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For all who seek a tranquil heart, a few words of advice from our respected Shaykh Saleh Al-Meghamsi:
To everyone who listens to me or to anyone else, to anyone who reads our work or the works of others – let not your heart soften by anything greater than by the Qurʾān.
To bring life to your heart, by Allāh, besides Whom there is no other lord, even if you listen to hundreds of lectures, they will not equate a single āyah from the book of Allāh.
Allāh says:
Indeed, those who disbelieve in the message after it has come to them… And indeed, it is a mighty Book. Falsehood cannot approach it from before it or from behind it; [it is] a revelation from a [Lord who is] Wise and Praiseworthy. Nothing is said to you, [O Muḥammad], except what was already said to the messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord is a possessor of forgiveness and a possessor of painful penalty. [Surah Fuṣṣilat, 41-43]
The believer does not seek anything greater than the pleasure of Allāh. And the pleasure of Allāh is not attained by anything greater than love for the Words of the Lord of the Worlds. From among the greatest praise that Allāh gave to those close to Him and the righteous is that they carry three traits, may Allāh grant them to us with sincerity: That, if the ayat of Allāh are recited upon them, 1. Their hearts become fearful. 2. Their skins shiver. 3. And their eyes shed tears.
Allāh describes Musa, Harun, Ibrahim, Idrees, Ismail, Maryam and her son, peace be on them all, in Surah Maryam with different traits then says:
Those were the ones upon whom Allāh bestowed favor from among the prophets of the descendants of Adam and of those We carried [in the ship] with Noah, and of the descendants of Abraham and Israel, and of those whom We guided and chose. When the verses of the Most Merciful were recited to them, they fell in prostration and weeping. [Surah Maryam, 58].
Matters are attained by habituation; hence, the greatest advice for one to awaken their heart is to stand in front of Allāh at night, reciting verses wherein Allāh extolled His Exalted Self. There are no words more beautiful and greater in their effect than the praise of Allāh on Himself and what Allāh says about Himself. There is no one greater than Allāh, so there are no words greater than the words of Allāh. And because there is no one greater than Allāh, then there is no one more knowledgeable about Allāh than Allāh.
These are basic rules, so memorize them keenly: No one is greater than Allāh. No words are greater than the words of Allāh and no one has more knowledge of Allāh than Allāh. So if you come forth to stand in front of Him, training yourself for the night prayers, select ayat to recite that consist of the praises of Allāh on His Exalted Self. Then, while you pray, repeat them over and over many times until, gradually, your heart is aroused and your eyes water.
As the days pass, your heart will grow to not be tranquil with anything more than the remembrance of Allāh. For, the more one seeks tranquility through nearness to Allāh, the more detached they will become from His creation. Allāh says about is Exalted Self:
Have you not considered your Lord – how He extends the shadow, and if He willed, He could have made it stationary? Then We made the sun for it an indication. Then We hold it in hand for a brief grasp. And it is He who has made the night for you as clothing and sleep [a means for] rest and has made the day a resurrection. [Surah Al-Furqān, 45-47].
These are tangible things that you can see, so if you relate them to their Creator, certainty (yaqeen) will grow in your heart. Then Allāh says:
And it is He who sends the winds as good tidings before His mercy, and We send down from the sky pure water. That We may bring to life thereby a dead land and give it as drink to those We created of numerous livestock and men. And We have certainly distributed it among them that they might be reminded, but most of the people refuse except disbelief. [Surah Al-Furqān, 48-50]
And Allāh also says, in the end of Surat Al-Hashr:
He is Allāh , other than whom there is no deity, Knower of the unseen and the witnessed. He is the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. He is Allāh , other than whom there is no deity, the Sovereign, the Pure, the Perfection, the Bestower of Faith, the Overseer, the Exalted in Might, the Compeller, the Superior. Exalted is Allāh above whatever they associate with Him. He is Allāh , the Creator, the Inventor, the Fashioner; to Him belong the best names. Whatever is in the heavens and earth is exalting Him. And He is the Exalted in Might, the Wise. [Surah Al-Hashr, 22-24]
Where is the poetry of the poets, the words of the fluent, and the eloquence of the eloquent, compared to these Words of the Qurʾān? Indeed, these are the Words of the Lord of Glory about Himself, Almighty. This is the true nourishment of the heart by which the believer is sustained, training themselves to not drink except from it, and not draw except from it's source.
This is what drives towards the pleasure of Allāh, towards Gardens, and with this the believer is guided to good deeds, leading him to the highest of ranks.
Oh Allāh, you are Allāh, other than whom there is no deity, knower of the unseen and the witnessed, upon Whom is the fate of everyone, the sustenance of everyone is with you, we ask You Oh Allāh, with Your beautiful names and Divine attributes to send peace and blessings on Muḥammad and the family of Muḥammad and to grant us sincerity in all of what we say and hear. May the peace and blessings of Allāh be upon Muḥammad and his family.
For those who understand Arabic, you can also listen to the Shaykh here:
