulate the good and to delete the bad. So if a person is able to stay away from sin, then Aid is 365. We should be in red 365 days a year. But we're in red today and maybe we can try and be in red as much as we can. The cameraman is looking at me, hopefully he's going to be in red very soon, inshallah. Inshallah. As you know, it's Eid al-Zahra, that's why we were in red. Any mention of Eid al-Zahra in the early text or with the Ahlul Bayt actually commemorating this day? Well, I've got to admit there is a difference of opinion in the works of the Marajia as to Eid al-Zahra and as to why people are celebrating it and whether there is a base and whether it refers to so and so and so and so and the Marajia have given different opinions. We have to make this clear. There's never been one opinion on Eid al-Zahra and in terms of what is the base of it. I remember of the main narrations that is used, Ibn Tawus, the great of our scholars, the great one, Ibn Tawus in the Zawad mentions this particular Eid. Interesting narration related to Ahmad ibn Ashaq with Imam al-Asgari, and how Ahmad ibn Ashaq says that this is a day that bought a smile to Ahlul Bayt, the 9th of Rabi'a at the beginning and refers it to the fact that after a period of oppression, the leaders and the instigators of oppression against the Ahlul Bayt were defeated by Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala were destroyed by Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala. And I think that is enough reason for us to celebrate and a day of jubilation he mentions that Rasulullah sallallahu alaihi wa alaihi, Hudayfah narrates was sitting with Imam Ali and with Imam Hassan, Imam Hussein and he mentions to them it's a day of jubilation he tells Hudayfah, a day of victory for our followers. A day in which Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala destroys the plans of the oppressors who oppressed Muhammad sallallahu alaihi wa sallam. Because we know there were some atrocities committed against the family of the Prophet, peace be upon this family, that other religions, if they found out what the Muslims did with the Prophet Muhammad s family, they'd be disgusted believe you me. There are other religions in the world if they read about the Maqatil that happened to the Taliban, the famous work of the massacres that took place against the grandsons and granddaughters of Rasulullah and arguably the greatest of them, the massacre against the grandchildren on the planes of Karbala. Naturally Karbala caused sadness in the lives of the Ahl al Bayt, alaykum sallam. And for many ladies after Karbala it was devastating, remembering that arrow in the neck of the six-month-old baby, remembering the arms of Abbas that work hard, remembering the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, alaihi sallam and remembering the way the soldiers would parade the heads of Imam Hussein, his son Akbar and the way Omar bin Sa'ad and his son would arrogantly laugh and arrogantly state that we have no issue with what happened at Karbala. And for years after Karbala the idea of even beautifying oneself was difficult for the woman of al-Muhammad. At the moment you want to smile you remember the torture, the pain, the sadness, the oppression. But what's wonderful is that there were personalities who wanted to avenge what happened at Karbala. Those weren't people who rested on their laurels, even the Tawabun and the Sulaiman, the son of Sardar al-Khaza'i, you know, they even tried, others tried, that they knew Khuli and Harmalah bin Kahil and Omar bin Sa'ad and Shimer bin Dawshan and Abidullah bin Zia, they knew these people were arrogantly still smiling about what happened at Karbala. And so for some, when they call it the aid of Zahra, alaihi sallam, it's not because literally Fadr al-Zahra, alaihi sallam, had a celebration, it's rather those oppresses against her son. Any person who tried to defeat them and eventually did defeat them, that brings a sort of happiness to Fadr al-Zahra, alaihi sallam. So yes, you found that the main concept is that the oppresses against Ahlul Bayt were destroyed. In terms of Karbala and the perpetrators of Karbala, I mean, were they ever actually caught? They were caught by Mokhtar al-Thaqafi. Mokhtar al-Thaqafi was imprisoned in Kufa when Karbala happened. Ironically, Noman al-Mashir was his father-in-law, was governor of Kufa, replaced by Abidullah bin Zia. He was imprisoned in Mokhtar. I even made him a Tamar, told him, one day you'll be released and you'll avenge Karbala. And he went after all of those who had killed the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon his family. And the Qut Umar bin Sa'ad in his son, Qut Harmalah bin Kahil, Awaidullah bin Zia, Shamir bin al-Joshan, with the help of Ibrahim, the son of Malik al-Ashdar. And no doubt, you find that that is what eventually bought some sort of smile on the face of the Ahlul Bayt, al-Salam. I mean, when doing my research and stuff, I've seen two opinions in regards to Mokhtar al-Thaqafi, in