There is a Pharoah in each one of us! 6th October 2010

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

Summary of Maulana Shaykh Nazim’s Suhbah

6^th October 2010

There is a Pharoah in each one of us!

A’uzubillah himinsh shaitan nirrajeem

Bismillahir Rahman-nir Raheem

Assalamu’alaikum wrh wbkt

• Maulana exhorts us to say Bismillahir Rahman-nir Raheem, as that recitation brings peace and happiness to us. When anyone recites Bismillahir Rahman-nir Raheem, and says, “Oh our Lord, protect us, we are weak ones,” Allah will instantly remove the clouds of doubt, darkness, failure, wildness and difficulty that envelops that person, just like a sudden gust of strong wind blowing away clouds that block the sun’s rays from him. Once the veils of clouds are removed, the sun shines through, light envelops us, and we are in safety again!

• Many of us are targets of such dark clouds, we are covered and veiled by them, so run quickly to Allah and seek His protection! From Surah Az-Zariyat, which amazingly means ‘the Winds that Scatter,’ Allah says:

فَفِرُّوٓاْ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ‌ۖ إِنِّى لَكُم مِّنۡهُ نَذِيرٌ۬ مُّبِينٌ۬

So flee to Allâh, verily, I am a plain warner to you from Him. (Quran 51:50)

• So it is important to warn mankind, to remind one another always, so that they can correct their steps. We must repeat these reminders to those around us until they change their ways.

فَذَكِّرۡ إِن نَّفَعَتِ ٱلذِّكۡرَىٰ

Therefore remind (Man), the reminder is of use. (Quran 57:9)

• Today’s humans are drunk – drunk with alcohol, drunk with this worldly life! They are seeking to be known in this life, and they are rejecting Holy ones who bring them news of the afterlife. Man today seeks to be famous and to be in power, he is intoxicated by the very notion if Power itself. Man likes to control, to lead, to be the head, to be the supreme and undisputed in-charge. All over the world – in every country, organisation, society and group – power crazy humans jostle for control, they contest in elections and dream of winning so as to become the Captain of the ship, to be President! Everyone wants to lead, everyone wants to be the number One, no one wants to follow, no one wants to be the number Two.

• Everyone believes that being in Power leads to Superiority. Oh humans, there is none who has Power, only Allah, the Supreme.

إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَىۡءٍ۬ قَدِيرٌ۬

For Allah hath power over all things. (Quran 2:20)

• When one who is misguided comes to power, he becomes a cruel one, he oppresses others, he becomes one of the Zalimun (read Maulana’s 4^th October 2010 Suhbah, where Maulana explains that all cruel ones, are cut off from Allah’s mercy). Why does one become a tyrant? Because when we rule with our egos, our egos are by nature, tyrannical, dirty and cruel.

• Pharoah ruled with ego. Why did Allah mention the name of Pharoah (Fir’aun) so often in the Qur’an? Perhaps it is mentioned like forty times. Have you ever asked yourself why such a defiant one such as Pharoah, is mentioned so often in the Mother of all Books?

• Allah mentions Pharoah ever-so-often, so that we are reminded that we are like him in many ways, that, like him, we desire absolute power, we secretly wish to be idolised and ‘worshipped’, we desire to be emulated, to be the centre of attention, to be the main attraction, to be the one everybody admires and bows to, to be the dominant Master. We are as egoistic as Pharoah was!

In Surah An-Nazi’aat, Pharoah proclaimed himself the Lord!

ٱذۡهَبۡ إِلَىٰ فِرۡعَوۡنَ إِنَّهُ ۥ طَغَىٰ (١٧) فَقُلۡ هَل لَّكَ إِلَىٰٓ أَن تَزَكَّىٰ (١٨)وَأَهۡدِيَكَ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ فَتَخۡشَىٰ (١٩) فَأَرَٮٰهُ ٱلۡأَيَةَ ٱلۡكُبۡرَىٰ (٢٠) فَكَذَّبَ وَعَصَىٰ (٢١) ثُمَّ أَدۡبَرَ يَسۡعَىٰ (٢٢) فَحَشَرَ فَنَادَىٰ (٢٣) فَقَالَ أَنَا۟ رَبُّكُمُ ٱلۡأَعۡلَىٰ

Go to Fir’aun (Pharaoh), verily, he has transgressed all bounds (in crimes, sins, polytheism, disbelief). (17) And say to him: “Would you purify yourself (from the sin of disbelief by becoming a believer)”, (18) And that I guide you to your Lord, so you should fear Him? (19) Then [Mûsa (Moses)] showed him the great sign (miracles). (20) But [Fir’aun (Pharaoh)] belied and disobeyed; (21) Then he turned his back, striving (against Allâh) (22) Then he gathered (his people) and cried aloud, (23) Saying: “I am your Lord, Most High” (24) (Quran 79:17-24)

• Then how come not everyone becomes like Pharoah eventually? Maulana said, given the right conditions, many of us would sprout into copies of Fir’aun. Just like an onion that is kept in the store, it is able to be stored for a whole year before it germinates and produces shoots and roots. But if that same onion is placed in conducive conditions, such as in good soil, with water and fertiliser, it may germinate into an onion plant in just a few days! Allah says, “Ya Muhammad (saw), if I am giving the same opportunity to all the Children of Adam, as I had given to Fir’aun, they would all have become like him!” So every human’s highest worldly aim, is to acquire power, to be like Fir’aun. That is the secret desire that lies dormant in every one of us. Astaghfirullah.

