Ten Statements from the Salaf On Love and Hate for Allah’s Sake

Imaam Abu Hamid al-Tusi al-Ghazali1 -

‘Umar bin al-Khattab (رضي الله عنه) said:“If one of you is blessed with affection from his brother, he should hold onto that as tightly as possible, as it is quite rare for one to be blessed with this.”

2 - ‘Umar (رضي الله عنه) also said:“Nobody is given anything, besides his Islaam, better than a righteous friend.”

3 - ‘Ali bin Abi Talib (رضي الله عنه) said:“Tend to your brothers, as they are your sustenance in this world and the next. Do you not hear the saying of the people of Hell: {”Now, we have neither intercessors nor close friends to help us!”} [ash-Shu’ara’; 100-1]?”

4 - ‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar (رضي الله عنه) said:“By Allaah, if I fasted all day without eating, prayed all night without sleeping, spent all of my wealth in the Path of Allaah (سبحانه وتعالى), died the day I died, but, had no love in my heart for those who obey Allaah, and no hatred in my heart for those who disobey Allaah (سبحانه وتعالى), none of this would benefit me in the least.”

5 - ‘Abdullah bin Mas’ud (رضي الله عنه) said:“If a man were to stand for seventy years, worshipping Allaah between the Yemeni Corner and the Maqam of Ibrahim (at the Ka’bah), he would still be resurrected on the Day of Judgement with those whom he loved.”

6 - Ibn as-Sammak (رحمه الله) said, on his deathbed:“O Allaah! You Know that, even if I had disobeyed You, I loved those who obeyed You! So, make this for me a means of nearness to You!”

7 - Mujahid (رحمه الله) said:“Those who love each other for Allaah’s Sake, when they smile at each other, their sins fall from each other, just as the leaves fall from a tree before the winter.”

8 - al-Ghazali (رحمه الله) said, commenting on the hadith “The strongest bond of faith is to love for Allaah and to hate for Allaah”:“Because of this, it is a must that a person have enemies that he hates for Allaah’s Sake, just as he has friends and brothers that he loves for Allaah’s Sake.”

9 - Abu Hurayrah (رضي الله عنه) said:“The slave will be brought between the Hands of Allaah - the Exalted - on the Day of Resurrection, and Allaah (سبحانه وتعالى) will Say to him: ‘Did you love one of my awliya’, so that I can join you with him?’”

10 - al-Hasan al-Basri (رحمه الله) said:“Being harsh against a fasiq brings you closer to Allaah - the Exalted.”From ‘Ihya’ ‘Ulum ad-Din’ (2/195 onwards) Iqtida’ by Imaam al-Ghazali (رحمه الله)

Four Things You Are Unsafe From

Imaam Ath Thahabi Rahimahullah mentions in his monumental book "Seer A’alaam an Nubalaa” Vol.8 P.406 on the authority of Abdullah Ibn Al Mubaarak Rahimahullah (181H.):“The people of knowledge and insight do not consider themselves safe from four things:1) A past sin he committed which he does not know what Allaah will do with it (either forgive and pardon him for it or punish him with it);2) What is left of his life, whether there is something therein waiting to destroy him;3) A favor that Allaah bestowed upon him, perhaps it is a plot which will lead him step by step to his eventual destruction and ruin;4) Deviance which is beautified for him so that he sees it to be guidance and in a split second, his heart can deviate and he will be stripped of his deen and he doesn't even realize it.”

SHAHADAH

By Fatima Barkatulla

MashaAllah a few weeks ago in Birmingham I had the opportunity by the grace of Allah to take a sister's Shahadah. It was the first time somebody repeated the Shahadah after me and so I found it very moving as I had been making du'a that Allah would give me that chance. It went something like this (I've called her 'D'):

D had been told that she could attend the Tarbiyah programme to get to know more about Muslims, so she was sitting in the tarbiyah programme hall and had been observing us teaching salaah, wudhu and recitation of Suratul Fatiha with Tajweed. Then after my talk I was walking past her when it looked like she wanted to say something.

