Surah Al-Kahf - Part 3 Ayahs 7-13 - Mufti Azeemuddin Ahmed - Weekly Tafsir

In the name of Allah, the most gracious, the most merciful. O Allah, send blessings and peace upon our master Muhammad and upon the family of our master Muhammad. And bless and send peace.

O Allah, open my heart and ease my affairs. And release the knot from my tongue so that they understand my speech. O Allah, teach us what benefits us, and benefit us with what You have taught us. And increase us in knowledge and in action. O Allah, inspire us to be righteous in our affairs. And protect us from the evil of our souls. And guide us to what You love. And be pleased with my speech, action, intention, and guidance. O Allah, increase us in knowledge and action. Ameen, O Lord of the worlds.

Opening Reflections: Tawfiq and Gratitude

The sacrifices that all of you have made after a long day of work or at school is something that you and I are able to achieve only because Allah is enabling us to do so. And we pray that this enabling does not stop today, but that it continues to be for all of us.

Every single time any of you — and myself — I always think about the fact that we achieve something, and we are able to achieve something and feel happy about it. And just in case you think that you have been able to achieve that — be it simply preparing for today's class, or attending and taking notes and listening — anytime we accidentally think that we've done it because of our own strength and will and dedication, the very next week or the very next day or the very next hour, we see what happens when Allah pulls the plug. And the person, although he plans so much, but he's not able to achieve it.

How many people were here last week are not here this week? How many people intended fully to be here this week are not able to make it? What stopped them? At the end of the day, it's a tawfiq — when Allah stops me or you. If it's present, we're able to achieve it. If not, we can't do it. So that's why we have really no one to praise besides Allah. And we have no one to thank besides Him. And we have no one to seek assistance from besides Him.

And every single day, we should have our head bowed down in sincerity and in humbleness and humility, that, ya Allah, please don't give up on me. Don't let me go. And what we call khudhlān — don't forsake me. Because if you forsake me, there will be no one who will be able to get me back on my feet.

So with that in mind, if we renew our niyyah and appreciation to Allah, then Allah will, insha'Allah, continue to open up the doors of istiqāmah for us. Because that's the greatest thing that anyone of us can be gifted with. And I've said this many times:

That steadfastness is better than a thousand miracles. So if you want to see a living miracle today, then that is — be steadfast on any one action. Whether it's Salatul Fajr in the masjid, whether it is a dars in the masjid, whether it is some dhikr that you're doing on a regular basis, make sure that you stick to it. No matter what the situation may be, no matter how challenging of a day you may have had, no matter what time you slept the night before, make sure you don't give up on that. That is the karāmah. That's a miracle that we all need to manifest within ourselves.

And let us renew our niyyah while we're here. We're here to please Allah. We're here to learn how to get closer to Allah. We're here to build our relationship with the Qur'an. We're here to rejuvenate our faith. We're here to rebuild our connection with Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم. And we're here to not only listen but to practice and to propagate whatever we hear.

And we also turn to Allah and we say: Allah, this Qur'an is an open book of guidance for all of us. And indeed, the solution to my problems of today — not of yesterday, of today — whatever new problems I walked into the masjid with, the solutions to these problems lies in this book. Allow me to be able to find it. And so with that niyyah, let's all insha'Allah begin today's lesson.

Revisiting Āyāt 7–8: The World as Adornment and Test

Āyat number 7 and 8 — I translated it, I covered it briefly at the end of last week, but I said I'm going to revisit it quickly again before we start the story of the people of the cave. Allah says:

Indeed, we have certainly made all that is on the earth as an adornment for it, only to test them as to which of them is best in deed.

So what's the connection of the previous verse to this verse? The previous verse was: perhaps, O Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم, you may consume yourself, you may destroy yourself sorrowing upon their traces. You are so sad that they don't believe that you may end up — remember what bāki' meant? That nerve in the back of the neck — we said, when you're slaughtering an animal, that's the last thing that's left there. Bāki' is a complete, almost decapitation. Completely cut off. That's bāki'. So the Qur'an is telling us that if you are so worried about the ummah, then you may end up causing yourself to die. Don't do that.

The next verse is: innā ja'alnā mā 'alal ardhi — we made whatever is on the earth as an adornment for it, to test them. And then indeed, O Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم:

We shall certainly make all that is on this earth a barren plain of dust.

What's the connection? The 'ulamā say the connection here is that these disbelievers who don't believe in you, and you are out of sorrow almost taking your life — it's not worth it. Because at the end, everything — wa kullu mā fawqat turābi turāb — whatever is on top of this earth will be going into the earth, will be dust. Fawqat turāb — whatever is on top of the turāb — turāb is dust. Whatever is fawqat turāb is also turāb. Whatever is on the earth is also part of the earth.

There is nothing more powerful on this entire world than a human being. Think about it. An atomic bomb — where does it come from? An atomic bomb doesn't give birth to an atomic bomb. We just recently — the ummah lost the father of the atomic bomb from Pakistan a couple of weeks ago. Simple 5'9", 5'10", 6-foot person. He was given the credit of making the atomic bomb. What did I tell you? That the most powerful thing on this world is not material things. The most powerful thing is Allah's insān — when that insān does what he's supposed to do. When he does what he's supposed to do, then he will go further than the angels.

So Allah is saying: everything on this earth, I'm going to destroy it, I'm going to make it one barren plain land. Including these fir'awn of Mecca — Abu Jahl, Abu Lahab, and the likes of them who are being such a pain for you — they're all going down. Their palaces are going, their gardens are going, and they're going. Today, seriously, where can we find the grave of Abu Lahab or Abu Jahl? Who knows where his palace was? Who knows where his house was? Who knows where his plantations were? Who knows where their properties were? All completely gone.

So Allah is consoling the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم that these people — they're enjoying their power for a few days. And at the end, everything is going to come to dust. This is what Allah is telling Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم.

The Qur'an: A Living, Ever-Relevant Book

But for us, there's so much more. See, the Qur'an isn't just a story that we just say — like kids say, "Baba, share a story." So you share a story with them. Then what? There's no "then what." This is it.

Every single story of the Qur'an is a sign for people who have intelligence. Ulil albāb. If you don't have brains, you're not going to benefit from the stories of the Qur'an. Ulil albāb — lubb means brains. The Qur'an says: indeed, there is benefit and wisdom and lessons to be learned for the intelligent people from the stories of the people of the past. It's not a storybook that we put away and say, "That was nice." None of this is just historical fact.

The Qur'an is not meant to be a history book. The Qur'an is supposed to be a book that's very alive, and that is supposed to be constantly giving us updated new solutions. Think about that. It's the same story. It's the same story. But the benefits keep on changing.

New automatic phones have their — I hear about the new latest electric cars getting the latest new versions downloaded automatically. Right? So now, if a human being is able to do that, what about Allah? Why can He not have that same Qur'an? That same Tesla doesn't move. The same car. New software is coming in. iPhone is not changing — same one in your pocket. But the updates are coming in. And none of us think it's weird. It's normal.

Why is it then, the Qur'an — which is Allah's kalām, His word — why can it not have its lesson continuously be updated? What's weird in this? Someone says, "No, but this is an old book. How can it be relevant to us now?" It's just like no one throws away a one-year-old car or a one-year-old phone, even though that's man-made. The Qur'an is not even "God-made" in the creative sense — the Qur'an is an attribute of Allah, not a creation of Allah. So it's above and beyond any creation. Because it's not a creation. It's an attribute of Allah. It's very alive. And it's constantly being updated — continuous updates in its application.

