By Sana Gul Waseem

We all want to have a productive day. We strive hard in figuring out our interests and potential and learn to manage that precious commodity, time. We set goals and develop strategies to accomplish them.

Now, the point to ponder is, are these “goals” really aimed at gaining the Pleasure of Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala (glorified is He)?

What goals should we set for ourselves to achieve in a day that are aimed at gaining the pleasure of Allah (swt) and inching closer to Jannah (Paradise) insha’Allah (God willingly)?

Subhan’Allah (glory to God)!!  Allah (swt)—the Supreme Being—gives us the answer in 7 short ayahs (verses of the Qur’an) very aptly titled –“Al Fatiha—The Opening.”

Here goes:–

1. Say Bismillah before beginning a task—In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful: Start each task with the name of Allah (swt). It increases barakah (blessings). Say Bismillah before eating, starting something new, entering the house etc.
2. Thank Allah (swt) often—[All] praise is [due] to Allah, Lord of the worlds: A true believer is grateful in all circumstances. Look around you and acknowledge the blessings of Allah (swt) and thank Him for them each day. This very practical exercise will help in dealing with traumatic situations and fighting discontentment and increase the chances of leading a stress-free lifestyle.
3. Be Kind—The Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful: Allah (swt)‘s beautiful qualities of being Especially merciful and Entirely Merciful. We should try to adopt these qualities in our daily lives and be merciful and kind to the people around us. Be kind to your family, neighbors, and friends. Take a pot of chicken soup to someone with a cold, or give a ride to someone to the mosque or the halaqas (study circles) today. 🙂
4. Remember the Day of Judgment—Sovereign of the Day of Recompense: Tell yourself each day that this dunya (life, universe) is just “play and amusement” and very soon that day will come when Allah (swt) will recompense us for each good and bad deed done. This will insha’Allah assist us in balancing the dunya and the akhirah (Hereafter). Read Surah Mulk every night.
5. Seek Only Allah (swt) for help—It is You we worship and You we ask for help: Remember Allah (swt) is only a du`a’ (supplication) away. The Prophet ﷺ (peace be upon him) said: “Man should call upon Allah alone to provide for all his needs, so much so that even if a shoe-lace is broken, he should pray to Allah to provide a shoe-lace, and if he needs salt, he should beseech Allah to send it to him.” [Tirmidhi] We know and accept that only Allah (swt) can help us during our hardships. We increase our reliance on Allah (swt) and make du`a’ and practice patience.
6. Follow the Sunnah—Guide us to the straight path: Yahiya ibn Mu‘âdh (rahimahu Allâh, may God be pleased with him) said, “Renew your hearts with the remembrance of Allâh because it rushes into forgetfulness.” We should try each day to learn something new about the deen (religion). Learn a new sunnah (tradition) or Qur’anic ruling on some matter relating to your everyday life.
7. Do righteous deeds and seek the company of the righteous—The path of those upon whom You have bestowed favor, not of those who have evoked [Your] anger or of those who are astray: Make an effort to do good deeds and seek the company of those people who remember Allah (swt) when they meet. Listen attentively to the jumu`ah khutbah (Friday sermon) and attend halaqas (study circles).

The good news is that Allah (swt) reminds us of these goals at least 17 times a day; in every fard salah (mandatory prayer).

Alhamdulillah (praise be to God) for that  🙂

 This is the final article in the Surat Al-Fatiha Series. 

The sixth trick of Shaytan – if he can’t make you fall into any of the previous traps and he knows that you’re going to do good – is to make you choose to do the good that has lesser reward.

For example, the students are going to organize a rally on campus one morning where they will have seminars about Iraq and the condition of the Muslim world, as well as civil and human rights in North America. You say to yourself, “It sounds good, but I have to pray my tahhajjud (early morning prayer). And if I pray my tahhajud I will have to sleep in the morning, so I won’t be able to go.” Both are good, but which one is better? Which one do you all think is the better reward?

[Audience]: Praying.

No. The rally. Imam Ahmed ibn Hanbal said, “Tahajjud is for myself. But the actions of the ummah (the Muslim community) are for everyone. So I would rather do what’s going to help the most number of people than help myself.”

This is something that many Muslims, especially here in the US, tend to neglect because we’re very individualistic. We’re stuck on “mine”. However, even while making du`a’ in Surah Fatiha (Qur’an 1), we don’t say, “guide me”; rather we ask Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala (exalted is He) to “guide us”. So, the actions which can benefit the masses of the Muslims earn more reward than the actions which benefit one’s self alone.

We learn the same lesson in the story of the great scholar Fudayl ibn Iyyad. During a time of jihad, Abdullah ibn Mubaraak was defending the Muslims from an attack and Fudayl had gone to Makkah to worship Allah (swt). Abdullah ibn Mubaraak wrote Fudayl a poem in which he said, “O Worshipper of the Two Houses! While you are busy in the night wetting your beard with your tears, we are busy in the day and the night wetting our beards with the blood of the shuhadaa (the martyrs).” When Fudayl read this, he started crying, realizing his selfishness.

The Prophet ﷺ (peace be upon him) said that if you stroke the head of an orphan the hairs you touch will be a reward for you with Allah (swt). Why? Because when you help an orphan you’re helping more people than just yourself.

Shaytan tries to get us to fall into the acts of lesser rewards. How can we protect ourselves from this? The answer is learning and gaining knowledge. We don’t have to become scholars, but we need knowledge enough to make good choices, to be good Muslims and to help others.

Another way to remedy this is found in the famous hadith (narration) of Umar radiAllahu `anhu (may God be pleased with him). Umar (ra)’s daughter’s name was Hafsa. She was first married to someone named Khunays (ra). Khunays suffered an injury in the battle of Badr and he died of his wounds. She was 19 years old. After Hafsa finished her i’dah (waiting period), Umar (ra) went to find her a good husband. He went first to Uthman ibn Affan (ra) and asked, “Would you be interested in marrying my daughter?” Uthman (ra) declined, and Umar (ra) got mad. Then he went to Abu Bakr (ra) and said, “Would you like to marry my daughter?” Abu Bakr (ra) also declined. So, Umar (ra) got really upset. He went to complain to the Prophet ﷺ.

The question is, why did Umar (ra) get upset? Some people may say it’s because of the honor of his daughter. This is not the main reason. The main reason he got mad (sisters take note) is because he lost good men. Umar (ra) was looking for a good man to marry his daughter. Someone who would be good to his daughter, take care of her, and love her. Someone whom he knew was a good person. So, when Umar (ra) lost good men, of course he got mad. He didn’t get mad just because this was his daughter, Hafsa. He was mad because he wanted to give his daughter not to someone who was making six digits and driving a Lexus, but to someone who had good akhlaq (character and behavior) and iman (faith).

You see, we often misunderstand the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ  where he said, “Marry a woman for four reasons…” This also means, “Marry a man for four reasons…” Unfortunately no one tells the sisters this, so they sometimes think men get to choose but they don’t.

The four reasons the Prophet ﷺ  mentioned were beauty, wealth, family and deen (religion). The Prophet ﷺ then said, “Choose the one with religion, may you be blessed.”

Many people think that this hadith means that a person must only marry a person who is religious, and everything else doesn’t matter. This is not the correct understanding of this hadith. It means if you can find a woman/man who is religious that’s good. If you find a man who is religious and handsome, that’s better. If you find a woman who is religious and beautiful you have two out of four good qualities. And if you find someone with all four qualities, you’ve hit the jackpot! That’s why the Prophet ﷺ  didn’t marry anyone when he was married to Kahdijah (ra). She was beautiful, she came from a good family, she was wealthy, and she had deen. She was the epitome of the complete woman.

So, Umar (ra) wanted his daughter to marry a good man, and he approached two good men. The question is, isn’t Abu Bakr (ra) better than Uthman (ra)? What is our belief about Abu Bakr (ra)? Our belief about him is that the Prophet ﷺ said, “The greatest person after the prophets is Abu Bakr.”

