Surah Mu'minun - Ep.1 | Mufti Azeemuddin Ahmed

Opening & Setting the Intention

Please move as close as possible. Sisters as well, if you can sit as close as possible. Ensure there are no gaps in between. Just like the salah is performed without any gaps, let us also ensure that whenever we sit for the gathering of knowledge and dhikr, we sit as close as possible. The angels of mercy are descending upon us, and we want to ensure that there are no gaps between us, so as to — Allah forbid — protect ourselves from being affected by shaytan coming in between us.

As Nabi alayhi salatu wasalam would make a strong emphasis every single time salah would be established — to ensure that people are standing shoulder to shoulder, and that there are no gaps in between. And the Prophet alayhi salatu wasalam mentioned that if those gaps are there, then there is a chance that the hearts may turn against one another, and the shaytan may have a spot there. So when we sit for gatherings of knowledge and dhikr as well, let us always keep that in mind.

And since we are also beginning a new surah, and we are coming back after a few weeks of break, let us renew our intention that we are here to please Almighty Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. In this dars of Quran, as we are studying, we are showing our utmost sincerity to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, and to the barakah of the Quran. May Allah allow all of us here to gain a much deeper understanding of the Quran than we did previously. And the Quran definitely has solutions to all of our issues — we simply have to look for it.

So we are hoping that this dars inshallah could be a means of myself and all of us here getting a better understanding of the secrets that the Quran holds — for solutions to our problems and the problems of mankind. We ask Allah azza wa jal that He allows us to share and hear such things in this dars that will be a means of rejuvenating our iman, answering our questions, removing our doubts, and strengthening our relationship with Almighty Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Ameen.

Additionally, we should all make niyyah that whatever we hear of benefit, we will immediately put into practice, and we will also share it with others as well inshallah.

Introduction to Surah Al-Mu'minun

Surah Al-Mu'minun — the name itself means the surah describing the believers. And the name الْمُؤْمِنُونَ, this is the proper name of the surah.

So the students of the Arabic language may be wondering: when we say Surah Al-Mu'minun, why do we not say Surah Al-Mu'mineen? Because surah is mudaf and Al-Mu'minun is mudaf ilayh. So should we not say Surah Al-Mu'mineen, describing the surah of the believers? The answer is that الْمُؤْمِنُونَ is the proper name of the surah. You cannot play around with that. الْمُؤْمِنُونَ is the actual proper name of the surah, hence it will remain in the state of rafa', even if it is mudaf ilayh. It will be called Surah Al-Mu'minun — you will not change it to Surah Al-Mu'mineen. That is just a point for the students of knowledge here, of the Arabic language.

So Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, in this surah, from amongst the many things — the first page and the first ayahs of this surah focus on the traits of the believers, by virtue of which they will become successful in the eyes of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

The Hadith of the Ten Verses

The Prophet ﷺ narrated in a report mentioned by Imam Tirmidhi on the authority of Umar رضي الله عنه:

(Jami' al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 3173)

"Ten verses have been revealed to me; whoever establishes them shall enter Paradise." Then he began reciting قَدْ أَفْلَحَ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ until he completed ten verses.

So the one who inculcates these ten qualities within himself — by the words of Allah and the words of Rasulullah ﷺ — this person is successful.

Understanding the Word "Qad" — قَدْ

قَدْ أَفْلَحَ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ — قَدْ is a word used to emphasize the sentence that follows it.

If قَدْ comes before a past tense verb, it comes in the meaning of "most definitely." أَفْلَحَ is a past tense verb. So قَدْ أَفْلَحَ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ means: "Most definitely, truly the believers shall attain and realize everlasting success."

However, if the same word قَدْ comes prior to a mudari' — a verb that gives you the meaning of present or future — then the meaning completely changes, giving you the meaning of "possibly," "maybe," not necessarily definite. Complete opposite. For example: قَدْ يُفْلِحُ الْإِنْسَانُ إِذَا لَمْ يَدْرُسْ جَيِّدًا — "It is possible that a person may be successful even if he doesn't study well." It's possible.

So when it comes with a present tense verb, the meaning changes to "possibly." When it comes with a past tense verb, it means "definitely." This is just how things can change so quickly depending on just the tense of the verb you are using. So here, since the past tense is used, قَدْ gives you the meaning of: most definitely, the believers have attained success.

The True Definition of Success (فَلَاح)

Now we look at the definition of success. This is such an interesting thing, because people have different definitions all around us right now. One major definition that is being pushed in this era — and in the past as well — is that success equals how much material wealth you have been able to accumulate. The more materialism a person has, the more successful he is. Look at the billboards all over the world when they are advertising things. The one dragging a brand new suitcase has a huge smile on his face. The other is so happy opening up the doors of a brand new car. Third one is so happy entering his brand new condo. Fourth one is super happy entering a penthouse overlooking the sea. So what does all this tell us? That if you have material things, you will have a huge smile on your face and you will be living happily ever after.

Stories of success. Let's go attend a conference where entrepreneurs will talk about their success — "How I Became Successful." And certain things stick with you when you're young. I remember as a child of ten or less, we attended an Islamic conference. On the agenda were different rooms with different speeches and lectures happening. One conference room said there was a man going to share his success story, titled simply, "How I Became Successful." I'm thinking, okay, there's probably some scholar going to give a talk about success of akhirah or whatnot. But I go there, and this person is speaking about how he became wealthy — his investments, this and that, how he became wealthy. That was the whole of the talk. Immediately in my mind: this is a failure. Why is this person speaking here? On what basis does he have a right to talk about success? Because this is not success. This is just his figment of imagination that material success equals real success.

Yes, if you be more specific and say "how to become a successful investor," and when you mean success you mean specifically in that regard — technically, how to attain what you have set out for — that is a different story. But if you leave it general and open-ended and say "success," then what are we going to think? You're going to think it's that success which is everlasting, which is going to be there the entire time.

