Argument extinguishes the light of the heart

Mawlana Shaykh Hisham Kabbani | Saturday, Jan 10, 2009 | Fenton, MI US


Audhu billah min ash-shaytan ir-rajeem

Bismillahi 'r-Rahmani 'r-Raheem

Nawaytu'l-arba`een, nawaytu'l-`itikaaf, nawaytu'l-khalwah, nawaytu'l-riyaada, nawaytu's-salook, nawaytu'l-`uzlah lillahi ta`ala fee hadha'l-masjid



Ati` Allah wa ati` ar-rasula wa uli 'l-amri minkum



I remember when we were your age, we used to go to drive for many many hours, snow or rain, to reach Grandshaykh, may Allah bless his soul, or Mawlana Shaykh Nazim Adil al-Haqqani may Allah give him long life, to sit and listen to some of their advices.

And to what they are going to guide us for. I see that masha-Allah Allah swt gave you also this kind of guidance, that driving and coming snow or rain, in order to come to get what? To come and get some advice and go.

And these advices that we try to speak about is.. they are from knowledge that Allah gave to awliyaullah to their hearts and they convey it to us and we are trying to explain it.

I want to make another time sure that you can understand that your coming here is not for wasting time, but Allah swt wit his mercy, you don’t know what He is rewarding those who are coming, leaving behind their homes, their families, their work, coming for 1,2 hours listening and going back, don’t think that will go without a reward and these rewards cannot be explained. Because it is not in the hands of anyone it is in the hands of the prophet of what Allah reveals to him of the rewards that he is giving to those sitting and remembering him in such associations. Many difficulties will be taken way from those who are coming leaving behind dunya and coming and listening to something for akhira and also they will be appointed for them angels that will take care of them and this will be the responsibility of that wali that will look after those people and that wali is one of the 5 qutbs that takes care of those people who leave their dunya for their akhira.

We hop that Allah swt will grant us to be with His awliya and with His qutbs that are supporting every step we are going forward. Allah’s Siffaat, characteristics are not like human characteristics. Allah swt His Siffat, his characters are something that are beyond our understanding. Our characters are molded with dunya stuff that makes everything a soup.

Mawlana may Allah give him long life said that characteristics of human beings and their behaviors and their manners are sometimes, not sometimes, but most of the time, are very heavy on each other. People might not like each other because of their behaviours. Because everyone think himself or herself that he is better than the other. Everyone thinks he is higher than the other. Everyone doesn’t like what the other is doing because he is himself or herself, their egoes will never accept the others. They want only what they like to be done and to be accepted. And what the others are saying they don’t like it.

Our behaviours are what point to our levels. Look at yourself and see your shortcomings. You will find a lot of them, but still with all your shortcomings you go and you try to advise someone else although it is better for you to advise yourself first. We go and try to give advices to the others when we ourselves need these advices but because of our arrogance and pride we cannot accept that although we know we have shortcomings we cannot accept to put our head down and accept what others are saying. This is one of the main bad ego characters that is delaying from reaching the stations that awliyaullah are trying to pull us to.

People say why I cannot see, why I cannot see kashf visions, why I cannot have this or that hwy I have this problem or that problem because we are not trying to humble ourselves. We are trying to be other than ourselves, there is a word I like it in English, when I hear it: they say “be yourself.” It means don’t be someone else. It means don’t pretend to be someone else. If you are not happy with yourself and you try to be someone else then why you don’t try to uplift yourself in order to be someone else. Whey don’t you come against your shortcomings and become better disciplined person. So our characters and manners point to our personalities.

If you want to understand someone look to what he says or what he speaks. That is why they have these what you call them, not psychiatrists, but psychologist, you go and speak with them. They call them counselors. What is counselor? [u speak to someone about your problem and they have to analyse they want to give advice.] and they need someone to council someone. They have already lost their minds. We are going to council with them about our problems. Why not go and counsel with the Prophet (s). why not go and council in Divine Presence and ask Allah swt. Why you don’t go and council with awliyaullah .no, but because this one is a counselor who has cert. firm a university

Ah, awliyaullah have certificates from the prophet. The Prophet (s) is authorized from Allah swt. Which is better? Allah said in Holy Qur'an when they are oppressors to themselves or they need counseling, let them go to you, Ya Muhammad (s).