So why did Umar (ra) go to Uthman (ra) first?  Because, as the Prophet ﷺ said, “If Umar goes this way, Shaytan goes that way (i.e. the opposite way)”. Let’s look at this situation.

Abu Bakr had three wives, one of them named Umm Rumman (the mother of Aisha (ra) and Abdul Rahman (ra)). Of her the Prophet ﷺ once said, “Whoever wants to see a woman from the women of Paradise, let them look at Umm Rumman.” Abu Bakr had two other wives as well.

However, Uthaman’s wife (who was one of the Prophet’s ﷺ  daughters) had just died. He had no wives at the time. So, if priorities were weighed between Uthman (ra) and Abu Bakr (ra) in terms of marriage, Uthman would take the priority. This is the wisdom of Umar (ra). Umar (ra) used priorities when choosing to do good. This is why in fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) we have something called fiqh al-awliyaat (the fiqh of priorities).

Ibn Qayyim Al Jawzziya mentions that there’s one question that can help you to always choose to do the right thing. He posed this question to us and I will pose the question to you now.  What is the best form of worship?

[Audience]: Prayer

No, he said prayer is wrong.

[Audience]: Serving people.

Good try, but no. Serving people is wrong.

[Audience]: Da`wah (inviting to Islam)

No, wrong.

[Audience]: Dhikr (remembrance of Allah (swt))

No.

[Audience]: Follow the Qur’an and Sunnah.

Well, I can’t say no to that because it’s a general umbrella answer, so we’ll disqualify that one. What else?

[Audience]: Seeking knowledge?

No.

[Audience]: Fasting?

No, not fasting. You all give up?

Ibn Qayyim Al Jawziyya said that the best act of worship is “time and place”. What will bring the most benefit and reward according to its time and place is what you should do. For example, salah (prayer). In salah are we allowed to talk? No? Then how come if the sisters can’t hear, someone can say, “Allahu Akbar (God is Greater)!” after the Imam? What changed? The time and place.

What if someone says, “Let’s go and put posters up around campus for this event.” But it’s time for salah. Both are good, but which takes precedence because of time? Salah. If food is served should you pray or eat? Eat, according to the Prophet ﷺ.

What if someone says, “Let’s go to the masjid and increase our iman,” but at that moment people are putting up posters for an event about Iraq, or Palestine, or something in America that will benefit people? In that case the posters take precedence because of the time we are living in.

The same applies for when a college student chooses a degree. Muslims in the liberal arts department of campuses have been put on the endangered species list. Unfortunately some parents believe they are allowed to force their children to be what they want their children to be. This has no basis in Islam. Parents can guide and advise their children, but they cannot force them. We can’t have Muslims concentrating only on one field, like law for example. We can’t only have people who do corporate law because they want to get paid well. How many of us want to be civil rights attorneys? This is a need Muslims have these days. We need Muslim lawyers and Muslim social workers. We need to choose majors that allow us to best serve the ummah (community) according to the time and place.

An All Out Attack

The last thing Shaytan does, if he can’t get you to fall into any of the first six traps, is an all out attack with jinn. This doesn’t mean that you’ll be sitting in your room and all of a sudden you see some strange creatures coming to get you. One of the ways he can use the jinn against you is that the jinn can go to others and cause them not to like you. They will say bad things about you, and you’ll be attacked because you’re on the truth. People will be speaking badly of you, trying to cause you to waver from the deen. This is why we find that people often say bad things about the great scholars in the Muslim world. They’re at that last level. That’s why we should be careful about what we say about other Islamic workers and scholars.

What will save you from this? The saying of the Prophet ﷺ  where he said, “Islam began as something strange, and it will end as something strange, so give good news to the strangers.”

It’s strange nowadays to dress correctly and not show your belly-button. It’s strange to not drive large metal objects through your nose and tongue (although according to the Hanafi madhab (school of thought), sisters can put a piercing in their nose). To have a beard, as was the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ, is strange these days.

Let’s close now by answering the question we posed earlier. We learned that Shaytan said he will attack from the right, left, back and front, but he will not attack from the top. Why not?

[Audience] Because Allah (swt) is above us.

This is a good point. The sister is saying that Allah (swt) is above us, which is why Shaytan cannot attack us from the top. We understand this as Muslims to mean that Allah (swt) is Majestic. This is what we mean when we say Allah (swt) is above us; He is above us in a manner that suits Him. Good attempt, masha’Allah (through Allah’s will). Does anyone have another answer?

[Audience] Guidance comes from above.

Masha’Allah. That’s a good answer also.  Let’s read the answer that was turned in:

“Given that the devil attacks man from the left, the right, from behind, and from the front, and also given that the noor/light/guidance is singular, it is my guess that Allah (swt) has left us only on one path to reach guidance, and that is from the top, or through our minds.”

So, the writer is saying that the top is where our intellect is, and so, through our intellect we will reach the straight path. Very good, well thought out argument. It continues:

“In life we’re given an endless amount of choices every day, and although choices might seem like a good thing they truly only help to confuse even the most decisive and knowledgeable of men/women. Allah (swt) has left only one pathway open for us: it is through the mind that man gains knowledge and has the freewill to make both good and bad decisions. Man has the opportunity to go left, go right, go backwards and/or forwards where the devil waits for him. Or he can choose the correct path, the only righteous path which will, insha’Allah, lead him to God.

The mind here represents the knowledge and understanding of Islam. It also represents the ability to choose one’s own destiny by the choices one makes.”

So this writer is saying that because the intellect is the only way to God, Iblees doesn’t come from the top. Does anyone have any comment/constructive criticism for this response?

[Audience] Intellect can lead one astray.

Yes, that’s true. Look at, for example, the story of Khidr and Musa. When Khidr killed that boy, one’s intellect would say that is haraam (unlawful). Relying completely on the intellect can lead people astray. Another example we mentioned is the story of Adam (as) when Iblees told him and his wife that the only reason that Allah (swt) forbade them from eating from the tree was because they would become angels and live forever. This is an intellectual argument, and Adam (as) fell for it.

The intellect is one of the greatest gifts Allah (swt) gave human beings, but the intellect has to be guided by revelation. Sometimes we might find some things in Islam that if we try to rationalize, they don’t fit our rationalization. This is why we submit to Allah (swt).

This is a good answer, but it needs to be moderated a little bit to say that the intellect will guide us to Allah (swt) if we stick to the way that Allah (swt) sent us. Can we say that Karl Marx was smart? Most definitely. People can be intellectuals, but the question is, where does that intellect take us?”

Minor Sins

The fourth attack of Shaytan (Satan) is to get us to commit minor sins. Here you get to see how sneaky Shaytan really is. If Shaytan can’t get someone to be a kaafir (disbeliever), and he can’t get someone to do bid`ah (innovation in the religion), and he can’t get someone to commit major sins, then the next step is minor sins. Minor sins are called as-saghaair. An example would be having envy towards someone, or having a problem with someone and not trying to fix it.

Now, someone may be listening right now and thinking, “Well I’m all right; I don’t commit big sins, only minor sins.” This is how Shaytan gets you. The Prophet ﷺ (peace be upon him) gave an example of the saghaair when he said, in an authentic hadith (narration), that there was a group of people who went to the desert where they wanted to make a fire. Each of them found little pieces of wood, which they collected together, and thus they were able to make the fire. The Prophet ﷺ said that this is how minor sins work. They keep throwing the minor sin on the pile until it becomes a major sin. That’s why the scholars said that if someone persists in committing a minor sin it will become a major sin over time.

Wasting Time

The fifth attack of Shaytan, if he doesn’t succeed in the other traps, is that he gets people to fall into what is called al-mubaahat, permissible things.  For example, chatting online with someone of the same sex. Not with the opposite sex, because when you chat with the opposite sex then this is khalwa (seclusion).  According to the scholars you are alone with that person, and one can fall into a relationship very easily. Let me give you a proof of this. Last week, when you went home maybe you were chatting online with someone of the opposite gender. As you were chatting, suddenly your mother or father walked into the room and asked what you are doing. What do you say? “Oh, I’m just checking the score of the last basketball game.” If you don’t think it’s that bad then print out the conversation and let your parents read it.

