Transcript
This transcript was auto-generated using AI and may contain misspellings. As-salamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu I begin in the name of Allah, the Most Gracious and the Most Merciful. And I ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to send his blessings and greetings upon our Prophet Muhammad salallahu alayhi wasalam, upon his family, his companions, and all of our righteous predecessors. Ameen. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says in the Qur'an, Alladheena aataynahumul kitaba yatloonahu haqqa tilawatih Those to whom we have given the book and we have recited it with its true recital. Imam al-Ghazali, rahimahullah, he commented on this verse saying that the meaning of yatloonahu haqqa tilawatih, reciting it with its true recital, is an yashtarika feehi al-lisanu wal-aqlu wal-qalb. Is to engage in the recital, your tongue, your mind, and your heart all together. In this, in these private sessions you're having with the Qur'an, you need to make sure that all of these human components that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala created in you are engaged fully in the recitation of the Qur'an. And then he broke it down. How can we develop this? He said fahadhu al-lisani tasheehu al-huruf. The contribution of your tongue is the proper articulation, is the elocution, is basically what we can express about to be the tajweed rules. You make sure that you're pronouncing the words in the Qur'an properly. So this is the contribution of the tongue. wahadhu al-aqli tafseeru al-ma'ani.
And the contribution of the mind is the extraction of the exegetical meanings of the Qur'an as we know it to be tafseer, to derive the meanings of tafseer from the Qur'an in the proper way. And then he said wahadhu al-qalb, the contribution of the heart. And then he mentioned four things. He said al-ittiaadu, wattathuru, wal-inzijaru, wal-ittimaru. He said the contribution of the heart is to get spiritually impacted, to be receptive to the meanings of the verses the person is reciting, al-ittimaru is to be obedient, to be submissive to the commands of the Qur'an. And then after that, even though these three components may sound axiomatic to us that on a theoretical level, for sure, we need to engage the mind, we need to read in a proper tajweed, we need to try to understand the meanings, we need to develop some kind of a spiritual connection with the Qur'an, this is pretty obvious. But then Imam al-Ghazali qualified this entire statement with a very critical qualification. He said that al-ta'athur, wal-istinaas, he said to be spiritually impacted and uplifted by the Qur'an, and to find the unz, to find the tranquility and peace while you're reading the Qur'an, is something that a person can find in the Qur'an only if that person is worthy of it. fa-fi al-Qur'ani ma yusta'nasu bihi, in kaana attali ahlan lithalik, he said in the Qur'an, one finds tranquility only if that person is worthy of this. The scholars have provided us with many tips and tricks on how to develop a deeper connection with the Qur'an. We can talk about so many different aspects of that.
But I would like just to highlight two very important points regarding to developing this deep connection with the Qur'an, and then I will go back to the statement of Imam al-Ghazali rahimahullah. First and foremost, your spiritual journey with the Qur'an starts with one important premise. This premise is appreciating and glorifying the source of the speech of the Qur'an. That you realize that the speaker in the Qur'an is Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. You glorify the one who is speaking to you in the Qur'an. If you actually can always maintain this thought while you are reading the Qur'an that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is the one speaking to me, and try to pause for a moment and think about this. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala laysaka mithlihi shay, there is nothing like Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Part of our theological belief in Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is that he is this similar to any created being. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has created for us ways of communication that we call languages. But we perceive theologically and logically that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala doesn't speak languages as human beings do. Yet we still have this book that we call the speech of Allah, the kalam of Allah. And yet we study in our aqeedah that one of the attributes of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is al-kalam, is the attribute and the quality of speech. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala described himself in the Qur'an to do this act of speaking, wa kalam allahu musa taklima, and Allah has spoken to Musa alayhi salam. So understanding the transcendent nature of the quality of speech of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, and negating any kind of created attributes to be attributed to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala doesn't speak in the form that human beings do, yet we still have a message that we call kalam Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
The fact that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has chosen to communicate with us directly, the accessibility point which Sheikh Omar mentioned today earlier, the fact that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has made it possible and accessible to us to speak with him, to resonate with his words subhanahu wa ta'ala in a language that we actually can understand being like Arabs or native Arabs or potentially can understand being given the blessings of the mental faculties of learning a new language, that it's a potential for every single human being to understand and unlock the meanings of the Quran. This in of itself is a blessing from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. It is something that if you maintain, as Imam al-Ghazali rahimahu allahu as well mentioned, he said if you maintain, you will get three things. If you maintain the start of always thinking about Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala being a speaker in the Quran. The one who respects and glorifies the speech he or she is reciting, that person will find glad tidings in the speech and will find peace and tranquility in the speech. And it's very unlikely for this person to be heedless and unaware and unmindful of the words that he or she is reading because they know that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is talking to me. And he added that qualification that I began with, In kana attali ahlan li thalik If the reciter is worthy of this. The most important point of this entire speech that I hope I can communicate properly to you is that ask yourself, are we worthy of receiving the guidance of the Quran from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala or not? Now just to give an example, if I recite one passage from the Quran, one verse from the Quran to all of us here in this hall. And we all share the same level of language and the same level of understanding the meanings of the Quran, of whatever prerequisites of a scholarships, language or any other qualifications.