So I went over to her and asked her if all was OK.
"How are you finding it?"
"Good...yeah....er...I just wanted to ask you what a person has to do to become a Muslim."
"Oh." I said, "you think you might like to?"
"Well, I don't really know how to do anything and I don't know if I could do it all..."
"Well you know, it takes time and slowly slowly you learn more everyday and do more. You can't be expected to do everything all at once or know everything all at once. Look at us....even we are still learning." I said.
She nodded.
"So look, do you believe that there is only One God and He alone deserves to be worshipped?"
"Yeah" she said...she had been reading and learning and she was definitely sure about that one.
"OK, and do you know about the Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam)?"
"Well, I've read about him"
"OK, so are you convinced that he was a Prophet of God, the last messenger (peace be upon him)?"
"Yes."
"You accept that?" I was getting excited by now!
"Yes."
"Then you are already a Muslim. You just need to declare it so that you acknowledge it to God and to us Muslims. That's the Shahadah, you're testifying that there is nothing worthy of worship except Allah, the One and Only God and that Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) is the messenger of God."
She nodded sweetly.
"So, D, are you ready? You don't have to do it on the microphone or anything."
A pause.
"The most important thing now is to declare what you believe. So that you'll be counted as a Believer. Because we don't know what could happen to any one of us when we walk out of this place tonight. May Allah protect us but we don't know when death will come."
She looked down, nodding and then raised her head and said "Yeah. I'm ready."
Then I sat down next to her. Some sisters had figured out something big was going on and had begun to congregate around us. Some sat next to her.
"Could you explain what I have to say first."
"Yeah. You say Ash hadu Allaa ilaaha illallah. Wa Ash hadu anna muhammadan rasoolullah. Which means, I bear witness or I testify that there is nothing worthy of worship except Allah. And I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). OK?"
She nodded.
"What was your religion before this?" I asked.
"Nothing" she said. I'd asked her, to make sure that if she had been a Christian, that she definitely believed that Jesus was a Prophet and not the son of God. Sometimes Christians find that concept hard to let go of, but in her case it wasn't an issue.
"OK so repeat after me. We'll say it in Arabic and then in English." Then she repeated the Shahadah after me in Arabic. In the middle of it I couldn't stop the tears flowing and had to stop for a moment to gather myself. I found it so moving at that moment to feel that the message of the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) had indeed reached so far, over the world and that we, in the middle of Rum (Rome as the Arab's called Europe at that time) were sitting here taking a persons declaration of faith in the message that that kind shepherd, the orphan who became the leader and liberator of Arabia had come with (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) How truly momentous each and every Shahadah is.
It reminds me of the Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) at his farewell pilgrimage when he was so careful to ask the people gathered at Arafah "Have I conveyed the message?" And they replied in unison "Yes!" And he said to Allah "Oh Allah bear witness!"

And in this Hadeeth: One day when the Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) returned from a journey and went to Fatima’s house, Fatima welcomed him and kissed his face, his mouth and his eyes and wept.
“Why do you cry?” the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) asked.
“I see you, O Rasul Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam),” she said, “Your colour is pale and sallow and your clothes have become worn and shabby.”
“O Fatima,” the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) replied tenderly, “don’t cry for Allah has sent your father with a mission which He would cause to affect every house on the face of the earth whether it be in towns, villages or tents (in the desert) bringing either glory or humiliation until this mission is fulfilled just as night (inevitably) comes.”

How I wished I could tell the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) how far his message had come! "Yes! Oh Prophet of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam)...you indeed conveyed the message! The whole world testifies!"

Then she completed repeating the Shahadah after me in Arabic and then in English. By now a large crowd of sisters had gathered around us. All silently observing this miracle. The miracle of Hidaayah or guidance. How Allah turns a person towards Him and guides them and makes them into our Sisters and Brothers in Islam. The sisters embraced her and called out Takbeers.
One sister who had embraced Islam just a few months earlier said to her "You've made the right decision sister. You won't regret it!"
I encouraged the sisters not to allow this to be the end of their love and enthusiasm for this sister. That is was our responsibility to open up our homes, to really make this sister a member of our families.
Some responsible sisters took on the role of being mentor to her and exchanged email addresses and phone numbers. We emphasised Salah to her (even just doing the actions and reciting some basic things like Subhan Allah, Alhamdulillah and Allahu Akbar during salah until she learns it properly and keeping away from Major sins....insha Allah over time, by keeping to Salah she will become stronger and do more and more.

I felt like it was the best day of my life so far and when I got home I did Sajdah of Thanks to Allah.

10 USELESS MATTERS ....

Assalaamulaikum Warahmatulahi Wabarkatahu dear brothers and sisters! x

I Pray that you all are well in health and Iman!
There are many things in life we do, without thinking, without thinking if it goes against Islam, if it goes against the Sunnah! And most importantly if this certain action displeases Allah SWT.
Let us take a look at 10 matters, recognize how and why its a waste of time, and refrain from doing this in the future InshAllah.