You take the explanation of Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم and the Ṣaḥābah, and you make that as a framework. I'm not saying you go out of that framework. You use that as a framework. And then you apply the explanations, you apply the verses of the Qur'an to the modern context.

The Meaning of Zīnah: Beauty as a Test

So here, let's see what the Qur'an is telling us. Every single thing on this earth is a zīnah. What's a zīnah? Zīnah is that attractive adornment — or that attraction which catches the eye and distracts a person, but then after that it disappears. That's zukhruf. Christmas lights, or any other type of lights out there that attract a person — the circus that comes to town for the little children. All of this is zukhruf, zakhārif. All of that is zīnah. There's no ḥaqīqah to it. There's no reality to it.

It is just like the topping on a cake. It's just like the candles on a cake. It's there, it looks beautiful. But after a while you realize it's a melting ice cream cake. They have ice carvings now — they do them in weddings apparently. Expensive ice carvings. And a person gets it made in the shape of a bride and a groom. How long does that last? As beautiful as it is, it will melt away. This is exactly what this entire dunya is.

Allah says: I made everything on this earth as a zīnah. Now notice — Allah says everything on the earth. Why did He not mention other things here? Because what's on the earth is closest to you. Even a child doesn't look up. A toddler — someone who's just learning how to crawl — he's focusing on the earth. He's picking up little things off the earth, playing with them, putting them in his mouth, interacting with the earth. The earth is that creation of Allah which we all interact with. Even the youngest interact with that. The heavens — it may take a little bit of age for a person to start reflecting on the sky. But the earth is something that everyone reflects upon and engages with.

So the Qur'an is saying: even the earth — just look right beneath you — I made everything on this earth a beauty for it. Let's understand why Allah made the earth beautiful. Why are people beautiful? Why are buildings beautiful? Why is the sunrise, the sunset? Plants, animals — why is there beauty on earth? Why are we always constantly wanting to pull out our phone and take a picture? Usually when a person enters a place and he sees extraordinary beautification, he asks, "What's the occasion? Is it a presidential arrival? Is it a state dinner? Is it a wedding night? What is going on?"

So now the question is: why did Allah make this earth so beautiful — and everything around it, even the heavens? Allah clearly says it:

The purpose of it is to test you. The purpose of all of it is to test. This is all a big test. This āyah is such an important verse for us to reflect upon. Every time you get caught off guard by the beauty of the things of this world — remember this āyah. Not just the natural beauty, but the man-made beauty. Think about it — this is a test. Similarly, the opposite gender, for example, is a beauty. But why did Allah create that? Place them all over the place — for men and women, each an attraction to the other. Linabluwahum — to test them.

Okay, what's the test about? Ayyuhum aḥsanu 'amalā — who has the best of deeds? The scholars explain that the best of deeds here is referring to those who will not get intoxicated in the materialistic world. Aḥsanu 'amalā are those who have the willpower to stay away from becoming enamored by the worldly attractions.

If any of us say, "I like beautiful cars, nice cars. I like a beautiful home" — you're not irreligious. You're not a fāsiq. You're not a sinner by saying that. You're saying what's natural. That's exactly what it's supposed to do — it's supposed to be attractive, it's supposed to be tempting. The hadith of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 49, Hadith 6)

Indeed, the dunya is sweet and green. And indeed, Allah has made you a khalīfah in it — Allah has made you responsible for your dealings and the dealings of others in this earth — and Allah is going to see how you will go about your life.

Like there's a test — you tell a 3 or 5-year-old: here's a bunch of jelly beans. Wait for 2 minutes, I'm coming back and we'll eat together after I come. And see — will that child wait till you come back? Or will he start nibbling or going all out? They've done these tests on kids, to see willpower — how strong is it? And which child has the ability to withhold and wait? And which child just caves in?

That same willpower — Allah is saying: wait. You can enjoy life, no problem. Jannah has wine, Jannah has milk, Jannah has rivers of everything, Jannah has ḥūr, Jannah has gold and silver — but you just gotta wait. So now some of us can do it and some of us, we fail to control ourselves unfortunately.

So aḥsanu 'amalā — Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم is saying, Allah is going to see how you react with this green and sweet dunya. Allah Himself says:

Zuyyina linnāsi — the following things have been made beautiful for mankind. The following things have been made beautiful. You're not abnormal if you're attracted to these things. Ḥubbu ash-shahawāt — the love of lustful things. What are those? Women. Children, sons. Wa al-qanāṭīr al-muqanṭarah — not a little money, but tons of money. That's what it is. Qanāṭīr al-muqanṭarah means tons of it. Not enough to live off — no, no, no — more, and more, and more, and more, till you can't count it. Insane amounts of money. Mina adh-dhahab — gold. Wa al-fiḍḍah — silver. Wa al-khayl al-musawwamah — the very best horses, the very best Ferrari. Any horse, any car will do? No — but we need to have the best. The best. That's what khayl al-musawwamah means. It's not just any normal horse. It's got its medallion stamped on it. Wa al-an'ām — and livestock. And plantations and farms.

After saying all of this, Allah says — dhālika matā'ul ḥayātid dunyā — this is mere enjoyment of the worldly life. This is mere enjoyment of worldly life. Wallāhu 'indahu ḥusnu al-ma'āb — the real reward and the best place to return to is with Allah. This is just starters.

You know when we go to a dinner or a restaurant, the host brings out all the appetizers. And mashallah, if you're really enjoying what you call the pūrī and the samosas — the host may say, "Bhai, I'm happy you're enjoying — but this is just appetizers. You've got four or five main courses coming, then after that you've got desserts, and then tea also. How are you going to eat so many appetizers?" You've got a limited amount of space. So if you enjoy and indulge in the dunya, we're going to have nothing left in the ākhirah.

You can eat the cake, or you can have it. If we indulge here, we're not going to get over there. And what does "indulge" mean? I didn't say "use." Indulge means to a level at which we forget our maqṣad in this world — that at all cost, we prefer the dunya over the ākhirah. Whether it's coming from ḥalāl or from ḥarām. Whether it makes us neglectful of Allah. But we just need dunya. That's all we want. Besides that, nothing else.

My beloved friends, I want to say: we should all have a desire to become self-sufficient and not in need to go beg anyone. And we should have a desire to be able to help and give to others, and support our elders and our parents. But a deep-seated desire of just amassing wealth is really a disease of the heart. It's a disease that many of the youngsters and adults have. And we may all have it at some time or another — the attraction is there. But let us ask Allah for protection from becoming an 'āshiq — a lover — and one who's intoxicated with the love of it. That I need to have more, must have.

Instead, we should ask Allah:

Oh Allah, grant me qanā'ah and contentment with whatever You've given me. And whatever I'm missing in my life, make it up for me in a better manner. Whatever I want, whatever I desire — every day I'm making du'ā, "Ya Allah, give me this" — and I'm not getting it. And I'm not meant to get it. I'm not going to stop asking — I'm going to keep on asking. But the fact that I don't get what I want, I want You to replace that with something way better in the Hereafter.

Another beautiful du'ā from Ḥizb al-A'ẓam — Munājāt Maqbūl:

Oh Allah, whatever You've granted me from that which I like — allow me to use it in fulfilling what You like. I like money, I like cars, I like this, I like that — okay, fine. You gave it to me. Allow me to now utilize those blessings in a manner that befits what You want, what You wish — which is Your 'ibādah, Your worship.

And oh Allah, what You have chosen to take away from me which I love — then make this empty spot in my heart be filled up with what You like. I want a son, I'm not getting it. I want a daughter, I'm not getting it. I want more children. Or I want a higher-paying job. Or I want more honor and respect in the world. I want a promotion. I want a healthy life. And I'm not getting it. There's an empty spot in my heart — I wish I had that. And I don't have it.

