Habib Umar bin Hafiz

May Allah preserve Habib Umar and guide us by him….  This is an incredible man. 

(Probably the best intro ever by Shaykh Ibrahim Osi Efa!)

 

 

Loving the beloved (صلى الله عليه وسلم)

An inspirational speech by Shaykh Dr Sa’id Ramadan al-Buti (may Allah preserve him):

Ladies and gentlemen, at the beginning of my talk I’d like to express my sorrow and apologise for not being able to attend this blessed Conference of yours. In short, the reason for my absence is not having been able to obtain an entry visa. The only consolation for my absence is our belief that there’s good in whatever Allah exalted and high chooses for us, and I hope that Allah swt will bless me with another opportunity to meet you in another blessed meeting.

Ladies and gentlemen, I have no doubt that the motive behind your celebration of the birth of the Prophet (pbuh) and making his birth the central theme of such meetings and of this blessed Conference in particular - I have no doubt that what motivated you is your wish to renew your pledge (bay’a) with the Prophet (pbuh) out of your belief in his Prophethood and following his way and out of love for his sirah and in order to spread his message. I have no doubt that this is what motivated you to organise this Conference and have as its central theme the birth of the Prophet (pbuh).

Indeed this makes me even more sorry for not being able to participate with you in this blessed Conference, I further believe that you would not use this Conference to achieve any worldly gains, and you wouldn’t involve any if these religious activities in partisan competitions or to seek any political gains. I believe that whoever has strong belief in Allah exalted and high is He, and whose heart is dominated by the love of Allah and his Prophet (pbuh) wouldn’t veil himself from the love of Allah and his Prophet (pbuh) through collecting worldly gains or seeking them or exploiting such activities as a means towards such ends; I ask Allah swt to make me and you firm on this stance which I hope that we will all meet Allah swt while committed to it, with our faces brightened with our sincere devotion to Him and His religion.

However, dear brothers and sisters let me ask myself and ask you: What would keep us firm on this way ? What would keep us walking on the path of Allah swt, following on the footsteps of His Prophet, loving his sirah and spreading his message without having any ulterior motives beyond that? What is the guarantee that makes us committed to this path? In reality, rational belief exists and I can’t doubt it. I believe that each of us rationally believe in Allah swt and rationally believe in the Prophet (pbuh), yet this rational belief cannot by itself be the guarantee to remain on this path away from the worldly influences, away from the various temptations of this world. Rational belief is a reaction and not an action, one can’t make the decision to answer the question 1 + 1 = 10 for example; he’s compelled to say 1 + 1 = 2. Rational matters always involve compulsory reactions rather than a conscious decision.

I ask again, what is the guarantee that makes us firm on this path that I have described to you, sincere to Allah, ever alert to ensure that nothing influences our goals except seeking Allah’s pleasure? The answer is Love.

Love of Allah swt and then love of the Prophet (pbuh) is the only guarantee to keep us firm on seeking the pleasure of Allah SWT, without being tempted by worldly things and without being influenced by any temptations or divisions or blind following of any madhab or group .

Love, as Imam Shateby says, brings closer what is far, causes iron to melt, and makes what is difficult easy, but if the heart is devoid of the love of Allah and love of His messenger then I believe it would be easy for us and for many orientalists to follow the same path, and it would be very easy for us to do so because they (the orientalists) also believe in the same things we believe in - rational belief is a common feature between us and many of them, but what is the difference between those who write about rational proofs of God’s existence a lot more than what we write, and talk about the life of the Prophet (pbuh) with more respect and reverence than us? The difference is that they talk about it in a rational way, devoid of the flame of love, whereas the believer in Allah swt, whereas we - and I hope that this is true of us - the difference is that love of Allah and hence the love of His Prophet has filled our hearts. You may remember the saying of the Prophet (pbuh): “None of you believes until Allah and His messenger are more beloved to him than any one else.”

However, I’d like to suppose that we need to feed this flame of love within our hearts. I don’t think we need to strengthen our rational belief because such a belief can reach a peak, whereas love has no limit. We need to strengthen this love within our hearts to chase away the lower love and strengthen the higher love.