“There are ten useless matters that cannot be benefited from:
1• Knowledge that is not implemented
(i.e. reading/studying Qur'an and Sunnah but not implementing its teachings in our lives)

2• An action that is empty of sincerity, and is not based on the correct example (e.g. not giving Sadaqah at gatherings because we want to help but rather we give not to look stingy or cheap and tight with our money.)

3• Wealth that is hoarded, as the owner neither enjoys it during this life, nor obtains any reward for it in the Hereafter (e.g. having money and not spending in the path of Allah)

4• The heart that is empty of love and longing for Allāh, and empty of seeking closeness to Him (i.e. rather longing for the love of another which is haraam for us, and seeking closeness to the Duniya instead!)

5• A body that does not obey and serve Allāh (e.g. not praying Salah or submitting to Allah's commands which will bring us closer to the Creator)

6• Loving Allāh without seeking His pleasure

7• Time that is not spent in expiating sins or seizing opportunities to perform deeds of righteousness that will bring one closer to Allāh (e.g. not making Tawbah and not constantly seizing moments to achieve hasanah (rewards) for good deeds)

8• A mind that thinks about issues which bring about no benefit (e.g. stressing over petty dunya related matters)

9• Serving those who neither bring you close to Allāh or benefit you in your life (e.g. the misguided)

10• Hoping and fearing one who is under the authority of Allāh, and whose forehead is in His Hand, while he cannot bring any benefit, harm, life, death, or resurrection to himself. (e.g. fearing the creation, rather than the Creator)

However, the greatest of these matters is the wasting of the heart, and the wasting of time.
Wasting the heart is done by preferring this worldly life over the Hereafter, and wasting time is done by having incessant (persistent, never-ending) hopes.
All evil is in following one’s desires and having incessant hopes, while all goodness is found in following the right path and preparing oneself to meet Allāh, and Allāh is the source of Assistance.”

Here, the Imam summarized all evils into these two issues; wasting of the heart, and wasting of time.
Wasting the heart; done by preferring this worldly life over the Hereafter, and
Wasting time; done by having incessant hopes.

And incessant hopes and the following of one’s desires are the ultimate manifestation of evil.

{Taken from the late Imam ‘Abdullah Azzam, from his book; ‘al-Fawā’id,’}

May this tiny bit of Ilm (knowledge) be of benefit to us, and InshAllah may it be a stepping stone to reform ourselves for the sake and pleasure of Allah SWT.

Wassalaam, XXX MEHAK XXX

The Devil's Da'wah Techniques

OK, I know what you’re thinking. ‘Since when does Shaytaan do Da’wah?’ Right??? Well that’s not the kind of da’wah I’m referring to here. I’m talking about the kind of Da’wah where Shaytaan (may Allah’s curse be upon him) tries to convert us Believers to ‘HIS’ religion (the religion of kufr) or at least lead us astray from the straight path.

While studying tafseer of Surah al-Baqarah, my Ustadh (may Allah preserve him) taught us ‘The Devil’s Da’wah Techniques'. We reached a place where Allah says in verses 34-36 of Surah al-Baqarah:

34. And when We said to the angels: "Prostrate yourselves before ‘Adam!" So, they prostrated themselves, all but Iblis (Satan). He refused, and became one of the infidels.
35. And We said, "O ‘Adam, dwell, you and your wife, in Paradise; and eat at pleasure wherever you like, but do not go near this tree, otherwise you will be (counted) among the transgressors."
36. Then, Satan caused them to slip from it, and brought them out of where they had been. And We said, "Go down, all of you, some of you the enemies of others; and on the earth there will be for you a dwelling place and enjoyment for a time."

When Shaytaan refused to prostrate to Adam (alayhis salaam) out of pride and arrogance, he earned Allah’s wrath and he was refused Jannah. While, on the other hand, Adam and his wife Hawa were told by Allah to enter Paradise and enjoy everything therein, but to not come near a certain tree.

Shaytaan at this stage had pure hatred for Adam (alayhis salaam) and couldn’t stand the fact that he was refused Paradise because of him. So what does the Shaytaan do? He comes up with a plan to get them out of Jannah. But not just any plan; A SLY, SLICK PLAN. This is after all Shaytaan we’re talking about.