And we're sitting there crying over something which we didn't get. Now what is it? It's an empty spot. Oh Allah, whatever empty spot there is in my heart from what I wanted and You didn't give it to me — make this empty spot be filled with what You like.

Your life is moving forward. You have empty spots in your heart. You're not getting what you want. Instead of sitting there crying all day over the empty spot, how about we ask Allah: "Oh Allah, fill this empty spot with something that You want." Where do you get this from? You get this from Rasulullah's du'ā. That's why we should all be reciting and going through the du'ās of Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم. Because have you ever thought about making a du'ā like this? Our mind doesn't even go to that level.

When you read the du'ās of Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم, you see the depth. So Munājāt Maqbūl — Accepted Whispers — and Ḥizb al-A'ẓam. Books available downstairs in the bookstore or online wherever you want to get them. But these are beautiful books that a person should make a habit of. They're divided over 7 sections, a section to be recited daily. So in the process of a week, you can recite the entire book.

So this is what the Qur'an is saying: don't fall for the beauty of this world. It's all a big test. And what's going to happen at the end?

Every single thing that's on here will all become a plain, barren land. What's ṣa'īd? Ṣa'īd is that level of soil that's right on top of the earth in which there is no vegetation — just on top. And juruz is a plot of land that is free from any and all types of vegetation. Sometimes there was vegetation, but a swarm of locusts or some other type of natural disaster came and destroyed everything — that's called juruz. So you have ṣa'īd which is empty, and then juruz which had something but has been destroyed. So Allah is saying: every single thing is going to come to an end.

We need to reflect on this āyah every single day. I remember our ustādh — he gave us this advice when we were graduating. He said: when you get married, make sure you lead a life where your expenditure is equivalent to your paycheck. Don't go all out the first week with candlelight dinners every night, roses every day — and then the next week you can't keep up with what you started. The wife sees something new in the store and asks, and you've already maxed out your credit card. She doesn't know that, and she may begin to think the relationship is going downhill. So make sure you spend in a manner you can keep up with.

This is one of the hadith of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم:

(Musnad Ahmad, Hadith 8358; also referenced in Shu'ab al-Iman of al-Bayhaqi)

Spending in moderation is half of your livelihood. Half of your rizq comes from spending in a moderate manner. When we overspend, there's no barakah in it.

Āyāt 9–13: The Story of the People of the Cave

Let's move on now to the next section — the big story of this sūrah.

Let's go through the translation first. This story is covered in two sections. The first few verses are a synopsis of the story. Then after that, Allah repeats the whole story in detail over many verses. So let's do the short version of it.

Am ḥasibta — now, O Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, do you deem the account of the companions of the cave and the tablet — the inscription — to be amongst the most wondrous of Our signs? Do you think the story of the people of the cave is the most amazing, most wondrous thing? That there's nothing like this in the world? That's not true.

The story of the people of the cave is very unique, very wondrous. But guess what? Every aspect — the fact that you're sitting here alive and breathing, and all the bodily systems in your brain, in your mind, your respiratory system, your nervous system, all the various organs are running — do you think that's any less wondrous? That's what the Qur'an is saying. It's not just the story of the cave. Your existence and your breathing, in and out, every single day, is a miracle that points towards Allah's greatness.

And that's why — Rabb al-'ālamīn. The word 'ālam — where does it come from? 'Ālam comes from the word 'alāmah — which means a sign. And another word is 'alāmah. What is 'alāmah? Also a sign. So the entire world is called 'ālam:

Because the entire world is one big billboard pointing towards Allah's greatness. The entire world is an 'ālam — because it's all an 'alāmah of Allah's greatness. It's all a flag — a sign — of Allah's greatness. So Rabb al-'ālamīn — there's not just one world; all the worlds are pointing towards Allah.

How can a person live in this world, breathe in this world, die in this world, and still not recognize Allah? When the entire world, Allah calls it 'ālam — because it's all an 'alāmah of Allah's greatness.

So the story of the people of the cave is not just the most strange — there are many other strange things.

What happened in this story? Behold, there were a group of youth who took shelter in the cave apart from their people. Awā means to take shelter. Fityah — the plural of fatā — it means a group of young people. Kahf means a cave inside a mountain. Faqālū — they said — Rabbanā — O our Lord — Rabbanā ātinā min ladunka raḥmatan — grant us from Your own providence, mercy. Wa hayyi' means to furnish, enable, grant us — lanā — for us — min amrinā — in our present circumstances — rashadā — right guidance. Rashīd — someone who is rightly guided. So: Ya Allah, provide us right guidance in our affairs right now.

So We struck a seal of sleep upon their ears, in their cave. Sinīna 'adadā — for a great number of years. 'Adadā means you have to sit there counting it — it's not a few years, it's many, many years. Ḍaraba means to strike — that's why it says We struck a seal upon their ears in the cave.

Then We awaken them — the way you awaken people after death. That sleep was so deep, it was like death, half of death. We awaken them after that. Lina'lama — so that We may distinguish which of the two parties amongst them. Of course, you might be saying: lina'lama means "so that We may know." How can we translate this as distinguish? Because this is called 'ilm aẓ-ẓuhūr. Allah already knows. Allah wants you to know it. He already has the knowledge of everything. He is allowing the story to become a manifestation of His knowledge — that's why it's been translated as: so that We might distinguish which of the two parties amongst them would best enumerate the length that they had abided in the cave.

Ḥizbayn is the plural of ḥizb, which means a party. Which are the two groups? One group said: we slept a day or half a day. And the other group said: I don't think we can sit and guess how long we slept — Allah knows best. That's one opinion. A second opinion is that the two groups refers to the group of people who slept, who thought they slept for maybe a day or two or more — and the people outside who know that definitely these people disappeared for hundreds of years. So there are two parties, and we're going to find out who is correct. Those living inside thinking it was a long sleep but not more than a day or two, and the people outside who know it was actually hundreds of years.

Now We relate to you their tidings in truth. This is the more detailed version beginning. Innahum fityatun āmanū bi-rabbihim wa zidnāhum hudā — indeed they were young people who believed in their Lord, and We increased them in guidance. The detailed section is starting. Let's first finish up the shorter version before we move on to the detailed version.

Background of the Story: Youth Standing Firm in Faith

As we said — the Qur'an is not a history book. So we're not going to go into all the opinions about which city, which era, which time, the names of the king. That's not really relevant here. What's relevant is the story and the lessons we can derive from it. So that's what we're going to stick to.

This is a time before Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم, and more than likely during the time of Banī Isrā'īl, before even Īsā عليه السلام. Because the Jews had meticulously covered and preserved their story. And that's why — if you remember from last week — they told the mushrikīn of Mecca to go ask Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم about this. Go ask them the story, because they were following this.

So during that time, there was a town in which the king was a mushrik. He invited people to worship idols and he did not want people to follow the deen. In that era, these young men — Allah guided them towards Islam, guided them towards their true deen. And the news reached the king. The king called them into his court and asked them: "What is it that I'm hearing about you all, that you are trying to practice a religion that is not acceptable in our society?"

Subhanallah — as you go through this story, think about what's happening in China. That's what I mean — it's real. This story is alive in this day and age. Look at what's going on in China. Read at least a few pages. And ask yourselves: I have such a hard time remaining a Muslim when no one says anything to me — instead people are pushing me. My parents, my family, the masjid, the text message, the WhatsApp message, the Facebook post — is all pushing me towards the deen. Yet I have such a hard time fulfilling my basics. Imagine, a million times may Allah not make it happen, if I were in a situation that Muslims in China are faced with.

