2014-08-29 - Friday Prayer - Sheikh Abdul Hakim

True Loss: Deen Over Dunya

All praise is due to Allah. We praise Him and ask His forgiveness and guidance. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil of our souls and from the evil of our deeds. Whom Allah guides, no one can misguide. Whom Allah misguides, no one can guide. We bear witness that there is no god but Allah. There is no partner for Him. We bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger.

A Father's Conversation — and an Ayah That Changed It

Yesterday, I had a short talk with my son. I was trying to give him a pep talk about preparing himself for a future of success in this dunya. At the beginning of a new school year — a critical year of high school for him — I said, son, if you don't work hard, put the effort, and maintain alertness of how you approach this year, the future of your college might be jeopardized. In that situation, your whole future and whatever you want to be in the future can be in question. And I tried to strategize elements of success in this dunya for my son, hoping that he'd take it to heart.

And I think I was kind of successful, because with time, he started to cry. When he walked out of the room, I sat and I remembered an ayah in the Qur'an al-Karim. And I had to call him back.

Because one of the words I said to him, I said: if you don't pay attention, you'll be at loss —

You'll be at loss. Then I remembered:

Say: those who are truly at loss are those who lose themselves and their families on the Day of Judgment. That is a true loss.

And all of a sudden, all these verses and ayat came to my mind. Trying to figure out where the true loss in this dunya is. And I could not find a true loss in this dunya.

Loss vs. Less: A Crucial Distinction

If you suddenly don't get a job, in our calculation it's a loss. But in the Qur'an al-Karim, when Allah referred to all of these things in this dunya — whether it's wealth, or health, or profession, or family, or children, or whatever it is that you're tested with in this dunya — He did not consider it a loss. He considered it a deficit. A deficit. And it's a test of a deficit of something that's already there.

A loss is a complete elimination of something that you should have. There's a difference between the two. He said in Surah al-Baqarah:

And we will limit it — we will decrease it. And a decrease of something in this dunya is not a loss. Because nothing in this dunya is supposed to be yours to take in the first place. So you cannot lose what's not supposed to be yours.

If Allah was to give you something, and then He decided — in His own will — that He will give you less of it, you cannot say: I got a loss. You didn't miss anything. You got less, not loss. Not L-O-S-S — L-E-S-S. Everything about this dunya is never lost. Never lost. Except if it's Deen.

Surah al-'Asr: The True Measure of Loss

Allah says in the Qur'an al-Karim:

Every human being is in loss. So you would assume that the ayat right after it are talking about some kind of profession or wealth. But it spoke about things that are spiritually based. إِلَّا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالْحَقِّ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالصَّبْرِ.

So whenever you start thinking about losing in this dunya, it's never about the dunya itself. It's about the Deen within the dunya. The dunya itself is a gift, as well as a test.

The Sahaba's Understanding of Wealth

I remember that the Sahaba used to say, when the Rasul — sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — used to take something from them:

"What you take from us is more beloved to us than what you leave for us." They were telling him: whatever we have is not really ours. It's yours — for you to take or leave. And what you leave is more beloved, because then it's a gift from Allah that He had allowed us to keep.

At the end of the day, that's not what's meant for us to take. The Rasul — sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — himself was given the option to be rich and wealthy and strong and authoritative and ruling in this dunya, and he chose to be miskeen. He could have had the mountains of Mecca turned to gold — it was at his disposal. He could have had the power and authority to order and command, and the people would have been at his discretion. But he chose to be someone who eats one day and tastes the hunger on the other. He appreciates when he eats and he shows patience when he doesn't.

Did he choose to wear silky kinds of clothes? — and in fact, silk for men is not allowed. Or jewelry all over his body? — and in fact, for men, that is not allowed either. Because that was not a loss. It wasn't a loss. There is no one more wealthy than the Rasul — sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. No one is more wealthy and happy than he was.

The Two Categories of Loss

Our ulema have said: loss is eminent for every human being — not because of the dunya, but because of the Deen. And that loss is divided into two types, two categories.

First Category: Complete Loss — Kufr

A complete, total loss of every hope and every possible success. That is the loss of the complete Deen — kufr. Allah says:

They are at loss. Because they have no hope on yawm al-qiyamah. They have no hope on yawm al-qiyamah. That is a complete lack of any possibility of Jannah. And that is why He said إِلَّا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا — those who do not have iman do not have the possibility of a successful life. Not in this dunya, and not in the hereafter.

