If Creation is Perfect, How We Explain People With Special Needs | Tafseer Surat Sajda | Ep 06

Today I woke up and I decided to fast on a Thursday. So I did not have the chance to have a really good suhoor. I just had a sip of water just to apply the sunnah because Rasulullah said... So when I first woke up after fajr I was so hungry and thirsty, very, very thirsty. And I have a very long day with so many meetings and preparation and all that. Then I thought of my brothers and sisters in Gaza.

I said, I know you're starving and I know you're very thirsty but at the end of the day there's a delicious meal waiting for you at 8:05. Wallahi, I kept on reminding myself, I'm not telling you to show off, I want you to fast one day just for Gaza. Wallahi, I felt it. I could not function. I really could not think. This is how hungry I was and I fought. I said to myself, this is six more hours, five more hours, four more hours. And then I have a cold water waiting for me, a delicious meal. At least I knew that when is the time to have food. How about feeling that feeling and you have no clue when is the next meal.

Wallahi, the luxury that we are in, sometimes it makes us forget the blessings that we have. So please, maybe on Monday, let's do it all of us. Just fast for the sake of Allah, of course. But you know what, just to really, when I started the khutbah last week and I mentioned that a khatib in Gaza could not give the khutbah because of hunger and he stepped down. And really, I felt it for minutes, for an hour. They are living it every single day.

May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala provide for them. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala protect them. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala give them the relief. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala grant them the highest place in Jannah. Ameen, Ya Rabb al-alameen.

Also, before we start, I just heard that my beloved brother, Musa, right here, his mother-in-law passed away.

Allah's Perfect Management of All Affairs

So after we described and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala told us that this Qur'an, there's no doubt in it, and then he told us that he has created the heavens and the earth, and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala told us that he is يُدَبِّرُ الْأَمْرَ, and we spoke a lot about the meaning of يُدَبِّرُ الْأَمْرَ, that all our affairs in this dunya is running by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

So that should make me and you feel at so much ease, because the one who's running all my affairs is the rahim, is the hakeem, is the alim, is the kareem, subhanAllah. So that will make me feel, like if I tell you now, all your affairs are run by the smartest and the wisest and the richest man on earth, and the one who loves you more than your own mother, wallahi you will sleep in peace. Not every single one of us, our affairs is run by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

And always when you're going through difficulty, I just want to bring it back up from last week, anytime you're going through difficulty, remember, is my plan better than Allah's? Is my plan, because I want things, I want this job, I want that wife, I want this, I want to move there, and then I'm taken by the means and it's not working. So that means Allah has a different plan for you. So don't ever think, as long as you're taken by the means, don't ever think that your plan is better than Allah's plan. Don't ever think that your plan is better than Allah's plan.

Allah's Perfect Creation

So we went all the way and then Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said, in the ayah we will start with today, subhanAllah the beauty of this class is that tomorrow morning you will hear these ayat and you'll live them by the beautiful voice of our beloved Sheikh Sajjad. May Allah preserve him and protect him. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said:

After he told us that he created the heavens and the earth and all that, and everything in between, he said, الَّذِي أَحْسَنَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ خَلَقَهُ - Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, he is the one who has perfected everything that he has created. Just like he perfected the human being, he similarly perfected the mountains and the oceans and the ants and the elephants and everything that he has created, he has perfected.

And he started, he originated the creation of humankind from clay.

Now, when a human being creates something, they need to keep updating it and upgrading it in order to keep up with the times. This is our creation, our inventions. But Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, there is no update. I mean, have you ever seen there's a crack in the sky, needs some maintenance? Never. How old is the skies? Only Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala knows.

There's nothing, no mistake, no flaw, nothing in the creation of Allah azza wa jal.

How Can Creation Be Perfect When People Have Special Needs?

Now here's a question. How can I, listen carefully, how can I reconcile between Allah perfected everything and we have children that are born with special needs, paralyzed? Allah perfected everything He created and on the other side I see people like our beloved brother Taha. Abu Taha is here, may Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala make him a reason for you and your wife to enter Jannah. He was born blind, right? Born blind, born paralyzed. How can I, how can I reconcile Taha who is such an amazing beautiful boy, born blind and Allah said I perfected everything I created.

This is part of the perfection, excellent. You know, part of the perfection of this rib is to be curved, is to be crooked, right? The rib, this joint, this bone here, part of it being perfect is being curved, not straight. If you straighten it, we will die. If this area here is all straight, we will not function. Number one.

Number two, imagine that we are all rich. Would you know the meaning of poverty? So Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala created this and created this for this one to be patient and go to Jannah, and for this one to be thankful and go to Jannah. When I, I will only appreciate what I have when I see someone who does not have it. If we all have it, then how would I appreciate it? How can I be grateful if everybody has the same thing?

