Reflect & Connect | Surah Taghabun - Ep.03 - Mufti Azeemuddin Ahmed | 12/17

Opening & Introduction

Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim. Please come close together, brothers in the lobby and those in the prayer hall, if you can all come move up. Sisters as well — request insha'Allah we not sit against the wall, separate from one another, rather we come close together.

This is a gathering of knowledge and remembrance of Allah. And so the best is that we sit as close as possible to one another. Alhamdulillah, we've come from far to attend the dars in the masjid. Many may not be able to come, even when they want to.

So alhamdulillah, we're blessed to be here. Let's try our best to sit as close as possible to the front and connect with one another as well insha'Allah after the tafsir.

Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim. May Allah عز و جل allow us to have true, genuine conviction that the solution to all of our problems and the problems of the world lies only in following the deen. And may He allow us to find those solutions. May He allow us to have the talab and the desire to look for the solutions, and be able to come across the solutions for our own individual issues and the issues of the ummah at large.

Whatever needs we have come with tonight into the dars, we ask Allah عز و جل — to the barakah of the angels who are present here, the elderly who are joining us, the innocent ones who are listening, and the presence of righteous ones amidst us, the sick ones amidst us — that Allah عز و جل not only forgives all of us and allows us to leave this gathering in a state that we are far more connected to Allah than we were when we entered, but that we also find solutions to any and all of the issues that we are dealing with. Ameen, Ya Rabbil Alameen.

Revisiting Ayahs 5 & 6 — Learning from the Stories of Those Before Us

Last week we covered ayahs five and six towards the end, and I said I'm going to revisit them as well to cover some more points.

Allah عز و جل mentions here: Have the stories of those who disbelieved before you not reached you? O pagans of Mecca, what happened to them?

That they tasted the evil consequences of their doings in this world, and that they will suffer a painful punishment in the hereafter.

What we learn from here — you remember last week we talked about there are two ways to learn. One is you learn through the verses of Allah in the Qur'an, and one is you learn through the actions of Allah around us. Either you simply study the Qur'an and come up with the rules — how Allah does business. And if we don't have a chance to do that, or we're not able to do that, then you look around and you start seeing who trips, who falls. And you start making that connection. You say, ah, this is what happens. This is how Allah عز و جل — we talk about karma, we talk about what goes around comes around. Those are genuine things, that's how it is.

Allah عز و جل says a sin will be recompensed with a punishment of similar type. And Allah عز و جل says that the one who plots, then the plot will eventually encircle him.

I remember I told you this story — as a student of knowledge overseas, one of the mashayikh who was explaining this ayah — it stuck with me, some 25 years ago, but it stuck with me. He said: a person came back home and his wife was very perturbed. He said to her, "What's wrong? Is everything okay?" She said, "No, I was harassed outside today. Someone — a man — made an unwelcome move towards me, and I'm just so shaken up." She was already shaken up, but when the husband heard it, he became even more shaken up and started crying. She said, "What happened to you? You're taking this so hard." He said, "No, I'm not crying for you — I'm crying for myself."

The man was a jeweler. He said, "Today, as part of my job as a jeweler, when women come to the store I show them jewelry and put on the bangles. Today, one attractive girl was in the shop, and I put on the bracelets. When I came to take them off, I grabbed her hand — which I should not have been doing in the first place. I held her hand for some seconds until she yanked it away. And now I realize that Allah Azza wa Jalla has punished me in that very same day through my own family, my own wife. That is why I am crying."

This is not an incorrect assessment. He's lucky that he was able to figure that out. All of us are suffering in some way or the other from our sins. The lucky ones are the ones who are able to make that connection and understand what's going on and how to move forward. When you have a leak, you want to know where the leak is coming from and how to fix it. Just because you don't realize there's a leak, or don't realize where it's coming from, does not mean your problem is solved. We always ask, we hope, we beg Allah Azza wa Jalla to allow us to see where the leak is from. So when it comes to our own sins as well, the lucky one is the one who is able to understand where things are coming from.

Fasad on Land and Sea

What an encompassing, powerful ayah. Chaos has spread on land and at sea because of the actions of people. Every single news page, every single news article right now, it's about some sort of corruption happening. Whether it is the weather changing that has caused floods — look at what happened to Mayotte. That's a small island that most of you probably never heard of. The French colony. I know it because we had students from Mayotte. I remember one student — may Allah protect him — he used to make crepes. That was the first time I heard what a French crepe was, because he used to make and sell them on Sunday mornings in the madrasa. His name — he was Musa from Mayotte. That's how I know this island. But it's devastated now. They're saying it's like a nuclear bomb has gone off. The whole island is finished. SubhanAllah, Allah knows how many thousands. They say we're not even going to be able to recover the dead bodies. This is a norm across the globe.

How many dead whales are showing up? How much fasad is happening? What's happening in the food system? What's happening to the additives, and what are those additives doing to us? Where do we start, where do we end? There's just chaos everywhere. But where does it come from? It's man-made chaos. بِمَا كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِي النَّاسِ — all of this is because of our own pollution, because of our own materialistic tendencies of wanting to buy, buy, buy. Just look at any store recently — there's no space to walk. Everyone is shopping like crazy. This consumerism. You'll see how much was spent this past Thanksgiving — record-breaking travel, more than ever in the history of American aviation. All of this consumption is causing havoc.

This is the principle: ظَهَرَ الْفَسَادُ فِي الْبَرِّ وَالْبَحْرِ بِمَا كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِي النَّاسِ — there's chaos on land and at sea because of the actions of people. So when a person sees chaos, he should ask: how did the milk spill? Someone pushed it over. Whether accidentally or intentionally, someone caused it. So whenever you have any type of chaos, Allah Azza wa Jalla says:

لِيُذِيقَهُمْ بَعْضَ الَّذِي عَمِلُوا — The reason for this chaos, you're lucky there's chaos. Because this is for you to taste some of the punishment of what you have done. Allah doesn't say the word "punishment" — He just says بَعْضَ الَّذِي عَمِلُوا — a portion of what you have done. لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْجِعُونَ — so that you may return back to Allah.

