Read, listen to, and obey the Qur’an

Summary of Maulana Shaykh Nazim’s Daily Suhbah

10thFebruary 2010, Wednesday

A’uzubillah himinsh shaitan nirrajeem

Bismillahir Rahman-nir Raheem

Assalamu’alaikum wrh wbkt

• Maulana reminded all of us, to begin each act with Basmalah, for every act which starts without Basmalah is cut off from Allah’s help. He then sought Allah’s forgiveness, and he made a doa that we be raised with shining faces on Judgement Day (Ameen!). Maulana reminds us to greet all Muslims we meet with Assalamu’alaikum always, as this is a heavenly gift, and each time you give this salam, a heavenly grant descends on you like a heavenly dress. This is a spiritual grant, unlike the material riches that we desire, but it is a far greater gift than anything from this material world. There is a hidden power in the salam, in that, if it is directed at one who has good intentions upon you, the rewards and benefits will be doubled, but if it is directed at someone who has an evil intention against you, then that plan will go up in smoke, just like a balloon being pricked by a needle.

• In the time of the Prophet (saw), some Jews distorted the sound of the salam into a vulgar word when they greeted Rasulullah (saw), and that act brought Divine anger upon them.

And when they (the Jews) come to you, they greet you (Muhammad) with a greeting wherewith Allah greets you not, and say within themselves: “Why should Allah punish us not for what we say?” Hell will be sufficient for them, they will burn therein, and worst indeed is that destination! (Quran 58:8)

• All the Prophets brought a fundamental message for their Ummahs – Listen and Obey! You must have that principle in yourself, to want to listen to, and obey, all Divine orders. People of the 21st Century believe that they have achieved great advancements and have made spectacular progress in Science, yet spiritually, they have actually regressed to the level of animals, they no longer listen and obey. One who doesn’t understand his duties, and one who has no desire to understand them, are like animals staying in a barn.

• Why have people become like this? It is due to our system of education – from pre-school all the way to Universities. Schools are sprouting up all over the world today, to provide education for our communities. But what is being taught to our children? Are we aware of what our children are studying? What is the real purpose of going to school? Do you really scrutinize what your children are learning? Do you realise that most teachings are opposed to the Shariat of Allah, and the Sunnah of our Prophet (saw)? We should be ashamed that we have merely entrusted our children to a school, without taking an active interest in what moral and religious orientations they acquire, when they are there.

• As responsible parents, we have a crucial role to play in our childrens’ foundation in faith. What is the most important first step? Allah said in the Holy Qur’an (Quran 96:1-4), in the first few verses of the Qur’an revealed to Rasulullah (saw):

Read! In the Name of your Lord, Who has created (all that exists), (1) He has created man from a clot (a piece of thick coagulated blood) (2) Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous, (3) Who has taught (the writing) by the pen. (4) (Quran 96:1-4)

• So the first Divine Command upon the Prophet (saw), and upon this Ummah, is to read! Have we ever thought about what we have been commanded to read?

• We have been commanded to read the Holy Qur’anul Kareem, the mother of all books, within which is contained all that Man needs for his difficult journey in this world and in the hereafter. Our children must be taught to read the Qur’an and to depend on it, just like a nursing child depends completely on its mother, for the Qur’an contains the key to all knowledge, all other books are derived from it, one way or another. Besides religion, knowledge of science, morals, astronomy, psychology, self-motivation, literature etc are all found in the Qur’an.

• Read the Qur’an, for when you do so, blessings descend upon you like the falling rain, but when you leave it, curses and humiliation descend upon that person/family/community/country that leaves it. How many of our children are learning and reading the Qur’an today, and how many continue to do it all their lives?

• It is not enough to simply read the Qur’an. Many people just read it, without drawing life-changing lessons from it and without understanding the parables and advice contained within it. Read the Holy Book, listen to its advice, and obey/practice them!

• Today’s education system has booted out the Qur’an, it has erased Divinity from all wondrous phenomenon (and replaced God with ‘nature’), it has relegated Rasulullah (saw) to a mere historical figure, alongside other unimportant personalities. Many schools have a blanket ban on the study of religion, saying it is in the best interests of all, for it to be a centre for secular studies only. Even in Universities where Islam is taught, many lecturers on Islam are not even Muslims, the study of Islam has become just like any other academic subject, where it is an examinable subject, where students boast book knowledge and complete thick theses, expounding their opinions on modern Islam. This is NOT real Islam, this is NOT the way to study Islam, and this is NOT the purpose in studying Islam (i.e to get a PhD)! When our children are influenced by shaitanic ideas, when their egos have been infiltrated by shaitanic ideals, do you think they will be covered by Allah’s rahmat? Never.

• The Qur’an is not a story book that is to be read, and then kept away. Maulana says that, every single one of the 360 organs in our body must read the Qur’an with us, and every organ must listen and obey the Qur’an. For example, when the Qur’an says that men and women should lower their gaze, then the eye must obey this heavenly command. When the Qur’an says that we must not backbite, then the tongue must obey. When the Qur’an says that the food we eat must be halal, then the stomach must obey. When the Qur’an forbids fornication, then the private parts must obey. The list goes on…..every organ within us must obey every Divine Command contained within the Qur’an.

• Teach your children and yourselves to read the Qur’an. Then read it regularly and obey its commands. Never leave the Qur’an throughout your lives, for curses descend on those who turn their back on the reading of the Qur’an, and on those who disobey its teachings.

• Maulana gives a simple example to illustrate this fact. In the Qur’an, it is explained that the method of leadership that is Divinely inspired, is the Monarchy, to have a King or Sultan as a country’s leader. Look at the Turks when the Ottoman Empire was ruled by a Sultan. The world trembled at their feet, they were given honour by Allah, and respect by all other nations. When they abandoned this Divine system of governing, and replaced it with a humanly inspired method of ruling (republic, democracy, socialism, communism etc), Turkey has lost its honour and respect today, it is nowhere near as powerful as it was back when it was a Sultanate. That is what happens to anyone who discards Divine advice from the Qur’an.

• So, read, listen to, and obey, the Qur’an, and guide your family to do so too.

Fatihah.