• So everywhere, we see people struggling to come into power, struggling to become mini-Fir’auns. Even within families, between husbands and wives, there is a power struggle nowadays. Women were created as weaker creatures than men, yet they are now asking to shoulder equal responsibilities as men. They view obedience and service to their husbands as a form of control exerted over them, as a form of degradation and slavery, and demand that they also want to be obeyed, and to dictate their wishes according to their desires. This is a cause of Allah’s curse descending upon such homes, as they are going against the nature of things (Sunnatullah), as set by Divine Wisdom.

ٱلرِّجَالُ قَوَّٲمُونَ عَلَى ٱلنِّسَآءِ بِمَا فَضَّلَ ٱللَّهُ بَعۡضَهُمۡ عَلَىٰ بَعۡضٍ۬ وَبِمَآ أَنفَقُواْ مِنۡ أَمۡوَٲلِهِمۡ‌ۚ فَٱلصَّـٰلِحَـٰتُ قَـٰنِتَـٰتٌ حَـٰفِظَـٰتٌ۬ لِّلۡغَيۡبِ بِمَا حَفِظَ ٱللَّهُ‌ۚ

Men are the protectors and maintainers of women, because Allah has given the one more (strength) than the other, and because they support them from their means. Therefore the righteous women are devoutly obedient, and guard in (the husband’s) absence what Allah would have them guard. (Quran 4:34)

• So how can men be afraid of their wives and obey them blindly? How can men be lazy and not seek a means of sustenance to support their families? All these leads to endless problems and issues. Man must abide by what Allah has set, in order to find peace, otherwise he will never find happiness even if he lived a million years on earth.

• Ask for guidance always. Look at this example in the Holy Qur’an – when the Children of Israel wanted a King, they asked Allah to send them one, they didn’t choose one by having elections!

أَلَمۡ تَرَ إِلَى ٱلۡمَلَإِ مِنۢ بَنِىٓ إِسۡرَٲٓءِيلَ مِنۢ بَعۡدِ مُوسَىٰٓ إِذۡ قَالُواْ لِنَبِىٍّ۬ لَّهُمُ ٱبۡعَثۡ لَنَا مَلِڪً۬ا نُّقَـٰتِلۡ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ‌ۖ

Hast thou not turned thy vision to the Chiefs of the Children of Israel after (the time of) Moses? They said to a Prophet (that was) among them: “Appoint for us a king that we may fight in the cause of Allah.” (Quran 2:246)

• The Children of Israel asked their Prophet for guidance. Prophets bring secret knowledge of human’s hidden desires, so that Man can learn about it, and overcome his evil intentions. And they teach Man to abide by what Allah has set, for when Man opposes what Allah has set as the worldly norm, chaos erupts, peace and tranquility is lost and mayhem sets in, as Divine Mercy is replaced by Divine Curses.

• Man must follow what Allah has set for him, only then will Allah’s blessings descend. We are surrounded by signs that Allah is sending curses – not blessings – upon Mankind today. Tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, raging forest fires, massive floods, wars, massive oil spills, toxic leaks, freak accidents…..have you asked yourself, why all this is happening? Would Allah reward obedience with such punishments? Would Allah send Man these disasters if he were on the true path? Maulana said that if Man continued to defy, hurricanes would soon be sent upon him.

• Rasulullah (saw) said, “He who leaves my Sunnah, will not acquire my Intercession.” So we must obey what Allah has set, and we must perform that obedience, how the Seal of Prophets (saw) did it.

Fatihah.

Commentary

• We must take the advice pertaining to our massive Fir’aun-like egos, very seriously. Our ego, given the right conditions, will inflate and eventually destroy us for eternity. Ego transformed Azazeel into Iblis. We must ensure that we place ourselves in an environment where the ‘onion cannot germinate’! We must seek the company of Saintly ones, we must polish our hearts, for egos thrive when hearts are dirty and rusty. We must seek knowledge that the Prophets brought, from their inheritors, for such knowledge will teach us how to keep the ego placid and dormant. Question your every act – is this for Allah, or is it for my ego’s sake? Judge yourself, and forget about judging others.

• Rasulullah (saw) said, “Baiti jannati,” which means “My home is my Paradise.” Men and women must abide by the duties Allah had given them, and not try to alter that according to their own lowly thinking. Men and women are bestowed different strengths to deal with different duties. For example, women are equipped physically and mentally for pregnancy, child-bearing and breast-feeding, something men can never perform. Similarly, men are physically stronger, less emotional and designed for long hours of manually taxing work.

• That is why the Prophet (saw) advised Sayyidina Ali (ra) and Sayyidatina Fatimatul Zahra (ra), upon their nikah, “Ali’s place is outside the home, Fatimah’s place is within the home.” In this concise yet very wise advice, Rasulullah (saw) has explained for all of Mankind, the simple and beautiful, balanced structure of life that Allah has decreed for humans. If all women were focused on bringing up pious children, there would be no latchkey children, delinquents and broken families. If all men were responsible and worked hard to provide halal rizq for their families, there would be blessings in every bite taken by their family. If women were not in the workforce, affairs and adultery would almost never exist. Unfortunately, it is not the nature of humans to obey, so by going against what Allah has set, we see our social fabric being torn to shreds, families falling apart, children developing wild characteristics and adultery being a common way of life. No more baiti jannati!

If you would like to listen to the actual Suhbah by Maulana Shaykh Nazim when it was recorded, please click here. Once at the site, please click on the Sohbat 06 Oct 2010.

Maulana Shaykh Nazim teaches daily, at 1800 hours GMT, please go to www.Saltanat.org to attend these illuminating lessons. There are no charges to attend these lessons, they are completely free-of-charge. These transcripts and Study materials are found at the Naqshbandi-Singapore portal, recent.sufihub.com, these are also completely free-of-charge.