وَلَوْ أَنَّهُمْ إِذ ظَّلَمُواْ أَنفُسَهُمْ جَآؤُوكَ فَاسْتَغْفَرُواْ اللّهَ وَاسْتَغْفَرَ لَهُمُ الرَّسُولُ لَوَجَدُواْ اللّهَ تَوَّابًا رَّحِيمًا

" wa law annahum idh dhalamu anfusahum jaa'ooka f ’astaghfirullaha w’astaghfaralahum ar-Rasul la-wajad-Allah tawaaban raheema"

"And if they had come to thee when they had wronged their souls, and asked forgiveness of Allah, and if the Messenger had also asked forgiveness for them, they would have

surely found Allah Oft-Returning with compassion and Merciful." [an-Nisa, 64]

They come to the Prophet (s); to his door and ask forgiveness. And forgiveness has many meanings. Wa law annahum idh… oppressors to themselves has many meanings. It is not necessarily they did something bad, they oppressed themselves by not understanding themselves. They don’t understand their manners, their behaviours, they get sad quickly they get emotional. What they have to do? They have to come to you, Ya Muhammad (s).

And ask forgiveness. Forgiveness here means “Ya Rabbee I am coming to Your door, asking guidance.”

When you repent and ask forgiveness what does it mean? It means he has been guided and directed to the Divine Presence. There the Prophet (s) will guide and counsel them. If they go to the Prophet (s) what are they doing? They are counseling with the Prophet (s) why they have to go and waste their money? Never mind they waste their money, but they go to those counselors and speak with them, what are they going to give them? They give their opinions. They might be correct or might be wrong. You go and reveal yourself to that foreigner who doesn’t know anything about your background, your religion, your culture revealing everything. What is the benefit. Go to Allah fa firru ila-Allah - Run to Allah. Fa firru il Allah when you run to Allah will He close His door? Allah’s characteristics is not like us. His behavior is mercy. His Beautiful Names and Attributes describe Him as He is the merciful; He is the one that accepts everyone; forgive everyone, guide everyone.

إِنَّكَ لَا تَهْدِي مَنْ أَحْبَبْتَ وَلَكِنَّ اللَّهَ يَهْدِي مَن يَشَاء وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِالْمُهْتَدِينَ

Innaka la tahdee man ahbabta wa lakinna Allaha yahdee man yasha’u wa huwa a`lamu bil-muhtadeena

It is true thou wilt not be able to guide every one, whom thou lovest; but Allah guides those whom He will and He knows best those who receive guidance. Al-Qasas [28:56]

Allah will guide whom He likes. But run to Him.

We are not running. We are sitting and saying, “I have a problem.” “What is your problem?” “I don’t like the way I am living.” “What do you want?” “I want to be this or I want to be that. I don’t like to be with my parents.” “Where you want to be.” “I like to be by myself.”

Go, try.

La tukthir li-hammik, ma quddir yakoon… don’t make too much problems to yourself, what Allah wants is going to happen you cannot change it. Don’t go to this or that one, they cannot change it. It can only be changed by door Allah opened for us.

وَابْتَغُواْ إِلَيهِ الْوَسِيلَةَ

Wabtaghaw ilayhi al-waseela – “Seek a means to him.” Al-Mai’dah 5:35

If it is a problem of work, you seek a means of those who know that kind of work. But if it is a spiritual problem within yourself then you have to seek the means of waliullah and the Prophet (s). wabtaghaw ilayhi al-waseela. You have to seek the means to him, Allah opened way. But we are not accepting these way and not looking at these ways and try to solve according to our own understanding and not accepting advice from elders. That is problem we are facing today, problem between parents and children, wives and husband. Then at end when they cannot solve the problem what do they say? Go and with your wife and see counselor. Or go with your son, and counsel. What happens? Nothing - you will be worse.

Allah swt Allah doesn’t hate His servant. From our behavior we hate each other. Allah swt doesn’t hate His servants. We hate each other. We have problems with each other, with father, mother, sister and brother. Allah is not like us.

لَئِن شَكَرْتُمْ لأَزِيدَنَّكُمْ وَلَئِن

Wa lain shakartum la azeeadanakum.

If ye are grateful, I will add more (favours) unto you; 14:7

It means I will change everything that you are not happy with it but ask me. But we are not asking. We are asking whom? The counselor. We are asking the counselor what we have to do. Allah does not get frustrated, he is patient. His name is as-Saboor the last Beautiful Names and Attributes. The Absolute Patient One. When someone is patient in dunya, a servant, they say, "This servant is patient what ever you try to make him angry he will not,” then they go and speak with him.

What about the One who created that one and put in his heart patience. Allah swt is the Most Patient. That means whatever you do wrong, He is patient. Go and ask, He will forgive.

One time Grandshaykh, may Allah bless his soul, said, "Allah said, ‘Ya Muhammad (s). Why are you worried about your ummah? I gave you a nation that will not stop doing sins. Every step they are making a sin.’”