How can we renew our love of the Prophet (pbuh) within this blessed Conference that you have organised seeking the pleasure of Allah and His Prophet? There are several methods but I shall summarise and say: loving someone who loves us is something natural and I don’t believe that it’s a conscious decision. The Prophet (pbuh) loved us, and I don’t think that I’m making an empty claim because there are numerous proofs for us - specially that I’m basing this on my starting point that we all believe in Allah and His Messenger, and that you had only organised this Conference seeking Allah’s pleasure. Well, we would all like to increase our love for the Prophet (pbuh) so we can guard our lives against temptations, deviations and forgetfulness: To love the Prophet (pbuh) as he loves us is the way.

I present to you the following scene that deeply moved me , and I believe that all of us should embody this example whenever we feel that this world seeping into our hearts. The night the Prophet (pbuh) passed away, he went out to the cemetery of al-Baqee’ - as narrated by Imam Malik in his book al-Muwatta’ and by other scholars - he greeted the people of al-Baqee’, then he said, “I wished that I had met my brothers.” One of his Companions asked him, “Are we not your brothers O Messenger of Allah?” He said, “No, you are my Companions, my brothers are those who have not yet come, and I’ll precede them await them at the Fountain.” They said, “Do you know them O Messenger of Allah? How will you welcome them when you have not seen them?” He said, “You see one who has noble horses with white circles signs on their foreheads and ankles (Ghorran muhajjaleen) mixed in with common horses, would he not recognise them?” They said, “Yes.” So he said, “So will I know them, for they will have white circles of light on their foreheads and ankles (Ghorran muhajjaleen) from the traces of wudhu’”. This is what the Prophet said in longing for us.

When we think about this longing that overwhelmed the heart of our beloved Prophet (pbuh) should we not feel the same longing for him? Should we not love him the way he loves us? Indeed, that would be natural. This scene is one we should never forget dear ladies and gentlemen. The Prophet (pbuh) just as he loved and cared for his Companions he felt the same for his brothers who had not yet come, and I pray to Allah swt that we will be among them.

At the end of this talk, I’d like to mention another situation but this time a negative one, even though one usually would not mention separation (jafaa’) at the time of rejoicing (safaa’), but nevertheless I’d like to mention it as a deterrent for us. The Prophet (pbuh) says, “Indeed some would be taken away from my Fountain just like lost cattle, I would say let them come, let them come, they would say you do not know what they did after you, I would say away with them, away with them, away with them.

Two images, the first one, I truly hope that we would be amongst them, those who didn’t deviate and remained steadfast on the pledge, faithful to Allah, and to his messenger (pbuh), and the love of Allah and the love of his messenger (pbuh) overwhelming their heart, they didn’t look to the temptations and distractions and didn’t justify their deviations; I hope and I pray to Allah to make me and you among them. Then the Prophet (pbuh) would welcome us and the signs of his love would be apparent on us.

In contrast, the other image, which we should be cautious lest we may fall into it and be of those who are removed from the Fountain (hawdh) like lost cattle; the Prophet (pbuh) would say, “Let them come” which shows that they appear like Muslims, they used to raise the banner of da’wa to Allah, and they used to talk about Islam and Iman so you would assume that they would be with their brothers on the day of judgment, but the Prophet (pbuh) is surprised that they would be taken away, the explanation is “You do not know what they have done after you.” They were not faithful to the pledge, they were not faithful to the message which the Prophet (pbuh) left with them.

I do not wish to dwell on the temptations and distractions which make us justify changing and deviating. The scholars of shariah agree that the interests that the shariah came to protect are based on the Text (Qur’an and Sunnah) and that one cannot recognise any interests that contradict the Text, remember this important rule dear ladies and gentlemen. If there was a need for our souls to burn with love for the Prophet (pbuh) then study his sirah. I don’t think there is a human being who has love for humanity whose heart wouldn’t be filled with the love of the Prophet (pbuh). Muhammad (pbuh) is the source of all human values.