They just made a decree that they're going to cut off all the domes — you ever read that? Removal of all domes from masājid. I mean, what thing have they not done? Every single thing to completely destroy every aspect of the sha'ā'ir al-Islām — the symbols of Islam.

So the king called them and said: "What is it I hear that you're following this deen? Give this up." And they said: "No, we're not." And so they had a discussion. He said: "Who is this Allah?" And so they started giving da'wah of Allah in front of the king. He was shocked that these young people had the audacity to speak these type of things.

He said: "Okay, fine. I'll give you some chance. You're young, you might not be thinking appropriately." According to some narrations, these young men were actually very well connected — family members of the noble class. So they actually had access to the palace, according to some narrations — they had access to the luxuries that the palace afforded. So he warned them: "As royalty, you are saying these type of things — I'm going to strip you of these royal robes, and make you lose all access to the royal palace and court. And instead of enjoying what you're enjoying today, you're going to be in the dungeon, if you choose not to give up this faith."

And they said: "Okay, give us some time. Let us go." When they were allowed to go, they left. They went home, packed up their bags, and they ran.

Now there are different narrations. Either these groups of people were together when they faced the king — and he spoke to them in one shot, and gave them respite together, and then they all left. Or according to many other narrations, these were not connected. These young people were different people from that time who were all Muslims. One common denominator — they were Muslims, when no one else was allowing them to be Muslims.

So they all happened to be one day, out and about from the village and town, and they saw each other. And when they saw each other, they said: "Who are you? Why are you here?" And no one was speaking. They said: "Okay, fine. Let's take an oath that we all speak up to each other about what our story is — on the condition that if our purpose of leaving town is the same, we will become as one group and work together. And if our purpose is different, then at least we won't rat each other out. We'll keep it quiet. If we can help each other, mashallah, good. If not, let's not harm each other."

Go ahead — you say why you're here. Why are you here? Why are you here? So they all shared their story. And it became quite apparent that they had all left the town because of trying to protect their deen.

Lessons for Today: What Price Are You Willing to Pay?

But remember, my dear friends — apply it to your life. You have your mom and dad, you have your grandparents, you have your very own home, you have your very own car, your favorite gym, favorite restaurant, favorite drinks, favorite food, favorite workout place, favorite sports, favorite group of friends. And the only issue is, there's pressure for you not to follow the deen. Which one are you going to keep? Which one are you going to give up? All of us should ask ourselves this question: what price are you willing to pay to remain a Muslim? What price are you willing to pay to be steadfast and to be able to perform your salāh?

It hurts me thinking about a youngster — one day I saw him and he's growing out a beard. Mubarak — you know, kids, they don't know what they're talking about. And he shaved his beard. The next week I saw him and I said: "What happened to your beard?" Instead of just saying, "Sheikh, please forgive me, make du'ā for me" — he tells me: "Ten bucks." I said: "What do you mean?" He said: "Well, I got a ten-dollar-an-hour job. That's it. That's why I shaved my beard. Because they don't want me to have a beard, so ten bucks an hour." This was like 15 years ago. And I'm like: do you realize the gravity of what you're saying? What type of thing is this, subhanAllah.

Instead of a person sitting there crying to say, "I had to give up my beard for my job" — sometimes those type of tests do come in a person's life. As a brother one day was mentioning to me, he said: "I grew out a beard, but never thought about it much. But he said the real value of the beard came today, when I was going for an interview, and someone said, 'Oh, you're going for that interview? You gotta trim your beard.'"

There are still many people living as though colonialism is not over. They're still thinking it's still going. So if you walk out in a shalwār kameez, they say, "What are you doing? Wear pants." They're still living under colonial rule in their minds. So having a beard and going outside, wearing a thobe and going outside — they think the British are still going to come and knock you out. They have to be reminded that it's a free country. Alhamdulillah, we're able to practice.

One day, I was giving a khutbah in one state. Afterwards, I was at the booth outside — I was speaking about the issue of people leaving Islam and the trials of doubts and desires and so forth. This is the problem, and these are the efforts we have to make to save our children and ourselves. Afterwards, an elderly uncle comes to me. He says: "Are you the khaṭīb?" I'm like, "Yes." Usually, either it's very good news or bad news when someone asks you that. So I said: "What happened?" And then he started going off on me. Why? Because I was wearing a turban. And he said: "I cannot believe you — you're in America and giving a khutbah looking like a terrorist." And he himself was from Afghanistan or Palestine — I forgot.

I said: "If wearing a turban is terrorism, then all the 5,000 angels — plus the 3,000 that were coming in Badr — were all terrorists? Because the Qur'an says musawwimīn — those angels were descending in the battle of Badr wearing turbans. Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم entered Mecca wearing a turban. Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم was never seen with his head uncovered."

As much as people want to make this into a "desi thing," it's not a desi thing, for your information. It has nothing to do with India or Pakistan. The covering of the head is part of the sunnah of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. If Allah uses a certain group of people to revive it, good for them. But don't ever think that this is coming out of some village in India. This is the sunnah of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. So revive it, my friends.

There was a time in India and Pakistan — and probably in the Khaleej — that if you would enter a masjid, you would not find a single person with their head uncovered. And now I actually gave a khutbah once and from the minbar I'm looking at the crowd — I'm like, "Okay, hold on. Can I find even one person here besides me who's got his head covered?" The entire masjid — look at how the tables have turned. It's a sunnah of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. Yes, it's not farḍ — yes. But it's one of the symbols of a Muslim.

As Imam Zaid once mentioned a couple of years ago — he said: "If you have no motivation, just do it to show solidarity with your wife, your daughter, and your mother who wears the hijab. They're out there, a target of Islamophobia — our sisters, daughters and mothers wearing the scarf. Why are you shy from covering your head? This is the sunnah of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم."

This is part of the colonialism — it's called the war, not of land, but the war of hearts and minds — which they have won. A person is sitting here at the age of 70 in a free country, and if you see someone wearing shorts and purple hair and 100 tattoos, no problem. But you see someone wearing the sunnah of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, and he says, "Why are you dressed like a terrorist?" If in a free country, with no one telling you anything, you are still afraid — where will you be when the real test from Allah comes?

One brother many years ago came here — a refugee from Iraq. He came to the masjid — a new person to this country. He saw me and said: "I heard it's illegal to — I'm just new to this country — is it illegal to pray outside? That's why I came here." I said: "What?" He said: "Yeah, I was praying — it's time for ṣalāh — and a Muslim came up to me and said, 'No brother, this is not the Middle East. This is America. This is illegal — you have to go pray inside.'"

This is where the deen gets hurt — by people like this. By people in whose heart the greatness of Allah is not present, but the greatness of other things is. And remember: whoever doesn't fear Allah, Allah will make him afraid of everything else. If you submit yourself to Allah, Allah will make you free of the fear of anyone else. And if a person does not fear Allah — what we're seeing in the world today — everything is about the chair, about who's in charge. People are so scared, and they're willing to go to extreme lengths — unbelievable amounts of oppression, killing millions of their own people — because of this. Why? Because they're afraid of no one. They're not afraid of Allah. So Allah has made them more scared of losing their power than anyone of us can imagine. And that's what makes them do the crazy things they do. It's because of the fear of the loss of power.

The Deen Must Not Be Circumstantial

So we're speaking about — where was I? — the sunnah of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم — that these individuals realized the environment was not conducive. So what are you going to do?

If we're asked why we're not practicing the deen, and we say — "This is America. This is 2021. This is a university town. This is the Fortune 500 company that I'm working for. This is the expectations in the medical career." Or whatever. So what happens? The question is — is that really an answer that's going to pass in the grave?

