When the days shorten and the nights lengthen, we know all too well that winter is upon us.  For some people, they experience what is known as “Seasonal Affective Disorder”, more commonly known as the winter blues.  With symptoms ranging from sleeping too much, to having little energy, to feeling depressed, the winter blues seems to have a tendency of affecting people in areas of limited daylight hours such as the Northern USA, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

However, if we were to examine the season of snow from an Islamic perspective, we would quickly realize there is a great blessing in the time of winter.  Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣri is reported to have said, “How good winter is for the believer! Its night is long, so he prays in it; and its day is short, so he observes fasting in it.”

Indeed, some of our pious predecessors would look forward to winter for the purpose of the night prayer.  If you think about it, the last one-third of the night, the extra blessed time to perform the tahajjud prayer, is longer during the winter time.  Our pious predecessors would look forward to having these long nights to pray tahajjud and would cherish having a longer time to spend in their ṣalāh and du'ā'.

How does one make tahajjud?  I have to admit, I am not regular with my tahajjud.  In reality, my consistency is rather deplorable.  However, let me share with you one 'trick' I've started using this year.  I started drinking a lot of water before I go to sleep in the evenings.  Why?  Well, you see, my bladder is strong, alḥamdulillāh, and so when I need to use the bathroom, my bladder will wake me up in the middle of the night forcing me out of my comfortable bed.  So, if you make it to the bathroom, why not just make wuḍū' and then pray two raka'āt of tahajjud then?

Moreover, the time for fajr comes in later during the winter time.  So if you were to wake up in the winter time when you would normally wake up for fajr in the summer (say 5 am), then you would have some prime tahajjud time!  Consistency is the key, so make du'ā' that I too am able to achieve some consistency when it comes to the night prayer, inshā'Allāh.

Furthermore, the short days allow us to be able to keep extra nawāfil fasts without difficulty.  Indeed, when our day ends around 5 pm, we often times don't even notice the thirst from our fasting!  So why not take it upon ourselves to do some extra fasting during these blessed days so we can reap in some of blessings of the winter time!  Why not start fasting the three white days of the lunar month every month?  Indeed, the fasts are easy yet virtuous and rewarding,inshā'Allāh!

Additionally, one can look forward to making wuḍū' with the cold water of winter.  Why you would ask?  Well, it's a great time to reflect upon the blessings of warm water and furthermore we can hope to reap in the extra reward of having to go through the 'hardships' of making wuḍū' with the cold water.  Indeed, if something is difficult for us and we do it solely for Allāh, our reward is with Him, inshā'Allāh!  Furthermore, our delicate care in using cold water for making wuḍū' keeps us closer to the Sunnah of not being extravagant in making wuḍū' and wasting excess water!

In conclusion, there are many beautiful bounties that come with the beginning of the winter season.  Only a few simple blessings have been listed above, but, de facto, many more do exist.  For example, many of the women in the winter time are forced to cover their bodies as compared to the summer time when they are wearing clothes yet many of them are still naked.  Hence, winter times makes it easier for the Muslim man to lower his gaze too, inshā'Allāh.

So, as winter time approaches, let us embrace the cold and benefit ourselves from this beautiful season, inshā'Allāh!

[The following is the video and transcript of Shaykh Abdul Nasir's lecture "istikhārah: How to and Why?." The transcript includes slight modifications for the sake of readability and clarity.]

Click here to view the embedded video.

The word istikhārah comes from the root word of khayr.  Khayr in the Arabic language in its origins is representative of all that which is good.  Khayr is an umbrella word that represents all that which is good.  Istikhārah means to seek the good and seek that which is good.  This is the meaning of the word istikhārah itself.

Just like the meaning, the prayer ṣalāt'-l-istikhārah, which is from the Sunnah of the Prophet , is an authentically narrated Sunnah of the Prophet and an extremely emphasized practice of the Messenger .  Just like the meaning of the word istikhārah, the purpose of the ṣalāh is similarly to seek that which is good from Allāh .  I want to inshā'Allāh have this session to explain the procedure and the purpose of istikhārah.

I am going to split today's presentation into two parts.  The first part will focus on the ritual itself, meaning the technicalities, procedure, concept and outcome of istikhārah.  The second part of the lecture will focus on the purpose of the istikhārah, which is explaining the meaning and beauty of the supplication of istikhārah itself because that unlocks the purpose and the reason why we even do istikhārah.

Basic Points

To begin with the technicalities, I would like to begin with a few basic points.  The first is the concept of istikhārah to understand istikhārah conceptually and what it is.  I can explain best to you what istikhārah is by explaining to you what istikhārah is not.  As they say in Arabic, sometimes the best way to get to know something is to know the opposite of it.  The best way I can help you understand what istikhārah is conceptually and the role and purpose of istikhārah is by explaining to you what it most definitely is not.

Istikhārah is not a Magic 8 ball.  Did you ever buy that?  You get it at the mall as a gag gift.  You ask the Magic 8 ball, “Should I go to the mall today?” [Shake it]. “Maybe.”  This is the Magic 8 ball.  What I am trying to say by giving you this silly example is what people play around with when playing with the Magic 8 ball is throw out a random question, shake the Magic 8 ball and get a magical answer and go with it.  It is kind of like rolling the dice.  Istikhārah is not that.

Decision Making Process:  3 Steps

Istikhārah is the third of a three-step decision making process.  The first step of a decision making process is to use the God-given intellect, ability, and critical thinking that Allāh has blessed each and every single human being with in different capacities.  Allāh has granted every human being the ability to take factors into consideration and weigh different options and think about, ponder, contemplate, and process.  That is the first step of the decision making process in the life of the believer.  He first uses his 'aql, intelligence and ability to think that Allāh has given him.

There is a reason that Allāh emphasizes the 'aql, uli'l-albāb, and these types of things in the Qur'an because these are from the greatest of Allāh's blessings.  That is the first step of the decision making process: Take your circumstances into consideration, look at the options available to you, and then sit down and think and try to figure out and do some research and try to come to somewhat of a conclusion.  At least try to narrow your options and come to somewhat of a conclusion.  This is number one.

The second step of a decision making process is istishārah.  It is the Arabic word for seeking counsel and seeking advice.  The next step of the process is to then seek some counsel and advice, and it really depends on what type of a decision you are trying to make.  If you want to buy a car, you first do some research online and do some car shopping and test drove and narrow down to about three or four different cars that you are thinking about.  Then what you could do, for instance, is go to a brother from the masjid who is a car mechanic.  Sit down with that brother and say, “Brother, I want to take advice from you because you are experienced and knowledgeable about cars.  What do you recommend?  These are the three or four cars I am looking at.”  He says, “I wouldn't buy that because it has transmission problems.  This car wears out really quickly, etc.”

Now you are seeking counsel and advice.  If it is a more personal issue, something that is a life type decision, then you seek the counsel and advice from somebody who sincerely and honestly cares about you, somebody who is experienced and mature and maybe even spiritually focused so that they have a well-rounded perspective they can provide to you.

That is istishārah and seeking counsel.  This is the second step of the decision-making process.

The third and final step of the decision making process is now istikhārah.  What has occurred up to this point is that you started with no idea of what to do.  You narrowed it down to maybe half a dozen different options and sought some counsel and got some advice from someone and are down to your last couple of options.  At this point in time, you are struggling with this or that and are starting to lean a little more towards one direction.  You are thinking about two cars and are leaning towards buying a convertible, for instance – random example.  You are thinking about buying the Camaro over the mini-van.  No brainer, but nevertheless for some strange reason you are conflicted.  Maybe you have two kids, but it doesn't matter, they can sit in the backseat.

You are starting to lean in one direction, but you are little conflicted and just need a little bit of a push and convincing.  You are looking for that confidence to make your decision that you have come to by critical thinking – apply your intellect and do some research – and you sought some counseling.  You are leaning in a direction but need some confidence and some clarity of heart.  This is where istikhārah comes in.

What I have just explained to you removes many of the issues and questions that people have about istikhārah itself.  A lot of people are confused about istikhārah because they try to use it like the Magic 8 ball.  “I have got to buy a house.  Let me do istikhārah.”  What do you think is going to happen?  Are you magically going to see a house in your dreams and going to go searching for it and find it and buy it?  It doesn't work that way.  You don't decide that you need to buy a car and then pray istikhārah and a Honda Civic is going to fall on you.  It doesn't work that way.

When people try to utilize istikhārah in that way, then they walk away confused and say, “Shaykh, I made istikhārah and I can't figure anything out.  It's not working.”  You don't change the batteries in your istikhārah, right?  What is basically going on is that you are not utilizing it properly.  Anything that is not utilized properly is not going to work right.  You have to utilize it properly and appropriately.  Make sure you turn it into the third of a three-step decision making process.  This is the concept and role of istikhārah.

Prerequisites of Istikhārah

The next thing I would like to explain are the prerequisites of istikhārah.  What is required to do istikhārah?

I am going to give you the actual narration, but for now we are just going to roll with it and speak a little more generally.  What is required for the istikhārah is what is required for any other prayer, which is you need to make sure that you are pure and clean, clothed appropriately, have wuḍū'.  You do not require a bath of purification.  You face towards the qiblah.  That is what is required for istikhārah.

Basically whatever is required to normally pray is what is required for istikhārah.  There are no other extra prerequisites or requirements for istikhārah.  You don't have to pray it immediately before you go to sleep.  You don't have to take a shower and then immediately pray istikhārah.  You need wuḍū' for prayer; you need wuḍū' for istikhārah.  Istikhārah is a prayer just like dhuhr is a prayer and nafl would be a prayer.  You don't need to stop talking to people when you decide to do istikhārah.  You don't need to wake up in the middle of the night and do istikhārah.  You don't have to go stand on top of a mountain on one leg and do istikhārah.  You get my drift at this point – anything extra that you may heard, come across, or assumed that is needed for istikhārah aside from what is needed for prayer.  Wuḍū', dressing appropriately, facing the qiblah, Allāhu akbar – that is istikhārah.

The only thing I will add in here is that according to the opinion of the majority of scholars, there are small difference of opinion – I'm going to tell you what the majority of scholars say.  In ṣalāt'l-istikhārah, there are not major differences of opinion.  There are a few minor opinions here and there that differ from the vast majority.  I'm just going to go ahead and share the majority opinion because it is an overwhelming majority opinion.

The overwhelming majority opinion is that the only thing you have to watch out for is what you watch out for in other prayers.  Make sure you don't pray istikhārah at the times when prayer is forbidden.  Those are three basic times of the day:  while the sun is rising, when the sun is at its peak (which lasts for a minute or so), and the setting of the sun.  Those three times of the day are when we are told not to pray.  It is the same requirements of ṣalāh and for istikhārah.

These are the prerequisites of istikhārah.

Procedure

What is the procedure of istikhārah?  There is a sequence of events or procedure.  Once you fulfill the prerequisites, you will stand up and pray two rakʿahs, two units, of nafl (voluntary, supererogatory) prayer.  Why am I emphasizing and specifying it to be two rakʿahs of a voluntary prayer?  When we read the text of the ḥadīth together inshā'Allāh, at that time you will see it.  It is mentioned explicitly within the text of the ḥadīth by the Messenger of Allāh .  No debate and no question here.

What that means is that you can't pray ṣalāt'l-'ishā' and make the supplication of istikhārah – two for one, all done.  You can't do that.

The Prophet explicitly said that you have to invest two more extra rakʿahs of prayer that are voluntary and optional.  You pray those two rakʿahs of prayer.  There is nothing different about those two units of prayer.  You pray them as you should pray any other ṣalāh.  There's obviously room for improvement in my prayer, and I'm pretty sure everybody feels there is room for improvement within their prayers, so aside from that entire discussion, basically you pray istikhārah like you would pray any other prayer, which is two rakʿahs, qiyām, rukū', sujūd.  You sit at the end, tashahhud, ṣalawāt on the Messenger , supplication, salām, and that's it.  That is the procedure of the istikhārah.

There is no extra special sūrah that should be recited here.  There's nothing that is authentically narrated from the Prophet about reciting this in the first rakʿah and that in the second rakʿah.  There is nothing of that sort.  Just pray two rakʿahs of prayer.

Once you finish these two rakʿahs of prayer, which means the taslīm, you then at that time recite the exact supplication taught to us by the Prophet in the Arabic language.  You read it in Arabic.  Again, here, the vast overwhelming majority of scholars are of the opinion that the supplication of istikhārah is to be done after the prayer.  There are a couple of opinions here and there to do it before the taslīm; however, the vast majority overwhelming majority, and again, if you analyze the text of the ḥadīth, which I'm going to point out to you when we do read the ḥadīth of the Prophet , you will see that the Prophet mentions a word which makes it very clear that the supplication is meant to be said after the prayer is done.

Now at this point we recite the supplication.  Read the supplication in Arabic.  Why am I explicitly saying that?  Again, the ḥadīth very clearly mentions that fact.  A question comes up here:  what if I don't have it memorized?  Read it off of a piece of paper.  Fuqahā' have stated that very clearly if somebody needs to read it off of a piece of paper, that is ok.  Read it out of a book, read it off of a piece of paper, photocopy it, do what you have to do.  Nevertheless, read the actual Arabic of the supplication.  Don't read the summarized English translation.  When we read the text of the ḥadīth, we see the Prophet explicitly said, “Read it as I have taught you.”

The other thing I want to state is – just in case anyone is watching the video or listening to the lecture – what if somebody can't read Arabic?  Use a transliteration or something of that nature to the best of your ability.  Of course if somebody recently took shahādah or somebody recently came into connection with their dīn, there is always an exception to the rule.

We do not give enough consideration to people who have had a major turning point in their life, whether we are talking about people who may have been born in Muslim families but just not raised with the dīn and come to practice the dīn later on in their lives, or if we are talking about reverts and converts, people who took shahādah later in life.  Consideration should always be given to them, and it should be understood that they are doing the best that they can, and they should definitely make an effort to try to learn Arabic as much as possible and as quickly as possible, but until and unless they are able to get to that point, they are completely capable of practicing their dīn to the best of their ability, and it is ok for somebody like that to read it in English or to read the translation of it.  That is a very, very specific situation and consideration should be given to those types of cases.

Nevertheless, going back to the procedure.  We talked about praying two rakʿahs, completing the prayer, reading the supplication in Arabic to the best of your ability.  That is the procedure of istikhārah.  Read the supplication in Arabic, and it is done.  You don't have to make any extra du'ā' after that.  The supplication that you read in Arabic is the supplication and du'ā' itself.  There is no other extra procedure after.  Once you are done reading the supplication, you are done.

Outcome of Istikhārah

The next issue I would like to address is what is the outcome of the istikhārah?  Again, I can start by telling you what is not the outcome of the istikhārah.  You will not wake up in the middle of the night and have a 3D vision of what you should.  I can tell you that is not going to happen.  It is istikhārah and not Avatar.  That is one thing we need to be clear on.  While it might seem like a joke or silly to some people, sometimes people just don't know.  The outcome of the istikhārah is nothing out of this world.

The primary outcome of the istikhārah is the clarity of mind and confidence to make the decision that you need to make that I alluded to earlier.  You feel confident and good about making your decision.  You were already leaning towards one option – option A – and there is another option on the table, but you are a lot more confident about option A or maybe you have come to a decision about option A but you just need that extra little confidence.

You do your istikhārah and naturally start to feel more confident and feel clearer and feel ready to make that decision.  That is the outcome of your istikhārah.  The outcome of the istikhārah is to reflect internally and be a bit introspective and look inside and see if you feel good and confident about making your decision.

How do you know that the outcome of the istikhārah is maybe this isn't the best decision for you?  You will naturally feel down.  You will feel conflicted, doubtful, very scared or anxious or hesitant about making your decision.  Then at that point, this is your response of istikhārah that maybe this isn't the best decision for you.  That is how simple and easy istikhārah is.

The reason why istikhārah has become complicated for us a lot of times is because we are looking for something out of this world and something supernatural and really far out.  We look for something crazy like that, and when we don't find it, we feel unfulfilled.

If we learn to just think of it internally and learn to be a little more reflective and introspective, naturally you will find the response to your istikhārah to be a lot more facilitated for you.  You are thinking internally and feel naturally confident in your decision.  That is the outcome and result of the istikhārah.

What about Dreams?

The question always comes up:  what about dreams?  The issue of dreams is one thing that needs to be understood.  We don't completely dismiss dreams altogether.  Authentic narrations of the Prophet tell us that dreams are something that a believer derives inspiration from.  Even the greatest of scholars like Ibn Sirīn of the tabi'ūn and great scholars of interpretation of dreams, one of the first things they would say or one of the first things they taught their students was that dreams are not a basis of making decisions.  Decisions should not be based on dreams.  These were the first and foremost to tell their students that even though these were the scholars of the interpretation of dreams.  They said at the most it is inspiration, motivation, encouragement.  That is all it is.  It is not something you base a decision on.

I would like to clarify that right here.  If you have a dream and it kind of inspires you or motivates you, alḥamdulillāh.  Don't read too much into it because you are not supposed to.

Two Miscellaneous Issues

That is the outcome of the istikhārah.  There are two miscellaneous issues I would like to explain.  The first issue is related to the outcome.

What if I make istikhārah and I just still don't feel comfortable or confident in my decision?  I still don't feel confident or clear and am still not comfortable making a decision, and I made istikhārah and followed the procedure properly.  What do I do at that time? The course of action at that time is:  do it again.  If it doesn't work again, then do it again.  If you are still not comfortable, then do it again.  Keep doing it until you feel confident and comfortable in making your decision.