Pain Sensors — A Blessing in Disguise

Think of pain sensors in your body. It hurts when someone stabs you with a pencil. It hurts when you get a paper cut. These pain sensors are a huge blessing, aren't they? Because if they weren't there, we wouldn't even know we were injured. When someone has lost sensation in a part of their body, that foot or hand could actually become infected, or even be burning, and they wouldn't even know about it. So to have a pain sensor is a blessing. When you feel the hot stove, you immediately pull your hand back. SubhanAllah — just like that, Allah Azza wa Jal has given us pain sensors in this dunya to sense azaab. And the purpose of that azaab — be it a cyclone, a civil war, inflation, poverty — whatever it may be, Allah Himself is saying:

We will definitely make them taste — not the real thing, just a taste. مِّنَ الْعَذَابِ الْأَدْنَىٰ — the smaller, closer punishment — دُونَ الْعَذَابِ الْأَكْبَرِ — not the larger punishment. Because this world cannot handle the larger punishment — that is reserved for the akhirah. لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْجِعُونَ — the purpose is for us to return back to Him, to repent. So this is the sunnah of Allah — we should thank Him that He gives us the opportunity to feel the pain of punishments, because otherwise a person will never repent.

Blessings — Apparent and Hidden

Do you not see that Allah Azza wa Jalla has subjugated for you whatever is in the heavens and the earth — they're there to serve you — and Allah has completed His blessings upon you. What type of blessings? ظَاهِرَةً وَبَاطِنَةً — some blessings are external, some are internal. One beautiful tafsir of this: نِعْمَةً ظَاهِرَةً means the ni'mah you can obviously see — cold water, a nice plate of food, a warm jacket, a beautiful family. These are countless blessings we have. وَبَاطِنَةً means a blessing that is hidden.

What is a hidden blessing? The hidden blessing, my dear friends, is difficulties. Difficulties in your life are a hidden blessing. Because it doesn't look like a blessing, does it? But that blessing brings about goodness for a Muslim all the time. A person who got sick — subhanAllah — the amount of sins that may have been forgiven through that sickness. Maybe you went for Umrah and came back and your sins weren't forgiven. But through this sickness, how many sins have been forgiven! A person who lost money and is now making sabr — maybe your $10,000 in sadaqah would not have given you the reward that you're getting by being patient through losing that contract.

That is why in Arabic there is a beautiful saying:

(Arabic proverb)

الْمِحْنَةُ means difficulty. الْمِنْحَةُ means gift. The only change is switching the order of the haa and noon. The saying means: Difficulty is a hidden gift. This is so deep. Because all of these difficulties, for a believer, bring so much khair.

The Prophet ﷺ, when he had a fever or a headache, he received double the reward of what any of his ummah would get. SubhanAllah — those brothers and sisters who have repeated headaches and migraines, imagine the Prophet ﷺ getting double of what any of his followers receive. Because these difficulties are gifts from Allah. They raise the rank of a believer and wipe out his sins. That is why we say: the closer you are to Allah, the more difficulty you'll have.

The Perspective of the Salaf on Difficulty

When you read the statements of the Salaf — the pious predecessors — amazing things are mentioned. One of the statements is that when they would go through overbearing difficulty — multiple people dying in the family, multiple people diagnosed with illness, huge financial loss — in their du'a, what they would say was: "Ya Allah! We are pleasantly surprised, we are shocked, that this is the status we have in Your eyes. We never thought we were worthy of being the recipients of so many difficulties. The fact that You are sending a barrage of difficulties towards us means that You think of us to be worthy of something."

That was the perception of our Salaf — that the more difficulty comes, you never ask for it, but if it's coming down your lane, that's a sign that Allah عز و جل loves you. As the Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 2396)

When Allah loves a people, He puts them through difficulty.

We can sit here safely in our warm homes, in this warm masjid, as we sip tea. We can safely say, insha'Allah, the people of Gaza are from amongst the most beloved people to Allah.

How the whole world is mourning Isra'il Khalid Nabhan رحمه الله — the very well-known person who became famous for documenting life under the siege. He would share pictures online of normal daily life — taking care of his kids and grandkids, feeding the cats of Gaza, taking flowers to people, caring for the sick. That was his documentation. Then one day, his beautiful young granddaughter — five or six years old — passed away, and he was holding her hand. And he simply said: رُوحُ الرُّوحِ — "the soul of the soul." This is the soul of my soul. That statement somehow went viral, and the whole world came to know it. And yesterday, he was made shaheed.

You should go ahead and listen to his interviews that are available online. SubhanAllah, what do you see? They were saying: people want us to move — where are we going to move? Every place we move, we get bombed. The last orthopedic surgeon in northern Gaza came out of retirement to help people in the hospital. And as this retired man — in his 60s or 70s — was rushing to the hospital, a tank knocked him out. Just one single doctor. It's not like an accident. All premeditated and planned.

But this is also part of Allah's plan. He said something so beautiful — people are telling us to move, where are we going to move? And then he said: "Everything is in the hands of Allah. As long as Allah عز و جل wants us to live, we are happy with His decision. And whenever Allah wants us to die, we are happy with His decision, and we are looking forward to meeting Him." Now who can say that? The one who truly believes in the hereafter, after going through unbelievable difficulty. When we see these statements, we should spend time listening to the statements of the men and women of Gaza. Iman is spilling, oozing out of them. Those are the people chosen by Allah عز و جل.

Shukr Is Our Wazifa

Don't think that you have to suffer in this dunya in order to gain Jannah. No. As long as we do shukr in this dunya for our blessings, insha'Allah — that's what we should have hope for. I'm going to practice my deen in America amongst the luxury I enjoy here. I'm going to be a God-fearing servant of Allah, a practitioner of the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ — drive my nice car, live in my beautiful home, have my good friends, wear my nice clothes, get my high paycheck — whatever. But I will make sure I am not involved in haram. And I will make sure sunnah is in my life. Then I should not think that I have to suffer in the akhirah because I didn't suffer here. If I am grateful to Allah, then I should expect that in the akhirah also, Allah Azza wa Jalla will hopefully give me Jannah.

What will Allah do by punishing you if you are grateful to Him and you are a believer? He wants from all of us gratitude and iman. وَكَانَ اللَّهُ شَاكِرًا عَلِيمًا — and Allah is ever appreciative, all-knowing.

Look at the word شَاكِر — He is appreciative. Allah appreciates whatever we do. Allah knows what type of lifestyle we have. He knows you and I are not accustomed to taking a cold shower, stepping on cold tiles, having a cold towel. Heated seats, remote starters, a car in a garage — what type of blessings. No one is saying take this away. But what we need to do is, every single moment you step into your warm shower, say alhamdulillah. When you step out, say alhamdulillah. Read your du'as at every single moment, just constantly. Think about the people who don't have water. Think about what's coming out of the Syrian prisons — reporters walking through empty cells and shivering just at the thought of what was happening there. Someone had to live in those freezing conditions for 10 or 20 years.