When someone comes to you and says, "At the end of the year I passed, I'm so happy!" — mashallah, mubarak, you finished second year medical school, going to third year. But then he says, "No, no, no. I passed one spelling quiz we had on Monday. That's it. I failed the year, but I passed the weekly spelling quiz in one of those weeks." What are you going to say? This makes no sense. What are you getting excited about, jumping up and down? You passed the quiz while you failed the whole year?

Because when you say "I'm successful," we presume that means you passed the year and are moving forward. Otherwise why would you be jumping up and down like that? Similarly, when a person says "I'm successful," we would presume it means he's successful all the way — not on one quiz, on one thing, on one item, on one subject. He's successful all the way through this whole life, in the grave, on the day of judgment, until he gets into Jannah to live a life of absolute success forever. That is what we're speaking about. Success that is temporary is not something we should be gloating over and excited about, because that is very short-lived.

So the dunya constantly pushes down a definition of success that equals materialism. And this idea is what fuels the mad rush towards purchasing things. Consumerism comes from this. Everyone wants to buy the latest watch, the latest phone, the latest gadget, wants to dress in a certain manner because he thinks he's successful. What is the whole brand name about? The same purse produced from the same factory will sell for $100 as well as $1,500 depending on the labeling. And if you say, "I buy things for quality" — find me a lady willing to buy a purse for $3,000 but with the label hidden inside it, labelless on the outside. If you're buying it for quality, you should just enjoy the quality. But no — she'll make sure that part is exposed wherever she goes. When walking, the eye should directly fall on the logo. That's the way the world runs. Why? Because we think that if people think we're successful, then we will become successful. And success is owning and achieving a lot of material things.

So we are up against a huge tsunami. The whole world is telling us this. And Islam is telling us the opposite. Islam is saying that success is not the embodiment of expensive things, luxurious products, and expensive high-end material things. Success is what Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says is successful.

Additionally, when we have an exam in a classroom, success is not subjective, is it? There is a very clear-cut passing grade and failing grade. It wouldn't work for someone to say, "Passing and failing is subjective. In my opinion, where I come from — my parents hail from a village in India where 45% is regarded as a pass — hence I feel I passed." Another one says, "My parents say 90% is also failure; you have to have 99. Hence I got 89% and I'm a failure." It doesn't work like that. There's a very set rubric for failure and success in an exam. Whatever you got, it's a pass or a fail, and there are no two opinions about it.

And that's how life is supposed to be. But it's not. People have made their criteria of success and failure completely different. A man thinks his criteria is X amount of money, otherwise he's a failure. X amount of business, otherwise failure. This type of profession, otherwise failure. Each person's notion of failure and success keeps changing. Based on where they live, it changes — for a man in a village in Africa, for a man in a larger city, for a man in the west living in a developed country. Depending on the era, the geography, who you are, your tribe, your educational background — success keeps changing. When it's not supposed to be like that. It's supposed to be a leveled playing ground. For whoever you are, there should be one exam with one failure mark and one pass.

And that's what Islam came and said. Islam has presented a message: no matter where you are, if a person has the kalimah in his life, if a person has sunnah in his life, he will be successful. And no matter how many material things a person has or doesn't have, if they do not have the kalimah in their life and they don't have sunnah in their life, they're a failure. So now it's very clear, there's no ambiguity. You don't have to self-doubt — am I a failure or successful? Am I leading a good life or a bad life? That doubt doesn't need to be there, because the criteria of success and failure is very clearly laid out by Allah and His Rasul ﷺ.

So leading a life of deen is, in reality, my beloved friends, a very easy life. You don't have to keep on doubting yourself — am I making it or not? You just look in the mirror and see: to what degree is sunnah in my life? To what degree are the commands of Allah in my life? And then you know how well you're doing. The rest of the world will be confused about their criteria of success or failure, but you and I won't be.

Another thing to understand is that the criteria of success and failure cannot change as you grow older. The world's idea of success changes. A baby thinks: if I get a lot of toys, I'm successful. If I get a lot of candy, I'm successful. If I get a lot of time in the amusement park and less time at school, I'm successful. But as he grows older — in his teens, his twenties, his thirties — the understanding and definition of success definitely changes. And his wishes, desires, and goals keep on changing. But the long-term definition of success and failure cannot change.

That's why we realize — you've heard me say this many times — when we are asked, "Brother, what are you doing? Where are you in life?" the usual answers we give are about where we are on our journey of earning money. Either about what year we are in our profession, or what year we are on our way to gaining our profession. Which is an incorrect answer. That is not your purpose, that's not your goal. That is just the need of life — that you have to earn money to be able to bring a loaf of bread onto the table. Your maqsad and your purpose is to please Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in a manner shown to us by Rasulullah ﷺ.

We are conflating the two. We are mixing up our destination with where we are right now. When someone asks where you are headed, you are supposed to say: "I am headed to Indianapolis, and currently I am over here." That is a correct answer, instead of just saying where you are right now, because every minute you are going to keep on changing. Similarly, when someone asks, "What's your purpose in life? Where are you headed?" our answer should also be: "I am headed towards akhirah, preparation of my abode in paradise, establishing the laws of Allah on this earth — and currently, this is where I am." But is that how we usually answer? No. So we have to change the way we approach success and failure.

The Root Word of Falah — فَلَاح

Allah mentions in Surah Al-Shams:

"Indeed, the one who purifies the soul has attained success." زَكَّاهَا — purify the soul. The one who purifies the soul — if a person has a sick soul, a diseased heart, he could be the wealthiest person in the world, but he can never be successful.

Allah azza wa jal mentions in Surah Al-A'la, also in the 30th juz:

"Indeed, the one who attains purity of the soul is successful." Two ayahs, same thing — that falah and success has been connected with purity of the heart.

And the third verse is Surah Al-Mu'minun:

"Indeed, the believers are successful." These are three places in the Quran where Allah uses the word أَفْلَحَ.

