How the Qur’an Revives the Heart | Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans | Guardians of the Heart Conference

How the Qur'an Revives the Heart

Guardians of the Heart Conference

It goes without saying that it's a great honor and a great privilege to be a part of such a blessed assembly. And I don't say that as an empty pleasantry. I don't say that to flatter you. But people that have voluntarily given of their time on a Friday night, after a week of work, after a week of school, going into their weekend to come to the masjid in hope of hearing something that will deepen your relationship with Allah — something that will enhance your character, something that will enrich your deed.

The topic that I have been given is the supplications — the du'a — the Prophet ﷺ would make for the heart. And I wanted to pause for a moment and do the same thing that my dear brother and colleague Imam Asif did in talking about the heart. This is the essence, this is the core. This is the essential aspect of who we are as Muslims and as people.

The Example of Sayyidina Abu Bakr

The Prophet ﷺ said about Sayyidina Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه: if his iman, if his faith was placed on one side of the scale and the entire ummah — their faith collectively, cumulatively — was placed on the other side of the scale, his faith would outweigh the faith of the entire ummah.

"He is not the most knowledgeable of you, and he is not the most well-versed in the Qur'an of you — but it is something in his heart."
(Referenced in various narrations of the Companions; see al-Hakim, al-Mustadrak, Hadith 4487)

I love Miftah Institute. I love Al-Azhar, where I did my training. I love IIE, where I did my training. I love Jami'ah Islamiyyah, where some people do their training. However, there is a certain danger to knowledge. We can unwittingly fetishize knowledge. Imam Ghazali said you can study the chapter of Salah — the bab of Salah — from the front to the back. This is not the thing that wakes you up for Fajr in the morning.

This is what we're seeking through knowledge. This is what we're seeking through study. And if you want anything other than that — if you want to vie with people, if you want to compete with people, if you want to argue with people — you are headed toward destruction and your teachers are only helping you in your ruin. But if you want your heart to be pure, and by extension your deeds to be pure, then knowledge is benefiting you, knowledge is serving you.

The First Du'a: The Qur'an as the Springtime of Our Hearts

The Prophet ﷺ would pray — and we'll just go through a few of his ad'iya, some of his du'as for the heart:

"O Allah, make the Qur'an the springtime of our hearts."

The reason the Prophet ﷺ would pray this is that the heart, like everything else, is an organ of alternating states. Sometimes you feel very strong in your iman and at other times you don't feel as strong.

The Story of Hanzala ibn Malik

There was a man named Hanzala ibn Malik رضي الله عنه. He said: "Hanzala has become a hypocrite" — because when I'm in the presence of the Prophet ﷺ I have complete yaqeen, I have complete certainty. It is almost as if I can see paradise, it's almost as if I can see hell — but then when I'm by myself I don't feel that same certainty, and I feel that I'm a hypocrite.

He went to Sayyidina Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه and said: "Abu Bakr, I'm a hypocrite." What did Abu Bakr say to him? Did he say, "That never happens to me, I can't relate — get on my level, my iman would outweigh the iman of everyone else"? No. He said: "Wallahi, my iman increases in the presence of the Prophet ﷺ as well. Let's go to the Prophet and ask him." And the Prophet ﷺ said:

"Faith increases and decreases."
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 9; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 57)

This is natural in the life of the mu'min. I always say to people: I know the state of my faith by how I set my alarm for Fajr. If I say, "Fajr comes in at 5:50 — babe, set the alarm for 5:20" — I'm strong. But if I say, "The time of shuruq, the time of sunrise is 7:04 — set the alarm for 6:45" — I'm not doing as well.

Then the Prophet ﷺ said: "If your faith did not experience alternation —"

"The angels would be shaking your hands in the streets."
(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2750)

Because Allah does not want from you perfection. What Allah wants from you is sincerity. All of the children of Adam make mistakes, and the best of those who make mistakes are those who repent after they make mistakes. Every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future.

The Story of Sufyan al-Thawri

So the Prophet ﷺ would say:

"Make the Qur'an the springtime of our hearts" — so that when our hearts get worn down, when we feel weakness, when our faith dissipates, He asked Allah to revive our faith. Even if our faith dies, we want Allah to rejuvenate our faith.