The Prophet ﷺ defined sin as something that you don’t want people to know about, something that embarrasses you. He said, البر حسن الخلق. Righteousness is good behavior.

How many brothers and sisters pray, fast, and dress properly, but are rude and mean to others? We have to have the complete package, not one or the other. How many sisters who don’t wear hijab have told me that when they come to the masjid the other sisters put them down? She is trying to take a step to get closer to Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala (exalted is He) and people look at her like she has a virus. On the other hand, we also can’t say we have good behavior and nothing else.

So, in our example let’s say you are chatting with someone of the same gender, which is permissible. But you’re talking about nothing for five or six hours. Talking is permissible, but in this case it’s a waste of time.

The same is true for video games—as long as it’s not Tomb Raider. For those of you who don’t know, Tomb Raider is a video game where a scantily dressed woman is the main character. But Muslims will play this game and say, “Oh, it’s only a video game.”

Another example is Vice City. I was talking about this video game in the khutbah (sermon). When it came out, I was warning parents about it and the kids were really mad at me. In this game there is a man who is living the life of an ex-convict who is a drug dealer. He takes over the neighborhood by selling his drugs. Along the way (not to offend anyone here) he pulls over and engages in a relationship with a prostitute. But the brothers who were playing the game said, “But you can’t see anything, the car just shakes.” SubhanAllah (glory be to God)! Such behavior is very offensive. Not only is it representative of the completely anti-intellectual climate which is now permeating the United States, but do you realize why most women are forced into prostitution? Poverty and drug addiction.

I was an educator, and I did my practicum in the worst school that I could think of because I wanted to make a difference in society as a university student. There were children there who were the children of prostitutes. Imagine the cognitive disorders they have. Imagine the type of exploitation they are exposed to every night. Imagine the impact left on them from seeing their mothers and fathers committing acts of prostitution. Yet, we’ve made it a game, for fun. The social ramifications of prostitution on people are outstanding. If you want to understand prostitution, look at Fir`oun (Pharoah). Why did Fir`oun say that he would kill the men and let the women live? What were those women going to do? Become prostitutes. This is indicative of what we call a Fir`ounic society. But now it’s become a game, it became fun. It’s like those of us who grew up with Star Wars, playing with lasers and so forth. Because of movies, magazines and books we’re used to seeing guns and lasers blow up things without ever seeing the results; therefore, the war in Iraq right now has no real impact on the American mind. But when people actually see the pictures of the outcome, they’re shocked.

Shaytan tries to get us to waste our time with these kinds of things that have no benefit and no reward, according to the fiqh (jurisprudence). Another example is shopping. Masha’Allah, nowadays our sisters and brothers have a new bid`ah: qiyaam an-nahar (standing in the day). You know in Islam we have qiyyamul layl where we stand in the night and pray. You’ll find them standing in the mall, rushing to 75% off sales. If you went to the same person and suggested that they stand in the night and pray they would say, “Oh, it’s too difficult. I can’t do it.” But for nine or ten hours a day in the mall they don’t mind. Why? Because they see the immediate rewards and benefits of their shopping.

Imam Al Ghazaali mentioned a beautiful poem in which a man says, “I am asleep in the night and I can hear the weak pigeons crying on the weak branch. Am I not stronger than pigeons that I can get up and cry in front of Allah (swt)?” How can the Muslims be the leaders of the world when they can’t even push a 3.5oz blanket off their bodies to stand and ask Allah (swt) for His help and guidance?

I’m sure all of us, myself first, are guilty of wasting time. This is a big trick of Shaytan because if you’re doing something and you’re not getting rewarded or punished, then Shaytan is winning. We take a lesson from this that as Muslims we have to be proactive; we can’t not be in park. We should not be neutral and doing nothing.

We go now to the statement of Ibn Abbas radi Allahu `anhu (may Allah be pleased with him). He explains that when Iblees (the Devil) said he will come to you from your front (Qur’an 7:17) this means Iblees will cause you to doubt the hereafter. When Iblees comes to you from the back, he will cause you to have hope in the dunya (worldly life). Dunya comes from the word adnaa which has two meanings: something close and also something debased and low. What philosophy can be used to describe the fact that Iblees is coming to people to make them doubt in the hereafter and also to give them hope in this life? It’s called materialism. Iblees’s goal is to make people absolute materialists.

SubhanAllah (glory be to God), a brother can wait for five months for a new pair of sneakers, but he can’t pray qiyaamul layl (praying during the night) once in five months.  We know that during the last third of the night Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala (exalted is he) comes to the lowest heaven and says: “Who is making du`a’ [supplication] so that I can answer? Who’s seeking My forgiveness so I can forgive them? Who is asking so I can give them?” SubhanAllah, which appointment is greater? I remember when I was in Oklahoma and the PS2 came out, some of the youth that I used to teach in the masjid went and camped out. The same guys who went and camped in front of Best Buy were unable to camp out one night for Allah (swt). Are we really soldiers of Allah (swt) if we can stand all night in front of Best Buy to get a PS2 but we can’t stand up in the night and pray in front of Allah (swt)? Absolute materialism. This is the goal of Iblees.

Ibn Abbas continues to say that the attack from the right is to cause people to have doubt in regards to their religion, to make problems in the religion, and to give you a hard time and cause you to question the religion. The way to cure doubts is to ask someone who knows, or read and study.

The last thing that Ibn Abbas mentioned is the attack from the left: falling into sins. Maybe most of us thought that falling into sins would be number one, but it’s the last. The previous three are all sins, but they can lead you to kufr (disbelief). The last one would lead you to ‘asee (disobedience to Allah) and if Iblees can make someone a disbeliever, he has won.

Now, let’s discuss the three doors of Iblees. According to Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, Iblees comes to you from three doors. These three doors are like entrances. This isn’t where Iblees does his dirty work, but this is how he slides in under the radar. The three doors of Iblees are:

1) Babul Ghadab: The door of anger

Subhan’Allah, how many times have I heard as an Imam that a brother knocked the teeth out of his wife’s mouth because he was angry? When you ask him, “What happened to you? Why are you treating your wife like that?” He’ll say, “Oh, subhanAllah, man, I was angry, and she just pushed me to the point where I had to hit her.” Anger is not an excuse. And also on the other hand we have some brothers who become mentally depressed because the wife is always nagging and insulting him. The core element to a lot of marital problems is either misunderstanding of the deen (religion) or anger.

How many of us have stopped talking to a friend on campus because of anger? Maybe a sister thinks, “Oh, that girl thinks she’s better than us now that she has the nice jilbab (dress) from Eygpt.” Or a brother thinks, “Oh, that guy memorized two juz (portions) of the Qur’an—now he won’t talk to us because he thinks he’s so religious.” All of these thoughts come from anger.

And what about how we act with our parents? How many of us just go off on our parents? All of this is attributed to anger.

What is the remedy for anger? In Sahih Muslim the Prophet ﷺ (peace be upon him) taught us how to deal with anger. One time, one of the companions of the Prophet ﷺ got angry. The Prophet ﷺ told him to say something. The man refused to say it and he got even angrier. The Prophet ﷺ said, “I swear by Allah (swt), I know some words that, if he said them, his anger would leave him.”

What were the words? Authoo billahi min as-shaytan ar-rajeem (I seek protection with Allah from Satan, the accursed one). Why is this the first thing the Prophet ﷺ taught us about anger? Because anger is a door of Shaytan.

2) The Door of Desires

What is the greatness of Paradise? In one narration it is reported that Allah (swt) made Paradise and told Jibreel (the angel Gabriel) to fly for three thousand years. So Jibreel took a journey for three thousand years and then he came back. Allah (swt) asked him, “What did you think?” Jibreel responded, “I can’t believe it.” Allah (swt) told Jibreel to go for another three thousand years and then after that another three thousand years. When Jibreel finally came back Allah (swt) told him, “Do you know what you just saw? Part of the paradise of Abu Bakr (ra).”

