The Mindset of a Believer: Islam's Complete Way of Life

Jumu'ah Khutbah — Hafiz Ammar Ahmed

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ، الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ، وَالْعَاقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ، وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَى أَشْرَفِ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ وَالْمُرْسَلِينَ، نَبِيِّنَا وَحَبِيبِنَا وَسَنَدِنَا وَمَوْلَانَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ أَجْمَعِينَ، أَمَّا بَعْد.

Allah says in the Glorious Quran — seeking refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan:

رَبِّ اشْرَحْ لِي صَدْرِي، وَيَسِّرْ لِي أَمْرِي، وَاحْلُلْ عُقْدَةً مِّن لِّسَانِي، يَفْقَهُوا قَوْلِي. أَمَّا بَعْد.

Dear brothers and sisters, respected friends and elders, assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuhu.

The Mindset of a Believer — The Hadith of Salman al-Farisi

There is a hadith in Sahih Muslim which I feel displays the mindset of a believer. And on face value, when you hear this narration, the idea of the mindset of a believer might not come to our heads. But if we look at the way the sahabi answers the questions he's asked, and what went through his head, and how his mindset was when answering these questions, then we understand that this should be our mindset as believers.

This hadith is regarding Salman al-Farisi رضي الله عنه, in which he mentions that some mushrikeen came to him and asked him. They said: we see that your fellow — referring to Nabi ﷺ — he teaches you things. But not only does he teach you a few things:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 2, Hadith 390)

In a very demeaning manner, they're telling him that he's teaching you even how to use the bathroom, how to relieve yourself. So they're trying to mock Salman al-Farisi رضي الله عنه, and the Muslims as a whole, saying that your leader, Nabi ﷺ, he's teaching you even these small things — these common manners that everyone is supposed to know. Is this a joke? He's just teaching you these small things, rather you should be learning much higher sciences.

So Salman al-Farisi, how does he respond? You know, if this was us — nowadays when we're asked questions about our religion, especially questions regarding hygiene — what happens? We start feeling a little uncomfortable, our legs start to shake, we start to tremble, it's almost as if the world is about to end. We think: how am I supposed to answer this? And so we start thinking: how can I answer him in a way that I give him an answer which he wants to hear? We don't think: let me teach him about our religion. Let me teach him what our deen has to tell us.

No, if a person comes to us and asks us these questions — especially non-Muslims — we might think: how can I give him an answer which will make him think we do the same thing? But no, these are habits and traits of the believers which we should be proud of.

So Salman al-Farisi رضي الله عنه says: Yeah, that's right. He teaches us even these things. He has prohibited us from cleaning ourselves after relieving ourselves with our right hand. We do not use our right hands to clean ourselves. And we shouldn't even face the Qibla — we should not face the Ka'bah of Allah Ta'ala when relieving ourselves.

And there are also certain things we shouldn't use to clean ourselves. For example, dried up dung should not be used, nor should we use bones. For the bones, we know that:

It will become a means of provisions, a means of sustenance for the jinn. So even these small things — the adab, the etiquette of using the bathroom — our deen goes and teaches us even that.

Islam Is a Complete Way of Life

Yes, we know the deen teaches us how to pray salah. We know the deen teaches us how to do dhikr. We know the deen teaches us how we treat our Muslim brothers and sisters. But one very integral aspect of our deen is purity — to the point that even how to relieve ourselves, the deen teaches us that.

That when we say Islam is a way of life, this is what it means. It starts from when we're at the musalla, when we say Allahu Akbar and we begin our salah, to when we meet our Muslim brothers and sisters with a smiling face and say Assalamu Alaikum, to even moments in private, to how we should dress. The deen covers all of that.

And so purity is a very integral aspect of the deen. Oftentimes we hear:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 2, Hadith 432)

That purification is an integral aspect of the deen, is an integral aspect of faith. But what does that mean? We need to understand the importance of purity. How often do we talk to ourselves and think to ourselves: what is purity in Islam? And just as I mentioned in the beginning, when we are asked these questions, we start to feel a little uncomfortable. How often do we have a mudhakirah — do we discuss the importance of purity in Islam — when it is such an integral aspect of the deen?

The deen heavily emphasizes maintaining physical purity. And physical purity can become a means of spiritual purity as well. Having physical purity attracts the love of Allah Ta'ala. And we'll mention that later on.