There is even a narration from 'Abdullāh b. Zubayr , one of the companions of the Prophet and probably 'Ā'ishah's best and brightest student.  He says, “I made istikhārah with Allāh three times.  Then I was comfortable and confident in making my decision.”  He explicitly mentions while explaining to his students that if you have to make istikhārah multiple times, then you have to make istikhārah multiple times and that's ok.  He said, “I had to pray istikhārah three times one time to make a decision.”  Don't be afraid of repeating the istikhārah multiple times.

A lot of times, it is just a matter of – and this is a tragedy of our times – becoming spiritually numb and we are not very introspective and not very reflective.  Sometimes the superficial nature of the culture we live in or activities make us a little spiritually dull or numb.  We might have to do istikhārah a few times to break through the surface or crack the shell, and that's ok.

The last issue I want to mention here that is associated with istikhārah is that there is one very commonly asked question and issue that comes up quite often.  That is:  can I have somebody else do istikhārah for me?  There is no precedent.  There is no religious verification for having someone else do istikhārah for you.  There is nothing mentioned in the aḥadīth of the Prophet .  There is no precedent from the generation of the ṣaḥābah.  The classical fuqahā' have explicitly stated that istikhārah is meant to be done by the individual himself or herself.  That is a rule.  That's it.  A person has to do the istikhārah himself or herself.

There is a very honest and sincere question and concern that is in the mind's of people who ask this question.  The question or that concern is often:  I am not a very good person, I don't pray five times a day, I have a lot of sins and issues in my life, I feel distant from Allāh, I don't know if I make istikhārah if it will be clear or won't be clear, so I want to ask someone to make istikhārah who is a lot more righteous and pious, and someone who is a lot better person than I am.  That is a concern a lot of people have.

I would like to answer that concern by first saying that maybe part of the reason that you feel that way about your relationship with Allāh is because of the mentality and approach that you have where you don't feel like you are good enough to talk to Allāh.  You feel like you don't have access to Allāh.

The first thing that you have to get over is the simple fact that Allāh is just as available and just as accessible to the sinful person as He is to the most righteous and pious person.  Allāh is available and accessible to everyone.  We can all pray to Allāh.  We can all ask Allāh for whatever we need.  We can all do istikhārah with Allāh.

The second answer to that concern is if you are feeling a bit guilty and self-conscious about the fact that you are distant from Allāh and not praying and maybe that is why you should not be doing istikhārah, then why not fix the problem?  Why not say, “I have a situation.  I need to do istikhārah.  I don't pray five times a day and that's why I don't feel comfortable doing istikhārah.  Well, it's time for ṣalāt'l-maghrib right now or time for ṣalāt'l-'ishā' right now, why don't I go ahead and take that first step?  Why don't I go make wuḍū', stand up and pray ṣalāt'l-'ishā' and then pray two rakaʿāt to do my istikhārah.”  Get it out of the way and get it done.  That is the answer to the question.

There is no validity to having somebody halfway across the world in some village do istikhārah on your behalf and that person doesn't even know who you are and what's going on with you.  By the way, as a side note and a word of advice, if that person is charging you, it's probably a scam.  Just a little note of caution.  If a person is charging you, you need to stay away from that entire situation.

Nevertheless, I did want to address that in a serious issue and serious manner.  There is no validity, there is no precedent, and there is absolutely no authenticity to having somebody do istikhārah on your behalf.  The person him or herself needs to be doing their own istikhārah whatever situation they are dealing with.

Their might be situations where a decision affects multiple people.  Then everybody involved in the situation makes their own istikhārah.  If I will be implicated by this decision, then we all make our own istikhārah.  Nevertheless, it is not like doing a business deal.  If I'm getting into a business deal with a couple of people and we need to come to the decision whether it is good or not, we decide we've looked at the facts, crunched the numbers, and spoken to a couple of people and gotten some consultation, we need to do istikhārah.  Let everybody go and do their own istikhārah.  Even when it is a joint decision, everybody should be doing istikhārah.  Definitely when it is your own personal decision, make your own istikhārah.  Don't put it off on somebody else.  Nobody can do your istikhārah – you do your own.

The concern that is there that “I'm not good enough, I'm not pious enough, I'm not righteous enough,” it doesn't make any sense.  Allāh is Allāh.  He is accessible to you.  All you have to do is go get clean, make wuḍū', face the qiblah, Allāhu akbar, and you are talking to Allāh.  Done deal.

Secondly, if you do feel that you are distant from Allāh, then fix the problem.  Don't create another problem.  Repair the relationship and fix the issue.

It obviously goes without saying that we don't make istikhārah for anything that is impermissible.  There is no istikhārah for: “Should I drink alcohol (na'ūdhu billāh)” – of course that is very bad.  “Should I gamble, what should I put my money on.”  It goes without saying and it is common sense that you don't make istikhārah about the things that are impermissible.

Also, we do not make istikhārah about things that are obligatory.  There is no making istikhārah about “should I pray ṣalāt'l-'ishā' or not.”  That goes without saying that things that are obligatory and things that are a part of the dīn and things that we are supposed to do like fasting Ramaḍān, there is no making istikhārah “should I fast in Ramaḍān or not.”  Similarly, we do not make istikhārah for things that are impermissible.  Of course that is common sense, but I just wanted to mention that.

Supplication of Istikhārah

Now, let's go ahead and discuss the supplication of istikhārah itself.  I'll go ahead and read the ḥadīth to you.  This is a ḥadīth from Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhāri.

Jābir (may Allāh be pleased with him), a very knowledgeable companion of the Prophet of Allāh (peace and blessings be upon him), says, “The Messenger of Allāh would regularly teach us to do istikhārah in all of our affairs and issues just like he would teach us a sūrah from the Qur'an.”  What does that mean?  He is drawing a parallel.  This is the same type of verbage used to talk about the tashahhud in the prayer.  “He would teach us the tashahhud like he would teach us a sūrah from the Quran.”  It is also said about the istikhārah supplication.

That means two things and has two implications.  Implication #1:  he emphasized the importance of memorizing it.  Just like we memorize a sūrah of the Qur'an, similarly he emphasized the importance of memorizing the supplication of istikhārah.  Implication #2:  read it in the Arabic language like we read a sūrah in the Arabic language.  When we read a sūrah from the Qur'an in our prayers, we read it in Arabic.  Again, there is that rare exception that I talked about, nevertheless the general rule is that we read the supplication in Arabic.  The Prophet taught us to read the supplication of istikhārah in Arabic like we read a sūrah in Arabic.

“He would say, 'When any one of you is concerned with an issue or a matter, then he should pray two rakʿahs of optional, voluntary prayer aside from the farḍ obligatory prayer.'”  This is where I was explicitly saying it has to be voluntary optional prayer because the Prophet explicitly in the ḥadīth in the narration says it must be voluntary optional prayer.

Then the Prophet says, “Thumma…”  Thumma in the Arabic language in classical Arabic, the Quranic and prophetic language, is to say “afterwards, after that, then afterwards.”  It states that this occurs after the previous thing has been completed or concluded.  Based on this, the vast overwhelming majority of scholars are of the opinion the supplication of istikhārah is to be read after the prayer has been completed, after the taslīm.

The Prophet reads the supplication for us and teaches us the supplication.  I'm going to explain the meaning of the supplication.

'O Allāh, I seek most definitely that which is good from You by means of Your Knowledge' because O Allāh, You know what is good for me, and I don't know what is good.  The āyah of the Qur'an says, “You may like something initially and it turns out to be bad for you.  You might dislike something initially and it turns out to be something good for you.”  Based on that, Allāh is the only One who knows what is good for me, so that is why I am saying, “O Allāh, I seek that which is good from You by means of Your Knowledge.”

'And I seek the ability to do what I have to do by means of Your Power and Your Ability.'  Meaning:  I am weak and I am incapable, but I seek the ability to make my decision and to do what I need to do by means of Your Ability and Power.

'And I ask You, to grant me from Your great, majestic benevolence and great blessing to bless me.'  I ask You to bless me from Your Blessings and to grant me some from Your Blessings.

This is personally my favorite part of the supplication.  This states the mentality behind istikhārah.

'…because most definitely You are fully capable, and I am completely incapable.'

'And You know everything and I don't know anything.'

'And O Allāh, You are 'Alām. 'Alām is the exaggerated, hyperbolized noun which basically means the Complete Knower of al-ghuyūb.  Ghuyūb is the plural of the word ghayb – all those things that are unseen, all those things that are hidden, all those things that are unknown.  You are the Complete Knower, inside out, of all those things that are unseen, unknown, and hidden.

Now here comes the crux of the supplication:

'O Allāh, You know that this issue, decision, matter – if this is good for me in my religious affairs and my worldly affairs and in the end of my affairs…'  What do you think 'the end of my affairs' is referring to?  The ākhirah.  'If You know, O Allāh, that this decision that I'd like to make and have been struggling with is good for me in my dīn and my religion, in my worldly matters and issues, and if this is good for me in the ākhirah …'

Another narration of this same supplication, the Prophet said,

'In my short term and in the long term…'
What do you think short term refers to?  Dunya, this life.  'Ājilihi, the long term, makes reference to ākhirah, the life of the hereafter.

'O Allāh, You know if this is good for me in the short term and the long term, dunya and ākhirah.'

'Make it possible for me.  Make it happen for me.'

But that's not it.  Now we get to see the real beauty and magnificence of the supplication.

'Don't just make it possible and available to me, make it easy and facilitate it for me.  Make it simple, easy, and accessible for me.'

Thumma means after the fact.  After what fact?  After I have achieved it.  Put blessing in it for me.  We are going for the premium package.  I want the works, all the options.  I want it to be possible for me, O Allāh.  I want it to be easy, simple, accessible, and facilitated for me, O Allāh.  Then after I have it, I want barakah and blessing in it, O Allāh.

What a comprehensive supplication.  What a beautifully comprehensive supplication.  It then goes on:

'O Allāh, You know if this issue, decision, matter is bad for me in my dīn, in my worldly matters and in the end of my affairs in the ākhirah.

Another narration again says:

'in my short term and in the long term' meaning my dunya and my ākhirah.

Here we get to again see the beauty and eloquence of the supplication, the prophetic eloquence on full display.  Let me explain the words to you here.  The word ṣar means to turn something.  There are two entities here:  you and what you are making istikhārah for.  The supplication says, “If this is bad for me in my dunya and ākhirah, then turn it away from me and turn me away from it.”  Do you see the eloquence in the supplication and the visual that it provides?  Imagine you and what you are making istikhārah for.

O Allāh, if this is bad for me in my dunya and my ākhirah, then I want nothing to do with it.  Don't just turn it away from me but turn me away from it.  I want nothing to do  with it.  I got no business with it.  If there is no khayr, then what would I want with it?  This is what the supplication teaches us to say.

That doesn't solve the problem.  There is still an issue left. What is the problem?  Whatever it is you are making istikhārah for – your need, your necessity, your situation, your decision is still not complete.  You made istikhārah and realize that this is not good for you and felt uncomfortable, hesitant, or apprehensive about the decision and backed away, but your need still remains.

The Prophet doesn't leave us hanging.  He completes the supplication.

'And then make possible for me that which is good.'  This particular situation wasn't good for me, so I asked Allāh, “Turn it away from me and turn me away from it.  I want nothing to do with it.  O Allāh, make that which is good possible for me.”  The problem is I don't know where, how, when, or anything about it.  Where do I start?  Ḥaythuka – wherever and however that good may be.  Make that which is good possible for me whenever, wherever, and however it may be.  I leave it to you, O Allāh.  I will still do my due diligence and stay at work trying to find the right option, but O Allāh, lead me to that khayr.  I was saved from sharr, but make something good for me down the road.

This is consolation at the end of the supplication.  This situation didn't work out, which is actually good because it wasn't khayr.  You are asking Allāh for khayr, and Allāh will make khayr possible for you.

The yaqīn, the conviction, needs to be there when you make supplication.  Allāh will make that which is good possible, you just have to keep sticking to what you are doing and keep your hopes high in Allāh .

'So make that which is good possible for me wherever and however it may be.  Then make me pleased and satisfied with it.

In another narration, the Prophet says the words, “Then make me satisfied with it.”  Make me content, satisfied, fulfilled with it.  Make me pleased with it.

Again, it sounds like the same thing.  Even somebody who doesn't have any background in formal Arabic studies can hear the difference.  Thumma arḍini bihi and thumma raḍḍini bihi.  Arḍini and raḍḍini sound a lot alike, but are they completely the same word?  There is a little bit of a difference, which is a difference in verb pattern.  The thing about these verb groups and verb patterns is that they all have their own special implication.  In the classical form of the language, they have their own special implications.

When you have the same root word coming in two verb patterns, the subtle difference between the two is that arḍini means 'make something happen all at once.'  Make me all at once completely satisfied and fulfilled with it.  Raḍḍini has the implication for something to happen continuously, little by little, step by step.

SubḥānAllāh, the Prophet said it with the two different verb forms, and this shows us not only the eloquence of the Prophet but how well he understood people.  There are two types of people when it comes to making a decision.  Some people might take their time and do their due diligence and research and take time to come to a decision.  When they finally come to a conclusion, they are done.  The decision is made, and khalās they are confident and going forward now.

Some people are a little different.  They come to a conclusion and decision and feel good and everything is ok and they are going for it.  Then later at midnight you get a text message from that friend saying, “I'm freaking out.  I don't know what to do.  I'm nervous.”  You say, “Don't worry about it.  It's all ok.  It's midnight, go to sleep.  Everything will be alright inshā'Allāh.”  Then they say, “Ok, I'm good.”  You wake up to pray ṣalāt'l-fajr, and he calls you.  You answer the phone and he says, “Bro, I need to talk to you right now.  I'm not sure about this.”  That's ok – some people are like that and need that constant reassurance.

SubḥānAllāh look at the Messenger of Allāh and how well he knows his people and understands people.  He accommodated both types of people.  “Thumma arḍini bihi” for the type of guy who might take his time to make a decision but once he makes it, he is done.  “Thumma raḍḍini bihi” for the person who “O Allāh don't just make me pleased with it, but keep me pleased with it.”  Constantly reassure me about my decision, O Allāh.

At the end of the supplication in the narration of Bukhāri, the Prophet says, “And then he mentions his need.”  When you go back into the supplication, remember the part that I said was the crux of the supplication?

“O Allāh, You know that this decision, if this is good for me…” that is the moment where the Prophet says the person should mention his or her need.  The scholars explain that there are two options.  Somebody could just simply think of whatever it is that they are making istikhārah about, and that would suffice.  If somebody just visualizes or conceptualizes or thinks of what they are making istikhārah about, that is sufficient.  Otherwise, a person can feel free and should feel free to go ahead and verbalize it.  They don't need to verbalize it in Arabic if that is not their language.  They can say it in their own language.  Allāhumma in kunta ta'lamu anna hatha'l-amra… and then at that time the person says, “Buying this particular car, purchasing this house, marrying so-and-so” that this is good for me.  Then the supplication goes on and continues.

Similarly, there is a second moment when you mention it as well when you mention the other part of it.  “O Allāh, you know that if this decision and issue is bad for me,” then again you can think about it, conceptualize it, or verbalize it.  The Prophet taught us to do that.  It becomes very practical and real.  It is a real experience and you are literally stating your need, and this is something the Prophet taught us to do.

That concludes the discussion on the meaning of the supplication of istikhārah and it gives you an insight as to why we do istikhārah and what the purpose is and the spirit of istikhārah.

One thing I would like to explain here about the supplication of istikhārah is that it is the perfect example of prophetic eloquence of the Prophet and how beautiful the supplications are that he taught us.  There is a lot of good and khayr in learning the prophetic supplications, and we should invest some time and energy in learning these beautiful supplications.

Quotes from Scholars

The last little note I wanted to mention here is a few little basic quotes from some scholars about the blessing of istikhārah and why we do istikhārah.

Ibn Abi Jamra (raḥimahullāh), a great scholar, said, “The wisdom behind putting the ṣalāh before the istikhārah is the istikhārah combines both the good of this world and the next.  Just like in this dunya a person needs to go the one he needs something from and win their favor and then put their need before them, the ṣalāh precedes the supplication is like knocking at the door of the King and presenting yourself before Allāh and making sujūd and humbling yourself and putting your face on the ground before Allāh and then spreading your hands and presenting your need before Allāh .”  This is the beauty of the sequence of events.

Ibn Taymiyyah says, “He who seeks guidance from the Creator and then consults with the creation (people) and then once he comes to a decision that he is confident in and goes forward with, such a person will never regret and have no remorse about the decision that he makes.”

Imam Al-Nawawi says, “After performing the istikhārah, when a person is wholeheartedly inclined and feels good about a decision, then the person should say bismillāh and go ahead with the course of action and the conclusion and decision.”

Istikhārah is like a training in adab with Allāh.  “O Allāh, I will not make a decision without praying to You.  Even though I'm fully confident, I will still do istikhārah.”  It shows adab with Allāh, and part of the adab with Allāh is that when you do come to a conclusion and decision and did make istikhārah and feel confident about your decision, then you go with it.  You remove doubt at that time and don't second guess and don't doubt because that would show disrespect to Allāh and this practice of istikhārah.