Imagine that you go to a job, we are all having the same job. This company will fail. There has to be a janitor and a manager and an assistant manager and a CEO and there has to be an order for that to function. And I look forward to be promoted. Otherwise, imagine we are all the same.

So the point is that it is not Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is not perfect. There's nothing wrong with Allah's creation. But this test that this person is going through, if they are patient, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said:

Allahu Akbar. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said that the reward of that person who is patient because of this test, it is beyond, beyond imagination, beyond believing.

And Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam told us in the hadith I narrated last week, the people of aafiyah, the people who are healthy, when they go to jannah and they see the reward of the people who were tested in this dunya and they were patient, when they see that reward, they would wish, this is the hadith of our Habib alayhi sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, he said, they would wish they would come back to the dunya and cut by scissors. As if they're saying, Ya Allah, bring me back to dunya and take my vision, take my arms, take my health, take everything so I can be patient and I get the reward that you just given to these people. Can you imagine? And they are people of jannah because of the reward.

And keep in mind another thing, very important, that when Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala gives someone such a test, especially at birth, Wallahi, it comes with the package, the patience. Otherwise, imagine, because who gave me the patience? Who gave the person the patience? It's Allah azza wa jal, because the patience is one of the most noble acts of worship ever. Many people cannot handle the patience, right? They cannot bear it. They fail from the simplest thing. They fail.

So do you think that we just created you like this? No, everything is perfect. The sick is sick for a reason. The healthy is healthy for a reason. And the test is for both. And that's my khutbah tomorrow. We, subhanAllah, I will give you a cliffhanger of the khutbah teaser. Do you really think Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, he said it in such a beautiful way:

And if you know Arabic, you would feel like, as if Allah is saying, do you really think that you're going to be called Muslim? You're going to, who's Muslim here? You raise your hand and you're not going to be tested? Are you crazy? And in a way, do you think you're going to graduate from medical school without a test? Are you out of your mind? Wallahi, similarly. Do you think you're going to be called a Muslim without being tested? And you're saying something irrational. And this is the khutbah tomorrow. That's what I'm going to give you so you can come tomorrow.

Do you think we just created you like this in vain and for play and we're just playing around and no, no, no, no. Everything has a reason. Everything has a reason.

We Cannot Question Allah's Wisdom

Now, this third point:

That's the third answer for the question. Allah said in the Quran, no one questions Allah. He is the one who questions. Who am I? Who am I to know the hikmah, the wisdom behind anything? Who am I?

Remember I told you the story when Musa and the Khidr, they got into the ship that they put a hole in it. When they got to the ship, there was a bird on the top of the ship and the bird did like this. Took a sip. How much water did he take from the ocean? Nothing, right? Drop, droplet right from the ocean. So Khidr told Musa alayhis salam, he said my knowledge and your knowledge and the knowledge of every human being from Adam till the day of judgment compared to the knowledge of Allah is that like that drop compared to the ocean.

So don't tell me, oh maybe, let me think why. SubhanAllah, that drop to the ocean. If we have an aquarium this big, that drop will be a little bit, that aquarium will be too much compared to that drop. How about the whole ocean? So the knowledge of Allah is infinite beyond our imagination, okay?

So we do not ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, all we know is the one who created this, the one who gave this chronic pain, the one who gave this, that is the all wise.

The Creation of Adam's Descendants

Continue one more ayah from the time. And then Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala made, I'm sorry, I did not finish the وَخَلَقَ الْإِنسَانَ مِن طِينٍ Here, insan is Adam. He was created from clay.

Then he made his descendants, Adam's descendants, from مَاءٍ مَّهِينٍ, from sulala, from an extract of worthless fluid. We all know the sperms of the men and the women, they meet and they produce us. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala called it مَاءٍ مَّهِينٍ. مَهَان is worthless, degraded in Arabic.

So Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala created the descendants of, he was not created from مَاءٍ مَّهِينٍ, he was created from طِينٍ. We were created from مَاءٍ مَّهِينٍ, right? We were created from مَاءٍ مَّهِينٍ.

You know, in a way, you know, the center ayah of the whole surah, what is the center ayah of surat as-Sajdah? It's ayat as-Sajdah. The whole surah is surrounded by this ayah, before and after. So what is the, who remembers the ayah of the Sajdah, of surat as-Sajdah? How does it start? I forgot the beginning of it...

SubhanAllah, this is the center of the surah. They are making sujood and making tasbeeh and they have no kibr. Why they have no kibr? Because they were created from ماء مهين. You were created from something that came from the same place that urine comes from. Who do you think you are? Why are you showing off? We are created from the same semen, same place where urine comes from. So, why are you arrogant? See, وَهُمْ لَا يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ - they have no kibr. And they made sajdah to Allah.