All of us are like that. Don’t say, "this one doesn't make any, this one makes.” No all of us. “And I am their Lord who created them, they don’t get tired of doing sins and I don’t get tired of forgiving them. I gave you an ummah already forgiven, already blessed. Don’t worry about it. I am their Lord, I created them and I gave them to you. I don’t know what they ar going to do in dunya? All of us have shortcomings Allah doesn’t know we have shortcomings. That is why Allah said to the Prophet (s), "O Muhammad! I gave you an ummah that doesn’t get tired of making sins and I don’t get tired of forgiving them.”

This is our ummah today. But Allah doesn’t like anyone to kill someone with no reason. Anything you do but don’t kill. Don’t make bloodshed on earth. Allah does not like bloodshed. If someone kills one person it is as if he killed everyone. If someone saved one person as if he saved everyone. Allah will reward him. So if you save someone from bloodshed of shaytan, as shaytan is trying to slaughter and kill us. There is a satanic bloodshed not blood shed of fighting each other. There is a spiritual fight also. Allah doesn’t like spiritual blood shed. What does that mean? Fitna, backbiting, namima, Allah does not like these bad characters. If you do sin you do sin, Allah will forgive you. but if you make ghiba and namima Allah will forgive you if that person you spoke about forgives you. If you spoke bad about someone Allah will forgive you if that person forgives you that is big. If I speak bad about someone that one might not forgive you. that is a problem. You cannot be forgiven if that person doesn’t say, "Ya Rabbee, I forgive him. I don’t want …? That is why when prophet point to one sahabi, and said this one is going to Paradise with no account. So Sayyidina `Umar (r) followed that one to his house to see what he is doing extra. He stayed and followed him for three days and found he doesn’t do anything extra than any other Sahaba do. After three days he asked him, "O my brother, the Prophet (s) said you are one of the people of Paradise. And I am staying with you for three days and I am not seeing you anything different than all of us, of extra prayers or fasting.” He said, "Ya `Umar (r). I don’t do anything extra. But before I go to sleep, I forgive anyone who harmed me. Anyone spoke bad about me or made rumors about me, I forgive him.”

So that backbiting or spreading rumors that are not right, Allah doesn’t not like that. But if you do a sin or try to fight, Allah will forgive you. It is coming back. Allah is the Forgiver.

But backbiting, no, you have to go back to that person and ask him to forgive you. You have to be very careful of that.

Allah’s mercy is so huge that no one can describe it except in a few words, as Mawlana said, "that if there was no rahmat on earth if Allah didn’t manifest his mercy on earth earth will be like Mars or like Venus, or like whatever planets, no life. We don’t know if there is life there or not but if we went to take it generally. It means there will be no nature no life, no water, no nature, everything will disappear. That is why Allah’s mercy is big. So if you have a problem go to Him, “Ya Allah you are the arham ar-rahimeen ihdina at tareeq al-mustaqeem. If You don’t guide us who is going to guide us? Counselors?”

You have a counselor? You counsel with whom? With yourself?

Allah swt he is the One who will open his door to everyone. Come to the homes from their doors - abwaabiha. Don’t go through the window; you cannot jump it is dangerous. Allah swt said in Holy Qur'an, “If you want to come to yourself to your heart, to your inn, to see Allah and His Prophet there you feel His light and the Divine Presence there, go through the door. And My door is the Prophet (s).”

May Allah swt guide us to His door. And don’t take us right or left because we are weak servants.”

Too many people today are lost they don’t know what to do. Too much dhulmah. Darkness. You cannot see, it means you cannot know what to do. It is too much darkness as if curtains over all the doors and windows; it is dark in layer and layers you cannot see the light. When we are in darkness we don’t know what to do that is why we are lost. The only thing we have to do is to keep Allah’s Presence in our heart and the Prophet’s presence in our heart by saying la ilaha illa-Allah Muhammadun Rasulullah.

Rabbana taqabal minna bi hurmatil man anzalta alayhi suratul Fatiha.

Today you see people mutaraddiddeen - hesitating. They cannot see the light, where to go. I dot this or I do that. They don’t know what to do. Too much problems and negative energy. Too much spiritual pollutions. They look after pollution of earth but they don’t look after the pollution of themselves. they study pollution of the earth and the environment. But you cannot study the pollution of yourself. You need such spiritual classes to understand the pollution of yourself. And this you must spend time. You cannot just come one time per year. You must spend regular time, coming for long time months and months then you find solution to your problems.

Wa min Allah at-tawfeeq bi-hurmati 'l-Fatiha

Anyone’s heart is clean, Allah makes him successful.