So you should be thinking about this as you take your hot shower. Don't say, "Oh, I've got this bill to pay, I've got this meeting — what a stressful day." Do you understand what a five-minute hot shower means? People would die for that. Some haven't taken a shower in 11 or 12 years. Urine in plastic bags stacked up all over the floor — that's what is happening in those prisons. No place to urinate and no place to defecate. What type of blessings we have. I know you might have a stressful day. Year-end meetings, year-end everything. But when we say, "Life is tough" — what are we talking about? We are being ungrateful. Our job here is, as we enjoy these blessings, to constantly be thanking Allah for what we have.

Allah Azza wa Jal is شَاكِر — appreciative. He knows where we're coming from. You treat people based on their backgrounds. If someone comes from an aristocratic background, you don't apply one rule for all. Someone who comes from a laboring background will be so grateful for a styrofoam cup of hot tea on a cold night. But someone from a high background might complain about the very same thing. You treat people based on what they're accustomed to. Allah Azza wa Jal knows where we are. He knows the fitna we're surrounded by. He knows how hard it is.

When we listen to the stories of people of the past, I don't want any of us to think, "There's no way we can catch up to that." The people of the past did not have sin so readily available as we do — not even if they wanted to. Today, it's a whole different ballgame. How far is sin away from us? It's in your pocket. As soon as you touch your phone, that's where sin starts and that's where it ends — A to Z, every single thing. Allah knows that. And on top of that, we have money, disposable income, credit cards. The fact that we're surrounded by temptation and have the ability to fulfill those temptations — Allah is aware of that, and Allah عز و جل will adjust the scale accordingly.

That's why deeds on the Day of Judgment are not counted — they are weighed. There's a difference between counting and weighing. It will be weighed with certain weights that take into consideration the conditions we're in. I'm not saying haram is ever allowed — of course not. But this is to give all of us hope.

Our Ustadh, Mawlana Choksi Sahib, told us long ago: "In this day and age, if you want to become a friend of Allah, you just have to do two things. You don't have to pray tahajjud all night. You don't have to fast every single day. You don't have to read one whole Qur'an every day. To become a friend of Allah, you have to stay away from all haram, and take care of your fara'id. Stay away from haram, take care of your fara'id — you'll be a wali of Allah." At the time we were listening and thinking, "Is that really it, Sheikh?" Now when you see the world, you understand. Because haram is everywhere — from the time you wake up till the time you go to sleep. Someone is always trying to get you to make an extra buck through a haram manner, listen to something haram, do something haram. So staying away from haram and fulfilling our fara'id — our relationships with parents, children, spouse, relatives, neighbors, business partners — if we take care of that, insha'Allah ta'ala, we will become, bi'ithnillahi ta'ala, from the awliya of Allah.

Understanding Why Allah Sends Difficulty — Four Ways

We understand now that there are certain reasons why Allah gives us difficulty. And if we are blessed, we will understand that reason. How do you understand it?

Number one — it is by simply understanding Allah's actions. You say: "This is a punishment for the sin I've done. I need to repent." A punishment exactly matching the type of sin that happens in your life. Like the example of the bangles. You cheated someone, 10 days later someone cheats you. You broke someone's heart, someone breaks your heart. You mistreated someone's daughter, someone mistreats your daughter. You mistreated someone's parents, someone mistreats your parents. Then you realize — why is this happening? This never happened before. Ah, I did something just like this a few weeks ago, and it's coming right back to me.

I remember someone who suffered greatly in his marriage — a very painful story. Listening to it, I wanted to cry, and probably did. And then what was so amazing is that he consoled me. He said, "I don't want you to feel so bad — I'm not here to make your day worse." I said, "Your story is so painful." He said, "No. I realize what this is. I had disobeyed my parents, broken their heart, and made them cry — a lot. What goes around comes around. I'm happy I'm getting punished in this world." SubhanAllah — Allah put it in his heart: you hurt someone who loved you so much, now you're going to get hurt by someone you love so much. And he was so upbeat. Although I was mortified by what he was telling me, he was saying, "Alhamdulillah, I'm getting punished in this world, so hopefully I don't have to face any punishment in the hereafter."

Number two — you are simply able to understand Allah's actions.

Number three — Allah puts it in your heart. I'll give you a beautiful example. Many years ago, a brother shared this story with me. He said he was entering a masjid right before Jumu'ah when the place was packed. But he knew some brothers there, so he called them and said, "I'm coming late — make a spot for me." And at that time he felt, "SubhanAllah, look how well connected I am. Wherever I go, I make a phone call and someone lets me cut the line." He said his spouse was next to him, and either he verbalized it or he didn't, but he thought: "Alhamdulillah, look how well connected I am — I came in late and I got a spot to park."

What happened? When he went to park, something crazy happened. He said, "I never make this mistake — I'm a very safe driver — but I don't know how, I did not press the brake properly. Instead of braking, I accelerated as I was parking." And he hit the car in front of him. Interestingly, that person had just bought his car that same morning. Obviously the bumper was wrecked — nothing less than $800 or $1,000. He said he'd pay for it. Later, when he came to me, he was actually tearing up and crying. Not about the thousand dollars. He was crying about how swift the punishment was. He had thought to himself, "I'm something — I'm well connected, I can get my way through" — and look how swift Allah's response came. A thousand-dollar fine, right then and there.

I consoled the brother and said, "Listen, you are actually very blessed. How many people would simply think it's just a random coincidence?" Unfortunately, we become so superficial — we don't reflect. Most people, if you try to draw out a deeper meaning, can't. Their brains are fried. In fact, I just read a report this week that a big chunk of adults now have a reading and arithmetic level of a child coming out of primary school. This generation, unfortunately, is getting less capable in many areas — including reflection on their own lives. So I said: this is a blessing that Allah put in your heart so that you could immediately repent from any type of self-conceitedness.

Think about it — a thousand dollars is a lot. But I'd rather pay a thousand dollars here than face punishment in the hereafter. What does the hadith say?

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 91)

The person who has an iota of arrogance in his heart cannot enter paradise. There is no place in paradise for a man or woman who carries even a speck of arrogance — until that arrogance is cleansed in this dunya, purged in Jahannam, or Allah forgives him. Don't you think it's worth it to pay a thousand dollars, reflect on what you did wrong, ask Allah for forgiveness, and insha'Allah clear your heart?