regards to his actions. Some were supportive. Some say he wasn't really sincere in his actions and maybe he had his own personal grudge or his own personal gain from this. Okay, to comment on it. Mokhtar al-Thaqafi is not infallible. Mokhtar al-Thaqafi is a person who is liable to make a mistake, is liable to commit a sin. We're not talking an Imam. We're talking a personality who could be one who makes a mistake. And sometimes when a person makes mistakes, you'll find that people will straight away say, well, how could this person be respected? No, there are many in that period who are companions of the Ahlul Bayt, but did not live lives as infallibles. There are no doubts that his political affiliations do change. I think the fact that Muslim bin al-Aqeel, alaihi al-Salam, stays with Mokhtar when he gets to call for a big statement. But then you see the words of the Ahlul Bayt, alaihi al-Salam, in praise of Mokhtar al-Thaqafi. Imam Zayn al-Abideen, alaihi al-Salam, is lined, he took our revolution and avenged our enemies. Imam Al-Baqir, alaihi al-Salam, similar to the questions you're asking, Imam Al-Baqir, alaihi al-Salam, was asked the question that there are people who are abusing Mokhtar al-Thaqafi. And he replied, He avenged our enemies and those who were the perpetrators of Karbala. And what's interesting is that when Imam al-Sadaq, alaihi al-Salam, meets the son of Mokhtar, Mokhtar al-San comes one day to kiss Imam al-Sadaq's hand, he moves his hand, and Imam al-Sadaq asks, who's this? He's like, this is Mokhtar al-Thaqafi's son. And Imam says, may Allah have mercy on your father. Why? Why? The tarahum of an Imam is not a small thing. Why may Allah have mercy on your father? Because your father is the one who looked after the houses of the granddaughters of Rasul Allah, looked after the dowries for them to get married, and is the one who even allowed them to beautify themselves again because of his vengeance of Karbala. Some will argue that there were times where he politically or theologically may have different inclinations. I don't doubt it. But I believe when an Imam of Ahlul Bayt says, may Allah have mercy on someone, that's enough for us. I also believe that there would be a lot of anti-Mokhtar propaganda from those who revered those who were killers of Imam al-Hussein at Karbala. You know I remember reading one day, Umar bin Sa'ad, bin Abi Waqas, commander of the army at Karbala against Imam al-Hussein, alaihi al-Salam. One of the scholars of Rajal next to his name writes, killer of Imam al-Hussein, Thiqa, trustworthy narrator of Hadith, but killer of Imam al-Hussein. There are those who could not even put down from Umar bin Sa'ad. There are some scholars who said, Yazid bin Muawiya, la'natullah alaihi. There are some who said, you know what Yazid is a bad man but don't talk any further about that. So I'm not surprised if they're going to put propaganda, they're going to put traditions that seek to bring down from Muqtar. If they find Umar bin Sa'ad Thiqa or Yazid, they say don't go too far in attacking him. So Muqtar al-Thiqa, he's going to be public enemy number one for them. But for us like I said, I don't take my theology from Muqtar al-Thiqa, nor is he maqsum, he's not infallible. But certainly on a day like this we remember that some sort of smile came back to Ahlul Bayt, alaihi al-Salam. And you mentioned Yazid la'natullah alaihi. I mean a lot of people would ask, what is Tabarra? Where does this come from? And you know is it actually more than allowed to be done? Tabarra is to dissociate. The first Tabarra that was done was by God. There's a whole Sura called Baraa. Another name for it is Toba. What's unique about Sura Toba? There's no Bismillah to begin with. Only Sura of the Holy Quran where God does not send his mercy. Islam, religion of mercy. Islam, religion of love. Islam, religion of mercy. Islam, religion of love. Why then begin a Sura with no mercy on one occasion? Yes, every single time we begin it's with mercy. But in life if you love truth you hate falsehood. If you love justice you hate injustice. There's a balance in the life of the human being. Can't just be sitting on the fence on everything. Those who are perpetrators of atrocities and crimes, I just sit there and say, oh let's not discuss this, not at all. I make a stand against Pharaoh, stand against Qarun, stand against Qabil, stand against Nimrod. Tabarra is my dissociation from the enemies of Allah Subhanu Wa Ta'ala. And the enemy of Rasulullah, the enemy of Imam Ali Ibn Ali Ta'alib, the enemy of the Ahlul Bayt Al-Masalam is the first people I dissociate from. How do I do Tabarra? How do I do the Tabarra act? I can write a book which highlights the atrocities that these oppressors did like Yazid and so on. I could give lectures which discuss how we should never ever be like such people. But when someone says, okay why do you do your lana, my lana is a dua. And if you're asking me why do I do lana Allah Subhanu Wa Ta'ala does lana in the Qur'an, lana on the kathab, lana