Surah Al-Kahf | Part 6 Ayahs 23-27 | Mufti Azeemuddin Ahmed | Weekly Tafsir

Opening Supplications

I request the brothers to please move forward. Try to fill up all the gaps — if you can move forward, kindly take a minute. InshaAllah, this is one step towards not just the front of the masjid, but InshaAllah this is one step towards Allah's pleasure, one step towards our paradise, one step towards fulfilling the Sunnah of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ's majlis, where people would sit close together hoping and expecting the mercy of Allah to descend on gatherings of knowledge and dhikr — where Allah's name is taken, where salutations are sent upon Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ.

We learn in a hadith that any gathering in which salutations are not sent upon the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, in which Allah's name is not taken, in which Allah is not praised — on the Day of Judgment, this gathering will be a burden, a source of problem, a source of difficulty for the individual. Every single gathering in which Allah's name is not taken, in which the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ is not mentioned, in which salutations are not sent upon him — it will become a musibah, a wabal, an adhab, a challenge, a burden upon that person.

So let's think about how many gatherings we've had from last week till now, how many we've had this past month, this past year — and out of those gatherings, unfortunately so many of them are such that we are not even mentioning Allah's name once.

That is why at the very least we begin with السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ, we end with وَعَلَيْكُمُ السَّلَامُ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ, bring in Alhamdulillah, InshaAllah, bring in one salawat in between — somewhere or another, try our best to have Allah's name and Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ's name mentioned in that gathering, so that that majlis of ours, that meeting of ours, does not become a source of punishment, a source of difficulty for you and I on the Day of Judgment.

And then of course we end the majlis with the du'a:

This is the dhikr we recite at the end of any meeting, and whatever mistakes were made in that meeting, whatever unnecessary things were spoken about, will InshaAllah be forgiven.

The Danger of Unnecessary Speech

Speaking about unnecessary things — once a man passed away in front of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ and people quickly said, "He's a shaheed, he's a jannati, he's a martyr." And the Prophet عَلَيْهِ الصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ told the companions: hold it. How do you know that? How can you be so quick to make a judgment that he is a martyr, a shaheed — and even if he died in battle, how can you be so sure?

What if he spoke about something in his life that was not concerning him? (Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 2317)

Meaning: speaking about something which doesn't concern us is such a big problem that it could actually revoke a person's status of martyrdom — shahada. So how often may we find ourselves in this situation where we say things in our majlis, in our gathering, talking to someone — we meet someone in the parking lot, in the lobby, outside of our home, in a gathering — and we end up unknowingly saying things which are absolutely useless and harmful.

So we ask Allah protection from speaking about those things which are unnecessary and which are not relevant to us.

We begin our dars today asking Allah and asking all of you to make this niyyah: Ya Allah, allow this dars to be of great benefit for me. May Allah make this dars a means of answering my questions, a means of answering my prayers, a means of getting guidance in things that I'm looking for His guidance in. Any type of situation any one of you is going through — may Allah allow you to make this niyyah now, that through the next hour as we cover these ayahs, Allah allows us to hear the answers of things that you and I are struggling with, you and I are looking for answers to.

Review: The Story of the People of the Cave

Allah mentioned the story of the cave — the people of the cave, the sleepers. Last week we pretty much completed the majority of it. Allah mentioned that some people say their numbers are this, some people say the numbers are that. Regardless of it, let's focus on the main important part of the story. Don't focus on the numbers, don't focus on the location, and as we added — don't focus on who, where, what, when, why.

Focus on the crux of the story: that what Allah wills shall happen, and anything and everything Allah can do. Miracles are possible for the awliya, so become a wali of Allah to protect yourself. Find for yourself a good companionship, find for yourself a cave, find for yourself a location where you can practice your deen beautifully — where your spouse and your children can practice the deen beautifully. That was the take-home message.

