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The Reality of Gratitude
Allah Ta'ala states in the Glorious Quran: "If you continue to be grateful to me, I will continue to
increase my favours on you and if you are ungrateful, then verily my punishment is severe" (Verse: 21/14). There is a great need to look and ponder over the bounties of Allah Ta'ala. Is it not a great
favour of His that He has given us the taufeeq to fast? Search and you will find many a person not fasting and dishonouring the month of Ramadhaan. They eat and drink openly. Allah Ta'ala has saved us
from this. Breaking the law occurs in two ways: a) one is to do so secretly. For example, a person steals quietly and although others get a hint of what he has done, he is not caught. b) The other is to
defy the law openly by many people. To break the law is tantamount to protesting against the law.
The divine law in the month of Ramadhaan is to fast the entire day. There are people who do not fast, while others keep the food outlets open, feeding people who are supposed
to be fasting. They do not even know whether the month of Ramadhaan has come or gone! What is this? This is open transgression of Allah's divine law in a collective manner. It is mentioned in the Hadith
that when drinking alcohol and music will become common and when Allah Ta'ala will be disobeyed openly and there will be none to stop them, then it is very likely that Allah will send a general
punishment on the people. This punishment will seize everybody, those who perpetrated the wrong as well as those who did not. Those who keep their food outlets open, cook and feed people who are supposed
to be fasting should not think that they are not guilty of sin. They are also guilty. Those who eat and drink without valid shari reasons are also guilty of breaking the command of Allah as well as those
who feed them and give them drink. These people are beyond those who, despite not being a party to the sin, will still be answerable.
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OPEN TRANSGRESSION
For example, a father sees that his son is not fasting but the father says nothing. However, let that very same son come late to the shop or not go to work, then see how angry
the father becomes and how sternly he reprimands his son. If the son does not lend a hand in the father's work, the father becomes extremely enraged to the extent that I know of a family whose males keep
long thick moustaches and shave their beards. This is in opposition of the Hadith because it is recorded in the hadith: "Lengthen the beard and trim the moustache," and this family used to do the
opposite. Similarly, in the example of the Bani Israeel when they complained that they were tired of eating manna and salwa (food which was divinely sent to them), they wanted to eat dholl and onions.
They were instructed to enter a certain town in the position of sajda saying: "O our Sustainer! Forgive our sins and shortcomings." But what did they do? They entered lying down on their backs,
stretching their legs out saying: "We want wheat," instead of saying "forgive us." This is the condition of those whom Allah Ta'ala is angry with. They openly go against the commands of Allah Ta'ala and
Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam). Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) commanded us to lengthen our beards and trim our moustaches. Anyway, this particular family used to do the opposite and
keep big long moustaches. One child from this family reached the age of puberty and did not keep his moustache. His father reproached him and threatened to disown him and deprive him of the estate, beat
him and also threw him out of the house because he did not keep up to the tradition of the family.
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A BURNING CONCERN
However, if this same son does not accept the laws of Allah Ta'ala, does not perform salaah or keep roza, then the father is silent. There are no threats nor promises of
punishments. Will the father not be questioned on the day of qiyamat that you became angry when your family custom was opposed, why did you not become angry when the sunnat of Rasulullah (Sallallahu
Alaihi Wasallam) was opposed? Do you value your moustache more than Our command and the sunnah of our Prophet Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam)? What answer will the father give? He will have no
answer. If someone asks a father: "Why did you not tell your child to perform salaah? The father says: "I told him but he does not listen, so what can I do? He is going to sleep in his grave and I am
going to sleep in mine." Yes, this is correct that he is going to sleep in his grave and you are going to sleep in yours, but remember! If all the houses of a village have thatched roofs and one foolish
person sets alight his roof, what will the neighbours do? Will they think that his house is burning so it does not concern us in any way? No! They will all try to extinguish the fire as fast as possible
to the extent that the immediate neighbour of such a person, who is his enemy, will be the first to try and extinguish the fire. If someone says to the neighbour that this is your enemy, so leave his
house to burn, what will the neighbour say? He will say that my enemy's house will not burn alone, it will set fire to my house as well.
