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Al Quran Gateway to the Past |
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Written by Azeem
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Sunday, 02 April 2006 |
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Alhumdulillahee Nahmaduhu Wa Nastha eenahoo Wa Nas Taghfiruhu
Wa Nu Minu Bihee Wa Na Tawakalloo Alay.
Wa NaoothuBillahee MinShururi An Fusinaa Wa Min Sayyiathee Aamalina.
May yah dihil laahu Fala Mudillalah
Wa May Yud Lilhu Fala Hadiyalah.
Wanash hadu Allah Illaha Illal Lahoo Wa nashadu anna Muhammadan Abduhu Wa Rasulu.
Amma Baad
Qallalahoo Ta la Fil Quran il Majeed
AaOzuuBillahimishaytaanirrageen Bismillahirahmaan niraheem
Faoqsusisal-qasasa-LaAAallahum-Yatafakkaroon
Asalamualikum Brothers in Islam, the verse which I have recited for you is Verse 176 in Surah Al’Araf
.It can be translated as:
“So relate the story; perchance they may reflect.” (Quran 7:176)
Our only true source of knowledge of the past (before the prophet’s time) comes form the Quran itself.
In a verse of the Quran (S) says
We relate upon you this Qur’an, the best of the Stories from whatever we have revealed to you, (even though) you were from those who were unaware.(Joseph:12:3)
It is through the Quran we gain true knowledge of the origins of Mankind. In school they may teach you theories of evolution or savage men slowly becoming civilized but the reality of creation begins with the creation of Adam (A)
There is indeed in their stories lessons for people endowed with
understanding. It is not any invented tale, but it confirms what
precedes it and explains everything and is guidance and mercy for
people who believe (Yusuf:111)
Allah (S) very vividly tells us about our existence before man was even placed on earth.
Allah took the covenant from mankind at Arafah… he asked… “Am I not
your lord?” And they responded “Yes indeed we bear witness” The Mithaq
At Arafah was taken from all of mankind. Our fitrah has remnants of
this very pledge. Our very beginnings started with belief In Allah (S)
and testifying to his lordship. (covenant mentioned) in hadith from
Ahmad)
And remember when your lord said to the angels: “Verily I am going to
create a Khalifah in the earth. They said will you place therein those
who will make mischief and shed blood, while we glorify you with your
praise and we do sanctify you. He (Allah(S)) said I know indeed what
you know not. And He taught Adam the names of everything, then showed
those things to the angels and said: “Tell me the names of these things
if you are true (in your claims).
(2:30-31)
Iblis was a jinn who had an elevated status amongst the jinn due to his
piety. So he used to be among the Angels due to his status.
And we have indeed created you, then we shaped you, then we said to the
angels: all of you prostrate to Adam. So all of them prostrated except
Iblis (Satan) he was not from those who prostrated. He said asked what
prevented you to prostrate when I commanded you? He said I am better
than him, You created me from fire, and You created him from dust. He
said then get down from it, it is not for you to be arrogant in it
leave verily you are from the debased. (7:11-13)
Shaytan was flipping out.
He said give me respite until the day they shall be raised. He said You
are of those granted respite. Iblis said so because You have allowed me
to stray, I will wait for them Your straight path. Then I shall
approach them from their right and their left, and you will not find
most of them grateful. He said leave from it cursed and expelled.
Whoever follows you from them I will certainly fill Hell with you all
together. (7:14-18)
Shaytan was jealous of Adam and he plotted against him. After Eve
(Hawwah) was created to be Adam (A)’s companion they were situated in
paradise. Iblis also was in paradise. We all know the story that
follows. The Islamic version is that Iblis tricked Adam to eat from the
Tree that Allah (S) had asked him to stay away from. Adam (A) was
reprimanded by Allah (S). Allah (S) said to him did I not forbid you
from that Tree and say that Satan was an avowed enemy to you? Both Adam
and Eve said “Our lord we have wronged our souls and if you do not
forgive us and bestow upon us our Mercy, we shall certainly be of
losers. Then Allah (S) said “In it (earth) you shall live and in it you
shall die and from there you shall be brought out”. (7:22-25)
The story of Adam and Eve, the story of creation, And Shaytans
rebelliousness can be extensively studied. With any topic in Islam
when we undertake a study we have to compile as many ayat and hadith on
the topics as we can so that we can develop a comprehensive
understanding of that subject. The Quran explains itself and we will
find verses about various stories of the prophets scattered throughout
the entire Quran. As we know the Quran is not in chronological, but
rather in a thematic format. So when we look at these verses
collectively we can see the entire picture and derive the maximum
benefit. Also when we study the Quran we can not leave the ahadith
behind when studying.