Final Note

The last and final note I want to mention here is one other requirement for istikhārah.  I didn't mention this in the prerequisites because I was talking about more in terms of fiqh.  The primary ingredient of the istikhārah is conviction.  Know who you are praying to.  You are praying to Allāh, rabb'l-'alamīn.  You are praying to the One who created each and every single thing.  He watches and controls every single thing.  He sustains and maintains each and every single thing.  He is capable of doing whatever He wills.

Have that level of confidence when you do istikhārah.  I am not just consulting with anyone.  I am talking to Allāh, and Allāh will help me in my situation.  Allāh will give me clarity of mind, and Allāh will bless me with confidence.  When you do make istikhārah and you do feel hesitant, remember what the end of the supplication said.  Don't feel disheartened at that time because at the end of the supplication, you do ask Allāh for khayr, and if you have the level of conviction in Allāh, you will have the conviction that Allāh will provide to you that which is best for you.

Have that conviction.  Have that level of īmān and yaqīn in Allāh and His Ability to take care of you and Allāh will inshā'Allāh take care of us.  As it says in the ḥadīth qudsi, “I deal with My slave according to how he perceives Me.  If he perceives that I can take care of him, I take care of him.”  When he is doubtful, maybe he won't be taken care of.  The onus is on us.  How do we perceive our relationship with Allāh?

May Allāh give us the ability to practice everything that we said and heard.

I will end with this one last ḥadīth mentioned in the Musnad of Imam Aḥmed and narrated by Sa'd b. Abi Waqqās who said that the Messenger of Allāh said, “From the blessing of the son of Ādam is the ability to seek good from Allāh, doing istikhārah with Allāh.  Also from the blessing of the son of Ādam is that they are pleased with whatever Allāh has decreed for them.  From the wretchedness of the children of Ādam is when he leaves doing istikhārah with Allāh.  Also from the wretchedness of the human being is that the human being is displeased with what Allāh has decreed for him.”

May Allāh bless us all to do istikhārah and to be pleased with Allāh's Decree and decision in our affairs and issues.  Jazākum Allāh khayran.  Al-salāmu 'alaykum wa raḥmatullāh.

[The following is the video and transcript of Shaykh Yasir Qadhi's lecture "The Etiquette of Dealing with Parents and the Elderly" at the United for Change "Our Families: Our Foundation" conference in Montreal.  The transcript includes slight modifications for the sake of readability and clarity.]

Click here to view the embedded video.

Al-salāmu 'alaykum wa raḥmatullāhi wa barakātuh

In Sūrat'l-Kāhf in the famous story of Khidr ('alayhi'l-salām) and his encounter with Mūsa – a story that all of you have heard and read numerous times – Khidr meets three people, and each time he meets one of them, he does something very strange.  One of the three people that he meets is a young man.  What does Khidr do when he sees this young man walking along the beach, as the riwāyāt tell us?  He kills him.  Mūsa ('alayhi'l-salām) cannot believe what he is seeing.  “Have you killed an innocent soul?  How could you have done this?  How could you have taken the life of another human being?”

Khidr of course, as you know, is doing this as a commandment from Allāh and a waḥy from Allāh.  He says to Mūsa, “I told you [that] you can't be patient with me.”   At the end of the story, what do we find out?  “As for this person that I killed, their parents were good people, and Allāh knew that if we caused this young man to grow older and mature, he would have caused much grief and hardship to his parents, so Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) wanted to take this one away and substitute with another one who will be merciful to them.”

This story tells us much, but one of the things it tells us is that one of the most painful experiences of human existence and one of the most emotionally traumatic situations that any person can find himself or herself in is to find a son or daughter who is displeasing to them and to raise a child with love and mercy and tenderness and to have this child grow up and flourish in front of their eyes, and to spend one's entire livelihood, one's savings, one's life and time and efforts on this young son or daughter and then to find this son or daughter turns around and goes against them.  This son or daughter treats them in a harsh or rude manner.  This human being, because of whom they felt motivated to live – a child motivates a parent to live – and this human being because of whom they changed their whole life plans and worked hard and struggled; someone whom they expected nothing but mercy and tenderness in response to – instead, when this child turns against the parent and treats them with contempt and arrogance, ridicule, sarcasm, the emotional trauma and distress that a parent feels is more profound than anything else.  That is why, as a mercy to righteous parents, Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) actually decided to take this ghulām away because if he were allowed to live, he would have caused distress and grief.

This is something one needs to think about.  Parents would be less distressed at the death of their child and at the nonexistence of this boy that they raised than they would if he were allowed to remain and allowed to flourish and yet he would cause them grief and harm.  This really shows us how much a parent loves a child and how important it is that the children treat their parents with that love and respect that is due to them.

Brothers and sisters, I am sure that each one of you has heard many khuṭbahs, many durūs, many Islamic lectures about the rights that parents have and about the rights that children have to do when they treat their parents.  How can you not have heard such lectures when the Qurʾān treats the rights of parents second only to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla).  I am sure that the verses and aḥadīth have been memorized by you.  Wallāhi, they need to be memorized and they need to be understood.  Yet, Allāh still reminds us in the Qurʾān, “Remind them even if they have heard before.  Mention it again because mentioning it again and reminding them benefits the believers.”

Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) emphasizes the rights of the parents using the strongest nouns, strongest verbs, and strongest adjectives.  He always emphasizes the rights of the parents after He emphasizes His own rights.  “Your Lord has decreed…”  This is the decree of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) and this is the eternal decree upon which there is no other decree that will supersede it.  “…that you shall worship none except Him and that you should treat your parents with iḥsān.”

What does iḥsān mean?  Iḥsān comes from ḥusn, and ḥusn means perfection. The state of iḥsān as defined by Al-Rāghib Al-Asbahani and many of the famous commentators of the Arabic language means that you give everything you possibly can to the other party without expecting anything back from them.  This is what the state of iḥsān is.  You give everything you can – your heart and your soul, your body and your efforts – and what do you want in return?  Absolutely nothing.  That is the state of iḥsān (perfection).  You are giving and it is a one way street.  There is nothing in return that you want back.  Why?  Because my parents have already given me far more than I can ever pay back.  My parents have already done for me much more than I can possibly do for them.  Now it is my time to try to not even repay the favor because that is never going to happen, but at least do my duty as a loyal son.

In another famous verse, Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) says, “We took a covenant with the children of Israel that they worship none except God and they treat their parents with iḥsān.” In yet another verse, Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) tells us that when your parents reach an elderly age, don't even say uff to them.  Scholars of the Arabic language tell us uff is an expression or phrase that actually doesn't have a verbal meaning.  There is no noun that it is based off of.  It is simply a sound that is uttered like when you are hurt and say “ouch.”  It is not a noun, and it is not a verb; it is simply a sound.  Uff is the slightest expression of contempt.  The Arabic scholars tell us the slightest expression of irritation and anger is uff.  When you are irritated, the slightest thing you can say is uff.  Allāh is saying, “Don't say uff to them.”  Ibn 'Abbās said, “Had there been a word lesser than uff, Allāh would have used it in this verse.”  Had there been a word lesser than uff to describe a state of exasperation or frustration, Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) would have used it here.

The meaning here is that when your parents reach that age when you have to now take care of them, they will do things that will irritate you.  They will treat you in ways that you will find troublesome.  Why?  Because you are not a child anymore; you are an adult, but for your parents, you are always going to be a child as we all know.  No matter how old you are – 40, 50, 60 – in your their eyes, and they have every right to do this, you are always their little baby.  They are going to command you and tell you this and that, and you being māshā'Allāh 30 or 40 or 50 or however old you are, think that khalās you are in charge.  It is very easy to lose track of the fact that when your parents are their, you are always going to be their little baby.  Allāh says, “Don't say uff to them.”

The beauty of the Qurʾān here is that Allāh does not command you with more than you can bear.  Notice Allāh doesn't say don't get angry and Allāh doesn't say don't get frustrated and Allāh doesn't say don't get emotional because that is inside the heart.  What Allāh does say is don't express that emotion externally; control it, trap it, and make sure it is not manifest to your parents.  This is the beauty of our religion.  Anybody who is dealing with elderly parents knows this first hand.  It is very difficult to take care of elderly parents.  It is very frustrating.  Allāh didn't tell you to not get frustrated.  Allāh said, “Don't express that frustration.  Don't let it manifest.  Don't let anything come that will show your parents you are frustrated.  Trap it; keep it within you.”  Outwardly, show them the respect that they deserved, even if it has to be forced.

Likewise, in the beautiful story of Luqmān ('alayhi'l-salām) when he is giving advice to his son.  “When Luqmān said to his son, 'Don't commit shirk with Allāh.  Verily shirk is the worst of all sins.”  Then Allāh said, “We are the ones who told mankind to treat his parents with kindness, iḥsān, and gentleness.”  The next verses: “Luqmān said,…Luqmān said,…Luqmān said…”  What I am trying to emphasize here is that there is a passage one page long in Sūrah Luqmān.  Every single verse begins with, “Luqmān said to his son, 'Ya bunayy…'”  There is only one verse in which Allāh speaks directly.  “We are the ones who told mankind to take care of their parents.”  It is not Luqmān telling his son, “O my son, take care of us.”  In only one of these verses Allāh removed the voice of Luqmān and spoke in His own voice.  Scholars say this is to emphasize that Luqmān when he is preaching to his son to be righteous is not doing it out of his own selfish motivation.  He is not doing it based on “I am your father, treat me like this.”  Rather, Allāh took this obligation from him and Allāh spoke on behalf of him, and Allāh said, “This is Our Commandment.  We are the ones who commanded mankind to treat their parents with gentleness and mercy.”

The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) in numerous aḥadīth elaborated on this concept of treating parents with mercy and tenderness.  We can go on and on about this fact.  Once it is narrated he (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) entered Jannah and he heard somebody reciting the Qurʾān in a beautiful voice.  He asked Jibrīl, “Who is this person?”  He was told, “This is al-Ḥaritha b. Nu'man [a famous companion of the anṣār].”   The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “This is what birr does to a man.  al-Ḥaritha used to be good and righteous to his mother.”  He hears Ḥaritha reading Qurʾān in Jannah, and automatically he links it to only one action: this is what righteous does; he used to be good to his mother.

You all know the story of Uways al-Qarni, and if not, we will summarize it briefly.  Uways al-Qarni was not a companion; he was a tabi'i.  He never met the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam).  The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) told 'Umar b. Al-Khaṭṭāb, “There will come to you a man from Yemen,” and he described him in detail.  He said, “His name is Uways from the tribe of Qarn.  When he comes to you, then ask him to make du'ā' for you.”  He is asking 'Umar to ask this man he has never seen to make du'ā' for him.  Why?  He was righteous to his mother.  'Umar b. Al-Khaṭṭāb, being who he is, is told to go to this man because he was righteous to his mother.  Some books of history mention a story – Allāh knows how authentic it is, but it is mentioned in our classical sources – that Uways al-Qarni was the only son, and his father had passed away.  He was taking care of his mother in a very dutiful manner.  He asks and begs permission to go to Madīnah and meet the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam).  His mother grudgingly allows him to go but says, “You know that I need you; therefore, I only give you a day or two in Madīnah.  As soon as you get there, meet the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) and come back.”  It is said that Uways traveled from Yemen all the way to Madīnah, and when he got there, lo and behold, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) was away on an expedition and wasn't in Madīnah.

Now he was stuck between two options.  The first was to wait a week or two and wait for the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) to return.  He has traveled from Yemen, which is already a month's journey.  If he did, he would be raised in status eternally from a tabi'i to a ṣaḥābah.  The second option was to listen to his mother.  What did he choose to do?  He chose to obey his mother and give up this voluntary status.  Being a ṣaḥābi is a privilege but it is not wājib.  Listening to your mother is wājib.  According to this riwāyah, Uways al-Qarni stayed a day or two, as much as his mother had allowed him, and then he rode his mount all the way back to Yemen.  He voluntarily and willingly gave up that status in order to please his mother.

It is no surprise, therefore, that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said what he said to 'Umar b. Al-Khaṭṭāb that “When Uways al-Qarni comes to you, ask him to make du'ā' to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) because this is a man who used to treat his mother with righteousness and birr.”  SubḥānAllāh, this shows us that if we really want our du'ā's to be accepted, then let us treat our parents with the dignity and respect that they deserve.  If we want Allāh to bless us and if we want the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) to know who we are – Uways al-Qarni and the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) never met, but Allāh's waḥy came down and Jibrīl told him who Uways al-Qarni was.  How magnificent of a status did this man have that Jibrīl comes down to inform our Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) about this beautiful human being whose only good that we know of was he was somebody who treated his mother with birr.  That is why the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) never ceased to remind us to take care of our parents with the utmost gentleness and kindness.

In one ḥadīth, he said, “The largest door to Jannah and the middle door to Jannah that any person has are that of his parents.”  His parents are the easiest way that a person can enter Jannah.  If you treat your parents with the love and respect that they deserve, the easiest way to enter Jannah will be through that door.

In yet another ḥadīth, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “The pleasure of Allāh is in the pleasure of the parents, and the anger of Allāh is in the anger of the parents.”  If your parents are happy with you, then even if you have other sins and other major problems, inshā'Allāh ta'āla this is a source of expiation and kaffārah for you.  Once a man came to Ibn 'Abbās and said, “O Ibn 'Abbās, I have done this and I have done that.  I have fornicated and I have drunk wine.”  He basically did every sin in the book.  “What can I do to make up for this?”  Ibn 'Abbās said, “Are your parents alive?”  He said, “My mother is alive.”  Ibn 'Abbās said, “Go and serve her because wallāhi, I know of no good deed that cleanses a man of all of his sins than servicing his parents.”

Another motif of the Sunnah, which is in at least four or five aḥadīth, we learn that even struggling in the way of Allāh and even participating in a legitimate jihād.  These days, the word “jihād” makes me a little scared.  We call it the “J-word” and are not supposed to say the word “jihād.”  The fact of the matter is, we need to overcome this trepidation and this hesitation, and we need to say very clearly that jihād is a concept of our religion and it is mentioned in the Qurʾān in hundreds of verses and in the ḥadīth dozens of times.  It is mentioned in a noble manner, and there is nothing wrong with the concept of jihād.  What is wrong is how certain Muslims have misunderstood it.  The concept of jihād remains a noble striving for the sake of Allāh.  Jihād means you strive for the sake of Allāh.  It does not mean you go and kill innocent people.  It doesn't mean you go and bomb civilians.  It doesn't mean you misinterpret your religion of Islam and do that which damages your own people more than it damages others.  The concept of jihād is a noble one.  We should not be ashamed and we should not be shy from using this word.

We need to reclaim the word with dignity and honor as we explain to others and non-Muslims the reality of this word.  What those people are doing is not jihād.  There are aspects of jihād and a concept of jihād that is a part of our tradition.

I want to talk about this motif that is mentioned in more than one ḥadīth which is helping your parents is better than doing a legitimate jihād.  This is really relevant, especially in our times when we are facing a little bit of a crisis of certain youngsters, undereducated and overzealous, who think that they will revive the glory of Islam by doing acts of ridiculousness, militancy and violence and they go overseas and participate in military expeditions in Somalia and Iraq and Afghanistan and bring about the days of Salahuddin Al-Ayubi.  For these youngsters amongst us who have been deluded by certain clerics and are being brainwashed, I say in all sincerity to them:  open up the Qurʾān and Sunnah and read some basic āyāt and aḥadīth.

A man comes to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) and says, “Ya Rasūlullāh, I have come here to go and fight for the sake of Allāh and do jihād for the sake of Allāh, so what do you advise me?  Where should I go?”  The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Is your mother alive?”  He said, “Yes.”  He said, “Go and stick with her because Jannah is under her feet.”  He wants to go for jihād, and this is a legitimate jihād – not the illegitimate type that we find in our times of killing innocent people and bombing airplanes and doing things of utter and sheer stupidity which is unIslamic and downright evil and foolish.

This man says, “I've come to do jihād.”  What does the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) say?  “Is your mother alive?  Go struggle in taking care of her and struggle in maintaining the ties of kinship and ties of loyalty that your mother deserves.”

In another tradition narrated in the Musnad of Imam Aḥmad, a man comes to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) and says, “O Messenger of Allāh, I have come from a far away land [in some versions he says Yemen], and I have immigrated to Madīnah in order to be with you and do jihād behind you, and I have even left my parents crying in order to be with you.”  This is the first time he is seeing the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam).  He is trying to boast to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) that he has done so much for the sake of jihād that he even left his mother and father crying.  The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Go back to them and make them laugh just like you made them cry.”  You want to do jihād?  What a joke!  You have left your parents angry at you, what kind of Muslim are you?  You want to go do jihād and your parents are crying?  You want the pleasure of Allāh by angering your parents?  You want to please Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) by displeasing your parents?  “Go back to them right now and make them laugh as you had made them cry.”

This is the real jihād, brothers and sisters.  This is what we need to tell our young, overzealous, undereducated youth.  Wallāhi it is easy to log onto a few chat forums and talk some grandiose, ultra-romanticized, utopic talks about how you are going to do this and that, but it is very difficult to listen to your mother and father.  It is very difficult to be a good son and daughter.  Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) tells us very clearly that is the real jihād.

What can we do with our parents?   In other words, what does Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) require from us?  To summarize very briefly, if one's parents are alive a number of things can be done.  First and foremost, financial rights and obligations.  No doubt, parents have financial rights over us.