Allah says:

"Let me tell you about those who are the most lost in their actions — those whose striving went astray in this worldly life, while they thought they were doing excellently." Those are the greatest losers, because at the very moment they think they are doing so well, they are actually doing the contrary — so wrong.

And the majority of people in this dunya are at loss. The majority of them — whether they are wearing a three-piece suit and driving their Audis, BMWs, or Mercedes. They end up with loss of dunya and akhirah. And sometimes the dunya itself is taken by their own hands. It's almost becoming a trend. Every few months we hear of some celebrity taking his own life. And it doesn't wake us up.

SubhanAllah — the moment they take their lives away, we remember their so-called success in this dunya, not their extreme failure by taking their lives away. I remember a little while ago — the celebrity Robin Williams. We were sitting somewhere and someone said he just committed suicide. "Wow, I loved his movies. He made everybody laugh." He couldn't find a smile in his heart. He couldn't find joy in his soul. He couldn't find within his children a completion of life. Or within his wealth some kind of cure to ease the stress. He couldn't find a night of sleep except if he was drugged. What success is that?

Those who have no iman cannot settle their heads on their pillows with peace. Those who have no iman will not find their souls attached to the One who created them. Allah says:

With the remembrance of Allah do hearts find rest. If you don't have the name of Allah in your heart, you cannot find peace. That's a given in our Deen.

Allah says in the Qur'an:

He is blind. One who does not have the name of Allah mentioned in his heart is blind. Wallahi. He is at loss.

وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ — that also is crucial, because it follows that first category. Those who do not do righteous deeds are also at complete loss. Because everywhere you see in the Qur'an وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ, it is the translation of iman. Our ulama, ahl al-sunnah wal-jama'ah, said that iman is to honor the word with your mouth, to believe it in your heart, and to express it in your organs. So if your iman is not translated through honesty and generosity and decency and truthfulness, then there is a question about your iman.

In the books of fiqh, our ulama have divided them into two types: الْعِبَادَات and الْمُعَامَلَات. SubhanAllah — our communities are either one of them but not both. Many in the West have kind of perfected or excelled in الْمُعَامَلَات. While back home they kind of excelled in الْعِبَادَات. So it's okay to lie and cheat and backbite and gossip and give rishwa over there. But here, we also lack الْعِبَادَات. Our Deen is like a shell in our lives.

The majority that I see here today are Jumu'ah Muslims. But then on regular days they're too consumed — because they say:

"Our work and families and wealth have kept us busy." But those are given to you — you don't earn them. You earn the Deen. When you don't show up, you don't get it. The dunya — even if you don't show up — you'll still get it. So the actions are our مُعَامَلَات, and the iman is the عِبَادَات.

And until you pray still in front of Allah with all of your heart and soul, your iman is not complete. And until you go outside and are as honest as you are in your salah with Allah, your iman is not complete either. So when you lie to mankind, you are lying to Allah. Because the Rasul — sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — stated in the hadith that a true believer is the one who deals with people as he deals with himself — and in one narration, as he deals with Allah. So ask yourself that question. Until we act upon our faith, we're still losing in this dunya and the hereafter.

Second Category: Partial Loss — Neglecting Brotherhood and Truth

Then He says وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالْحَقِّ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالصَّبْرِ. This is the second category of loss. It's not a complete loss of Jannah, but there is a great chance of losing a lot of what you could have gained in Jannah. It is to remind ourselves to do what's right and to remind ourselves of the truth.

To me, brothers — you are your brother's keeper, your brother's protector. You are your neighbor's neighbor. You are your co-worker's colleague. You are the one that they can lean on, that you'll help them find their way. There is not an iota of selfishness in you. What you love for yourself, love for others. And until we bring that up, we lose a lot — wallahi.

The greatest of our loss, if we don't act towards our brothers as we act towards ourselves, is that we lose the support of Allah. The Rasul — sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — says in the hadith al-Qudsi:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 35, Hadith 6518)

Allah will be in your support, in your help, as long as you are in your brother's help. So if you are your brother's keeper, Allah will be your keeper and protector. And that is تَوَاصٍ بِالْحَقِّ وَتَوَاصٍ بِالصَّبْرِ.