In another authentic hadith (narration from the Prophet ﷺ) we learn about the last person to come out of Hellfire. He will be washed and all of the burns will come off of him. Then Allah (swt) will ask him, “What do you want?” This man will see a nice tree and he will say, “Oh Allah, can you put me under that tree?” Allah (swt) will say, “Yes, but you have to swear you will not ask Me for anything else.” The man will say, “I swear by Allah (swt) I will not ask for anything else,” so Allah (swt) will put him under the tree.

The man will be sitting under the tree and then he will see a tree with a river under it. He’ll say, “Oh Allah, can you put me over there by the river?” Allah (swt) will ask, “Yes, but you have to swear that you won’t ask Me for anything else.” He will swear by Allah (swt) that he will not ask for anything else, and Allah (swt) will put him there.

Then the man will see one of the doors of Paradise.  He’ll say, “Oh Allah, can you put me by that door?” Allah (swt) will say, “Yes, but you must swear that you will never ask Me for anything else again.” The man will swear by Allah (swt) that he will not ask for anything else again. Imagine, this man is saying wallahi (I swear by Allah) to Allah (swt) Himself, and he’s lying! So Allah (swt) will put him by that door.

Then the man will see some curtains. He will say, “Oh Allah can you put me by those curtains so that I can look inside and see the people of Paradise?” Allah (swt) will say, “Yes, but you must swear you will never ask Me for anything else after this.” The man will swear. So Allah (swt) will allow him to look through the curtains at Paradise. The man will see Paradise and he will say, “Oh Allah, put me in Paradise!”  Allah (swt) will put him in Paradise and then He will come to the man while he is in Paradise and He will ask him, “Are you satisfied? Are you happy? Do you need anything else?”

The man will say, “Wallahi I can’t ask for anything else.”

Allah (swt) will respond, “This is for you and ten times its equal.” This hadith is found at the end of the book Riyaad as-Saleeheen.

The ulema (scholars) ask, why does Allah (swt) allow him to say wallahi (I swear by Allah) even though he’s lying? It’s because Allah (swt) knows that none of us can be patient with Paradise. If you see Paradise you’re going to want it.

As related by Bukhari and Muslim, after Allah (swt) created Paradise He told Jibreel to go and look at it and then asked him what he thought. Jibreel said, “Wallahi anyone who hears about it is going to want to go there.” Then Allah (swt) surrounded Paradise with something and He told Jibreel to go and look at it again. Jibreel came back and told Allah (swt), “I don’t think anyone can make it to Paradise.” Then Allah (swt) made the Hellfire and told Jibreel to go and look at it. Jibreel saw it and came back. Allah (swt) asked him, “What do you think?” Jibreel replied, “Wallahi, anyone that hears about it will not want to go there.” Then Allah (swt) surrounded it with something and told Jibreel to go and look at it. When Jibreel came back and Allah (swt) asked him what he thought, Jibreel said, “Wallahi, no one can escape it.”

What did Allah (swt) surround Paradise with? Hard work. Waking up at 4:30 in the morning, making wudu (ablutions) and praying 2 rak’ah (units of prayer) and giving that sadaqah (charity) from your eye that you owe to Allah (swt). Being nice to your friends and forgiving your brothers and sisters who did wrong to you. Being active in the MSA, attending different programs, involving yourself in anything positive. Speaking out against injustice. Waking up and studying for your finals, not coming in unprepared and hoping Allah (swt) will help you.

What did Allah (swt) surround Hellfire with? Shahawaat (Desires), the Door of Shaytan. Ease, recreation, vacation, chillin’ like a villain. All of this surrounds the Hellfire.

3) The Door of Ghaflah (Negligence)

For people your age (college students) this door of Shaytan is the most dangerous. Shaytan messes with you in areas of negligence. For example, if you go overseas—when does everyone say they’re going to make Hajj (the pilgrimage to Mecca)? When they’re 70 years old. How does someone know they’re going to reach 70 years? This is negligence. Look at the example of this sahaabi (companion of the Prophet ﷺ). He was sitting with some dates and he asked the Prophet ﷺ, “Oh Prophet of Allah, if I stop eating these dates, join the battle and become a shaheed (martyr) where will I be?” The Prophet ﷺ answered, “Paradise.” The man threw down his dates and he went.

How about us? Are we negligent when it comes to our opportunity to obey Allah (swt)? Or do we say: Oh, I’ll start to pray after I get married. I’ll start to do this when I finish high school.

Do it now. SubhanAllah, with Nike, we “just do it”. But with Islam we take it slowly, step by step.

So these are the three doors that Shaytan uses to get inside you.

Surat Al-Fatiha Series: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII | Part IX | Part X | Part XI | Part XII | Part XIII | Part XIV| Part XV | Part XVI | Part XVII | Part XVIII | Part XIX | Part XX | Part XXI | Part XXII | Part XXIII | Part XXIV | Part XXV

Iblees told  Allah (swt) his plan:

[Shaytan] said, “Because You have put me in error, I will surely sit in wait for them on Your straight path. Then I will come to them from before them and from behind them and on their right and on their left, and You will not find most of them grateful [to You].” (Qur’an 7:16-17)

When Shaytan blamed Allah by saying, “Because You have put me error,” this was a mistake in his belief in the qadr (decree) of Allah (swt). If done on purpose, a mistake in `aqidah (belief) is kufr (disbelief in Allah). There’s a hadith (record of the words of the Prophet ﷺ, peace be upon him) that mentions this in Sahih Bukhari:

In the time of Bani Israel (the people of Israel), a man lived with a roommate who didn’t pray. When he encouraged his roommate to pray, the roommate just said he didn’t feel like praying. The man went back later and tried to encourage his roommate again but received the same response. Finally, the third time the man came to his roommate and said, “If you don’t pray, Allah (swt) will never forgive you.”

The Prophet ﷺ (peace be upon him) said that Allah (swt) will resurrect these two people and will bring forward the one who didn’t pray and ask him, “Why didn’t you pray?” The man will say, “Wallahi (I swear by Allah), I loved You but I was weak. I believed in You but I was weak.” Allah (swt) will say, “I forgive you.” Then Allah (swt) will bring forward the righteous man who was advising his friend and ask, “Why did you tell him I wouldn’t forgive him?” Why does Allah (swt) ask him that? Because in our belief anyone who dies believing in Allah (swt) and the Prophet ﷺ  as the last Prophet insha’Allah (God willing) will go to Paradise (although some later than others). Allah (swt) can forgive any sin except shirk (associating partners with Him) for whomever He wants (Qur’an 4:116); this is part of our `aqidah (belief). We also know that if someone repents from shirk, Allah (swt) will forgive it. So, saying that Allah (swt) will never forgive someone is a mistake in our belief.

When Iblees said Allah (swt) misguided him, this was a mistake in his belief because he attributed misguidance to Allah (swt). We don’t find misguidance amongst the names or attributes of Allah (swt). Allah (swt) doesn’t misguide people; human beings choose to be misguided. Like Allah (swt) says in the Qur’an, “…and when they deviated, Allah caused their hearts to deviate,” (Qur’an 61:5).

So, Iblees gives us his plan. Have anyone of you heard of the repo-man? The repo-man is a person who comes and takes your car if you don’t make your car payment. Subhan’Allah (glory be to God) when I was in college, I received credit card offers all the time, with very high credit limits. Now that I’m married with children and a job, alhamdullilah (praise be to Allah), I haven’t gotten one credit card offer. Why is that? Because they want to catch you when you’re young; because they know that most college students can’t control their desires. College students tend to spend money that they can’t pay the bill for when it comes. People will come to your house and take your iPod, your laptop, and the best of whatever they can find. So the job of the repo-man is to take the most valuable commodity you have. Shaytan works the same way.