We will end here insha'Allah. Then Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala fashioned the human being. You know, من نطفة ثم من علقة ثم من مضغة. The steps that are mentioned in surah al-Hajj. The steps of the creation, Allah fashioned.

The offspring of Adam has been crowned with honor. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said, we have favored them over most of our creation. So, وَنَفَخَ فِيهِ مِنْ رُوحِهِ - and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala breathed in them from His Ruh.

The Three Essential Faculties

And He gave them, listen to this, subhanAllah. And He gave them, سَمْعاً وَأَبْصَاراً وَأَفْئِدَةً - hearing, seeing, and hearts. And then He said, قَلِيلاً مَا تَشْكُرُونَ - you rarely, you hardly are grateful.

What did it start with? And all over the Quran, سَمْع, right? When the baby is first born, he can hear, but he cannot see in the beginning. He can hear, but he cannot see. So Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala started with the سَمْع. Always سَمِيعٌ بَصِيرٌ - always, you see the hearing before the seeing.

The Wisdom Behind Singular and Plural Forms

Another question. How come سَمْع is single and أَبْصَار is plural? Two eyes. Listen to this. He was sleeping, right? Everybody heard this. We all heard the same noise, but we are all seeing different things. So سَمْع is one, أَبْصَار is all different. And look here, you see something different, different, different. But here when we heard the noise, we all heard the same noise. One سَمْع and many أَبْصَار. Sorry, you can go back to sleep.

The Unique Nature of Hearing

And something else special about the سَمْع - it is the only sense that does not stop functioning. When I put an alarm, what do I put? Something to trigger my hearing. That's the only thing that does not stop. When I sleep, my eyes stop, my everything stops. But the hearing stays.

That's why in Surah Al-Kahf, what did Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala say? Otherwise, if their ears could hear and they are in the middle of nowhere, any movement, anything, any animal, anything, they will get up immediately. So Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala from His rahma made the سَمْع, the hearing of the people of the cave disappear. So they could stay sleeping for 300 and something years.

So the hearing is always there. Always. But the بَصَر, no. And then some scholars said, subhanahu wa ta'ala, because the hearing does not have a cover. The ears, the eyes have a cover. So this one is always hearing, subhanahu wa ta'ala.

And if you notice, these three things are the things that we direly need to operate, to learn, to drive, to work, to everything. سَمْع, بَصَر, and أَفْئِدَة - those three things we cannot do without. And all three of them, we are:

And we are responsible.

The Call to Gratitude

Now we will end with this. Subhanahu wa ta'ala, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala ended this ayah by saying, قَلِيلاً مَا تَشْكُرُونَ - you are not grateful enough.

When was the last time, ya akhwan, I woke up in the morning and I said, الحمد لله I can hear? You know, I told you, someone sent me a video about a young boy that he's deaf. He cannot hear. And he comes to the masjid and he does not hear the beautiful recitation of the imam. He just moves with the people. When they move, he moves. He has no clue. He just sees them move, he moves. So when was the last time we appreciated the hearing?

And not only that, not only we're not appreciating it enough, we are using them to disobey Allah. How many people are addicted to watch haram? Those eyes, that millions of people... Who showed me the other day? Brother Riyad. He showed me a school in Bangladesh. The teachers are blind. The students are all blind. Everybody who works there is blind. And they're all memorizing the Quran.

Imagine, not only I'm not using my eyes to please Allah, I'm using them to disobey Allah. So yeah, one of the ways to thank Allah for these blessings is to use these na'am for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and to cease, to stop using them for disobeying Allah.

And this is how we lose these na'am. When we start getting our eyes used to seeing haram all the time, then subhanAllah, don't blame except yourself if that vision disappeared or it disappeared at a very young age. Because we are not grateful enough for these na'am.

Counting Our Blessings

So constantly, constantly thank Allah. Wallahi, subhanAllah, just look around you. On Thursday night, you are in the house of Allah, learning the book of Allah, surrounded by the angels. The rahma of Allah descends upon you. Air conditioning is blowing. Your kids are next to you, breathing by themselves. You're going back home to a wife that is waiting for you. There's food in the fridge. You're digesting the food on your own. SubhanAllah, blessings - you are listening to me. You are comprehending what I'm saying. All these are blessings that are countless.

May Allah make us from the shakireen, ya rabbal alameen. Allahumma ja'alna minash shakireen. Allahumma ja'alna minash shakireen.

May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala forgive all our sins. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala protect us. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala fill our homes with love and mercy and tranquility. May Allah make our last deeds our best deeds. And our last words, la ilaha illallah.

Tonight is the night of Jum'ah, where Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, akthiru, make abundant salat upon me. Allahumma ja'alna minash shakireen.