What is falah? فَلَحَ الْأَرْضَ means شَقَّهَا — to split the earth. The Arabs say فَلَحَ الْأَرْضَ, meaning shaqqaha — he split the earth. Because a farmer is also called fallah. What does he do? He splits open the earth and places the seed in it. So this word comes from that root word. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is saying here that your success relies in fulfilling your goal. If you don't have your goal set, you will never be able to attain your success.

The Importance of Having a Goal and Mission in Life

Today, we are not goal-oriented. This is the big problem. People are going through life but they don't have a vision, a mission, and a goal. This is something where we need to come to the Quran and align ourselves.

I was just reading that Columbia opened up a new $600 million business school. You look at how much effort goes into the architecture — $600 million in classroom space — to make it a conducive environment for learning and for creating the new leaders. Interestingly, they say that we need to rethink the whole educational process, because all we are doing is producing cheap labor for the capitalistic machine. The type of results that are supposed to happen — that today's youth are thinking about climate change, social justice, and all different things, not just about making money, at least many of them — means the educational system and classroom environment has to change. And you read, subhanAllah, how much effort goes into simple design, just to make a nice environment.

So much effort goes into the vision and mission of a business school, which is a few years of education for a business student. Now, beloved brothers and sisters, we are leading a life — inshallah a 78-year life. Imagine that 78-year life without a mission. They have a mission for four years and they're spending $600 million on a school building. But if individuals like us — why do we not have a mission?

You see someone walking around aimlessly at a gas station — the police come, and they tell the person to leave. You're not supposed to loiter around a gas station aimlessly. Walking around half an hour, 20 minutes aimlessly in a gas station will get you in trouble. What about leading a 60-year, 80-year life aimlessly? How is that logical? A person goes through his whole life and at 50 years old, if you ask him, "What is your mission and vision in life?" he says, "I don't know. It's to earn money." That is not a mission and a vision. That is the basic requirement of life to sustain yourself, but that's not a mission. Our mission and vision has to be much greater than that.

So I want all of you to take this opportunity on your way back home — especially the many youth and youngsters who are here — to ask yourself: what is your mission and purpose in life? And understand that mission and purpose. Don't give a generic answer that "I'm here to please Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala." That's good, I know you're here to please Allah. But how? How do we please Allah? You don't please Allah only by sitting in the masjid the entire day. We'll pray our salah, we'll attend duroos, but we have to go outside. How are we going to please Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala as an entrepreneur? As a college student? As a business owner? As a professional? Those are the questions a person has to ask.

My brothers and sisters, once that goal and mission is clear in your mind, the rest is easy. Because you know what you're doing.

The Story of Musa and Khadr — A Lesson on Purpose

The story of Musa and Khadr — we talked about it last year. Musa alayhi salaam knew where he was headed; he was going to meet Khadr. So he walked and walked and walked and walked and he didn't get tired. But as soon as he passed by that area — because he was supposed to meet Khadr at a place where the fish jumps out of the basket, and he was sleeping when that happened — when he woke up, Yusha alayhi salaam forgot to inform Musa alayhi salaam that this had happened. And so they kept on walking.

Then Musa alayhi salaam told Yusha, "Can you please give me lunch? I'm hungry."

"We have faced a lot of difficulty in this travel." So Yusha told Musa alayhi salaam, "Sorry, our lunch is gone — it jumped into the sea." He said, "What? Why didn't you tell me?" He said, "Oh, shaytan made me forget. I'm sorry." So the ulama say that Musa alayhi salaam began to feel the difficulty of the journey only after he passed the place where they were supposed to meet Khadr. Why? Because when you start doing things that do not help you achieve your goal, that's when it hurts. It's a waste of time. It's painful. It doesn't give you anything.

But as long as you are journeying and toiling towards your goal, you won't feel pain in it. Or if you do feel pain, you won't mind it. It will be enjoyable because you have a purpose in front of you. What a beautiful statement of the scholars, and what a beautiful deduction from this verse. So if we have our purpose in life clear — what you and I want to achieve in the life that we have — then the difficulties that come about in attaining this goal, beloved brothers and sisters, will not be painful, will not be overbearing. Instead, it will be something that we will wholeheartedly accept: "Hey, this is the price I'm willing to pay, because I know what I want to do."

Try to find someone who is running for office — how hard is it? Running around trying to get campaign donations and this and that. Find someone who is trying to win the Olympics — how hard is it? It's not easy. But waking up at 3 o'clock, preparing a 3-hour workout before sunrise? Simple. Because they have a very clear goal in front of them.

So falah and success cannot come unless and until we know what our goal is. Then once that is done, we will start working on trying to achieve that goal. And then only can we hope to gain success. So three verses of the Quran mention أَفْلَحَ — two verses in the 30th juz (one in Surah Al-A'la and one in Surah Al-Shams), both speaking about the purity of the heart; and this ayah in Surah Al-Mu'minun, speaking about the true believers being the ones who are successful.

The Focus on Internal Purification — تَزْكِيَةُ النَّفْس

Beloved brothers and sisters, so now we should walk away from this dars understanding the importance of focusing on our internal selves. The cosmetic industry is billions of dollars. Plastic surgery industry, billions. Hair restoration industry, billions. Hair dye industry, billions. Nutrition and weight loss industry, billions. Exercise industry, billions. What amount of effort is being placed on spirituality?

Think about all the hospitals in the world, all the specialists, all the medical schools — they are focusing on the physical health of the body, the emotional health, the psychological health. Unbelievable amounts of wealth and energy are being focused on that. Where is the focus on becoming a better human being? Who is going to talk about loving others more than you love yourself? Who is going to talk about leading a life void of greed, void of jealousy, void of malice, void of ostentation? Where does that come into our educational discussion? It doesn't. From pre-K all the way to your second PhD, you're not going to find anywhere this discussion about how to become a better human being. Right now we have to talk about becoming human first, because we're losing our humanity.