He proceeded to Adam (alayhis salaam) and used the most eloquent words and talks to him as if he is his best friend. Think about it, would you ever take advice or listen to someone who had pure hatred for you? Even if you didn’t know they hated you, you would be able to tell by their expression on their face innit? But Shaytaan’s clever, he puts on a disguise.

He goes to them and says:

Then Satan whispered to them, so that he might expose to them their shame that was hidden from them; and said, "Your Lord has not prohibited this tree for you, but to avoid your becoming angels or your becoming eternal." He swore an oath, "I am one of your well-wishers." [Qur’an Al A’raf: V. 20-21]

So Shaytaan made them eat from the tree that Allah forbade them and they were all thrown out from Paradise and dwell on earth for some time. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!

So my dear brothers and sisters, you’ve seen how easily Shaytaan managed to get Adam and Hawa, our father and mother (may Allah’s peace be upon them) from paradise using his ‘da’wah techniques’. He’s been using these techniques since day one and has managed to misguide many.

Here’s another story the Sheikh narrated to illustrate the ‘Devil’s Da’wah Techniques’. It’s about a pious worshipper named Burseesah who fell into the traps of Shaytaan. May Allah protect us all from the Shaytaan. Ameen.

The Story of Burseesah

There were three men from Bani Israel who were called to fight for the sake of Allah. They accepted the call, but they had concerns for their sister as she would be left behind with no-one to look after her. After some discussion, they agreed that the best place to leave her would be with the most trusted person in town.

This was a pious man called Burseesah, who lived in a sanctuary and devoted his entire life in the worship of Allah. They came to Burseesah and said to him, "O Burseesah. We know you to be a pious and trustworthy man. We have been enlisted to fight for the sake of Allah and we want to leave our sister with you. O Burseesah! We trust no one else in town except you. Please take care of our sister."

Burseesah immediately said, "AoothoBillah! (I seek refuge in Allah) Get away from me! I have sworn to spend my time devoting it to the worship of Allah! I do not want to deal with these issues and be burdened with looking after someone"

The three men said to him, "O Burseesah! We have no where else to take her! We can’t leave her with anyone else and we don't trust anyone else. Please take care of our sister!"

Shaytaan heard the discussion, and came to Burseesah.

"Burseesah..." The waswaas [evil whisperings] began. "Burseesah if you don't look after her, she might be left with someone who is not trustworthy! You have to take this responsibility"

Burseesah listened and finally agreed to look after her. He told the brothers to leave her in a separate house so not to distract him from his acts of worship. They left her there, said goodbye and went to jihad.

Burseesah would continue his acts of worship as normal, and during the day he would leave food on his doorstep so the woman would have to leave the house to collect the food. This also ensured they never saw one another and Bursesah never even left his place of worship.

Time passed by. Shaytaan came to Burseesah.

"Burseesah..." he whispered, "You can't leave the food on your doorstep! As she is leaving the house someone might see her by herself. All alone and venerable and take advantage of her. Rather than her leave her house, you go to her house and drop off the food on her doorstep."

Burseesah made the decision that this was the right thing to do, and followed the bait that Shaytaan masked in a cover of righteousness. So during the day Burseesah would leave his worship, leave his place of worship, go to the house and leave the food on her doorstep.This happened for a while and with the trap just being set, Shaytaan moved in for the next step.

"Burseeeeesah..." the whispers came again. "Burseeesah...you are now leaving the food on her doorstep, but still this is not good. She still has to open the door and collect the food. Someone might still see her and she is so beautiful. She is VERY beautiful".

This servant of Allah, who never saw this woman started to be tempted by the whispers from Shaytaan about her beauty.

"Burseesah, her beauty is intoxicating and if someone sees her they may try something. You have to leave the food INSIDE her house. You don't have to look at her. Just knock on the door, and hand her the food as she opens the door."

Burseesah saw no harm in this. After all, it would stop people from seeing her. More deception covered in righteousness.

So again, Burseesah would leave his worship, leave his place of worship, go to the house and knock on her door to hand her the food.

Time passed by again. Shaytaan remained patient before executing his next plan.

Shaytaan came again.

"Burseeesah...you can’t leave this poor woman all alone. Without any company. No one is speaking to her. She's lonely Burseesah. Just talk to her. There’s no harm in saying salaam and asking how she is. You can talk to her from behind the door...you don’t have to see her...just talk from outside."

He liked the idea and when he would bring her the food he would talk to her behind the door while she was in her room. They would talk for hours every day and the relationship began to get stronger. Shaytaan found it easier and easier to drag him into the next step.

