The State of Muslims in the UK

10 that Result in Allah’s Love For His Slave and the Slave’s Love for his Lord

First: reciting the Qur’an while pondering over its meanings and what is meant by it.

Second: getting closer to Allah (’azza wajal) by performing voluntary deeds after completing obligatory deeds. This is as is stated in a Hadith Qudsi: “My slave continues getting closer to Me by performing voluntary deeds until I love him.”

Third: continual remembrance of Allah (’azza wajal) under all circumstances, with one’s tongue, heart and actions. The extent of one’s love of Allah (’azza wajal) is determined by this.

Fourth: giving precedence to what He loves over what you love when you are overtaken by your desires.

Fifth: the heart being avid of Allah’s Names and Attributes and the heart roaming in that garden of knowledge.

Sixth: observing Allah’s kindness, goodness and bounties, both hidden and open.

Seventh: and this is the most wonderful, the heart being soft, subdued and meek before Allah (’azza wajal).

Eighth: being alone with Allah (’azza wajal) during the time when the Lord descends during the last portion of the night while reading His Book and ending that by asking for forgiveness and repenting.

Ninth: sitting with the beloved and sincere, benefitting from the most fruitful of their speech. And not to speak unless speaking is more beneficial and you know that it will improve your state and be beneficial to others.

Tenth: remaining away from every cause that comes between the heart and Allah (’azza wajal).

Ibn al-Qayyim (Madaarij as-saalikeen 3/17-18)

Martyred and Imprisoned Scholars

Note: Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi has been released, alhamdulillah. We should remember all our prisoners in our dua’a, during the day and night.

Patience and Throwing off the Ideology of Defeat

Dear brothers and sisters, if the Muslims today would get over the belief of ‘We are weak and can do nothing’, the ones who are bombing the Muslims today would become like Abu Sufyan and come begging the Muslims for peace [referring to when Abu Sufyan pleaded with the Muslims to renew the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah and ignore the treachercy of Banu Bakr]. But the Muslims need to get over the belief that they are weak and they are incapable of defending themselves. This is not proper because Allah (’azza wajal) says:

وَلَا تَهِنُوا وَلَا تَحْزَنُوا وَأَنتُمُ الْأَعْلَوْنَ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ

So do not become weak (against your enemy), nor be sad, and you will be superior (in victory) if you are indeed (true) believers (3: 139)

This ayah was revealed after the ghazwa of ‘Uhud and Allah (’azza wajal) says that you will the highest if your believers; but if you are disbelievers or you don’t follow the conditions of Eeman, then yes, you could be in a state of humiliation, but a believer is always strong. And remember that this ayah was not revealed after a victory, but rather after a defeat, that of ‘Uhud.

Allah (’azza wajal) says:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اصْبِرُوا وَصَابِرُوا وَرَابِطُوا وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ

O you who believe! Endure and be more patient (than your enemy), and guard your territory (by stationing army units permanently at the places from where the enemy can attack you), and fear Allah, so that you may be successful (3: 200)

Allah (’azza wajal) is ordering the believers, in the form of a command, to have patience (isbiroo – اصبروا), and then to saabiroo (صابروا). Saabiroo is also derived from the root form of sabr (patience), but the linguistic form it appears in indicates that it is between two parties. In other words, we need to outdo the enemy in patience, because not only is the Muslim patient, but the enemy is also patient. So even though Allah (’azza wajal) ordered us to be patient, the next order is a repetition where Allah (’azza wajal) is telling that it’s not enough to be just patient, but you need to be more patient than the enemy. That is exactly what the Messenger of Allah (sallalahu ‘alayhi wasallam) did. The people of Quraysh were patient and persistant; for example, Abu Jahl and Abu Lahab were very persistant individuals. Many of the leaders of Quraysh that were fighting the Muslims were very persistant and committed in these efforts. They had the patience, zeal, persistance and commitment in fighting the religion of Allah, but on the other hand, the Messenger of Allah (sallalahu ‘alayhi wasallam) was very patient and he was instructing and training the Sahaba to be such.

Khabbaab bin al-Aaraat (radi Allahu ‘anhu) reports:

شكونا إلى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ، وهو متوسد بردة له في ظل الكعبة ، فقلنا : ألا تستنصر لنا ، ألا تدعو لنا ؟ فقال : ( قد كان من قبلكم ، يؤخذ الرجل فيحفر له في الأرض ، فيجعل فيها ، فيجاء بالمنشار فيوضع على رأسه فيجعل نصفين ، ويمشط بأمشاط الحديد ما دون لحمه وعظمه ، فما يصده ذلك عن دينه ، والله ليتمن هذا الأمر ، حتى يسير الراكب من صنعاء إلى حضرموت ، لا يخاف إلا الله ، والذئب على غنمه ، ولكنكم تستعجلون

We complained to the Messenger of Allah (sallalahu ‘alayhi wasallam) [due to our suffering], while he was sitting in the shade of the Ka’ba, leaning over his covering sheet. We said to him, “Would you seek help for us? Would you pray to Allah for us?” He said, “Among the nations before you a (believing) man would be put in a ditch that was dug for him, and a saw would be put over his head and he would be cut into two pieces; yet that (torture) would not make him give up his religion. His body would be combed with iron combs that would remove his flesh from the bones and nerves, yet that would not make him abandon his religion. By Allah, this religion will prevail till a traveler from Sana (in Yemen) to Hadrarmaut will fear none but Allah, and a wolf as regards his sheep, but you (people) are hasty. (Bukhari)

So the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alayhi wasallam) is training the Sahaba to be patient. Eventually, Allah will give you victory. Wal ‘aaqibatu lil-muttaqeen – the end is for the believers, but you have to be patient and give destiny its time. Do not be in a hurry for Allah (’azza wajal) has destined things to happen in a certain way and we should not go against the qadr of Allah (’azza wajal). Let everything take it’s time and eventually the Muslims will win.