Now, you all remember we discussed the background of the revelation of this surah: the mushrikeen, the polytheists of Makkah, went to the Jews of Madinah and said, "Give us questions we can ask Muhammad صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ to ascertain whether he is a true Prophet of Allah or not." They said: ask him about three things — one was about the reality of the soul, one was about the sleepers of the cave, and the third was about the king who ruled across the globe, the East and the West.

Those are the three things they asked. And you remember that the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ said to them, "I will answer you tomorrow," but he forgot to say InshaAllah. When that happened, Allah held back Angel Jibreel for the next 15 days. They came every single day asking, "Where's our answer? Where's our answer?" — using that moment to taunt him immensely for two weeks. Every day they would line up saying, "You told us to come tomorrow — where is it? How come you don't have the answers?" So after not having the answers for so long, they grew in their attacks against the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ. Eventually, on the 15th day or so, Allah revealed the surah with all the answers.

Ayahs 23–24: Never Say "I Will Do This Tomorrow" Without Saying InshaAllah

What is so interesting is that Allah, when revealing the verses, first revealed the story of the people of the cave in detail — and then He addresses the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ directly in Ayah 23–24:

Nor shall you say, O Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, in regard to anything: "I will indeed do such and such tomorrow" — with emphasis, you will never say this — unless you add: "if Allah so wills." And remember your Lord if you forget to say it. And then say: "It may well be that my Lord will guide me to what is nearer than this in rectitude" — meaning what is nearer to Allah's pleasure, which is superior, more acceptable, and more honorable.

Ayahs 25–26: The Duration in the Cave and Allah's All-Encompassing Knowledge

Then Allah says — regarding the conclusion of the story — that they remained in their cave 300 lunar years, plus 9 more. So a total of 309. But it has not been stated as 309 directly — it's mentioned as 300 and an additional 9. There is an interesting reason for that.

Say, O Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, to those who argue about this: Allah knows best how long they remained. To Him alone belongs all the knowledge of the unseen of the heavens and the earth. How perfectly He sees and how perfectly He hears — this is ta'ajjub, an expression of wonder at His perfection. They do not have, apart from Him, any patron. Allah does not allow anyone to join Him in His sovereignty.

Ayah 27: Continue to Recite What Has Been Revealed

Continue to recite what has been revealed to you from the Book of your Lord. There is none who can replace His words, and never shall you find, apart from Him, any refuge. So the majority of the story of Surah al-Kahf has now been covered — these are the closing statements. And at the end of these closing statements, Allah addresses His Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: "You made a mistake — you should not have forgotten to say InshaAllah."

The Adab of Allah with His Prophet

This is the etiquette of Allah with His Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ. What is the etiquette? Allah gave him the answer — gave him what he wanted, gave him what they were all asking — and then at the end, after it was all said and done, He told him the mistake he had made. He should not have left out InshaAllah. This is the etiquette that Allah has with His Nabi: He gave him the answer, and then afterward He corrected him and said, "You should not have done so."

Is this the only place? No. You find it in the Battle of Tabuk, when Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ gave permission to the hypocrites who were coming up with false excuses for not participating. Allah reprimands, but He first says:

Allah has already forgiven you — why did you give permission to these hypocrites? Look at the love Allah has for His Nabi: He first lets him know that everything is okay, and then He tells him what mistake was made. Because the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ is a role model for the rest of the world — if he makes a mistake, he must be corrected.

Similarly, consider:

These verses where Allah corrects Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — the presence of these verses in the Qur'an points to the very veracity of the Qur'an. Which man would come up with a fake text, a fake book claiming to be from God, and allow verses reprimanding him to be included? If it were fake, he would have immediately removed them. Why would you want the whole world, for the next centuries, to learn about you being reprimanded? This is a great sign that this Qur'an is haqq — untouched — and whatever Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ was told by Allah is preserved, even the corrections. And that correction was done in such a beautiful, loving manner.