Number four — Allah brings someone to you to inform you. Sometimes in the form of a dream. Sometimes in the form of a random person who says, "Your life is going through a lot of difficulty — it's probably because of this." And your mind never went there. Don't shout at the messenger. He's just a messenger, sent by Allah to make you realize what you're doing. You should thank him, and you should thank Allah Azza wa Jal. SubhanAllah, I find this discussion very refreshing and beneficial. We're all going through so many difficulties, but we have to start reflecting and connecting those dots — not taking them as a burden or as a sign of Allah hating us, astaghfirullah. They are a sign of Allah saying: "Come back. Come back. Come back to Me."

And alhamdulillah, we see all around us so many people coming back to the deen when difficulty and sickness falls upon them or their children. Remember, my beloved brothers and sisters — this dunya cannot be a place for recompensing your good. Not possible. This dunya does not have the capacity to encompass the reward for even one سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ. One SubhanAllah is going to get you a tree in Jannah, the width of which would take a fast-paced horse 70 years to cross. What is 70 years of traveling for a fast-paced Arabian horse — how many hundreds of times around the globe? The reward of one SubhanAllah gives you a tree whose shade is that big. How is it possible that this world could be a place where you will be rewarded for all the great service you do to your parents, your spouse, your children, your neighbors, your masjid? It cannot. This world cannot even repay you for one SubhanAllah. So our goal should be not to search for the rewards of our good deeds in this world. You don't want to cash out your check here — you want to cash out over there. Whatever we get here is just extra.

So this is the whole discussion on فَذَاقُوا وَبَالَ أَمْرِهِمْ — the people tasting punishment in this world. We want to be from amongst those, number one, who are able to recognize our disobedience to Allah before we get a ticket — that's the best. And then, Allah forbid, if we are getting a ticket and difficulty is coming our way, we immediately start reflecting: why is this happening? Immediately turn our direction to Allah. Dhikr, du'a, salawat upon the Prophet ﷺ. This is the way to handle the most difficult of situations. Someone is angry in front of you — your spouse is angry, your child is sick — the first thing is: don't go towards the phone, don't go towards the wallet, don't go towards the medicine cabinet. The first thing is turn towards Allah Azza wa Jalla. Fresh wudu and pray two raka'at of salah. Raise your hands in front of Allah and say: "Ya Allah, I am now faced with this difficulty — what should I do?"

My beloved brothers, let's not be scared of difficulties. If they come our way, every one of these difficulties has the purpose of getting us closer to Allah. As one of the ulema has mentioned — the names of Allah that deal with harm: don't just say الضَّارّ in isolation. Say: يَضُرُّ لِيَنْفَعَ — Allah harms you to benefit you. Don't just say Allah is الْمُذِلّ. No — يُذِلُّ لِيُعِزَّ — Allah disgraces you to honor you. Don't just say Allah brings a person down — يَخْفِضُ لِيَرْفَعَ — Allah brings you down to bring you up. Whatever type of difficulty — Allah constricts in order to expand His rizq and blessings upon you. Whatever name or attribute of Allah relates to difficulty or taking away — understand that there is a huge part of blessing in it. He does what He does to honor you, bless you, and make your future better. Let's have husn al-dhan — good thoughts about Allah Azza wa Jalla.

It's so easy for us to forget. When we go through ease, it's so easy to forget how much difficulty we had previously. But let's all reflect on the difficult moments we had in our lives and say: "Allah put me through that before He brought me here. Allah never forsook me." This is the same thing that the people of Gaza — masha'Allah, tabaraka wa ta'ala — are saying again and again: "Allah Azza wa Jalla has not forsaken us." So, my dear brothers, if Allah did not want to have mercy upon us, He would not have allowed us to taste the punishment of our sins in this dunya. The fact that He is doing so means there is a huge blessing for us.

Ayah 7 — The Disbelievers' Claim of No Resurrection

Allah Azza wa Jalla in ayah 7 mentions that the disbelievers are claiming they will not be resurrected. زَعَمَ means to claim something one does not believe. The disbelievers honestly don't believe in the resurrection. That's why they say: لَن يُبْعَثَ — we will never be resurrected.

Dear brothers and sisters, one of the fundamental beliefs of a Muslim — and for that matter, any truly upright person in the world — is belief in the hereafter. If you don't believe in the hereafter, sooner or later you will make some blunder. Even the greatest humanist in the world will make huge blunders. People say, "I don't need religion to be a good person — I'm always kind to people, animals, everyone." My dear humanist: who has been nicer to you, and who has showered more blessings upon you, than your God? What about Him? How do you forget the God who created everything around you, for you, and yet call yourself an upright citizen who cares about the feelings of everyone?

Who is a greater oppressor than the one who makes up lies against Allah? Who says He doesn't exist, that He has a son, a wife, daughters, partners? Allah says there is no one who is a bigger oppressor than the one who speaks ill of Allah Azza wa Jal. So all those people who claim to be perfect citizens with great character — by Allah, they are the greatest oppressors. The one who does not acknowledge Allah's existence, while it is Allah who gave him the intellect and the very tongue with which he speaks against Allah.

I remember long ago — probably in the 90s — listening to the radio, and one guy was saying: "In the hereafter, I'm going to sue God." I still remember that from around 8th grade. I thought: look at the tongue you're using to say this — that same tongue Allah gave you. Listen, whoever you're going to sue — if you can sue him, he's definitely not God. Because if you can sue him, he's not God.

Allah Himself says: He cannot be asked about what He does. If you can ask God why He did what He did, then He's not God. You've got the wrong number. How can a person say, "Why is Allah doing this?" Even a human boss and employee — you can't ask the founder of a company, "Why are you doing this?" Now imagine Allah Azza wa Jal with us.

In order for a person to be genuinely good, he has to believe in the hereafter. Without the fear of any repercussion — imagine there are no exams. How would students study? The akhirah is where we will pay for sins or be rewarded for good deeds. Students who study love exam time — it's the time for them to flex their muscles. No one likes to be treated like the rest when they've worked so hard. That recognition — that's the akhirah.