We all share the same level, we are educated on the exact same level. Would the same verse have the same impact on all of us spiritually? Would we actually react to the meanings of this verse or this surah from the Quran on the same level? Pause on this thought for a moment and let's reverse back in time all the way to the very first recipients of the revelation. I think about the people of Mecca when the Prophet alayhi salatu wasalam started preaching the message and reciting the Quran to them. And to be more specific, I'm going to name two individuals that we all know. The first one is Umar ibn al-Khattab radiallahu anhu. The second one is Amr ibn Hisham. We all know him to be Abu Jahl. These two men, they belong to the same tribe, they were actually kind of relatives from the maternal side. Abu Jahl is considered to be the maternal uncle of Umar ibn al-Khattab radiallahu anhu. They both belong almost to the same socioeconomic status even though Abu Jahl was more on the elite side but they are pretty similar in that regard. Both were pretty educated, both were leaders of Quraysh and everyone had a critical role to play in that society. They both received the Quran, they both initially had the same exact react. Which is they were among the harshest and the most stubborn opponents against the message of the Prophet alayhi salatu wasalam and against the Quran. We all know the story of Umar ibn al-Khattab radiallahu anhu, a person who physically tortured the companions who believed in the Prophet alayhi salatu wasalam, a person who physically tortured a female servant because she believed in the Prophet alayhi salatu wasalam, a person who was going to kill the Prophet alayhi salatu wasalam intentionally and physically he held his sword and he was on the way actively going to kill the Prophet alayhi salatu wasalam, a person who slapped his sister because she was reciting the Quran and assaulted her husband,
his brother-in-law because they were just reading the Quran. And then it was that moment with full bravery of his sister Fatima may Allah be pleased with her, when she first told him I'm not going to let you touch the sheet of the Quran, we all know the story, and he submitted to her bravery and he went ahead, he purified himself physically, he came back, he held the passage and he started reading taaha maa anzalna alayka alqurana li tashqa, we have not revealed the Quran to you so that you be miserable. I know as a side point some other narrations mention other passages of the Quran that Umar but whatever verse of the Quran, it was a very unique moment for Umar ibn al-Khattab that he decided on the spot, a few minutes later he was going to kill the Prophet alayhi salatu wasalam, he decided on the spot to become a Muslim. And then think of the other person, same level of animosity and hatred against the Prophet alayhi salatu wasalam. But they both again, the Prophet alayhi salatu wasalam by the way made dua that at least one of them becomes a Muslim, Allahumma aizzal islama bi ahadi al-umarayn, O Allah make, grant Islam victory and support by at least one of the two Umars. Referencing Umar ibn al-Khattab and Abu Jahl. Abu Jahl chose the path that he will never submit to the message of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And Umar radiallahu ta'ala anhu at one point he submitted to this. What Umar radiallahu anhu reflected at that point is his spiritual aptitude, his readiness to receive the guidance of the Quran. Before that there was a lock on his heart that he intentionally locked. I don't want to listen to this, I don't want the meanings of this speech conquer and pierce my heart, I'm against it 100%. Again both people are almost the same, right? But at the end one of them reacted completely different than the other. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala mentioned a parallel to this
in the Quran by the way, wa idha unzilat suratun fa minhum may yaqoolu ayyukum zadatuhu hadhi imana. At the end of surat al-tawbah Allah says, when a surah is revealed, talking about the hypocrites, some of them would ask each other, who amongst you this chapter has increased in faith? And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala responds, again same group of people receiving wahi and revelation from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, fa amma allatheena aamanu fazadatuhum imanan wa hum yastabshiroon. As for those who have believed, the surah has increased their faith and they find glad tidings in it. wa amma allatheena fee quloobihim marad. As for those whose hearts are sick spiritually, fazadatuhum rijisan ila rijisihim. It's increased them misguidance and impurity. Pay attention that the reference is to the same passage and surah in the Quran, but the impact on the same group of people were completely distinctly different. People increased in misguidance even though they're receiving revelation from Allah, people increasing in faith because their hearts were widely open to the revelation of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. This all starts again to the ta'zeem al-mutakallim, the glorification of the one who sent this Quran to us. And this spiritual aptitude and readiness triggers a very critical question. And I think it was also hinted in a couple of the speeches today. If we think of our nature, our primordial nature as fitrah or whatever language we want to express about, what's the spiritual default for human beings? Are we born or were we born with proportionate inclinations towards the good and the bad and then we need to strive against the bad inclinations in our hearts and souls and making sure that we purify this and the concept of at-takhliya qabla at-takhliya as spirituality teaches us you need to purify your heart from all these diseases of the heart first and then you start acquiring and adorning your spirituality with beautiful traits. So the scholars of