Three Quranic Stories Linked to InshaAllah

So here is a very big topic: the ayah is teaching us not to say you're going to do anything tomorrow except that you say InshaAllah. Let's study a few examples from the Qur'an:

1. The Story of the Yellow Cow (Surah al-Baqarah)

In the second surah of the Qur'an, there was a murder that took place among the Children of Israel. They wanted to know who committed the murder. Nabi Musa عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ told them that they had to slaughter a cow. They said:

"Is this a joke? Are you seriously making a mockery of us? We have a murder here, and you're telling us to slaughter a cow?" This is similar to when people are going through difficulty and you say, "Brother, give sadaqah." They don't understand that behind the actions prescribed in the Shari'ah is wisdom. Just keep quiet and do it — follow the Sunnah, and you will get your result.

They started using their intellect. They demanded more details:

They asked back and forth — what age? What color? Has it been used in manual labor? It should be a bright yellow cow that makes people happy when they look at it, healthy, not used in agriculture or drawing water. They kept on asking questions, making their life much more difficult. Allah did not initially specify any details. Had they simply slaughtered any cow, it would have been easy. But they asked and asked.

Eventually they said:

"InshaAllah, we will find the cow." And so they went looking. While walking around, they found a young boy who had exactly this bright yellow cow that fit all the descriptions they had brought upon themselves. He was known to be an extremely obedient son to his mother. They asked to buy the cow, he didn't want to sell. They insisted, and because of that need he named his price: the skin of the cow filled with gold. They agreed — and the ulama say that through the barakah of his obedience to his mother, he had enough for the next seven generations. This is a great example: follow the deen, and Allah will provide for you from unseen places.

They slaughtered the cow, took a part of it, touched the dead body — and the dead man was resurrected. He said, "My nephew killed me — he was greedy over my money." The ulama say: had they not said InshaAllah, they would never have been able to find that animal.

2. Musa and His Companion Yusha' (Coming in Surah al-Kahf)

Nabi Musa عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ told his companion Yusha': "When you see the fish jumping out of the bag, that's the place where Khadir is waiting for us." Yusha' said, "Of course." But while Musa عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ was sleeping, Yusha' saw the fish jump out — and thought he'd tell him when he woke up — but when he woke up, he forgot. They walked an entire 24 hours ahead. After that, Musa عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ said, "This trip is becoming too long — bring me my lunch." All of a sudden Yusha' remembered. Musa عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ got upset, and Yusha' said, "Shaytan made me forget." The ulama mention that the two extra days of walking happened because Yusha' did not say InshaAllah when he made his commitment to Musa. Nothing is so obvious that you can afford to skip saying InshaAllah.

3. Dhul-Qarnayn and the Wall Against Ya'juj and Ma'juj (End of Surah al-Kahf)

The third story is of Dhul-Qarnayn, who was asked to build a wall to protect the people from Ya'juj and Ma'juj (Gog and Magog). He said, "I don't need your money — just help me with physical labor." And he built a massive wall with molten brass poured into it. Ya'juj and Ma'juj were no longer able to harm the people in that area.

The hadith mentions:

(Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 4080; also narrated in Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 3153)

Every single day they dig, dig, dig. And right before they're about to break through — when they're about to see sunlight — the leader says, "Go back. We will dig the remainder tomorrow." When they come back the next day, they find it to be even harder and more well-built than before. It goes back to where it was. Every single day this happens — yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

Then the hadith mentions: until the time of their appointed appearance arrives, and Allah wants them to come upon the earth. They will keep digging until they're about to see the sunlight. And the leader will say, "Go back — we will dig it tomorrow." But that day, he will say: InshaAllah. When he says InshaAllah, they come back the next day — and it is exactly how they left it. And they will break through that day.

May Allah protect us and our generations from seeing that day. So you see — Allah made the breaking of this wall contingent upon them saying InshaAllah. Three stories, back to back, all connected to this one powerful word.

The Power and Depth of InshaAllah

Today, the words Alhamdulillah, MashaAllah, InshaAllah are slowly leaving the vocabulary of the younger generation. Many times you visit people and they literally do not know what these words mean. InshaAllah means "if Allah wills" — fine. But how often do we hear that? No. Instead, we hear the opposite. "I can, we can" — this is the country where you climb from rags to riches, where anything can happen. These are the slogans. And what is our slogan? We cannot without the will of Allah.

