The Kalima - Words That Changed the World | Friday Reminder by Mufti Abdul Wahab Waheed

The Kalima — Words That Changed the World

أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ. بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ.

And from among the people is he who wills to seek the pleasure of Allah. And Allah is Merciful to His servants.

And whoever desires the Hereafter and strives for it, and is a believer, then their striving will be appreciated.

The Prophet ﷺ said to Abu Sufyan: "I have come to you with the good of this world and the good of the Hereafter. Submit and you will be safe." (Musnad Ahmad, Hadith 16047)

The Prophet ﷺ said: "Verily, the world is sweet and green, and the good and the bad will eat from it. Verily, the Hereafter is a true abode — a just king will dwell therein. And whoever does an atom's weight of good, he will see it, and whoever does an atom's weight of evil, he will see it." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 6427; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2742)

An Era of Darkness Before the Light

My dear brothers, elders, and sisters in Islam, if we were to take a quick look back throughout the history of mankind to determine and to identify an era in which humanity — in which humans, a cluster of people, a community, a society — were drowning in more ignorance, injustices, difficulties, and darknesses, it would be difficult to identify an era that fits this description that would be worse than the era before the coming of our Prophet ﷺ.

An era in which nobody was given their rights. An era in which children that would lose their parents would have their wealth taken from them. An era in which women and the sisters in the community — their lives would be like open prey for the taking. An era in which slavery was encouraged. An era in which children had no rights. An era in which 360 idols stood within the house of Allah. These people lived in totality of darkness. These people lived in perpetual ignorance — such that even the Persians and the Romans, the masters and kings of the world of that era, dared not look towards that direction, knowing that there is no hope in looking at these people, because there is nothing good that can come from them.

But the responsibility of bringing people back to light, the responsibility of bringing love in the world, the responsibility of bringing happiness in our families, the responsibility of removing darkness — belongs to Allah.

Allah removes people from darkness and brings them to light. That these same people, in the span of twenty-some years, became the leaders of the world — such that the West and the East would look towards them and say: what has transpired? What transpired in these people that brought such a societal shift? That now people are looking towards them and saying, "We want to become like them. We want them to rule us." Their name brought fear within communities across the world.

What changed? Did they become more educated? Did they start earning more money? Did their family structure change? Did their lineages change? The simple component that changed was the inception of the kalima of لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ. That these people were brought to light through the beautiful religion brought by Muhammad ﷺ — a religion that gave them life, that gave them value, that empowered them, that made them feel like they belong somewhere.

You Are Precious in the Eyes of Allah

The Prophet ﷺ is walking in the marketplace in Medina, and he sees a young man standing. He goes behind him, grabs him, holds him from the back, and bear hugs him tight. This man attempts to wiggle out from the grasp, and then he sees the hands of our Habib ﷺ — and he stops moving.

"I have never touched silk nor brocade softer than the palm of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3561; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2330)

He feels the warmth of the Prophet ﷺ, and he stops wiggling. And the Prophet ﷺ says, jokingly, to bring some humor to the marketplace:

"Who will purchase this slave from me?" (Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 3612)

The man responds:

"If you try to sell me, you'll find me to be of no value. I don't have skills. I don't have talents. I don't have something to give people. Why would someone want to purchase me?"

The Prophet ﷺ lets him go, looks him dead in the eyes, and says:

"You are very precious in the eyes of Allah. You're very precious."

Say to them, O Muhammad ﷺ, that in the fluctuating ways of life that we live in, in the constant changes that we are living through, the one common denominator which becomes a source of happiness for all of us is بِفَضْلِ اللَّهِ — through the blessing of Allah — which Ibn Abbas says is Islam. Tell them: because of Islam, they should be happy. They should be proud. They have something which gives them value. They have something which brings happiness within them.