As far as worldly things are concerned, we do not say that he is going to sleep in his grave and I am going to sleep in mine. We only say this when it comes to matters of
Deen. This trait is extremely detrimental. Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) has mentioned that when the disobedience of Allah Ta'ala will be rampant and done publicly, and there will be none to
prevent it, soon such a punishment will overcome the people which will seize those who perpetrated the sin and those who did not. If the son does not perform salaah, no one reprimands him. If he shaves
his beard, none rebukes him. If he drinks alcohol none reproaches him. If he disobeys the laws of Allah Ta'ala no one tells him anything. But, dare he disobey the father in worldly matters, then everyone
becomes angry and reprimands him. What a great injustice this is!
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BAGHDAD
This is why Allah Ta'ala says: "If you are grateful, I will increase my favours on you, and if you are ungrateful, then indeed my punishment is severe." When the punishment of
Allah Ta'ala strikes, may Allah protect us, none can be saved. The pages of history are filled with reports. If you have to read about the revolt that occurred in Baghdad, your hair will stand on end.
The Muslims who were ruling, intoxicated with power, had oppressed and persecuted the disbelievers, who were poor. They were looked down upon and had no social standing. An old man climbed to the peak of
a mountain, raised his hands and supplicated: "O lord of the Muslims, (he did not supplicate to his gods), the Muslims claim to be just. Is what your beloveds are doing to us called justice?" A voice
from the unseen said: "Attack the Muslims. Our help is with you." The old man gathered his people and attacked the Muslims. They were the slaves who were oppressed and looked down upon, they neither had
a right in the government nor in trade and they were forced to live like animals. However, when they attacked, they put such awe in the hearts of the people! It is recorded in Tareekh Kaamil Ibnul Atheer
that a group of 150 armed Muslim soldiers were fleeing for their lives. A person from the Tartars said: "Where are you all going to? Wait here! I don't have a knife. I will get my knife from my tent,
return and slaughter all of you." The feet of the Muslims froze. They could not move. Owing to his rights being trampled upon, the Tartary brought his knife from his tent and commanded the 150 Muslims to
lie down. He slaughtered in the manner that chickens are slaughtered. This was the amount of awe that was struck into the hearts of the Muslims. The reason for it was being in the disobedience of Allah.
They had unjustly wronged Allah's creation, hence Allah had caused their defeat.
It is also recorded that fifty Muslims were hiding in one place. A woman from the Tartars came and sliced them into pieces like vegetables are being sliced into pieces. It is
recorded that 1.4 million people were killed. What was this? This was the divine punishment of Allah which had come about. Allah Ta'ala's commands were openly flouted by most of the people whilst
everyone remained silent and none tried to stop them. When this condition comes about, then divine punishment comes down.
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"I FORSEE THE STREETS OF DEHLI FLOWING WITH BLOOD"
Examples of this type of divine punishment occurred in India as well. Hazrath Shah Waliyullah (R.A.) went from door to door in Dehli announcing to them: "O Slaves of
Allah! Refrain from the disobedience of Allah. I foresee the streets and galleys of Dehli flowing with blood." But the people did not believe him. They said: "This is the only work Molvis can do. They
are all mentally demented." Eventually a calamity
befell them. May Allah save us, may Allah save us. Ahmed Shah Abdaali and Naadir Shah had come. When the king was informed that the enemy was coming to attack, he said: "Do not worry about all that. Bring me another glass. The best thing for this letter is to drown it." He took the letter and immersed it in a glass of wine and said: "Bring me another glass." In the end the ministers went and welcomed the enemy with honour and made them royal guests. They did not have the ability to fight the enemy. After the enemy had eaten, the king who was lying down drunk said: "Kill them, kill them, kill the army of Nadir." Nadir said: "O dear, it seem that this invitation was a ploy." Nadir Shah sat on the wall of Sanhari Musjid in Dehli and drew out his sword. Once he had done this, mass killings took place. The bridge of the Jamna River was congested with dead bodies. So many people were killed and flung into the river that it ceased to flow. The Jami Musjid of Dehli, the Musjid of Fath Puri and the Qadhi pond were filled with dead bodies and truly the streets and lanes of Dehli flowed with blood. Shah Waliyullah had seen all of this. At that time some people from an influential family, somehow managed to come secretly to Nadir Shah. They placed their turbans at his feet and said: "The fight is between two kings. What did the innocent public do? Why are they being killed?" After this intercession, Nadir Shah sheathed his sword and the killing came to an end.