Another thing we learn from this: InshaAllah creates humility and humbleness — but it also creates an unbelievable level of hope and an ability to dream big. If you say to a business meeting, "This product is going to be in the home of every single individual in the world in the next 30 years" — they will walk out thinking you're crazy. They won't invest. You cannot dream that big — without InshaAllah.

But with InshaAllah, you can say that. InshaAllah opens up the doors to the sky and beyond. You can say: InshaAllah, I'm going to be a wali. InshaAllah, I'm going to be raised with the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ. InshaAllah, he's going to call me on the Day of Judgment in front of billions of people. Why not? That's exactly what we should be saying. That is what we're supposed to be thinking. Every single masjid — InshaAllah — this effort will take place. InshaAllah, we create a model that can be implemented in every single Islamic center throughout the entire world. Why not?

So InshaAllah is a really powerful statement. It really opens up the doors of opportunity. Anytime you feel, "Can I dream like this?" — just remember, you can dream as much as you want, as large as you want, as great as you want — as long as you say InshaAllah. Because you are saying, "I am nobody — but if Allah wills." And Allah can will whatever He wants:

Whatever Allah wills happens, and whatever Allah does not will, does not happen. So you are handing yourself over to Allah — and now you can expect great things from Him.

InshaAllah vs. "In Shi'ta" — An Important Distinction

One of the pieces of advice we learn from the hadith is that a person should not say:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 6339; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2679)

"Oh Allah, please forgive me if you wish" — InshaAllah and in shi'ta are two different things. "If you wish, Oh Allah, forgive me" — that shows as though we don't really care about the forgiveness. But InshaAllah gives us the meaning of hope. Don't mix them. Because one hadith says: do not say "Oh Allah, forgive me if you want" — rather be determined in your ask. Say: Ya Allah, you will forgive me. I know you will. I have hope. I have no one else besides You. You have to forgive me. That is how a du'a should be made — with absolute conviction that Allah will respond. That is how we're supposed to speak with Allah.

A Miracle of the Qur'an: Solar and Lunar Calendars in One Ayah

They remained in the cave 300 lunar years, plus 9 more. This is one of the miracles of the Qur'an: in this ayah, Allah joined the solar calendar and the lunar calendar both. According to the lunar years, it was 300. According to the solar years, it was 309. Approximately every single solar year is 11 days longer than the lunar year.

This is the amazing system Allah has made. To calculate months properly, we have the moon — the lunar month — because it is exact and perfect, with no deviation. And to calculate the year, we have the solar — the sun rising and setting is very clear. Our Islamic acts of worship are connected with the lunar month, which is why they rotate throughout the year. Hajj and fasting rotate, so it's not always hot, not always a long day. Everyone gets their chance to have a shorter fast, everyone gets their chance to have a cooler Hajj. Over a full cycle of roughly 30 years, every person and every region gets its turn. This is another beautiful wisdom of our deen.

The People of the Book had 300 in their tradition. The Qur'an is speaking about 300 solar years — which converts to 309 lunar years. Then Allah tells the Rasul صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: Allah knows best. Why are they sitting there arguing about useless things? Focus on what actually matters. To Allah belongs the knowledge of the unseen realms of the heavens and the earth, and He is absolutely, completely aware.

Lessons: Allah's Help, the Sunnah, and Remaining Firm

If Allah is so completely aware of everything — hearing everything, watching everything — then remember: Allah is giving you time to be content that His words are true. He will not forsake you. His words do not change. His promises do not change. He will not allow anyone to share His sovereignty with Him. If we have the tawheed of Allah in our hearts, we will be on the right path.