Every single week in this world, something new and crazy happens. In terms of how low humanity can fall. So the tazkiyatun nafs is where the Quran is now asking us to focus. Purification of the soul. And that should be our goal. Someone asks, "What is one of your goals?" — one of my major goals in life is to leave this world in the highest possible state of purity of my soul. That when Allah meets me, He's looking forward to receiving me, and I'm looking forward to meeting Him. And that's not going to happen with a dirty, disgusting soul. I have to make sure all that filth picked up from the world is cleansed out.

Rasulullah ﷺ has mentioned in hadith:

(Al-Mu'jam al-Awsat lil-Tabarani)

"Dunya is a place of tests and a place of ending." So you cannot gain true happiness here. It's always going to be imtihan, difficulty. If a person says, "I just want a comfortable life" — you're never going to get true comfort here. You are in your bed, on a vacation in a $300 bedroom facing the sea, and all of a sudden you pick up your phone and read an article, receive an email from work, or get a text message on your family group — and you lose your sleep. On your vacation, gone. Based on one text message — someone passed away, a loved one is in the hospital. How can you sleep thousands of miles away? You can't. This is the dunya for you.

The dunya does not have any longevity of happiness and comfort. So if a person says, "I want a really comfortable life in which I never get sad and never get worried" — well, guess what? You're setting yourself up for failure, because it's never going to happen. This world is meant to be constant test. We get battered the way the rocks on the seashore get battered by the waves. We are going to get battered constantly by different types of conditions in this world.

And then the Prophet ﷺ mentioned:

(Al-Mu'jam al-Awsat lil-Tabarani; also referenced in various narrations of the hadith scholars)

"Death is a sufficient giver of advice." When I was in the haram, I just passed by the area where all the bodies were laying, waiting for the imam to come after Fajr salah to perform the janazah. And this is exactly what came on my tongue when I saw that — كَفَى بِالْمَوْتِ وَاعِظًا. Thirteen, fourteen bodies. And I even saw a youngster, maybe two feet, two and a half feet — so maybe a 6 or 7-year-old. SubhanAllah, just lined up there.

And the Prophet ﷺ also said:

(Jami' al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 2307; Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 4258)

"Remember the destroyer of pleasures — i.e. death — abundantly." When a person thinks about death, there is no way he will be able to enjoy this life frivolously. So this is the reality: if you make the criteria of success "comfort and luxury and a nice deep sleep every single day," it's not going to happen, because you're always going to get a rude awakening. You have to change that perception. Success is achieving my goal. And my goal is to please Allah in my life, in whatever situation I'm in, following the sunnah. If the sunnah is in my life, alhamdulillah, I'm successful.

Falah in the Quran — Six Dimensions

Let us look at what Allah regards as success from various verses of the Quran.

Number One — Justice: Allah says in Surah Al-An'am:

"Indeed, the oppressors will never be successful." So if a person is oppressive to his spouse, his neighbors, his citizens, the animals — this person cannot be successful according to the Quran, because dhulm and oppression do not go hand in hand with success.

Number Two — Belief and Gratitude: Allah says:

"Indeed the disbelievers and the ungrateful ones can never be successful." The one who is not grateful to Allah for the blessings he is enjoying, and is constantly complaining about his life, can never be successful. And just as fallah means to split open the earth and plant the seed, kafara means to hide — a kafir is one who takes Allah's blessings and hides them, sits on them and says, "God never gave me anything." This is why so many people are depressed, upset, angry, frustrated — because they forgot how to count Allah's blessings. They are angry about the fact that they had 99 things but didn't get that one thing. This is kufran un-ni'mah — ingratitude to Allah. One of the great ways to lead a happy life is to learn how to count Allah's blessings. Once we start doing that, we won't be pouting, angry, or frustrated.

Number Three — Taqwa: Allah mentions in Surah Al-Baqarah:

"Fear Allah, become God conscious, so that you may become successful." In order to be successful, a person needs to have that nur of Allah whereby he can differentiate right from wrong, truth from falsehood.

Number Four — Ibadah and Good Deeds: Allah says:

"Worship your Lord and do good deeds so that you may become successful." To do acts of ibadah and to do good deeds will lead us to success.

Number Five — Remembering Allah's Blessings: Allah says in Surah Al-A'raf:

"Remember and talk about Allah's blessings so that you may become successful." When we speak about how Allah blessed us with the sun and the moon, the stars, the different seasons, the sky, the beautiful clouds, the various types of fish, meat, vegetables, and grains available to us — the more we think about these blessings, the more appreciative of Allah we become, the more we'll be willing to worship Him, and we'll gain success.

Number Six — Holding on to the Jama'ah of the Believers: Allah says in Surah Al-Mujadila:

"Listen, indeed, the party of Allah — they are the successful ones." You can't be alone. You need to join with the group. As it is said, يَدُ اللَّهِ عَلَى الْجَمَاعَةِ — the assistance of Allah is with the jama'ah. A person should not think that he will be successful by staying on the bleachers on his own, pointing fingers at the rest of the ummah, saying, "The whole ummah is misled except for me, so I'm not joining them." This is not smart. Instead, we need to join the righteous people. And what is the opposite? أَلَا إِنَّ حِزْبَ الشَّيْطَانِ هُمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ — "Indeed, the party of Shaytan are the ultimate losers."

So these are six traits. Let me repeat them: one — justice and not being oppressive; two — having belief and not being ungrateful to Allah; three — having taqwa, God consciousness; four — worshiping Allah and doing good deeds; five — speaking about and thinking about Allah's blessings; and six — holding on to the jama'ah of the believers and joining their ranks.

Falah in the Hadith — Six Dimensions

One: Intelligence (الْعَقْل)

Rasulullah ﷺ said:

(Referenced by scholars of hadith in works on zuhd and raqaiq)

"Indeed, the one who has been gifted intelligence has become successful." Because in order to understand the intricacies of success and failure, you need to have intelligence. That is why Imam Shafi'i talks about the benefits of having intelligence in order to seek knowledge. And Imam Ghazali in Bidayatul Hidayah speaks about what traits to look for in a friend. The first trait he mentions is al-'aql — intelligence. You need to befriend people who are intelligent, because a person who is not intelligent may be very good and righteous, but because of his foolishness, he will end up harming you.