Let me relate to you an example that I never forget which I want each one of you to emulate everyday. After the end of the battle of Hunain, the Prophet (pbuh) gave a large share of the booty to those who had recently embraced Islam from among the people of Meccah considering them recent converts (al-mu’allafatu quloobuhom). The Prophet (pbuh) heard that some of the Ansar were saying to one another may Allah forgive the Prophet, he gives these people while our swords are still dripping with their blood. The Prophet (pbuh) heard about this so he gathered those people in an isolated place and he gave them a sermon. Let’s listen to what he said and reflect upon it. He praised Allah and glorified him and said: “O people of Ansar, I heard something regarding you. Did I not come to you while you were astray and Allah guided you through me? Were you not disunited and Allah united you through me? Were you not destitute and Allah enriched you through me?” Everytime he asked one of those questions they said: “Indeed O Messenger of Allah, to Allah and His Messenger be all praise and gratitude.” The Prophet (pbuh) stood and said, “Will you not respond O people of Ansar?” They said, “We do respond O Messenger of Allah, indeed He did, to Allah and His messenger be all praise and gratitude.” Once again the Prophet (pbuh) asked them, “Will you not reply?” They said, “How should we reply?” He said, “By Allah if you had wished you could’ve said and you would’ve been truthful: You came to us chased away by your people and we gave you refuge, defeated and we gave you victory, and belied and we believed in you.” i.e. he said you could’ve responded that you have also given me in return. Then he said, “O people of Ansar, did you feel something in your heart just for a little wealth I had given to some people so that they believe, entrusting you to your belief. Would you not be pleased that people go back with sheep and camels while you go back with the Messenger of Allah (pbuh); by Allah, that with which you go back is far better than that with which they go back. Indeed - by Allah - had it not been for the fact that I migrated I would’ve been one of the Ansar. People are my outer garment and the Ansar are my inner garment. You will find selfishness after me so be patient until you meet me at the Fount. O Allah have mercy on the Ansar and on the children of the Ansar and on the children of the children of the Ansar.” The people cried until their beards were wet.

Dear brothers and sisters we have been deprived of meeting the Prophet (pbuh), but we were not deprived of hearing these words and of seeing these human emotions.

I just wish to say one thing which might be an answer to a question that might be in your minds: What about those who insult the Prophet (pbuh) or rather they do not insult him, for no one can insult the Prophet (pbuh) but they only try. We have greater mission which should make us ignore their attempts. What is that mission? It is to embody the message of Islam which our Prophet has brought us and make every effort towards that goal. Then to convey that message in the way our Prophet conveyed it, to clarify to people the true image of Islam, to show them the true character of the Prophet (pbuh) using the attractive Prophetic methods, to address this Western world which is lost in its ignorance out of mercy and love for them, to introduce them to the sacred message with which our Prophet was sent to the whole of mankind. If we fulfilled this obligation with which Allah has entrusted us we would find ourselves too busy to pay attention to such people. Dear brothers and sisters, leave them alone, do not busy yourselves with them. Instead of running after them and focusing on them thinking that we are doing something for Islam, we should plan our actions to seek Allah’s pleasure motivated by two things: our rational belief in Allah, and our love for him and His Messenger, remaining between these two fundamentals.

I pray that Allah accepts this gathering of yours, and I pray that Allah makes it one of those meetings which Abdullah Ibn Rawaha called for every now and then, asking the Companions “Let us sit and remember Allah.”

I pray that Allah swt brings us together and praise be to Allah Lord of the worlds.

Source link and video of speech (in Arabic) - http://www.sirahtour.com/

This is Love…

From a talk given by Shaykh Habib Ali al-Jiffry last night (paraphrased).

The Prophet (peace be upon him) was on a journey with some of his companions and his wife ‘Aisha (ra). He (صلى الله عليه وسلم) noticed from Aisha’s face she was getting weary from the journey, so to be with her in private and comfort her he told the rest of the companions to go on ahead. Habib said this is the haya (humilty/shyness) Muslims should have, intimacy between husband and wife is not something to be shown in public view, other cultures have different levels of haya, this is the Muslim etiquette.