Iblees is coming for us, and when he comes to us, he’s coming to take the most valuable commodity we have. We might be worried that Iblees is coming to take our Lexus, or our PS3, or our concert ticket. But Shaytan is not interested in taking all that. He will come to take our Islam. How many of us feel that we’re lucky to be Muslim? When we hear this, we should think, subhan’Allah, my treasure is my deen (faith). If you want to know how valuable Islam is, go to Surah Al ‘Araf (Qur’an 7). Even when the people enter Paradise, they realize their greatest blessing is Islam and they say:  “Praise to Allah, who has guided us to this; and we would never have been guided if Allah had not guided us,” (Qur’an 7:43).

How many of us have felt this value for our deen, knowing that Iblees, the “repo-man”, wants this most valuable of things from us? That’s why when you’re sitting in a philosophy class and you start having doubts remember that Iblees’s primary target is your faith.

How do people treat the most valuable commodity that they have, like the Mona Lisa? How many of you have been to the Louvre before? If you visit museums, you see the “priceless antiquities” have lasers and other security devices. If you cross the wrong line, helicopters and police come after you. Do we protect our Islam the way these priceless commodities have been protected?  Do we protect our Islam knowing that this enemy is constantly trying to take it from us? This is a very important point, because in the ayah (verse) Shaytan uses two forms of emphasis (laam at-tawkeed and nun at-tawkeed) to say, “Wallahi I will definitely take them off the straight path!”

What is the remedy for this in Surah Al Fatiha? “Ihdina as-siraat al-mustaqeem (guide us to the straight path),” (Qur’an 1:6) That’s why  Allah (swt) made it an obligation to read Surah Al Fatiha at least seventeen times a day, because we have an enemy coming after us at all times, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. That’s why we need this du`a’. Now when we say it, we should feel as if we need to say this to protect ourselves.

Then Shaytan continued. He said: “Then I will come to them from before them and from behind them and on their right and on their left, and You will not find most of them grateful [to You].” (Qur’an 7:17)

Now, maybe after hearing this, some of us will still think, “Hey, I’ve got Norton Anti-Virus, I’m good. Shaytan can’t get me.” As I said earlier, this is the person who Shaytan got. Abdullah ibn Masood radi Allahu `anhu (may Allah be pleased with him) related a hadith related by Imam Ahmed with a strong isnad (chain of narration). He said, “One day we were sitting with the Prophet ﷺ and he drew a straight line. He said, “This is the way of Allah (swt).” Then the Prophet ﷺ drew lines perpendicular to this straight line and he said, “On every one of these lines is a Shaytan calling you to his path.” So there’s a Shaytan calling Muslims to get high, calling Muslims to hang out with the opposite gender, calling Muslims to commit acts of homosexuality. On every one of these ways there’s a Shaytan telling you that communism or secularism or nationalism is better than Islam. These are the things that you will hear in your universities. Shaytan will work on you in every way that you can think of, especially in concepts (i.e. how you think about life). Suhban’Allah, the Prophet ﷺ pointed at the first straight line that he drew and he read this verse from Surah Al An`am, “And this is My path, which is straight, so follow it; and do not follow [other] ways, for you will be separated from His way. This has He instructed you that you may become righteous.” (Qur’an 6:153)

When we go to the Qur’an we notice something interesting. Whenever Allah (swt) uses the word “darkness”, or words that symbolize misguidance, He uses those words in the plural form. But, whenever He uses words to symbolize guidance, like “light”, He uses those words only in the singular form. For example, Allah (swt) says, “Allah is the protector of those who believe. He brings them out from darknesses into the light. And those who disbelieve – their allies are Taghut. They take them out of the light into the darknesses. Those are the companions of the Fire; they will abide eternally therein,” (Qur’an 2:257).

Another example is in the sixth chapter of the Qur’an where Allah (swt) says, “And is one who was dead and We gave him life and made for him light by which to walk among the people like one who is steeped in darknesses, never to emerge therefrom? Thus it has been made pleasing to the disbelievers that which they were doing,” (Qur’an 6:122). This verse was sent when `Umar (ra) accepted Islam. Why does Allah (swt) use light in the singular and darkness in the plural? Because Allah (swt) wants to show us that guidance can only be obtained by traversing siratul mustaqeem (the straight path) and there’s only one straight path: “Say, ‘Indeed, the guidance of Allah is the [only] guidance; and we have been commanded to submit to the Lord of the worlds,’” (Qur’an 6:71).

However, the ways to be misguided are innumerable.

Surat Al-Fatiha Series: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII | Part IX | Part X | Part XI | Part XII | Part XIII | Part XIV| Part XV | Part XVI | Part XVII | Part XVIII | Part XIX | Part XX | Part XXI | Part XXII | Part XXIII | Part XXIV | Part XXV

The fourth one is ar-riya’ bil ‘amal: riya’ (arrogance) through one’s actions. This means you do certain actions – like salah (prayer)–only in front of other people. In a story about a man who wants to get married, the man says to himself, “You know, I’m going to go to the masjid of some religious people, and I’m going to pray for a long time. I’m sure that those guys have some daughters. When they see me praying they’ll think, ‘Masha’Allah (what God wills), what a dazzling young man!’”

So the man went to the masjid to complete his mission. As he was concentrating hard, there were some old men in the back observing: “Masha’Allah, look at this young man. Masha’Allah he’s so amazing, and so great. Look how long he’s been praying.”

Surat Al-Fatiha Series: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII | Part IX | Part X | Part XI | Part XII | Part XIII | Part XIV | Part XV | Part XVI | Part XVII | Part XVIII | Part XIX | Part XX | Part XXI | Part XXII | Part XXIII | Part XXIV | Part XXV

We should note the types of riya’ (arrogance) so that we can protect ourselves from it. It is very important that we know how riya’ can come into our hearts and mess with us, especially those of us who might be leaders in the community or might be giving speeches. People may come up to us and say, “Oh sister, you are so pious. You are like the Zainab Ghazali of Berkeley!” Or they say, “Brother, masha’ Allah (what God wills), I can see the light protruding from your forehead!”

You know what happened to me? I’ll tell you a funny story. I believe humor is an important way to teach. One time about four years ago, the first time I came to MCA, I gave the khutbah (Friday sermon). Afterwards this old man came to me and said, “Brother, wallahi (I swear by Allah)! I have never in my life heard such a magnificent khutbah! Believe me, my heart is bleeding with your words.” I was listening to him and, since I’d never been approached and praised like this before, my nafs (self) was just soaring. It felt good that he was praising me. He was saying, “Masha’ Allah, brother, you are so amazing, wallahi!” And I was becoming drunk with his praises, starting to fall off the minbar (pulpit). Then you know, it got to me and I started to think, “Yeah he’s right. I’ve got it going on. He’s right.”

Then, subhan’Allah (glory be to God), I came back to MCA three years later and gave the khutbah. Afterwards this same guy came to me and started, “Wallahi! I never heard a khutbah like this before!” I was like, “Subhan Allah! Don’t you remember me?” He said, “No.”

Then I realized that Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala (exalted is He) was trying to teach me to check myself. The same guy saying the same thing and when I asked him if he wasn’t the same guy from three years ago he said, “I don’t know you, I’ve never heard you before.” I learned a tough lesson.

Subhan’Allah, do you know what the `ulema (scholars) say? They say, “No one knows about riya’ except the one who is sincere. No one knows about hypocrisy except the believer. No one knows about ignorance except the scholar. No one knows about sinning except the obedient one.”

Why do they say this? A person who is sincere knows what riya’ is so that they can protect themselves. It’s like poison. Before the age of ten, if you had a mother like mine, you knew every poison. Don’t eat that, don’t drink that, don’t play with that, don’t touch that, if you touch that call this doctor. Why? To save yourself.  What’s the first thing we think when we’re taking classes on campus? “Who is the best professor, so if I take his class, I’ll become famous and well known?” (This is riya’.) Or do we say, “Who’s the hard professor? I won’t take his class.” And your friends will advise you, “Oh this professor is bad, that professor is hard.” Why? To protect yourself. It’s the same with the mukhlis (the one who is sincere). They know what showing off and seek to guard themselves from it.

What are the types of riya’? Imam Al Ghazali said that there are five kinds. We will talk about each one insha’Allah (God willing).

