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Talk · al-Sirat al-Mustaqeem | 2024 Ramadan Series, part 20 of 32

Do Not Be Tempted | Al-Sirat Al-Mustaqeem EP.18 | A Journey With Shaykh Alauddin ElBakri

Shaykh Alauddin ElBakri

Transcript

  1. Assalaamu 'Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh
  2. and welcome back to this Ramadan series about "As-Sirat al-Mustaqim"
  3. As we are in the station of the enemies,
  4. that could deviate you from the Straight Path
  5. Today, we're dealing with another enemy.
  6. But this enemy is not inherently an enemy.
  7. It's how you perceive it.
  8. It's nothing else but our lives itself.
  9. Al-Hayatuh Ad-Dunyah, this world that we live in.
  10. It's very interesting that the meaning of the word
  11. "Dunyah" in Arabic has two dimensions.
  12. One, something that is near to you
  13. and two, something that is low. As if the word "Ad-Dunyah"
  14. is telling you, if you make this world
  15. so near and close to your heart
  16. and it becomes the goal and the purpose,
  17. it will take you so low and you will lose your humanity.
  18. That's why we are usually deceived
  19. by the glitter and the glamor of this world,
  20. that Allah SWT tells us straight:
  21. (So do not let the life of this world deceive you)
  22. Do not let this life in this world deceive you.
  23. Now, it's interesting that in The Noble Quran, you will find "Ad-Dunyah"
  24. but so much "Al-Hayat Ad-Dunyah" the life of this world. Why?
  25. Because before we came to this world, we were in another stage of life
  26. in our mothers' wombs.
  27. And before that, we were in the world of souls.
  28. And after this world, we will go to the stage
  29. of Al-Barzakh, in the grave, at the burrier
  30. And then there will be the Day of Judgment.
  31. And then, Insha'Allah, eternity in Jannah, in heaven.
  32. So Allah wants to tell you that He's talking to you
  33. about the life of this world that you are living in.
  34. Don't let this life deceive you.
  35. Don't be betrayed by this world
  36. and focus on what is important.
  37. Otherwise, you will drown in the ocean
  38. of your desires and lusts and wants and whims.
  39. And that will take you definitely away from the StraightPath
  40. Now, in this world, Allah warns us of two things
  41. that we need to look at in the right way, not in the wrong way.
  42. What are these two things?
  43. Wealth and children
  44. Wealth with all of its types and the variety of its kinds.
  45. Wealth and children, Allah said in Surah Al-Kahf:
  46. (Wealth and children are the adornment of this worldly life,
  47. but the everlasting good deeds
  48. are far better with your Lord in reward and in hope)
  49. This world
  50. the luxury of it, the decoration,
  51. the beauty of it is in wealth and in children.
  52. But the long-lasting
  53. good deeds are more rewarding.
  54. And you should put your hope in it
  55. more than what you think
  56. will give you the return on the investment. Wealth and children,
  57. If you look at them and you make them, the purpose, they will drown you.
  58. Allah SWT said in the Quran:
  59. (O believers! Do not let your wealth or your children divert you
  60. from the remembrance of Allah)
  61. Oh you who believe, let not your wealth
  62. and your children keep you away
  63. from the remembrance of Allah, that means
  64. a person can really miss
  65. the mark and start perceiving that their goal in life
  66. is just to collect wealth and have more children.
  67. Allah even explained that more in the Quran, that in life
  68. you go through five stages:
  69. (This worldly life is no more than play, amusement, luxury,
  70. mutual boasting, and competition in wealth and children)
  71. This world is nothing but playing, how children play with no purpose,
  72. then "Amusement"
  73. when you become youth and you want to have fun with your friends
  74. and then "Luxury" you start realizing that is wealth in this world.
  75. Oh, I can own a car, I can own a house, I can do this!
  76. And then you go and own it and start looking at the person next to you.
  77. How much did he make? How much did she make?
  78. And you compare, Oh, I made more!
  79. And then it becomes just more of the same.
  80. More children and more wealth, because there's nothing after that.
  81. This is the journey that we take as we grow older in life.