So the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) comforted ‘Aisha (ra) then asked if she wanted a race? She replied yes, and they raced. ‘Aisha (ra) narrates that she won. Sometime later, ‘Aisha (ra) says when she had put on a bit more weight, they raced again but this time Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) won. He (صلى الله عليه وسلم) said this is for that time.

Habib Ali said by saying “this os for that time” the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) is showing ‘Aisha (ra) that he remembers every little intimate moment they shared, no matter how long ago it was. These moments are special.

Another narration Habib told us, again narrated by ‘Asiah (ra) herself (paraphrased) -

The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) and ‘Aisha (ra) had a disagreement, ‘Aisha was angry with the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) so the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) suggetsed they call ‘Aisha’s father, Abu Bakr (ra), to mediate between them. So they went to Abu Bakr (ra) and the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) asked ‘Aisha (ra) if she wanted to go first (Habib pointed out this in an example of the courtesy of the Messenger of Allah (صلى الله عليه وسلم), even in a disagreement he (صلى الله عليه وسلم) had the utmost adab). ‘Aisha (ra) replied “No, you go first but speak the truth!” Abu Bakr (ra) was shocked at this, how dare she speak to the Messenger of God (صلى الله عليه وسلم) like that?! He raised his hands to hit her and ‘Aisha (ra) ran behind the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) for protection. The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) said to Abu Bakr (ra) “No Abu Bakr, we didn’t call you for this, we called you to arbitrate between us!”

‘Aisha (ra) knew despite being in an argument with the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم), he is someone she can always turn to for mercy, he is a mercy to the whole world (صلى الله عليه وسلم).

 

Teleportation? Invisibility?? Time Travel???

Teleportation and forcefields possible within decades, says Professor Michio Kaku

[The Abdal (people of the step) and other Awliya have achieved these things hundreds of years ago!!]

By Matthew Moore

Teleportation and forcefields could become scientific realities within decades, and time travel will also be possible in the future, according to one of the world’s leading physicists.

Professor Michio Kaku of City University in New York has studied a range of scientific “impossibilities” and concluded that most will almost certainly be achieved as our knowledge expands.

Information appearing on telegraph.co.uk is the copyright of Telegraph Media Group Limited and must not be reproduced in any medium without licence. For the full copyright statement see Copyright Applying the rule that unless something breaks a law of physics “then it’s not only possible, it is sure to be built someday”, Prof Kaku has established a hierarchy of “impossibilities”, separating those phenomena that are sure to remain science fiction from those which are likely to become reality at some point in the future.
Teleportation, telepathy, forcefields and invisibility are Class 1 impossibilities, meaning they are likely to be realisable within a few decades or at most a century.Class II impossibilities may take centuries or millennia to perfect, while Class III impossibilities are truly impossible.

Class 1

Teleportation is likely to be achieved through “quantum entanglement”, a property that allows connections to be formed - and information transmitted - between particles many miles apart.
Applying the process to larger objects like people is just a scientific “engineering problem”, that is likely to be solved in time, Prof Kaku writes in his new book Physics of the Impossible.
Similarly, telepathy will be made possible by improved MRI machines that can effectively read minds, and electrodes that can then pass the information into the brains of other humans.

Invisibility will probably be achieved using a recently-built “metamaterial” capable of bending light rays, he argues. Alien life will most likely be discovered within decades as our ability to analyse the universe improves.

Class II

Time travel is a Class II impossibility because, while it need not break the laws of physics, science still has major knowledge gaps to cross to make it a reality, Prof Kaku believes.
“What makes them [Class II impossibilities] so difficult is that they generally require vast amounts of energy, and their underlying physics is not totally understood,” he writes in this week’s New Scientist magazine.
The research of Stephen Hawking, Albert Einstein and the physicist Kip Thorne has shown that time travel is theoretically possible, but no-one has yet found a way to produce the energy necessary to keep a “wormhole” open.
“This technology is only achievable for a civilisation significantly more advanced than ours,” Prof Kaku writes.
Parallel universes and travelling faster than the speed of light are also Class II impossibilities, he argues.