That's why they say — al-'udhru aqbaḥu min adh-dhanb — the excuse is worse than the sin. In school, someone comes and says: "Why are you late?" And he says: "I was late because I was finishing up my cigarette." The saying is: the excuse is worse than the sin.

My friends, a deen that is based on circumstance will never last. COVID showed us that. COVID lockdown showed us that. That if your deen or my deen was based on circumstances, then we're out. If the masjid is not open, I'm not going to pray. If the masjid doesn't have a program, I'm not going to read my dars. We've lost hundreds of millions of people in the past two years. We've lost them. Because the deen was based on what? Environment. And the deen was based on circumstances. And when the environment and the circumstances changed, they lost it.

Think about this again and again. This past two years is a great example of what happens when deen is based on environment and circumstances. That if Allah overnight chooses to switch them — the way He did for us in the second week of March — we may lose everything.

When Dajjāl shows up, the entire environment is going to be 100% absolutely anti-following the deen. It will be absolutely not conducive. It's like walking around in March of 2019, giving big hugs to everyone without a mask, sharing an ice cream. What would have happened to you? How against the norm that would be. That's a million times harder than what following the deen during the era of Dajjāl will be. Because no one will be doing it. They'll be saying: "What are you talking about? How could you say you're going to pray ṣalāh?" It's going to be absolutely not conducive.

So if we are having a hard time going against the flow today, what will happen 20 years from now? 30 years from now? My dear friends, I want you to think about this. We're leaving our young children — the corona babies, as they call them. That entire generation will always be called corona babies. We're leaving them in a world that is thousands of times more challenging than the world you and I were born in. They will never know what pre-corona lifestyle was. And for them, to be able to practice the deen firmly will be an even much, much greater challenge. So we have to up the game. We really have to take it to the next level.

When the car, my dear friends, is slipping into the ditch — do you, with one finger, gently turn your steering wheel? No. You put your two hands, and if you can, your two feet, and you turn the entire thing the opposite side. That's exactly what you need to do right now. Because the entire deen is going towards the ditches. The ummah is falling off the deen. If you want to protect yourself and your family, you can't just say, "We come Friday. Alhamdulillah. We send our kids to Sunday school." I'm sorry — I'm being honest to God — it's not going to cut it. Sunday school, once a week, Jumu'ah, Eid, cultural gatherings — it's not going to cut it. It's just a matter of time before we completely lose our generations to atheism.

If you want to protect yourself, you have to make an extra correction. And you really have to go all out. And so people around you will be saying: "What are you doing? Why are you overdoing it? You're becoming an extremist." Anything you do — you send your kids to an Islamic school, you send them to madrasa, you send them to study, you go to the masjid more than once a day — you become an extremist. When your family starts calling you "too religious," understand that you are slowly getting in the right direction. Otherwise, there's a problem.

If we're too close to people who don't have a very strong deen, that tells us something about ourselves. We need to stop trying to play the game of being the most popular person on the block. This is an issue. Everyone must love our home. Everyone must love us. And if we don't go to their party, we're going to lose that popularity contest. Understand — if you run on this popularity contest, you will become popular with Iblīs and his army. If you want that, that's the way to do it. When the people who are not following the deen say, "This guy is becoming too religious," that's a good sign.

I'm not saying compromise on your character and your akhlāq. Put $100 in an envelope and drop it in their mailbox. Send big gifts to their house — no one is saying don't do that. But we have to make sure that we are not trying to compromise our deen in order to win over their approval.

So these young men said: we don't need the approval of society. And we don't need the luxuries that this palace affords us. There's nothing more important to us than our deen. And so let's get out. And when they left, they didn't go for camping purposes. They went long-term to preserve the deen, and they took with them their books.

What Is Al-Raqīm?

Some 'ulamā have said: raqīm — aṣḥāb al-kahf wa al-raqīm — the people of the cave and the people of the tablet recording. Some have said raqīm was the name of the dog. Some have said raqīm is the name of the valley. Some have said raqīm is the tablet in which something was recorded. Raqama — they say raqama al-ḥurūf. Raqīm, raqama is to write. So raqīm is a tablet in which something is written. What was written on there? Multiple opinions.

One is: it was the Tawrāh, or excerpts of the Tawrāh, that were written on the raqīm that they took with them — what we might call their book of knowledge that they took with them. This is what Mawlāna Nadwī writes. There is the tafsīr — Mawlāna Abul Hasan Ali Nadwī's tafsīr, Faith vs. Materialism — that I had mentioned. It was available last week. Make sure you get your hands on it whenever it's available. It's amazing.

A second explanation of raqīm is: the names of the people who disappeared — these young men — were written and kept in the palace of the king when they found out they disappeared. You know how you have "missing people"? Their names are written. So, they went to the cave to sit, study their books, and take shelter. Their names, meanwhile, were recorded back in the palace.

The Du'ā of the People of the Cave

When they went to the cave, they made a powerful du'ā. Allah says: they took shelter in the cave. My dearest brothers and sisters — you've heard us many times speaking about the fitnah that we're living in right now. The era of isms. And in the era of these isms, an average student who goes to high school and college — I kid you not — I don't know how he's going to protect his deen.

When I walk by these high schools here and I look at the tens of Muslim guys and girls walking out, I sit there and I think: how are these young people protecting their deen? Amongst 2,500 non-Muslims — 99% who are involved, according to statistics, before marriage. And right now, the latest article showed that due to various factors, soon married people will become the minority. And it's not just men and women cohabiting — it's other stuff going on. And that's going to increase.

So now, to send our sons and daughters to a normal public school or a normal anything, and to expect that they're going to come out clean and protected — it baffles me. I'm sorry. It baffles me. And if your son or daughter is going through that, I'm telling you as well — I don't know how you do it.

I myself would feel ḥayā'. I would feel ashamed. I really would feel ashamed to walk through a high school right now because of what goes on there. I would feel ashamed and awkward. Why would I ever put my kids through something like that? But we never walked through it ourselves. How many of you have sat there — without telling your son and daughter — and gone during the day, taken permission from the superintendent, just to walk through? Look what happens in recess. Look what happens behind the stairs. Look what happens in the hallways. Look at what happens when class gets out. Look what happens in the playground. And then tell me — you'll send your daughter there the next day.

But we think like a pigeon. Before a pigeon is killed, what does it do? It closes its eyes. Because a pigeon thinks: if I can't see it, it's not going to harm me. We have become like pigeons — if I don't know about it, it's not going to harm my kids. And that foolishness is going to come haunt us.

We are living in an unprecedented level of fitnah, my friends. You can't say, "I was born and raised in this country, I went to school in the 80s and 90s." No — this is not the 80s and the 90s. We are in a whole other level of fitnah. Second graders — you know what's going on in this area. How the whole left is pushing the LGBTQ agenda in first grade, kindergarten, right here in this district as we speak. The local books — if you go look in the toddler section — do you know what's there? I've seen it just this week. Books intended for two-year-olds, with two or three big words on each page — pushing a full-scale agenda. Did that happen when you were growing up? No, right? So then why do you think it's the same thing?

I'm so proud my son is getting a 4.0 GPA. My daughter is getting a 4.2. At the cost of what? Let's leave the grades, leave the APs, leave all the fancy colleges they're getting into. Let's talk about the deen. And this is what scares me — is the fact that no one seems to be caring about the deen of their kids. Just because we have an Arabic-sounding name. We think this is going to save our children. So what do we need now in this era of fitnah? We need a cave. All of us need a cave. I need it for my kids and for myself. You all need it. We're all living in an era like these young men are.

