20170324- 2nd Khutba - Sheikh Arsalan

Khutbah Opening

إِنَّ الْحَمْدَ لِلَّهِ تَعَالَى نَحْمَدُهُ وَنَسْتَعِينُهُ وَنَسْتَغْفِرُهُ وَنَسْتَهْدِيهِ وَنَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ تَعَالَى مِنْ شُرُورِ أَنْفُسِنَا وَمِنْ سَيِّئَاتِ أَعْمَالِنَا، مَنْ يَهْدِهِ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى فَلَا مُضِلَّ لَهُ وَمَنْ يُضْلِلْ فَلَا هَادِيَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ سَيِّدَنَا مُحَمَّدًا صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ وَصَفِيُّهُ وَخَلِيلُهُ، بَلَّغَ الرِّسَالَةَ وَأَدَّى الْأَمَانَةَ وَنَصَحَ لِلْأُمَّةِ وَجَاهَدَ

Then, to proceed — brothers and sisters, during my travels in the Middle East, during my stay in Damascus and in Cairo as I pursued my quest for Islamic learning, I once visited the city of Amman in Jordan just for a few days. While I was there I met some students who I was very intrigued with — a part of their behavior almost troubled me to an extent. These students, they would walk around with the most exquisite subhah — the prayer beads — but the problem was not carrying the subhah. The problem was that they were very fancy, very exquisite, very expensive. And it seemed to be a culture — everybody had very exquisite, very expensive, very nice, very fancy subhah that they used to count their dhikr.

So I asked one of my friends who was a resident of Amman and I said: why spend so much money on a subhah, something that is for dhikr of Allah? Isn't this extravagant? Isn't this excessive? And he told me that there was a reason why they did that, and the reason was because the Prophet said:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 21, Hadith 10)

That indeed Allah has made ihsan mandatory in everything. Ihsan — what is ihsan? We translate it as excellence. But ihsan is mandatory in everything. So even when it comes to using a subhah, it's not just going to be any thread — it's going to be the best thread. It's not just going to be any beads — it's going to be the best possible ones. It's not just going to be tied in any manner — it's going to be tied professionally so that it lasts, and so that it reminds us of the One who Himself does everything with excellence, Allah.

What Is Ihsan?

You see, brothers and sisters, ihsan comes from the root word husn, and husn means beauty. So ihsan means to make beautiful — it's to make something beautiful, to put beauty, to put husn in something. Ihsan is to do things in the most beautiful possible way. That's why it's translated as excellence — to do things not just to get by, not just subhanAllah and then I'm done, but to do it in the most excellent, most beautiful possible way, internally as well as externally.

Ihsan as a Divine Quality

And ihsan is, first and foremost, a divine quality. This is a quality, an attribute of Allah. Allah says in Surah al-Sajdah — the surah that we are recommended to recite every Friday during Salat al-Fajr:

He is the One — Allah is the One — who has not just created everything, but created everything with ihsan, with excellence. So ihsan is in the way Allah does things — it is His quality. He says in Surah al-Tin, a surah that all of our kids memorize:

Not just created the human being, period, but we have created the human being in the best form, in the best process. And Allah also praises Himself for this attribute of His — He says that blessed be He, Allah, the One who is the most excellent of those who create.

So ihsan is a quality of Allah, and then He expects this from us. He commands us to do things with ihsan because He does things with ihsan. He says in one place in the Quran:

Do things with ihsan just like Allah has done things with ihsan regarding you. Every khutbah we end with what?

That Allah commands — it's not just an encouragement, it's not just an extra thing, it's not optional — it is a command, an imperative. Allah commands you with adl, justice, and with ihsan. Allah also tells us that if we live a life of ihsan, if we try our best to do everything with ihsan, that this is something that Allah loves. Allah says:

Do you want to be the beloved of Allah? Allah says: Allah loves those who are muhsineen — who do things with ihsan. And the Prophet said in the hadith that we started with:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 21, Hadith 10)

That Allah has made ihsan mandatory in everything.

Expressions of Ihsan in Our Daily Lives

So let's think about some examples in which we need to express ihsan — things that we do in our lives in which we need to remember this beautiful requirement of our deen. Ihsan is expressed in different ways in different things.

Ihsan in Our Interaction with Allah: Salah

Let's start with our interaction with Allah. In our interaction with Allah, when we perform salah — how do we perform salah? Do we perform salah in a hurry, in a rush, where we don't even realize what was recited in the first rak'ah or the second rak'ah, or which rak'ah am I in? Did I think about everything other than Allah in my salah? Or did I at least struggle, at least make an effort to interact with my Lord in a way that is full of ihsan?