Then he quotes Ali رضي الله عنه, who said: it is better to have a smart and intelligent enemy than a foolish friend. Because the intelligent enemy acts based on the dictates of logic and you will know his next move. But a foolish friend — you don't know what he's going to do next. You don't know what he's going to blurt out in front of your spouse, your mom, your dad, your employer — and ruin your whole life, because he's not intelligent. So it's better to keep your distance from such people.

And when Khalid ibn al-Walid رضي الله عنه accepted Islam, Rasulullah ﷺ told him:

(Referenced in seerah narrations)

"O Khalid, I am surprised — I thought you had intelligence." Meaning: why did it take you so long to become a Muslim? You're so smart. Intelligence here is not about scoring 100% on your LSAT. Intelligence here is speaking about understanding the big picture — what does Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala want from me? That's called intelligence.

Like a Bedouin listening to the Quran for the first time. As soon as the Qari finishes, he gets upset and says, "I cannot believe how oppressive this human being is — I'm mad at the human race." Someone asks why. He says, "How? Why should the Lord of the world, the creator of the heavens and the earth and of mankind, why should He have to take an oath to say anything? Why does He have to take an oath? Why is this human being so stubborn that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has to take an oath to explain something?" That's intelligence right there. He accepted Islam, done.

Another Bedouin came towards Islam and said, "I'm shocked. How is it that someone sees a Lord who created multi-layered heavens with orbits of all sorts of planets and celestial objects, who created the oceans, the rivers, and the mountains — and yet denies the existence of that Lord? We know the droppings of a camel tell you that a camel has passed by. How can all of this not point to the fact that there is a Lord Almighty?" He never went to school, he is unlettered, but he is smart and intelligent — he got it.

And that's why Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says in the Quran:

"Indeed in the creation of the heavens and the earth, in the changing of the seasons, in the changing of night into day and day into night, are great signs for the people of intelligence." That's the intelligence we speak about. An intelligent man looks at people who are sick in the hospital and says, "I may be next." He looks at the heavens and the earth and says, "How can I not bow my head down in front of Allah who created the world?"

In another hadith it is mentioned:

(Referenced in various narrations of Islamic scholars)

"The one who has no deen has no intelligence, and the one who has no intelligence can never have deen."

Once the Prophet ﷺ saw a man who was mentally ill. He asked his companions, مَنْ هَذَا؟ — "Who is this?" They said, هُوَ مَجْنُونٌ — "He is crazy, he is insane." The Prophet ﷺ said: "No, this person is being tested. He is not insane — he is in a difficulty. Insane is the one who disobeys Allah." How can we ever think of putting our whole body into the blazing fire of Jahannam — which is 70 times the intensity of the fire of this world — by disobeying Allah? By looking at haram, listening to haram, eating haram, consuming haram, speaking haram? So the one who disobeys Allah is most definitely the one who is majnoon.

Two: Accepting Islam and Contentment

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 1054)

"Indeed, successful is the one who has accepted Islam, has been given just enough sustenance, and Allah has made him content with what He has given him." So the Prophet ﷺ spoke about three qualities of success: one — he has submitted himself to Allah; two — he has been given sustenance that is sufficient; three — Allah makes him content with what He has given him.

Being content with the rizq that Allah has given us is a criteria of success. And Nabi ﷺ mentioned in another hadith:

(Musnad Ahmad; referenced by various hadith scholars)

"When Allah loves a servant, He makes his sustenance just sufficient." What does this mean? That there are very few people who get a rizq that is more than sufficient and still remain obedient to Allah. It is very hard to be floating in money while at the same time floating in the pleasure of Allah. Usually money corrupts, and when a person gains material wealth, they do not know how to handle it. It takes over them. Instead of making the money work for them, they become a servant to the money.

For a believer, his mindset is always that of an investor — his idea of investment is in the akhirah. Anytime he sees a good cause, he thinks: how can I utilize this to invest in Jannah? A person came to Rasulullah ﷺ and said, "Ya Rasulullah, I don't have desire for the akhirah. What should I do?" Rasulullah ﷺ said: "A man is usually attached to where his belongings are. If a traveler has his belongings in a relative's house in Chicago, he'll say, 'I need to go back — my suitcase is over there, my things are over there.' A person yearns to be with his belongings." The Rasulullah ﷺ told him: "You don't desire the akhirah? Why don't you put your belongings over there? Send your belongings to the hereafter, then automatically you'll start wanting to be in the akhirah." When you start sending deposits — direct deposit to the akhirah, every month, 5%, 10%, 15% of your income — after 20 years you realize your biggest investment is in the akhirah, and you say, "Why should I stay here? My retirement is in Jannah."

Think about the migrant workers in the Middle East — millions from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nepal. Find one migrant worker who owns a condo there after 25 years of working. They don't. All that money, they send it back. Over 20 years, many of them now own a three-level villa back home where the whole family lives comfortably. In the Middle East itself, he's got nothing. He's smart. He said, "I don't even get citizenship even if I stay here for a hundred years. This is a temporary place. I came here to work." That's how this world is.

"Live in this world as a traveler, as a stranger." Earn and earn and earn — but send it. Make all the money you want. But make sure you invest it in a place where you will actually be able to enjoy it forever. And that's called the akhirah.

And there is another hadith:

(Referenced in Kanz al-Ummal and similar collections)

"Take from the dunya as much as you wish, and take equivalent to that in worry and sadness." Meaning: the more material gain that comes in, with that comes an equivalent amount of stress. That's how it is.

Three: Sufficient Sustenance (الْكَفَاف)

Having just sufficient sustenance is itself a virtue, as the hadith of إِنَّ اللَّهَ إِذَا أَحَبَّ عَبْدًا indicates, because most people who get more than enough end up failing and misusing it.