The first is ar-riya’ fid-deen bil badan: to show off in the matter of religion with your body. For example, you come to a group of people and your eyes look like you’ve got sandbags under them.

The brothers ask you, “What’s wrong?”
You say in an exhausted voice, “Oh, I’m really tired.”
They ask, “Why are you tired?”
“Oh I don’t know.”
“Why are you so tired? Have you been praying qiyam al-layl (late night prayers)?”
“Oh, how did you know?”

That’s showing off with your body. It seems funny but it happens a lot. Another example is if you’re really tired when you’re dealing with people, you’re moving really slowly, and you’re saying:

“Oh I’m so thirsty, I’m so thirsty.”
Then someone offers you a drink and you say, “I can’t drink right now.”
“Why not?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Are you fasting?”
“How did you know I’m fasting?”

This is ar-riya’ fid deen bil badan. To carry yourself in a way that people can tell that you’re doing something religious. It might seem funny but it is very dangerous, because inside you’re thinking, “I hope they know. I hope they find out that I’m doing this religious act. Then they’re going to think I’m good.”

Maybe someone asks, “I have roommates, and I fast Mondays and Thursdays. I love my roommates because they’re my sisters or brothers in Islam, and I want them to fast. Is it riya’ if I told them that tomorrow I’m going to fast and I want them to fast with me?” This is not riya’. This is good. This is advising to truth and advising to patience (Qur’an, 103:3). This comes under the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ where he says, “None of you perfected your belief until you love for your brother what you love for yourself.”

But if I was to go in front of everyone and announce, “You know tomorrow I’m going to fast for the sake of Allah (swt)! And I want all of you to fast with me!” This could be dangerous. Another way to make sure it’s not riya’ is to tell them before you do it. For example, I’ve been fasting for six months and then I go to Abid and say, “Abid, I’ve been fasting for six months, thirty-nine days and twenty-seven minutes. I would like for you to fast with me tomorrow.” This is dangerous. But if I don’t give him any hint that I’ve been fasting before and I just say, “Abid, insha’Allah tomorrow let’s fast together.” This is good. Like memorizing the Qur’an. If you’ve been memorizing the Qur’an and you want your brother or sister to memorize the Qur’an, you can encourage them. This is not riya’. Insha’ Allah this is good.

The second type of riya’ is ar-riya’ bil hayla. Hayla means al-hal, how you carry yourself. Riya’ in the way you carry yourself. This is different than the body. The body means that you’re trying to make your body reflect a religious act that you’re doing. This one is similar but it also involves how you’re walking, how you talk and so forth. For example, in the time of Umar radi allahu `anhu (may Allah be pleased with him) he was walking down the street and he saw a man walking. The man was walking hunched over, muttering, “Istaghfir Allah, istaghfir Allah (I seek refuge in Allah, I seek refuge in Allah).” Umar (ra) went to that man and said, “Fearing Allah and humbleness before Allah is not in your manner of walking, but it is in your heart. Stop walking like that.” Sometimes it’s really bad. Another example would be having a mark on one’s forehead from praying. Imam Maalik, subhan’Allah, he used to try not to have a black mark on his forehead. But in some places people buy onions and rub it on their heads to make this mark. Then when you see them you think, “Subhan’Allah, this guy is a big shaykh (scholar).” In fact that guy might really be nothing. But they do that to impress people.

This is very dangerous. Like the black ant on the black rock in the black night.

The third is ar-riya’ bil qawl: showing off by your words. This is the easiest one. An example of this would be when we hear people talking, we jump in and say, “Oh, I know the answer!” Or “My shaykh said this!” Or “I know this and that!” Then we throw the words out thinking we will dazzle the people, like fireworks, and they’ll think we’re so smart.

It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t speak if you know about the subject. If you have knowledge, you should speak, but make sure you know why you’re speaking. Hasan al Basri said, “For forty years I made no movement except that I knew why. Even drinking water, I knew why. When I walked I knew why. When I spoke I knew why.” Subhan’Allah, look at the control he had of himself. But this riya’ is very dangerous, especially in the MSA (Muslim Students Association) environment. We’re young, our hormones are hot, and we want to show people, “I’m a shaykh, I studied, I learned, I’m this and that.” Be humble with yourself.

I remember I used to observe this about one of my teachers. Subhan’Allah, this shaykh is really amazing. No one would know he’s a shaykh. He didn’t wear special clothing. But when you spoke with him, you would think, “Wow, this guy knows something.” Once I brought my brother-in-law to see him and my brother-in-law was surprised. He asked me, “That’s the shaykh?” I said, “That’s the shaykh, man.” He said, “That’s really the shaykh?” I replied, “Wallahi that’s the shaykh!” He said, “But he’s like us.” I said, “Yes, he is like us.” It’s because he’s wise. He’s trying to save himself and not show people that he knows something. I used to see him in the masjid (mosque) where we used to study and people would come into the masjid and ask, “Where’s the shaykh?” Then he would answer, “I’m right here.” And they would respond, “Subhan Allah, this is the shaykh?” He would reply, “Well I guess so, that’s what they call me.” Then he would teach them. It’s like when the man came to the Prophet ﷺ in Madinah. He asked, “Where’s Muhammed?” The Prophet ﷺresponded, “I’m here.” And the man immediately took shahada. When people used to come and see Umar (ra) they would find him sleeping under a tree. No security guards. The Romans would come and be shocked, asking, “Is this really Umar?” Yes, that was the leader of the Muslims sitting under a tree. Anyone could go and talk to him, because he was humble.

So, in your words do you try to show people that you know? Or when you speak do you speak for the sake of Allah (swt)?

Surat Al-Fatiha Series: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII | Part IX | Part X | Part XI | Part XII | Part XIII | Part XIV | Part XV | Part XVI | Part XVII | Part XVIII | Part XIX | Part XX | Part XXI | Part XXII | Part XXIII | Part XXIV | Part XXV

Umar Nasir (c)

Now, the answer to our riddle. Why was Al-Fatiha sent twice?

If we go to the makkan surah, and the makkan style of the Qur’an we find six things which stick out about the makki surah. For example Surah al- An`am, the sixth chapter of the Qur’an, is makki. The seventh chapter, Al-‘A`raf, is makki. The tenth chapter, Surah Yunus, is makki, and so forth. These Surahs have six special qualities:

1. Tawheed(the Oneness of Allah). They always talk about tawheed.

2. Al-wahi(revelation from Allah) and the fact that human beings need revelation from Allah (prophets and books and so forth).

3. Prophethood. Revelation and prophethood could be together but we put it as a third to emphasize it.

4. The hereafter. The makkan surahs talk a lot about the hereafter because many of the makkans were complete atheists. They denied resurrection.

5. Sacrifice—struggling in the cause of Allah (swt).

6. Emotions. What do we mean by emotions? The love of Allah, the fear of Allah, the hope we put in Allah. Ibn Qayim al-Jawziya said, “The love of Allah (swt) is like the head of a bird, and fearing Allah and hoping in Him are like two wings.” So we find a lot of emotions in the makkan surahs, such as “trust in Allah if you are indeed believers,” or “Allah loves the people of excellence.” Those are the people who love Allah, who fear Allah, who want to be close to Allah, and who repent to Allah. All of this is dealing with emotions. This is one of the trademarks of the makkan surah.

The madani surahs have the same six, but a few more concepts are also talked about:

1. Munafiqeen (hypocrites).
2. Ahl al-Kitab (the People of the Book, i.e. Christian and Jews).
3. Jihad (fighting/struggling in the cause of Allah).
4. And most importantly, laws of such things like Hajj, fasting, inheritance, menstruation, divorce.

All of this was sent in Madina.

Now from this we can deduce the answer to our question, why was Surah Fatiha sent twice, once in Makkah and once in Madina?

