# What Happened On My Birth Day? | Why Me?

**Author:** Dr. Omar Suleiman
**Series:** Why Me
**Published:** 2024-03-11
**YouTube:** https://youtu.be/L6caeSh2bd8
**URL:** https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/why-me/what-happened-on-my-birth-day-why-me
**Topics:** Afterlife, Faith

## Description
Birth is one of Allah’s greatest signs and miracles for us, and it encompasses so many blessings for you and your family. What exactly is the rizq associated with birth? What is the spiritual significance of the practices that we perform at birth, from adhan, to tahneek, and even the aqeeqah?

## Transcript
**[0:00]** Welcome to the world. You've entered it cold, unclothed, confused, but not alone.

**[0:17]** From your earliest moments in this world, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala was providing for you. He gave you the comfort of warm hands, the nourishment of sweet milk, and a body full of potential to grow and learn. Your sustenance was provided when you were at your most helpless, and even long before that.

**[0:56]** قُتِلَ الْإِنسَانُ مَا أَكْفَرَهُ مِنْ أَيِّ شَيْءٍ خَلَقَهُ مِنْ نُطْفَةٍ خَلَقَهُ فَقَدَّرَهُ ثُمَّ السَّبِيلَ يَسَّرَهُ Allah says, may he be destroyed. How ungrateful is man. What was he created from in the first place? From a drop of fluid, Allah created him and

**[1:14]** apportioned him. Then Allah facilitated the way for him. And the scholars say that has two meanings. The miraculous path out of the womb, and then the path of guidance He facilitated you to. But if he denies the first part, how can he even begin to appreciate the second?

**[1:31]** The process of birth is one of Allah's greatest signs and miracles. And Allah does not need the process, but He familiarizes us with it so that we can praise Him for it. Remember that decades after the age of bearing children, Sarah gives birth to Ishaq. The wife of Zakariya, who is in

**[1:48]** his nineties, gives birth to Yahya (عليه السلام). And then from the purest of wombs, Maryam as a virgin gives birth to Isa (عليه السلام). From the most unexpected of places, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala brings forth blessing. And that's the story of your birth, no matter how it happens.

**[2:06]** يُخْرِجُ الْحَيَّ مِنَ الْمَيِّتِ وَيُخْرِجُ الْمَيِّتَ مِنَ الْحَيِّ He brings the living out of the dead, and He brings the dead out of the living. But it's not just your miraculous birth, but even your story in the womb that shows Allah's care for you. ثُمَّ جَعَلْنَاهُ نُطْفَةً فِي قَرَارٍ مَكِينٍ Then We placed him as a drop of fluid in a secure lodging.

**[2:29]** Allah made the womb a place of safety and nourishment. And this is the same promise that Allah has given us throughout our time on this earth. He said to Adam (عليه السلام) when He sent him to this world, وَلَكُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ مُسْتَقَرٌّ وَمَتَاعٌ إِلَىٰ حِينٍ And for you on earth is a place of settlement

**[2:47]** and provision for a time. He uses the same word to describe the earth that He does the womb. Because Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala settles you and then sustains you wherever He places you. And He never takes anything away except that He replaces it with something better.

**[3:03]** That's why Ibn al-Qayyim (رحمه الله) said reflect on the fetus in the womb. Its nourishment comes from the umbilical cord as a single pathway. And then once the child is born, he's cut off from that pathway. And then the two pathways of milk are open to it.

**[3:18]** And then once the child is weaned off and those two pathways of milk are closed off, four paths are open that are even better for him. The meat of animals, the crops that grow from the earth, fresh water from all of its bodies, and then pure milk and dairy. And then once that person

**[3:35]** dies, those four paths are closed off and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala opens the eight gates of Jannah

**[4:12]** And if a path of rizq is blocked by His wisdom, know that He will open for you from His mercy a path even more beneficial for you.

**[4:32]** And that's not just true for you, but also for your parents. In fact, what if you were the sustenance they needed at a time when other doors were shut? While you were still in the womb, the decree of your parents was playing out and the shaping of your decree was en route. The Prophet (ﷺ) said

**[4:51]** that Allah has appointed a special angel as the caretaker of the womb. And he would say, my Lord, it is now a drop of fluid. My Lord, it is now a clot. My Lord, it just became a lump of flesh. And then once Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala decides to give it its final shape,

**[5:11]** the angel says, my Lord, is it male or female? My Lord, is it evil or righteous? My Lord, how many years will it live? My Lord, how much sustenance have You prescribed for it? And all of that is written while you're still in the womb of your mother.