The Only Everlasting Source of Happiness

The great Ghazali says — and it is also mentioned by Ibn Qayyim — that if our happiness is attached to a temporary source, if our respect is attached to a temporary source, if our honor and reverence is attached to a temporary source, know that the effect is also temporary. The only everlasting happiness and respect is that which comes from an everlasting source, which is Allah. The happiness that comes from pleasing Allah. The happiness that comes from putting our head in sajdah.

The poet says: Really, the sajdah is supposed to bring Allah's fulfillment — but in the sajdah we are thinking about everything else but Allah.

What changed within these people was nothing hidden. It was that they understood that their value was found in this beautiful religion.

The Honor of Islam — Umar and the Keys of Baitul Maqdis

When Umar رضي الله عنه traveled to Baitul Maqdis, in the company of Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah, the Christians said: "We will give you the keys of Baitul Maqdis and we don't want to fight. We don't want anything from you. All we want is that your leader comes here so we can see him and hand the keys to him."

Umar رضي الله عنه comes from Madinah al-Munawwarah, enters the boundaries of Baitul Maqdis. Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah, the great companion, sees Umar رضي الله عنه wearing clothes that are shabby and patched up. And he says to the Ameer al-Mu'mineen: "O Ameer al-Mu'mineen, these clothes that you are wearing don't suit you."

How many times have we heard similar sentiments? "You praying here doesn't look good. You dressing this way doesn't suit you. You believing in Mi'raj — the Prophet traveling to the heavens — doesn't suit you. You're so smart, so intellectual. How can you believe in something like this?"

"O Ameer al-Mu'mineen, what you are wearing doesn't befit you. Wear good clothes. Look different." And Umar رضي الله عنه says to him:

"We were the lowest of people, and Allah honored us through Islam. If we seek honor in anything other than that through which Allah has honored us, Allah will humiliate us." (Al-Mustadrak of al-Hakim, Vol. 1, Hadith 207; attributed to Umar ibn al-Khattab رضي الله عنه)

We used to be the lowest of people. We used to be the scum of the earth. No one looked our way twice. But Allah brought honor, Allah brought respect to our name through Islam. And if we are to search for honor and respect in anything other than this, know that once again Allah will make us fall flat on our face. Because the source of honor is the pleasure of Allah.

And they worked for this — to please the Prophet ﷺ. They made it the goal of their life to have Allah pleased with them and to have the Prophet smiling at them. The Prophet being content — that became their main source of motivation.

The Hijrah — Abu Bakr's Tears of Joy

During the journey of Hijrah, the Prophet ﷺ comes to the house of Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه. He knocks on the door. He enters. At this time, most of the companions had already migrated, and only a handful remained. He comes to Abu Bakr and says:

"Allah has finally given me permission to go for Hijrah. Now we can go." So Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه looks at the Prophet ﷺ and says:

"Can I go with you? Can I be your companion on this journey?" — not a journey of sightseeing and comfort, but a journey in which people are looking for them dead or alive to take their lives. "Can I be your companion?" And the Prophet ﷺ says:

"Yes, you can be my companion." And Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه starts to cry. Aisha رضي الله عنها says:

"I did not know that a person could cry out of happiness until the day I saw my father crying out of joy that he could be the companion of the Prophet ﷺ." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3905)

That's what mattered to him — is my Prophet happy?

What Have You Left for Your Family?

The time of Tabuk comes and the Prophet ﷺ calls on the Muslims to bring whatever they have. Umar رضي الله عنه comes with half of his wealth. Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه enters into the gathering and places whatever he has in front of the Prophet ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ says to him:

"O Abu Bakr, what have you left for your family?" (Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith 1678; Jami' al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 3675)

Today we talk about balance — that there has to be balance in society, balance within my family, balance between my deen and dunya. But the starting point of balance needs to be re-erected. What does balance truly mean when it comes to pleasing Allah? Does it really mean that it's okay for me to give such limited time to my spiritual growth and everything else in whichever scope I want — and that's the balance? What does balance truly mean?

He comes to the Prophet ﷺ and says:

"I haven't left anything for them except Allah and His Prophet ﷺ." He doesn't need anything else. He has the Prophet ﷺ. That was their source of motivation. Their source of comfort. Their source of happiness.