  82. Now, do we hate Al-Hayat Ad-Dunya?
  83. or does the Quran ask us to hate it,
  84. and to give up and detach ourselves
  85. and go and seclude ourselves on the top of a mountain somewhere?
  86. No, that's not Islam.
  87. There are seven ways that you can make the best out of this world,
  88. and realize that this world is a blessed world.
  89. If you pay attention to what's going on around you.
  90. And there are other seven ways, if you perceive this world in these
  91. seven ways, it will backfire on you and you will end up losing everything.
  92. The first seven ways, Allah SWT tells us
  93. that He created this world for us
  94. and He created us for Him.
  95. So this is a blessed place and that everything in this world,
  96. the skies the earth, even the atoms are glorifying Allah SWT
  97. by following the systems that Allah put for them.
  98. So this world is a blessed place because it was created
  99. with Haqq, Allah created this world for the sake of the truth,
  100. not for playing, not for having fun, not for wasting time.
  101. We seek refuge in Allah
  102. (Glorified and Highly Exalted is He above what they claim!)
  103. The second reason why this world is a blessed place.
  104. It's because in this world Allah SWT
  105. sent Prophets and Messengers
  106. and brought forth followers that followed them and scholars.
  107. This world is so blessed that Allah will send Prophets
  108. and Messengers that we should take as role models.
  109. Adam, Noah,
  110. Ibrahim PBUH, Moses, Jesus
  111. Prophet Muhammad PBUH
  112. May Allah have His peace and blessings upon all of them
  113. This world is a blessed place,
  114. the third reason is because Allah revealed His books
  115. and His revelation and He guided mankind.
  116. The word of Allah came into this world, which means it's a good place
  117. as it hosted the word of Allah SWT
  118. and we host that word in our hearts
  119. and we run it on our tongues as we do in the month of Ramadan.
  120. This world
  121. is the only way
  122. you can go to Jannah, to being with Allah
  123. You have to go through this world,
  124. in order to make it to the hereafter, obviously
  125. There are some children that die in their mothers' wombs.
  126. Those are pure souls.
  127. They come as souls, they leave as souls.
  128. But for us, who are born in this world, we cannot hate it.
  129. Actually, we should be very excited
  130. to do our best because the only way to Jannah,
  131. and the only way to obey Allah
  132. is to go through this world.
  133. The next good thing about this world is Allah made it
  134. the place of tests and trials and tribulations
  135. where the believers do good in this world
  136. and pass the tests in the name of Allah, for the sake of Allah.
  137. It is in this world that Allah asks us to stand up for justice,
  138. economical justice, social justice,
  139. political justice, spiritual justice.
  140. It is because Allah put a test on us,
  141. and as we can see, the hardest people today tested,
  142. are the people of Gaza, who went through relentless
  143. tests and trials and tribulations in every possible way
  144. and every time they are tested, they go triumph with the remembrance of Allah
  145. and with remembering Allah SWT
  146. and being steadfast in their faith.
  147. Finally, this world is blessed because Allah sent angels to it
  148. and Allah sends angels to take our Duaa, to protect
  149. us, to guard us, and to reveal revelations to the Prophets and Messengers.
  150. This is a place where it's full of angels as the Prophet PBUH said:
  151. "The sky is feeling heavy,
  152. and it should feel heavy because there is no place of one hand.
  153. But there is an angel
  154. that is standing up, bowing down, or prostrating, worshiping Allah SWT"
  155. What an honor to come to this world,
  156. to know Allah through this world, to worship Allah
  157. and to remember His name, and to be honored and chosen by Allah.
  158. Oh Allah, praise be to You
  159. We conclude today with the seven ways
  160. that a believer makes this world a good place and a blessed place.
  161. And tomorrow, Insha'Allah, we will find
  162. how people make this world a negative place.
  163. May Allah the Mighty and the Majestic guide us all, Ameen

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