Four: Contentment (الرِّضَا وَالْقَنَاعَة)

To be content with what Allah gives you is going to give you success.

Five: Purity of Heart and Sincerity of Iman

(Musnad Ahmad; referenced in hadith collections on the heart and spirituality)

"Indeed, successful is the one who makes his heart pure for iman" — and then he makes his heart sound, his tongue truthful, his nafs content with Allah, his character upright, his ears willing to listen to everything beneficial, and his eyes looking at everything that is beneficial. "For the ear will absorb whatever good or bad goes in, and the eye will be the gateway to the heart. And indeed, successful is the one who has made his heart a container for the truth."

The gist: being able to see the truth and find the truth is a sign of success.

Six: A Heart Clean from Spiritual Illnesses

To have your heart clean from all spiritual illnesses is a key sign and condition of falah.

The Attributes of the Successful Believers — The Opening Verses of Surah Al-Mu'minun

Once a person understands the description of falah from the Quran and hadith, we can move on to this specific selection of verses, which we will go through the translation of today, and inshallah revisit again for further details the following week.

Allah says:

"Truly the believers shall realize everlasting success. Those who attain humility in their prayers. Those who turn away from any idle and vile talk. Those who are active in giving their zakat. Those who are ever so vigilant in remaining chaste — except in associating with their spouses or with whom their right hands may rightfully possess, for then they are not blameworthy. But whoever seeks intimate consort beyond this, it is they who are the ultimate transgressors. Those who are observant of their trusts and their covenants. Those who are ever vigilant in keeping up with their prayers. It is these who shall be the inheritors — those who shall inherit paradise. Therein they shall abide forever."

Now let's look at these attributes one by one.

All of us sitting here think we are believers. Then Allah says: "Okay, I'm going to put on filters." These are all the attributes of the believers who are successful. Just watch how much of this you have. If you have these attributes, then okay. And when we read this and look at how much we've discussed from the past hour — where do we stand in all these things? We realize there's so much room for improvement. Because we're under the erroneous misconception that we're all set — "there's a whole street in Jannah named after me, and one for my dad, one for my brother, whole subdivision." Everyone thinks we're set because we recite the shahada, while all the others don't. This is not how it works. The believer who is successful has to have certain traits. Do you and I have those traits? That is the question.

First Trait — True Iman: What is true iman? We'll talk about that next week. Iman is something heavy. It's not just lip service — لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ. It is very heavy.

Second Trait — Khushu' in Prayer:

The ones who attain humility in their prayers. Khushu' fi salah is an important aspect.

Third Trait — Turning Away from Vile Talk:

The ones who unfailingly turn away from any vile talk they hear. Not only are they not interested in speaking trashy things, but if they hear someone speaking about it, they turn away. You have to not only not do those things, you cannot even sit around the places where such things are happening. Because your iman will say: I cannot withstand this. Someone says, "I don't curse, but I enjoy the company of people who do." How does that make sense? So these people turn away from anyone who has vile talk.

Fourth Trait — Giving Zakat:

The ones who are giving their due zakat and charity, without being stingy and without regarding it as a burden.

Fifth Trait — Guarding Chastity:

The ones who are ever so vigilant in remaining chaste — not falling into any of those sins. Except in associating with their spouses, for then they are not blameworthy. This section also refers to the institution of slavery as it existed at that time, which Islam slowly phased out. But whoever seeks intimate consort beyond the lawful — it is they who are the ultimate transgressors. 'Adun — they are transgressing the limits.

Sixth Trait — Fulfilling Trusts and Covenants:

The ones who are observant of their trusts and their covenants. Anytime you give your word to someone, you have to fulfill it. Anytime you have been entrusted with something — a position, an office, a responsibility — a person has to fulfill that.

Seventh Trait — Guarding the Prayers (again):

Notice we started with iman and salah, and we are ending with salah again. The ones who are ever vigilant in keeping up with their prayers — مُحَافِظُونَ عَلَى الصَّلَاةِ. It is these who shall be the inheritors — the ones who shall inherit Firdaws. Therein they shall abide forever.

There is a saying:

Iman does not come with just mere adornment — faking it. And iman does not come with tamanni — just desiring and wishing. Iman comes with hard work. A person doesn't become a doctor simply by wishing he could be one. Similarly, iman does not come by sharing stories of our grandparents — that "my grandfather was such and such a sheikh." That's not how a person becomes a believer. It requires a lot of hard effort.

And so this is what we are hearing about here — the sifat, the journey from today, my journey and your journey, is about bringing these attributes inside ourselves. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala's allegiance is not with color or ethnicity or gender. Allah's allegiance is with sifat and attributes. Anyone, from anywhere, from any background, who has the proper attributes — Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is willing, with all open arms, to befriend him, to become his wali, his caretaker, his naseer, his mawla. But what does Allah want from us? He wants sifat.

This is what this discussion is about — getting these attributes within us. This is our journey, beloved brothers and sisters, a journey of a lifetime. We are all very far from where we need to be. But at least if we can walk away tonight making this niyyah: the criteria of success from today is the criteria of success that Allah and His Rasul have laid out for me — not the criteria of success that my business school or medical school laid out, or my influencers laid out. Because the biggest influencer that you and I should be following is Rasulullah ﷺ. It is Rasulullah ﷺ's book, his seerah, that a person needs to follow. And if we follow that, inshallah, then the sifat will automatically come in.

How to Begin Cleansing the Heart

How do we begin cleansing the heart and soul from our past transgressions?

First — Istighfar: Istighfar is like bleaching it out. The more istighfar we do, the better.

There is a book by Imam Hasan al-Basri rahimahullah, who is the leader of the tabi'een — a collection of 80 different types of istighfar narrated from him. When you read that, you will inshallah automatically start crying, because it has come from a pure heart. How he begs Allah for forgiveness is amazing. We have to learn how to beg Allah. That's why they say: istighfaruna yahtajul istighfar — our istighfar itself requires istighfar, because we do such a bad job seeking forgiveness from Allah. The way to cleanse the heart is to do a lot of istighfar. At least 500 a day — 100 after every salah. Ask forgiveness from Allah. That's one way to start.