We just pray and beg to Allah a billion times that may He never allow us to see Dajjāl. If we can't survive now, what's going to happen then? If you look at the statistics of promiscuity within the Muslim youth, alcohol usage within the Muslim youth — it's unbelievable. It's almost equivalent to non-Muslims.

Just within this city — many of the young adults who come to this masjid — I interacted with them 15 years ago, 10 years ago, when they were in engineering, medical school, dental school in the various universities here. It was a normal thing — almost three days a week I would be visiting one of the universities here. We'd have the dars there and then a late-night session in one of the apartments. Whether it was Dār al-Ḥikmah or the other MSAs — it was always, mashallah, this amazing environment. 2006 to 2012. And now it's over. It's finished.

There was a time when you graduated from the universities here — like you graduate knowing science and math — you had to know the 'ulamā of the city. You'd hear them at Jumu'ah, you'd hear them at an MSA event. Just within this city, there's been massive change within the Muslim community on campus. And the amount of change, the liberalism that has come in — no more knowledge events, all social events. And I never knew this happens, because I've been out of that scene for about 6 to 10 years now. When I see some of the pictures, once in a great while, of what's happening on campus under the banner of Muslim students — it shocks me.

It's better we don't do it under the name of Islam. Because at least we don't tarnish the image of Islam. As the 'ulamā say: drinking liquor and wine is ḥarām. But if you say "Bismillah" and drink it — it's an act of kufr. It's an act of disbelief. Because you are making a mockery of Allah — I know this is ḥarām, but I'm going to take Your name and do it. Similarly, a person who misses his prayer is committing a major sin. But a person who says, "I'm going to pray without wuḍū" — intentionally — that is also an act of kufr. When a person tries to imitate the one who prays while intentionally abandoning its condition — that is an act of kufr.

So I think many of the Muslim events happening on our campuses should stop. Because they're under the banner of Islam but there's nothing to do with Islam — complete ḥarām. So when that's the environment — that's not just your child or my child. All of our children, 100% of our children, are going to university, high school, and college. Where is the concern for the deen of these kids?

My dear friends — wake up yourself and wake up others. Please. It's not worth it, for $200,000 or $300,000. As I said earlier — like the brother who shaved his beard for $10 an hour — we're saying $100,000 for all our īmān. Ya Allah, give me 100K and my īmān's out.

One person told me — he met me after Jumu'ah in one area — "My son, you know — talking about leaving Islam — my son, yeah, he left Islam." I said: "Oh, what happened? I told him to come for Jumu'ah today too." He says: "No, I don't want to stand shoulder to shoulder — that's yucky. He said, 'I'll just stay at home, you go pray.'" I said: "When did this happen?" He said: "Yeah, at home during undergrad he was fine. When he went to medical school, far away from home — then I don't know what happened." And then he just said, "Acha bhai, salāmu 'alaykum" and walked away. And I'm like, wait — hold on. You just say salāmu 'alaykum and walk away? This is a real story. I want to console you. I want to give you a hug. I want to give you some solutions. I want you to try to set up a meeting with him. Maybe we can meet for coffee and talk. And he just moved on. So nonchalantly — the kid has left Islam. He got the degree. And at the cost of that, he left Islam.

I'm telling you, this is exactly what's happening outside. And you know this better than I do. How many people have lost their deen at college? And their parents really don't care, because their child is doing successfully in their career. If that's the condition of the parents, what do you expect of the kids? And what do you expect of the grandkids?

Building Your Cave: Community of Like-Minded People

So our biggest problem right now is coming from within the Muslim community. That is why you need to build a cave of like-minded people who have similar principles, similar expectations from themselves, and a similar desire to sacrifice. What did these 5 or 6 young men do? What did they say? I just told you. They said: "Let's discuss why we all left. If it's the same, we stick together. If it's not the same, we part ways but we don't share what happened."

So you can't just say, "Come, everyone under one umbrella." What we have to see is — we have to be with people who really have this concern that I'm sharing with you right now: that I don't care what happens, I cannot afford my children or myself or my spouse losing the deen. That's something I will never give up. And when you find people like that, then you hold on to those people. Just like these young men did. This is why we're studying this story. Exactly for why I'm sharing what I'm sharing today — to learn from this story.

This is how you save your deen. You've got to stand up and leave. And you've got to take shelter in a cave. Now, this cave does not have to be a physical cave. This could be a spiritual cave. And that's what the Qur'an speaks about:

When you separated from them. The mufassirūn have written: i'tizāl ma'nawī wa i'tizāl jismī — they separated from themselves physically, they separated from the town physically, and they separated from the town through their soul, spirit and mind. Figuratively speaking.

So what we need to do is separate ourselves from society — not physically necessarily. Go on to work tomorrow, go on to school, wherever you need to go. But at least our soul, heart and mind needs to be in a separate place. And there's no better place than the masjid. There's no better place than the zawiyah, the khānqāh. There's no better place than the madrasah and the seminary. Wallahi, this is our lifeline. This is our lifeline.

And understand that kids graduate from the Ḥifẓ class here. Then they're here 6 days a week, 8 hours a day. When that boy graduates — and he doesn't come here for 'Ishā' or Fajr, after school — whose fault is that? It's the father's fault, the mother's fault. I tell this to the parents on graduation day: mashallah, thank you for the sweets. But make sure your son or daughter comes here at least once or twice a week. And if you live nearby, then for at least one ṣalāh.

This ḥifẓ is not going to save him, my friend. This ḥifẓ is not going to save him. And those of you who are studying the one-year program — this one-year program is not going to save you either, if you don't stay connected. Heck, seven years won't save you. Fifteen years won't save you. Nothing saves you unless you remain connected with the people of 'ilm, the people of taqwā, and the environment of taqwā. And then on top of that, you have to have the faḍl and the grace of Allah.

So we all need to make this commitment today — that we will regularly continue to take shelter in a cave of 'ilm, of spirituality, of rūḥāniyyah, of tazkiyah, of da'wah. And that we will invite our family and friends with this pain that I'm trying to share with you.

We cannot save ourselves if we don't stay connected to the masjid. No matter if your son memorizes the Qur'an in 7 qirā'āt — it's not going to work. That's exactly what's happening tens of times every week here, throughout the United States, in Chicago, and everywhere else — kids are leaving Islam. Ḥuffāẓ. Because their dads and moms don't bring them to the masjid. Allah gave you a beautiful innocent ḥāfiẓ al-Qur'ān. And then you mess it up with your own hands and make him into an atheist. Whose fault is that? Seriously, it's so upsetting. Just because you're lazy, you don't want to come to the masjid? Or, "No, we have homework in the evening. We have soccer practice, we can't come to the masjid." That's exactly what our ummah is doing. And that's why our kids are leaving the deen.

So my dear elders, and my dear boys and girls who are not yet married — one day you will become parents. Remember: when you become parents, the world will be much tougher than it is now. And you will have to make even more extreme measures. You never know — a time may come where you might have to sleep with your son and daughter in the house of Allah. You never know what type of circumstances will come. Or you may have to lock yourself in the house, not even leave for anything. Because as soon as you step out, the nonsense happening outside will overwhelm you.

These young people made a powerful du'ā. Memorize this du'ā. Highlight it.

O Allah, grant us mercy from Your own providence. And in our present circumstances, grant us right guidance.