It may seem that the help of Allah is delayed. It may seem that His help is not coming. But the reason Allah's help doesn't come immediately is because He wants to ensure that those who stand with the Muslims, those who stand with the deen, are the strongest of people. When you have training in the special forces of any country, people are screaming, fainting, becoming dehydrated — and the training doesn't stop. Because we don't want people who are weak in the battlefield. Even if only 5 men make it out of a grueling selection process — that's what we want. People who when thrown into the battlefield will complete the mission and come back.

What the Qur'an says, and what we repeatedly see, is that Allah puts upon this ummah trials and difficulties — and we think the help of Allah is not coming. But that is part of the training. The help of Allah will come once He sees that group of people He wants to use in the future — once they've crossed the finish line. He's waiting for that group: the group that proves they will not change based on their environment, that will not change based on who is saying what, that will remain firm and convinced on the Shari'ah, the deen, and the Sunnah of the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ. Then Allah's help will come.

That's why our elders, our shuyukh say: Allah's help will come when we have just 313 — similar to the graduates of Badr. When you have 313 Badri-type sahaba — 313 people who graduate from this grueling course of difficulty upon difficulty — then Allah's help will come like no other. They will not be masses; it will be a strong group of Muslims. But the help of Allah will be with them.

So we must make sure we don't, as they say, "peace out." Don't say, "I can't take this anymore." Because that is what the majority will say. We must not fall into the trap of "too much religiousness" or "be with the times." We don't need thousands of people. What we need to know is: would the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ sit with us today or not? That's the question. If you have a gathering, an event — ask yourself: could I give a VIP ticket to the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ and say, "You will be our guest of honor today?" How many of our Muslim events today could honestly say that?

The Importance of Masnun Du'as

We came across a hadith in Tirmidhi — a sahabi sneezed and said Alhamdulillah. The Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ mentioned:

All praise belongs to Allah in every condition. (Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 2738)

The commentators write — and the ulama emphasize — that the masnun du'as, the du'as we heard emphasized in the seerah conference, the importance of ma'thur, masnun du'as: entering the masjid, leaving the masjid, entering the home, eating, drinking, sleeping, getting up in the morning — you do not mess around with the words of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ when applying them in your daily life. You cannot manipulate those words. You can make a separate du'a all you want. But when following the dictates of Sunnah, you cannot alter those words. As one scholar beautifully said:

In reality, if you add to it, you are decreasing from it. The example is a perfectly presented cake — and you say, "I want to drizzle something on top." Your addition is actually going to ruin it. It's perfect the way it came. You don't need to mess around with it. Sometimes people think there's one ingredient missing — they add it — and it kills the whole thing.

Think about this: you're saying a masnun du'a and you just add وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ at the end, sending salutations on the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ. What does Ibn Umar say? This is not the time to say salutations upon the Prophet — because you are changing what he taught us. Even though you think you're doing something beneficial, this goes against what he taught us to say at the time of sneezing. You can say salutations a million times elsewhere — but don't say it now. That's not what he taught us. Following the Sunnah to the letter, exactly as it is, is of the utmost importance.

واذكر ربك إذا نسيت — Remember Your Lord When You Forget

Let's take this part of the ayah separately:

Remember your Lord when you forget. Meaning: if you forgot to say InshaAllah, say it now — as soon as you remember. Don't say, "I forgot it, so I won't say it now." Say it afterwards. And more broadly: if we forgot to do our tasbih, we're sitting in the car and we say, "Oh, when I left the masjid, I didn't say the du'a of leaving" — what should you do? Say it all. When you realize you forgot to say your du'as, sit and make it up. Do the qadha of it. And Allah will reward you for that. You'll get the barakah of it.

That is a great habit I would like all of us to inculcate: whatever masnun du'as we know, if we happen to forget them and then remember, we should make them up. Say it in the evening when you remember it. And for that, we have to memorize the masnun du'as.

May Allah reward my parents and my teachers, and all of your parents and teachers, who taught you this when you were young. If it wasn't for that, we wouldn't know any of this. The students here should appreciate their teachers who make them memorize du'as. All of you who did the one-year program — how many of you would have never known any of those hundred du'as you memorized? I encourage all the adults here to make a niyyah today to memorize the masnun du'as. Start small — one du'a every three days. InshaAllah, in a year or two, you'll have accomplished something huge.