Second — Dhikr of Allah: Do try to do 500 dhikr of اللَّه in your heart. You could do that at work, at school, while driving. Imagine your heart beating with اللَّه اللَّه اللَّه اللَّه. This is so easy. You could be anywhere in the world and no one will notice. Your lips are not moving, your tongue is not moving, your heart is beating with Allah's name. When that nur of Allah comes into the heart, automatically inshallah, the blackness of sin will also begin to shift away.

Third — Stay Connected with Good Gatherings: Gatherings of ilm and dhikr like this one. Just staying connected in a good environment of the masjid will inshallah help us move away from a life of transgression.

And Nabi alayhi salatu wasalam said: whoever holds on to istighfar profusely — three gifts Allah will give him: one — Allah will give him an opening and a respite out of every depression, sadness, and worry he is going through; two — Allah will give him an exit out of every tight spot he has found himself in; three — Allah will provide him sustenance from places where he has never imagined. So all three needs of this world will be fulfilled if we inshallah do istighfar profusely.

Q&A Session

What does Islam say about global warming and signs of the Day of Judgment?

The signs of the Hour do mention rain and natural disasters. It is narrated that natural disasters will become so common that in every morning, people will meet each other and talk about them — "Where'd you come from? I had an earthquake. Where'd you come from? I had a mudslide." Fires will become rampant. Earthquakes will become rampant. The hail, acid rain will be there. The Arabian Peninsula will turn into meadows and green pastures while rivers begin to flow there. I won't say per se "global warming" itself, but a lot of the effects of global warming are things that hadith do speak about.

What rights do children have over parents?

The story of Umar رضي الله عنه comes to mind. A father came and said, "Ya Umar, my son is being disobedient to me." Umar رضي الله عنه called the son and was about to hold him accountable. Then the son said, "Hold on — can I share my side of the story? Do I not have any rights?" Umar رضي الله عنه said, "Of course you have rights." He said, "Can you tell me, O Umar, what are my rights as a son?" Umar رضي الله عنه said, "Your rights are that your father should have married a lady of good character and good religious knowledge. Your father should have given you a proper name and taught you the deen."

The son responded, "But my dad married a slave girl with no character and no deen. That's my mother. He gave me a name with a horrible meaning. And he didn't teach me anything about the deen. I know nothing about the deen." At this, Umar رضي الله عنه said, "I am not going to punish you." And he told the father: "You had oppressed him before he oppressed you, because you made wrong decisions — and this is the effect of those wrong decisions." So the rights of children over parents begin with choosing the right spouse. When you are marrying someone, don't marry them just as your husband or wife — marry them as the future father or mother of your children. If you are marrying a sinful person, remember: your children have no choice. You're giving them a sinful parent. Be very careful when choosing your spouse.

At what age should spouses have children?

When they get married, if there is a specific real circumstance for not having children immediately, then that needs to be discussed. Otherwise, the purpose of marriage is التَّوَالُد وَالتَّنَاسُل — having children. That's what Rasulullah ﷺ said:

(Sunan Abu Dawud, Hadith 2050; Sunan al-Nasa'i, Hadith 3227)

"Get married to someone who is loving and who will bear many children." Rasulullah ﷺ said he will be boasting at the large numbers of his ummah.

How to make up with people after going through depression and shutting out the world?

Don't worry about what people will say about you. Alhamdulillah that you have now come back and you are doing better. Focus on your own physical and emotional health. Don't worry about people — if someone asks "where have you been?", that's normal nowadays, people even understand that. Instead, just focus on your own emotional health. And make sure you stay consistent with the dhikr of Allah. Inshallah, if you are consistent with the dhikr of Allah, you will be emotionally strong as well.

How should one go about learning Arabic?

Initially, a person should take a more intensive program — even if for a short duration, like 10 days, 1 month, or 2 weeks — just to get accustomed to it. You need to put yourself in a very immersive environment. Once you go through that, you can study on a part-time basis. However, I'll be honest: Arabic is one of the most difficult languages to learn. If you study Arabic once a week, it's not going to work. You have to study it every day, even if it means 20 minutes. But before getting started, take an Arabic intensive — a program like ours offered over the summer — for 1 month or 3 weeks, putting yourself all in. By doing a more intensive course for a month, inshallah, it'll give you a strong foundation, and then you can continue part-time after that.

What is the best du'a for sickness?

There are six ayahs in the Quran that have the word shifa in them. You can read those. One of them is:

"When I become sick, Allah is the one who cures me."

Additionally, the best du'a for sickness is:

Rasulullah ﷺ said: "Whoever recites this du'a upon the sick person seven times, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala will grant him shifa from every sickness except for death." (Jami' al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 2083; Sunan Abu Dawud, Hadith 3106)

What is the difference between الْمُؤْمِنُونَ (marfu') and الْمُؤْمِنِينَ (majrur)?

When you say سُورَةُ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ, you do not say سُورَةُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ, even though سُورَة is mudaf and الْمُؤْمِنُونَ is mudaf ilayh. The reason is that الْمُؤْمِنُونَ is an 'alam — a proper noun, the specific name of this surah — and it does not change its case ending. It does not change from marfu' to mansub to majrur. The actual name is مُؤْمِنُونَ, so you keep it as سُورَةُ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ.

What seerah book do you recommend to develop love for Rasulullah ﷺ?