**[5:27]** I want you to imagine every single day that you will live and every penny that you will earn was already written in the womb of your mother before you even got here. And Abu al-Darda (رضي الله عنه) reports something fascinating. He says that on the 40th night after conception, the decree is written down regarding the fetus's

**[5:48]** future appearance, their character, their lifespan, and their sustenance on this green scroll that hangs from the throne of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, just like a lawh al-mahfuz. And so while your decree is being written, the page is becoming older and more worn out until

**[6:06]** it becomes stiff. And then once your time on this earth has finished and you die, that scroll falls from the throne. But for now, you're still in the beginning of that scroll. And your first chapter is just about to begin. The du'a, dhikr, and hope of all those that came before you

**[6:25]** is taken into account in shaping you. And now it's your turn to come out of the womb and into this world. You're here now, and in just a few seconds, Shaytan pokes you, the angels stand guard,

**[6:44]** your parents rejoice over you, and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is still watching you. You're crying and everyone else is laughing because they know you've just been born into your new home and theirs, while you think you've just been taken out of the comfort

**[7:02]** of the only home that you knew. Then the adhan is immediately called into your ear, not just to resonate with that hard wiring of Allah inside of your soul, but also because the salah is the source of spiritual nourishment, which is more important than even the physical

**[7:18]** sustenance. Then the tahnik is done with a date to provide you that physical nourishment from the most simple of means. And in that is a sign that a person should be satisfied with the most basic of sustenance in this dunya, as they focus on fulfilling their purpose. As Aisha (رضي الله عنها)

**[7:36]** said, The Prophet (ﷺ) passed away from this world when we would satisfy our hunger with just dates and water. And what is the tahnik? It's a mixture of saliva and dates,

**[7:53]** which is essentially a date in water. Being content with what is necessary and removing what is extra is also captured in the sunnah of the circumcision of the male and then the shaving of the head on the seventh day. And the best way to remove that which is extra is with sadaqah,

**[8:10]** which is why we donate the equivalent weight of the hair in gold or in silver. Then the aqiqah is done, which combines the physical and the spiritual. It's a means of physical sustenance for the family and the community, which shows that children do not diminish our sustenance,

**[8:26]** but instead Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala multiplies our rizq through them. And that child is now the sustenance of the whole community. And so with the tahnik, the child is nourished, and with the aqiqah, everyone else is nourished.

**[8:44]** Don't kill your children out of fear of poverty. We will provide for them and you. And He bestowed His blessings upon you first by bringing you into existence.

**[9:00]** And second, through uninterrupted sustenance. But you're not just meant to be rizq in the worldly sense. The scholars say that the aqiqah enables the child to intercede for the parents on the Day of Judgment and become an even greater source of rizq in the hereafter. And that's before you do

**[9:17]** anything else of good in this world. But remember that Ibrahim (عليه السلام) didn't just sacrifice a ram in place of Ismail. He also got the blessing of Ismail being saved. And through him, an ummah was born. And when you were born, it wasn't just your celebration. Ibn al-Qayyim explains that the

**[9:37]** celebration of the newborn is also at the happiness of the Prophet (ﷺ). As he said that, I will be proud of seeing my ummah as the largest in number on the Day of Judgment. You have a special role to play in this ummah.

**[9:52]** That's why even the right to a virtuous name is significant in Islam. You are to name them after a quality or a person of quality. So Talha used to name his kids after prophets. Zubayr used to name his kids after shuhada. The Prophet (ﷺ) said, name them Abdullah and Abdul Rahman. Name your kids

**[10:12]** after Maryam and Khadijah and Fatimah and Hassan and Husayn. And name them after qualities you want to see them manifest in this world. The intention behind the name is a du'a in and of itself. So will you name something special? Or will you make a name for yourself by being something special?

**[10:31]** In the decree of Allah, you're going to be a force for something in this world. And it's not just the tag they put on you in the hospital or the name that your parents gave you that's going to stick to you. But it's the divine tag. Mujahid said about the verse,

**[10:51]** that every human being has his destiny bound to his neck. He said, no one is born except that on his neck is a scroll inscribed on it evil or good.

**[11:07]** The environment matters. But you can turn any environment into a means of elevation. And just as your birth was a rizq and qadr for your family, the family you're raised in is a part of your qadr.

**[11:26]** And who they are will in some way shape who you become.

## Other Episodes in "Why Me"
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- [When Life Comes Full Circle | Why Me?](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/why-me/when-life-comes-full-circle-why-me.md)
- [What Will The Day of My Death Be Like? | Why Me?](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/why-me/what-do-i-feel-when-im-dying-why-me.md)
- [Will Allah Still Forgive Me? | Why Me?](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/why-me/will-allah-still-forgive-me-why-me.md)
- [How Can I Accept That I'm Dying? | Why Me?](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/why-me/how-can-i-accept-that-im-dying-why-me.md)
- [What If It's Too Late? | Why Me?](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/why-me/what-if-its-too-late-why-me.md)
- [Do Good Deeds Extend My Life? | Why Me?](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/why-me/do-good-deeds-extend-my-life-why-me.md)
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- [Why Do I Have These (Dis)Abilities? |  Why Me?](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/why-me/why-do-i-have-these-disabilities-why-me.md)
- [What Shaped My Personality? | Why Me?](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/why-me/what-shaped-my-personality-why-me.md)
- [Why Is This My Family? | Why Me?](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/why-me/why-is-this-my-family-why-me.md)
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- [Trailer: Why Me? | A Ramadan Series on Understanding Qadar](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/why-me/trailer-why-me-a-ramadan-series-on-understanding-qadar.md)