This is the du'ā we need to be making today. What was the raḥmah of Allah? Amazingly — the 'ulamā said — Allah gave them raḥmah. What raḥmah? How did raḥmah manifest itself? Sleeping. Sleeping was the raḥmah. Imagine that. When fitnah gets bad, it's better to sleep. That's what I learned from my teachers. A young man said: "What did you do?" He said: "I slept." He said: "Alhamdulillah. At least you didn't sin. As long as you got up, prayed, and went back to sleep — it's very good that you slept 12 hours, 15 hours, 20 hours. As long as you get up, pray, and go to sleep. Because the alternative is ḥarām. Sleeping is much better." Allahu Akbar.

So Allah provided them mercy by putting them to sleep. Because right now it's too tough for you all to survive here. And if we are all in that situation right now, we need Allah's mercy. This is the du'ā we should be making. The ulama said another thing: they're going to a cave, a desolate cave, leaving the town behind them. And they're asking for mercy. This is very clear — this mercy is not going to come through the creation of Allah; it's going to come directly from the Creator. Because the creation — they left it behind.

And what was the hijrah like? Not to a place of higher pay. Not to a more comfortable place. They went from luxury to the floor of a cave. But they had trust that Allah will not forsake them.

Whoever makes hijrah in the path of Allah, for the sake of Allah, he will find much abundance, greatness, and barakah in the earth. When you leave something for the sake of Allah, Allah will give you ten times that — not only in the ākhirah, but in this dunya. But we must learn how to give up for the sake of Allah. Just give that job up. Give that school up. Give that up for the sake of Allah.

So when sending your son or daughter to a university — look: is there an imam in that community? Is there a strong Muslim community? Is there a good masjid there? Can my son or daughter have a Muslim roommate — a good, practicing, muttaqī roommate? If not, I don't care where you got admitted. Then move. You yourself, give up your job and move there. If you care about that university. We cannot just pack them up on a plane and send them. So we have to learn how to give up things, and then Allah will give us ten times that.

And then — wa hayyi' lanā — guide us in the right way. One of the du'ās:

Oh Allah, inspire us — ilhām means inspiration — with the most correct way in our affairs. That's a sunnah du'ā that corroborates with this Qur'anic du'ā.

The Sealing of the Ears: A Profound Sign

So We struck a seal of sleep upon their ears. What was the first thing? From all the senses, the first sense Allah awakens for a person is what? The ear. The baby doesn't see inside the womb. The baby can smell inside the womb, but the baby can hear. The baby gets accustomed to listening to the mother's voice. That's why mothers who are expecting should recite Qur'an, because the child can hear. Child can hear inside the mother's womb. And as soon as the child is born, it takes up to maybe 10 to 13 days or so for the child to start seeing properly. You close your hand over his eyes, he won't say anything. But you scream in his ears, he'll hear that.

Similarly, when a person goes to sleep, all the senses are shut. Eyes are shut. Nose is shut. Tongue is shut. But the ears stay open. That's how we hear the alarm clock. Allah wanted to put them to sleep. And He knows, of course, that this is one sense that remains on when you're sleeping. So He shut that sense off — so that they would have the capacity to sleep for 309 years. Get it? So this is the powerful sense of hearing that Allah decided to turn off. He struck a seal upon it. And then they ended up sleeping for a long time.

Then Allah says: We raised them — just like after death someone is raised — similarly they were raised. So that it will become apparent how many years, and which group of people was correct. One group said they lived for X number of years; another group said they lived another number of years. Which group is speaking correctly — it will become known. Allah said He will allow us to know this after the story. And what was the correct answer? The correct answer obviously was that they didn't sleep for a couple of days — they slept for 300 plus years.

Summary: The Gist of Today's Lesson

So the gist of today that we learn is: everything on this earth is an attraction and a distraction. And the purpose of it — it's like cones. The cones in the parking lot, or when you go to get your driver's license, are not there for beauty. You're supposed to navigate around them. And that's exactly what the beauty of this dunya is. You're supposed to look and say "fine," but don't indulge. Navigate around it. That's the whole test — whether you get your license or you don't. If you run over the cones, you're not going to get your license. So this entire dunya, there are millions of beautiful "cones" — much nicer and more beautiful looking than orange and yellow — and the idea is: do you fall for it? Or do you just look and move on?

That's the first part. And the second part — we spoke about the shorter version of the story of the people of the cave that Allah mentions. And the key thing is: in order to protect your deen, you have to be willing to make a sacrifice and leave to a place where you find a conducive environment of like-minded people — willing to make sacrifices like you have, and willing to practice the deen like you have.

So my dear friends — make hijrah within America. Find a spot. Your local masjid should be your cave. If you say, "My local masjid is closed four out of five times a day," what are you doing there? If you say, "My local masjid does not have an imam," what are you doing over there? My local masjid does not have a program for kids. My local masjid does not have a program for women. My local masjid doesn't cater to talks in English. Or someone's reading off a paper and I don't understand what he's speaking about. Then my friends, don't just say, "I just live near the masjid."

Because a masjid in this day and age cannot be just: come, pray your two rak'āt and leave. No — it won't last. You have to have a vibrant masjid with a vibrant community that will serve you in all aspects. Like a department store that's got everything. You cannot live off a gas station alone. A gas station without the convenience store provides you only one thing. What about the rest? Where's your milk and bread going to come from?

Sometimes people say, "Alhamdulillah, I go for namāz — I might have a local masjid." No — I'm being honest with you. This is not going to work for your kids, or your spouse, or for yourself, long term. You need to have a masjid that will provide all your needs. So build those in your community — for those who are from out of state listening and out of area. Whose job is that? That's your work. No one's going to come from overseas and say, "We would love to build a masjid for you." That's your job to do.

I just recently came across a very beautiful masjid online. I was like: wow, this is gorgeous. And it was named after a certain foreign country that paid money to build it. And then at the bottom I read: "Imam Opening — Vacancy." What is a beautiful masjid going to do for us or for our kids? So this is something we all need to have concern for.

Every masjid must become alive. Every masjid must have a vibrant community. Every masjid must have, not one, but multiple imams serving multiple needs. This is not the job of one person. Look at how many things are happening, mashallah, over here — there's a whole team of 'ulamā, scholars, volunteers. That's what masājid need. Masājid need resources — paid resources for multiple positions. Before you choose to spend money on renovating whatever you want to renovate, the first thing is to focus on human resources. Make sure you have the staff you need to make that place vibrant.

This is my important message to myself and all of us: find a cave in your area and stick to it. Come to it once or twice a week minimum. And if you're local, go every single day. And don't come alone. Bring your spouse. Bring your kids. Allow them to adjust. Allow them to fall in love.

The old father before he dies gives you his lawyer's number and says, "He'll take care of you." I want us as fathers and mothers here to know that before we leave this world, our children know very well how to get to the cave. Because if you didn't teach them that, you're going to suffer. If you didn't teach them the path to the cave, then we will be receiving very terrible news in the grave about what's happening to the future generations. So this is the time to teach them — while they're still young, while they're still with us in our homes. Bring them with us.

And we ask Allah that He allows you and I to not only allow this institution, Dārussalām, to remain a powerful cave for millions of people across the globe, but beyond that — may Allah make this a place, a cave-maker, that will take the lantern of hidāyah and nūr and light up millions and thousands of other masājid and madāris across the globe. That cities across the globe, in every area, also have a cave available for them. Say insha'Allah.

It will be based on our niyyah. If you make the niyyah, all of you who are attending here play a part in it. Every one of you. Wallahi, every one of you. Play a part in it. Those who are listening now or listening afterwards — if you're listening to me, that means Allah wants you, insha'Allah, to play a part in this. In reviving and building caves across the globe. That will serve as a protective place in this Dajjālī era — and in the future when hopefully we're all gone during the actual time of Dajjāl — these caves will be the only place that people will find shelter in.