Secondly, physically helping and serving them.  Taking care of their needs, giving them food and water, making food for them.  Instead of your mother going to the kitchen to get a glass of water, wallāhi this is your duty.  If you see your mother stand up to do something, you should stand up and do it for her.  The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said to the ṣaḥābi, “Go and stick to her feet…”  This is an Arabic expression and means to go and lower yourself to her and humble yourself to her.  You are literally and metaphorically a servant.  “Go and stick to her feet because Jannah is under her feet.”

Thirdly, respecting them, controlling your anger in front of them, and never showing your irritation.  Next time you feel irritated against your parents, remind yourself of the verse of Allāh:  “Don't say uff.”  Ask Allāh to help you in preventing to say that uff even if you feel it and even if you feel the anger and frustration, close it.  Withdraw and withhold that sentiment from being expressed.

Lastly, showing your love to them.  Going above and beyond the call of duty.  This is what Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) says:  “Lower unto them your wings of mercy.”

If your parents have passed away, one or both of them, then no doubt this is a great loss and a very traumatic experience.  Once it is narrated that the father of the famous companion al-Ḥarith al-Aqli passed away, and he was uncontrollably crying.  The ṣaḥābah around him consoled him and said, “Inshā'Allāh he is in Jannah and inshā'Allāh Allāh has forgiven him.”  He said to them, “Do you think that I am crying because he has passed on?  Wallāhi I am sad that he has passed on, but that is not why I am crying.  I am crying because my main door to Jannah has now been taken away from me.  This is how I wanted to get to Jannah.”

The father of another ṣaḥābi died and he said, “For one year after he died, every time I raised my hands I could not think of any du'ā' except for him.  All I could think of was to make du'ā' for him.”

After a parent dies and moves on to the next life, still a lot can be done.  First and foremost, as the ṣaḥābi said, seek forgiveness for them and ask Allāh to forgive them and raise their ranks for them.  Make du'ā' for them.  Secondly, make sure that their wishes, requests, and wills were fulfilled.  Make sure that anything they wanted done is executed on their behalf.  Thirdly, give ṣadaqah.  Give money and say, “O Allāh, reward my mother for this ten, twenty, thirty dollars.”  Give regularly – every week, every month.  Give something on their behalf and say, “O Allāh, give this reward to my mother and father.”  Sacrifice an animal, mentioning Allāh's Name and giving it to the poor and saying, “O Allāh, reward my mother for feeding the poor.”

Also, make Ḥajj and 'Umrah for them.  Making Ḥajj and 'Umrah is one of the greatest and most noble acts that you can do as a son or a daughter as long as you have done Ḥajj and 'Umrah.  When you put on ihram, “Labbayk on behalf of my mother” or “Labbayk on behalf of my father.”  Then, each and every penny, minute and toil and circumstance that you face, Allāh will reward your mother, and you will be rewarded as a righteous son for doing this for your mother.

Also, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said one of the ways we can show respect to the parents and to fulfill their rights after they have moved on is – and this is something hardly anybody does – meet the friends and relatives of our parents who we would not have met otherwise.  In other words, our parents have their circle of friends, and because they were alive, we would also go to those friends and distant relatives.  When they have moved on, we have no reason to communicate with them.  We have nothing much in common.  The only thing we have in common is our parents.  The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “A part of being a good son and a good daughter is that after your parents have moved on, go to those relatives and family members and acquaintances and friends for the sake of your parents.”

Some scholars have derived the wisdom behind this, and they say one of the wisdoms is that when you go to these people, and of course they will be of a different age and generation than you, you don't have much in common except one thing:  your mother, your father.  What will the topic of discussion be?  Your mother or your father.  What do you think will happen when this person reminds you of how they interacted and what your mother did?  How will you feel after that?  You will feel so much love and tenderness and want to go home and give ṣadaqah on her behalf and make du'ā' for her.  That love will be rejuvenated and revived.  Therefore, by visiting the friends and relatives of our deceased parents, the love of our parents is once again rekindled within us.  This is one of the wisdoms some of the scholars derived from this particular legacy of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam).

Let me conclude by quoting a very interesting and beautiful tradition that is reported from the famous companion Ibn 'Abbās (raḍyAllāhu 'anha).  It is narrated that once a man was doing ṭawāf around the Ka'bah and had his mother on his back.  He saw Ibn 'Abbās in the distance, so he came running over to him and said, “O Ibn 'Abbās, this elderly lady on my back is my mother.  She has been asking to come for Ḥajj for as long as I can remember.  She has always wanted to go for Ḥajj, and I could not afford to buy an animal to bring her, so this year I decided to carry her on my back and do Ḥajj with her on my back.  Have I now fulfilled the rights of a son to his mother?”  Ibn 'Abbās smiled and he said, “You have done good, but you have not even done a fraction of what you should.”  In other words: “Alḥamdulillāh, you are a good son, but don't come and tell me 'Have I fulfilled the rights of my mother?'”

The man said, “O Ibn 'Abbās, I have come from the city of so-and-so [me mentioned a far-away city] carrying my mother on my back, and you are telling me I haven't done even a fraction?”  Ibn 'Abbās said one thing, and wallāhi this shows their understanding of human psychology and human nature.  The ṣaḥābah are at a different level than us completely.  Ibn Abbās said, “You haven't done a fraction of what your mother did to you because when your mother took care of you and did everything that she did for you, her goal was to give you life.  She did it out of love and to see you flourish.  She did it genuinely for your own nourishment and flourishing.  Now when you are paying her back, you are doing it as a duty and burden.  You are doing it out of a sense of guilt and duty, and you are waiting for the day that she dies.  You are not wanting to see her flourish and live.  You are simply doing it as a dutiful son.  You don't have the same genuine, selfless love that your parents had for you when they did what they did.”

Simply one psychological statement:  your parents did for you everything to see you live and flourish.  When you become old and they are now the ones being taken care of, you are not doing it in the same philosophy.  You are doing it as a burden and to pay back.  How can you compare the two?  One is selfless love and the other a sense of gratitude and duty.  How can you possibly compare?

Brothers and sisters, parents are the best blessing that Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) has given us after īmān.  Parents are the largest door to Jannah and the easiest way to get to Jannah.  In the famous ḥadīth of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), and with this ḥadīth we will conclude, as he is climbing the steps of the minbar in front of hundreds of thousands of ṣaḥābah and each time he climbs, he says, “Amīn! Amīn! Amīn!”  Then he turns around and says, “I will explain to you why I said, 'Amīn.'  Jibrīl came to me and he told me three things.  Every time he told me one thing, he said, 'Say, “Amīn,”' so I said, 'Amīn.'  The last one that he said was, 'O Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), any person of your ummah who manages to catch a parent [in other words: whose parents live to old age] and they still are not capable of having their sins forgiven and entering Jannah [in other words, if Allāh blesses you with an elderly parent and you still cannot earn Allāh's Pleasure] then may that person perish.”

In other words, if you have elderly parents and you are not able to earn Allāh's Pleasure through them, you will not earn it through any other means.  “Say 'Amīn,' ya Rasūlullāh.”  So the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Amīn.”

Brothers and sisters, simple point.  Bottom line.  If your parents are alive, the only way to be a pleasing servant to Allāh and the only way to be a good Muslim is to have your parents love you.  If your parents are angry with you or if your parents are not happy with you and you are not trying to change that situation, it doesn't matter what you do in the Eyes of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla).  The parents have ultimate priority in this world.

May Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) allow us to be righteous servants.  May Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) allow us to be dutiful and loving sons and daughters.  May He give us the patience and the īmān and the tawfīq to take care of our parents the way that they deserve and the way that Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) has commanded from us.  May He allow us to live as Muslims, to die as Muslims, and to be resurrected as Muslims.

Chapter 2: Repentance

16. Abu Mūsa Al-Ash'ari (may Allāh be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said: “All, the Exalted, will continue to stretch out His Hand in the night so that the sinners of the day may repent, and continue to stretch His Hand in the daytime so that the sinners of the night may repent, until the sun rises from the west”. [Muslim].

17.  Abu Hurayrah  (raḍyAllāhu 'anhu) narrated: Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “He who repents before the sun rises from the west, Allāh will forgive him”. [Muslim].

18. 'Abdullāh bin 'Umar bin Al-Khattab  (raḍyAllāhu 'anhu) reported that: The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Allāh accepts a slave's repentance as long as the latter is not on his death bed (that is, before the soul of the dying person reaches the throat)”. [Al-Tirmidhi, who categorized it as ḥadīth Hasan].

Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen may Allāh have mercy on him says in his explanation of these aḥadīth:

These three aḥadīth which the author had mentioned, may Allāh have mercy on him, are all related to repentance.

As for the ḥadīth of Abu Mūsa, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said: “Allāh, the Exalted, will continue to stretch out His Hand in the night so that the sinners of the day may repent, and continue to stretch His Hand in the daytime so that the sinners of the night may repent, until the sun rises from the west”.

It is from the Generosity of Allāh, Glorified and Exalted, that He accepts (one's) repentance even if it is late.  So if the person commits a sin during the day, then Allāh ta'āla accepts his repentance even if he repents at night.  Similarly, if the person sins at night and then repents during the day then Allāh ta'āla accepts his repentance. In fact, He, Almighty, stretches His Hand to receive this repentance from His believing servant.

In this ḥadīth there is evidence that Allāh, subḥānahu wa ta'āla, loves repentance, and we have already mentioned in the previous ḥadīth -the story of the man who lost his camel and then found it- that Allāh is more happy with the repentance of His believing servant when he repents to Him than the man who had found his lost camel.

From the benefits of the ḥadīth of Abu Mūsa is the affirmation that Allāh ta'āla has a Hand.  Rather, He has two Hands, subḥānahu wa ta'āla, as He said:

“The Jews say: “Allāh's hand is tied up.” Be their hands tied up and be they accursed for the (blasphemy) they utter. Nay, both His Hands are widely outstretched.” [Sūrat'l-Mā'idah 5:64]. This Hand which Allāh has affirmed for Himself- rather, the two Hands- we are required believe in them, and the fact that they are affirmed for Allāh.
However, it is not permissible for us to imagine that they are like our hands, because Allāh says in His Book:

There is nothing whatever like unto Him, and He is the Hearer, the Seer [Al-Shu'arā' 42:11], Hence, everything you come across from the attributes of Allāh then affirm it for Allāh, subḥānahu wa ta'āla, without comparing it to the attributes of the creation, because there is nothing like Allāh, neither in relation to His essence nor to His attributes, subḥānahu wa ta'āla.
From the benefits of this ḥadīth: is that Allāh, subḥānahu wa ta'āla, accepts the repentance of the servant even if it is late. However, hastening to repent is obligatory, since a person does not know, for death may surprise him and he dies before repenting. So the obligation is to hasten (to repent), but even if it is delayed, Allāh will accept the repentance of His servant.

In this ḥadīth (of Abu Hurayrah) there is evidence that once the sun rises from the west, the (time for) acceptance of repentance is over. But, a questioner may ask, 'does the sun rise from the west? It is known that the sun rises from the east!'
To this we say: Yes, this (the sun rising from the East) is what is known, and this has been the case ever since Allāh created it until this day of ours.  However, towards the end of times Allāh will command the sun to go back from where it came so (its) cycle will be inverted and it will rise from the West, and when the people see it they will all believe, even the disbelievers (such as) the Jews, Christians, Buddhists, Communists, and others, they will all believe.  However, the one who did not believe before the sun rises from the West then his belief will not benefit him.
Everyone will repents as well, but the repentance of one who did not repent before the sun rises from the West will not be accepted, because this Sign will be witnessed by everyone, and once the Warning Signs arrive then neither repentance nor belief shall be of any benefit!

As for the ḥadīth of 'Abdullāh bin Umar: “Allāh accepts a slave's repentance as long as the latter is not on his death bed”, meaning: as long as the soul has not reached the throat. But if the soul has reached the throat then there is no repentance, as per His saying:

(And repentance is not for those who go on doing evil deeds, until when death comes to one of them, he says: Surely now I repent) [Sūrat'l-Nisā' 4:18].

So upon you, O my fellow Muslim, is to hasten to repent to Allāh 'azza wa jal from your sins, and to desist from what you have been entangled with from disobedience, and to perform what you have been neglecting from the obligations, and to ask Allāh to accept your repentance.

And Allāh is the source of success.

Lecture by Yasir Qadhi | Transcribed by Sameera

This lecture is brought to you by the Memphis Islamic Center (MIC). For more information about MIC, please visit www.memphisislamiccenter.org

[The following is the audio and transcript of Shaykh Yasir Qadhi's lecture "Parents - My Biggest Door to Jannah." The transcript includes slight modifications for the sake of readability and clarity.]

We just finished Sūrat'l-Isrā', and I thought it would really not be appropriate to let this sūrah go by without talking about some of its salient verses, in particular those that talk about the rights of Allāh and the rights of the parents. Allāh says in the very famous verse: “wa-qaḍa rabbuka alla ta'budu illa iyyāhu wa bi'l-wālidayn iḥsāna (Your Lord has decreed…).”  Allāh didn't say, “I am decreeing this upon you” or “this is the ruling upon you.”  Allāh is speaking as if this is a done deal and there is no dispute.

“It has been decreed before you came onto this earth.”

It is not a subject of dispute, and there are no negotiations here.

What has He decreed?  “Alla ta'budu illa iyyāhu wa bi'l-wālidayn iḥsāna (that you worship Him alone and that you show iḥsān to your parents)”. As we know in the Qur'ān and the Sunnah, the rights of parents are second only to the rights of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) and this is enough of an indication of how important and sacred the rights of the parents are.

There is no secondary right after the rights of Allāh other than towards the parents.  After Allāh, the parents immediately come.  This is the message throughout the Qur'ān.  Allāh 'azza wa jall even says, “wa bi'l-wālidayn.”  In other words, worship Allāh and be good to parents.  He didn't say 'and then be good.'  He said wow, which is ḥarf 'aṭf.  It is as if they are being equated even though we know that they are not equivalent.  Worshipping Allāh is more important than being good to parents, but Allāh made it so important that it is as if it is almost the same.

The very famous scholar of the Arabic language and on of the earliest linguists is Al-Raghib al-Asbahani (d. ~482A.H.).   Regarding the phrase 'wa bi'l-wālidayn iḥsāna' (that you should have iḥsān to your parents), he said the definition of iḥsān is that you give more than what is expected and you are content with getting less than what is required upon you.  The state of iḥsān is when you give more and are content with receiving less.  This is the highest verb in the Arabic language to show the proper treatment.

Allāh says 'imma yablughanna' (when either one or both of then reach kibar (old age) then do not say uff to them and do not rebuke them, rather speak generous / marvelous words to them).

A note on 'uff' here:  Uff in the Arabic language originally referred to the dirt that was collected under nails; it is an irritation and is disgusting.  It was then used to express the slightest level of contempt. Ibn ʿAbbās said that had there been a lesser word than uff that the Arabs knew, then Allāh would have used it here.  There is no word lesser than uff to show your irritation.  When do you say uff?  When you are frustrated and irritated – it is not an expression of anger but rather an indication of your own frustration.  Allāh says to not even say this to them.

Allāh then goes further than this.  “Do not rebuke them, and say to them the most generous (karīm) of words and lower over them the wings of mercy.”  This is a metaphorical language.  Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) is saying that just like the mother bird protects and shelters her infants with her wing from heat, cold, and enemies.  Notice that this is a parable with an implicit message.  Your parents did the same for you, and you should do the same for them.  It is the parents who lowered the wings of mercy on the infant, but in this verse, Allāh is saying to the children that they need to lower the wings of mercy on their parents.  There is reverse psychology here.  They did it for you, and now it is your turn to do it for them.  It is beautiful imagery here because, as we said, it is not the child who lowers the wing on the parents but the parent who does it to the child.  Allāh commands in this verse that the child do it to the parent – i.e. us to our parents.  Why?  To remind us that once upon a time it was the other way around.  Now it is your job to do that.

“And pray to Allāh: 'O Allāh have mercy on them, as they raised me when I was a child.'”

Concept of being good to parents is because of all that they have done for us

Most of us here are parents, and you know how much love a parent has for a child.  I have said this many times before that this love is a miracle from Allāh without which life on earth would cease to exist.  Muslim or non-Muslim, kāfir or mu'min, the love that comes from the heart of a parent is a miracle from Allāh.  This love is a type of love that is unparalleled in human existence.  No one loves you like your parents do – not your wife, not your husband, and not even your child.  The type of love that a parent has is a selfless love; they will give and give and give and expect nothing back in return.  If you think about, it is a miracle because look at how much time, effort, and frustration the kids bring, but still the parents continue to give and give.  If Allāh had not created this love in parents, then humanity would cease to exist because children do drive parents crazy.  Children are an incentive for us to go to work.  It is because of the children that we want to work overtime.

Allāh is saying:  “This love I created in your parents, and now you need to give it back to them.”  Allāh knows that the reverse love is not as pure as the love that came from top down.  The love we give back is not the same.  We all love our parents, but it is a love that you struggle with and remind yourself about.  You need to control your tongue.  Allāh has given us all of these incentives.

The Qur'ān and Sunnah are full of the rights of the parents

Our Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “The pleasure of Allāh is found in pleasing the parents, and the anger of Allāh is found in making the parents angry.” [Musnad of Imam Aḥmad].  The pleasure of Allāh is found in pleasing the parents and the anger of Allāh will be incurred in displeasing them.