There's a story about Sufyan al-Thawri — the great Tabi', the second generation of the Salaf as-Saleh. He walked into the market, and Sufyan رضي الله عنه was known for his piety, he was known for his religiosity. Someone said to him: "Sufyan, we're not like you. We don't respond to the Book of Allah. It's almost as if our hearts are asleep." And Sufyan said: "A sleeping person, if stirred — a sleeping person, if shaken — will wake up. The Qur'an is that shaking. The Qur'an is that stirring."

"If you hear the Qur'an and you don't respond, your heart is not asleep — your heart is dead. But fear not: Allah gives life after death." So to anyone within the sound of my voice who has been struggling — know that your heart can be revived, your heart can be brought back to life, your heart can be resuscitated.

The Second Du'a: O Turner of Hearts, Make Our Hearts Firm

The Prophet ﷺ would pray:

"O Turner of hearts, make our hearts firm upon Your deen."
(Jami' al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 3522; Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 3834)

What I love about this hadith is the first part — يَا مُقَلِّبَ الْقُلُوبِ — "O Turner, O alternator of hearts — make our hearts firm on your deen."

I converted to Islam about 26 years ago — which if you're counting means I took my shahada when I was 3. Youngest shahada in the history of America. I shouldn't do that. It's mentioned in the Shama'il al-Muhammadiyyah that the Prophet ﷺ didn't even lie when he was joking — but I'm attempting to humor you, so indulge me.

I always say to my children: one day of my life I woke up and I wasn't Muslim, and that same day I went to sleep and I was. And this is something that fills me with wonder. But I also remember the alternate reality — there are people who woke up as Muslims and went to bed as kuffar, went to bed as non-Muslims.

Guarding the Heart Until the End

One of the qualities of the mu'min is that he or she is consistently vigilant in guarding the state of the heart — and that you never feel safe from the makar, from the machinations, the plans of Allah.

The Vigilance of Sayyidina Umar

One of the athar of Sayyidina Umar that always touches me — we know that at the end of his life ﷺ, the Prophet gave a list of names to Hudhayfa ibn al-Yaman, and this list contained all of the hypocrites. All of the hypocrites' names were mentioned in this list. Would you know that Sayyidina Umar ibn al-Khattab رضي الله عنه — one of the companions promised heaven — went to Hudhayfa and told him: "Hudhayfa, just tell me one thing: is my name on that list?"

Look at his vigilance. Look at his awareness that this matter is not over until it's sealed. Look at the concern about his iman, about his heart. And look at his lack of self-congratulation. We join groups and say, "We're the same sect, we're this, we're that." The companions of the Prophet رضي الله عنهم جميعاً — they never did this. The righteous never did this.

The Story of Imam Ahmad on His Deathbed

I heard a story about Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal — that he was on his deathbed. And if you ever do 'iyaadah al-mareed, if you visit a person in the pangs of death, the only thing you should do is just start chanting:

Don't argue with them. Don't say to them, "Say لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ" — because they might respond, "What are you talking about, man? I'm dying here!" And then they die arguing with you. So just start saying لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ — just start saying the tahleel.

So the students of Imam Ahmad رضي الله عنهم started saying لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ, and Imam Ahmad said: "لَمَّا — Not yet. Not yet." And they thought that this was delirium. They thought he was delirious. Then he appeared to come to, and they said: "Ya Mawlana, are you afraid to meet your Lord?"

"Whoever loves to meet Allah, Allah loves to meet him."
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 6507; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2683)

"Are you afraid to meet Allah?" Imam Ahmad looked at them and said: "No, I'm not afraid to meet Allah. Shaytan came to me and said, 'Ahmad, you won. You have overcome me. You are victorious.' And I was saying to him: 'Not yet. Not yet. It's not over yet.'"

This is what it means to guard your heart. To ask Allah for a husn al-khatimah — to ask Allah for a good ending. And until that ending, you're watching the heart constantly, checking the heart constantly, reviving it where it needs revivification, monitoring it, bringing it to life. This is the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ.

"I say this and I seek the forgiveness of Allah for myself, for you, and for all Muslims. And the last of our call is that all praise belongs to Allah, Lord of all the worlds."

Jazakum Allahu khayran. Was-salamu 'alaykum.