We know countless examples. This happens especially in Ramadan — that we stand up to pray salah, especially at Maghrib time, and another individual might come next to us. And now you start smelling onions and garlic and all these different things, and you're focused on:

All praise to Allah Ta'ala — and all of a sudden, all that is filling our minds is just the stench of whatever the individual might have eaten. Or for example, a person may have just played a sport, just come from playing basketball or football. They're sweaty, they come to pray salah, they didn't wash themselves off, and now all you can smell is just that very pungent smell of body odor. Or for example — especially in winter — if we don't change our socks, we know what happens. And so you go into sajda, and we know:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 4, Hadith 1083)

That the closest an individual is to Allah Ta'ala is in salah, when he is in sajda. And now at that moment, all that is filling your head is just the very pungent smell of those socks.

So purity is something which not only benefits ourselves and is a means of cutting off harm from ourselves, but it also takes away harm from other individuals around us. It should not be that other individuals are receiving harm, that they are feeling uncomfortable, because of our own personal hygiene — when the deen has already taught us these things.

And when we talk about personal hygiene, we often relate it only to the masjid. But personal hygiene in Islam is not restricted only to the masjid. It is not restricted to the classroom. Rather it applies to every single aspect of our lives — whether we are coming to the masjid, coming to the classroom, going to our workplace, or just staying at home. We have to make sure that we maintain the guidelines which the Shari'ah has given us when it comes to maintaining purity.

Ten Things from the Fitrah

A hadith comes to mind, narrated on the authority of Ummul Mu'mineen, our mother Aisha رضي الله عنها, in which she mentions that Nabi ﷺ said:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 2, Hadith 497)

That there are ten things which are from the fitrah. Now what is the fitrah? The fitrah is that natural disposition which Allah Ta'ala instills into every single human being at the time we are born. As Muslims, we do not believe that the innate nature of man is to be evil. Rather:

There is a disposition which Allah Ta'ala sets onto every believer.

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 1385; Sahih Muslim, Book 33, Hadith 6426)

That every single human being who is born is born on a fitrah, on a disposition which Allah Ta'ala grants him. And their parents — or in our case, the environment — is that thing which alters that fitrah, that disposition which Allah Ta'ala sets upon us.

From the fitrah, the ulema mention that this fitrah is also, you can say, the way of the anbiya عليهم السلام — the way of the prophets and messengers. Allah Ta'ala describes them saying:

They are the ones whom Allah Ta'ala has guided, and so you should follow them as well. Take them as role models. So there are ten habits of the anbiya — of the natural disposition and the norm of the Muslims — which Nabi ﷺ is now going to outline. And you will notice that all ten of these things have to do with personal hygiene.

You might think that Nabi ﷺ would mention standing all night in salah, or fasting all day, or going in seclusion, or propagating the deen of Allah Ta'ala to the people. And although these 10 things are not the only things which are part of the way of the anbiya — it is not restricted to these 10 things — but out of everything, Nabi ﷺ mentioned 10 things regarding hygiene.

1. Trimming the Mustache — قَصُّ الشَّارِب

Starting with قَصُّ الشَّارِب — trimming the mustache. Nowadays we see that many people may end up growing their mustache to the point where it becomes very big and bushy. The ulema mention that the mustache should not go beyond the lip. It should not hang below the lip, nor should it become extremely bushy. That is the point at which we have to trim it.

Some brothers, mashAllah, are very generous — when they go to eat, they go out for a meal, they end up sharing with another individual. But it's not the individual in front of them, it's the individual above their lip. You see all this food inside of their mustache. That is not what the deen teaches us. Rather the deen teaches us that we should trim our mustache. It should be kept clean — every week, every few days if hairs grow fast — we make sure we trim it so that it does not become bushy, does not stand out, and food does not get stuck in it.

2. Clipping the Nails — قَصُّ الْأَظْفَارِ

The second thing is قَصُّ الْأَظْفَارِ — clipping the nails. When it comes to clipping the nails, we know that if you don't clip your nails, first and foremost, bacteria and dirt starts gathering underneath them. You see individuals who have very long nails — you see what happens to their nails — that is because of all the bacteria and dirt gathering underneath. So first and foremost, it is against health to keep long nails. Another thing is that it may cause harm to other individuals. So of course, let's all make sure that we keep our nails clipped. We don't keep them long because it may happen that we end up harming another individual because of our own personal hygiene.

3. Growing the Beard — إِعْفَاءُ اللِّحْيَةِ

The next thing is إِعْفَاءُ اللِّحْيَةِ — to grow out the beard. So the deen teaches us that we trim our mustache, and we let our beards grow. Now this isn't a discussion about how much you should grow and what is considered the beard — we don't need to discuss that here. This is a sunnah of Nabi ﷺ. This is a sunnah of the anbiya عليهم السلام. I can see many individuals here with beards. But let's ask ourselves: why are we growing our beards? Nowadays the beard has become a fashion statement. But as Muslims, we don't grow our beards because of fashion — we grow our beards because of our love for Nabi ﷺ. We grow our beards because it is a sunnah.