on shaitan, lana on the disbelievers from the children of Israel, lana, many times in the Qur'an lana has been done by God where God withdraws his mercy from an individual. I remember someone saying yes but you Shi'a are doing lana on Yazid, you shouldn't. There's a piece of poetry in reply. They say to me do not do lana on Yazid. For Allah might forgive him. Therefore I do double the lana. For if Allah is willing to forgive Yazid for killing Imam al-Husayn, Allah will forgive my lana. But naturally with any of the Furu'ah deen, Salah, Som, Hajj, Zakat, Khums, Jihad, Amor bin Ma'ruf, Nahi, Al-Munkar, Al-Tawalli, Tabarra, all of them have their time, their place, their conditions. Salah has to be full, but when you travel, Qasr. Fasting if you break your fast, certain Qafar. Hajj if you can't afford it, you leave your family in trouble, don't go. Zakat, there are items on which you pay. Khums, there is a certain amount for the side of al-Muhammad. For example, likewise Tabarra, there's conditions. If I'm sitting with someone now, I know they reverse certain personalities. I don't just sit in their face, Salamu alaykum, lana on you. True. I recognize that there are ways to do things. I recognize there are conditions. I recognize there is a dissociation that can be done on different levels. So when we do lana on Yazid or lana on Shemr, we're asking Allah to withdraw his mercy in the same time dissociating from those moments of injustices against the family of RasulAllah. Let's take it back to history and what was occurring a couple of hundred years ago on this day. I mean, yesterday we were commemorating the death of Imam Hassan Askari. Today would have been most likely his janaza, his prayer, and going back to Samarra, a young boy of five years old comes to lead the prayer of his father. We were talking yesterday's discussion about the Abbasid, Khalifat and how they were searching for the Mehdi, preparing for the Mehdi. So these five years, they couldn't find him? Yes, it's interesting that we of course remember the Imam of our time, the 12th Imam in this period, because his father dies and he assumes the Imam and you're absolutely right in asking the question that many of the Shia say the minor occultation begins when he's five. So where was he for the first five? And yesterday we mentioned that Imam al-Askari's mother, Hudaitha, has a major role in not only executing the will of the Imam, but also she is the one who raises Imam al-Mahdi in his first few years of his life. He's taken towards Mecca. He's certainly not living in Samarra for the first few years. If he was living there, they're going to kill him because he goes into Raiba at the age of five. So he's certainly in the first few years, someone could argue, well, did they not see him? He's not in Raiba. No, he went to live with his grandmother until he comes back to lead the prayers. And then from there, the Imam it begins. Yeah, awesome. And, you know, he's five years old. Today he'll be God knows how old he will be. What do you say to those who say, how can the Imam live so long and why can't we not see him? Well, those who say, how can the Imam live so long? I'm quite surprised if a Muslim asked that question. We have a lot of examples of people who've lived longer than 1,000 years. Nabi Nooh, alaihi salam. You have shaitan. Shaitan is older than all of us. Iblis is older than all. And so those who talk about age, even Christ is older than the Mehdi. Khadr in the belief of some is still alive. And so I'm surprised at those who say this. Secondly, those who say, well, where's your Mehdi? I sometimes reply by saying, where's your Jesus? I'd be delighted to meet him. You know, I'm surprised if some Muslims say the Shia believe in a man they can't see. Firstly, in the Quran, Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala says, one of the signs of the pious is believing in the unseen. The one who believes in the unseen, those who believe in the unseen. Secondly, firstly, I believe in Allah but I don't see Allah. Secondly, I believe in shaitan. I can't see shaitan. Thirdly, I believe in Christ. I don't know where Christ is. So the idea of occultation, not being able to see the Imam, is something quite normal within Islamic literature. For those who try and mock us and say, how can you believe in an existent who you can't see, there's many examples which we could give them. In regards to a certain hadith who says that those who claim to have seen the Imam are considered liars. But then we have certain scholars, certain Olimahs, certain individuals who claim to have seen the Imam of their time. I mean, how do we reconcile with these claims? Sure, it's a great question. Because you always hear stories from the pulpits that were those who admit the Imam. Now, someone brings a hadith which says, whoever claims to have seen the Imam is a liar. How do we reconcile? Allama al-Halli and Shaykh al-Mufid never said that they sit regularly with the Imam, talk with him, have breakfast with him and so