Lets fast forward past the story of creation, Adam, and Eve. Allah
Allah (S) says in Surah Al-Baqarah Verse 143:
Wa Ka Zalika Ga al Naa Kum Ummathao WassaThaa Li-tha Ku Noo Shuhadaa-ah Alan Naas Wa Ya Ku Nar Rasoolu Alaykum Shaheeda
Which means:
And it is thus, that we appointed you to be the community of the middle
way, so that you might be witnesses before all mankind and the
Messenger might be a witness before you.
Imam Siraj Wahajj says that if the Ummah were to have a mission statement this ayah would be it.
Along with responsibility, we have accountability.
And accountability in the hereafter is based on what? Acceptance or
Rejection and adherence or neglect of the truth. We as Muslims have
declared that we recognize the truth. So now if we neglect our duties
and responsibilities after admitting that we acknowledge the truth how
can we expect to be let off the hook?
Allah (S) says in the Holy Quran:
[We sent] all Messengers as heralds of glad tidings and as Warners, so
that men may not have any argument against God, after [the coming of]
these Messengers; God is indeed All-mighty, All-wise (al-Nisa' 4: 165).
I ask of those Muslims who believe that belief In Allah, his messenger,
the books, the angels, the
last day coupled with the execution of the 5 pillars, and attending
Jummah and eid salaah is enough:
Was reforming misguided people and setting them aright with divine
guidance not the primary duty of the Prophets? Wasn’t the corruption of
the previous messages the reason for the revelation of the Quran as
Allah (S)’s final scripture, which was given to his final messenger?
Was Prophet Muhammad (S) not the seal of all prophets? If this is all
true… then who will carry on this task now? If we are not expecting the
arrival of any new prophet… then who do we think will take up this task?
Allah (S) made us as a nation, and gave us a name, Muslims and
characterized us as being a balanced nation. But being a middle nation
requires understanding its opposite. If we want to understand how we
can be a successful nation we need to see examples of unsuccessful
nations which didn’t make the grade. This verse which I recited
actually marks the changing of the Qiblah from Jersusalem to Mekkah.
This shows us that Allah (S) will replace a nation if they fail to meet
the standards which have been laid out for them. When Allah says that a
nation is chosen it only means that they have to work that much harder
to live up to that standard.
Lets examine the nation of Ad who prophet Hud was sent to. They were
huge in stature and size. They were given an abundance of livestock and
children (manpower). They were given agriculture and water resources.
They became so luxurious that they started wasting their money. They
started building high structures to delve into pride and arrogance that
every rich and corrupt civilization goes through. They started building
monuments over mountains. In the Quran Allah (S) says to them ” Do you
build high palaces in every high place while you do not live in them
wastefully” And “do you think that you will live forever?”. Hud asked
them to repent and told them Allah would give them rain and make them
even stronger of a nation. They responded by saying “You have not given
us any proof, and we won’t leave our gods for yours”. Most of them
rejected his call. Allah (S) taught this nation a lesson by destroying
them and he didn’t leave any trace of them behind. Allah (S) says that
he saved Hud and the other believers and destroyed the disbelievers
with a wind. They saw clouds forming and said oh look there is a cloud
which will bring us rain. Then a tornado swept them totally wiping away
their legacy into nothingness. If it was not for the Quran we would not
know about this civilization of the past. And this should teach us a
lesson about how we should live on this earth.
The people of Thumud were sent Prophet Saleh. They were punished by
air and by ground. They saw a mighty blast from the sky and they
endured an earth shattering earthquake. I believe it was Bani Israel
which was afflicted by swarms of locusts. Just recently we experienced
the Tsunami so we should have no problem with believing that Allah (S)
can destroy nations or afflict them with punishments whether it be
tornadoes, swarms of insects, floods etc. Allah (S) has the power to
say Kun Fa Ya Kun - Be and it is.
Sit down
Alhumdula rabbila alimeen Wassalatu Wassalamu Ala Sayyidil Mursaleen Muhammadiuu Wa alla Aalihee Wah-Sah-bihee Aj maeen
Amma Baad
Qallalahoo Ta ala Fil Quran il Majeed
Auzobillahieeminashsahytaaun-Bismillahirahmaan niraheem
This topic can be seen as being the Quran: blast from the past, but if
I could rephrase this I would call it back to the future. The reason I
saw this is because When Allah (S) told us of stories of the past he
showed us the plight of nations.