There are alhamdulillah lots of great books available. I would suggest reading those books that focus on the stories and character of Rasulullah ﷺ's life, not necessarily just on the wars and expeditions. If you read a seerah book that focuses on Rasulullah ﷺ's character and akhlaq, that is how you will build love for him. For example, Al-Shama'il al-Kubra — five volumes, short and simple, translated in English — which goes through the sunnah life of Rasulullah ﷺ day to day: How did he eat? How did he drink? How did he wake up? How did he go to bed? How was his life at home? With his grandchildren? With his spouses? With the ummah? Reading through that, you'll get a very good description of the life of Rasulullah ﷺ, you'll learn how to inculcate that within your own life, and inshallah the mahabbah of Rasulullah ﷺ will come into our hearts.

How to bring love of Islam into an 8-year-old and how to talk about current day issues?

The way to bring love of deen into anyone's heart is to give them environment. That's it. Less talking, and bring them to the environment. When they come to the environment — here or any other masjid with programs for kids, like a Sunday school or maktab — when you bring fun together with the deen, and they feel appreciated, and deen is presented to them in a loving environment, inshallah the mahabbah of deen will fall into their heart. Definitely reading good books and the stories of the sahaba is beneficial, but make it a habit to bring them to the masjid as often as possible.

If my heart desires to achieve a certain level of wealth, is that wrong?

You have to ask yourself: what do you want to achieve this wealth for? If the intention is to please Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in a very specific manner — not "let me just get the money and then I'll figure it out" — then there is nothing wrong with having this goal. But understand: you don't need to achieve wealth to please Allah. There's nothing wrong with it if the intention is very clear — for example, "I feel so bad that my parents have such a difficult life, I want to provide for them." So you're focused. That's fine. But keep on asking Allah: "O Allah, allow the money to just touch my hands and not my heart." Because money has a much longer lasting effect of filth and dirt on the heart than it does on the hands — and we don't usually think about that. So keep on asking Allah, and Allah will prevent the love for that wealth from entering the heart. InshaAllah.

Closing Du'a

Oh Allah, we ask You to accept this gathering. Oh Allah, all those who are listening online, those who are listening on site, those who will listen afterwards — Oh Allah, make it easy for all of us to be able to put into practice whatever good has been shared. Oh Allah, any good that we have been able to achieve till today, and any good we will ever do in the future, it is only through Your grace. Oh Allah, whatever mistakes we have made, we take blame for it, we take responsibility for it. But we ask and beg You that You forgive us for our mistakes — both major and minor, those done by day and those done at night, those done individually and those done collectively, those done knowingly and those done unknowingly, those we repented from before and those we have never repented from, those we regarded as sins and those we never regarded as sins.

Oh Allah, we ask You to grant us forgiveness from any and all types of mistakes and sins — those committed by our eyes, our ears, our tongue, our hands and feet, our heart, our mind, our stomach, and our private parts. Oh Allah, grant us forgiveness from any and all mistakes and disobedience that we have committed.

Oh Allah, we ask You to grant us istiqamah — steadfastness in our tawbah. Oh Allah, grant us the ability, the means, the right environment, the right friends, the right circle that will allow us to remain steadfast away from our sins and steadfast upon Your obedience. Oh Allah, grant all of us a very clear, distinct ability to understand our own goals. Allow us to have our mission, our vision, and our goals set out in life — consistent with the mission and vision that Your Prophet ﷺ brought to us and showed us.

Oh Allah, allow all of us to lead a life in accordance with the teachings and the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ. Oh Allah, fill our hearts with Your love and the love of Rasulullah ﷺ, and the love of the sahaba, the love of the Quran, the love of the sunnah, the love of the pious of the past and the pious of today. Oh Allah, and the love of such actions which will make us worthy of Your love.

Oh Allah, we beg You that You love us, and make us worthy of Your love through such good deeds that You want us to do. Oh Allah, grab us by our forelock and lead us to live a life that is pleasing to You. Oh Allah, bring sunnah in every aspect of our life. Oh Allah, bring mahabbah and love between the parents and the children, between spouses, between siblings, between relatives, between neighbors. Oh Allah, remove any and all misgivings, misunderstandings, and infighting that is ravaging through our homes.

Oh Allah, all those marriages that are falling apart — Oh Allah, we ask You, we beg You to bring them together. Do not allow shaytan to have a share in these marriages, Ya Allah. And Oh Allah, those who are not married yet — Ya Allah, allow them all to be able to work on their self-improvement, to work on their own nafs, to work on their own soul. And then, through the barakah of that, allow each one of them to find such a spouse that will become a gateway to Jannah in this world — a spiritual buddy, a best friend, who will bring them immense happiness, Ya Allah.

Oh Allah, we ask You to open up the doors of halal for us and close the doors of haram. Make it easy for all of us to remain chaste, to remain far away from haram. Oh Allah, close the doors of haram — even if we extend our hand toward it, allow our hands not to reach it. Even if we walk towards it, allow those huge walls to come between us and haram — be it haram of the eyes, the ears, financial transactions, or the tongue. Allow us to be disconnected from such things and such individuals, Ya Allah.

Oh Allah, grant us the nur of iman, grant us a revival of the iman in our hearts. Oh Allah, grant us the sixth sense to be able to distinguish right from wrong in this very confusing era. Oh Allah, grant us the ability to see from very far the plots and ploys of shaytan, and all the various fitan that are raging around us — grant us the sixth sense to sense all of that, to see it as clear as daylight. Oh Allah, allow us to warn ourselves and our family members from these fitan, Ya Allah.

Oh Allah, we ask You to grant us the sweetness of the Quran. Ya Allah, grant us the ability to recite the Quran profusely within Ramadan. Ya Allah, with just two months away, allow us all to be prepared to receive it well. And Oh Allah, grant us all a long life that will allow us to witness the month of Ramadan, and many more Ramadans after that as well.

Oh Allah, wherever the ummah throughout the globe is going through any type of financial, spiritual, emotional, or mental difficulty — we ask You, Ya Allah, that You grant them all respite, grant them all shifa, grant them all ease, grant them all comfort, and remove any and all difficulty that the ummah is going through.

Ameen, ameen, ameen.

Please enjoy the tea on the way out and make du'a for the students who have prepared that. May Allah bless them and reward them.

As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.