Class III
The only two science fiction phenomena which Prof Kaku believes are truly impossible - Class III impossibilities - are perpetual motion machines and telling the future (precognition), both of which break the fundamental laws of modern physics.
“In considering what the future may hold, then, we should keep an open mind to Class 1 and Class 2 impossibilities,” Prof Kaku writes.
“What is unthinkable today might not be forbidden in a few decades or centuries.”

Source

Patience for the Sake of Allah




Signs of People Detached from the Dunya

al-Kattani, the student of al-Junayd (may Allah be pleased with them), said there are two signs of a person who has successfully detached his heart from the dunya.

One, when he loses something from the dunya he rejoices (one less thing he would be held accountable for on the Day of Judgement) and secondly he puts up with other peoples annoyances with patience (realises they were sent by Allah to test him).

Fame and Obscurity

Fame is a chastisement that man desires and obscurity is a blessing which man is averse to.  Glad tidings to the one who obscures his remembrance .

Imam Ahmed ibn Hanbal (may Allah be pleased with him)

Hizb al-Bahr

Wird / ورد (pl. Awrad) is a time of day or night devoted to private worship, a daily activity, usually nawafil prayer, Quran recitation, du’a, dhikr etc. Wird also means a watering place: animals coming to water. The root verb “warada” means to arrive, to come, to appear, to show up, to be found, to be met with, to reach.

The scholars of the heart say it is important to have a daily wird, an optional supererogatory worship, that by consistent practice of it you draw closer to Allah. About this Shaykh ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Saqqaf said whoever has no wird is a qird [monkey].

One of the most powerful wirds is by Imam Abu Hasan al-Shadhili (may Allah sanctify his secret) called Hizb al-Bahr (Litany of the Sea). A special du’a by the Imam and includes ayats from Qur’an. It is the most famous of Imam Shadhili’s Hizbs.

Following links explain more about the Imam and the Hizb -

Imam al-Shadhili

Translation of Hizb al-Bahr

Arabic text

Background story

Audio of recitation by Shaykh al-Kurdi

The Ego

A person who has abandoned his ego reminds you of eternity

Shaykh Abdul Hakim Murad

Waiting to Die

My Grandad is staying with us for a few weeks whilst he gets eye treatment in the UK. He’s very old, 85, and up until the last few years he was quite fit and healthy for his age. He can barely walk on his own now. For someone who used to be very active even in his retirement, always out and about going to see friends or entertaining guests, shopping, I feel sad for him now he can’t do any of those things. I can see why some old people become grumpy as they grow frail, having to rely on other people for help to do most things. What do you do with your life when you’re that old? How do you pass the days?

Observing my Grandad, the only pleasure he really has, what his day to day life revolves around is the prayer. The way he meticulously prepares himself, performing ablution with presence and concentration in every motion. It reminded me of how important wudu is, that it itself is an act of worship. “The presence (khushu’) in your prayer is linked to your presence in the wudu” a teacher once told me.
Normally I would be grossed out at washing someone else’s feet but I feel honoured to help a servant of God perform this act of worship, there is much baraka to be gained from helping the elderly perform their ibadah. The feet I’m washing have stood in prayer for many more decades than I have.

It is this reason - that he has spent many years relentlessly worshipping Allah - I believe he finds so much pleasure in it. All those years performing the prayer, doing adhkar everyday must have a profound effect on the heart. Unlike the body the Ruh should grow stronger with age (if it was looked after properly during the life) therefore the Ruh’s connection to the akhira is stronger in later days. In any Masjid you’ll find it’s the really elderly people always in the first row, always look engrossed in the prayer, who go to the Masjid solely to worship; rarely have long conversations with anyone, and who always have a nurani glow about them.

At this elderly age my Grandad doesn’t have any more responsibilities, no people have rights over him, his duty to the dunya is over. His only purpose is to spend the rest of his days in worship of Allah, until he meets his Creator.

Waiting to die doesn’t need to sound so morbid, it’s the phase of life, if we are lucky enough to reach it, we are waiting to return to our Lord.