on. They may have been helped on a journey. Maybe lost. And we have traditions that say, if you're lost on a journey or you're not feeling well, or at the time of Hajj, you can see the Imam. But you don't know it's the Imam. You know, if you notice the story they always say, when he left, I turned around to look for him and I couldn't see him and I knew that that was the Imam. So when it comes to those who may have required some help for an issue, someone helps them, but they don't know who it is later, they may think it's the Imam. There's no problem there. Those who claim that, listen, I'm having breakfast with the Imam tomorrow morning if you guys have a question, or I married to a sister or married to his daughter, listen, it's open game. If that hadith wasn't there, whoever claims to have seen me is a liar or claims to see the Imam is a liar, all of us could turn around to you and say, listen, the Imam said to me, give me a million dollars tomorrow. You can't turn around to him if there was no such hadith and say, I'm a liar. How do you know? How do you know that I haven't met the Imam? So those who are telling you that I speak to Imam Mehdi, I talk with them, I have conversations with them, I'm, no, that's lies. Those who however say to you that I felt the presence and the help of the Imam, because you know, shaitan is an existent, at least an existent, you're westward, so if you saw daughter in us, whispers, bad thoughts, if Allah can create an existent who you can't see who can whisper bad, why can't Allah create an existent who at some point you can't see but can whisper good? Indeed. That's the philosophy. So those, if someone comes to you tomorrow and says, listen, new people are the, you know, I met the Imam and he's saying this, no, these are liars. But someone who turns around and says, I felt the help of the Imam, I didn't see him, but I think it was him. Why not? Yeah, so I think another thing is that these people who claim that they've met the Imam or they've so seen the Imam, they're earning for that relationship. And how do we, you know, as the share of the Imam is the Imam, how can we improve on our relationship with the Imam? How can we ask him for guidance and help and, you know, the very fact that a person sits with their friends and discusses the Imam, that is one of the greatest ways in which someone gets closer to the Imam. I, Allah, I sometimes I'm saddened when I see the youth in our generation sitting sometimes on their phone playing with these fruits jumping up and down or cards jumping up and down. Wallah for hours, hours playing these games. Pick up a book, study the lives of the Imams. Pick up the Quran, help your recital, reflect on its verses. Study theology in your spare time, some history, some ethical work, some spiritual works. These ways get you closer to the Imam. Sitting on your phone, simply playing games, hours on end. Wallah, there are people who are addicted. Wallah, they sit there and they're addicted. That same person who says, As-salamu alayka ya sahab al-hasr wa al-zaman has to ask themselves, can I not take an hour of my life a day to reflect on my Imam? How can I serve my Imam? I want to get closer to the Imam. Playing these games on my phone is not the sign of a soldier of the Imam. I'm not saying don't play on the contrary. I believe people should play sports. They fit. People should enjoy, go holidays, relax. But at the same time, don't waste your time on this earth. Wallah, wa al-asr. Inna il-insana la fi khasr. You squeeze time, man's at loss. Illal ladina aman wa amil al-salihad. Accept those who believe and do good deeds, not just those who believe. The one who's playing this game on their phone believes. They believe in the Ahlul Bayt. They'd come from the Majalis of the Ahlul Bayt. Al-amal al-salih. That act which is a righteous good deed full of sincere intention to Allah SWT, that's a different league of people. Therefore, one of the first ways is that such things which are wasting our time, we should slowly remove them from our life. It's not easy. You're addicted to these games. I think a lot will be addicted to Netflix and things like that. Sahabibi, I don't mind if a person is on Netflix. Watch your films. But make time for the Imam. Not just the 15th of Sha'ban. Sit with your friends. Enjoy your gathering. Bring up the mention of the Imam. Therefore, you find that one of the first ways is this. Second way is make a day where you talk about, for example, the concept of justice in world religion. A conference at your university on justice and the end of time. Human beings love discussing end of time. Armageddon, Day of Judgment, all of these things. People love these discussions. Eschatological discussions people enjoy. Let the world know about the different messiahs, Christ, Imam Mehdi, the relationship between them. Organize a conference at your university. Organize a conference at your mosque. Thirdly, reflect on the supplications that are related to the Imam. Sit and reflect on Dua At-Tawasul, Dua