Lets look the stories of some of the other prophets and see what
contemporary issues which we are facing today were already dealt with
in the past.
Struggle
Nuh (A): spent 950 years doing dawah within which he received very
little worldly results. He even lost his family. He advised his son to
join him on the arc that he built because thunderous rains were coming
and his son said he would seek refuge in the highest mountain. They did
not listen to him and were destroyed with his people. His people had
given him so many problems that he asked Allah (S) to destroy them.
Allah (S) answered his duah.
Zina
(Yusuf) (A) was seduced by the wife of the Aziz. She was a
beautiful woman even though she made a move on him he immediately said:
“I seek Allah’s refuge surely he is my lord, he had given me good
lodging. Indeed wrong doers do not prosper.”. Subhanallah could we do
the same thing. And we know through sound narration that prophet
Muhammad (S) has told us about 7 different categories of the shade of
the throne. Shade will be provided to seven different categories of
people. One of those categories will be of a person who denied the
seduction of a beautiful woman. Just like Yusuf (A). I heard a speech
by Imam Suhaib Webb where he was addressing the growing problem of
Muslim youth falling into the trap of viewing pornography on the
internet. Imam Suhaib asked a really interesting question. He said if
you can’t say no to a computer screen how are you going to say no to
the real thing! You want to talk about contemporary issues we have Zina
based agents and marketing schemes surrounding us everywhere we go.
Like Yusuf we need to remember Allah (S)’s favors upon us and always
turn to him. And run away from this Fitna which surround us.
If you read the many Fatawah or Islamic Cyber Counseling sites you will
find that Muslim Men and women have commited adultery. A brother I
know wanted to let his nonmuslim girlfriend know that dating is not
allowed in Islam. Two years into the relationship the brother wants his
girlfriend to know this so that he can get a push to get out of this
situation. You can find questions submitted by nonmuslim women asking
how to deal with their Muslim boyfriend who has decided to become
religious. For anyone who engages in dating or improper relationships
outside of the bounds of marriage they are by their actions saying the
opposite of what Yusuf (A) said. He said: “I seek Allah’s refuge surely
he is my lord, he had given me good lodging. Indeed wrong doers do not
prosper.” In effect those who go towards Zina are forgetting that Allah
is their lord, they are forgetting his favors and they do not realize
that they are losing their prosperity.
Trials
(Yusuf)- Separated from his family. Was put in Jail. Many
Muslims now are falsely imprisoned such as Imam Jamil Al Amin. All
throughout Islamic History the most pious of scholars and Islamic
revivalists have been tested by being put in prison. They have been
persecuted for no other reason than being firm on their deen. Illegal
detentions and persecution of our ulema is nothing new. If the prophets
themselves could be tested by being placed in prison for years and
years we should understand that this trial has to be faced by us in the
same way.
Homosexuality/Same Sex Marriage
(Lut)- According to the Quran The
people of lut were the ones who invented the sin of Homosexuality. A
Hundred years ago Homosexuality was not acceptable in this society. But
now it is. Therefore this issue now has contemporary bearing on us. The
prophets tackled issues head on by addressing the societal problems. I
once saw a PBS show about the rainbow curriculum. A concerned father in
a Parent teachers association said “I’m not homophobic or anything, but
I just don’t think this information is right for my children to hear”.
This shows that he knew that homosexuality is wrong but at the same
time due to societal pressure he failed to clearly condemn what he
clearly knew was wrong.
The people of Lut were not only sexually corrupt but they committed
many other sins as well. They were into robbery and thievery as well.
They were destroyed by first having their habitation turned upside down
and secondly they received a shower of brimstones. When you argue about
homosexuality in school remind the people that you are arguing with,
that the story of Sodom Migguh Mora appears in the scriptures of the
Jews and Christians till this day the story is in tact. And even the
word Sodomy was derived from Sodom. So they also should know that
homosexuality was first started by these people. There was recently a
gay marriage which was done in Egypt. Nauzubillah min Zalik. Recently
there was an article the associated press ran which was addressing the
issue of Blue tooth technology being used for flirting in Saudi Arabia.