In the famous ḥadīth, a man came to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) and said, “O Messenger of Allāh, how do I enter Jannah?”  The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Is your mother alive?”  The man said, “Yes, she is alive.”  The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Find her feet and stick yourself [izlimhā] to them; there you will find Jannah.”  This is an expression in Arabic meaning to 'humble yourself to her service.'  This is where we get the common phrase that Jannah is underneath the feet of the mother.  The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) didn't quite say that phrase but said a similar phrase of sticking yourself to her shin or her legs because Jannah will be around that area.  He gave this metaphor of lowering and humbling yourself to service your mother.

In a famous ḥadīth reported in Sunan Al-Nisā'i for this wording (it is also in Bukhāri):  A man came to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) and said, “Ya Rasūlullāh, I have come all the way from Yemen to dedicate myself to you.  I have come to dedicate my life to whatever you want, and I want to do jihād fi sabīlillāh.  I even left my parents who are old and weak even though they need me and are crying out of their need.”  In other words, he is boasting that he left his parents crying to come to him to show his sincerity.  The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Do you really want the pleasure of Allāh?”  The man said, “Yes.”  The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Go back to them right now!  Make them laugh just as you caused them to cry.  That is how you will reach Jannah.”

Notice that this man became a ṣaḥābi by coming to Madinah because he met the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam).  He was so happy that he will dedicate his life to the service of Islam, but he said he left his parents crying, so the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Is this your version of Islam?  Is this how you think you will enter Jannah?  By causing your parents to cry and coming to me?”  There is something more important than jihād fi sabīlillāh and that is giving the rights of the parents.  He said, “Go back to your parents and make them laugh just as you made them cry.”  This is the month of Ramadan, brothers and sisters, which is a month where we after the worship of Allāh, the second right that we need to do is remember the rights of the parents.

There is a very beautiful incident from the life of Ibn ʿAbbās (raḍyAllāhu 'anhu).  Ibn ʿAbbās was doing ṭawāf around the Ka'bah and there was a man doing ṭawāf carrying an elderly lady on his back.  When he recognized Ibn ʿAbbās, he came running to him and said, “O Ibn ʿAbbās, I have come from such-and-such a place (a faraway place in the area of Iraq) and this lady on my back is my mother.  She had the desire to come for Hajj for so many years, but we couldn't afford a camel or a horse, so I put her on my back and have come from that place in order to perform the Hajj.  Have I now fulfilled the rights of my mother on me?”  Ibn ʿAbbās smiled and said, “What you have done is good, but you haven't even fulfilled a fraction of what your mother did for you.”  The man said, “Ya Ibn ʿAbbās, I have come walking from that place with my mother on my back and you say that I haven't even done a fraction?”

Psychology that will make us shudder

Listen to what Ibn ʿAbbās said, showing he was a person who understands human nature.  He said, “You haven't done a fraction because when your mother took care of you, she did it out of genuine love wanting to see you flourish, grow, and live for a long time.  Now that you are doing it back, you are doing it as a burden and as a favor back to her waiting for her to die.  How can you compare the two?  How can you compare that attitude of love and compassion with your attitude of 'I will pay you back'?  You have done good, but you haven't done a fraction of what she did for you.”

This is the reality of the rights of our parents, brothers and sisters.

In a final ḥadīth:  A man came to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) and said, “O Messenger of Allāh, my father has died, is there anything I can do to bring him benefit?”  If your parents are alive, you need to do as much as you can physically and financially, be in touch with them, call them, have good relations with them, and visit them as frequently as possible.  If one or both of them have gone on, the rights of the parents don't end even after they have left this earth.  The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Of course, there is so much you can do.  You can make du'ā' and istighfār for them and seek forgiveness for them – O Allāh, make their qabr a vast place, O Allāh increase their ranks in Jannah and O Allāh forgive their sins, O Allāh put away any evil they have done' – and you can give ṣadaqah on their behalf and you can give udhiyah on their behalf and you can go for Hajj on behalf of your parents (this is one of the best things you can do for them as long as you have done Hajj for yourself), and you can do 'umrah on behalf of them.  Visit the relatives and friends your parents had who you do not have much relationship with but you resurrect those relationships and friendships in order to bring about the memory of your parents.”  One of the things we can do is if your parents had distant relatives or friends who are not a part of your circle of friends, visit them for the sake of birr of your parents.

The bottom line, brothers and sisters, is that there is a never ending job, we have to repay back to our parents.  Never ending ṣadaqah, never ending du'ā', never ending istighfār.  This is part and parcel of being a righteous Muslim.  In this month of Ramadan, let us see what our relationship is with our parents and what we can do to increase and better that relationship if they are alive.  If they have left this world, then there is much that we can do for the akhirah.

One last incident comes to mind.  A ṣaḥābi's father passed away and he was crying very much at the funeral.  One of the other ṣaḥābah came and comforted him and tried to console him and said, “O so-and-so, I am not crying just because my father died.  I know inshā'Allāh he is in a better place now than he was in this world.  I am crying because my biggest door to Jannah has now been shut.”  Think about this, brothers and sisters, for those of you whose parents are alive that this is your easiest door to Jannah.  This is the largest and middle door to Jannah.  Think about this, and do whatever you can to help your parents to have that good relationship with them.  The du'ā' for the parents is the best thing that you can ask for in this world.

May Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) make us righteous children and righteous progeny.  May Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) forgive our parents.  May Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) cause us to be resurrected with our parents and be with our parents in Jannat Al-Firdaws Al-'Ala.

Shaykh Yaser Birjas urges us to make the best of these 10 Blessed Days in his Friday Khutbah at the Irving Masjid.

At the Maqam e Ibrāhīm:

I held on to the golden bars trying to keep my balance, with my nose pressed against the blurry glass screen smeared with many a finger mark. I bolstered up my wits and finally decided to look: footprints in the sands of time, etched into the sacred earth forever by Divine Decree- blessed, immortalized. Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām) had stood up and stood out. His standing was an act of worship and intense adoration, an act of courage, resistance, strength, integrity, dignity and true heroism. He laid the foundations of this modest little structure that stands in the heart of Makkah like an immense magnet drawing to itself millions who strive to stand in its shade. In its humble construction, shorn of all grandeur and ostentation, it inspires an inexplicable awe and reverence; giving direction and focus, unifying, holding together, reminding. Ibrāhīm's was a labor of love. The builders had prayed, “Our Lord! Accept this from us! Indeed You are the Hearing, the Knowing. Our Lord! Make us Muslims [in submission] to You and from our descendants a Muslim nation [in submission] to You.” (2:128)

Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām) had questioned, wondered, reflected. He had thirsted for the Truth and sought the Light that rends all shrouding darkness. He had refused ordinariness, refused to follow the crowd- stood up and stood out, facing the winds alone. He had Loved-truly, settling for nothing lesser than the perfection, wholeness, sublimity of Al-Ḥaqq (The Truth). In the darkness of the night he beheld the shining star, and in his very human search for the Object of the deepest Love the human heart is capable of, he said, “'This is my Lord.' But when it set, he said, 'I do not love those who fade away.'”(6:77) He had loved passionately through hardship, suffering and trial, and attained the Pleasure of Allāh, so that the place of his standing- this stone I beheld through the blurry screen- became sacred, hallowed ground; the endeavor of his hands and limbs became a ritual of worship observed by billions here forevermore.

Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām) had stood alone to confront and expose falsehood that his innate fiṭrah had rejected, all the while 'seeking the Face of His Lord.' He was sensitive and honest to the Divine Essence breathed into the heart of man, which testifies to Monotheism. Today, as I look around at this immense unending crowd vying to stand where he stood, seeking to be honored by walking the path he walked, I am educated in the meaning of leadership.

While on the theme of leadership, there cannot be a legacy more venerable, more awe-inspiring, powerful and enduring. Some wise old man said something to the effect that when you stand up for the truth against the odds, the whole universe conspires in your favor, because that truth you strive to establish is written in the heart of the earth; it is destiny.

The man whose footprint I beheld is acknowledged as the spiritual progenitor in all monotheistic traditions. Islam claims a direct link with Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām) not through race or geography but primarily on account of theology, as its simple Monotheism  of 'La ilaha ilallah' (no god but Allāh) is the 'Way of your father Abraham' (22:78).

Catching a Glimpse of Jabal Nūr in the distance…

Years passed and the heart and mind of man was clouded again by ignorance while Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām)'s legacy existed only as dusty remnants and soulless rituals. From the shadows of jāhiliyyah (Ignorance) emerged again a soul restive in search of the Whole Truth, refusing these untruths and half truths, attentive to the inner voice that had impelled Ibrāhīm's struggle. It was convinced that the Truth lay waiting to be discovered. Not far from the Ka'bah stands Jabal Nūr, the Mountain of Light… Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) ascended its steep, stony incline to isolate himself from a society that had lost its discrimination of right and wrong, in order to contemplate the truth, seek out answers and pray to the One God of Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām). Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), the devoted follower of Ibrāhīm's ('alayhi'l-salām) honest creed was chosen to lead, and Jabal Nūr irradiated the world with God's final revelation.

From Makkah to Madīnah

I am on the way from Makkah- the native city of Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam)- to Madīnah where he had sought refuge. While reclining on the cushioned seat of an air-conditioned bus, I gaze outside to see rugged mountains and a forbidding, hostile landscape- barren and treeless, with the desert sun mercilessly streaming down red hot. Roughly 1431 years ago, Muhammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) and his followers had made the same journey in conditions as different from my journey today as possible- on foot, with and sometimes without bare essentials of life; ragged, penniless, shelter-less, fearing for their lives yet led on by one conviction- their hope and trust in the Lord of the Heavens and the Earth, the Owner of Destiny.

We often want 'proof' to vindicate faith: What can possibly account for this madness to leave hearth and home and traverse the hostile land in fear, hunger, pain and hardship seeking the Unseen? What can explain this passion, extraordinary resolve, grand sacrifice, courage, hope and belief that the Truth is destined to triumph? What can explain this limitless capacity to go on enduring trial and hardship not yielding an inch? What can explain giving up all seeking an ideal, an unseen God? Faith answers where reason fails.

In his work 'Khutbaat Haram', Abul 'Ala Maududi records when the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) sat against the wall of the Ka'bah in the early days of Islam when his few followers were being oppressed and tortured in vile ways. Khabab bin Al Aratt (raḍyAllāhu 'anhu), who had suffered severe persecution for his faith, approached the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) in pain and desperation, asking him to beg Allāh for relief. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) replied, “This task will be fulfilled, O Khubaib, till a time comes when the traveler shall go from Sana'a to Hadrmout without fear or worry (meaning, peace will be established in the land through Islam). But it is you who turn impatient.” This hope in the darkest of times sprang from faith and trust in Allāh, and mankind witnessed its fulfilment.

Standing up to pray in the shade of the green dome of the Prophet's (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) mosque in Madīnah, I was reminded of that early surah revealed to the Prophet  at one of the lowest points in his life when he had been rejected and ridiculed:  “By the forenoon (after sun-rise); And by the night when it is still (or darkens); Your Lord (O Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) has neither forsaken you nor hated you. And indeed the Hereafter is better for you than the present (life of this world). And verily, your Lord will give you (all i.e. good) so that you shall be well-pleased. Did He not find you (O Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) an orphan and gave you a refuge? And He found you unaware and guided you? And He found you poor, and made you rich (self sufficient with self contentment, etc.)? Therefore, treat not the orphan with oppression, And repulse not the beggar; And proclaim the Grace of your Lord (i.e. the Prophethood and all other Graces).” (Chapter 93)

“And whose word could be truer than Allāh's?” (4:82)

Circumambulating the Ka'bah

This day I stand, a speck among these millions all moving on as wavelets of a shore-less ocean around the Center, their whispered prayers merging into a chorus: “Glory be to You! All Praise and Thanks are to You! There is no god except Allāh; Allāh is great! There is no power or might except with Allāh.” They all move forward yet are bound to the core, all seeking One Goal, One Direction. The ocean never recedes, never dwindles; from the far corners of the earth they come to witness this extraordinary legacy, to live this miracle, to stand where Ibrāhīm had stood, walk where Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) had walked-and be inheritors and sharers in the great legacy preserved, revived, immortalized by the Lord of the Ka'bah: “Hence, [O Muḥammad,] proclaim thou unto all people the pilgrimage: they will come unto thee on foot and on every [kind of] fast mount, coming from every far-away point [on earth]…” (22:27)

As I merge into the endless moving circle, I am enveloped by a sense of peace that reaches the innermost recesses of my being. For an instant all pain and fear drowns into the power and magic of the moment, and a swoon of blissful oblivion envelops me-all is here and now. I rise, I float, I fly-like those midget-birds that forever circle the azure skies around the Ka'bah, daylong, nightlong- a labor of Love.

There are also moments of intense self-awareness when you are struck by the realization of how unworthy you are of the honor to be here, how undeserving to set foot on this sacred earth. Witnessing the manifestations of His Glory, you become conscious of the darkness in your heart and soul, you feel a crushing shame that suffocates you… but like the winds bearing good news of the torrent, Hope in His Mercy comes to liberate. For, the Mercy of the One who brought you here is greater, so all encompassing. The feeling is reassuring as you rise above regret and shame onto the wings of hope and bask in the comfort of the knowledge that His mercy and forgiveness supersedes His wrath. “If it were not for Allāh's grace and mercy on you and that Allāh is Oft-Returning Full of Wisdom (ye would be ruined indeed).”(24:10)

The Victory:

I look at this gigantic mass of people of all shades and colors, these followers all sweat drenched, tear stained, barefoot, and I know this is the 'Clear Victory.'(48:1) I know this is the 'Fount of Abundance': “To you (O Muḥammad!) have We granted the Fount of Abundance. So pray to your Lord, and sacrifice. Surely, he who bears rancor against you shall be severed (from all future hope).” (Chapter 108)

And again:

“Have We not opened your breast for you (O Muḥammad ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam)? And removed from you your burden which weighed down your back? And raised high your fame? So verily, with the hardship, there is relief. Verily, with the hardship, there is relief. So when you have finished (from your occupation), then stand up for Allāh's worship (i.e. stand up for prayer). And to your Lord (Alone) turn (all your intentions and hopes and) your invocations.” (Chapter 94)

On Leadership

Ibrāhīm and Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) followed their inner voice and the Command of the Lord they recognized humbly and resolutely. They lead in their following, and present the highest level of leadership humanly possible- a leadership of a holistic nature rooted in the heart and soul, springing from it and seeking to purify and satiate it; enunciating a veritable Way of Life followed today by billions as a matter of faith shaping individual lives, societies, economies and politics. Michael H. Hart, choosing Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) to top his list of 100 greatest people in human history wrote: “My choice of Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) to lead the best of the world's most influential persons may surprise some readers and may be questioned by others, but he was the only man in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels. Of humble origins, Muḥammad founded and promulgated one of the world's great religions, and became an immensely effective political leader.  Today thirteen centuries after his death, his influence is still powerful and pervasive. The majority of the persons in this book had the advantage of being born and raised in centers of civilization, highly cultured or politically pivotal nations. Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), however, was born in the year 570, in the city of Mecca, in southern Arabia, at that time a backwards area of the world, far from the centers of trade, art and learning.  Orphaned at the age of six, he was reared in modest surroundings.  Islamic tradition tells us that he was illiterate… When Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) died in 632, he was the effective ruler of all of Arabia… The rapid spread of Islam continued after the demise of Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam)… By 711, North Africa, to the Atlantic Ocean, then the Visigoth Kingdom of Spain . . . stretching from the boarders of India to the Atlantic Ocean, Islam was the largest empire that the world had yet seen”.

The Farewell

I walk away from the Ka'bah turning to look back at the silent, circling sea I have been a droplet of, moving gently, eternally in the shade of this small landmark that wears an unexplainable, immeasurable awe, majesty and power. It still draws to itself to elevate, honor and bless. I am overwhelmed with thanksgiving and with an already rising nostalgia I will have to live with: “The lovers of Your faith shall never dwindle, even while I- fleeting creature of an hour receding into the dust, am no more among those forever treading the Path of Love.”

Lecture by Yasir Qadhi

This lecture is brought to you by the Memphis Islamic Center (MIC). For more information about MIC, please visit www.memphisislamiccenter.org

Last week we talked about ways to increase our khushūʿ in ṣalāh; and I wanted to talk more about this inshā'Allāh today and even in the future as well, because we are praying, alḥamdulillāh, so many rakʿāt every single day and there is a danger of it becoming monotonous or routine, where we do not get the actual khushūʿ of ṣalāh. And among the things that many of us do not actually think too deeply about, even though we should, is the postures of ṣalāh itself: how we are standing, each posture – the significance of each act of ṣalāh. And many of our Scholars – including Imām al-Ghazālī in his Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm'l-Dīn and Ibn al-Qayyim and Ibn Qudāmah and others – have pointed out that each of these postures brings with it a sense of spirituality. Each of these manners of standing and rukūʿ and sujūd, there should come with it an automatic feeling – and this is human nature that when we act in a certain way, or dress in a certain way, or stand in a certain way – [then] automatically it brings about a psychological and a spiritual inner reality.

So, for example, in the army when you are expected to stand straight, with your head erect and everything [at attention] it brings about discipline, of course for us in our Sharīʿah it is not allowed, but for other sharīʿahs and other cultures when the king enters you are supposed to stand up and be with no motion at all, there comes with this an awe or reverence. In this country when the judge enters the [court]room everybody is told 'all-rise' and automatically there is a sense of awe that comes out. So all of this, the inner and the outer, are related together and, therefore, even in the postures of ṣalāh there is so much for us to learn.