Al-Aftatah, Ziyarat Al-Nahi Al-Muqaddasat, Dua Nudba. All these supplications have secrets related to the Imam. Fourthly, build your relationship with the Quran. I ask you, Sayyid al-Muhsid. There are many who love Ahl al-Bayt. And if you ask them to name the first 10 surahs of the Quran, they can't. There are many who love Ahl al-Bayt, have not memorized more than 6-7 surahs of the Quran. There are many who love Ahl al-Bayt, Alaym Al-Salam, do not sit with their kids and talk with them about the meaning of the verses, not just make them recite well. It's one thing to make your kids recite well, another thing to sit. There are many who love Ahl al-Bayt, do not sit together with their friend circles and help each other improve reciting the Quran. And I say, As-Salamu Alaikum yashareekal. The Quran. Quran. Peace be upon you. O you who's the partner of the Quran. If I want to be alongside the Imam of my time, I have to become someone who becomes a partner of the Holy Quran. A shariq in business, your partner. You have a partnership, yes? Shirakat. You're a partner, sir. You ask yourself the question. I'm so concerned with my business partner. What shall we do? How shall we make profit? How shall we build assets? How about your partnership with the Quran? The Quran, on the day of judgment, will complain that these people abandoned me. They neglected me. Neglected implementing what I have taught them. We don't want to be of those who neglect the Quran. And one of the main reasons, because our Prophet said, I leave behind this Quran. Hold on to it. Isn't it a shame that many of the youth in our communities, when they are entering discussions, cannot quote Quran properly? Yes. Sometimes I even wonder that some of our highest scholars hardly ever do we hear many lectures with Quranic verses being thrown around. Other schools in Islam memorize the Quran inside out. Why is it that in our communities, people, when they enter discussions about the Ahlul Bayt, cannot quote Ayahs of the Holy Quran? And we want to be with the Imam? Is the Imam, are we waiting for the Imam? Or is the Imam waiting for us? Yeah, beautiful question. Beautiful question. Are we waiting for the Imam? Or is the Imam waiting for us? I sincerely believe in that hadith. If my Shi'a really wanted me to return, I would return. The Quran, the Book of Allah SWT, how many people have neglected it? When I come and celebrate Ayat today, one of the reasons I celebrate is to build my relationship again with the Quran. None of us, me included, none of us, have given the Quran its Jew right. And that could be part of the reason why our Imam could not find those soldiers who are worthy of being alongside him. So let's build our relationship with the Holy Quran in tandem with the other areas that we mentioned. Sendam, I'm coming to the end of the show. Just a final point or a final question is, how do we use Idiz Akhar as a turning point now? We've had two months of spirituality, non-stop lectures, in sha Allah, a lot of reflection. Now, it's a time for us to spread our wings again now and to look forward optimistically. How do we use this event, this age, as a turning point? I think the beauty of Shi'aism is that balance between commemoration and celebration. And the main word is balance. Try and build balance in your life. Enjoy your life. But don't forget holding onto the teachings of the Ahlul Bayt. Be joyous on their days of joy, be sad in their days of sadness. I think likewise, Idiz Akhar reminds us, there were many atrocities happened to the Ahlul Bayt. Let's not let oppression continue in this world against the human race. There are kids starving in Yemen. There are kids with no homes in Syria. There are innocent people imprisoned in the Middle East. There are orphans in the land of Iraq. And the very reason I'm going to be in Toronto on Saturday, the very reason is because we can give so many majalis on orphans and widows, but we have to implement it by actually going to the ground and helping the orphans and the widows and the needy in our societies. And in sha Allah, this celebration builds that momentum that we remember the oppressions against the orphans of Al-Muhammad and the widows after Karbala. We galvanize that spirit to help every orphan and every poor and every youth and every needy one in the world today. That's it. Thank you very much, Doctor. Congratulations again to you. Thank you so much. Thank you and congratulations to everybody. Thank you. To the viewers, I hope, thank you for joining us. I hope this was a very, very inspirational and informative discussion for yourself. Sorry, we weren't taking questions today because it was a special occasion. And we would like to congratulate you, especially the Imam of our time, on this joyous occasion. And in sha Allah, please join us again next week for a discussion. I soon as say that Omar comes back from his travels. In sha Allah, we'll be having more discussions here on Live in London. Salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.