And this is how you create mindfulness — not just morning and evening dhikr, but the dhikr that is specific to a specific time. Any given time there is a du'a to be read. So always, you're connected. There are so many apps, so many books — we have books available downstairs, you can get them for free or purchase them. Start small, and InshaAllah in a year or two you will have accomplished something huge. And then your kids will start wanting to compete with you — and they'll get ahead of you. Alhamdulillah, that's the whole point.

Striving for the Deen: Lessons from Surah al-Tawbah

Now going back to those verses I mentioned from Surah al-Tawbah — the Qur'an is telling the believers:

O you who believe! What is wrong with you that when you are told to travel in the path of Allah, you cling to the earth? Are you much more pleased with the worldly life than the Hereafter? Remember: the worldly life compared to the Hereafter is nothing but a teeny tiny amount. No matter what's at stake — a $100,000 job, a $500,000 investment — compared to the Hereafter, it is nothing. Even if $100 billion is at stake, if it requires you to break a command of Allah or give up a Sunnah of the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, it is not worth it.

And then:

If you do not assist Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, Allah has already assisted him — when the disbelievers exiled him from Makkah. It was just the two of them on the Hijrah — and Allah miraculously protected them throughout that multi-week journey without any of you being there. These are the two most important people to walk on the surface of the earth. After Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — Abu Bakr رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ. And from this ummah. These two walked — not a single other human protecting them. Who protected them? Allah.

Allah says: where were you? Do you think I need you? There was a price of a hundred camels on his head, dead or alive. Where were you to protect him? I don't need you. That's what the Qur'an is saying. Every time you feel lazy for doing the work of deen, tell yourself: Allah does not need me. This is an honor of Allah upon me that He is allowing me to do some work. Don't ever think you're doing a favor to the masjid by volunteering. You've done a favor upon none besides yourself. And if anyone thinks they've done a favor upon anyone else by any khidmah — they've done the greatest disservice to themselves, and they'll get zero reward and be deprived of doing anything in the future.

The attitude should be: Alhamdulillah, I didn't deserve this honor. I didn't deserve spending three hours scrubbing pots. You gave me that honor, and I pray two rakat of salatul shukr thanking You for allowing me to do khidmah — now I ask You to accept it from me. Allah chooses who He wants to serve His deen. If you've been chosen to open the masjid, to come early, to give in Allah's path — this is an honor of Allah upon you.

The Sunnah as the Only Path to Success

Success lies in Sunnah — wherever you go, whether in a king's palace or in your home. How many people have I heard of who accepted Islam because of one Sunnah? Whether it was seeing a water jug in a bathroom — that led to Islam. A person who walked into a masjid at iftar time and saw Muslims — white, black, brown, yellow — all sitting together and sharing a plate. He said, "What are you all doing?" That was Sunnah — the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ did not eat alone, the companions never sat alone, they shared a plate and ate together. Nothing is more effective in giving dawah than Sunnah.

We have become internally so weak. We have no self-esteem — no thiqa, no trust in the Sunnah. We think if we follow the Sunnah, people are going to give us weird looks. That we won't be able to succeed in our da'wah, in our business. We have to get that out of our minds. Wear your turban, keep your beard — if it's written for you, you'll get your customers. If you say, "I'm not going to give up the Sunnah," Allah will give it to you anyway. People will say, "We want to be like you. How did you become so successful?" But we've become so weak internally that we think following the Sunnah holds us back.

We should not suffer an inferiority complex. Wherever Allah opens up to us and whatever we understand from our teachers and among ourselves, we will continue to do. And when Allah opens up something else to us and our asatidha, we will go forward at that. But there's no reason to compare yourself to others and say, "Oh, we're falling behind." Instead, feel unbelievably gifted by Allah — and say: Ya Allah, this environment is what people are dying to be in. I thank You for allowing me to be a local of this masjid, to just drive over and attend tafsir.