When the Prophet Entered Medina, Everything Was Illuminated

Anas ibn Malik رضي الله عنه says:

"When the Prophet ﷺ entered the city of Medina, everything in it was illuminated." (Jami' al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 3618; Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 1085)

Imagine the entrance of the Prophet ﷺ. As he entered into Medina, every single thing became illuminated. It was so bright. It was so beautiful. There was a vibe in the air of the city that everyone wanted to get a piece and a look of the most beautiful man the world has ever seen.

The poet says:

"O master of beauty, O chief of all mankind — it is from the light of your illuminated face that even the moon borrows its light."

Ja'far رضي الله عنه says: One day I left my home in Mecca and I looked up at the sky and saw that the moon was staring down at me, gleaming so beautifully, so illuminating, in a manner that I was just in awe of this beautiful moon. And I looked towards myself and said: What is more beautiful — is it the moon on the 14th night, or the blessed face of the Prophet ﷺ? With this thought in mind, I turned towards the Haram and searched for the Prophet. And where is the Prophet going to be other than the Haram, praying to Allah?

He looks towards the Haram. He sees the Prophet praying, with a garment around his shoulders that had red lines upon it. And he looks at the Prophet's face and he looks at the moon. He surveys the face of the Prophet and he surveys the moon. And without much surveying to do, he says:

"By Allah, the face of the Prophet ﷺ is far more beautiful than the moon."

"It is not that we praise the Prophet with our words — rather, our words are honored and praised by being associated with the Prophet ﷺ."

Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani says: The same way the Prophet's physical presence brought light into a city, the sunnah of the Prophet brings light into a family. The sunnah of the Prophet brings light into a home. The sunnah of the Prophet removes the darkness of the heart. The sunnah and the love of the Prophet ﷺ — the deep love that we have, which everyone possesses — is what removes the sense of lack of fulfillment from our life.

The Danger of Making Dunya the Greatest Concern

The Prophet ﷺ says in a beautiful hadith:

The Prophet ﷺ said: "Whoever wakes up in the morning with the dunya as his greatest concern, Allah will scatter his affairs, place poverty between his eyes, and nothing of the dunya will come to him except what was written for him." (Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 4105; graded Sahih by al-Albani)

Whosoever wakes up in the morning — something that every single one of us did today, by the blessing of Allah — if the biggest and most demanding thought on their mind is dunya, not just a thought but the biggest thought, Allah places three difficulties in their life on that day.

Number one: شَتَّتَ عَلَيْهِ شَمْلَهُ — He divides and separates all their affairs. There is a lack of barakah in their time, because now everything is separated.

Number two: وَجَعَلَ الْفَقْرَ بَيْنَ عَيْنَيْهِ — And Allah places poverty between their eyes, in the sense that they could have whatever they want, whatever they desire, but they are still never content.

This is why Imam al-Shafi'i says:

"If you are a person who is content with what Allah has given you, then you and the kings of the world are equal." But it comes from contentment through Allah, through the pleasure of Allah.

He says: We've built whatever we need to build — the institutions, the homes, the mosques. But what benefit does that bring if the masjid's love doesn't live in our heart? What benefit does that bring if the Prophet's love doesn't ring within our hearts? What benefit does that bring if, when I hear the Prophet's name, my eyes do not swell and the heart doesn't feel a sense of contentment knowing about who this man was?

The source of joy, the source of honor, the source of empowerment was our Habib ﷺ. He brought goodness for every single one of us. Until today:

Allah says: We will never punish a nation, never punish a community, as long as you are within them. The mufassirun say: وَأَنتَ فِيهِمْ — meaning, you live in their hearts. There is a presence within their hearts.

Love Requires Tangible Measurables

It is not enough to say we love our Habib. It requires some tangible measurables — like everything else in this world does. It's not enough to say I'm a good student, a good employee, a good spouse. There are tangible measurables for every statement that we make.