Did I at least, at least, make an effort to turn off my cell phone before I started the salah? Or did I not care about that because it's an important phone call? Or because it's something quick, I'm gonna be done in five minutes anyway? Or do I put it on vibrate so that I don't embarrass myself by the phone ringing, but I still feel the vibration — but that's between me and Allah, nobody's gonna know about it, it's okay if it still distracts me? How is that an interaction with Allah with ihsan, if I'm allowing my phone to vibrate and distract me during my salah?

Do I pay attention to these things? If I do, then I am striving for ihsan in my salah. When I line up for prayers in jama'ah, do I close the gaps? Every salah, do I make an effort to do that? If I do, then I am striving for ihsan in the way that I'm praying. Otherwise, if I just come and I don't care and it's just "let's get on with it, get done with the salah, I have to go, I have things to do, people to see" — that's prayer, but it's just getting by. It's not done with ihsan.

Ihsan in Learning Our Deen

When I learn my deen — do I learn my deen? Do I spend time during the week to learn my deen, my Islam, what Allah wants from me, what Rasulullah wants from me, and how I'm supposed to do these things as explained by our ulema? Do I make an effort to learn, and how do I learn? Do I just go and attend the khutbah, walk in at the end and just catch a few minutes? Or I go and sit for the entire khutbah but I'm going through my newsfeed as the khatib is speaking? This is not ihsan.

Ihsan is to come to a session of ilm ready to take notes — with a pen and paper or a notebook — to sit down and take notes and go home and review and memorize. This is learning the deen with ihsan. But just going on Facebook and reading some status messages and liking them and sharing them — that's not learning the deen. Listening to some audio in your car as you're driving, and at the end of it you forget 70% of it and after a week you've forgotten 90% of it — that's not learning the deen with ihsan.

Ihsan in Our Interaction with the Creation of Allah

How can we express ihsan in the way that we interact with the creation of Allah? How do we serve our parents? Do we just take care of them because if we don't, what are people going to say? Or do we serve them with ihsan, with excellence — we serve them like a servant? What kind of time do we spend with our children and our spouses? When we're driving in the car, are we on the phone the whole time? When we're at home, are we just watching TV or busy with our work, so we're there but we're not really there? Do we spend quality time with our children and our spouses? If we do, then we're striving for ihsan in our interaction with the creation of Allah. Otherwise, this ingredient is missing in our lives.

When we have guests at home, how do we host them? Do we prepare for them properly? Do we cook food, do we serve them food, do we serve them like a servant? Because that is hosting with ihsan. Otherwise it's just a formality that we're fulfilling.

Ihsan in the Masjid

In the masjid, as we interact with the creation of Allah, do we pay attention to the way we smell when we come to the masjid? Do we pay attention to the way we look, the way we dress, when we come to meet our brothers — and for the sisters, our sisters? If we do, then we're coming with a sense of ihsan to the masjid in our interaction with the creation of Allah. Otherwise, yes we're coming to the masjid, but just getting by — not with ihsan.

Ihsan at Work

And so on and so forth — at work, what's our work ethic? Are we known as people who have a strong work ethic? Or are we just an employee that just goes and gets the job done somehow, barely meets the deadline, and sometimes doesn't even meet the deadline? Yes, meeting the deadline is working with ihsan, and that's part of our deen. Our deen teaches us to do that. We should be known as people of excellence at work — as Muslims we should be known for that — not because we're trying to earn a higher position at work or get a promotion, but because Allah wants that from us.

Ihsan in Islamic Work

Brothers and sisters, in Islamic work — when we do work for the masjid, when we are part of a committee, when we are part of an Islamic organization — what kind of work do we do? When we're asked to make a flyer, do I just put a flyer together in 10 minutes, 15 minutes, just make sure the content is there, it doesn't matter how it looks? Or do I put in an effort and try my best to make it look beautiful — do I do it with ihsan? When I ask someone to make a flyer, do I ask just anyone, or do I pick the person who will do it with ihsan because they have the expertise to do that? When I make a handout, when I make a website for the masjid, for an Islamic organization, for the MSA — do I do it with ihsan? Or do I just do it to get by, to say that there is a website? We need to do everything with ihsan, brothers and sisters — this is what Allah wants from us.