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HARAMAIN SHARIFAIN
This type of manslaughter occurred many a times in different places. It occurred in Makkatul Mukarramah and Madinah Tayyibah as well. The pages of history are replete with
such incidents. Why does this happen? This happens when the respect for Allah's commands comes out of the hearts of people; they begin to sin openly and their hearts are unaffected by it. If someone
slaps a person's son, he becomes affected and is prepared to utilise all his strength for the defence of his child. However, when the commands of Allah are flouted and the Ahadith of Rasulullah
(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) are neglected then this does not affect him in any way. This is a very serious matter. Allah Ta'ala does not like this and He becomes angry.
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THE RULE OF THE TARTARS
In Baghdad of the 2 million Muslims, 1.4 million were killed. Thereafter those who had taken the courage to kill, who had been treated like slaves and were looked down upon,
called a meeting. In this meeting it was said: "We had not asked the assistance of our Gods. Rather we had asked the God of the Muslims for help. He had heard our call and responded to it. So it seems
that the religion of Islam is true. These Muslims did not remain steadfast on their religion. They did not abide by the commands of Islam, hence they were disgraced. Now we understand. Therefore we shall
all accept Islam." Thereafter they accepted Islam.
"And if you turn away (from the obedience of Allah) he will replace you with another people who will be better then you" (Verse: 37/9). The tragedy was that those people,
despite being Muslims, had become the object of Allah's anger. The divine punishment had come and destroyed them. Successful were those who had killed them and thereafter accepted Islam.
They then ruled Baghdad for 16-17 generations. This is why it is stated in the Quran that: "If you are grateful, I will increase my favours upon you. But if you are
ungrateful, indeed my punishment is severe." The punishment of Allah is a thing to be feared. See! What a great favour of Allah it is that He has given this entire gathering the taufeeq of fasting. What
a great favour of Allah it is that He has given us the taufeeq of performing the taraweeh and listening to the Quran which the Huffaaz are reciting in the Salaah. What a great favour of Allah it is that
he has allowed us to be here in peace and comfort. How many people are, right now, involved in stealing, visiting escort agencies, fighting with one another, catching thieves, etc. Allah Ta'ala has saved
us from all this. Allah Ta'ala has given us the opportunity to perform salaah in peace, read the Quran in peace, make his tasbeeh in peace and engage in his ibaadat in peace. What a great favour of Allah
it is that none of us has to cook, make tea or bring goods from the markets. He has arranged all of these things for us. Allah has arranged food for us by inspiring the people thus: "My servant has come
here to spend Ramadhaan. They will be fasting and sitting in I'tikaaf, so see to their needs."
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VALUE ONE'S TIME
Therefore we need to value our time. We should not waste it in futile conversation. Time is precious and futile conversations are dangerous. Your every breath is like a string
of pearls. Much work can be done in a single breath. How many times Subhanallah, Alhamdulillah, Durood Shareef or Surah Ikhlaas can be recited in one breath. What great benefit and earnings there is in
continuous recital of Durood Shareef, Quran Shareef and performance of salaah. All this will bring increase in Allah's bounties.
Allah has blessed us with good health. How many people are afflicted with very serious illness. Today a woman from this area had passed away. I had heard that this pitiable
woman was afflicted with a very terrible sickness. Her family tried to stop her from fasting, but they failed. She partook of sehri despite the seriousness of her illness and began to fast. Allah Ta'ala
called her in the state of fasting. That person who passes away in the month of Ramadhaan, will Insha-Allah, not be taken to account and will not be questioned in the grave. This is also a great favour
of Allah Ta'ala. It is therefore imperative that we value our time, ponder over the favours of Allah Ta'ala and make use of His favours. To a greater degree we should look after and use to our benefit
the favours of youth, health and free time. They are very useful favours.
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THE FASTING OF ABDULLAH BIN AMR BIN AAS (R.A.)
Hazrath Abdullah bin Amr Ibnul Aas (R.A.) used to fast everyday. Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) came to know of this and enquired from him whether this was true. He
replied in the affirmative. Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) prevented him from doing so and advised him to fast on the 13,14,15th of every month. He requested permission to fast more often since
he was still young. He continued to ask for permission to be allowed to fast more and more until Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) instructed him to fast every second day. This is the way of our
pious predecessors. They valued their youth i.e. by using the strength of the body for the ibadat of Allah Ta'ala. Most of today's youngsters are involved in some vice or another. They claim to be the
servants of the Sahaaba (R.A.) but their lifestyles are in complete contradiction to that of the Sahaaba (R.A.).