So Allah Azza wa Jal says the disbelievers claim they will not be resurrected, and that claim is what makes them do what they do. When you look at what happened in Syria — and it's still happening in other parts of the world. For 40 years, people lived underground and we didn't know — or we knew but it wasn't center news. There are hundreds of other torture sites across the globe, many of them in Muslim countries. That's where many of our own countries' prisoners were sent — rendition sites. Outsourcing torture of Muslims to Muslim countries. Think about that. Where is your khuda? Where is your belief in Allah? You have a Muslim name, you come from a Muslim family. The only reason someone can do that is if they definitely don't believe in the hereafter. Absolutely. When belief in the hereafter is gone, everything falls apart.

Fear of Allah — The Foundation of Our Homes and Society

My brothers and sisters, I want you to take a moment to understand: how are we going to bring change within ourselves and our youth? How are we going to bring change between us and our wives and kids and husbands? How are we going to bring peace into our homes? We have the Winter Intensive this weekend — Harmony Within the Muslim Home. How is harmony going to come? Number one, of course, we have to have knowledge. But if the fear of Allah is not there, you can memorize everything, you can write the books, but you will not bring harmony into your marriage. Because there is no fear. And that's the issue.

People have been asking me — when I share with them the difficult realities of our Muslim community — why is this happening? And the simple answer is: there is no fear of Allah. There is absolutely no fear of repercussion. That person wears a kufi, that sister wears a hijab, that brother has a beard, that sister wears a niqab, that brother went to Islamic school — it doesn't make a difference. You could be born in Medina, you could die in Makkah, you could be a scholar, whatever. Fear of Allah is something else. If you don't have the fear of Allah, nothing is going to stop.

That's why if you ever attended a nikah ceremony, every scholar who led it always read the khutbat al-hajah. It contains three verses of the Qur'an. What are all three verses about? Taqwa. All three. Because you're telling the spouses: if you don't have the fear of Allah, no counseling — pre-marital or post-marital — will help. No loving, caring parents, no matter what tarbiyah they give, will help. Because things will happen in your marriage that will upset you. If you don't think you have to face Allah, you will let your mouth run and say whatever it wants. You will raise your hand. You will let the lawyers do the work for you.

And I want to speak here on behalf of all those men who are — subhanAllah — being oppressed by their wives or ex-wives all around us. If you hear the stories of people of knowledge, men and women coming from religious families — yes, things don't work out sometimes, I understand. You can separate and part ways — تَسْرِيحٌ بِإِحْسَانٍ — move on in a nice manner. But the type of things happening — just this week I met a brother who, after 25 years of marriage and seven children, went through a divorce. And she went to court and said the husband beats the kids. He said, "I want you to take the book of Allah, put your hand on it, and say this." Because Allah is his witness that his kids would lay on his chest and go to sleep. How dare that accusation be made.

When it comes to this — I have seen people put their hand on the Qur'an and lie. And that's when you say — you definitely don't believe in God. You definitely don't believe in the hereafter. He lost his house, he lost a million dollars, he lost all his kids, and he slept in his car for a year. He hasn't seen his seven kids for the past three years. One of many cases.

Why is this happening? Who empowers this? How does this become permissible — to make someone sleep in their car, to fabricate accusations? Immediately some people will say, "What about women being oppressed?" Of course — 99% of the time we talk about women being oppressed. We have women's shelters, we have talks about their rights. How many of you have attended a nikah and heard a talk on the rights of a husband? I have a crowd of about 200 brothers here — not a single hand raised. How many have attended a talk about the rights of the wife? Every single talk, all the time. That's an issue. And those are issues we will be covering at the Winter Intensive — both sides, with female and male speakers, therapists, scholars, psychiatrists, and muftis from across the country.

By no means am I saying women are the only ones oppressing men. Men have traditionally been known to oppress women. But if you have been oppressed, heard about oppression — this is not the time to say, "Let me roll up my sleeves and attack all men." Let me not become a man-hater. Some female lawyers I've spoken to, subhanAllah — I found out they went through a nasty divorce, and that experience now propels them to make sure every case they handle ends with the husband losing everything. I feel for them. May Allah reward them for their patience. But this is not the way to respond.

If you choose to take revenge, then you must avenge yourself only to the extent equivalent to the initial oppression. If he slapped you once and you slap him twice — now you're the oppressor. That's why many people are afraid of crossing that line.

My dear brothers and sisters, nothing will help me or my kids, you or your kids, your family or my family, until we genuinely fear Allah and genuinely believe in the hereafter. That has to be nailed into every second of our life. Before you speak, before you purchase anything, before you sell anything, before you listen to something, before you look at something — think: how will I answer Allah عز و جل for this? This realization of akhirah has to come. That will stop the person in the torture chamber from torturing. That will stop the person taking bribes. That is what will stop a husband or wife from oppressing each other, their kids, or their parents. How many daughter-in-laws are oppressing their in-laws? How many in-laws are oppressing their daughter-in-laws? It's all over. We have to go back to the drawing board.

Many brothers say we need a new app. Brother, there are too many apps for everything. The thing is amal — action. Even this talk — me speaking does me no good if I don't practice what I'm speaking about. And you listening does you no good if you don't practice what you're listening to. We have to focus on the basics: whatever ilm we have, let's practice it. And then ask Allah to grant us and our progeny genuine love and fear of Him.

What is the du'a?

O Allah, I ask You of such fear of Yours that will become a barrier between me and Your disobedience. O Allah, I ask You for that level of obedience that will allow me to reach Your paradise. And O Allah, I seek from You that level of conviction that will allow me to handle the difficulties of this world.

You are asking Allah for fear of Him, for obedience to Him, and for conviction. MashaAllah. These du'as can be found in Al-Hizb al-A'zam or Munajat Maqbool — beautiful du'a books available in the bookstore. The very comprehensive du'as of Rasulullah ﷺ that can be greatly beneficial.

So the belief in ba'ath ba'd al-mawt — resurrection after death — has to be really focused upon in our homes, in our discussions. Constantly talk about three things. Number one: اللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ — Allah knows. Number two: اللَّهُ يُحَاسِبُ — Allah will take account. Number three: اللَّهُ يُعَاقِبُ — Allah will punish. These are what will make sure we are following the deen of Allah.

Ayah 7 — The Qasam of Resurrection

قُلْ — O Muhammad ﷺ, say: بَلَىٰ وَرَبِّي — By my Lord, you will surely be resurrected.

وَرَبِّي — this is the waw of qasam. Like saying "Wallahi, warabbi" — I swear by my Lord. لَتُبْعَثُنَّ — the lam and the shadda on the nun are for emphasis: most definitely you will be resurrected. ثُمَّ لَتُنَبَّؤُنَّ بِمَا عَمِلْتُمْ — then you will certainly be informed of what you had done. وَذَٰلِكَ عَلَى اللَّهِ يَسِيرٌ — and that is very easy for Allah.