"Burseeesah.....Burseesah....you can't just sit behind the door. You know each other well enough to be in the same room now. Just sit in the same room and speak to her. You don't have to look at her. Just sit in the same room."

Burseesah began to follow the advice of Shaytaan. Everytime they met, the talk became more intimate as they began getting closer...and closer...and closer.

...He would hold her hand......

...The kiss came a few days later...

Eventually...they made zinaa [fornication] with each other.

"Ohh what have I done" Burseesah said as he realised his mistake.

--From being a slave of Allah...to becoming a fornicator.--

But the story did not end there. From that night, the woman became pregnant. Nine months later she delivered a baby boy. The familiar whispers started again as Shaytaan flowed through Burseesah's veins like blood.

"Burseeesaah...when her brothers come back and find out their sister has a child in zinaa, you are going to be in trouble! There is only one way to solve this problem. Burseesah........you have to kill the baby! Get rid of the evidence!"

Grief and anxiety ran through Burseesah's mind as he listened to the whispers of Shaytaan. He did what he heard and killed the baby.

"Ohhhh Burseesah. Do you think this woman will keep this a secret after you killed her own child?? Nooo. Burseesah.....the only thing to do now is to kill her!"

Burseesah then killed the woman and buried both mother and child under the house and covered it with a rock.

--From being a slave of Allah...to becoming a murderer.—

The three brothers returned and went to greet their sister. She was no where to be found. They went to the house of Burseesah and asked him, "Where is our sister?"

"She has passed away" he said as he pointed to a fake grave.

The brothers were saddened by the loss, and made du'a for her. That night when they went to sleep, Shaytaan came to them in their dreams and told them all what had happened.

"Burseesah has lied to you! Burseesah killed your sister! Burseesah made zinaa with her! She is buried under the rock inside the house."

As they all woke up in the morning, and talked about their dream, they began relating the same dream and thought there must be some truth in it. They first dug up the grave Burseesah pointed to and found no body. They stormed to Burseesah's house and demanded to know what had happened to their sister. One of them saw the rock in the house and uncovered it, where they saw their sister and her child.

"What has happened to our sister?!” The eldest screamed.

They forced Burseesah to disclose the secret of what happened and Burseesah told them everything.

Burseesah was taken to court where he confessed everything to the King. The King sentenced Burseesah to be executed. As they dragged him to his death, fear overcame Burseesah.

For the first time during this whole incident, Shaytaan appeared before Burseesah and said to him, "Oh Burseesah! Listen! Look at me! I was the one who was whispering to you since this whole thing started! I am Shaytaan!"

Burseesah's fear grew as the blade for his execution was brought!

"Now I can get you out of all this trouble. I was the one who put you in it, and I can get you out of it!"

"Oh Shaytaan, what should I do?!" Burseesah cried!

With an evil grin, Shaytaan said, "Make sujood to me. I am Shaytaan and I will save you! Bow down and prostrate to me!"

Burseesah fell down in sujood to Shaytaan and as soon as he did this, Shaytaan ran away!

.....and Burseesah was executed.

--From being a servant of Allah, bowing down to Allah...to becoming a servant to Shaytaan...bowing down to Shaytaan.

–-- From Imaan...to the worst type of kufr - bowing down to Shaytaan! –

Who could ever imagine a servant of Allah making sujood to Shaytaan!?

Imagine if Shaytaan came to Burseesah at the beginning and said "Burseesah make sujood to me", would Burseesah do it? NO!

If Shaytaan came to Burseesah at the beginning and said "commit zinaa" , would he do it? NO!

If Shaytaan came to Burseesah at the beginning and said "commit murder" , would he do? NO!

But Shaytaan knows the game! He's been playing his tricks since the time of Adam. Classical method of misleading people. Through step by step deception. This is how Shaytaan pulls at your feet and deceives you. So even if something may SEEM to be like an insignificant sin / action, be careful. It might be the start of a trap.

Beware of Satan, for the safety of your religion. He has lost all hope that he will ever be able to lead you astray in big things, so beware of following him in small things.

Allah tells us

O you who believe, do not follow the footsteps of Satan. Whoever follows the footsteps of Satan, (should know that) he orders (one to commit) shameful acts and evil deeds. Had it not been for the grace of Allah upon you, and His mercy, not a single person from you would have ever attained purity. But Allah purifies whomsoever He wills. Allah is All-Hearing, All-Knowing. [24:21]