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SAAD BIN ABI WAQQAS (R.A.) AND THE ANIMAL SKIN
When youth, wealth and free time are found in one, then know well that the source of corruption is on hand. However, with these very three, one can also please Allah and earn
a high status in the sight of Allah. The lifestyle of our pious predecessors was such that Hazrath Sa'ad bin Abi Waqqaas (R.A.) was once walking somewhere. Someone flung out some dirt from one of the
houses amongst which was a piece of animal skin. Hazrath Sa'ad said: "Alhamdulillah! Food arrangements for three days have been made." He washed it, cleaned it, and dried it and then burnt it to ashes
and used it for his nourishment for three days. This was their way with food. They did not have any concern about eating special types of food, having a separate income, opening a shop or cultivating
land. This one piece of skin found in dirt was sufficient as food for three days.
This was the same Sa'ad bin Waqqaas who mounted his horse and conquered the lands of Persia. Their attitude towards the Deen of Allah and towards themselves were totally
different. People with such characteristics cannot be imagined in todays times. When he had gone in Jihaad, he had an abscess on his back, due to which he was unable to fight physically. Instead he
climbed up to a high post, from where he could see the entire battlefield and directed the attack of the army.
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DUA ACCEPTED
He neither had a binoculars nor a loud speaker. He kept sight of every soldier's position and every now and then would call out: "So and so! Advance ten steps, So and so!
Guard the rear, So and so! Watch your right, So and so! Check the left wing." He directed the army in this way. On one of the days, intense fighting took place. On that day Hazrath Sa'ad came down from
his point and showed the army his abscess so that none should have suspicions about his not fighting. However, a poet said some poetry, the gist of which was: "Today was a day of intense fighting, many
children became orphans and many women became widows. But our commander in chief remained at his point of safety in comfort and luxury. This poetry reached the ears of Sa'ad (R.A.). He immediately raised
his hands and made dua: "O Allah! Cut his tongue off." Hazrath Sa'ad (R.A.) was a mustajabut da'waat (one who's duas are readily accepted). Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) made dua that Allah
make him so. After making this dua, Hazrath Sa'ad's hands had not yet reached his face when an enemy arrow struck the poet in his throat and killed him on the spot. This was the toil and difficulties he
underwent for the sake of Deen.
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HAZRATH SAAD'S BEHAVIOUR REGARDING HIS PERSONAL SELF
There are many incidents about him being a mustajabut da'waat. He was the governor of Kufa. Someone had complained about Sa'ad (R.A.) to Umar (R.A.), the Amirul Mumineen of
the time that you had made such a person the governor, who does not even know how to perform salaah. There were many other complaints as well. Umar (R.A.) had summoned him and enquired about this matter.
He replied: "I shall be at a great loss if I do not know how to perform salaah when I had learnt it directly from Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam)." Umar (R.A.) asked him to demonstrate his
salaah. He did so. Umar (R.A.) commented: "I remember Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) performing in the very same manner. This complaint is false." Anyway Hazrath Umar (R.A.) dismissed him and
sent Hazrath Muhammad bin Maslamah (R.A.) to execute the dismissal. Ibn Maslamah (R.A.) purchased a bundle of grass and set it alight at his door and let it burn till the flames rose high. This was the
manner of gathering people in that area. When the people saw the flames, they all rushed to see what was happening. In the presence of all, Sa'ad (R.A.) was dismissed. He remained sitting, deep in
thought, saying nothing and making no bad dua for Umar (R.A.). This was his behaviour regarding his personal self.
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"LASH ME BUT DO NOT CURSE ME"
On one occasion Umar (R.A.) was walking in the bazaar. A young woman was passing through the bazaar when a sudden gust of wind blew which raised her garment and exposed her
shin. Umar (R.A.) raised his whip to hit her for not walking carefully. Sa'ad (R.A.) was also present. He objected saying: "It was not her fault that her shin was exposed. She had come out properly
covered. A sudden gust of wind blew and exposed her shin. She does not have control over the wind. I am going to make dua against you. Umar (R.A.) immediately held Sa'ad's lips, gave him the whip and
said: "Lash me but do not curse me." Such was the fear for his dua. Our pious predecessors direction in life was different from our direction in life. May Allah Ta'ala rectify us and grant us the ability
to do good. Aameen.
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