Why would you use a qasam? You only say "Wallahi" when someone in front of you doesn't believe you. So Allah is telling His Prophet to use the oath — to speak to the people and say: although you don't believe in Allah and you don't believe in the Day of Judgment, regardless of your disbelief, this is going to happen. Just because someone says tomorrow there's no exam doesn't mean there won't be an exam. Just because someone says there is no Day of Judgment doesn't make a difference. What will happen on the Day of Judgment? You will be raised up.

As the poet says:

If, after passing away, we were left alone — alhamdulillah, he died peacefully, buried in the ground peacefully, or his ashes thrown into the sea — if after dying we were just left alone, then death would be a source of peace for every single living person. But instead, after we die we will be raised up, and we will be asked about everything. So death is not simply a place for peace.

That is why Imam al-Qurtubi in his book Al-Tazkirah mentions various hadith about death and what happens after death. One hadith he mentions — if I remember correctly from Sahih Muslim — is that the person who commits suicide, whatever method he used — whether a knife, a bullet, or poison — will constantly be repeating that act in the next world until the Day of Judgment. (Sahih Muslim, Hadith 109) Then comes the separate punishment. Why does a person commit suicide? Because he's worried about the police, about auditors, about being disgraced. He ran away. But if he did not repent and then took his life, instead of escaping, he has jumped from the frying pan into the fire. Death is not an escape route.

Yes, death is الْمَوْتُ يُوصِلُ الْحَبِيبَ إِلَى الْحَبِيبِ — death connects a beloved to his beloved. So if you love Allah and truly want to live your life for Him, then you will say:

My salah, my worship, my life, and my death are all for Allah, the Lord of all the worlds. And that person, as soon as he dies, is welcomed by Allah Azza wa Jal and will lead a much more beautiful life in the grave.

So raising up people and rewarding or punishing them — what does "informing" mean here? Not just informing — of course it means punishment or reward. And Allah Azza wa Jal says: this is very easy for Me. It's not difficult. In this dunya, catching people requires cameras, DNA, investigations — with all the technology in the world, how many unsolved mysteries remain. There is no such thing as anything unsolved for Allah Azza wa Jal. Hence:

So believe in Allah, and His Messenger, and the Qur'an — the light which Allah Azza wa Jal has revealed. And Allah is all-aware of what you do.

This morning someone asked me about a man who was formerly Qadiani, then became an atheist, and would challenge Muslims by saying, "What kind of religion is Islam — most of you can't understand the Arabic language. Christians can just pick up the Bible and read through it, and they say, 'Oh, this verse spoke to me.'" Based on what was shared with me this morning, the response is: subhanAllah, first of all, you have gatherings like this one taking place right now where all of us are able to reflect on the verses of the Qur'an together. You have in every single language an attempted translation and basic tafsir of the book of Allah available. And then you have people who simply recite the Qur'an — which should be all of us — and no matter if you're sad, anxious, your heart feels empty, or you're wanting to commit sin, what is the basic easy thing? Fresh wudu, pick up a mushaf from the shelf and read for half an hour. I guarantee all of us will feel different — without the phone, just the mushaf. After half an hour, you will feel different.

Why did you see nur dripping from your grandparents' and parents' faces? They didn't understand a word of the Arabic they were reading. Why did you see them crying in salah when the imam was reciting? Why do many brothers still cry in tarawih when they don't understand Arabic? Because the Qur'an is nur. And you think everyone who understands Arabic is practicing? Those torturers knew this basic level of Arabic — of course they could translate these ayahs we've been reading. So the nur is what changes a person. You have to present yourself to the nur — and that is our treatment.

Listening to a dars or seeking knowledge is not sufficient and will not bring change alone. Aminu — have genuine, unwavering belief in Allah, unwavering belief in the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ, unwavering belief in the book of Allah — that this is the only way out of the mess. Not that deen of Allah is only for when we're in this gathering, and outside is a different life. Let's be very open with each other — most of the ummah operates that way. You see in some countries people pick up public kufis at the masjid to pray and then literally throw them back into the basket as they leave — as if the deen of the masjid stays in the masjid. This dichotomy of Muslims not following Islam is because — deen ki shakal hai, deendari nahi hai — it's just the external appearance of deen, not real deen. A bottle with a label, but empty inside. We have to make sure we're not hollow inside.

Aminu — make sure you have the unwavering faith in these three things mentioned here: iman in Allah, in Rasulullah ﷺ, and in the Qur'an. And what was the previous ayah about? What's the next ayah about? The Day of Judgment.

Ayah 9 — Yawm al-Taghabun: The Day of Mutual Loss and Gain

The day He shall gather up all of you — the day of gathering. ذَٰلِكَ يَوْمُ التَّغَابُنِ — that is the day of mutual loss and gain. This is why the surah has been named Surah al-Taghabun, based on this very verse. As we talked about in the first session of this tafsir — it comes from the scale of تَفَاعُل, which carries a sense of mutuality. تَغَابُن comes from the word غَبْن, which means loss. And we talked about the famous hadith:

Two things in which the majority of people are at a loss: health, and free time.

So Allah Azza wa Jalla says that is the day of mutual loss. People will be shocked at where they're headed. The man who had VIP access everywhere wonders why he's not getting VIP access into Jannah. And the people whom we thought were absolutely lowly — they will be, subhanAllah, right in front. There's a beautiful hadith about Julaibib رضي الله عنه. It is mentioned that the Prophet ﷺ saw him — one of the poor sahaba — and said "Marhaba" — glad tidings to the one who is known in the heavens. This sahabi was shocked and said: "Ya Rasulullah, how could this be? Me? I'm nobody." And the Prophet ﷺ told him: you might be in the eyes of the people as no one — but in the eyes of Allah, in the heavens, you are very well known.

The Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2622)

There are certain people — because of their lack of means, their hair is disheveled, they have dust over their bodies, barely nice clothing. They're pushed away from the doors — if they come knocking, they're told: "Wrong place, this isn't for you." If they come to a gathering, no one recognizes them. If they don't show up, no one misses them. They die with all their wishes in their heart — unfulfilled. "I wish I had a nice wedding. I wish my son could have that jacket." And they die with those desires unmet. But they are so close to Allah. If they were to say "Wallahi, this will happen" — Allah will ensure it. Because they are so beloved to Him.