Although this doesn't mean that we don't maintain it — yes, keep your beard maintained and looking nice. But don't leave out the sunnah because of a fashion statement. Rather the sunnah is to let the beard grow long. And we know that Ibn Umar رضي الله عنه would actually trim his beard after a fistful — he wouldn't let it go shorter than a fistful. We should not be shy to flaunt the sunnah in front of other individuals. The sunnah is something which is beautiful. Don't leave out something which is beautiful for the trends which are out today.

So again, let's ask ourselves: why do I have a beard? Is it because of the sunnah? Or is it because of a fashion statement? We should ask ourselves these things. Because many things which we do every single day can become a means of reward when we do them because of the sunnah of Nabi ﷺ.

4. Washing the Joints — غَسْلُ الْبَرَاجِم

Next is غَسْلُ الْبَرَاجِم — washing the joints. Again, this just shows the emphasis in the purity of the believers. As Muslims, we must make sure that we are keeping ourselves clean — to the point where we wash our joints. The ulema mention that this even applies to the small crevices in our hands, that we must make sure we wash those as well.

5. Using the Miswak — السِّوَاك

Next is السِّوَاك — using the miswak. Now one sunnah is to clean the mouth by flossing. In one hadith, Nabi ﷺ says:

(Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 38)

Give glad tidings to the one who makes sure that they clean their joints, they clean in between their fingers when making wudu. But also: how wonderful are those who clean their teeth after eating. That is another sunnah — flossing. So even flossing — we know all the health benefits of flossing — but also get the benefits in the akhira. This is sunnah of Nabi ﷺ. He is praising those who floss their teeth.

And of course another sunnah — in fact, the greater of these two — is to use the miswak. Let's ask ourselves: forget the last time we used the miswak, when was the last time the thought even passed through our head that we haven't used the miswak in a long time? We know the hadith of the miswak:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 887; Sunan al-Nasa'i, Hadith 5)

That the siwak is a means of cleaning the mouth, but it is also a means of attaining the pleasure of Allah Ta'ala. There is no greater status that we can receive than the pleasure of Allah Ta'ala — that Allah Ta'ala is pleased with us. And we should do anything, and at all cost, make sure that we attain the pleasure of Allah Ta'ala. Well, here's one way: just use the miswak. We can brush our teeth, we can floss, but use the miswak as well. This is one of the greatest sunnah of Nabi ﷺ.

Nabi ﷺ mentioned in another hadith that if it wasn't that it would become too hard on the believers, he would command them and make it an obligation to use the miswak. Let's ask ourselves: when was the last time we picked up a miswak? When was the last time we even thought to ourselves: let me use the miswak. We hear the benefits, we hear the virtues — but why is it not leading to action, when it is such a great sunnah of Nabi ﷺ?

Anyways, time has run short, so we'll have to end off over here. InshaAllah, if Allah Ta'ala grants us the ability to be here once again, then we may discuss the remainder of these 10 habits of the Muslims.

May Allah Ta'ala grant us tawfiq to implement these habits of the anbiya عليهم الصلاة والسلام, to implement these personal hygiene habits, and not allow us to become a means of harming any other individual.

Announcements

InshaAllah, we can stand up for our sunnahs. Just a couple of announcements. Let's try to stand up, move forward, make sure that we don't leave any gaps, and try to make space for others. Please pass the donation boxes from the left to the right and donate generously. We know that sadaqah wards off calamities and draws the mercy of Allah Ta'ala.

Just a reminder for our sisters' youth halaqah — the Soulful Chats — for sisters age 13 to 21. Please join us today from 5:45 to 7:45 PM at the seminary's sisters' prayer hall.

Our sisters' monthly dars will be on December 4th, and there will be a time change — from 12:15 to 1:15. All sisters of all ages are welcome to attend. The speaker will be Mufti bin Hajaruddin Ahmed.

For the Winter Intensive, registration is now open. Tickets are available at a reduced price for a limited time, so please make sure that you get you and your families registered now at masjidds.org/winter.

Some reminders for our weekly programs: We have the Saturday team Fajr, which will continue tomorrow — Fajr iqamah will be at 6:15. The Bukhari Dars will be resuming from December 5th, inshAllah Ta'ala. Join us for our Tuesday night Tafsir — the surah we are currently on is Surah al-Anbiya — please be sure to join us with your friends and family. The program is Tuesday nights after Isha. And our weekly salawat gathering takes place Thursdays after Isha.

There is an announcement for the Deen Center: there will be an upcoming benefit dinner at the Falak Restaurant and Banquets on December 3rd to fundraise for the Deen Center, which will be a mega da'wah center, a masjid, Islamic school, and more.

There is a request for du'a for Asif Jahan Mughni, who went for an open heart surgery. Please remember him in your du'as.