Gender Relations
Shuaib(A)’s daughters had to interact with hadrat
Musa in Madyan. There were two women watching sheep who could not get
water from a well and needed help. Musa (A) saw this and had to help
them out. So he asked them what the problem is. They said there are Men
all around the well and that they cant get the well with these men all
around the men. Musa took care of the men. He got two buckets of water
for them and he was exhausted so took rest under a tree and made a duah
for Allah (S) to give him any good. Before he could finish his duah one
of the two women came to Musa and said verily my father is calling you
so that he may reward you. Allah (S) said she was walking with haya
(shyness). Haya is a part of our deen which has to be exhibited by both
men and women. When they met her father an old man, (many mufassireen
believe that this is Shuaib (A). Allah says that Musa told him his life
story. The old man then told him that he was now safe from the
oppressive Egyptians since he was now in madyan. One of the daughters
asked their father to hire him as a worker and gave reasons for him to
hire him. She said the best man to hire is the strong and the trust
worthy. The father offered him a job and he offered him one of his
daughters in marriage. He set a condition tha the has to serve him for
at least 8 years and if you wish 10.
Imam Suhaib Webb said.. he went to a Muslim Chat room once and never went back. This is what he saw:
"Aiyo any 16 year old Hijabis wanna chat?" Where is the haya?
Opressive Regimes
Musa (A) had to deal with the persecution from an oppressive regime-
Sound Familiar?. In a time where Pharoah was killing all the male
children of the children of Israel. Musa (A) was saved and later ended
up being raised in the very house of pharaoh. And he led the pharaoh to
his demise when Allah (S) split the seas and allowed the children of
Bani Israel to pass and then collapsed those seas on the Pharoah.
Afterwards Musa (A) faced many trials by his own people. We have the
instances of the worshipping of the golden calf plus many many stories
of the disobedience of his people towards Allah (S) and the the
instructions of Musa (A). Musa (A) had taken his people to the gates of
Palestine and he told them that Allah (S) has guaranteed them victory
and that all they need to do is enter the gates of the city. His people
turned their heels and said you and your God go and fight, we’re
staying here. Imagine that a prophet of God guaranteeing you victory
and rejecting him. The same prophet which took you through so many
impossible situations and kept bringing you to safety and kept showing
you guidance, but then they turn on him. They witnessed a very high
number of miracles. Yet they desired to worship statues and even asked
Musa to present to them a God in idol form.
Repentance
(Yunus) (A) was fed up with his people and he wanted to just
abandon them. Then Allah(S) caused a Whale to swallow him. While being
inside of the whale he said “There is no god worthy of worship but you.
Glory be to you! I was indeed wrong”. In another verse Allah (S) said
“had he not been of those who glorify God he would certainly have
stayed in its belly until the Day of Resurrection”
From these stories we can find many similarities between the nations of
the past and the society that we live in today. In the beginning of
this khutbah I had mentioned the ayah in which Shaytan asked for
respite so he could ambush man on his straight path. Shaytan said he
would come from the left, the right, the back and the front. One time
prophet Muhammad (S) was walking with his wife at night. And he saw
that some companions were walking by and it was dark so he called out
to them saying that he was with his wife. His companion asked him why
he needed to make that clarification after all he was the prophet and
no one could ever think that he was with some other woman other than
his wife. Prophet Muhammad (S) explained to them that Shaytan flows
through us quicker than the flow of the blood in our veins. Although I
mentioned Shaytan at the head of this khutbah where he was present and
became rebellious in the process of our creation. If we find any
similarities between the stories of the nations of the past and modern
day society it is because Shaytan recycles his tricks, and traps. So we
find the same kind of Jahilliyah and Kufr today that we have seen in
the past.
Innal laha wa mala Ikathahu Yu Salloona Allan Nabee. Ya Ayyuhal
Latheena Aamanu Sallu Alayhee Wa Salimmu Tasleema. Allahumma Salli Ala
Muhammadin Wa ala Alay Muhammadin Bi Adadi Man Sallaah Wissam.
Allahumma Salli Ala Muhammadin Wa ala Alay Muhammadin Bi Adadi Man Qa
Ada Wa Qam. Wa SalliAla Gamee il Ambiyya Wal Mursileena Wa alla
KulliMalaikathil Muqarrabeena Wa ala Ibadillahis-Salliheen Bi
Rahmatika Ya ar-haam-ar Raahimeen Ibadallah innallaha ya muru bil adli
wal ihsani wa itai i-dhil qurba wa yanha anil fah-shaee wal munkari wal
baghyi Ya Eezukum La allakum Tadhakkarun. Wala Zhikrullahi Ta’la ala
Wa Aula Wa Aazzu Wa Ajallu wa Attammu Wa hammu Wa Akbar.
Aqimisalah
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