The great poet says: "You disobey Allah while claiming to love Him — this is indeed a strange affair. If your love were true, you would have obeyed Him — for the one who loves truly obeys the one they love."

It is our responsibility to make it a part of our system of life, part of our daily portfolio, that once in a day we speak about the Prophet ﷺ, we read about his life, we speak about him to our children.

Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas رضي الله عنه said: "We used to teach our children the military expeditions of the Prophet ﷺ the same way we taught them surahs from the Quran." (Ibn Abd al-Barr, Jami' Bayan al-Ilm wa Fadlih, Vol. 1)

It was a part of the curriculum of the home. This doesn't come from the masjid. This doesn't come from the Sunday school. This comes from the fabric of our home — where every single person embodies such a love that is contagious to everyone around them. Grief is contagious. Sadness is contagious. Love for the Prophet is contagious. Once we have it, everyone in our home will also have it.

When Allah Loves a Person

The Prophet ﷺ said: "When Allah loves a servant, He calls Jibreel and says: 'O Jibreel, I love such-and-such a person, so love him.' And Jibreel loves him. Then Jibreel announces in the heavens..." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3209; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2637)

When Allah claims His love for someone, He calls Jibreel. He says: "O Jibreel, I love this person — this person I love." My dear brothers and sisters, the only system that belongs in this world, the only system in which we are not judged by our results — like we are in today's time in our countries — but rather by our efforts, is the system of Allah.

No other system judges us by our efforts. If we go to work one day and our boss says, "Is your job done?" and we say, "Well, I tried very hard" — one day, two days, three days, after a month he will say, "I tried very hard not to fire you, but you're fired." A student can't go to university and say to his professor, "My project isn't done, but I made an effort." That effort does not equate to results — it doesn't count. No one looks at effort in this world. We are a result-driven society. If you show results, you have value. If you don't, find your way to the door.

The only system in this world which honors effort is the system in which Allah judges us.

Whosoever intends the akhirah and just makes an effort — makes and consolidates an effort, tries hard, sometimes can't get there, but makes an effort, makes a clear intention — that my goal is to please Allah, my goal is to raise my children not with the only point in mind that they have to become wealthy, physicians, and engineers, but rather with the goal that they have to serve this ummah. If that effort is consolidated, if that thought is driven into the way that we speak and talk and live, then it will bring results. Allah says: just their effort — فَأُولَٰئِكَ كَانَ سَعْيُهُم مَّشْكُورًا — just their effort is appreciated. Not the results. Just their effort.

The Reward of Struggling with the Quran

The Prophet ﷺ is sitting with his companions and he says:

The Prophet ﷺ said: "Whoever recites the Quran and is proficient in it will be in the company of the noble and obedient angels. And whoever recites it and struggles with it, finding it difficult, will have a double reward." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 4937; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 798)

Whoever recites the Qur'an will be given the company of the elite angels. Now the sahabah are thinking: What about those of us who struggle in reciting the Qur'an? I don't know how to recite properly. It's difficult for me to put two words together.

The Prophet then says: A person that struggles and stutters and falters in reciting the Qur'an will have double the reward — because their effort was more. They made more of an effort. Our effort is rewarded. Allah does not judge us simply by our results. Allah judges us through our effort. Allah loves us for our effort.

So when Allah loves us, He tells the angels: "I love this person — all of you love this person." The angels start to love this person. And when this person leaves the world and the angels take their soul up, they say:

"We were your friends while you were living in this world, and we are still your friends because Allah told us to love you." Until the love of that person enters into the hearts of the people who live in that community.

The way to earn the honor and respect of our children is not through them — it's through Allah. The way to earn the happiness and love of our spouse is not through them — it's through Allah. There is one formula, and that formula is to please Allah. And this has a ripple effect that none of us can truly imagine.

May Allah make us amongst those that live through the principle of:

"Say: Verily, my prayer, my sacrifice, my living, and my dying are all for Allah, the Lord of all the worlds." (Quran 6:162)