أَتَىٰ أَمْرُ اللَّهِ فَلَا تَسْتَعْجِلُوهُ

The Command of Allah will come to pass, so seek not to hasten it (16:1)

Now the patience of the Muslims is bearing fruit and Abu Sufyan is coming to them, begging them for peace and they are ignoring him. So when the Muslims of today keep on feeding the Ummah that you are in a state of weakness, that we are incapable, that the enemy is strong, that we cannot do anything, that we’re living in the Makkan period/era, and all of these concepts instill in the Muslims’ minds fear and instill in the Muslims’ minds a feeling of inferiority, weakness and humiliation that programs the Muslims to be weak and to accept oppression. How can we state that when we’re one fifth of the world’s population?! When the Muslims are over one billion? When the Muslims sit on the most valuable resources on the planet? The oil of the world lives under the Muslims. It’s like a living being that travels under the Earth and goes and parks under the Muslim lands. When the Muslims control some of the most important waterways and important [strategic] parts of the world? When the Muslim lands span all over the planet? How [then] can the Muslims state that we’re in a state of weakness? Muslims need to break out of this way of thinking and realize the strength that they have and realize that they are not needing in terms of financial resources or numbers or land, but what they need is Eeman. What they need is trust in Allah (’azza wajal) and complete tawakul on him.

Adapted from Imaam Anwar al-Awlaki’s ‘The Life of Muhammad – Medina Period 2, CD 9′.

Examples of the Tafseer of Sufyan ath-Thawri

Imaam Sufyan ath-Thawri is a famous scholar of the Salaf, renowned mostly as a muhadith. However, his important contributions to fiqh and tafseer are often overlooked by many people. The following examples illustrate Imaam Sufyan’s profound knowledge of the Qur’an:

1. Allah (’azza wajal) says:

وَقُولُوا لِلنَّاسِ حُسْنًا

‘…And speak good to people…’ (2:83)

Imaam Sufyan said that this means: ‘Order people to do good and forbid them from doing evil.’

2. Allah (’azza wajal) said:

وَخُلِقَ الْإِنسَانُ ضَعِيفًا

‘And man was created weak.’ (4:28)

In regards to this ayah, someone asked Imaam Sufyan (rahimahullah), ‘How is man weak?’ He said, ‘A woman walks by a man, and he cannot prevent himself from looking at her, although she does not benefit him at all. What can be weaker than that?’

3. Allah (’azza wajal) says:

دَعْوَاهُمْ فِيهَا سُبْحَانَكَ اللَّهُمَّ

‘Their way of request therein will be Subhanaka Allahuma (Glory to You, O Allah!)’ (10:10)

Explaining the meaning of this ayah, Imaam Sufyan said, ‘If one of the men of Paradise will want something, he will only have to call out ‘Subhanaka Allahum’ and the thing he called for will come to him.’

4. Allah (’azza wajal) said:

إِنَّهُ لَيْسَ لَهُ سُلْطَانٌ عَلَى الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا

“Verily! He has no power over those who believe.” (16:99)

Clarifying the meaning of this ayah, Imaam Sufyan (rahimahullah) said, ‘ (Shaitaan) has no power to make believers perform the kind of sin that Allah does not forgive.’

5. Allah (’azza wajal) said:

سُنَّةَ مَن قَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا قَبْلَكَ مِن رُّسُلِنَا ۖ وَلَا تَجِدُ لِسُنَّتِنَا تَحْوِيلًا

“(This was Our) Sunnah with the Messengers We sent before you (Muhammad), and you will not find any alteration in Our Sunnah” (17:77)

Explaining ‘(This was Our) Sunnah with the Messengers We sent before you,’ Imaam Sufyan (rahimahullah) said, ‘This means: whenever We sent a Messenger before you and his people forced him to leave, they became destroyed.’

6. Allah (’azza wajal) said:

وَكَانُوا لَنَا خَاشِعِينَ

“And (they) used to humble themselves before Us.” (21:90)

Imaam Sufyan said that this means that they constantly feared him in their hearts.

7. Allah (’azza wajal) said:

يَعْلَمُ خَائِنَةَ الْأَعْيُنِ وَمَا تُخْفِي الصُّدُورُ

“Allah knows the fraud of the eyes, and all that the breasts conceal” (40:19)

Imaam Sufyan explained, ‘Seated in a gathering, a man sneaks a looks at a woman who passes by the men in the gathering. If the other men see him looking at her, he puts himself on guard against them and desists from looking. But if they are heedless of what he is doing, he looks at her (and stares) – this is the ‘fraud of the eyes’. All ‘All that the breasts conceal‘ refers to the lust he feels in his soul.’

8. Allah (’azza wajal) said:

وَهُوَ مَعَكُمْ أَيْنَ مَا كُنتُمْ

“And He is with you wheresoever you may be” (57:4)

Imaam Sufyan said, ‘(He is with you) with His Knowledge.’