Ihsan in Maintaining the Masjid

In maintaining the masjid — the masjid, as you know brothers and sisters, is the house of Allah, and it deserves to be kept and treated with ihsan. Every part of the masjid should look and smell beautiful at all times, as much as humanly possible. And this is a responsibility that all of us have — not just a particular group of people. All of us are guests in this house of Allah. So when I go and I perform wudu — how do I leave the area after I perform wudu? Or I wash my hands in the sink, how do I leave the area for the person who will come after me? When I use a classroom, when I use any part of the masjid, when I come and park in the parking lot — do I do things with ihsan? Or do I just do it in a way that I don't care? We need to do everything, brothers and sisters, as much as possible, with ihsan.

Why Strive for Ihsan? The Rewards

Why? In addition to the reasons I mentioned at the beginning:

Number one — Allah says:

Allah is promising you that He will not let the reward of the muhsineen go to waste. He is watching, He is noting. Anytime you take time out to do it with ihsan, it's not going to go to waste — you will see its reward, if not in this life then in the Hereafter.

Number two — Allah says:

What is the reward of ihsan except ihsan? You do things with ihsan, Allah will treat you with ihsan on the Day of Judgment. And part of the meaning of ihsan is to give you more than you deserve — Allah will give you more than you deserve on the Day of Judgment if He sees from you an effort to do things with ihsan. Allah says:

Those who live a life of ihsan will have good from Allah — wa ziyada — and more. They will have extra from Allah. And I already mentioned to you:

Allah has hubb, has love, for the muhsineen. And Allah says:

That Allah is with those who live a life of ihsan. You want Allah to be with you — at home, at work, through your difficulties and trials and challenges — you want Allah to be with you, guiding your words, guiding your actions, guiding your thoughts, supporting you, assisting you, protecting you? Live a life of ihsan. If you do, then Allah will be with you, and you will see that and experience that, insha'Allah.

Allah knows best. I say this and I ask Allah to forgive me and you, so ask Him to forgive me — and O the one who seeks forgiveness.

Second Part of the Khutbah: How to Attain Ihsan

All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and the best of prayers and the most perfect submission to our master Muhammad and to his family and all his companions. O you who believe — fear Allah and say the right words; He will correct your deeds and forgive you your sins, and whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger:

Then, to proceed — how can we attain ihsan in our lives, in everything that we do? A couple of things.

See Allah in Everything

One — see Allah in everything. Try to see with your heart the presence of Allah and the actions and attributes of Allah in every event that occurs around you. The Prophet said:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 50; Sahih Muslim, Book 1, Hadith 5 — from the Hadith of Jibril)

Worship Allah as though you see Him, because if you do not see Him, He sees you. This whole world belongs to Allah — the creation, it's all His creation and it belongs to Him. And so when we serve it and maintain it and beautify it, we are in fact serving Allah and worshipping Allah. So when we operate at work, or in the masjid, or at home, and so on — don't just look at these people as people. These are creation of Allah. And when we maintain the masjid or we work hard on a flyer or a website, we are serving Allah by beautifying the creation of Allah. And anything that we do for Allah deserves to be done with excellence. You wouldn't just want to present anything to Allah — if you want to present something to Allah as a gift, wouldn't you want to choose the best gift and beautify it and make sure that it smells and looks good and beautiful? That's how we should look at things.

Do Not Settle for Mediocrity

Do not settle for mediocrity, brothers and sisters. And I'll close with this, insha'Allah. This is an epidemic in the Muslim ummah — Muslims have lost the virtue of ihsan as a whole, and this is evident in our architecture. If you look at our architecture in the Muslim world today and compare that to the architecture of the Muslim world a few centuries ago — world of difference. Things back then were made to last, and things nowadays are, it seems, almost made to collapse. Things were made with beauty and elegance and symmetry. Now, nobody cares about these things. We have lost the virtue of ihsan.

In print — those of you who are familiar with Arabic books — we know that the books that are printed now are full of mistakes, so that there needs to be a second edition and a third edition and a fourth edition to correct the mistakes. And always the best edition is the oldest one — the one that was printed a hundred years ago on old paper — that's the best edition. Because back then, people printed with ihsan. Nowadays, no ihsan.

But before we blame the ummah, we need to look into ourselves. Start with our home — how do we keep our homes? How do we keep our rooms? How do we keep our desks? How do we keep our car? How do we keep our masajid? How do we park? How do we place our shoes? How do we use the lavatories? What do we do with the Quran after we have used it? Where do we place it? How do we place it? And at work, and so on and so forth. If every single one of us can start bringing ihsan into these little things, then insha'Allah it will improve at an ummah level.

Du'a and Closing

May Allah make us among the muhsineen. May Allah help us improve. May Allah make us among those who will be treated with ihsan by Allah on the day when we will need it most. Ameen.

Arise to your prayer — may Allah have mercy on you and bless you.