Again time is limited, however, we will talk a little bit about each particular posture. First and foremost, even before the ṣalāh the fact that we purify ourselves and we are expected to dress in good clothes, Allāh says in the Qur'ān: “Yā ayyuha alladhīna āmanū khudhū zīnatakum ʿinda kulli masjid (Wear your best garment to every masjid).” This is in contrast to many of us who come [to the mosque] in garments in which we play basketball or in pajamas. This is not appropriate – we are supposed to dress up for the masjid and Allāh says, “Take your best clothes to the masjid; dress up when you go to the masjid.”

Also, we prepare ourselves physically by purifying ourselves. SubḥānAllāh when we have a famous or important interview, and we have to go on for example on television for an interview, what do we do? We take a shower, we scrub ourselves, we iron our clothes and we dress our best and we put on our perfume; doesn't Allāh have more of a right that we get ready for Him? And also, when we get ready that way what happens [is that] psychologically we get pumped up. Imagine in the interview, you are wearing your best suit, you have your best tie on, your best shoes, this automatically brings about a sense of excitement, that you are doing something big, so Allāh is saying that we are supposed to do the same for our ṣalāh: we are supposed to purify ourselves, wash ourselves with wuḍūʾ and put on our best garments.

There are so many stories we could mention. One of the descendants of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), the great grandson of the Prophet – the son of al-Ḥusayn – every time he would stand up and do wuḍūʾ for the ṣalāh he would become white and he would shiver and tremble, so his students said, “What is your problem? Every time you do wuḍūʾ you begin to tremble and your face becomes white!” and he said, “Should I not become anxious and tremble when I am going to stand in the presence of Allāh subḥānahu wa taʿāla?,” so when he does wuḍūʾ he begins to get nervous. Just like when we go to an interview, we wake up, we wear our best garments and we start feeling the adrenaline rush – this is the case of those tābiʿūn and ṣaḥābah when they stood in front of Allāh.

Then, when we stand up in front of Allāh we begin the ṣalāh in the posture of standing because this is the posture which has the utmost adab and that is why even in this country when the judge comes in [and] all rise [is said] we stand up for the judge, of course in our Sharīʿah this is only for Allāh, though it is forgiven when we do it in this land because it is a ḍarūrah / necessity, otherwise [regarding] the actual ruling of standing up Allāh says, “Wa-qūmū li'llāhi qānitīn (and stand up for Allāh in subservience),” and that is why when the ṣaḥābah stood up for the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) when he entered the room, he told them not to do this and  he said to them that it is not a part of our Sharīʿah and we only stand for Allāh alone. Then we stand up in rows, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Don't you want to stand up in ranks as the angels line [themselves] in ranks?” and to this day the militaries and armies lineup [form ranks] in this way, showing that they have discipline, that they are part of larger whole, each soldier is but one, but they are together many people. And all are the same in the eyes of Allāh, all of you are the same when you are standing outwardly, not one of you just because of your dress, your ethnicity or your heritage has any priority, no, inna akramakum ʿinda Allāhi atqākum — only taqwā separates you.

And then we stand up in front of Allāh and we move our hands like this [up towards our shoulders] and many of the scholars have commented [on this] that it is as if we are throwing the world behind you and you are entering a private audience with Allāh, you are throwing the world behind you and everything is forgotten. And then this is followed by another takbīr of Allāhu akbar, which means, there is nothing which is greater in my heart than Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla), there is nothing that deserves more worship, more humility, more worship than Allāh. So when you say the takbīr and your mind goes towards your business then you are showing that your business has more haybah, more rights over you, than Allāh. When you say “Allāhu akbar” and start thinking of your family problems, or tomorrow's work then you are saying the takbīr but you are not meaning it, because if you really meant the takbīr then you wouldn't think about anything other than Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla).

You are now standing in a private audience in front of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) and that is why in a ḥadīth this is called munājāt. This is a private conversation and that is why when you say Allāhu akbar, you enter a state which is called (tahrīm) 'sacred state', you are prohibited from doing many things after [during] ṣalāh, such as eating drinking, speaking – you cannot speak in the ṣalāh. Why? Because it is a private audience with Him [Allāh], you have no right to speak to anyone else, and if you do speak with somebody else then your ṣalāh goes null and void, isn't that correct? Yes, right? Why? Because when you say the takbīr, then you begin a private audience with Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) and are standing in front of Allāh. That is why the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said that when you stand up for ṣalāh then you are 'munāji rabbahu' (in a private conversation with your Lord), so everything else including eating, drinking and speaking, and doing anything like this becomes ḥarām because now you are standing in front of Allāh.

And then you begin as you should begin every gathering by praising Allāh 'subḥānaka Allāhumma wa bi ḥamdik wa-tabāraka ismuk wa-taʿāla jadduk wa-lā ilāha ghayruk' and then we recite Sūrat'l-Fātiḥah and we have given tafsīr of this already, and then we show our servitude to Allāh by bowing down and this rukūʿ is done once again by saying Allāhu akbar, the whole ṣalāh has Allāhu akbar in it to remind you that the purpose is that Allāh is deserving of the greatest attention and servitude in your heart; nothing should compete with Him as Allāh is the greatest. Throughout the ṣalāh from the beginning to the end, every time we move up and down we say Allāhu akbar so that we purify our hearts and minds to the next rukn and then we go down and we bow down in front of Allāh to show our servitude to Him, and our humility and to show this we physically bow down and this is something that even we have remnants of this custom in many cultures and you know this culture, in the western world, when they would meet a dignitary or even when a man would see a lady what would he do? He would bow his head down to greet, to show honor and respect, in our Sharīʿah this is only allowed with Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla). However, to lower your head is a sign of respect, to lower your head is a sign that the being you are lowering your head to is worthy of your servitude, of your ʿibādah.

So Allāh tells us that we do rukūʿ and that rukūʿ is so important that every unit of prayer is called a 'rakʿah' because of the rakʿah, every unit of prayer is called the rakʿah because the rakʿah [rukūʿ] is one of the most important pillars and it is called after it, and that is why if you catch the rukūʿ then you have caught the rakʿah, as this is really where the essence of servitude lies and in this posture of rukūʿ – of course Allāh has praised the action of rukūʿ in the Qur'ān several times. Allāh commands our Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) that “wa irkaʿū maʿa al-rākiʿīn (and bow down [before Allāh] with those who are bowing down),” and Allāh commanded Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām) to “purify My house.” For whom? For li al-ṭāʾifīn wa al-ʿākifīna wa al-rukkaʿi al-sujūd (I want you to purify My house and the only people in My house should be those doing ṭawāf and those doing worship and those doing rukūʿ and those doing sujūd. It is that important, that the Kaʿbah has to be purified and the only people around the Kaʿbah should be one of those four people: the ṭāʾifīn those doing ṭawāf, ʿākifīn those who are there for worship in dhikr and Qur'ān and those in rukūʿ and sujūd.

And when we go down in sujūd, we say subḥāna rabbī al-ʿaẓīm – we have already mentioned what subḥāna rabbī and subḥānAllāh mean, and when we go down we say Allāh is 'al-ʿaẓīm' (the Great and the Majestic) and in this rukūʿ, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said that when you are in rukūʿ and sujūd then do not recite the Qur'ān, because the Qur'ān is too noble to be recited in rukūʿ and sujūd. The Qur'ān is the kalām of Allāh. It is the speech of Allāh and when we humble ourselves in front of Allāh then we do not do tilāwah; we do adhkār, we do tasbīḥ, we do taḥmīd, we do takbīr, we say praises to Allāh but we do not recite the Qur'ān in rukūʿ and sujūd.

And then we take a pause before we go to the main gist of the rakʿah, which is the sajdah. How do we take the pause? We stand up, and this is the only time we change 'Allāhu akbar' to something else, and in its stead we say 'samiʿ Allāhu li-man ḥamidah'. Why? We are setting the stage for the sajdah, we are getting ready, and psychologically for the big event of every rakʿah that is the sajdah. So we take a pause. Why? Because we want to build up that excitement to do the sajdah, and we do this any time, anytime there is a main event – and astaghfirullāh, I am not comparing but even the most mundane of items such as going to a fancy dinner. They begin with the smaller things until the main dish comes. Why is this? We whet our appetites, making it ready for the big event, and then the big event comes.

Likewise, if there is a main speaker coming then first there will be an introduction, a note of thanks and then the main speaker will come. The main speaker does not come on as soon as the event begins, isn't that the case? We need to become psychologically prepared and we work our way up and the ṣalāh is no different. We are working our way up to the main aspect of the ṣalāh itself, and that is the sajdah, and we do this by taking a pause from the rukūʿ, and we get back up and psychologically prepare ourselves by saying, “Allāh hears those who praise Him.” We are about to praise Him and we need to remind ourselves that Allāh hears those who praise Him and when we say this even before the sajdah, we implement what we are saying and immediately we say “rabbanā wa laka al-ḥamd.” We follow exactly what we just said, saying, “O Allāh to You belongs all praise.”

Once the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), in one of the first prayers he led in Madinah when he said “samiʿ Allāhu li-man ḥamidah” and he went up, one of the ṣaḥābah heard this phrase and from his fiṭrah, without being taught this, said, “rabbanā wa laka al-ḥamdu ḥamdan kathīran, ṭayyiban, mubārakan fīhi (O Allāh you have every 'ḥamd', multiple ḥamd, lots of ḥamd (kathīra), pure ḥamd (ṭayyiba), blessed ḥamd (mubāraka))”. So he came and he just said it and he said it in a beautiful way:  rabbanā wa laka al-ḥamdu, ḥamdan kathīran, ṭayyiban, mubārakan fīh. When the ṣalāh finished, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Who amongst you said that phrase?” The ṣaḥābī raised his hands and said, “Ya Rasūlullāh, it was me. I only wanted good.” He got scared [and thought] what did I do wrong; I only wanted to do good. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Wallāhi I saw thirty angels racing to take your phrase and reach Allāh the first – who is going to reach Allāh first with the phrase that you have just said?”

This shows us that samiʿ Allāhu li-man ḥamidah Allāh is hearing those who praise Him. And the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) added: rabbanā wa laka al-ḥamdu, ḥamdan kathīran, ṭayyiban, mubārakan fīh milʾ al-samāwāti wa milʾa al-arḍi wa milʾa mā baynahumā wa milʾa mā shiʾta min shayʾin min baʿd, ahl al-thanāʾ wa al-majd, aḥaqqu mā qālahu al-ʿabdu wa-kullunā laka al-ʿabd – and there are so many other phrases, and this is another point as well, perhaps another talk I'll give, we should memorize the different things the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) would say to have a little bit of variety.

And then when we have praised Allāh and have given Him ḥamd, then we fall down and we do the single greatest act of worship humanly possible and that is we lower the most noble part of our bodies, the most protected part of our bodies, and the most precious part of our bodies, we lower it to where we put our feet, to where we walk. Why? Because we show Allāh (subḥānahu wa taʿāla) that:  O Allāh, You are worthy of this servitude, and for You and only for You, I will take my head and I will put it in the sand and in the dust in order to praise You and show glory to You.

And our Prophet Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said 'the closest that servant will ever be to his Lord is when he is in sajdah (aqrabu mā yakūn al-ʿabdu ilā rabbihi wa huwa sājid). There is no posture that you will be closer to Allāh in than sajdah, there is no posture that you will come closer to Allāh by than the posture of sajdah. So that is why the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “When you are in sajdah, increase your duʿā's, increase your pleas from your heart.” Here is where Allāh will respond to you. When we fall down in sajdah and we lower our heads, we say “O Allāh, You are the highest.” We lower our head and we say subḥāna rabbi al-aʿla – we are low, You are al-Aʿla (the Highest the most Exalted). As we lower our head, this is the ultimate sign of humility, khushūʿ and taʿabbud.

And subḥānAllāh many of us, we feel a sense of disdain and we do not want to do sajdah on something that might be dusty or sandy. If we are going to pray then we look for a sheet or something to pray on. Technically there is nothing wrong with that and it is permissible, so we have sajjādahs and things to pray on. Let me tell you one thing though: our Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) was too eager to get into sajdah that [he would not] worry over what he would do the sajdah on. And there is ḥadīth in Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī from Anas b. Mālik that on the 23^rd of Ramaḍān, it rained so much that the roof of the masjid collapsed and the rain was pouring in and the whole masjid floor became muddy with the water and mud. They did not have carpet obviously; it was sand and gravel.

Now can you imagine – imagine us when we pray on dry sand or the grass, how do we feel? Imagine if we were to pray outside where the shoes are put, how do we feel? There is nothing wrong with praying on a sajjādah – I am not saying that. Our Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) was thinking of other things, he didn't care where the head goes. Anas he was looking at what is going to happen: is he going to do sajdah in this mud? He said, “Wallāhi I saw athar al-ṭīn [traces of mud] on the nose and forehead of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) as he went into that mud and came back out.” He was in a different world, and he wanted to show Allāh servitude and humility, that O Allāh this is where we originate from. “Wa minhā khalaqnākum (I created you from this),” so now I am turning to this, I am lowering myself in the sand to show You O Allāh my humility and servitude.

Our Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Never does a servant of Allāh fall down in sajdah except that Allāh forgives one sin and exalts him one level.” Every sajdah forgives you one khaṭīʾah and one darajah in Jannah is raised and the famous ḥadīth of Rabīʿah (the servant of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam)) when he had been serving the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) for many years, one time the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “O Rabīʿah, what can I give you? Ask.” He was expecting a request for money, a house, something along this after all these years of service the Prophet asked him what he could give him. Rabīʿah thought for a while, and he thought and thought, and he said, 'O Messenger of Allāh, I have but one request: innī urīdu murāfatuqa fi'l-jannah (I want to be your rafīq (your companion) in Jannah just like I am your companion in this world).” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said to him, “Help me to help you [get to that level] by increasing in your sajdahs' (fa-ʿaʾinnī ʿalā nafsik bi kathrati al-sujūd).” How can one get to the highest level of Jannah?  Allāh will do this; Allāh will give it to you but you to do something, and what is that? It is more sajdahs.

And my dear brothers and sisters, let me be very frank here, if you do not taste the sweetness of the worship of Allāh in the sajdah then there is no other place where you will taste it. If you are deprived of tasting the ḥalāwah of ʿibādah (the sweetness of worship) in this state of sajdah, then really there is no other state in which you will feel this sweetness and, therefore, when you go down in sajdah, you should lower not just your face but your body and your heart – lower them and humble them in front of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) and realize [in this] that you are doing exactly what you have been created for and that is to worship Allāh.

You cannot do anything that is more precious than lowering yourself to Allāh and as you lower your head increase your adhkār, increase your duʿā's as that is when your duʿā's will be responded to. Open up your heart and start pleading to Allāh, begging with Allāh, and beg Allāh for the khayr of this world and the khayr of the next. So much so, that our scholars said – and this is a fiqh point here – that you are not supposed to recite the Qur'ān in sajdah of course, however were you take a phrase of the Qur'ān which is a duʿā' and were to say it as a duʿā' and not as tilāwah then it is allowed. So if you say in sajdah “rabbanā ātina fi al-duniya ḥasana wa fi al-ākhirati ḥasana [(Our Lord grant us good in this world and grant us in the hereafter good)],” then this is allowed, however, if you were to recite the whole verse then this is not allowed. If you were to say “rabbi zidnī ʿilma [(My Lord increase me in knowledge)],” this is allowed, but you do not recite the whole verse, because you are not doing tilāwah, rather you are making duʿā' and duʿā' is allowed with the phrases of the Qur'ān.

Now, the posture of sajdah is so important that every rakʿah has two of it, and it has two of nothing else – it has two of nothing else. Every rakʿah has two sajdahs. And in order to give you that pause, once again you sit up again, you take a break – we are human beings, we get tired – let the blood flow to the brain, take a few breaths and praise Allāh, say like the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), what would he say between the sajdahs? Rabbighfirlī, rabbighfirlī [(My Lord forgive me, My Lord forgive me)], say it and take a pause and ask Allāh for forgiveness and get the inner strength to do the second sajdah and then go down in the second sajdah, and once again when you are down praise Allāh saying 'Allāh is the Highest [and the Most Exalted, and I am the one humbled in front of Him]' and once again open your heart to Him and beg and plead to Him (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) and you go on and on.

And that is why my dear brothers and sisters, as Imam Ḥasan al-Baṣrī (raḥimahullāh), the famous scholars of the past, the greatest scholar of the tābiʿūn said, “There are three places [wherein] you will find ḥalāwat al-īmān (the sweetness of īmān) and if you do not find the sweetness of īmān in these three places, then the door to īmān has been shut [for you], you are not going to find it anywhere else.” What are these three things? He said: (i) al-ṣalāh, (ii) dhikr of Allāh and (iii) qirāʾat al-Qur'ān. Three things he said were the doors to taste the sweetness of īmān [by], if you are not going to find ḥalāwat al-īmān in these three things he said abwāb ghulliqat (the doors have been closed [for you]), i.e. you have no hope besides these three.

Therefore as we stand up for so many rakʿāt and we go on and on do not let these rakʿāt become monotonous routines. No – every rakʿāt, wallāhi, is a door to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla), it is an opening up, a private conversation [with Him] and the more rakʿāt we have, then the higher we will go in this world and the next.

May Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) make us among those whose ṣalāh is accepted. may Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) make us among those who are continuous in their ṣalāh – alladhina hum ʿalā ṣalāhihim dāʾimūn. May Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) make us among those who have khushūʾ in their ṣalāh (qad aflaḥa al-muʾminūn, alladhīna hum fī ṣalāhihim khāshiʾūn). May Allāh make us among those whose ṣalāh are accepted totally, one hundred percent; as our Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, some of you only nine tenths of their ṣalāh will be accepted, others eight tenths and others all the way going down to one tenth, because they were not paying attention. May Allāh make us among those [who get reward for the] full ten out of ten, one hundred percent. May Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) bless us in this world and the next wa jazākum Allāhu khayran.

Many think that living the luxury life in this world would compensate [for] how they die, [but] this is not true.  Thinking that after death comes nothing is absolute ignorance. Life in this dunya as we know is present with evil and good; there is no purpose of both if there is no hereafter. We will follow this āyah closely:

“Those who seek (merely) the worldly life and its beauty, We will fully recompense them herein for their acts, and their right will not be curtailed in this world. Those are the people for whom there is nothing in the Hereafter except fire. Nullified will be whatever they worked herein, and void will be what they have been doing.” [Hūd: 15-16]

What we learn from the verses is that those who base their actions and deeds only seeking, aiming and acquiring the dunya are disbelievers in Allāh and His blessings. They do not have anything in the hereafter except the fire, because all his 'amal (actions) are void and bāṭil; he has no value because he did not seek the pleasure of Allāh in his actions. Those who neglect the ākhirah and reject Allāh, their deeds will not be accepted on the Day of Judgment.

As for the actions and deeds that have some good in them in this life, such as giving charity etc., Allāh will reward him in the life of this world. The scholars say this is the meaning of Allāh saying: “We will fully recompense them herein for their acts, and their right will not be curtailed in this world.” They are righteous people who do well and may receive some comforts in this life, but He may also withhold some benefits in the hereafter.

Allāh may give this disbeliever some of the rewards in this life and lighten for him the punishment in the fire. The time he is in the hellfire will not be cut short, for he will remain in the hellfire for eternity. Allāh says:

“Whoever opts for the immediate (benefits from) life herein, We give him, right here in this life, as much as We will, to whomever We intend. Then We assign Jahannam for him where he shall enter condemned, discarded.” [Al-Isrā': 18]

Therefore, the āyah is explaining that Allāh does what He wills. He may give someone who is ungrateful to his Lord in this life some good and comfort and also He may withhold good from someone else who disbelieves in Him. That is why we see many non-believers who are constrained in this life in their health and wealth. These are those whom Allāh mentions: “He has lost this life and the hereafter, that is the clear loss.” [Ḥajj: 11]

As for the takhfīf [lightening] the punishment in the ākhirah, we find the evidence in the ḥadīth of Abu Sa'īd al-Khudri that the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said: “I hope that my intercession will benefit him on the Day of Judgment. A smoldering ember will be placed under the arch of his foot.  His brains will boil because of it.” [Bukhāri]

It is well known that this is the punishment that Abu Ṭālib, the uncle of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), will receive in the hellfire because he used to defend the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) from harm. Thus he (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) hopes that this will benefit him somewhat in hellfire. This is the lightest of the punishment for the disbeliever.

As for the one who makes the dunya his goal and objective in SOME of his actions and deeds, not entirely all his deeds, [this] does not make him a disbeliever and Allāh will not nullify all his deeds. However, if the actions and deeds were performed in order to seek other than the pleasure of Allāh, the deeds will be nullified, and those deeds that were performed to seek the pleasure of Allāh will be accepted. To seek authority and to seek power are those deeds that are not for the sake of Allāh but for pure showing off.

This is the main difference between a believer and a non-believer. As for the kāfir, he does not seek or desire anything except the dunya, while the believer seeks and desires the ākhirah but does not forget his ḥalāl share in the dunya.

Allāh says: “And seek the (betterment of) the ultimate abode with what Allāh has given to you, and do not neglect your share from this world, and do good as Allāh did good to you, and do not seek to make mischief in the land. Surely, Allāh does not like the mischief-makers.” [Al-Qaṣaṣ: 77]

He also says:  “Whoever intends (to have) the harvest of the hereafter, We will increase in his harvest; and whoever intends (to have) the harvest of the world (only), We will give him thereof, while in the hereafter he will have no share.” [Al-Shūra: 20]

Here is a ḥadīth in which we can take many lessons from:

On the authority of Abu Dharr:

“Once I went out at night and found the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), walking all alone accompanied by no human being. I thought that perhaps he disliked that someone should accompany him. So, I walked in the shadow, under the shadow of the moon but the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) looked behind, saw me, and said: 'Who is that?'   I replied: 'Abu Dharr, let Allāh get me sacrificed for you.'  He (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, 'O Abu Dharr come here.'

So I accompanied him for a while and then he [the Prophet] said: 'The rich are in fact poor [in reward] on the Day of Judgment, except him whom Allāh gives wealth which he spends in charity to his right, left, front, back and performs good deeds with it.'  I walked with him a little longer.  Then he said to me, 'Sit down here.'  So he made me sit in an open space surrounded by rocks and said to me, 'Sit here until I return to you.'

He went towards Ḥirā' [cave] till I could not see him and he stayed away for a long period, and then I heard him saying while he was coming, 'Even if he had committed theft or even if he had committed illegal sexual intercourse.'  When he came, I was not able to remain patient and asked him, 'O Allāh's Prophet, let Allāh get me sacrificed for you, whom were you speaking to by the side of Ḥirā'? I did not hear anyone responding to you!'

He said, 'It was Jibrīl.  He appeared to me beside Ḥirā' and said, “Give glad tidings to your nation that whosoever dies without joining others with Allāh will enter Paradise.” I said, “O Jibrīl even if he had committed theft or zina?”  He said, “Yes.”  I said, “Even if he had committed theft or zina?”  He said, “Yes.”  I said, “Even if he had committed theft or zina?”  He said, “Yes.”'” [In some copies of al Bukhāri, it also mentions even if he had drunk alcoholic liquor.]

This ḥadīth teaches us many important principles we should endeavor to implement into our lives:

1 – Abu Dharr's walking behind the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) is an example of the adab of the companions that they always tried to maintain with the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam). When he saw the beloved walking alone and thought that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) does not like anyone to walk with him, Abu Dharr did not want to cut the Prophet's khalwah with himself, so he walked behind him.

There is also the wisdom that Abu Dharr feared that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) will be exposed to harm and wanted to be in close proximity of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) if any danger was to take place, with full knowledge that the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) is protected from being killed, but he is not ma'ṣūm from harm.  Allāh says: “Allāh will protect you from people.” [Al-Mā'idah: 68]

Also, Abu Dharr may learn during his walk with the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), what the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) had learnt or a du'ā' that may be supplicated with, or anything which he may utter from Allāh. When the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) became aware of his presence, he called Abu Dharr to walk with him in order to teach him what Allāh taught him (i.e the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam)).  As he was eager and keen not to break the Prophet's khalwah, eager for his safety, and keen to learn from him, he was also eager to obey him after that, when the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said to him, “Sit here until I return to you.”  In spite of that the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) made him wait a very long time, Abu Dharr did not complain at all on leaving the place where his beloved ordered him to sit.  SubḥānAllāh.

2 – The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) taught Abu Dharr an important qā'idah, or principle, that: “The rich [in this life] are poor on the Day of Judgment.”

The meaning of the principle is those who have abundant blessings and who are rich in grants in this life, whether these blessings are good health, wealth, children, power or prestige, they will have little in terms of their ajr and darajāt [ranks] on the Day of Judgment. The reason for this is that people deserve the reward and recompense for their īmān and righteous deeds, and the aṣl of the reward is that they be recompensed in the ākhirah. Thus to say people are given something of reward in the dunya, they will lose or their reward will be reduced in the ākhirah, and so therefore the reward of the dunya is on the expense of the reward of the ākhirah.  A person is rewarded by the īmān a person possesses in this world, which will be recompensed in the ākhirah.

There is an opposite conformity, most of the time, between the blessings of the dunya and the blessings of the ākhirah, so whenever the blessings of the dunya increase, the blessings of the ākhirah decrease, and whenever the blessings of dunya decrease, the blessings of the ākhirah increase. This is what Khabbāb was fearful of and even wanted to make du'ā' for death when the dunya was opened for him, that is if the Prophet had not forbade him from that.

Imām Bukhāri narrated with his sanad that Khabbāb said, “If Allāh's Messenger did not prohibit us from making du'ā' for death, we would have surely made du'ā' for it. Indeed, the companions of the messenger have left this world without taking anything of their reward in it [i.e., they will have perfect reward in the next life], but we have collected all the worldly wealth that we cannot spend but on the earth [i.e., on building houses].”

Observe these statements.  Their treasures were coming to them, and yet he was upset. Upset at the fact the nations that came before them forgot about the ākhirah by dwelling in the riches of the dunya.

And he says, “We emigrated with Allāh's Messenger for Allāh's pleasure and our wages [reward] became due on Allāh. Some of us died without receiving any of the wages, and one of them was Muṣ'ab ibn Umayr who was martyred on the day of battle of Uḥud leaving only one shirt [to shroud him in]. If we covered his head with it, his feet became uncovered, and if we covered his feet with it, his head became uncovered. So the Prophet commanded us to cover his head with it and to put some idhkhir [leaves and grass] over his feet. On the other hand, some of us have had the fruit [of our good deeds] and are plucking them [in this world].”

As a result, this is how Khabbāb covered Muṣ'ab because he did not take anything from the blessings of the dunya, and hence his reward remains full and complete in the ākhirah. Preventing themselves from dwelling in ḥarām by fearing their rewards would get decreased in the hereafter.

The Prophet clarified that the mujāhid, if he is safe, a third of his reward will be decreased, and if he is safe and takes the booty, two thirds of his reward will be reduced, and if he is not safe and does not take any booty, his reward will be complete. This is conformity with the principle:  The rich are poor in the ākhirah.

On the authority of 'Abdullāh b. 'Amr, the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “A troop of soldiers, large or small, who fight (in the way of Allāh), get their share of the booty and return safe and sound, receive in advance two-thirds of their reward (only one-third remaining to their credit to be received in the Hereafter); and a troop of soldiers, large or small, who return empty-handed and are afflicted or wounded, will receive their full reward (in the Hereafter).”

This is the secret of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) encouraging us to abstain from the dunya.  Therefore, zuhd [ascetism] is being abstinent in the mubāḥ [permissible]. So why does a believer do zuhd in those things that are permissible?

The answer is that the blessings of the dunya will be on the expense of the reward in the ākhirah.  This is why the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) would abstain from the comforts of this world and also the narrator of the ḥadīth Abu Dharr and the rest of the ṣaḥābah and their followers would abstain from the dunya. So from this perspective, the reward of the poor does not decrease. As for the rich, their reward decreases by their degree of their richness, and this is why the poor will enter paradise before the rich.  Taqwa and tawḥīd are sufficient for this dunya, and sacrificing their times in the way of Allāh and their reward will be Jannah.

On the authority of Abu Hurayrah and others, the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said:  “The poor Muslims will enter paradise before the rich by half a day, and half a day is like five hundred years.” [Tirmidhi]

This is how the divine justice is actualized.  The poor enter Paradise and enjoy from its delights before the rich, in contrast to how the rich enjoy the delights of the dunya and the poor who do not have anything in this life.

3 – One may ask:  What is the sin of those who enjoy the blessings of this life? What can the rich, the wealthy, the people of prestige and station, and the healthy do so their reward is not reduced in the hereafter?

Ḥadīth: fa nafha yamīnihi wa shimālihi 'amila fīhi khayran

Those who are given good, and this can be any good of any types whether the good is much or little, whether it be knowledge, or wealth, or health and safety or anything like that, and he fulfills the following conditions that the ḥadīth mentions and indicates to, and they are:

a.  He should give from the blessings plentifully without hesitation:

Consequently, spending in the path of Allāh becomes his characteristic and natural order, and this is the meaning of 'fa nafha yamīnihi wa shimālihi '. Furthermore, for example, if he is a scholar, he should teach the people with everything that Allāh has provided him of energy, wisdom and knowledge.

If he is a wealthy person, he should spend in the path of Allāh without hesitation and being miserly.

If he is strong, he should help the weak and should not hesitate in coming to the aid of people.

Everyone is accountable; everyone has a duty to fulfill towards Allāh!

b.   He should perform that with sincerity desiring nothing except the pleasure of Allāh:

It is well known that ikhlāṣ, or sincerity, is a condition that needs to be met in order for a deed to be accepted. Therefore, the deed, however great it is, there is no value in it if it is not performed with ikhlāṣ.  On the other hand, it will be a proof against him on the Day of Judgment. Ask yourself: what are the noblest deeds in this dunya?  It is to acquire knowledge, to be a mujāhid and to be generous. If they are not for the pleasure of Allāh, they will not be accepted.

On the authority of Abu Hurayrah who said that he heard Allāh's Messenger (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) say:

“The first of people against whom judgment will be pronounced on the Day of Resurrection will be a man who died a martyr. He will be brought and Allāh will make known to him His favors and he will recognize them. [The Almighty] will say, 'And what did you do about them?' He will say: 'I fought for you until I died a martyr.' He will say, 'You have lied – you did but fight that it might be said [of you], “He is courageous.” And so it was said.' Then he will be ordered to be dragged along on his face until he is cast into Hell-fire.

[Another] will be a man who has studied [religious] knowledge and has taught it and who used to recite the Qurʾān. He will be brought and Allāh will make known to his His favors and he will recognize them. [The Almighty] will say, 'And what did you do about them?' He will say, 'I studied [religious] knowledge and I taught it and I recited the Qurʾān for Your sake.' He will say: 'You have lied – you did but study [religious] knowledge that it might be said [of you], “He is learned.” And you recited the Qurʾān that it might be said [of you], “He is a reciter.” And so it was said.' Then he will be ordered to be dragged along on his face until he is cast into Hell-fire.

[Another] will be a man whom Allāh had made rich and to whom He had given all kinds of wealth. He will be brought and Allāh will make known to his His favours and he will recognize them. [The Almighty] will say, 'And what did you do about them?' He will say, 'I left no path [untrodden] in which You like money to be spent without spending in it for Your sake.' He will say, 'You have lied – you did but do so that it might be said [of you], “He is open-handed.” And so it was said.' Then he will be ordered to be dragged along on his face until he is cast into Hell-fire.”

c. As for his saying: ' 'amila fīhi khayran' – he should spend what Allāh has provided in goodness.  Know that money does not belong to him but to Allāh and should be spent in the way of Allāh. This will be a benefit for him if he were to donate his wealth to charity, even after his death. Achieve this by sacrificing his time, his strong body, his wealth all for the sake of Allāh.

4- He should spend it without being wasteful.

Allāh says: 'Those who waste are the brothers of the shayāṭīn, and the Shayṭān is a disbeliever in his Lord'.

Tabdhīr: To waste wealth without purpose or objective, like someone who throws it in the ocean.

Isrāf: To exceed the legislated boundaries in spending on the lawful matters.

However, how is spending in the lawful matters prohibited? The reality is that it is not prohibited. If one spends in only the mubāḥāt (permissible) while neglecting and falling short of the mandubāt (recommended) and the wajibāt (obligatory acts), this will be deemed impermissible. Wallāhu 'ālam.

Therefore, isrāf is spending in the mubāḥāt till it reaches the point where there are shortcomings in the wajibāt or the mandubāt.

And it is two types:

1-    That which nullifies the wajibāt and that is ḥarām

2-    That which nullifies the mandubāt and that is makrūh

So whoever spends, for example, in building his mansion whilst knowing that there are people dying of hunger and have no shelter, and there are others who are leaving their religion because of poverty, then he is a musrif and sinful without a doubt.

The meaning of isrāf I mentioned differs from one time to another time and from one society to another, from one individual to another. It may be that buying something specific is isrāf for an individual but not isrāf for someone else. Therefore, whoever meets the conditions mentioned will be inshā'Allāh rich in this life and the next

3-    People may misunderstand the ending of this ḥadīth and presume that there is tahwīn or lessening the gravity of sin and disobedience, and that they do not harm or effect īmān. However this understanding does not confirm with the vast majority of the nuṣūṣ (texts) we have in the aḥadīth.

It is also not in conformity with the ḥadīth in question because the statement by the Prophet to Jibrīl, 'even if he steals, and even if he fornicates!? Indicates that these two sins are from the kabā'ir [enormities]. This is why the prophet specifically mentioned them and asked about them over others.  Moreover those being amongst the kabā'ir should be understood as a warning to those who fall into it.

So how can we understand the ḥadīth, and how can a person who commits these kabā'ir enter Paradise?

1-    That sins however great they are, they do not shut the door of repentance in front of the human being, so whoever repents sincerely with all the conditions, his repentance will be accepted even of the sins were from the kabā'ir.

The meaning of this is that the one who will enter paradise is that person who repents and is regretful and not the one who is persistent on the kabā'ir. The door of repenting is never closed, as long as he repents sincerely he will be forgiven – Allāh is Al-Ghaffār! (The Forgiver)

2- That the one who commits the kabā'ir does not excommunicate him, and whoever dies without making sincere tawbah, he may be punished in the fire and then he will be taken out from it and will not dwell therein forever. But Allāh, out of His Grace and Mercy, may forgive that person and admit him/her into paradise directly.