Announcements

Before we complete the dhikr and du'ā, insha'Allah — the tafsīr books are available. Please make sure they're sent to the sisters' side as well. Please do enjoy the tea and coffee or the biscuits before you leave. May Allah reward our dear beloved students and ansār who are making the effort every week to prepare these snacks for all of us, and our IT team.

And may Allah also give us tawfīq to spread the word. If you came here and benefited today, please bring another ten next week. If you believe what I said was true, then make sure you work on your siblings, your friends, your neighbors, your cousins, your WhatsApp groups. One of us needs to become a dā'ī and an ambassador — and insha'Allah, they will take from here something and go light up somewhere else.

Saturdays — we have our team Fajr program. After Fajr, Maulana Iḥsān, alhamdulillah, spoke last week and this week he will be speaking as well. Please join us at 6:15 for Ṣalātul Fajr — live stream as well as live here — followed by a talk, dhikr, and a hot breakfast.

Monthly Khatmul Qur'an — this Thursday, after Ṣalātul 'Ishā'. We have ṣalawāt, then the monthly khatmul Qur'ān du'ā. So if you are working towards that goal, please try to finish up in the next couple of days. If you're hearing about this for the first time — every single month, on the last Thursday, we do a khatmul Qur'ān du'ā. There's a link on the events group where you can put your pledge of how many khātims you did and your du'ās, and Maulana will include those du'ās in the khatm du'ā.

Seerah Conference — coming November 12th and 13th. Please mark your calendars. We have a great lineup of 'ulamā and scholars from across the country, plus a complete parallel session for kids — entire day, separate program for children, and babysitting and childcare.

Winter Intensive — during the Christmas holidays, December 25th to 28th. This is something, insha'Allah tabāraka wa ta'ālā, that we can all be a part of.

7 Million Ṣalawāt Goal — we have made an effort of trying to have a goal of 7 million ṣalawāt as a community. We want you to be a part of that. There are ṣalawāt cards outside. Each card represents 10,000 ṣalawāt. Each box represents 100. صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ counts as two. So please take those cards, put them on your fridge and have your whole family participate. There is a box outside to deposit the card once it's done. If you're listening from out of state, you'll find the link on our website.

Youth Night — for boys and girls ages 4 to 18. This is an alternative to what's happening on October 31st. From 4:00 or 4:30 pm, from 'Aṣr till 'Ishā'. This Sunday. There is no on-site registration — only online at masjidds.org/youth-night. There are limited spots — maybe around 20 remaining.

Okay — how many of us recited Sūrah al-Kahf this week more than once? Raise your hand. MashAllah. How many recited it once? Alright, alhamdulillah. How many of us have a habit of reciting the first 10 and last 10 every day? MashAllah — good, a few. We've got to keep increasing this number. And how many have begun memorizing — have memorized the first 10? MashAllah, alhamdulillah.

The classroom link was sent out. If you would like assistance throughout the week for your memorization and you want someone to listen to your recitation — there's a link that's been sent out to those who have registered for the Tafsīr class. If you have not, please do so. Then you will receive, insha'Allah, the weekly assignments for the memorization. What a beautiful part of our Tafsīr — if we can get all these brothers and sisters, insha'Allah, to become reciters of Sūrah al-Kahf, and those who have memorized it as well.

Also, alhamdulillah — my father is doing better from last week but he's still hospitalized. We hope, insha'Allah, through everyone's du'ā, that Allah grant him complete shifā' and that he's able to be discharged soon.

Closing Du'ā

Oh Allah, we ask You to accept this gathering. Oh Allah, make this gathering a gathering of raḥmah for all of us. Oh Allah, allow us to be surrounded by millions and thousands of angels. And allow us to leave in a state where all of our sins have been forgiven and replaced with good deeds. Oh Allah, allow us to be blessed with the company of the angels on a regular basis. Allow us to be blessed to be part of this gathering every single week.

Oh Allah, grant myself and all of us steadfastness. Grant us steadfastness. Oh Allah, all those obstacles that come in our way from fulfilling the good intentions that we have — of coming to the masjid on a regular basis, of reading Qur'an on a regular basis, spending some time doing dhikr on a regular basis, spending quality time with our family members, with our parents, with our children — oh Allah, whatever good intentions every one of us has, please facilitate for all of us to fulfill those intentions. Remove all the barriers and obstacles.

Oh Allah, we ask You to grant all of us protection from the fitān of today — from the fitān that we are aware of and the fitān that we are absolutely not aware of. The fitān that are very clear in front of us and the fitān that are lurking behind in the darkness. Oh Allah, the fitān that are about to come in the near future — grant us and our children and our progeny protection from all of that. Oh Allah, fitnah against our deen, fitnah against our wealth, fitnah against our health, fitnah against our mind — oh Allah, protect us all from any and all types of muṣā'ib, evil, the plotting and planning of Shayṭān — from the humans and the Shayṭān from the jinn.

Oh Allah, we ask You to grant all of us ṣiḥḥah — complete health. Oh Allah, spiritual health, mental health, emotional health, physical health. Grant us financial stability. Oh Allah, grant us maḥabbah and love between parents, between spouses and children. Oh Allah, all those who are suffering from any and all evil effects of Shayṭān — from the evil eye, from ḥasad, from siḥr — oh Allah, all those countless people in the communities who are suffering silently and do not know where to turn — oh Allah, we ask You to remove their suffering. Allow them to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Allow them to get out of the very serious difficulties any of them are going through.

All those whose marriages are going through a rough patch — oh Allah, we ask You to grant them safety. Unite them. Unite the husbands and the wives. Oh Allah, remove all the Shayṭān influences from the marriages. Oh Allah, put mercy into the hearts of the parents for their children. Allow the parents to give proper tarbiyah to their kids. Oh Allah, put love of the parents into the hearts of the children. Put respect of the parents in the hearts of the children.

Oh Allah, we ask You — grant us all the ability to find circles of knowledge. And allow us to become regular attendees to circles of knowledge, circles of dhikr. Oh Allah, allow us to do dhikr at home punctually. Allow us to perform our ṣalāh punctually. Allow us to make concern for the tarbiyah of our children and our future generations.

Oh Allah, all those who are not married — grant them the best of spouses who will become a means of them gaining Your paradise and Your pleasure. Oh Allah, those who are married and those who are not married — grant them all a life of chastity. Grant them a life of chastity. Grant them a life of chastity. Oh Allah, protect us and protect our generations from falling into ḥarām. Grant us protection from ḥarām. Oh Allah, protect us from the evils of the internet. Protect us from the evils of technology. Oh Allah, protect our minds from becoming engrossed in that. Protect us from becoming enslaved by that. Protect us from becoming enslaved by the isms of today.

Oh Allah, grant us the baṣīrah and the understanding of the themes of Sūrat al-Kahf. Make every single one who is listening here — and who listens afterwards — Ya Allah, I beg You to make every single one of them a ḥāfiẓ of Sūrat al-Kahf. Oh Allah, inspire every single one — no matter how old or young — to memorize this sūrah in its entirety. Oh Allah, give motivation to all these brothers and sisters to memorize Sūrat al-Kahf. Oh Allah, give them the motivation to recite it every day. Give them the motivation to reflect on the tafsīr and the meanings of this sūrah. And give us the ability to be protected through the barakah of this sūrah.

Oh Allah, whatever permissible desires and needs any one of us have — that our parents have, that our siblings have, that our children have — Ya Allah, through the barakah of this gathering, fulfill all of our permissible desires. Remove all of our worries.

Wa jazākumullāhu khayran. Wassalāmu 'alaykum wa raḥmatullāhi wa barakātuh.