spirituality actually have disagreed over this point. The majority of them said we were born pure, right? And they cited all these hadith about the fitrah, the nature that Allah has created people on. We know multiple hadith about the fitrah and how every newborn baby is born on the fitrah. But Imam al-Ghazali had a dissenting opinion and he said we were actually born with both inclinations to good and bad. Now pay attention the difference between both opinions is that the first views the bad inclinations to be resulting from external factors. We grew up pure and in the society around us, the culture, the way we were raised, the way we were taught, all these external factors bring all these diseases of the heart using the spiritual language into our soul and then we need to strive to dismiss and to purify ourselves. While Imam al-Ghazali thinks that no we were actually born with both. It's a natural strive and struggle that we find internally and he cited a very interesting proof. He said the Prophet when he was very young and that was part of the argument that he was even before the age of majority or the age of legal obligation or taqlif. You know the story when the angels came with Jibreel, they ripped his chest apart and then they took out this small piece of flesh and they said, right? This is the portion of shaitan in you and then they cleansed his heart then they closed it back in a miraculous way. We know the story one of the very early incidents that happened to the Prophet he was very young. Imam al-Ghazali made that interesting inference. He said if the Prophet had the portion of shaitan in him, what about each one of us? Right? He said definitely every single person of us has this shaitani portion in them as part of the natural way Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala designed them to be. And now the point here is not to show that both opinions are contradictory because you can simply reconcile between the two opinions
that somebody is talking about actual implanting of bad traits or behaviors and somebody is talking about the potential of acquiring these bad traits. But the point is both opinions actually agree that we need to strive. We need to struggle with the bad inclinations in us. And to move from this point of keeping Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala as the speaker in the Quran all the time, one other quality that you should maintain while reading the Quran that would help with your struggle and striving with the bad traits and the bad inclinations in your heart and soul is this what Imam al-Ghazali expressed about to be al-taqsis. When you read the Quran forget about every single human being on earth. Not only of your time, of all times in the past and in the future. Do not even think much about the earlier recipients of the revelation. Every single ayah in the Quran addresses you. It talks to you. You are the intended recipient and addressee of the verses of the Quran. You specify every single ayah to yourself. And I'm not only talking about the verses of commands and prohibitions. Even if it's a story. Even if you think the ayah is just relating a historic event that happened during the time of the Prophet a.s. specific to a particular individual. There is a meaning there that was intended for you personally. Imam al-Ghazali mentioned every story in the Quran. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala didn't relate it only for historic purposes. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala related it for a particular point of wisdom to the Prophet a.s. to his companions and to all believers until the Day of Judgment. You should find something in every single verse in the Quran. If you address the Quran in this way as Muhammad ibn Ka'b al-Quradi one of the tabi'een said man wasalahu al-Quran faqad kallamahu Allah. Whoever receives the Quran it is like Allah has spoken to him directly. So keep in mind that Allah is a speaker and then
Allah is not only the speaker to all mankind. He's speaking to me directly. Telling me this story. Highlighting this theological lesson for me. Or teaching me this thing about how to behave. Or teaching me this act of prohibition or act of obligation that I need to abide by. All these ayahs are talking to you directly. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala wanted you to be the recipient of the Quran. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala asked us in the Quran to praise Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for the blessing of revealing the Quran to us. wadhkuru ni'matallahi alaykum wama anzala alaykum minal kitabi walhikmati yaAAidukum bihi Remember and be mindful of the blessing of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for what he revealed to you. From the book and from the wisdom that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala put in this book. We ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to forgive our sins and shortcomings and we ask him subhanahu wa ta'ala to enable us to connect deeply with the Quran and we ask him to open our hearts and to open our minds and to be receptive for the guidance of the Quran. aqoolu qawli hadha wa astaghfirullahali walakum. JazakumAllahu khayran. Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.
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