It comes in hadith that the fuqara of this ummah will enter Jannah 500 years before the wealthy. No one cares about them, no one invites them to the parties. Allah is not going to test these people twice. He tested them in this world — He will give them a beautiful abode in the akhirah. This is where you see taghabun — the shocking mutual gain and loss — where people will be surprised at who is ahead and who is behind.

Ayah 9 — Belief, Good Deeds, and Jannah

Whoever truly believes in Allah and does righteous deeds — what's the first thing Allah will do? يُكَفِّرْ — takfir means to absolve. Allah will remove all of his sayyiat, his sins. Now when you're sinless, where do you go? يُدْخِلْهُ جَنَّاتٍ — He will enter him into gardens.

Does believing in Allah and doing good deeds mean you're sinless? No — there's no one who's sinless. What we learn from this ayah is that no one is sinless. Just have genuine belief and genuinely try to do good deeds with sincerity. It does not mean you and I will never make mistakes — we will make mistakes every day. But we patch them up with istighfar, with tawbah, with another good deed. Do not allow your sins to haunt you to the point of saying, "I'm doomed." If you're persistent in a sin but you hate it every single day and are repenting, insha'Allah that will be counted as true repentance. We ask Allah Azza wa Jal, whoever is involved in any major or minor sin, to allow them to find their way out. But you cannot feel content with that sin — every time you think about it, you should feel guilty and say, "Ya Allah, please allow me to get out of this."

And after those sins are wiped out on the Day of Judgment, Allah will allow them to enter Jannah, below which rivers will be flowing. The best part — it's not for one day, not for one hour. Jannah is forever. خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا أَبَدًا — abiding therein forever. That's why the akhirah is the real place for us, not this dunya. This dunya is fani — it will come to an end — and your rewards cannot come to an end. It's an everlasting reward.

ذَٰلِكَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ — that is the magnificent triumph. How sad that today people clap and get excited when they win an election, get made governor, win a seat — and they think that's triumph. SubhanAllah, ajeeb. They don't know what still awaits them. Our triumph is when Allah will say:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 6549; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2829)

I will now make My pleasure obligatory for you — I'm going to always be happy with you and I will never be angry at you again. That's it. That is the day, dear brothers and sisters, when we can have the biggest party of our life. Because we genuinely made it. But until then, we have to hold our breath. No matter what deeds we have done, we can never allow it to get to our head. We ask Allah to grant us the haqiqah and reality of everything that's been shared. We ask Allah not to allow this knowledge to become a proof against us. We ask Allah to genuinely allow me and all of us here to become genuine practitioners of the teachings of Qur'an and Sunnah. May He allow us to spread the proper teachings — not only through our speech, but through our actions — across the globe. Whatever khair and good is happening here in this room, may Allah spread it in all the continents of the world, in all the countries of the world. And may Allah make every one of you an ambassador for that.

Q&A Session

How can I make myself wake up for Tahajjud?

Of course by sleeping early. By not drinking the strongest tea before you go to bed. Drinking lots of water. Making the intention before sleeping. Sleeping in the state of wudu. Sleeping on the floor. Sleeping with one blanket less — make it a little bit difficult. Put multiple annoying alarms. Have a group call where you wake each other up. All of those types of things you can use.

For a revert, is it hard to find marriage with a Muslim woman?

No, alhamdulillah. We have a whole revert circle here — you can contact the office, contact brother Yaqub. We have a whole list of convert brothers and sisters, a regular monthly get-together, classes, and revert sisters classes. Alhamdulillah, the masjid is a place for you to connect, and we will try our best to assist in whatever way we can.

How fearful should I be when reciting Surah al-Fatihah and surahs in salah correctly? I feel like my salahs don't count due to that worry.

You have to work on your tajweed if that's what you're saying — tajweed classes for men and women are available, alhamdulillah. But if you are feeling scared unnecessarily, that might be a waswasah from Shaytan. Just say, "I seek refuge with Allah from the accursed Shaytan," and continue to move on.

How can you tell the difference between a test and a punishment from Allah? Should we treat everything like a test?

Don't worry about that distinction. In both cases, make lots of istighfar and ask Allah to allow you to get closer to Him — and the punishment will turn into a test.

When do you know it's the right time to get married?

I know it's the right time to learn about marriage — and the rights and responsibilities that come with it — as soon as you become baligh. From the 13th or 14th year, keep on hearing about how you're supposed to act as a wife, as a husband, as a son, as a daughter. Constantly keep having this discussion about rights, roles, and responsibilities. When Allah opens those ways for you, then insha'Allah you get married.

My wife is worried she'll be consumed by new duties of being a wife. How can I assure her I'm not a misogynist and just want balance?

I think both of you should attend the Winter Intensive. The books we have here on marriage — this is our deen. It's not against you. Is Allah unjust? Allah is not unjust. Have trust in Allah, have trust in the deen. She needs to follow the deen, you need to follow the deen, and say: the deen will decide amongst us. That's it. Keep the deen as the constitution of your home.

How do I guide my father who doesn't pray but tells me to pray all the time?

May Allah reward him for telling you to pray, and may Allah guide him to pray as well. Do not allow his negligence of salah to stop you from praying — it's like an addicted smoker father telling his son not to smoke. He's not proud that he smokes, and that's why he's telling his son not to. Make du'a for him. Bring him to deeni gatherings — maybe don't tell him about salah specifically, but bring him to the masjid and let him listen to a talk. Maybe insha'Allah that will motivate him. Recite Surah Yasin and Surah al-Rahman to soften his heart. Recite Surah al-Ikhlas multiple times, make isal al-thawab of that, and dedicate the reward to him.

After saving up for years, I got my dream car, but within one month it got totaled. How can I console myself?

The fact that you're asking this question is a good moment of reflection. An accident didn't happen accidentally — it happened for a purpose. Maybe through that car a big fitna would have entered your life, attracting the wrong people to you, or you being attracted to the wrong crowds. Remind yourself that Allah loves you. If my son gets a hundred dollars for Eid and uses it purely to buy lollipops, any parent would say no — not because they don't love their son, but because they love him. Allah loves you. That car was not good for you — He took it. That's the hope and expectation you should have from Allah.

Is it permissible to limit talking to your mom because we always argue when we talk?