And there is a difference between تَوَاصٍ بِالْحَقِّ — reminding ourselves about what needs to be done — and تَوَاصٍ بِالصَّبْرِ — reminding ourselves what it takes for that to be done. You don't just give guidance; you also hold hands and walk the way. You walk the walk with your brothers. And that is where the patience is. Allah says:

Order your family to perform salah and be patient with it. Walk them through that journey of prayers. Sometimes we tell ourselves: "I gave him my advice, he didn't want to take it. I did what I needed to do." No, you did not. The only way to fulfill your obligation is to make sure that you walk the walk with them. SubhanAllah.

Allah says in Surah al-Jathiyah:

Every nation will be on their knees — together. As we understand, yawm al-qiyamah is an individual judgment but also a communal judgment. You will not be alone. And no one will speak on your behalf, but you'll be questioned about other people. You'll be questioned about your neighbor. SubhanAllah.

How many neighbors will be our biggest problem on yawm al-qiyamah? I fear for my neighbors on yawm al-qiyamah. By Allah. Because it's not about "Hi, what's up? Are you good today? It's quite hot today, isn't it?" No — it's about telling them what they need to hear. What will protect them. Your neighbor is losing. The key of success is in your hand. On yawm al-qiyamah, they'll be the key of your failure. Because they will say: "My neighbor never really introduced me to this Deen." Because it is his deen as it is yours.

Allah has chosen Islam for all of mankind — إِنَّ الدِّينَ عِندَ اللَّهِ الْإِسْلَامُ — and you are ordered by the Rasul — sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — to convey that success to people:

"Convey from me, even if it is a single verse." So it's not about losing a dime or a nickel. It's either a complete success or a complete loss on yawm al-qiyamah:

Whoever is pulled away from the Fire and admitted into Jannah has truly succeeded. We ask Allah for tawfiq — for ourselves and for all of you.

Second Part of the Khutbah

All praise is due to Allah, and we seek His forgiveness.

Abu Bakr al-Siddiq and the Passing of the Prophet

Abu Bakr al-Siddiq came in to the Rasul — sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — while he was laid in bed after he had passed away. The ummah was crying. Umar was in the masjid with a sword saying: "Wallahi, whoever claims the Rasul — sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — has died, I'll chop his neck! He just went to see his Lord like Musa did, and he'll come back." So everybody was completely lapsed of mind at that moment.

Abu Bakr comes in and covers the face of the Rasul — sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — as the story tells us — and simply said:

"You have tasted the death that Allah had written for you. Tibta hayyan wa mayyitan — you were pure and purified, in life and in death." It didn't matter. It was an incident that happened, and now we move on.

They moved on. The greatest love they had in their lives had just departed from them — and they moved on. It was just a matter of what he used — the word شَاكِرِين. At the moment that the Rasul — sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — passed away, Allah said: if he were to be killed or to die, would you retreat? Would you waver from your faith? Whoever does that will be the one who is at loss — but Allah will reward those who are grateful, those who are shakireen.

Shakireen — at the time of the death of the Rasul — sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. You don't show shukr when you lose something unless it's not really a loss. Departing from this dunya — for a Muslim — is not a loss. It can be the greatest gain, getting closer to the ultimate success: Jannah. To see Allah with your own eyes. To be in the presence of the Rasul — sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — and to drink from his blessed hand. To never feel sadness or grief again. To never feel hunger or thirst or heat or cold.

That is how Abu Bakr and the Sahaba saw it — and they moved on. Why do we find ourselves trembling and crumbling and coming to a halt because of an unfortunate situation in this dunya, in our opinion?

A Father's Final Words to His Son

I called my son back — to the conclusion of today. I said: Habibi, do your best and make sure your best is in your deed, and Allah will take care of your dunya. Don't be distracted in your salah, and Allah will make sure you are not distracted in your class. Don't be late in your prayers, and you won't be late in your homework. Rely on Allah for everything and He will guide you to your straight A's. Make sure you get the top ranks in Jannah, and He'll give you the top grades in this dunya.

It makes sense to me. And he walked out smiling. He walked out right at the beginning — crying. He walked out at the end — smiling. When the name of Allah was mentioned between him and I, he smiled. When the dunya was our focus, he cried.

Announcements

Brothers and sisters, there is a request for du'a. Brother Jabbar Kasbati had a surgery recently and is still in the ICU. Please make du'a for his complete shifa'. May Allah grant him complete healing.

Two more announcements regarding our schools and enrollment. This is the enrollment time. Insha'Allah, Sunday school will have registration again on Sunday.