We go to Surah al-Fatiha and we find the verse, “It is You we worship and You we seek for help,” (Qur’an 1:5). So for those Muslims who say that `ibadah is only the ritualistic acts of Islam, how many ritualistic acts of Islam were revealed in Makkah? Only one: salah. If they say that only ritualistic acts of Islam are `ibadah then how come in Makkah Allah said“It is You alone we worship,” and we find that for thirteen years there are no ritualistic acts of worship sent in Makkah? In Makkah we don’t have hajj, fasting, zakah, etc. But still in Makkah Allah revealed this verse saying, “It is You alone we worship.” In fact, in Makkah Allah sent the verse in the fifty-first chapter of the Quran saying, “And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me,” (Qur’an 51:56).

If we think hard we can deduce that everything that was sent in Makkah constitutes worship. That means even emotions are worship.

Then we go to Madinah and we have hajj, fasting, zakah, inheritance, divorce, and marriage. That means those also constitute worship. That’s why Allah sent Surah al-Fatiha twice – to show you the comprehensiveness of worship.

I’m going to explain it one more time. In Makkah, Allah (swt) sent verses that talked about worshipping Him. But in Makkah we don’t have any ritualistic acts of worship except prayer, which was twice a day until the tenth or twelfth year. Yet there in Makkah Allah is talking about worshiping Him. We said that in Makkah there were six things (tawheed, al-wahi, the Prophets, the hereafter, sacrifice, and emotions) so that means that all of these things are worship. When Allah used the term worship in the Makkan period He was talking about these six things, and when He used the term in Madinah He was talking about laws too. That means that `ibadah is comprehensive. How I feel internally is worship, what I hope in is worship, what I trust in is worship, what I love is worship. That’s why many `ulema’ focus on purification of the soul. Additionally, praying, hajj, fasting, inheritance are also worship.

Got it? One more time. My teacher used to do this, I used to love it about him. He would ask us if we understood, and we would say, “Yes, yes we know, let’s move on,” but he would still explain it again and we would catch some finer points. So, we said that in Makkah Allah sent verses about love, hope, fear, trust, repentance, etc. In Madinah Allah sent verses about jihad, about how to pray (for example how to combine prayers), zakah in certain situations, divorce, etc. So we can conclude that everything in Makkah is worship, and everything in Madinah is worship. Everything in Makkah had little to do with rituals, it dealt with behavior and emotions, so that means that behavior and emotions are worship. Ritualistic acts of worship, from the Madani period, are also worship and they are brought together.

That’s why we take the definition of Ibn Taymiyyah. Now, someone might say, “Oh Ibn Taymiyyah, he’s kafir, he’s the son of Jews,” and so on. That’s nonsense. You know how you should approach scholars? First of all, we should say rahimahu Allah (may Allah have mercy on him) about everyone; my teacher, who I memorized some of the Qur’an from, used to tell me if you see your worst enemy you will not want him in the Hellfire. Not even your worst enemy. And I remember my teacher used to read Surat al-Qari`ah (101) and he used to start crying. So how should we approach any scholar, if we’re not comfortable with him? We should approach it like we’re in the garden and we want to take some fruit. If we notice there’s some rotten fruit, we don’t cut down the tree. We take what we need. Like Imam Ghazali. One time I was giving a lecture and I mentioned Imam Ghazali and this one guy exclaimed, “Astaghfir’Allah! (I seek refuge from Allah).” I thought, “Did you commit a sin, brother? I guess you did something wrong since you’re saying astaghfir’Allah.”

Unfortunately this is something that we do that’s not good. We should take good from everyone. We find good in them as long as they are Muslim and they pray, they say there is no God but Allah, and they follow the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ. We should take the fruit we can benefit from.

Really, Ibn Taymiyyah’s definition of worship is very beautiful. He said, “`Ibadah is a term that comprises every single thing that Allah loves.” Does Allah love us to be active in the MSA (Muslim Students Association)? Yes. Does Allah love us waking up in the night to pray? Yes. One time I was on my campus and this lady was carrying all these bags. I thought that I should help her, but then shaytan started whispering, “But she’s a kafir (disbeliever). You can’t help a kafir girl. Astaghfir’Allah!” She was also older, so I went to her and I said, “Would you like me to help you with your bags?” She said, “Yes, please.” So I took her bags. Afterwards she asked me if I am Muslim and I said yes. Subhan’Allah, you can plant the seed and you never know what will happen. Allah loves us to be kind to people. Allah loves us to be active politically – like now about Iraq. Allah loves us to do so many things. That’s why Ibn Tamiyyah said `ibadah is everything that Allah loves from actions, whether open or hidden. Basically a lot of the madani worship was open actions, and a lot of makki worship was hidden actions.

So we’ll stop now, insha’Allah and give you one last riddle for next week. Whose job was it to send the Qur’an to the Prophet ﷺ? Jibreel. But here we found another angel bringing al-Fatiha. In the hadith, Jibreel was sitting with the Prophet ﷺ. He heard something and looked up and he saw another angel coming. This angel brought al-Fatiha and the end of Surah al-Baqarah. Why? This is your riddle.

Surat Al-Fatiha Series: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII | Part IX| Part X | Part XI | Part XII | Part XIII | Part XIV | Part XV | Part XVI | Part XVII | Part XVIII | Part XIX | Part XX | Part XXI | Part XXII | Part XXIII | Part XXIV | Part XXV

The riddle that I give you is going to answer a very important point: al-`ibadah (worship of Allah). What is the correct concept of al-`ibadah? In order to get the correct concept of worship in Islam we have to go to the revelation of Surat al-Fatiha: The Opening (Qur’an, 1).

If we go to the major books of the mufasiroon (scholars of tafsir or interpretation) we find something interesting. The majority of the salaf (the old scholars) held that al-Fatiha was sent in Makkah. There are two types of revelation: makki (surahs that were sent before the Prophet ﷺ migrated to Medina) and madani (surahs that were sent after the Prophet’s ﷺ migration). The Makkan period was thirteen years, and the Madani period was ten years.

The majority of scholars said that al-Fatiha was sent in the Makkan period of Prophethood, and they based this on a verse found in the fifteenth chapter of the Qur’an (Surat al-Hijr) where Allah (swt) says, “And We have certainly given you, [O Muhammad], seven of the often repeated [verses] and the great Qur’an” (15:87).

The seven often repeated verses are al-Fatiha because we know from some of the hadith (reports of the sayings and actions of the Prophet ﷺ) that we mentioned previously that the Prophet ﷺ said al-Fatiha is the seven often repeated verses. Since this verse and this surah (i.e. Al Hijr) were sent in Makkah, many scholars said this means Al-Fatiha was sent in Makkah. But then we find a hadith related by Imam Muslim on behalf of Ibn Abbas in which Ibn Abbas narrates: “One day Jibreel was sitting with the Prophet ﷺ and Jibreel heard the sound of a door in the heavens. So he raised his head and saw an angel coming. Then Jibreel said to the Prophet ﷺ, ‘This door is a door that was never opened before until today. And this angel is an angel who never came before.’ The angel came to Jibreel and the Prophet ﷺ and gave salaams (greetings of peace) to them. Then he said to the Prophet ﷺ, ‘I give you the good news of two lights that are given to you that were never given to any prophet before you: the Opening of the Book (i.e. Surat al-Fatiha) and the last verses of Surat al-Baqarah.’”

How does this hadith indicate Surat al-Fatiha was revealed during the Madani period?  Because Surat al-Baqarah (Qur’an, 2) was revealed in Madinah. Subhan’Allah (glory be to Allah) this is why you can respect the scholars. They catch these little points.

Surat al-Baqarah was sent in Madinah; it’s madani according to the majority of scholars. You can’t find any scholar that says al-Baqarah was sent in Makkah. So now we have this issue. The verse of Surat al-Hijr which was revealed in Makkah as agreed on by the scholars. Then we have this hadith related by Ibn Abbas radi allahu `anhu (may Allah be pleased with him) from Imam Muslim that al-Fatiha was sent along with the end of Surat al-Baqarah.

One lesson we can take from this is – how do you value something? What is one of the means we use to measure the value of something?

Audience: It’s cost.