This is not how it should be, but it happens. This is exactly why this Winter Intensive — please, it's not just for unmarried people. That mom who's not listening needs to come. That dad who doesn't pray needs to come. We're talking about how to build a healthy Muslim home. When we speak to our mother or father and they argue back, we have to control ourselves. Bite your tongue ten times. Keep your tasbih counter in your hand and just keep doing tasbih — أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ in your heart, or astaghfirullah, or salah 'ala al-nabi ﷺ. Keep your tongue busy in the dhikr of Allah. Do not respond back. Make du'a for them, soften their heart through Yasin and al-Rahman. After a clean track record of 40 days or two months of not arguing back, you can then write a nice letter with a gift and say: "Maybe you don't realize, but this is how I end up feeling." At the end of the day, every mom definitely loves her child — sometimes she just doesn't express it well.

How should I be friends with someone who has left Islam and wants nothing to do with religion?

Still try your best to treat him with good character — hopefully one day he'll come back. Mawlana Shibli, our teacher from Darul Uloom, now in Toronto, was able to bring eight ex-Muslims from his extended family back to Islam. He is an excellent polemicist — he studies the arguments of atheists and agnostics thoroughly. And his ustadh told him: "If you want to work on these people, you have to get rid of all debates. You have to be known as the most kind person — the first one to respond when they're in need." He said: "I used three things — good character, du'a, and gifts. And alhamdulillah, eight people came back to the deen." Keeping the relationship is important.

How to stop being materialistic if you like looking good — is that materialistic?

No, it's not, as long as your intention is to display the blessings of Allah on yourself — not to show off. Wanting to dress nicely is clearly mentioned in hadith as something not disallowed.

I notice I'm very short-tempered and get annoyed easily, only with my family. How can I cleanse my heart?

This happens to so many people. I encourage you to do "the Sevens" — a very powerful tool. Recently someone was having issues with their parent. I gave this to them and alhamdulillah, within about a week, the irritation was completely gone. The father came to me complaining about his son, I spoke to the son, told him to do the Sevens and just keep quiet, report back in a week. The father came to me crying saying, "Allahu Akbar." What are the Sevens? Seven times salawat upon the Prophet ﷺ. Seven times Surah al-Fatihah. Seven times Ayat al-Kursi. Seven times Surah al-Quraysh. Seven times Surah al-Kafirun. Seven times Surah al-Ikhlas. Seven times Surah al-Falaq. Seven times Surah al-Nas. And seven times salat 'ala al-nabi ﷺ. Read each seven times, and once finished, blow on your hands and wipe over your body, then blow on water. Do this three times a day until your problem is solved — insha'Allah within a week or ten days. Drink that water, give it to your parents as well — in tea or whatever else. The Sevens, masha'Allah, will address family issues, waswasah, short temper — by the will of Allah, all of these things will be sorted out.

My heart is corrupt and sick, my mind is corrupt and sick — how do I fix myself? Where do I start?

The fact that you're listening tonight — that's the first step. The fact that you realize you have a corrupt heart means 99% of the work is done, because corrupt people usually don't realize it. That's a great sign. Number two, start with simple baby steps — think about where the corruption is coming from. If you need help, sit down with a scholar and say: "I'm feeling corrupt." He'll ask you why and guide you from there. Number three, do the Sevens. Three things: thank Allah for giving you that realization, make istighfar — 300 to 500 a day — and reach out to a scholar to say: "These are the issues I'm dealing with that make me feel really guilty." Insha'Allah he or she will give you some good advice. May Allah Azza wa Jalla reward all of you for asking these questions. If anything was beneficial, it was from Allah Azza wa Jalla. If mistakes were made, may Allah forgive us for that.

Closing Du'a

Ya Allah, we ask You to accept this gathering. O Allah, we ask You to allow us to leave this gathering in a state that our sins have been forgiven and replaced with good deeds. O Allah, whatever khair we have heard, allow us to practice on it. O Allah, we ask You refuge from all evil that we know of and that we don't know of. O Allah, we seek Your forgiveness for all that we have been involved in. O Allah, we beg You to grant us such love that motivates us to worship You, and such fear that keeps us away from Your disobedience. O Allah, grant us the deep understanding of the Qur'an and Sunnah. Make us people who not only look like people of religion but genuinely follow the religion. O Allah, save us from merely having the external appearance of deen without implementing its teachings.

Ya Allah, we ask You to unite our homes — put muhabba and love between every husband and wife, between every parent and child, between every sibling. O Allah, remove all discord, all infighting, all misunderstandings from our homes. O Allah, all those who are looking to get married — make it easy for every single one to find the most righteous, most God-fearing, most kind of spouses. O Allah, make the doors of nikah open wide and allow the doors of sin to be closed tight.

O Allah, allow these holidays — when students and youth are back home — to become a means of strengthening the family bonds. O Allah, whatever mistakes we have made because of which our relatives and friends have gone away from us, we seek Your forgiveness for that. O Allah, have mercy on our brothers and sisters in Gaza, in Sham, in Sudan, in Bilad al-Sham, in Afghanistan, in India, in Pakistan, and wherever else across the world that we are unaware of — grant them victory, unite them, protect them from all sides. O Allah, allow them to witness miracles, feel the company of the angels, and feel Your help with them.

Ya Allah, do not allow our hearts to become hardened by what we see and hear that is befalling the ummah. Allow all of us to become those who make lots of du'a for the ummah, who genuinely care and cry for the ummah. O Allah, save us from a hard heart. O Allah, allow this upcoming Winter Intensive to become extremely successful and extremely beneficial — a life-changing experience for every single person. Allow thousands across the globe to benefit from it, and allow it to become a revival of a beautiful sunnah-based Muslim home across the world.

سُبْحَانَ رَبِّكَ رَبِّ الْعِزَّةِ عَمَّا يَصِفُونَ، وَسَلَامٌ عَلَى الْمُرْسَلِينَ، وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ.

Special thanks and du'a for our sponsors: for the chai from Chai House, for the sisters' snacks from Buns on Fire, and for Mr. Brose for providing the cookies. May Allah عز و جل put barakah and blessing in the owners of these businesses — in their health, their wealth, their iman, their children, and in all aspects of their lives. Ameen, Ya Rabbal Alameen.

Also, please make du'a for the maghfirah of one of our regular brothers — brother Umar Ali's father, brother Ayaz Ali رحمه الله — who passed away earlier this week. He was involved in the construction of many masajid, including the parking lots of most masajid and Darussalam's construction. We ask Allah عز و جل to grant him Jannat al-Firdaws and raise his status. Ameen, Ya Rabbal Alameen.