So remain firm on the Sunnah atmosphere. Ask yourself: am I comfortable to invite Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ into my home? When I have my wedding, my daughter's wedding, my son's wedding — could I invite him as the guest of honor? If you can't invite him, then you don't have the angels of mercy in that gathering. So what's the point? Just cut out the nonsense, keep it according to the Sunnah, do it in the house of Allah — and you will see barakah like no other.

Closing Du'a

We ask Allah to inspire all of us to remain steadfast on the deen, on the Sunnah of the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ. We ask Allah to make us understand the reality of what InshaAllah means, and to always keep our tongues busy in His remembrance — with Alhamdulillah, MashaAllah, InshaAllah, SubhanAllah, Inna lillah — whatever it may be. And whenever we do forget, we ask Allah to allow us to immediately remember Him and take His name again and again.

Oh Allah, we ask You to accept this gathering, accept the tafsir, the dhikr, the du'a. Oh Allah, accept the efforts of the students and the volunteers in all of our programs. Put barakah in those who are doing khidmah — put barakah in their wealth, in their health, in their ilm, in their amal, in all aspects of their lives. Oh Allah, put barakah in the lives of all those who attend online, on-site, and who listen afterwards. Oh Allah, whatever we are sharing — allow all of us, the speaker and the listeners, to be able to put it into practice. Oh Allah, allow us to follow the Sunnah and the Shari'ah with farsightedness, with basira, with yaqeen, with conviction. Allow us to have the noor of iman which will allow us to distinguish between right and wrong during these difficult times of trial.

Oh Allah, allow us to be a source of bringing change wherever we go. Allow us to become a means of hidayah for our communities, our homes, our extended relatives, and wherever we come from. Oh Allah, we ask You to increase the sphere of influence we have and allow us to bring deen into whichever circles we are in. Oh Allah, grant all of us the ability to keep our tongues moist in Your remembrance and hearts that beat with Your love.

Oh Allah, grant all of us the character of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — especially with our parents, with our siblings, with our teachers, with our spouses, with our elders, with our youngsters. Oh Allah, with our neighbors — both Muslim and non-Muslim. Oh Allah, grant all of us ikhlas and sincerity. Oh Allah, allow us always to be in doubt of our sincerity and yet create within us sincerity. Oh Allah, allow us to take the proper actions required to rectify and purify our hearts from the diseases that we suffer from.

Oh Allah, grant all of us yaqeen kamil in the deen — yaqeen kamil on You and Your greatness, yaqeen kamil on the Qur'an and in the Sunnah of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ. Oh Allah, grant all of us the ability and the desire to sacrifice for Your deen, to travel for Your deen, to give for Your deen, to give up our desires for Your deen. Oh Allah, allow us to see the benefits of this sacrifice in the lives of our children, in the lives of our spouses, in the lives of our parents.

Oh Allah, make it easy for us to raise our children in the best of manners. All these young men and women who are attending the dars — Oh Allah, make it easy for every one of them to find the very best of spouses. Oh Allah, make it easy for them to find the most pious, righteous, loving, and caring spouses — who will protect them and protect one another from falling into sin, from anything that would be a disobedience of You and the Sunnah of the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ.

Oh Allah, whoever is married — grant them happiness, muhabbah, and love. Oh Allah, those who have children — make them healthy, pious, and righteous. Those who do not — grant them righteous, pious, and healthy children as well. Oh Allah, whatever permissible desires and needs any one of us have, whatever difficulties any one of us is going through — You are most aware of our difficulties, You are most aware of our challenges. Ya Allah, we beg You through the barakah of this gathering and the barakah of this place. We beg You collectively: remove the sources of our worry, remove the anxiety, remove the stress, remove whatever brings tears to us, remove our frustrations. Oh Allah, fulfill all of our needs of this world and the next.

آمِينَ، آمِينَ ۝ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