Cost, ok, that’s true. But we’re going to throw that one out because [sometimes] our minds are very materialistic. But look at how it’s sent to you. For example, let’s say you get a normal letter. You will say, “Alhamdulillah (All praise be to Allah.)” If it comes second-class, “Alhamdulillah!” If it comes first class, “ALHAMDULILLAH!” But if it comes overnight, “Alhamdulillah hamdan katheeran tayiban mubarakn feeh (All praise is for Allah – abundant, good and blessed praise)!”

So how, brothers and sisters, did Allah (swt) send you al-Fatiha?  Look at how the Prophet ﷺ is being told that al-Fatiha is a light to show you the way. So how did you get al-Fatiha? When you read al-Fatiha in your salah (prayer), do you feel that this is something special that Allah gave you? What about when you stand the night and pray your qiyam al-layl (night prayer) and no one can see you and you’re crying in front of Allah (swt)?

And, by the way, this crying is a sadaqah (charity). Maybe someone says, “I don’t have any money, I’m in college, I’m broke. I’m just barely even. What can I give to Allah?” At least you can give the tear in the night.

So, subhan’Allah, when you stand in the night and you’re reading, “Alhamdullilahi rabil `alameen (all praise is due to Allah the Master of the worlds),” did you think about how it was sent to you?

The `ulema’ (scholars) started to discuss. We have strong proof that al-Fatiha was sent in Makkah. We have a strong proof that al-Fatiha was sent in Madinah. So they started to discuss. There was a great scholar by the name of Ibn Atiyah. Ibn Atiyah was from Andalus (Spain). Imam Al Qurtubi, who was also one of the great mufasiroon took a lot of his tafsir from Ibn Atiyah.  The `ulema said that Ibn Atiyah was like Az-Zamakhshari in his control of the Arabic language and in balagha (eloquence) but Ibn Atiyah was not mu’tazila, he was from ahli Sunna waj-jammah, he was ash`ari from the people of the sunnah. Ibn Atiyah made a strong study of this and the answer to this riddle about al-Fatiha is going to give us the correct understanding of `ibadah. The answer will show us the wisdom of Allah (swt). According to most scholars, especially contemporary scholars, Al-Fatiha has the distinction of being sent twice. It’s amazing. Once in Makkah and once in Madinah.

But the question is why? That was the riddle I gave you.

If we want to get this answer we have to look at one of the biggest things which is plaguing the Muslims: the misunderstanding of `ibadah. For example, many people think `ibadah is only salah (prayer). Usually if I give a speech to non-Muslims and I say, “I’m going to say the word worship, tell me what you see.” They say, “The white picket fence and the nice white church house and the man with the suit on.” For the Muslims it’s a guy with a big stick who’s really mad in the masjid (mosque). As Imam Hassan al-Banna (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned, the downfall of the Muslims was brought by their thinking that `ibadah was only in the masjid. Imam al-Ghazzali wrote Ihya Uloom Ad-Deen (Reviving the Teachings of the Religion) which we are going to use a lot next week. The reason it is it called ihya, the reviver (the root coming from the word life in Arabic) is to get the people out of this way of thinking (in his time especially they were very materialistic) and also to let them see that Islam is your life. It applies to every aspect of your life.

So this misunderstanding of worship is due to a major, major misunderstanding on the part of Muslims. Usually when you read a book they define worship as the five pillars of Islam: shahada (declaration of faith), salah (prayers), zakah (obligatory charity), sawm (fasting in the month of Ramadan) and hajj (pilgrimage to Makkah). But Sheikh Abdul Karim Zaidan mentioned something interesting in his book Al-Mufassal, a very good book about the fiqh of a woman, about eleven volumes. Sheikh Abdul Karim Zaidan lives in Yemen now, and he’s originally from Iraq. He said that many Muslims think that `ibadah only means the five pillars because this is the definition used by the scholars of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence). For example, we have the word nahu. What does nahu mean?

Audience: Grammar.

No, nahu does not mean grammar. It means grammar to the grammarian, but in Arabic it means “like this.” Why do they call grammar nahu? That’s a long story, you’ll get it another time, insha’ Allah (Allah willing).

But to the grammarian, nahu means grammar.

What about the word rafu’? What does rafu’ mean? Raise (for example, raise your voice). But in nahu, rafu’ means a word that has a damma (one of three short vowels used in Arabic), or something that represents a damma.

Similarly in our Islamic sciences different scientists use terms differently. So according to the scholars of fiqh, `ibadah means the five pillars. But when most Muslims read they don’t know that so when they read that they think, “Oh, this is `ibadah.”

But as Sheikh Abdul Karim Zaidan mentioned, those scholars know that `ibadah is comprehensive.  But since it’s not good in prose to always repeat, in their science they just said `ibadah for simplicity.  They didn’t continuously say, “`Ibadah, it means more than what we mean, but here we mean this.” No, because they figure the person who is reading understands that.

Did everyone catch this point? Let’s go over it one more time.

When the scholars of Islamic jurisprudence use the word `ibadah within the framework of their science they regulate it to only the five pillars of Islam because that’s what their science pertains to. For example, a scholar who deals with inheritance might say, “The best `ibadah (act of worship) in this matter is…” What does he mean when he says worship? He means inheritance, but he doesn’t want to elaborate because he figures the reader knows that (this is why it’s important to learn from a Sheikh).

Most Muslims have taken the definition of `ibadah given to us by the fuqaha’ (the scholars of Islamic jurisprudence). That’s why, for example, you can go to different Muslim places and find someone who prays, but when it comes to interactions with each other they might not be very good.

The Question:

Is it okay to commence a gathering with recitation of the first chapter of the Qur’an, al-Fatiha (the Opening)?

The Answer:

Reciting the Qur’an is encouraged and not restricted to a specific time or place. Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala (exalted is He) says,

“[…] so recite what is easy [for you] of the Qur’an.” (Qur’an, 73:20)

The bounties of reciting the Qur’an are plentiful! There are ten good deeds for each letter recited, as noted by the Prophet ﷺ who said, “I did not say that alif, lam and mim are one letter. But, alif is a letter, lam is a letter and mim is a letter.” (Tirmidhi)

Abu Sa’id al-Khudari (`alayhi as-salaam – may Allah be pleased with him) relates from the Prophet ﷺ who related from his Lord (swt), “Whoever is so occupied with the Qur’an and My remembrance that he fails to supplicate to Me, I will grant him that which is better than those who supplicate.” (Tirmidhi)

These proofs establish that reading the Qur’an is one of the most virtuous and most encouraged actions.

There is no text that sanctions reciting the Qur’an during a gathering at any one time—upon its inauguration, during it, or at its conclusion. If a person does so, contending that it is from the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ, or a religious obligation, then he has contradicted Islamic Law. However, if he does so seeking the blessings of reading the Qur’an, then there is nothing wrong with that, God willing, according to the sound opinion which we have chosen.

This issue is a contentious one and revolves around what is known as “al-Bid’a al-Idaafiya.”¹ Most of the Maliki scholars disliked Bid’a Idaafiya, while other scholars considered this act, in particular, to be covered by the general evidences (that encourage one to read the Qur’an without restriction). In such situations, scholars such as al-Shafi’i, al-`Izz al-Din ‘Abdul al-Salam and al-Qaraafi, from the Maaliki rite, applied the following legal axioms: “What is established by a general evidence, then its origin is permissibility or the presumption of continuity (istishaab).” Based on that, there is no problem (with taking either opinion).  What should be stressed is that there should be no contention amongst the Muslims regarding this.

Anas (God be pleased with him) related from the Prophet ﷺ, “Do not hate one another, do not be jealous of one another, and do not desert one another.” (Bukhari, Muslim)

Whoever wants to want to recite al-Fatiha (at such a gathering), then he should not be prohibited from doing so. Nevertheless, he should not claim that it is a sunnah – that the Prophet ﷺ began his gathering with it – because that is incorrect. With that in mind, if it is recited, seeking the blessings of the Qur’an and God’s favors and rewards, then there is nothing wrong with that, God willing.

Allah knows best,

Dr. ‘Abdullah bin Bayyah

Translated and Abridged by Suhaib Webb

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