This is the 'aqīdah of the ahl'l-sunnah.

The fire of the aakhirah is 70 times more hot than the fire of the dunya, none of us can truly comprehend what awaits us in the hell fire so the station of fear should be forever embedded in the believers heart, action, tongue and INTENTION! Fearing Allāh has sustained the companion's lives after the Prophet's departure of this world, but his Sunnah is still strong and amongst us for us to take heed from.

May Allāh save us from the hellfire, rise us amongst the mutaqūn, help us implement what we are taught and teach it to our community, may we struggle in the way of Allāh with only His pleasure as our goal, and make us less stingy with our wealth!

Amīn

There is little evidence that, since the 1990's, Saudi authorities thoroughly considered the impact of these numbers, which have swollen so monstrously that one is compelled to abandon sunan. For example, the sunnah of raml (for men) is practically impossible to perform, and to pray at the maqām-Ibrāhīm after ṭawāf means risking one's head being pummeled. Kissing the black stone is truly perilous as previously mentioned, and the qiyām of 'Arafāh is cut short for tens of thousands who arrive there only shortly before sunset. The same is also true of Madīnah where praying in Raudat-ul-jannah is all but impossible. The distinctiveness of Hajj (its specific location, time, specific rites) means that normal acts of worship during these holy days are lessened: prayers are shortened and combined and there is a specific time designated, from the sunnah, for rest (20). This time is for reflection, contemplation, and dhikr. The way a contemporary Hajj operates though is not always conducive to the intended objectives of these Hajj rites; In my group, many of us did anything but rest on 'the days of rest'.

More disturbing are acts of oppression committed by some pilgrims. On the day of 'Arafāh buses are unable to cope with the numbers to transport from Mina to 'Arafāh, where qiyām is the major pillar of Hajj without which it is invalid. In 2009, some pilgrims, fearing that they would not make it to 'Arafāh before sunset, punched and kicked their bus drivers/Ministry of Hajj workers and effectively hijacked the buses, which were arriving at 'Arafāh with ihrām-clad drivers and 'bloody' officials.

In such harrowingly jammed and overcrowded circumstances, there will always be 'unpleasantries'. Mina bears the burden of the entire pilgrim community for some days but boasts only, to say the least, meager and basic toileting facilities. To make wudu alone could take around 45 minutes and to use the toilets on top of that, even for the briefest of moments, could render a 'toileting' time of over an hour. My heart went out to those poor souls who enthusiastically vowed not to use the toilets, horrified by the sight of a hole in the ground above which hovered a pipe of sorts which would hopefully act as a shower – I say hopefully because I turned it on once only to hear a shriek from the man in the neighboring cubicle who, after having queued for an hour to relieve himself, got soaked by a diagonal water-stream from my shower pipe. I can't remember if I apologized; we were all accustomed by then to such 'mishaps'. The only other pipe was one which provided water for 'istinja', but all too often it was found deep in the hole courtesy of the person who had used it previously. Hygiene was not great. There was no soap. I absent-mindedly left mine there once and returned five minutes later to retrieve it but found that a full bar had transformed into a miserable sliver of soap with someone's pubic hair embedded within it. As fate would have it, those who feared these toilets the most ended up contracting diarrhea from the poor hygiene and therefore needed to use them the most. The lowest point by far, however, was a British Iranian lady who, still in full burka, sprayed liquid stool through her clothing all over the back of a full coach! Nothing is impossible when there are this many numbers in these conditions. I appreciate these details may be somewhat brazen for some people – but all should be prepared for Mina.

In fact, such was the volume of sewage that apparently pipes could not cope; in the picture below a pipe had burst to reveal open sewage, also in Mina, which pilgrims were walking through en route to stone the jamarāt.

Photograph 3 – Pilgrims walk through open sewage

Pilgrim numbers in Mina were so great that some people in groups such as mine had no tent space to sleep in – due, in part, to an unscrupulous Hajj operator – and were forced to wander the alleyways whilst others slept. Lack of sleep confounds an already exhausting schedule.

Photograph 4 – Satellite image of Makkah (Google Earth)

Finally, this satellite image indicates something remarkable with regards to the issue of swelling numbers: on the right side of this picture is Mina, visible as a large white mass of tents. At the top left of the picture is the white marble of the Holy Mosque (in which is the Ka'bah). Imagine then that every pilgrim living in the huge area of Mina (2.5-3.0 million pilgrims) has to go to the Ka'bah to make ṭawāf-al-ifadah and sa'ee within three days after the jamarāt, and then ṭawāf-ul-wida (the farewell ṭawāf) once more on leaving. The discrepancy in size, clearly visible, between Mina and the Holy Mosque (the capacity of which is around 1 million (21) when rammed together) is consistent with the suffocating crowds around the Ka'bah in the final days of Hajj.

I have dwelled on the problem of overcrowding and the huge numbers of people performing Hajj because it detrimentally impacts everything from people's behavior, the performing of sunan and worship, the ruining of holy sites/relics, and horrible amounts of pollution (see below). The numbers of pilgrims visiting this land is around 60 times as many people as compared to the Prophetic Hajj. The land cannot cope, and many pilgrims have died sadly from stampedes and crushes (22) for lack of control in this regard.

Below I go on to mention a few specific repercussions as a result of the general phenomenon of overcrowding. The first is that of pollution, specifically in Makkah.

Disrespect for the Sacred Land: Pollution & Behaviors

Many who write accounts of the desert, such as Muhammad Asad in 'The Road to Makkah', speak of its magic, and Asad specifically goes so far as to link it with tawhīd (23). This is of course a viable link when one considers the introspection the desert compels one to engage in given its vast, desolate, and silent landscape. The bigger questions of life cannot but pervade one's mind in such circumstances. With that isolated quality comes too an unspoiled landscape and purity of air. Makkans in the time of the Prophet would send their young children into the desert to make them strong whilst protecting them from the poorer air quality of their trading city. That notwithstanding, I was disappointed with how pollution in Makkah was so overwhelmingly ubiquitous. It saddened me that the Sacred Land was left in this way, whilst our Jewish and Christians colleagues took great care to beautify and purify their cities such as Jerusalem and the Vatican city. If 'purification is half of faith', then this ḥadīth has been forgotten with regards to Makkah. Although my intention was to speak of pollution as an effect of out of control numbers of people – which it undoubtedly is – it also links with another phenomenon: that of sheer indifference and disrespect in attitudes for the sanctity of the Holy Land. I will speak of both below.

Makkah itself must suffer one of the worst air qualities of any city on earth. It is not air with diesel but mainly diesel with a little air ('airy' diesel) that one finds themselves inhaling. In a country where petrol is far cheaper than water buses are left running for hours at a time even when stationary and not in use; no one seems to care about the incredible amounts of fuel that must be wasted.

Several accounts from the jet age describe the problem of motor vehicles. Jalal Ahmad spoke of trucks constantly having to brake due to phenomenal numbers of people in the streets, and Sonya (Saida) Miller spoke of it taking half the night to cover 5 miles. Traffic jams there must be the worst on earth; in 2009 I spent 45 minutes in a car and moved only 1 meter – the driver said it would take 4 hours to go from the jamarāt to the Haram Mosque, a journey of a few miles.

It struck me that in my home city, London, hydrogen buses with water vapor exhaust fumes were being trialed in order to improve air quality. And yet if the most Sacred land on earth is not worthy of such technology – what city is? If only those stationary buses left running for hours would be turned off, who knows how many thousands of liters of fuel per year would be saved. But it is the attitude, the indifference to 'israf' (wastefulness) in the very birthplace of Islam – a religion which condemns it and demands purity from its adherents as part of faith – that was most perturbing.

Far too many people are obdurate in their lack of respect for the sanctity of the land they are on, something manifesting itself in at least the following ways: their throwing vast amounts of rubbish, food, & packaging outside the Mosque when there are bins within ten feet of them; their deliberate ignoring of the rules – one gentleman from Pakistan's NWFP thrust his mud and blood soaked foot into water clearly marked Zam Zam drinking water and when challenged retorted that these were rules of the Saudi king and not for him to obey. The most repugnant scene was that on the 1st floor of the sacred mosque in the days immediately preceding the 8th Dhu'l-Ḥijjah when there was commotion in the area of ṭawāf; the 'men in green' (official cleaners) swiftly moved in cordoning off that area and getting to work. It seemed someone had defecated in the mosque, and the thick crowd had stepped in it spreading a trail of feces. Presumably the culprit was not ill since the stool was formed (i.e. no diarrhea)!

The most shocking scenes of littering I saw were at Muzdalifah, but I did not have a camera to capture it. I did, however, capture the images of Mina after about two days worth of residence there.

Photographs 5, 6 & 7 Mina.
Pilgrims actions made it resemble a refuse tip from a 3rd world country rather than Sacred Land.

The lack of respect for Sacred Land is not only manifested in the way it is treated physically, but also in the attitudes and behaviors displayed by pilgrims.

In contemporary times the manners and behaviors of hajjis, who admittedly are from all walks of life, social classes and cultures, are too often astonishingly bad, and lacking even in basic requirements of propriety. I can accept that in such dense crowds one's personal space of course crumbles; I can even reluctantly accept that it is common to find oneself in a stranger's armpit, or even to be thumped every now and again, but surely one should not have to suffer various indignities such as: 'pilgrim chains' led by the largest member violently thumping anyone in his way; or having their ihrams (the waist-cloth so precariously hung in the first place!) pulled downwards to push them out of the way. Impatience is omnipresent, and it can be lethal, especially at exits and escalators where people refuse to wait, instead choosing to heave and push – people die in these situations from crushing or have their feet caught in the steel of the escalators causing flesh to be gauged out (shoes are not worn in the mosque). Some nationalities obstruct Sa'ee with groups of 40-50 sitting down in the middle of the conduit to chant, lament, and cry.

These narcissistic tendencies are seen also at the jamarāt, where despite the rule forbidding people from bringing their luggage (since it was the clear cause of the numerous deaths during stampedes in previous years) they bring it, well aware of the potentially lethal risk it causes others. At the jamarāt, people still hurl their pebbles from a distance, striking others in the back of the head or the face as they are turning. In Mina one will witness such feats of selfishness it is easy to forget one is on Hajj – and, all too often, I found it was from the people one would least expect it (given their practicing appearance). All of the various things mentioned above are predominantly, I believe, as a result of the stresses from overcrowding which inevitably brings out the worst in people, although quite clearly we as an Ummah are not all as elegant in our characters as our sacred texts require us to be.

Interestingly, the gargantuan numbers of people coming for Hajj also brought to the fore an interesting fundamental tension between the visiting pilgrims, and the inhabitants of the Holy Sanctuaries, who consist of settled pilgrims (24) as well as indigenous Arabs. This sort of tension has always been there, yet these two groups of people reluctantly need each other in a forced interdependence. The visiting pilgrims are a source of revenue that has driven Makkah's economy since apparently antediluvian times. Today it is no different, and the sustenance of many businesses in Makkah relies on Hajj and year round Umrahs. But whilst the Hajjis bring in necessary revenue, they bring with it some huge disruption, traffic, littering, diseases etc, along with some unflattering behaviors. It is clear, at least in the Hajj season, that visiting pilgrims are an annoyance; the irritation palpably visible on the local's faces. Many locals look down at pilgrims with a sort of contempt that does not go unnoticed, and a viscous cycle ensues: the pilgrims disrupt and lack respect for their hosts, who in turn treat them with degrees of racism and condescension. Ask any pilgrim about how they compare the people of Makkah with those of Madīnah, Madīnah will receive glowing accolades.

The dynamics of this relationship between Muslims who experience the Hajj very differently (service users vs. providers) is interesting. It might be accurate to suggest that the state of affairs in Makkah during Hajj reflects, more broadly, the state of affairs of the Ummah itself. Consider, for example, footnote 43 Ibn Jubāyr's words as cited by Wolfe (coming in the next section), and Sharīf Muhammad b. 'Awn's remarks in 1842 about a past he remembered:

“All remained pure during the pilgrimage period, and prayer and the reading of the traditions of their prophet were their sole occupation…” (25)

Only then to contrast it with his present, about which he said:

“..all engage in commerce, and the spirit of speculation has replaced piety in their hearts. And their conduct, alas, during the pilgrimage period. May God preserve your eyes from the sight of their shameful acts” (26)

Whilst the visiting pilgrims may have much to answer for, the locals too (i.e. lay people and authorities) are not beyond reproach. In fact, I found it worthy of note that the Cordoban, Ibn Jubāyr, remarked 800 years ago in 1183CE:

“The majority of these peoples are sectarians and schismatics divided into various doctrines. They have no real religion. They treat foreign pilgrims worse than they treat Christians and Jews under their tribute, seizing most of the hajjis provisions, robbing them blind, and finding new ways to divest them of their goods”

Few non-Arabs would deny things are much different today. From the moment one enters the country at immigration till the moment one leaves there is a constant reminder that the hajjis are like a pharmakon (27), simultaneously a harm and a benefit. When Hajj is over, perhaps locals  breathe a sigh of relief. But as unpleasant as it may be for them, it justifies neither the exploitation and corruption, nor the lack of recourse to remedy wrongs.

Saudi authorities do not seem to collect, and certainly do not make public, data on corruption or exploitation. There cannot thus be a comprehensive account about it – one can merely highlight that such practices still exist and that there is much to be done in remedying this.

Historically, ever since 1201CE when Sharīf Qitada captured the Haram, his descendents reigned whilst embroiled in blood feuds, war, and fratricide. As a result, rampant corruption was endemic till 1925 (when the family's rule was ended by Wahhabis). A sad account was that of the Begum of Bhopal (28), an astute and intelligent provincial ruler of a million people. Indian rulers would at that time lend great support to an impoverished Arabia with gifts to the Holy Mosques, free ship transport for Indian pilgrims and hostels and schools in the Peninsula. Her account of 1864 is one of systematic 'official' and unofficial looting. She was taxed arbitrarily by all sorts of Arabian governors, lynched by mobs, raiding parties, and last but by no means least by the Sharīf of Makkah, who himself took ¼ of all her gifts. She could not even make ṭawāf in peace, endlessly harassed for money. Corruption was rife and endemic, and looting was seen as acceptable, if not recommended by corrupt authorities and individuals. In 1925, it was the Wahhabi wars which brought an end to this extreme corruption and the moral ills of freely available alcohol, music, dancing girls, and inappropriate free mixing etc (29) (that was mentioned by Hajjis at least as early as Muhammad Farhani in 1885) – albeit with somewhat excessive harshness and loss of civilian Muslim life.

Thankfully the situation is not like that at present, but exploitation of visitors is very much alive. In our group of 2009 a young British pilgrim waned with high fever and exhaustion the day after 'Arafāh. Unable to walk and needing to get back to his camp in Mina at night, taxis refused to help unless paid £250 (for a journey of a few miles from Makkah to Mina). Hotels in Makkah offered an inflated rate of £2000 for the night (for a room normally worth no more than £100/night). Those from poorer backgrounds, far more vulnerable than us, were treated much worse.

There is also much to be said of tour-operators who sell Hajj packages in the UK; a small but significant number are fraudulent, robbing people of money with no intention at all to run a Hajj tour. Others deceive their customers with promises of premium facilities and charging premium rates only to renege on their promises with substandard accommodation and a wealth of unlikely excuses (30). On the other hand, some countries, such as Iran and Malaysia, are known for organizing Hajj trips very well with little exploitation and very happy, grateful hajjis.

For now it seems this behavior will continue as it has done for centuries since authorities are not taking action. There are few avenues to complain in confidence, and the locals themselves, far from morally reprimanding each other, instead reinforce each others' behavior.

Thus far I have spoken of the vast overcrowding which leads to numerous other problems ranging from pollution to illnesses/injuries, impatience and to a diminished spiritual experience. I have also spoken about the disappointing attitudes and behaviors of some hajjis, who have come to make the spiritual journey of a lifetime but forget themselves and the Prophetic Sunnah which they are supposed to be emulating. Finally I spoke briefly of the equally disappointing condescension and exploitation from some of the hosts towards visiting pilgrims despite the former's financial reliance upon the latter. Before concluding, however, I wish to speak of something on an altogether different note that I alluded to in the introduction: first is the aesthetics of worship – in relation to the historical sites and relics in Arabia; and secondly, the future vision that the current custodians of the Sacred Precincts have for Makkah.

20  Specifically the 8th Dhu'l-Ḥijjah in Mina (yawm-ut-Tarweah) and the night in Muzdalifah after standing at Arafat

21 Wolfe p. 532 – Though this figure seems unrealistic. Other sources (eg. http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-124264884.html ) have reported capacities of 860,000.

22  See for instance Wolfe pgs. 476, 481

23 See “Muhammad Asad Speaks on Bedouins & the Desert” ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtcbukncXvA&feature=related , 12 seconds into the video)

24  The Begum of Bhopal remarked in1864, “Almost all the bad characters that have been driven out of India may be found in Makkah” [Wolfe p. 233]

25  Peters, p. 266

26 Peters, p. 266

27 A Greek word used in reference to something that is both a poison and a cure.

28  A town in India

29  Wolfe, p. 192

30  In my own group, after making “70 excuses” or more, there was a collective decision to sue the tour operator.